Chapter 7

Present day...

Jacen listened to the gentle beating of the ocean waves against the beach, the incoming crash of sound and water and the soft hiss of it moving back out to the ocean to repeat itself. The soft beat of the waves was soothing to Jacen, a steady rhythm to set his mind to and stop him from wandering into the dark regions of his memory. Jacen welcomed the distraction.

He felt her against him, the softness of her skin against his. She was curled up in front of him, her back against his chest and the plume of her hair spread across the pillow in front of him. He loved the softness of her hair. It still smelled slightly of shampoo that was quickly running out, but it somehow kept softness to it despite the conditions. He moved his head forward slightly, nestling his face into her hair and kissing the back of her neck. She stirred to life, rotating at her hip and rolling onto her back. She tilted her head to look at him, and Jacen looked right into those big brown eyes and lost himself in them.

"Good morning." He whispered.

She squinted her face a little, "You're breath stinks..."

They both laughed a little, and Jacen sat up on the cot. The soft sheet that covered them fell to his waist. He groggily rubbed his face to wake himself up and he felt her sharp fingernails gently scratch across his back.

"Sorry, been a while since I've woken up with somebody next to me." He said, then swung himself over top of her and put his naked feet into the cool sand. He started to grab clothes from the floor of his hut and throw them back on.

"So is this like a reverse strip-tease?" She asked, curling up onto the bed and holding the sheet around her. Jacen didn't want to leave her, especially lying in his bed. But, he wanted to clean up and grab some food and water for them.

"Yeah, you enjoy the show?" He smirked as he pulled his jeans on and zipped them up.

"I've seen better." She winked at him.

He shook his head, smiling. He pulled his shirt on and wiped the sand from off of it. He looked down, "I'm going to clean up, then grab us some food if I can find any. I'll be right back."

She nodded her head, smiling. Jacen turned, and regretfully left the beautiful girl with no clothes on lying in his bed. He walked a few steps from his hut, then stretched a little and looked around. He looked down the beach to a few survivors he recognized, pulling luggage and few items from the splashing waves. Jacen jogged over, seeing Jack and the Middle-Eastern looking guy pulling stuff from the ocean and then taking a moment to talk to each other. As Jacen approached, Jack pointed to the loner sitting on the beach with his fingers taped with medical bandages.

Jacen approached the two of them, but the Middle-Eastern guy went back into the ocean to grab more things. Jack stood there, and then looked over as Jacen approached, "Hey, how's it going?"

"Fine, Doc. Why's everything in this ocean?" Jacen asked.

"Tide's increasing really fast, we're trying to get their stuff out of the ocean," He explained and then turned to Jacen, "How's your head? Kate said you fell and hit it the other day."

"It's fine, looked worse than it was." Jacen explained.

"Seems like you're always getting hurt." Jack smiled at him.

Jacen shrugged, "At least I'm not dead yet."

Jack nodded, "Have you seen Veronica?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Well," Jack hesitated to say, then mustered his usual boldness and said, "Claire's gone missing right now, we think she's been kidnapped."

"What? Who took her?" Jacen asked.

"Ethan, you met him?" Jack asked.

Jacen paused, remembering the conversation he had with Veronica on how much he creeped her out. Jacen shook his head, "Had a bad feeling about him..."

"Well, she's been gone a few days now and I was wondering if Veronica knew anything. I haven't seen her since she left the cave a few days ago." Jack answered, "You two should come back, and it's safer there."

Jacen nodded, "I'll keep that in mind, Doc. I gotta talk to Veronica."

"If she knows anything, I need to know it." Jack warned.

"Yeah, I know." Jacen grumbled as he jogged away from Jack who turned and went back to helping them grab luggage from the tide.

Jacen jogged up to his hut, and slipped between the hanging blanket and the hut door. Inside, Veronica flipped around, and Jacen froze. She had her jeans on and a white, dirty bra. She was midway through slipping her shirt on. She smiled at him, and then let her shirt slide down over her frame. She reached up and began to pull her hair back into a ponytail, "What, no breakfast? That's not very gentleman-like."

"No, I've got bad news." Jacen said.

The smile melted from her face, and she asked, "What?"

"Claire's been kidnapped."

"What?!" Veronica said and pushed around him, and left the hut. Jacen chased after her, and as she started to jog off toward the cave, Jacen grabbed her arm and stopped her. She flipped around, "We have to go back to the cave."

"Look, she's not there. There's no point rushing there right now, we know she's not there." He answered.

"I was supposed to keep an eye on her, I have to go back." Veronica argued.

"Look, it's done and she's gone. The doc said she's been gone a couple of days, or something like that." Jacen told her.

"Jacen.... I have to do something. Don't you feel like you need to do something?!" She asked.

"Yeah, but we need to think straight. We can't go running off into the jungle on pure emotion, we need to use our heads." Jacen said, "Look, remember what I told about the fence? Maybe Ethan-"

"Ethan?!" Veronica yelled.

"Yeah, Jack said he thinks Ethan took her."

Veronica shook her head and yelled, "I knew it! I knew he was acting funny."

"Look, Ethan probably took her where he thinks we can't follow. We can go back out to that..." He started to explain, and then quieted his voice so others wouldn't hear and get upset, "We can go back out to that fence, and I guarantee he took her out that way to get away from us. We can go look around and try to spot her."

"We should take Jack and others...." She said.

"No!" Jacen said quickly, "We need to be calm. We don't know anything, and there's no reason to get everybody upset. The two of us can go look around, and if we think something is up, we can bring Jack and Locke or whoever else you want."

Veronica shook her head, "Fine.... Let's just go...."

Present day…

It had been a couple of weeks since the drama from the bank heist had calmed down. The two crooks had been taken to jail, awaiting their court dates while investigators were probably gathering whatever evidence was left to gather. Jacen was glad to be home and away from all the drama though. He missed the quietness of his apartment.

He leaned back onto the soft, black leather couch and from the kitchen; he could hear his wife closing the fridge. She came into the living room, her dirty blonde hair let free and falling to her shoulders. She wore her blue pajamas and a white tank top, completely relishing the comfort of being home and having Jacen there. She curled up on the couch next to him, and took a drink of her beer.

"None for me?" Jacen asked with a smile.

She looked over, "Want one?"

He shook his head, "Can I just have a drink of yours?"

"Sure." She said and handed it to him. He took a drink of the cold liquid as it swirled down his throat, and the bitter taste of the beer hit him. He loved it too much. A part of him knew if he allowed himself, he could easily become a professional drunk.

He swung his arm around his wife, and she leaned against him. He leaned over and kissed the crown of her head, and the intoxicating smell of her hair invaded his lungs. He paused a moment after kissing her head, and took a deep breath of the sweet smell of her hair. She giggled, "You're so creepy."

"I can't help it...." He smirked.

The phone next to him rang, and Jacen reached over to pick it up. He pressed the cordless phone to his head and said, "Hello?"

"Jacen?" A deep voice asked.

"Hey buddy, you called me. You might want to start with your name..." Jacen said.

"My name..... is Charles Widmore," The voice said calmly, and alarms in Jacen head suddenly fired. He knew that name, remembered it far too well, "I assume you recognize it."

"Yeah, yeah I know who you are." Jacen said and leaned forward, his wife turning and looking at him. She knew something was wrong.

"Well, after that little adventure in the bank, I was told that my safety deposit box was never opened. But, when I go down there myself to look inside and verify the contents, I find it empty." Charles said very methodically and patiently, as if each word and sentence had to be uttered with careful precision. He continued, "Now, either those two bumbling idiots who tried to rob me were smart enough to hide the contents of my box somewhere.... or one of you three that were in that vault did."

"I didn't open your box, Charlie..." Jacen said, the shock of the phone call wearing off on him. Jacen didn't like this conversation or this Charles Widmore trying to intimidate him. Jacen's usual reaction to that was antagonization.

"I know you didn't. That sweet little girl who was working the bank counter that day did." He answered, "And, the police, assuming she was nothing more than an innocent girl stuck in there as a hostage, didn't even investigate her until I told them somebody had gotten into my box. Now, they can't find her."

"So, how do you know it was her? Or is it your usual reaction to start blaming the first person you think of?" Jacen asked.

"Turn on your television, Mr. Darke." Charles said.

"It's on..."

"Turn to the local news."

Jacen flipped the channel. They were coming back from commercial, and Jacen watched as the newscaster was gathering herself to tell the next story. As Jacen watched, Charles said, "The next story will interest you."

The newscaster finally said, "Right before the break, we were telling you about the double homicide on Adams Ave. yesterday. New reports now are coming in with the name of the victims. Timothy Markus Mayhew and his wife, Violet, were both shot in the head yesterday in their home on Adams Ave. Some may recognize Timothy as one of the hostages a few weeks ago in the bank robbery we reported on. Timothy was one of the men that helped detain the two robbers while authorities entered the building...." Jacen hit mute on the TV, and fought to control his anger. That was a friend, the older man that had helped him in the bank...

"Jacen, I know you're angry and rightfully so, but I'm talking to you right now to warn you." Charles said, his voice deepening as the seriousness in his voice increased. He continued on, "The woman who worked at that bank stole what I had in that safety deposit box, and knows I want it back. She's trying to cover her tracks right now because she believes I don't know she took it, so she had poor Mr. Mayhew and his wife killed. Right now, I'm afraid she's coming for you."

Jacen stood up, and said, "Why should I believe any of this? Why should I believe you? I don't know you."

"No, you don't Mr. Darke. But, I know you are my only link to her right now. She's coming for you, and if you die, she has no reason to stay in town. She'll leave with what she took from me, which means I may not see it for a long time." Charles said.

"What do you want from me, then?" He asked.

"I have a proposition that will pay well for you in the end."

"What's the proposition?" Jacen asked.

"I want you to get my property back, and kill the woman that took it from me."

He sat quietly in the older car, head leaning back against the seat rest but his eyes eternally watching. The cool night air moved just lightly through the driver's side window and circulated inside, feeling good against his skin. He had parked under a tall oak tree, the wide reach of the branches above him coating him in its shade. Even in the darkness of night, he was almost unseen entirely under that tree. He sat there, watching the front of his own house and waiting for her.

The conversation with the bank teller girl went fine. She mocked fear, saying somebody had killed Mr. Mayhew. She'd seen it on the news about his death, and now she feared for her own life. Jacen would of bought it if it hadn't of been for that Charles Widmore. Then again, something was fishy about him too. Jacen didn't know who to believe, but right now, he knew that he and his wife were in danger. Either way, whoever came to his door was going to be dealt with.

The blue van drove around the corner at the end of his block and slowly approached. It was the third time this van was driving by, it had to be her. As the van slowed and creeped into his drive, Jacen texted his wife that somebody had arrived. Inside, she was to be ready now, hidden away with a loaded pistol in her hand in case this all went wrong for Jacen. From out of the van, the blonde haired woman got out and Jacen realized she was wearing the same clothes she was wearing when she left the bank. Why? She walked up to his front door, continuously looking around and behind her. She was nervous, and apparently had bad intentions.

Jacen opened his door of his car, the lights above him, which normally shined brightly, were covered in several layers of duct tape and darkness was his weapon. He stepped out, and lightly pressed the door closed until it latched. While the girl turned and knocked on his door again, Jacen began walking down the street quickly and silently. She didn't turn, but instead leaned over and peeked in his window. Jacen quickly moved across the street and behind her van she just parked. He waited there, listening as her footsteps neared the van and she turned around the front of the van to get in. Jacen turned the corner of the back of the van with trained precision and pulled his pistol up, leveling it at her head. He growled softly, "What did you do?"

She was scared, jumped back and reached for her belt where Jacen saw her own pistol. She froze, seeing his pointed directly at her forehead. She forced out, "Easy.... calm down..."

"You're bringing trouble to my front door...." Jacen growled, "I want to know why you came here."

"Because I have nowhere to go..." She replied, tears welling up in her eyes. He'd seen this act before from her, and he wasn't falling for it.

"Stop it."

"I-I can't. Please, I'm not here for trouble." She begged.

"Is this how you worked Mayhew over? Faked some pity from him, and then shot him in the head?" Jacen accused her.

"What?! No!"

"And his wife?! Why did you kill her, too?" Jacen spat out.

"I didn't' kill anybody! You've got this all wrong." She pleaded, holding her hands up for pity.

"Why did you take it?! Is it worth their lives? Is it worth coming to kill me?" He asked, stepping forward to her. He'd spent too much time in his driveway with a pistol pointed at her. His neighbors could look out anytime and see him.

"I'm not here to kill you! I made a mistake, and I'm scared Jacen!" She said, tears finally dripping from her eyes. She shook her head, her hands still in the air began to shake with emotion, "I made a bad mistake, and I shouldn't have taken it. But... they offered me a lot of money for it. Now, they gave me my money but it's not worth it! I'm being hunted Jacen... and you are too. That Widmore guy wants it back, and I need your help. I want to fix this! Please!"

Jacen paused. The emotion in her was real. He knew that when he saw it, he'd worked security for people too long to not recognize fear when he saw it. She was afraid, and not of Jacen. He lowered his pistol slowly, waiting for her to react and reach for her own pistol. She didn't, she only stared at him with pathetic eyes and tear-stained cheeks. She was being honest, he thought.

That Widmore guy was suspicious and the entire phone call was strange. This girl, how could she of killed Mayhew? Jacen looked at her, and in his heart he believed she didn't have a murderer buried in her. She was just a girl that made a mistake, and Widmore was trying to benefit from her misfortune and Jacen's paranoia.

Jacen tucked the pistol in his belt, and said, "Who's hunting you?"

"Some soldier guy... he killed my boyfriend. When I went to Mayhew, he was following me. He... Mayhew tried to stop him, but he shot him then he shot his wife. I... I was scared, Jacen. I ran...." She said and let her hands drop to her sides. Jacen reached forward and pulled the pistol from her belt. He tucked in his own jeans at the small of his back, his own pistol still tucked in the front of his jeans.

"Is he following you now?" Jacen asked, and looked around. The night was still and silent, and if a man with murder in his heart was out there, Jacen didn't see him.

"I don't know... I've been driving for hours...." She said, "I'm exhausted."

Jacen pulled out his phone and dialed his wife's number. After a few rings, she picked up, "Where are you?!"

"I'm fine baby." He said, and then looked at the girl, "This is getting complicated. I need you to do something."

"What?" His wife asked.

"Pack some clothes, and get my money from the box in the closet. Get in my car out front, pull the battery out of your cell phone and drive to a hotel far away from here." Jacen said, and pulled open the door to the girl's van. He jumped into the driver's seat, and the girl walked around to get in the passenger's seat.

"What's going on, Jacen?" She asked painfully.

"It's okay, you're going to be fine," He said, trying to comfort her, "Don't turn your cell phone for anything okay?"

"But, how will you find me? How will I know what happens?"

"After a few days, go to a store and buy a pay-as-you-go phone. Don't give them any of your real information, make up everything. Once you get the phone, dial my number and I'll answer. If I don't....," He said, and then fought to tell her what's next, "If I don't answer, throw it away and drive away to somewhere else baby. Try again in a few days." He wanted to give her hope, but if he didn't answer the first time, he was going to be dead.

"Okay... Jacen, do you know what you're doing?" She asked.

"Trust me, Tiger. I've got this under control," He said.

A few minutes of 'I love you's' and other terms of endearment, and Jacen hung up. He started the van with her keys, and drove out of his driveway and down the road. Whatever course he was on, he was now on a straight course to a head-on collision with whatever was hunting the girl and, ultimately, him.

"So, what was in the box?" He asked.

She looked over, and looked at him a moment. She shook her head, "I can't tell you."

"Why?" He asked.

"Because, they want me dead since I know what it is. If you know, they'll kill you too." She said, and wiped her tears from her face, "If I don't tell you, maybe you can live."

"You're talking like you're planning on dying." He said.

"You have no idea who I've been dealing with. The people that want this.... thing, they want it at any cost. Those two crooks," She said, and looked over at Jacen, "Those two that robbed that bank... These people had kidnapped their daughter, and the only way they were going to see the girl again was if they retrieved what was in that box."

"How do you know that?" Jacen asked, but it made sense. Those two weren't criminals, they didn't act like or think like it. He knew that when they were in that bank still.

"Because, when I went outside, a man... he approached me as one of the SWAT guys while I was waiting for the real cops to discuss what they were doing. He told me that what those two were doing and why, and also that they had failed. Their daughter was already dead, since the authorities wouldn't let them leave that bank. He told me though, that if I did this for them, his boss would pay me a million dollars. I was already afraid of them, but when he told me the money, I... I couldn't turn it down. But I didn't want to hurt anybody, so he gave me the flash grenade and what to do.... So, I did it."

"Yeah, I understand." Jacen said, and nodded. He didn't know what he would do in that situation, since that was a lot of money. But, these people she was dealing with weren't worth their trouble.

"Don't worry," He said, "We'll get this problem solved, get whatever it is they have back, and then we'll deal with Widmore. Do you know where to find them?"

"Well, I still... I have what they want still. They gave me the money, and when I went to get it for them... That soldier guy came with two other guys, they killed the two men who were there to get Widmore's thing and then tried to kill me... They don't know where it is, that's why they want me." She said.

"So, why can't we just give it to them?" He asked.

"Because they'll kill me. I know what it is, and what's in it. Besides, that Moriarty guy already paid me the money for the item. That's why I went to get it, and I'm sure he's going to have a problem with me taking his money and giving Widmore his b.... his thing back." She said, almost uttering the mysterious item aloud. Jacen was hoping she'd slip up, but he wasn't going to press her about it. He didn't care that much. He just wanted this done.

As they were driving, she shrunk down in her seat as a black van was going past. The man driving stared directly into the van at them, and as Jacen and the girl spotted his face, she screamed in surprise, "That's him! That's the soldier guy!"

Jacen jammed the blue van to a stop in the road, screeching to a halt. The black van had done the same. He had seconds to react.

"What are you doing?! They'll kill us both!" The girl screamed.

"I'm a different kind of animal than Mayhew..." Jacen said, throwing the van into reverse as the driver of the black van got out and leveled a pistol at them. Jacen mashed the pedal to the floor of the van, and it screeched backwards toward the man and the other van.