“Ethan? Where’s Jack?”

The man just stared at him, his mouth parted slightly, his feet hidden by the underbrush. He looked so innocent, so normal. But it was his eyes that held what brought Charlie to decide that this man was evil.

“Where’s JACK?” he said again. Why wasn’t Ethan talking? He had the first words, hadn’t he? ‘Hello there.’ Well, hey! Funny, I told you that Claire had gone into labor and you didn’t even bring the doctor.

Ethan made no notion to respond. He began to approach them, the dead leaves crumbling beneath his feet. Claire backed up as he drew closer, but Charlie stood firmly, feet planted into the soil.

Come now, Charlie. Don’t make a huge scene out of this…maintain a normal conversation, don’t yell…ok, lets try this. “Ethan? I thought you were going to bring Jack back…Claire was-“

“She looks fine,” Ethan shot back.

Charlie blinked. “I know, but she was having contractions, and she could have gone into labor…I thought she was going into labor, but the contractions passed, an-“

“You were wrong.”

“I was wrong, I know. But I was worried!”

“But you were wrong.”

“She could have easily gone into labor, Ethan, now tell me…why didn’t you bring back Jack?”

Ethan had came to a halt by now, standing in front of Charlie, hands shoved in his pockets and watching the British man with interest. “There was obviously no need for him.”

“But there could have been, Ethan! Do I need to spell this out for you? Why didn’t you bring back Jack when I asked you to? Or, better yet, why did you stick around to see if Claire was really going into labor? There could have been an emergency!”

Ethan, yet again, would not respond.

“How long have you been here?” Charlie demanded. Ethan had simply spoken two words; Claire and he had bolted around and saw him there. Standing on an up-rose part of the path. How long had he been watching them?

Ethan still made no response.

“Who are you, really?” Claire asked, speaking for the first time. Her voice was filled with fear, evident fear; she didn’t even try to hide it.

“Claire, love, it doesn’t matter…” Charlie said soothingly. “Everything’s over now, your fine, lets get back to the caves. You’ll be fine the-“

Ethan suddenly burst into maniac laughter. It was terrifying, his deep, roaring, un-human laugh echoing through the jungle.

“Going back to the caves! You think you’re going back to the caves?”

Charlie paled slightly. “Yes, I believe we are…” wasn’t he? Perhaps it was that Ethan wasn’t exactly right in the mind, he could easily be challenged mentally or going through…what did Jack call it? Post-Dramatic Shock. After all, some people were having problems even after being on the island for a good few weeks.

“You really think you are!” It wasn’t a question, it was an exclamation of shock and humor, as if thinking that ‘going back to the caves’ was so freakin’ hilarious…

“I think we are!” Charlie cried loudly. He wasn’t going to deal with this anymore. He wasn’t going to stand around, waiting for permission to leave Ethan’s sight. He was his own person. Claire was her own person. They could go now, if they wanted. “Come on, Claire,” he took her gently but firmly by the arm and began to lead her past Ethan.

“Hey…” Ethan said, stepping in front of him casually. “Where do you think your going?”

“The caves!” Claire cried. Charlie gently prodded Claire forward, but his wrists were caught in a death grip suddenly and he was shoved away from the pregnant girl.

Charlie threw his hands back in attempt to get Ethan off of him, and it worked. His hands were free for the moment.

“What are you doing?” Charlie demanded, a hint of fear woven in his quivering voice.

“Charlie…” Claire whimpered. She was standing a few feet away, warm tears streaming down her face. She knew she couldn’t run if the time came to do so.

Charlie, eyes still on Ethan, edged past him, only to feel the back of his head being jerked back and fingernails biting into his scalp like needles.

He screamed, swatting at the hands that were attached to his head. Cold steel was pressed to his neck, startling him to the degree of which he decided to stop struggling. A calm voice was in his ear:

“Don’t struggle, Charlie. It won’t do you any good.”

Charlie gulped; his hands flew up to protect his neck from the knife. Claire didn’t even try to run. She was logical enough to know that she wouldn’t get very far. Instead, she screamed.

“Jack! Jack! Jack!” She repeated the doctor’s name at the top of her lungs. Ethan gritted his teeth as he tied Charlie’s wrists with rope that had seemed to come out of nowhere. The ropes weren’t that bad until they were tightened.

Charlie winced. “You’ll cut off my circulation!” Ethan didn’t acknowledge him, he was already approaching Claire.

Claire screamed un-audible words of protest as Ethan grabbed her wrists and tried to twist them behind her back. She struggled wildly, throwing her head around like a frightened horse and knocking her head against Ethan’s lip, causing him to curse loudly and throw her to the ground.

Charlie had thought about running and going back to get help, but he could obviously not leave Claire in a situation like this. But he had no control over his hands that were tied behind his back.

Claire’s screaming suddenly died as she was knocked out cold by Ethan’s fist slamming against the side of her head. Charlie let out a scream of anger and struggled with the bonds as Ethan began to tie up Claire’s wrists.

Ethan stood, facing Charlie and leaning forward to stare him directly in the eye. “Do as I ask, and maybe you won’t be harmed.”

Everything went black.

-LOST-

Claire moaned and tossed her head around, eyes still closed. Her hands were over her head that was resting on a hard floor. They were tied tight; so tight to the point her hands were almost purple.

She tried to speak, but found her voice hoarse and her teeth biting down on a wet cloth. She had been gagged.

Her eyes flashed open and she lifted her head slightly to look down at her feet. Her ankles were crossed and tied at the heel. She moaned again and let her head rest back on the tiled floor.

She closed her eyes, letting everything soak in. She was tied up for some reason, somewhere, on the island. Her eyelids jerked back in her head. Where was Charlie?

She titled her head so her cheek was resting on a cold tile. To her left lay Charlie, gagged and bound in the same manner she was. His hands were tied to the wall and the rope was attached to a large ring or other, and she suspected hers were too.

Through her gag, she managed a few brief words.

“Charlie. Wake. Wake up.” Her face was pale with fear. Charlie made no motion to fulfill her request.

“Charlie!” her muffled voice called through the gag again.

Charlie’s eyelids fluttered a bit, but were motionless again in a matter of seconds.

Claire sniffed. She was trying to hold back tears that she knew were coming. “Charlie! Charlie, get UP!” her words seemed completely clear now, at least to her.

Charlie blinked, startled. “Claire!” The ‘C’ sound of her name came out strangled and rough due to the gag that was tied tightly behind his head.

It was useless to try to have a conversation through their gags, so they laid there silently…looking at each other and speaking with their eyes.

Finally, Charlie began to struggle slightly, worming his body around and trying to pull himself up. Since his feet were not tied to the ground, he was able to roll over on his stomach with only minor pain to his wrists. Maybe a little rope burn, but that was all.

He then pulled his knees up, so he was in a crawling position, his face to the wall and his elbows propped up below him. He lowered his head to where the gag was reachable. His fingers gripped the wet fabric and yanked it off of his mouth. He was now able to begin chewing the bindings. Between breaks, he spoke to her.

“Did you wake up during the time he was taking us here? Do you have any idea where we are? Did Ethan ever speak to you at all before all this? What do you know about him? What’s up with him, anyway?”

After awhile, when the ropes were half way chewed through, he spoke of more positive things.

“We’ll get out of here, you know. I’m just about done with this hand, and then I’ll be able to untie my other one and then get my ankles un bound. Then we’ll get that horrid gag off those pretty lips and you back to the caves.”

Claire smiled through her gag, but the edges of her lips were raw and it hurt to keep a smiling face for too long. So, she watched him silently. Bit by bit the bindings on his hands came undone until the final thin thread that was left broke loose and his left hand was free. Now he untied his right hand.

Claire couldn’t help it. A large smile sprung across her lips. She ignored the pain.

Charlie was about to go for his ankles when he cursed at himself loudly. She looked up at him, confused.

“Charlie? What’s wrong?” Her muffled voice cried. What was wrong? Nothing could go wrong now…it just couldn’t! Everything seemed to be going for them so far. Please let everything be all right.

“Nothin’.” He said after a long pause, obviously trying to figure out what her strained voice had just said. “Just forgot about you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, don’t you think I should get that gag off your lips before I go for my feet? It’s only polite…”

Claire nodded wildly. But what did politeness have to do with anything? As long as they got free before Ethan came back, that’d work for her just fine. The crazy British. She recalled a book she had read once where a British man had been in a fight with another, and let his opponent have the first hit. Because of politeness. But maybe it was confidence…

Charlie edged closer to her and his hands flew behind her head, fumbling at the secure knot of cloth. Eventually, the rag fell into his palms and he tossed it aside.

“Let the bas-“ He blushed. He had never heard her curse, and was ashamed for all the times he had done so around her. “Let the freak know we escaped and had the time to fold up his rags…” Charlie teasingly and carefully folded both their gags and placed them neatly side by side.

Claire frowned.

“Charlie! We can’t waste time. Untie your ankles!”

“Right,” his hands fell down to his ankles and he pulled off the bindings and made for her hands. Hers were tied tighter, and more difficult to release.

“Man,” Charlie said, his face twisted in irritation. “What’s up with him? Does he want your blood to cot or something…”

“He knew,” Claire whimpered. Charlie stopped, surprised, and she beckoned him to continue.

“He knew this would happen, you’d free yourself and then go for me…he made sure my ropes were too tight…”

“That’s just silly, Claire,” Charlie said firmly. But he had to admit, her ropes didn’t seem to be coming free anytime soon. “Now, there must be something around here…”

“Charlie!” She was annoyed by the common sense he didn’t have. “Ethan wouldn’t just leave tools or weapons around here!”

“But did he know about this?” Charlie’s hand dug down deep into his denim pocket and he pulled out a small, marble, red pocket knife.

Claire fumed. “And you didn’t say anything about this before, and here you are, pulling it out of the blu-“ She couldn’t go on anymore, her voice was shaking and she could feel warm tears leaking silently out of her eyes.

“Claire…”Charlie said softly, picking out the small knife and situating the blade under the ropes. He slid it up carefully, the bonds softly breaking away. Her hands were free.

There was a thick purple line on each of her wrists, but it slowly began to turn pale again.