Is Juliet in real trouble with her people, or is it just another con?
I am leaning towards the con. When they demand something of Jack he always stubbornly refuses. However, if he feels he is protecting someone he is quite easy to manipulate. He did the surgery on Ben in order to "save" his friends (kate). Now he is going to go along with them happily and take care of Ben to protect Juliet. Wasn't this the plan all along? That he would make a connection to her, care about her and do anything to protect her. They showed Sawyer that they are the masters of the con when they out conned him. I wouldn't be surprised if the bullets in the gun were blanks. It seemed rather extreme that she shot Picket point blank 3 times in the chest without even a warning. Now she can become aligned with Jack as an outlaw among her own People. They were both offered to be released from the island, but were not. They are both "marked".....he with the tatoo and her with her brand. Ben told Jack outright...Juliet does not care about you. No matter what it is you think....she is one of us.
I believe that is true.