Benjamin Linus

Two days had passed since he had spoken with Cassidy, allowing time for him to make his neccessary contacts, gather information, and direct orders as need be with his members. Now it was time to put the plan to action and start the first phase of the operation.

The sun was just heading for the distant horizon, casting stretching shadows across the trailer park when an old cadillac tooled down the lane. It was that same car that had carted Conan to Mikhails, to Great Springs Hospital, and to the old house at Pike's Lake. The vehicle pulled into lot 23, where Benjamin stepped out and straightened a plain brown vest he was wearing, then donned a pleasant smile as he approached Summer while she worked in her garden.

The two had a brief chat, and were all smiles and pleasantries, before Summer led Benjamin to the front door and stepped inside the house. "Conan! A friend of yours would like to see you."

Conan*Raimi

Conan was paging his way through a book entitled "The Care and Maintenance of Exotic Lilies" when Summer's voice reached him. Her words surprised him a great deal. Friend? He had no friends. That was what made him scoop Raimi up from the floor, where the toddler had been playing with Conan's shoelaces, and head out toward her voice.

He saw the familiar cadillac through the window as he came to see what Summer wanted, and he froze mid-step, nearly falling over his own feet, he stopped so fast. Now he was faced with a dilemma: take Raimi out with him, or leave him here with Summer? He didn't really trust either of them... but finally, he turned about and awkwardly signed to Summer. Take Raimi for me... and... wait here. There were a couple of long pauses in this before he handed the toddler to Summer, scooped up the notebook and pen, and steeled himself before going outside to the man on the porch, not sure what to expect from him.

His was was stonily silent, but not unfriendly as he sized Ben up, and scowled to dismiss the fake smile on Ben's face. After a moment, he dared a word. "Be-en."

There was so much in the way he said the mangled name. Without ever speaking more, he asked what was going on, why Ben was here, what he wanted... everything was in that word.

Benjamin Linus

Summer was both surprised and delighted that Conan was trusting enough to place Raimi under her temporary supervision. She accepted the request with that unwavering smile of hera and moved to take the young boy up in her arms. For the short time that she had known the teen, she learned quickly just how protective he was of his little brother, and had been ever so careful not to cross the invisible bounderies and make him uncomfortable.

The 'friendly' smile withstood the scowl that he was getting from Conan, as if silently mocking the boy and acting as if there was no bad blood between them. "It's good to see you again, Conan." He gave a cordial dip of his head as he greeted the boy, noting the faulter word that was offered, but showing no outword surprise that he was getting his voice back. "I see you have Raimi back; you must be so very glad for that." He stated, his voice quiet enough to escape the ears of Summer, while holding an almost warning implication as he stated the last part. "And a nice family, a place to call home-" Benjamin looked around approvingly, "-you've finally managed to get things back in order, it seems. A fresh start in life."

The smile faded just slightly, but it was his eyes that encompassed a drastic shift in emotion, flaring with a look of warning and intentness, "Rasputin, you of all people know I'm not here for a friendly chat. I'm here to warn you that all of this - your new found life - your brother - this family of yours - all of it is about to be taken away from you unless you do exactly what I tell you to do." His voice had dropped into a harsh whisper, "Are you willing to cooperate?"

Conan

He remained scowling through this pretense at pleasantry, knowing, as Ben said, that this was not what the man had come for. And, though he had missed it in times past, Conan caught the shift in Ben's eyes, and though he could not begin to figure out what that flare meant, he knew it meant something vital. This was another thing to be packed away in his "Ben" file, and saved for later.

So when the man had finished, he wrote in those familiar, blocky letters. I TRUST YOU WITH HER BECAUSE I MUST, BECAUSE TO DO OTHERWISE IS TO HURT HER. I HAVE NO REASON TO TRUST YOU IN THIS. He knew that he didn't need to name 'her', and indeed had deliberately chosen not to, in order to protect the only person that both he and Ben cared about.

Benjamin Linus

Before ever coming to the home, Benjamin had taken the liberty to speak with Collin, introducing himself as a customer. Greg, Matt, and Nadeem were likewise subject to random chats with either Benjamin or those that worked for him, in order to gather up any unforseen leverage. Dozens of possibilities and paths had been plotted in Ben's mind before he arrived here, mentally preparing himself for just about anything that could be thrown his way.

Conan's refusal wasn't met with surprise, and Ben went on without a moment's pause, "And I wonder how she will react when she discovers that you and your brother have been assassinated by the CrypticSilvers?" He returned the question, bringing Aralyn briefly into the statement while also revealing that he knew about the incident between him and the gang. "Not only that, but it would be a shame that your new family must die along with you, just because you have some trust issues with me? Because you know as well as I that the CrypticSilvers will kill Summer, Collin, and Greg to get to you."

Conan

As well armed as he was against everyone else, he had learned everything he knew about coldness and lack of emotion from Ben, and couldn't hide from him the pain that came with his question. His hand went up to his shoulder again, wincing a little as the fabric of the long-sleeved shirt scrubbed against the bullet wound as he listened to the rest of Ben's words.

The movements of his hands were slow, and the words soft-edged, when he wrote again. SHE'LL BE UNHAPPY FOR A LITTLE WHILE, I SUPPOSE... BUT SHE'LL MOVE ON, AND BE THE SAFER FOR NOT HAVING ME IN HER LIFE. IF I'M NOT THERE, NEITHER MY PARENTS NOR THE CS CAN HURT HER FOR MY PROBLEMS.

And, to the second matter, he wrote quickly, with definitive movements. I DID ATTEMPT TO EXPLAIN THIS TO GREG. HE SHOT DOWN ALL MY OBJECTIONS. Actually, it had been Nadeem's words about Raimi's good that had moved the teen to action, but Conan wouldn't bring Nadeem into this, if in fact Ben didn't already know about it, which the boy frankly doubted. Ben knew just about everything.

Benjamin Linus

"You certainly aren't all eloquence and niceities, but here I thought you at least had some compassion for the people that so blindly took you in to their home." Ben stated in mostly in a casual tone as he finished reading the note, though there was a definite inkling of pointed accusation, which was all the more noticeable when he flashed his peircing eyes back to Conan. He had several angles he would try working at with the boy, and a guilty conscious was one of them. "I guess I was wrong." The paper was handed back to Conan, "I'll be more blunt with you - unless you cooperate, I seriously doubt you can protect Raimi from the CS. As of right now, you both are of top priority for them."

Conan

Something flashed in the troubled blue eyes at Ben's accusation, but he retained the control to keep his face stoic as he replied, I HAVE NO REASON TO TRUST THEM, EITHER. I CAME HERE BECAUSE I HAD NOWHERE ELSE TO GO.

And, to the second, more abrasive statement, he wrote some more, the words leaning again. I AM FULLY AWARE OF THAT SITUATION. And suspicion lit his eyes as he continued, WHAT DO YOU WANT OF ME? YOU DON'T CARE A FIG FOR ME OR RAIMI. YOU'D LIKE ME DEAD, YOU TOLD ME SO YOURSELF. HELL, YOU NEARLY KILLED ME YOURSELF. WHAT DO YOU WANT?

Benjamin Linus

The flash in Conan's eyes was marked, but whatever Benjamin made of it, he kept it to himself and responded only to the second part of the reply, "I want for you to take a ride with me. We need to have a little chat." He nodded towards the car, "Leave Raimi here with Summer, and inform her that you will be gone for just a few hours." He allowed a short pause, lowering his voice again to a hushed tone, "If I wanted you dead, it would have happened already."

Conan

Again he balked, and began to answer Ben's comments in order, something in his face that wasn't quite an expression, but wasn't neutrality, either.

I'M NOT LEAVING RAIMI ANYWHERE, PARTICULARLY NOT WITH THE CS OUT THERE LOOKING FOR HIM. I NEARLY KILLED MYSELF AND ONE OTHER MAN TO GET HIM BACK, AND I'M NOT LETTING HIM GO NOW. YOU CAN FORGET THAT.

And, in a new paragraph, more. I DON'T KNOW WHETHER I BELIEVE THAT OR NOT. TWICE ALREADY YOU HAVE MADE THE ATTEMPT, ONCE WITH A GUN WHEN I HAD NO DEFENSE AND COULDN'T EVEN RUN AWAY, AND ONCE WHEN YOU TURNED MY FATHER AGAINST ME AT THE LAKE. YES, I KNOW THAT YOU HALF-HOPED HE'D KILL ME AND GET ME OUT OF THE WAY FOR YOU, BUT THERE AGAIN IS SOMETHING YOU'VE SAID YOURSELF. I'M RASPUTIN, AND THE NAME FITS.

Now the subtle look became something more, what it had been intended to be in the first place. It was defiance that he harbored as he handed the pad back to Ben.

Benjamin Linus

An almost leerying, challenging grin eeked up from the corner of his thin lips, "You're saying you trust Raimi more around me, than here with Mrs. Wallock?" This was asked in the pretense that Conan had agreed to come along for the drive, even if he was still refusing. "You are still alive because I have no reason to kill you. But as they say, Rasputin, third time is the charm." Benjamin toyed with the idea of pulling out one of his cards, but held off for the time being. If at all possible, he'd try to get the boy to comply with the least amount of threats possible.

Conan

Conan answered Ben's smile with a scowl and another block of words on the clean white paper. I AM SAYING NOTHING OF THE SORT. I AM MERELY POINTING OUT THAT YOU ARE A KNOWN THREAT, WHERE SHE IS AN UNKNOWN THREAT. AT LEAST WITH YOU, I KNOW MOST OF THE TRICKS YOU CAN PULL. RAIMI GOES WHERE I GO, PERIOD. AND I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE.

To his barely-veiled threat, Conan had no reaction. He was well-used to hearing threats to his own life, and they no longer bothered him. However, he did give a response on the page. I FEAR MANY THINGS, BENJAMIN LINUS. DEATH ISN'T ONE OF THEM.

Benjamin Linus

Now it was clear that he had to be a bit more forceful in his messages, and Conan's adamant refusal to come along with him signaled the abrupt change in Ben's demeanor. His facade wasn't exactly threatening now; it was more of a iminent warning and intentness, that was protrayed even more through his expressive eyes, "Do you fear the death of Raimi? Or that of your friend, Mr. Tarak? Because they will die, Conan, just as surely as you will. And I am willing to bet that they will be tortured before they meet their end. That is how the CS works." He leveled the teen with a stare, and said in a vaguely reproachful voice, "I have had plenty of opportunity to kill you, and yet you stand here very much alive. Take your pick Conan - deal with the CS on your own, and let me help you."

Conan

Now there, Ben had him. One of the things he feared was letting harm come to those he cared about. Ben knew this about him as the man knew it about himself, and as Conan knew it about him. The teen gave the man a dirty look. Ben held the trump card, and he knew it.

His fists clenched in frustration before he lifted the pen again and wrote another bit of text. VERY WELL. AGAIN, I AM LEFT WITH NO OPTIONS. BUT IF ANY HARM COMES TO ME OR MINE THROUGH WHATEVER SCHEME IT IS YOU HAVE PLANNED, I WILL, I PROMISE, FINISH THE JOB I STARTED THE DAY THAT I MET YOU. IS THAT QUITE CLEAR?

He handed this carelessly to Ben as he headed back inside to take Raimi from Summer, signing to her as his did so. We'll be back. Ben and I are going for a ride.

Benjamin Linus

Even if he was grinning inwardly over his manipulative execution of getting what he wanted, there was nothing but seriousness written over his features, "You have my word, Conan. You and your brother will come to no harm as long as you do as I say." And he waited, while the teen disappeared inside to communicate the message with Summer, and retrieve his son.

Before going to his car though, Benjamin lingered at the door while the woman responded, "Ok, Sweety. Supper will be ready when you get back; have fun!" After handing over the toddler, she followed them to the door, where Benjmain held out a hand to shake.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Mrs. Wallock." He said, looking just as friendly and polite as ever. "And please tell your husband that the mandevillas are doing wonderfully." After shaking hands, Benjamin made his way to the car and waited for Conan.

Conan*Raimi

Somehow... maybe it was instinct, Ben's word didn't make him feel any better about the situation. Oh wait... that's right. Couldn't have anything to do with the number of times he'd listened to Ben lie over so many things that were less important. Even the seriousness that he could see on Ben's face didn't reassure him.

But still, he took Raimi from Summer, nodded his understanding, and climbed into the old cadillac, buckling the seatbelt around both himself and Raimi and sitting there quietly.

Benjamin Linus

There was no hinting of apprehension or impending doom about the man. For all the world, he looked like your average citizen, with a smiling face and a friendly voice. But as soon as he pulled out of the driveway and was gone from Summer's line of sight, the charades were dropped, and he was once more the cold and calculated face that Conan had met during their trials trying to save Aralyn. And the look remained as he drove all the way to their next destination... Nadeem's house.