Miles emerged from the bathroom in his blue pajamas and slippers to find Sawyer sitting at the small table by the window, blowing a small cloud of smoke. "Are you smoking my cigarettes? And isn't this a non-smoking room?"
"Calm down Enos. I won't tell if you don't," Sawyer said, smirking as he took in the irritated figure approaching him. "I'll buy you a pack to make up for it. Cute jammies, by the way. You leave the footed ones at home?"
"You are such an ass sometimes." Miles stomped over to the bed farthest from the door and proceeded to pull down the covers and get in. "Wait, Frank isn't back yet?"
"No." Dropping the cigarette butt into a plastic water glass, Sawyer pulled back the curtain and peered out the window.
"Expecting someone?"
"Yeah, Frank."
"Maybe he got caught in traffic. This is L.A., it's been known to happen." Miles was sitting in bed, covers pulled up. "I'm sure he's fine."
"You get some sleep. Bags under your eyes ain't a good look for you. I'm gonna stay up until Frank returns."
Miles nodded. "I'm sure he's fine." He slid the rest of the way down in bed, beginning to drift off as soon as he felt the too-firm motel pillow beneath his head.
"Which bed do you want?" Richard asked as Kate was going to take her shower.
"Doesn't matter. Take whichever one you want."
He chose the one closest to the door, feeling that if something were to happen he wanted to be between Kate and any uninvited guests that may decide to visit. There was really no reason to believe that anything was going to happen, though. If he stepped outside the door he could see Interstate 5 just beyond the parking lot with only a chain link fence separating them from all the cars zooming past; hardly an isolated location. Even the sound of children giggling and laughing, excited about nearby Magic Mountain as they ran to and from their own rooms, served as a reminder that this was not a seedy motel and there was really nothing to worry about. Finally he laid down on the bed and pulled the covers up over him.
When Kate was done with her shower and came out, she found Richard sleeping. The sound of his soft snoring was comforting; as she got into the other bed it reminded her that she wasn't alone and helped her fall asleep.
Sawyer sat in the chair and watched as the digital clock on the nightstand showed minute by minute passing. He was tired but he wasn't about to even think about sleep until Frank got his ass back to the motel. It was almost 8 o'clock so traffic shouldn't have been bad enough for this. Unfortunately Sawyer hadn't bothered to ask if Frank had a cell phone and what the number was, and since the only car they had was missing along with Frank, he didn't know what he could do about finding the man.
It had been just three days since Richard had told him about Hugo being alive on the island along with Rose, Bernard and Ben. Three days to absorb that Jack had succeeded and the island was safe. Three days to think about how, after all they had been through and all the people that had died, all Desmond had to do to leave the island was walk through a damned door. Now he just wanted to go to the church and find out how to get back there but Kate's words still echoed in his head.
If Desmond could get off the island by walking through a door, then wouldn't Hurley have walked through the same door if he wanted to leave so badly?
Absently he lit another of Miles' cigarettes while watching his friend sleep. At least one of them was getting some rest. He had barely taken a drag from it when the door flung open and Frank stumbled through, causing Sawyer to stand and aim his handgun at the man.
"Good to see you too, James. Put the gun down," Frank said, turning to lock the door.
"Where the hell have you been? You've been gone for hours. And keep your voice down."
"I'm already awake," Miles mumbled, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.
"Hello, gentlemen." The voice belonged to a rather distinguished-looking older woman who came in through the door that Frank hadn't shut behind him. "Where is Richard?"
"Who the hell are you?" Sawyer asked, keeping a grip on the gun.
"My name is Eloise Hawking. You, I presume, would be James Ford?"
The name sounded familiar to Sawyer though he couldn't place it; Miles, on the other hand, recognized it right away.
"You're Daniel's mother."
"Hello Miles."
"You two know each other?"
"Not exactly," he told Sawyer. "I know of her because Daniel talked about her so much."
"And I know of Mr. Straume because Charles Widmore hired him to go back to the island with Daniel."
"So what is it you want?"
Eloise finally turned and made sure the door was shut and locked before answering. "I know that you all came here with Richard to see me so I thought I'd spare you the trouble of finding me."
"How long you been spying on us?"
"Since I became aware that Richard was using Mittelos to fund your new lives. So where is he?"
Sawyer continued to eye her so Miles answered. "He and Kate are in the room next door."
"We need to get moving before the others get here so could one of you go get them, or shall I?"
"Get moving? We ain't going nowhere until you explain what this is all about."
"If I take the time to explain it will be too late and I really don't understand why you're acting like I'm the enemy. You did travel here to see me, did you not?"
"She's got a point."
Sawyer rolled his eyes at Frank's comment. "Fine, I'll go get 'em." Eloise moved further into the room and Sawyer passed her to leave.
"I think I'll get dressed," Miles said, grabbing his jeans from where he had tossed them at the end of the bed and heading into the bathroom.
Eloise walked over to the overstuffed chairs and sat in one to wait and Frank sat on the bed.
"So, you been spying on everyone or just on Richard?"
"I've been keeping tabs on all of you for your own safety. If Desmond hadn't contacted Richard you'd all still be living your lives blissfully unaware of the dangers surrounding all of you."
"Danger from who?"
Sawyer debated whether he should use the key card or knock on the door; key card won and he slowly opened the door. The room was dark except for the light that came in through a gap between the curtains which hadn't been properly shut. He could barely make out that there was a body in the bed by the window and he assumed there was one in the bed closest to the door as well.
"Hey, wake up," he finally said, flipping on the switch for the light in the entry outside the bathroom. "Rise and shine, 'cause we got a visitor next door."
The lamp on the table between the two beds came on and Richard put the gun he had been holding on top of the nightstand. "You know, James, you could knock."
"And wait for you to decide whether or not you're going to answer the door? Listen, you two get in gear because I don't think Eloise Hawking is going anywhere until she says what she has to say."
Kate was sitting on the edge of the bed, shaking her head at the absurdity of all of this while the color drained from Richard's face at the mention of that name.
"Eloise Hawking? She's here?"
"Yeah, said she knew you were looking for her so she thought she'd save you the trouble. She also says we're in danger so get your ass moving."
"Who the hell put you in charge?" Kate walked up to him, grabbing her bathrobe off a chair as she did so. "Tell them we'll be over in a minute."
"Listen sweetheart-"
"Sawyer, go. If the world is going to end in the time it takes us to get dressed, then so be it."
Sawyer took a moment to study her face, clearly puzzled by her attitude but finally he relented. "Fine, I'll tell her highness she has to wait a bit."
He turned and left, Kate locking the door behind him. Then she sat beside Richard who had moved to the end of his bed.
"Hey, you ok?" she asked. "You don't seem happy about Eloise being here."
He managed to give her a weak smile. "It's been a long time since I've seen her. It's..."
"Complicated?"
Kate flashed him a smile and he couldn't help smiling back before looking away. "Not in the same way."
"You remember that conversation, huh?"
"About Charles and Eloise? Yes, I remember it."
"What happened? After I left, I mean. Jack told me that after Sayid removed the bomb's detonator and found the way into one of the Dharma houses, you knocked Eloise out and refused to go any further with them."
"That would be where it gets really complicated." He stood up and grabbed his suitcase, putting it on the bed to open it. "We better get dressed and get over there; Eloise Hawking is a lot of things, but patient is generally not one of them."