Chapter 80

Locke returned, finally, and Jack and Ana stood, picking up their packs as he came into the clearing. He'd changed his mind about the hatch, kind of, after thinking out a plan; he hoped it would work but he had his doubts. He went to Jack and said, "I want you to go back to them. To Kate and Sawyer."

Jack was a little puzzled; he glanced at Ana before he asked, "Didn't you just tell me I couldn't go back? That they would consider me a traitor?"

Locke smiled. "You picked a hell of a time to start listening to me, Jack." Jack grinned at him and Locke continued, "I want you to go back to them and tell them I tried to kill you because you refused to go after Kate. If you play it right they'll believe you. At least, Kate will, and Sawyer listens to her. Lead them to me; I'll leave a trail even you can follow."

Jack rolled his eyes impatiently at the jab. "What are you going to do, Locke?"

He studied John's face as he answered, "Only what I have to, Jack." Jack hesitated, then nodded. "Good. They are at the chapel, coming this way. Ana and I will push on to the hatch, just follow our trail."

Jack glanced at Ana; she looked a little worried and not happy at their separation. "Be careful, Jack." It felt good to say those words to someone and actually mean them; she kissed him, softly, and he smiled at her as he headed for the chapel.

Locke called after him. "Jack!"

He stopped and turned around and Locke said, "Be convincing, Jack. Sawyer is a con man, he knows people, what they're thinking, what they'll do in a given situation and you can bet damn well he knows you. And Ana is right, be careful; if he thinks you're lying he will kill you." Ana paled a little.

Jack nodded, looking at Ana; he was glad that they had spent the morning together. The more time he spent as the new Jack, the stronger his feelings for her became until he was starting to believe that the two were connected; if he reverted to the old him she would fade. He understood, now, what she meant when she said the real world wouldn't let them be together; once he returned to reality his life and schedule as a doctor wouldn't let him be the man she wanted, the new Jack. Her life would be as demanding as his, they would drift apart and the something that they had here, the happiness and vitality that they were feeling, would be gone. Wasted. His resolve stiffened a little; the Island had to be saved so that his new life could continue.

Locke called him again. "Oh, and Jack," he said, and as he turned Locke shot him in the leg with a gun he had hidden in his pocket; in the trees behind him a little gold ball zipped away. Nobody noticed. "Sorry, Jack. Details matter."

Jack screamed as the bullet tore through his calf, ripping away a chunk of his skin and a good bit of muscle too. "What the fuck was that you crazy son of a-" He groaned at the pain as he bent down to look at it and he started to pull off his pack to get some alcohol and bandages out; Locke pointed the gun at him again.

"Didn't I just say that you had to play a part, Jack? If I was chasing you with a gun after I just shot you in the leg would you be stopping to clean it and put on a band-aid? NO! You'd be running for your life with your leg bleeding down into your socks. So RUN!" He fired again into the air and with a last sad look at Ana Jack ran into the jungle, his calf burning with pain as he tore through the vines and brambles.

Ana watched him go, and Locke smiled at her worried look. "He'll be fine, Ana. I know you dislike Kate but this is where Jack's infatuation comes in handy."

"He doesn't care about her anymore." Ana said the words but she didn't half-believe them herself. He cared and he always would; Kate was just something she was going to have to accept, unless something happened to erase Kate from his world.

"Yes, he does." Locke smiled kindly at her hurt expression. "But he cares about you more."

-----

Kate and Sawyer heard the shot as they were walking through the jungle, holding hands and talking; Vincent froze in front of them, ears and tail up as he looked off into the distance, he woofed at Sawyer and took off into the trees. Kate pulled her gun and Sawyer pushed her behind him as they went forward, carefully.

There was another shot; they froze and exchanged glances before proceeding again, slowly. "I wonder if that was Locke." Kate said, nervously grabbing Sawyer's hand with her free one.

Sawyer didn't think so; he had the feeling that Locke was trying something and he wished he knew what it was; as if in answer to his request the little bronze owl came flittering to him, landing on his finger and chittering madly as he listened intently, a grin spreading across his face. Shaking his head and chuckling he said, "Locke is dumber than we thought. He's sending Jack after you."

Kate didn't find it as amusing as Sawyer; she frowned and it irritated him, though he knew it was just a reflex on her part, just as it was a reflex for it to tick him off. Old habits die hard, he thought ruefully, for both of us. "Why would he send Jack?"

He shrugged, then smiled slyly. "He knows old Jacky boy gets to you, sweetheart. You still worship him from afar." He rolled his eyes dramamtically but Kate didn't laugh. Sawyer suddenly wished he had something to hold over Jack's head, make him as miserable as he was sometimes.

Kate shook her head. "Nah, it's something else. I think he's...testing Jack's loyalty." She grinned up at Sawyer, her eyes gleaming, and he grinned back, already knowing what she was going to say. "We could test it a little more for him."

"I think that's a great idea, Freckles, except I don't want you to actually touch him." She rolled her eyes and he laughed at her exasperated expression.

Sawyer held up his hand; suddenly the jungle was quiet and it felt strange; like the air was rippling and contracting around them. They froze as there was a great ripping sound, like someone tearing cloth; above them the blue sky ripped apart, opening up into a great black hole, completely black except for a tiny white pinpoint that grew larger as they watched; the day grew colder as it grew larger and closer; Sawyer grabbed Kate and jerked her away as something came slamming down into the jungle floor; Kate looked up and the hole in the sky sealed itself up with a zip. Suddenly the sky was blue and whole again, and the day was warm.

It was a small plane, a corporate jet-type craft, and it had remained remarkably intact after its contact with the ground. Sawyer and Kate eyed it with horror as they circled, trying to see if there was anyone in there; the cockpit was smoking slightly and as Sawyer found the hatch door and jerked it off with a grunt he said, "You stay here, Freckles and holler if you see flames, okay?"

Kate nodded and held her breath as he climbed into the plane and she watched every move he made as he inched up inside of it. "Nobody here," he said, but as he reached for the cockpit door there was a loud groan from one of the seats behind him. He turned but Kate was already inside, bent over the seat where a woman was twisted up underneath it, covered in a blanket and pillow and a suitcase that had burst open.

"Hey," Kate said, pulling the debris off of her, "hey, can you hear me?" The woman moaned and Kate noticed that she was stuck and she motioned to Sawyer, "James, can you help?"

He studied the situation for a second, then he waved his hand, concentrating with all of his might; the seats groaned and the floor beneath the woman creaked ominously and she cried out, though it was muffled a little as the metal seats gave way with a shrieking clang. Kate grabbed the woman as she slumped over, weak with fright and relief. "Is she okay?" He looked down at her with concern.

The woman spoke, regaining her faculties a little. "I'm okay. Just scared to death." She looked at the crumpled and bent interior of the plane. "What happened?"

Sawyer touched Kate's shoulder and nodded towards the cockpit. "I'm gonna go check it out."

She smiled as his fingers squeezed her gently, and she said, "Be careful." She watched him for a second, then looked back at the woman. "You were in a plane crash,"she said, leaving out the hole opening up in the sky and the plane dropping out of it; the poor lady was already in shock, she'd think she was completely insane if Kate tried to explain that.

"I-I was on my way back to Chicago, from Sydney. My ex-husband was in a plane crash a couple of months ago, Oceanic 815? I was there to identify some baggage and belongings, but none of it was his." She noticed the look on Kate's face and she said, "Hey, what's wrong?"