A/N: Ok, had a relapse of Jate Fever, but thankfully none of it showed through here. Instead I did a very bad thing and expressed my fandom by making a Jate banner. sniffs So sorry y'all! I let you down!
wipes nose
Anyway, enough of that, on to the mail bag, and then the next chappy!
hottietom: lol, glad you like that line! I like it too, obviously, seeing as its my msn name! Hehehe, I find the weirdest things funny, but looks like you do to! Thanks for the review!
Pen Lidden: Thank you! Poor Jack, and all he did was make Kate sadder. Better luck next time, aye?
Orlando-crazy: I know, that would be awful wouldn't it?
Supernaturalandlostfan: Yeah, a lot of people seem to like the crazy factor! Actually, I've got to give the credit to hottietom for that idea of linking Malone and Jack. The thought had occurred to me before, but I only decided to include it in the story when hottietom suggested it.
xXx-Destiny's-Angel-xXx: I'm glad that you think it's original! And, isn't lost all about spooky coincidences?
Lynn: A lot of the people are getting freaked out by the sickness, Yay! Hehehe I'm glad you think my Sawyer, Charlie and Kate are good, it might help that I rpg as Sawyer on two different message boards, lol. And, I am a Skater, even though I may seem like a Jater at the moment, it's just the fever talking, don't be fooled! And just to put all the hopeless romantics out of their misery, there will be a big shipper scene coming up soon. I won't say which shipper it is, because I am not only a Skater, I also ship PB&J and Shoone, so it could be anything! I've written it already actually, I just have to slip it in somewhere.
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"That's all that happened, I swear!"
Sayid watched the British doctor carefully as he finished his story, arms folded across his chest. Kate stood next to him, eyes still puffy from her earlier visit to Jack, chewing on her fingernails as she, too, listened intently. Richard stared back up at them, silently begging them to believe what he had just said.
"Well." The Iraqi finally said, eyeing the other man skeptically. "I see no fault in your crimes. You clearly didn't give his the sickness directly. All you did was physically attack him, tie him to a tree in the middle of the jungle where God knows what lives, and leave him to die!"
At this last phrase, Sayid lost his temper, which was not something that happened very often, and he took a few large steps towards the very frightened doctor, hands balled into fists.
"Stop, Sayid!" Kate stepped in front of him, pushing him back. Reluctantly, Sayid obliged.
"It's not like that." Richard explained after he had gotten over his fright. "I was never going to leave him to die! Just, get him out of the way for a few days."
"And what then?" Kate asked, clearly not buying his plead of innocence.
"I -" Richard began, then stopped, shame decorating his down-turned face. "I don't know." He mumbled.
"You IDIOT!" Sayid shouted at him. "What were you thinking?"
"I don't know!" Richard shouted back, anger replacing his shame. Anger at Sayid, and anger at himself. "I don't know what I was thinking!" His eyes were wet with tears. "I guess I didn't think."
He was quiet for a few seconds, hoping that his apology would be enough, and that would be the end of it. But no, it looked like the two interrogators expected a better answer from him than what he had given them. He sighed, recognizing when he was beaten.
"I envy Jack." He continued quietly. "He's everything I want to be. A great doctor, a good leader… before the crash, I applied for a job as head of E.D. in a big Australian hospital in Sydney. It was the job I'd been holding out for for what seemed like forever. Finally, I got the letter, which told me I didn't get it. I found out that the job had gone to a man, a surgeon called Jack. Thing was, he couldn't even take the job, because he had to fly to L.A. the next day." He smirked. "How's that for a coincidence?"
"You don't know…" Kate attempted. "It might not have even been him…"
"No." Richard shook his head, a wild look in his eyes from remembering his rejection. "Not possible. How many surgeons called Jack do you think were flying from Sydney to L.A. that day?" He paused. "I thought that if I could get rid of him, just for a few days, maybe I could take his place."
They were silent for a few more moments, then Sayid finally spoke, his tone laced with disgust.
"You're right." He agreed, turning to walk away. Kate followed suit. "You weren't thinking."
Richards eyes widened in fear as he realized that they were going to leave him there, tied to a tree on the edge of the beach, like he had to Jack out in the jungle.
"Wait!" He yelled after them, tugging on the thick ropes which bound his hands behind his back. "Aren't you going to untie me?"
This time, it was Kate who spoke, whirling around to face him, her eyes flashing in the late afternoon sun as she approached him once more, kneeling down in front of his so they were looking eye-to-eye.
"Learn from your mistakes, Richard. She said. Her voice was dangerously quiet. "Live them, and maybe, you'll feel some tiny fraction of what you've done to Jack."
"But I didn't mean -"
Kate pressed a finger to his lips, cutting him off. Her expression was one of disgust, fury, hatred; just a few of the emotions she was feeling towards the man right now. She rose to her feet.
"Like hell you didn't."
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"Sayid!" Charlie called out, jogging up to the man he had been hunting for. The Iraqi turned around as he heard his name. "Sayid, we have a problem."
"What sort of problem?" He asked the other man with a silent groan. The last thing they all needed now was another problem.
"There's another one." Charlie puffed, doubling over to get his breath back.
"Another what?" Sayid asked, but he had a feeling that he already knew. He just didn't want to make assumptions until he was sure what was going on.
"Like Jack." The British man said, finally straightening up. "There's another one."
"Who?" Was all Sayid could manage. If this 'sickness' was contagious, then they were all going to be in a lot of trouble.
"Boone." Replied Charlie. "It's Boone."
Sayid threw his hands up and muttered a curse under his breath.
"Great." He said. "It couldn't be someone who sits around all day, no, but one of the biggest contributors to our community."
"Sayid." Charlie frowned. "This is about Boone, not -"
"I know." Sayid answered. "I'm sorry." He paused. "I'm just thinking about the rest of us."
Charlie nodded. Suddenly, a thought occurred to the other man.
"You didn't leave him by himself?" He asked.
"No." Charlie shook his head. "We duct-taped him to a pole, and Hurley's keeping and eye on him."
"Alone?" Sayid asked, worried.
"Well… yeah." Charlie replied. "But he's y'know, restrained and all that, so it should be ok, right?"
Sayid paused before he answered them. Wiping the sweat off his brow with the back of his hand, he gave a single nod.
"I think you'd better show me where they are."
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Shannon pushed her toes through the sand as she watched the sun go down, the sky splashed with bright pink and orange bathing the island in a delicate rose hue. It would have been nice, beautiful even, if it hadn't been for the circumstances. At the moment, she didn't even register the beauty of the scene; her troubled mind was elsewhere.
I wish I could surrender my soul
Shed the clothes that become my skin
See the liar that burns within my needing
She hummed quietly, not actually forming any words, but the tune of her favorite sad song was enough to set her off. She wiped the stray tears from her cheeks and pulled her knees closer to her chest. She had cried enough for today, but somehow she felt like she needed more. Her eyes were sore and red from rubbing to tears away.
How I wish I'd chosen darkness from cold
How I wish I had screamed out loud
Instead I've found no meaning
It was so hard to come to terms with what had happened. This wasn't the sort of thing that happened to people in their family. It just wasn't normal. She knew that no one had cried (this much, at least) when the same thing had happened to Jack, but this time it was different. So different. This time the grief was on her.
I guess it's time I run far, far away; find comfort in pain
All pleasure's the same: it just keeps me from trouble
Hides my true shape, like Dorian Gray
She knew that he hadn't died… yet. Who knows how bad the disease might get? And if he did live, so what? He'd just sit in one place, like a vegetable, possibly sometimes managing a few meaningless words and attacking an innocent person? That wasn't living. He would probably prefer death.
I've heard what they say, but I'm not here for trouble
It's more than just words;
It's just tears and rain
"I'm guessing you heard."
Shannon jumped at the sound of the voice; she hadn't been expecting company. And, seated at this far corner of the beach, she had thought no one would be around to stumble upon her, either. Looks like she was wrong. Squinting against the streaks of sunlight cast across the sky, she looked up at the speaker.
"You guessed right." Shannon replied, allowing her eyes to wander back towards the ocean as Kate took a seat in the sand next to her. For a few minutes, they were quiet, neither of them really knowing what to say, or particularly wanting to be the first to break the silence.
"Have you been to see him yet?" Kate finally asked.
"No." Shannon shook her head. "And I'm not going to."
Kate bit her lip. Shannon sounded so selfish and uncaring for her brothers 'condition'. She wasn't going to tell her, though; if she was already upset, being accused of being self-centered (once again) would be the last thing she needed. Instead, Kate spoke gently to her.
"I understand that you're hurting, Shannon," She began. "But separating yourself from your brother isn't going to make you feel better." She paused. "Or him."
"As if he'll even know if I do visit him." Shannon grumbled. "It's not like he's," She paused, searching for the right word. "y'know…"
"We don't know if the victims of this disease are aware of what's going on or not, Shannon." Kate explained. "But how do you think Boone would feel if he could -"
"Shut up!" Shannon yelled, squeezing her eyes tight shut and grabbing on to fistfuls of her hair. "Just shut up! I don't want to, ok?"
It was then that Kate realized that Shannon's eyes were puffy. She must have been crying. God, what had she done? Why couldn't she just take a hint and leave her alone? She looked at the ground, embarrassed.
"I'm sorry." She apologized softly. "Of course you don't have to."
The tears had begun to roll quietly down Shannon's cheeks once more, but she didn't bother to wipe them away this time, or even try to hide the face that she was crying.
"I - I just can't." She sniffled. "I saw how seeing Jack that way destroyed you…" Kate pursed her lips and wiped a few stray tears from her own eyes. "I just - just… don't want that."
Kate nodded, understanding what the blonde woman was saying completely. She looked over at her.
"You want to remember him the way he was." It was more of a statement than a question.
Shannon turned her sad eyes towards Kate.
"You say it as if he's never gonna get better." She said. Of course, she had no idea. Kate said nothing and looked away. It was enough to get the message through to Shannon, and she looked away too, biting down on her lip to stop the tears flowing once more.
"Kate." Kate spun around at the sound of Sayid's voice. "May I speak with you?"
"Of course." She pushed herself to her feet. "I'll see you later, Shannon." She gave her shoulder a quick squeeze. "Make sure you come to dinner tonight. Starving yourself isn't going to make matters any better."
"She's in shock." Sayid remarked quietly as the two walked slowly off down the beach.
"Yeah." Kate nodded, looking sadly back at the girl, knees drawn up to her chest, staring vacantly out to the ocean as if nothing else was worth doing. "She's taking it pretty hard."
"It can only be expected." Sayid agreed.
"Speaking of which…" Kate began. "Any update?"
"Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you about." He said. "I have a theory."
Kate was silent, ready to listen. Sayid was a well-educated man; if he had a theory, it was probably closer than any of them were going to get to the truth about this mysterious illness.
"It became apparent to me this afternoon," Sayid began. "That the virus is probably transferred by blood contact. When the two hunters found Jack, he was covered in fresh cuts and scrapes; any one of them could have gotten infected with the disease."
"That's true." Kate agreed. "But what about Boone?"
"Do you not recall Boone gesturing to a long scratch on his face from the struggle they had had with Jack?" Sayid asked.
"Oh…" Kate breathed, covering her mouth with her hand. Of Course.
"So the infection is transferred from one blood to another." The Iraqi explained. "But, you may have noticed that Boone didn't get sick until a few days after Jack scratched him, yes?"
"The thought did cross my mind." Kate admitted.
"Well, I concluded that the virus must be either slow-acting," Sayid paused, giving Kate time to consider this, then he continued. "Or, it's possible that this disease is too weak to infect a strong human body; such as Jack or Boone. A child or elderly person may be more at risk, because their immune system is weaker. But, suppose a person's physical health is lessened, by say, an injury or flu… or an allergic reaction to an exotic plant." He raised an eyebrow at Kate, who's brows gathered in the centre of her forehead, thinking this over. "Surely, then, the virus should be able to invade the vessel? Did it not strike you as odd that Boone became ill so soon after he had the allergic reaction to the herb?"
Kate nodded. His theory made sense. After all, it was quite a coincidence.
"Which brings me to another point." Sayid continued, and Kate looked back at him. "Tell me, Kate, can you name one other person on this island who has had contact with infected blood and is currently in a physically weakened state?"
The sun had practically disappeared now, the only light source being a few scattered campfires further down the beach, but the fear in Kate's eyes was all too clear. Of course; how could she not have figured this sooner? It was so obvious what must have happened, that she couldn't believe she hadn't realized that he was in danger. Perhaps she may have even been able to stop the symptoms of the mystery illness, which had surely taken him over by now.
In a quiet, terrified whisper, she breathed;
"Sawyer."