"Bitter Nobility"
Sawyer swore as another branch slapped him in the face with all the sass of an offended woman. Spitting out bits of leaves, he ripped the branch away and scowled at it. It seemed like every damn branch on the God damned island had it out for him. If it wasn't the pigs from Hell hounding him, it was every biting bug and it's in-laws attacking him.
"Well, that's what you get for trying to help, you damn fool," he muttered to himself. He should have just stayed at his ocean-side castle and let the do-good busy bodies play scavenger hunt. But noooo, he had to suddenly decide to be helpful. And what had it gotten him? A mouthful of leaves and a face full of scratches.
Maybe, if it hadn't been Freckles that up and went missing, he'd have been able to quash the flippin' nobility that had slithered up to the surface. But Hell, the girl just plum got under his skin. 'Course the fact that both she and Jackass were missing and last seen together set his teeth on edge. He was certain that the doc was responsible for all this.
Comfortable with this new target for his frustrations, he bared his teeth in a feral sneer and fantasized about the Boy Scout having been stung by bees in all manner of private places. His dimples flashed at the thought but the smile was quickly erased when another branch seemingly appeared from out of nowhere and smashed across his face, draping his head in a sticky spider web.
"Damnit!" he swore passionately and clawed at the offending web, certain he could feel the skitter of insect legs across his nose and into his left ear.
"Son of a bitch! What, even the trees are defending him now!" He pulled at his ear and shook his head, visions of spiders laying eggs in his ear, making his skin crawl.
He kicked at a rock in the path in front of him and wondered for the thousandth time why he put himself through this. What, did he think he'd be getting brownie points or somethin'?
He emerged from the canopy of trees and took a swig from his water bottle. Wiping his hand across his sweaty forehead, he looked at the ground carefully.
"Well, what the Hell are you expecting to find? A frickin' 'Kate was here' billboard?" he snorted at his own foolishness, pushing away the discomfort he felt at being useless.
The ground began to slope upwards and he navigated the muddy ground carefully, using the boulders for support. He had only gone on for about 10 minutes when he decided to give up and head back to the beach. He turned around and was just starting to shimmy back down the hill when he caught a whiff of smoke. He froze as the significance of that scent hit him. He looked left and right, trying to find the source of the smoke. Where there's smoke, there's Kate, he figured.
"Hey! Kate!" he hollered, the sudden yell startling a bird from its drowsy perch above. Any response was drowned out by the raucous noise of the bird.
He looked around, more slowly this time, but still almost didn't see the gap in the hillside. At first it appeared to be nothing more than a deep shadow along the cliff wall, but after getting another whiff of smoke, he knew it wasn't.
He scrambled over the rocks and roots that formed the obstacle course of vegetation, and was about to enter the cave, when caution took over. Yeah, real smart, boy, he thought to himself, let's go skippin' into the dark cave on Hell's Acre Island with nothin' but a smile. He quickly scanned the surrounding area for some kind of weapon, wishing like Hell he hadn't given the gun back to Dr. Know. Seeing a good sized branch, he grabbed it and tested the weight. Satisfied with its size, he plunged into the cave, the tree limb grasped firmly in both hands. After the brightness outside, the cave's semi-darkness was disorienting.
"Hey! You in here Freckles?" he called out and winced as the sound rang hollowly against the walls.
His eyes finally adjusting to the dim light, he could make out the smouldering remains of the fire … producing more smoke than heat or light. Squinting to see in the murky light of the cave, he felt his stomach drop when he saw the two figures lying motionless on the ground.
"Damnit!" He was too late, he thought, blaming himself for their deaths. If only he'd found them sooner … in time, he thought with self-contempt… But when he moved closer he could see the gentle rise and fall of Kate's back and felt a surge of relief. As his mind finally processed the scene in front of him though, the feeling quickly turned to bitter resentment.
Sure, he thought, while the rest of us have been worrying and combing the island, Freckles and Dr. Quinn here have been shacked up in their own little honeymoon suite at the Cave Inn.
Momentarily giving into the surge of jealousy, he stood over their entwined bodies and scowled. His face hardened and all traces of relief vanished as he stared at the sight of Kate, in Doc's shirt no less, snuggled up to Jack's naked chest, like they were Adam and Goddamn Eve.
Torn between anger and hurt, he grabbed on tightly to the anger … by far the safer of the two emotions. Why in the hell should he feel hurt anyway, he thought tersely, it wasn't like he had any claim on her anyway, like there was anything going on between them. Refusing to give into the inexplicable and unwanted sense of betrayal, he squashed the little voice inside that reminded him that she was the closest thing he had to a friend on this god forsaken island … that she was the only one who made an effort to understand him. But that was where it ended, after all … did he really expect her to choose a smartass conman over the goddamn doctor and his perfect little life of privilege? No, that was a just a messy pig's wallow of feelings he'd rather not acknowledge even existed, let alone probe.
So he slipped into the welcoming stability of anger and resentment, walls he never let get too far out of reach, and focused on the anger of finding them playing house while everyone else was panicking … hell, the way the others had been carrying on, you'd think the friggin' sun had been stolen from the sky. Well, he sure as hell wasn't going to waste anymore of his time on these two … he'd tell the others where they were and let them deal with these two.
He turned and headed for the mouth of the cave, when his foot connected with something on the floor, sending the solid object rolling nosily across the uneven ground. What the hell? he thought with a scowl. He stooped to pick it up and heard a sudden movement behind him.
"Who …? Sa ..Sawyer?" the groggy voice called out.
"Well now," he said, turning to face Kate, "having yourselves a fine ol' party?" he sneered, waggling the empty Sake bottle. "Golly, I sure as hell hate to interrupt your little love-in here, but in case you'd forgotten, there's 40 other folks on this island and most of them are out looking for you." He flicked a gaze at the remainder of their clothes draped across a rock, then back at her. "You and lover boy better get dressed … wouldn't want your reputations to get compromised, now would you?" he bit off scathingly before ducking out of the cave and storming off down the path.
Realizing that he was still carrying the tree branch, he angrily threw it into the bushes. So much for saving the day, he thought with disgust … a bitter outcast with a twig as a weapon.
He hadn't gone more than a few yards when he heard the sound of someone running after him. "Sawyer! Sawyer, wait!"
Against his better judgement, he stopped and turned to face her. She slid to a halt, her bare feet slipping on a patch of mud, her hair a tangled mass rioting across her shoulders … shoulders still wearing Jackass's shirt.
"I don't do room service, Freckles … if you're wanting breakfast in bed you'll have to find it yourself."
She scowled in confusion, as her sleepy mind tried the make sense of what he was snarking about. Shaking her head in bafflement, she ignored his sneer. "Jack is sick … really sick … he's been in and out of consciousness for the last few days and I couldn't get him back by myself… he's had some kind of fever …he was unconscious for four days …" she stopped herself, realizing that she was rambling on.
"Whoa … slow down .. you're not making a lick of sense," he said, trying to follow her jumbled sentences. It wasn't what she had said that had him confused … it was the way she had said it. He'd never seen her so frantic before … he'd never seen her scared like this, and make no mistake, she was scared now … he tried to ignore the obvious fact that she was scared for Jack.
He watched her take a deep breath and pause, as if she were counting to herself. Having gained some control over her emotions, she fisted her hands at her sides and said simply, "I need your help. I need your help to get us back to the caves."
"Caves?" he asked redundantly, feeling awkward and unsettled, as if he'd stumbled into a role he didn't quite know how to play … a role he'd long since stopped believing he was even capable of.
"The caves … he needs Sun … she'll know what to do," she said, a hint of desperation edging into her words momentarily. She swallowed hard, saying "he almost died. Sun will know what to do." Turning on her heel, she darted back to the cave without a backward glance, expecting him to follow.
Part of him was annoyed that she assumed he'd trail after her like a well trained mutt. But part of him, the part that he tried to ignore, was humbled by the trust she was putting in him … her belief that he could, and would, help. Maybe, that voice deep inside whispered, just maybe, there was something left inside him that was worth saving …