Flashback: After seeing his father inside the Others’ compound, Locke relocates with the rest of them. Ben tells Locke of Juliet’s undercover work on the beach camp, and then demands that Locke kill his father in order to finally put his old life behind him. Ben calls it an act of free will and a sign of commitment – but it’s an act that Locke can not bring himself to perform. Ben claims that this means that Locke is not the person the group thought he was. The next day, Richard Alpert confides in Locke that Ben wanted to humiliate Locke, to reduce the threat to his authority. Alpert knows that the only way Locke will be able to do what he is meant to do is for his father to die. So he gives Locke a file that indicates that one of his fellow survivors might be the man for the job. The next day, Ben and the Others break camp, and tell Locke not to bother following them unless he has his father’s body in tow.
The Island: Naomi, the parachutist, tells her rescuers that Penn Widmore hired her company to do a detailed search around specific coordinates. Until Naomi happened to see the island, just before her copter failed, she thought it was a wild goose chase. She also tells them that Oceanic Flight 815 was found in a trench off the Pacific coast, and that robot surveyors found the bodies of all the passengers. Desmond, Charlie and Hurley do not trust Jack, so they confide in Sayid. Sayid gets Naomi’s satellite phone working, but can not find a clear channel. When Kate comes across him working, Sayid demands that she not tell Jack. Instead, she immediately confronts Jack and tells him about Naomi – and that no one trusts him because of Juliet’s presence. Juliet seems to think that this is a good time to tell Kate something, but Jack disagrees as he goes off to investigate Naomi’s condition further.
Locke approaches Sawyer overnight and tells him that he has infiltrated the Others and kidnapped Ben. He asks Sawyer to come with him in order to kill Ben. Sawyer agrees to follow him but has no intention of killing anyone – although Locke reminds him that he’s killed a man before. When they reach the Black Rock, Locke barricades Sawyer in the brig with his prisoner – who isn’t Ben, but rather the con man Locke knew as Anthony Cooper. Cooper believes himself to be dead, killed in a traffic accident, and now reunited with his dead son. As he talks to Sawyer about his exploits, Sawyer begins to suspect why Locke brought him here, and asks Cooper what names he’s used in the past. When the con man mentions Tom Sawyer, James Ford knows the moment he’s been waiting for has arrived – he’s face to face with the man he holds responsible for his parents’ death.
written by Damon Lindelof & Carlton Cuse
directed by Eric Laneuville
music by Michael GiacchinoGuest Cast: M.C. Gainey (Mr. Friendly/Tom), Kevin Tighe (Anthony Cooper), Mira Furlan (Danielle Rousseau), Nestor Carbonell (Richard Alpert), Kimberly Joseph (Cindy), Marsha Thomason (Naomi)
LogBook entry by Dave Thomer