Author's note: Hope you enjoyed the last chapter. Here's the next one.

Ernil i Pheriannath- I'm glad you liked it!

Damom- Thanks for the feedback!

Chapter 2 Payment

Charlie wasn't sure how he made it back to the Hatch. Beth's words still echoed through his soul, "Claire and Aaron will be the first to get sick." They were going to die, unless he trusted his woman who appeared out of no where. She admitted she gave him no reason to trust her. He had no reason to trust anyone on this island. But something about her, Charlie didn't have terror that gnawed at his stomach whenever his mind would let thoughts of Ethan enter. Even if she wasn't an Ethan "other" she still and most likely was with the group who kidnapped Kate, Walt and Michael. He also assumed these people where the same who blow up the raft and shot Sawyer. Although he really couldn't fault them for shooting Sawyer, there had been plenty of times the thought had crossed his head.

For a long time he didn't speak, it took a while for him to notice that Hurley wasn't speaking either. "You ok?"

Hurley was lost in his own world for a moment, "Dude, I think I have a problem."

"What's up?" Charlie leaned in.

"Sawyer smooshed a frog today, because it kept him up. I helped him find it because he found my food stash; I think he's going to tell everyone."

Charlie sat back on the couch, "What's in it?"

"Chips and some ranch dressing."

Charlie shook his head, "I wouldn't worry about it, Kate and Bernard have been swiping Apollo bars for weeks now, Claire's eaten two cans of peanut butter and Jake's been chopping down on that freeze dried ice cream. No one's perfect."

Hurley nodded, "Thanks, Dude, you ok?"

"Um yeah it just…" Charlie started to play with his fingers, Hurley's eyes grew wide.

Hurley waved his hands, "Oh no! Dude, if you say anything about Claire, I'll come over there and kick your ass."

Charlie's mouth closed. They returned to their silence. Charlie eyed the bookshelf, "you know what cracks me up, who ever stocked this place Lord of the Flies and Robinson Crusoe on the bookshelf. Two books about people surviving on an island."

"They get off the island in both books."

"Yeah they do." Charlie added sadly, he had long given up hope on a rescue.

He got up and turned on the record player, Johnny Cash's sad bitter voice filled the air. Most of the time Hurley would have argued, but today he didn't.

The morning came and brought Jin and Sun for Hatch Duty. Charlie rubbed the sleep out from his eyes and scratched at his head. He pulled his clothes out of the dryer, folded them He trudged out of the hatch and towards the beach. Maybe he would go back to the rock today. Maybe he would tell Jack about his encounter.

As he headed towards his tent he saw Claire holding a weeping Aaron. He longed to comfort his son, but he restrained himself. He was content to watch her long blonde hair in the wind, her pale skin glow, as she comforted her child. He watched her sway back and forth.

Then she collapsed. Screams calling her name echoed over the beach. Locke was the first to reach her, a crowd started to form. Charlie raced towards Claire but lingered in the back.

Locke placed his hands over her forehead and repeated the process for the baby. "Go get Jack, they're burning up."

Fever.

They've got a fever.

Mind racing, leg muscles burning Charlie sprinted into the jungle. He vaguely recalled Sayid screaming his name. He could only imagine the chaos on the beach, maybe even disappointment from the rest, "How could he leave, she needs him now." He pushed those thoughts out of his mind for a while, knowing full well they'll return as soon as he brought help. He'll have a lot of explaining to do, Jack's going to be pissed, and there was a good possibility Claire would never speak to him again. But if it meant she would live, then it would all be worth it.

There were brief moments when all the trees looked the same and he was dizzy with confusion. But he quickly found his landmarks and headed towards hope. Beth.

The uphill sprint was the hardest, his muscles throbbed and cramped, but after he had to save Aaron from Crazy French Lady he swore he would get into better shape. He started running in the mornings before the rest of the camp stirred, mostly because he was afraid the other would laugh at the sight of a skinny bloke trying to buff up. Right now, he was grateful. Once he reached the peak, he scanned the valley. He saw an area shaped and cut from the jungle, with a combination of sliding, stumbling and sprinting, he made it down into the valley.

He heard, "Halt!" repeated several times over.

He was out of breathe, "Pl..please, I nneeed to speak to Beth." He huff and puffed, "Please someone tell her 'Isis is coming' I can get you a tee time on the golf course." He felt ridiculous saying it, but one man's eyes became enlarged and he disappeared. The other men, held him at gun point, he counted at least twenty. His breathing was shallow and black spots filled his vision.

"Charlie!" Beth cried out her hands braced his arms. "Is everything ok? Well no I guess it wouldn't be. Is it Claire?"

Charlie nodded, but stared down at his feet, afraid if he looked up to fast he would pass out.

She gave him some water and he lapped it up. "Come on, let's go."

The race started again, this time it was mostly down hill and he had back up.

The Hatch, Jack took everyone whose hurt back to the Hatch. He didn't speak to Beth or the other two women she brought with her, she tried to make conversation but he couldn't speak.

His legs were getting weaker by the second, but hope appeared when he saw the Hatch door.

With the last of his strength he opened the door. It was full with people, Jack, Locke, Sun, Hurley and Sayid. Like birds watching airplanes go by, all heads turned to Charlie. The same dumfounded look appeared on all of the faces.

Jack, as always spoke first, "Charlie where the hell have you been?"

Charlie pointed behind with his thumb and flopped down on the chair near the stereo.

The three "other" women entered the hatch, determination and uncertainty in their eyes.

"Um Charlie, who are these ladies?" Locked asked wide-eyed.

Charlie shook his head, "I don't know, but the one with long red hair is Beth."

Sayid and Jack nearly jumped down Charlie's throat in unison.

"Why would you bring strangers here?"

"They're "Others" what are you thinking?"

Charlie fought his lungs for air and really didn't have the energy to explain. He looked sadly at Beth, hoping, praying for the help he so desperately needed.

She stepped forward, "My name is Beth, these are my sisters, Jo," she pointed to the tallest and the reddest hair, " and this is my youngest sister, Amy." Amy waved. "We've been on the island our whole lives, and survived the sickness. Jack, we know how to cure it, if you don't let us teach you, you'll lose half your population in two weeks."

Concerned and untrusting glances were exchanged, between Jack, Locke and Sayid. Jack sighed seeing no other option. "Come on."

The three women stepped up and followed Jack to the bedroom where Claire had been lying and trying to comfort Aaron's sobbing body.

She started to panic when she saw the three women, unrecognizable meant they were "Others."

Beth spoke in a calm voice, "Hello, my name's Beth and I'm here to help." Claire clung to Aaron closer. Jack and Locke stood behind the women; Charlie now that he had regained some of his strength lingered behind, again.

Beth's voice became more soothing, "What's your name?" Charlie knew full well she knew, but she wanted to give Claire a chance to answer.

Locke spoke up, "It's Claire."

Beth nodded, "Claire, how long have you been feeling sick?" She kept her distance but kneeled down closer to the bed.

"Since sunrise," her voice quiet and shaken.

"Ok, our first priority is to make you and your baby better. Our second priority is to make you feel safe. So here's what we're going to do. Amy's my sister and an excellent doctor. She's going to work with Jack and take him through step by step on how to help you feel better, but she won't touch you. Since you don't know us, I think that's the way it should be; you don't want some stranger touching you, do you?"

Claire shook her head. Beth smiled, "Now I need you to pick two people you trust with your baby."

Claire scanned the crowd; her eyes briefly glanced over Charlie as a tiny flicker of a smile crossed his lips. "Sun and Locke." Claire said with certainty.

Charlie's heart clenched and broke into one hundred and eight pieces. He quickly turned away and headed towards the couch. He placed his head in his hands and stared at the floor. Sayid's eyes followed Charlie and Hurley patted him on the back, "Sorry, Dude." Even Locke's sympathies gleamed through; he made a note to speak to Charlie about what transpired to ensure him nothing was happening between him and Claire. It was a bond between men and it needed to be strong.

Even Beth's eyes flickered of betrayal but her face and voice didn't show it, "Ok, one of them will hold the baby the other will follow my orders and treat the baby. We're going to be in the room right next to you and if you ever want to see your baby, just ask and we'll walk him in here, ok?"

Claire nodded but looked at the oldest sister, "What's she for?"

"Just like I want you to feel safe, I want my sister to feel safe and there's no one better at that then Jo. She won't hurt anyone unless we feel threatened, and I'll be honest, it takes a lot to scare us."

Everyone took their places, Jack told Hurley he could leave, but he choose to stay behind, when he saw Charlie shaking slightly.

Jo placed around the hatch, looking at all the books and smirk crossed, "Hey, Beth, they have Lord of the Flies and Robinson Crusoe!" Beth stepped out of the room for a second beaming, "No way! Got to love that sense of humor."

Hurley looked over to Charlie whose only reaction was a brief lull in shaking. Claire had forsaken him.

Minutes ticked on, Jack asked Hurley to go get Apollo bars out of the food storage area. It was an odd request, but it had been an odd day. He returned with eight bars and Jack frowned, "That's all we have left?"

"Uh yeah, sorry Dude, someone must have been eating them." Hurley scratched at his head.

"Damn it Kate." Jack muttered.

No one questioned, Charlie where these women had come from, Sayid keep eyeing up Charlie for answers but his eyes remained firmly planted on the ground.

Jo walked over to the young Brit and told him he should walk around, stretch maybe, drink lots of water, he didn't want to get leg cramps. This earned her a glance and a "Maybe," but he didn't move from his chair.

A few minute later Aaron started to screech, ear rupturing screams. Charlie jumped up from the couch and rushed to the child's side.

"CHARLIE, STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM MY BABY!" Claire screamed.

Charlie froze and retreated, his movement reminiscent of a beaten dog; he leaned against the bookshelf to hold himself up.

Jo jumped up, "Stop being such a bitch! He just ran through the jungle, uphill for you and your baby…"

Charlie in a low voice quiet enough for his defender to hear, but no one else, "She's scared."

Jo turned and looked at Charlie as if he had gone mad. Beth stepped out of her room, "She's scared Jo, she's sick and so is her baby. It's not a good day. I seem to recall when you were sick, you weren't exactly the most pleasant person to be around."

Jo settled down next Hurley. Charlie called with desperation in his voice, to Locke, "Rub his belly, when he stops fussing tickle his left foot."

Within minutes the baby's cries had ended. Claire bit back her bitter tears, hating that Charlie knew her baby better then she did. She pleaded with Jack, "Please send him away. I don't want him here."

Jack shook his head, "No." Jack refused to let the matter be brought up again.

The alarm went off and the three strange girls stirred and looked around. Sayid got up, typed the code and returned to his seat. He noticed whenever Jo wasn't pacing she was staring at him and biting her lower lip.

"Can I help you?" He asked.

In a low, sexy voice, "No, but maybe I can help you, healing after losing someone you love can be so tough…"

Amy bellowed, "Oh my God, you're such a slut!"

"Shut up I am NOT!"

Beth smirked, ""You're Super Slut! You need a cape and boots."

Jo's eyes filled with horror as Hurley and Sayid tried to hid their laughter.

Charlie scrubbed his face, "Well the March girls didn't talk like that, they were little women."

Locke came out of the room, holding Aaron, "Little Women, these girls were named after the characters form Little Woman, it's been driving me nuts for the past hour, thanks' Charlie."

"You read Little Women?" Hurley questioned.

Charlie shrugged, "Liam needed his book report done and I didn't want to do any chores for a month."

The next few minutes remained quiet. The Hatch door opened and Jo went to check it out.

"Girls, how you doing in here?" She called back.

"Almost done, why?" Amy called back.

"We've got trouble."

Three words drove everyone to stand up and face the hallway. Watching them was a man, Jack and Locke had seen before, burly beard, mad eyes, muscular built. He was the man Sawyer had called, Zeke, the one who kidnapped Kate.

"What the Hell is going on?" Zeke asked.

Jo smiled shyly, "Hi Daddy."

Jack's jaw dropped, "'Daddy'"

His rage was palatable, "Josephine get over here. Amy you too. BBBEEETTHH!"

The three girls lined up, two out of the three looked shamefaced, but the middle child stared her father down.

He chose his words very carefully as he address his daughters and ignoring the other people who surrounded him. He spoke like ice on glass, "They broke the treaty."

Beth spoke, "No, Dad, you did. Charlie never crossed onto our land and we were invited, you're the one breaking your own treaty."

He glared at his youngest, "Amy, my youngest, most loyal and treasured child, can you tell me what's going on here?"

Amy stared at her feet, "I can tell you what's NOT going on. I definitely did NOT tell Jack how to save the rest of his people from the Sickness for some Apollo bars."

Beth pinched her nose and sighed, Jo slapped her head "You're so bad at that!"

The father turned his attentions to his eldest daughter, "Would you care to fill me in?"

Jo pointed to her other sisters, "Amy called me a slut!"

For the first time since he had learned Claire was sick, Charlie smirked. Beth covered her face in her hands, "Dear God this is embarrassing." She looked up at her father, "Could you humiliate us some place that isn't so public!"

"Very Well. Mr. Locke, Jack, Charlie, you come with us."

The three men didn't stir at first but then realized that angry of a father was something not to be trifled with.

They stood on the outside of the Hatch. "Bethany, why?"

Her ice eyes matched her father's, "Because you're wrong and you know it."

The father tapped his foot, "You think I'm wrong?"

"Yes I do."

"Did you even discuss payment with him before you rushed to his aid? The Debt still needs to be paid" The father peered into his daughters eyes. For the first time, she looked away.

Charlie had the feeling "Zeke" was talking about him but he couldn't place why.

The father nodded, "I see." He looked up at Charlie, "Nothing on this island is free, we saved a life and we'll take one. Go get the baby."

Charlie lodged at the older man, "NO!"

Before Charlie could get close, Zeke punched him in the stomach. Charlie fell, all the wind knocked out of him. Zeke stood over him, Charlie glazed up at the monster man. His voice was desperate but strong, "Please don't touch Aaron or Claire. If there's a debt to be paid, I'll pay it."

One eyebrow rose on older man's hair face, "Are you the husband?"

Charlie stared at the ground and weakly answered, "No."

"Are you the father?"

In a low quiet voice, sad and bitter, as if it was the first time he admitted it aloud, "No."

Zeke studied Charlie and said, "Interesting. What can you do?"

Charlie looked up confused, Beth answered for him, "He's a musician."

Any respect Zeke had for Charlie was washed away, he looked at his middle daughter, "We're on a deserted Island what the hell good is a musician? A doctor makes sense but a musician? Are you kidding me?"

Beth piped in again, "He can teach the children how to play an instrument, what do you play?"

It was still hard for him to speak, "Bass, guitar, drums, piano…"

Beth's eyes lit up, "He can teach the children the piano, studies show if a child learns out to play an instrument they will achieve more and …"

"Fine. But he lives here, I'm not wasting my food on a musician." He glared down at Charlie. "Come tomorrow to the bottom of the hill, before the Valley, noon." He looked at Locke and Jack. "No weapons. I'll shoot him myself and collect payment "another" way, if I find a weapon on any of you. He will come into our valley alone, six hours later you will pick him up. Understood?"

Locke asked the question that plagued his mind, "How long until the debt is paid off?"

A devilish smile crossed the bearded man's face, "For the rest of his life," he turned away and herding his daughters along, "and on this island, that won't be very long."

Beth gave Charlie a sad backwards glance as she disappeared into the jungle.

Jack spoke with pain and disappointment in his voice, "Oh Charlie, what have you done?"