That Which Does Not Kill You

They had gone over it and over it and none of it made much sense to them. Of course it wouldn’t. A snort of amusement. They were dealing with politicians.

Federal Agent Maggie Devlin looked down at her notes and back up at the board. She couldn’t figure out what the hell was going on. They were in this two-horse town called Colorado Springs in, where else, Colorado investigating their State Senator. Man, could things possibly get any weirder?

The man had obviously been a major pain in the ass for years, but what ever it was he did recently, excited a lot of people.

So here she is, a million miles away from DC and her family waiting to talk to…. She rifled through the file, yeah General George Hammond. An Air Force General. Why? She had no idea what was going on. The information was unusually cryptic and vague and need to know and all that other wonderful cloak and dagger stuff.

“Shit!” She threw the file on the desk and was about to pick up the phone when someone knocked at the door.

She looked up briefly at the police officer on loan to her and waved him to come in.

“Hang on a sec,.” She mumbled as she pressed the phone between her left shoulder and her ear.

The police officer walked in and sat down. His Commander had given him the lowdown on this particular FBI agent-and frankly he thought that he would rather walk on hot coals-barefoot.

Agent Devlin hung up the phone and turned to look at the officer.

Shit. She was hoping for someone a little older than this guy who looked like he was still in high school.

“Officer Diamond?” She stuck out her hand and Steve took it. Hmm, firm grip. Good. Not a namby pamby then.

Sitting down she handed the file to the officer.

“We are getting help on this. Appears as if we have an international interest in this.”

“MI-6?” His blue eyes scanned the form in front of him. Why are the Brits involved with this?

He realized he would have to wait until he was enlightened. The FBI agent in the chair in the chair behind the desk in front of him did not look happy. But of course not many were happy aboutto dealing with this. The initials SGC caught his eye and then his eyebrows lifted. He knew the people they were talking about. One name in particular was quite familiar as -they played poker every Friday night at the Sheriff’s house. He whistled softly under his breath. Man Man,what was Jack involved in?.

“Officer Diamond?” Maggie had a hint of amusement in her voice. She figured that the police officer would recognize some of the names.

Steve raised his head from the paperwork and looked at Officer Devlin.

“I assume that you know the people involved?” She asked him.

“Yes M’am, I sure do.” He blinked a few times. “What is this SGC?”

Maggie came around and sat on the corner of the desk and considered the individual in front of him.

“You signed the disclosure paperwork?”

He nodded.

She sighed.

“What I am about to tell you is of the utmost importance and also carries a security clearance higher than the Man upstairs and I am not referring to the president.”

Maggie grabbed the chair nearest the door and sat down. It was a sight for the young police officer-this middle aged FBI agent sitting with arms resting on the back of the chair.

It was odd seeing her wearing a pair of low-rise Old Navy jeans and a t-shirt under a Levi’s denim jack and converse sneakers. He noted that she had a kind face, eyes that smiled when her lips did and even with being a smoker, her face didn’t show the ravages it can cause.

“Steven,” “Maggie began, “what I am about to tell you might put a few wrinkles in your forehead, but bear with me.”

When she had finished she could see that the young policeman’s eyes were still crossed.

“And they have been doing this for how long?”

Maggie smiled at the look of shock on the officer’s face. It kind of mirrored her own reaction -and probably the reaction of that kook Malcolm Barrett. She thought he had lost his mind when he told her about it.

The fact that he had told it to her in the cargo area of a C-150 heading for Iceland made it all the more surreal.

He told her it was the safest place he could talk to her-that shadow organization,-the NID, -had just about everyplace he could talk to her bugged. He remarked how he had to meet one Major Samantha Carter in a park.

That was a strange conversation.-And here she was,so here they were brought into an investigation that she wasn’t sure she wanted any parts of.

What Barrett had told her about Senator Robert Kinsey shocked her into silence. She thought that she must have been something see-slack jawed and wide eyed.

How it was that man never got himself arrested, was the $64,000 question.

As Maggie related her conversation with Agent Barrett to Officer Diamond she noticed that he had the same reaction to the story that she’d had and his question was exactly the same.

Shaking her head Maggie answered him. “Somebody wants that boy watched.” She said flatly. “There ain’t no other good reason his ass isn’t sitting in Leavenworth right now.”

Washington D.C.

That same Senator that was being discussed in Colorado Springs should have been wondering why his ears weren’t burning.

Bob Kinsey was sitting at his desk, his redwood desk, his genuine redwood desk, with his feet resting on the top and smoking a cigar. Life was good for Kinsey right now. He was acting for the entire world like he was in the catbird seat.

While puffing on his cigar he thought about what happened on that Goa’uld ship and what had almost happened to him. Again, somehow, somebody else managed to take the blame for what happened. Gordon and Latham managed to take the rap for him. Gordon up in Juneau probably cleaning toilets with a toothbrush and Latham…nobody knew where he was. Well, nobody who wasn’t supposed to know anyway. Latham was with the Goa’uld Si’Serra and that one-eyed maniac-Molem. They had managed to escape in the melee that followed the attack on Si’Serra’s ship. Latham they managed to pick up when he was released from the hospital. Kinsey had to chuckle. That was some scar that Major Carter left him with. “Yes. “ Kinsey thought to himself. “Life was good.”

The tall blond watched the Senator from the door between their offices. She smiled and ran her be- ringed hand down the door frame,-the blue and gold colors reflecting off the light fixture near where she was standing.

Minerva Steele was a striking figure. Just a shade over 6 feet tall she radiated a sense of power that Kinsey admired in her. In only his fantasies he thought about those long legs and that long blond hair, but fantasy was the farthest it had gone. For all of his bluster and blowhard attitude, Robert Kinsey was faithful to his wife…but like former President Carter had once said, he had “lust” in his heart for her. Minerva just showed up in his office one day and announced she was going to be his Administrative Assistant. He took one look at her and nodded. He didn’t know why he acquiesced so easily, but it worked out that way. What is more, the relationship worked out well for him as well too.

Minerva carefully moved away from the door. She was amused watching Kinsey smoke his cigar and look for all the world like he had no cares. Of course he didn’t, she made damn sure that it worked out that way. It Wouldn't do for her Senator to find himself in jail, not when he had work to do. Not when he had her work to do.

Holding out a freshly French manicured hand she picked up the phone and punched in some well used numbers. She practically purred. -This conversation was going to be fun. The blue topaz ringed flashed in the sunlight as she held the phone to her ear.

Music blared out of the gym and Jack knew he found the right room. He walked in and watched as the women danced to the music. -It amused him to see his second and his friend taking the class together. Spotting the blue zippered bag he walked over, and grabbed the water bottle sticking out of it and took a swallow. As he was doing so he caught the eye of the amber eyed blond who was giving him the evil eye.

Winking at her, he put the bottle back in the bag and left the room -with her still glowering at him.

Jack knew that Beth kept an extra bottle of water in her bag - well more like extra “bottles”, but that it bugged the hell out of her when he did that. Of course he had been bugging the hell out of her that way for years. It just amused him that it still made her mad, even though she knew he was doing it and would continue to do so.

He had just finished a pick up game of basketball with some of the other SGC members and a few from NORAD. They played a hard, no rules, no holds barred game of basketball. When they hit the floor doing that it was no mercy, they played hard and they played fast. Jack took his share of bumps and hits and rubbed his left side as he was rotating that arm walking to the locker room. Thoughts of a hot shower danced in his mind, but that was not the only thought wandering around his head at the time.

The warm of the shower penetrated his tired and sore body. He leaned his head against the tile and let his thoughts drift.

Hammond had told them that the FBI was in town and that they would be meeting later that evening with Inspector Devlin. It had something to do with Senator Kinsey and his band of not so merry men. They were able to account for Kinsey and Harris, but not for Latham and they wanted him. They felt that he was the missing link of all that happened and they wanted Kinsey bad. Jack wanted him too, but not for putting his happy ass in jail, nope, he wanted Kinsey dead. He wanted Harris too and just as dead. Gordon was the one responsible for Beth’s near death experience and Jack had every intention of settling that little debt.

“Hey Jack?” Daniel Jackson’s voice echoed from the near empty locker room. “You plan on staying until all the hot water in the place is gone?”

Jack lifted his forehead from the wall under the shower head and smiled at that. Yeah, there were times he really wanted to do that, but not today.

He turned the water off, grabbed his towel and started toweling off. His mind drifted back to what Hammond had told him about the FBI and that another government group that was involved. That “group” he would be happy to see. Victoria Sullivan and David Kennedy were coming to town. He and Major Carter had worked with Vicky and David before. It would be good to see them, but it still confused him as to why they were involved. This was turning multinational quickly. -He wondered when the Russians, French and Chinese would be showing up.

Wrapping the towel loosely around his hips he went into the locker room and unlocked his locker.

Daniel and Teal’c were sitting on the bench waiting.

“You guys have nothing better to do?” Jack didn’t even look at them when he started taking his clothes out of the locker.

Daniel and Teal’c looked at each other and then silently left the area.

On the ride home Daniel brought up the FBI agent that would be stopping in to see them in the morning.

“Do you know anything about this Maggie Devlin?”

Jack shook his head. “Sam said that Agent Barret was impressed with her. Said she was one smart agent and very observant. Smoked like a chimney, but an okay person.”

Jack smirked a little after the chimney comment., He looked back to see Teal’c raise and eyebrow and get a puzzled look on his face.

“Just an expression ‘T’,” Jack told him. “It means she smokes a lot.”

Jack didn’t need to explain what he meant when he said “smokes a lot”, Teal’c knew what cigarettes were. Jack couldn’t look Teal’c in the face for a week after Teal’c decided to try one. He supposed it didn’t help that on Teal’c ‘s on his first try he light the filter and then when he tried the unfiltered kind and couldn’t stop coughing.

The rest of the conversation centered around Vicky and David and how good it would be to see them. Daniel hadn’t actually met them, but had talked to them on the phone the few times he was at Jack’s when they called. It was an interesting assignment that Jack and Sam had when they were in London. The two of them didn’t say much about it, other than what happened and Daniel suspected that things got a little more personal than the two of them would be admit to anyone, even to themselves. They danced around each other for awhile afterwards, at least that is what Jonas told them.

Janet stopped in front of Sam’s place and turned off the ignition.

“Man that was some workout,.” Sam said laughing. “I couldn’t imagine a dance class to exercise could tire you out and make you feel great at the same time.”

”Endorphins,.” Janet quipped.

Beth just grinned when Janet said that. “Yeah, that has to be it. Couldn’t be all the guys ogling could it?”

The three women got out of the car and entered Sam’s house.

“Okay, so dinner is what?”

“Pizza?” Janet ventured.

“Nah, Chinese,.” Beth answered.

“We could do both,.” Sam said as she dropped her gym bag on the floor of the living room.

“Chinese Pizza?” Beth wrinkled her nose at that thought. “Aah, what the hell. -Pizza is good.”

Sam pointed to the phone and told her it was ‘7’ on the speed dial and she and Janet headed to the kitchen to get the plates and other paraphernalia.

Just like her CO, Sam had her thoughts dwelling on the FBI agent that Barrett told her about and about Vicky and David. The line from Alice in Wonderland spun through her head “Curiouser and Curiouser”-there was a massive hunt for Salem Latham. Sam couldn’t be sure if Salem was capable of pulling off such an operation, not that he didn’t have the organizational aptitude, but it appeared as if he might be the fall guy or the Trust was trying to throw suspicion away from them. Aside from that absorbing most of her thoughts, there was Evan. He had been acting, well , “flaky”. before he died. That was the only word she could use to describe things. Janet had told her that Daniel had mentioned that Jack had felt the same about Gayle. Something had been major off with those two, but there was just nothing that could be pinpointed. And now they were both dead. Dead under some very strange circumstances.

Janet noticed that her friend deep in thought. And she would probably bet even money about what too.

"Sam?" Janet called out. She watched as Sam seemed to come out of some trance and looked at her as if she was trying to figure out where she was and why. "Paper or real plates?"

"Oh...real." The answer was given in a distracted tone.

"Sam, is something wrong?"

Sam shook her head. "Not really Janet. Just trying to figure out why Victoria and David are involved in this investigation. You do know that the FBI has an agent here."

"So I've heard. Has the Colonel had anything to say about it?"

Sam shook her head. "Colonel O'Neill hasn't had much to say to anybody about anything lately."

Janet nodded. That was a very true statement. Jack O'Neill was uncharacteristically quiet. Not that Jack said very much about "feelings" and things like that. He just didn't say anything at all lately. No quips. Jokes. Off color comments. It was almost that he didn't want anyone to know he had any thoughts or opinions on anything. Like he was trying to be invisible.

Beth Greene, someone who knew him, almost better than anyone else because of her long association with him, could only shrug.

She told both women that sometimes when he came over all they would do is breath at each other. She recognized the "Don't talk to me about anything important" look on his face. And face it, she told them, she was much a hockey nut as he was, but there was only so much hockey you can talk about during the season. Sure you had the games, the all star game, the playoffs, the Stanley Cup (Lord, let us not forget the Stanley cup.) and then the trades and the signings etc etc etc. But after a while you really wanted to talk about something else-you know-like football.

Janet remembered Beth telling her that she didn't even dare ask about Gayle either. The Colonel's late girlfriend had been a source of contention between the two of them.

"I tried to talk to him about her you know," Beth told her. "But he just shut it down." Beth paused and then added, "He seems to think that it was some kind of weakness in him that they knew just how to get to him."

Janet remembered just sitting there waiting for her to finish.

"Janet, they could not have found a more perfect woman for him. Jon is so into sports and recreation. You know if the game has a ball that can be bounced, hit, batted, kicked or tossed, he was there. And I can't begin to even tell you how much he loves that cabin of his in Minnesota." She laughed slightly. "And that damn pond with no fish in it. He'll still just sit on that dock with his rod and he can sit there for hours."

"Sam, you know, isn't any better," Janet remarked. "She is, however, a little more philosophical than our Colonel."

"Very true. How many women do you know who think the best way to spend their time off is to play around with a Naquada generator?"

The three friends sat around the table and then gossiped about this and that-none of them were aware that they were under surveillance.

The camera snapped pictures for a few minutes, the watcher trying to make sure he got a clear picture of each of the women. Si'Serra has insisted that their faces be clear in the pictures. There was to be no mistake when the time came.

There was much anger in the room. The tall figure of the goa'uld, Si'Serra, stalked from one end of the office to the other. The other two watched the stalking figure and made no sounds while they listened to him rant.

"They would have given themselves away. There was no other choice. Bah!"

The Goa'uld's eyes glowed with the venom he was feeling.

Finally the one known as Mollem the Aschen spoke. "You must calm yourself, Si'Serra." The light from the console glinted off the metal mask that covered half of the Aschen's face. Mollem stroked it lightly with an index finger. "We knew there was always a possibility they would make an error. That is, sometimes, unavoidable with these aliens."

The Goa'uld knew that Mollem had spoken with some personal knowledge of how unpredictable the Tau'ri can be.

"I agree, Si'Serra." The other Goa'uld, Angra Mainyu, had been burned by Robert Kinsey as well. "It is difficult even now to continue to work with his creature on this ship. Having those two was his "brilliant" idea and now their death has caused much delay with our plans."

"Ah, but Mr. Latham," Mollem said the name with a touch of admiration in his voice. This was a man they could not help but appreciate.

"How can you even begin to show that you think highly of that one?" Si'Serra understood that Salem Latham was very different from his master and that even he had marveled to some respect the man's devious nature, but still...

Mollem laughed. "The same way you can. That Tau'ri actually rules his master, even as he serves him." Mollem walked over to the console and waved his hands over the controls. A deep fire was burning within him. The Tau'ri had to pay for what they had done to him and to his people. They had been unable to take control over worlds once word had gone out about what the Tau'ri had done and what they had found. "Latham is the key to bringing down the ones responsible for the destruction of one of our ships and even the designs of my people." Turning to face the two Goa'uld, he said, "You think that you are the only ones that they have hampered?" His voice was harsh with the pain and the anger. "You are not! I want Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter dead. I will settle for no less than that. What happens to anyone that gets in the way, matters not to me and it should not matter to you either. It was O'Neill's suspicious nature and his officer's willingness to use her intelligence to attempt to destroy us that almost cost us our entire empire." Turning back to the console Mollem curled his fingers in to hard fists and let the words just hang between them.

"Now Mollem..." Angra spoke in a soft voice. He was aware the Aschen harbored a great deal of anger against his former Hunter, and yet he also feared him as well. "It would not do well for you to let your rage control you."

Mollem turned a hard eye on his Goa'uld comrade. The one eye that did not look out of the mask had almost lost its "human" appearance and had taken on the menacing gaze of that behind the mask.

"No..." He answered after a long silence. "It would not." He laughed harshly and then added, "It is ironic is it not? My people had worked for centuries to not take things personally...to bury those destructive emotions that can cause all reason to disappear. But those Humans..." He spat the word out, as if it left a bad taste in his mouth. The sad reality was that those emotions are what was driving him and his people now. The fact that hate can be so destructive yet so desirable at the same time, made his anger all the greater.

"I want him." Mollem turned his hard and angry eyes to Angra. "When the time comes to end this, O'Neill, is mine."

Angra gave a slight nod. Of course he meant none of his agreement. He would get his hands on O'Neill first and turn him back into his Hunter. That would be punishment enough he thought and satisfying for him. He had long lamented the warrior that had managed to break through the brainwashing technique he used. No other race had been able to break free before and he wanted to O'Neill more to study than to use. If he should survive, all the better, because it would give him more information. If he did not...the Goa'uld mentally shrugged. It really didn't matter then.

P5X-894

Jack was disgusted...wet, hot and disgusted. This had been another wasted planetary jaunt. The humidity that came with the hot and the wet made his joints ache. Hell, it made everything ache. There had been some vague promise, based on some writings the MALP showed from a wall standing near the Stargate. The writing was similar to some Ancient writings that they had seen before and Daniel thought it might be enough to give them some idea about the planet, but it was just some gibberish. Well, Jack thought it was gibberish. Daniel didn't know what to think. He did everything but stand on his head with one eye closed and his left hand tied around his ears to figure out what it said. In the end however, there was just nothing that made sense of what was there and it made Jack wonder if the Ancients had a perverse sense of humor or maybe it had been left by a teen ancient doing the graffiti thing like they did on Earth. In any event, he had enough and after 8 hours and called a halt to the looking around, the reading and the guessing. He thought he might need to wring himself out when he got home.

Something around the DHD caused him to look down when he was about to order Daniel to dial home. He carefully looked around to see if maybe it was normal artifact of the planet, but it wasn't. He bent down and picked up a pin, not just an ordinary pin, but an insignia type pin, an earth insignia type pin, a military earth insignia pin.

Daniel caught a peripheral glimpse and asked what Jack was looking at. His blue eyes widened and looked at Jack with a "what the...?" gaze.

Jack deftly put his fingers to his lips, looked around and pocketed the pin.

"Dial it up." He tried to keep his tone nonchalant, but Teal'c, more sensitive to the tone of voice than the others raised an eyebrow. Jack just shook his head and then turned to see what his Major was up to. Sam noticed none of this as she was busy looking at the wall with a serious frown on her face.

"Carter?" Jack took a quick walk over while Daniel dialed.

"Oh...Sir." She blinked and then looked from Jack to the wall and then back to Jack. "It just doesn't seem to be logical."

Jack raised a brow and made a motion with his hand, just as the Stargate came to life.

"There has to be a reason why this wall is here with that writing."

"Well, you got some pictures right?" He asked touching her arm to hurry her along.

Sam started following him. "Yes Sir, I did."

"Then play with the puzzle when we get back to the SGC," Jack said, looking slightly exasperated. "Carter, it's wet."

She nodded as they stepped through the shimmering lights of the gate and disappeared to return on the other side at the SGC.

Sam still looked quite puzzled and absently handed her weapon over to the Airman standing there. She barely heard Hammond announce that he would debrief them in 3 hours. Her brain was going over something that seemed to strike a chord in the memory that Jolinar left and decided to head to her lab to check out the pictures. Maybe, she thought, Daniel might want to come and look as well.

It was some time after their debriefing asJack had waited until Sam left before he stopped Hammond from leaving the room and showed him what he had found.

"Colonel? What does this mean?"

"I think it means we are being dogged sir."

"Someone is following your team?"

"That's my guess, but this time they got there before we did."

"Another SG team? But how?"

"I don't think it is another SG team. I think Kinsey and his ilk have something to do with this."

"Jack, Kinsey is under 24 hour watch. Harris is in Alaska."

"But Latham is missing," Jack reminded him.

"Jack how would they know where you are? It isn't like your missions are posted on YouTube."

Jack looked down at his shoes. He very carefully thought about what he had to say.

"Maybe we have a mole, Sir."

Hammond carefully ran through all the personnel in his mind. He just couldn't think of anyone that would be involved with this.

Hammond accepted Jack's comment with a nod and then told him to go finish his reports.

Beth Greene sat heavily down in her office chair. This was going to be a difficult doctor's note to write. It always was when you had to write out a suspected domestic violence report.

Delores Phillips came in again with a black eye and some other questionable bruises. Third time in as many weeks. She and Janet had tried talking to her about pressing charges, leaving or both. Delores wouldn't budge from her story.

"It's just that I am so clumsy, Doctor G. You know how it goes."

Beth could see the fear and extreme sadness in her brown eyes. It just didn't seem to matter that this woman was presenting herself as a walking disaster. The CSPD tried and also could not get this woman to budge from her story.

Rubbing her temples she then turned on her recorder and started dictating. One of these days, she thought, that "clumsy woman" was going get herself killed, because she refused to remove the object she kept tripping over.

Two days later Ben Samuel was sprawled on a chair in Jack's office watching him play with his ever present yo-yo. He could see that Jack's mind was not focused on the toy or on him. His own thoughts were disturbed by a knock on the door. Jack yelled for whomever it was to enter and neither man was surprised when Daniel Jackson walked in the door.

"You really need to tell Sam that she has to take a break on trying to figure out that wall." Daniel was very to the point. "Hello, Ben."

Ben nodded briefly and out of the corner of his eye watched Jack continue to tinker with his toy.

"And I should do that why?" Jack finally asked him.

"Because she hasn't eaten or slept in 2 days."

Jack raised an eyebrow, put down his yo yo and stood up. "Ok," he said and walked out of his office.

Daniel and Ben looked at each other.

"Daniel, should we follow him?" Ben wasn't sure what to do. He had never seen Jack be so compliant before.

"No," Daniel said. "Leave him be."

The two men stayed there and lapsed into silence. Daniel then settled himself in Jack's chair and picked up his yo-yo.

"You're going to let him go, just like that?" Ben was puzzled. He always thought Daniel was the level headed one and would stop him.

"You know what they say about runaway trains don't you?" Daniel answered him. His attention still fixed on the yo-yo.

Ben raised an eyebrow.

"When you see one coming at you..." Daniel finished his around the world attempt and then the statement with "...you jump off the tracks before it runs you over."

"Ah!" Ben responded. "Think she'll kick his ass?"

"Probably."

The two men then lapsed into a silence again, each imagining the scenario about to take place.

Jack knocked and then walked into the lab without waiting for her response.

Sam jumped when the door slammed open almost immediately after the knock. In doing so, she knocked over the notebook she was using for notes.

"Sir?" Fussing with the stuff on her desk she looked up at him confused.

Jack grabbed a chair near where she was. "We need to talk."

Jack looked down at the floor, actually he would have looked anyplace but directly into her eyes...blue like the Texas Bluebonnets of Hammond's home state, he thought. Eyes a man could drown in. Not exactly a safe place to look, or safe thoughts to have.

Taking a few mental breaths he looked up and tried to focus on someplace other than her face, without it looking obvious.

"You need to go home." His statement was a simple one, but it held steel.

He raised his hand as she started to object. "Major, go home. You haven't eaten or slept in two days. How focused are you on this that you can't remember to take care of yourself?"

"But, Sir..." She tried to protest. She felt that she was almost on the verge of finding out what the stones meant.

"No, Major." Jack's voice hardened. "Don't make me push it into the order part and then have General Hammond or..." he smiled slightly, " bring Dr. Frasier in on this."

Sam nodded. She really didn't want Janet coming in on this. Jack and General Hammond she could have withstood, but not Janet.

"It's just that I am so close to figuring out what the stones say." It was lame. She knew it. she was close but not as close as she was trying to let Jack believe.

"Crap like that I expect from Jackson, not from you, Major." Jack had read her bluff.

One thing about working so closely with someone, especially when your life was in their hands, as his was, almost on a daily basis, is that you get to know them pretty well.

"Carter," He said. "This stuff can wait,but your health isn't worth the risk."

He looked at her, his head whirling with all the other warnings he wanted to give her. Especially about the pin he found and her picture.

"If Daniel can take a break to eat and sleep - and this stuff is his specialty - so can you. Do I need to really make it an order?"

Sam sighed. He knew her far too well and was aware that if she tried pushing him harder it would be an order and a written reprimand. Colonel O'Neill sometimes played fast and loose with regulations, but insubordination was something he didn't tolerate often or well. He was going to play hardball with this and she knew him. Knew that he wouldn't have stepped in if he hadn't felt that she pused herself further than was healthy. Hell, even Daniel , who was more of a nut on figuring out the Ancient writing, decided to call it a day. If Daniel could take a breather, well, then she would too. She just didn't want to capitulate to easily...but lately Jack was more in the Colonel mode then he usually was, and it wasn't worth the complications that would come from fighting him on it.

"All right, Sir." Her voice was soft and she then turned to start gathering up her notes as she answered him.

"Smart move, Major." Jack got up from the stool next to her. "Sam, it isn't that I don't care about what you are doing..."

Sam glanced at him briefly, an expectant look in her eyes.

"Ah hell." Jack sat back down. "Look, we have both been through a lot recently. I understand losing yourself in your work. But not to the point of exhaustion. I can't lose you, Carter."

The words caused a slight feeling of electricity between them. Jack had said something once before about "losing Carter". That was a door that would have been better left closed. They both knew it, but every once in awhile it cracked open, as it did now.

Sam saw the slight panic in Jack's eyes and misunderstood what he was reacting to. She thought maybe he regretted what he said those four years ago. She was about to reach out her hand and tell him she understood, but he abruptly stood up and almost ran for the door. He stopped long enough to give her a long searching look, as if wondering how she reacted to his comment and wondered if she remembered. Did she remember what he said. Did she know that he meant it now as much as he did then? He didn't want to stay and find out so he then turned and left the lab.

Sam almost couldn't breathe. There was that look in his eyes, the same look he had when he told them during the Zatarc testing that he would have rather died himself than to lose her. Did he still mean it? And more importantly, did he think now that she did not and that was why he left so suddenly. Hot tears came to her eyes and she blinked them away quickly. Too many complications, she thought. She then turned to finish collecting her notes and turned off her laptop. She should go home. Take all of the information and go home and work on it. Take a few days at home, maybe being away from here and the distractions....

Daniel noted the agitated look in Jack's eyes when he came back to his office and quickly signaled Ben to not say anything. Ben didn't need reminding, he'd seen that look many times. He thought maybe it was time to change the subject.

Jack looked at Ben and asked if he had nothing better to do than hang out here. Hinting that maybe he needed to go and bother Beth now that the two of them were back together.

"Actually..." Ben stood up and motioned for Daniel to sit back down near Jack's desk. "I do have an ulterior motive for being here."

Jack laughed. "I am not going to be your excuse to Beth for not going home for dinner."

"Funny Jack, but that is not the thing I was going to ask."

Jack noticed the sudden serious look in Ben's eyes and then slowly smiled, he knew what Ben was going to ask.

Ben looked down at his hands and then up at the two men he considered to be his closest friends. Actually, Jack was his closest friend. They may have had their "issues" but they did understand each other quite well.

"Well, there is no other way to say this. I have asked Beth to marry me. She said yes and I would like you, Jack, to be my best man and for you, Daniel, and for "Murray" to be my Groomsmen."

Daniel stood up quickly and took Ben's hand and clapped him on the shoulder. "That would be my honor Ben. Let me go and get Teal'c. You can ask him yourself." As Daniel headed out the door, he turned for a minute, "Of course, you will have to explain what that means you know?"

Ben laughed and then turned to Jack.

Jack had an amused look on his face and before giving Ben the answer he wanted he had one caution for him.

"You realize, of course, you hurt her again and I will kick your sorry ass."

Ben laughed as he nodded and took Jack's hand as they mutually clapped each other on the shoulder.

"So, when is the happy event?" Jack sat on the edge of his desk.

"Not really sure. Her mother and her friend Gwen are 'organizing' things."

"Oh man." Jack started to laugh in earnest. "You are in trouble now. When Ruth starts to plan..."

"Don't I know that. Beth and I would probably be happy with going to Vegas and being married by Elvis, but her parents and the boys won't be. So it will be a big Synagogue wedding in Chicago."

"For a second wedding?" Jack was puzzled.

"Oh," Ben answered him. "That's right, you wouldn't have known. Beth and David eloped. Well, sort of. They were married by a Rabbi in his study. I'm not sure why, though. So this is Ruth and Adam's chance to do it big for her."

"You had a big wedding though, didn't you?"

"Yeah well, it is different for the Bride. I guess."

"Well, it doesn't matter. Just let me know and I will be there with bells on." Jack said as Ben opened the door to leave.

Ben had a wry look on his face and remarked that he hoped that Jack would be wearing more than bells at the wedding.

Jack laughed and told him to get going.

Jack was in an intense mood when Daniel found him later. Teal'c and Daniel had run into Ben as he was leaving and they had quite a discussion about wedding rituals on the way up the elevator. After much discussion and trying to explain words like "Chuppah" and "Sheva Bracha" to Teal'c, the three men went their separate ways.

Daniel opted to return to Jack's office and see if he'd made any headway with Sam and her total involvement in something that, truth be told, would have been something that he, Daniel, ought to have been mucking about.

Daniel noted the intense frown on Jack's face as he fiddled with his yo-yo. Daniel wondered whose neck would have been between Jack's hands right about now, from the look on his friend's face.

Pulling up the chair in front of Jack's desk, he sat down.

"What's up?"

There was no preamble. No slow discussion to bring up the subject. Just "what's up?"

Jack looked up from his toy and gave Daniel a long hard look.

"Carter is being very unCarter like."

"Why, because she is tied up in looking at those photos?"

"Daniel." Jack said in that, 'you're not paying attention' tone he has for his friend.

"Ok, her being tied up in those photos might be a little overkill for her."

"Ya think?" Jack rolled up his yo-yo and put it in his desk drawer.

Using an expletive , Jack suddenly stood up.

"Come on," he told the younger man, "Buy you dinner."

Daniel didn't answer, just followed him out of the office.

Over hamburgers at Champps Americana the two friends discussed the various strange incidents that had been going on. Daniel decided to take the opportunity to bring up Gayle.

Jack stopped in the act of taking a sip of his beer and put the mug down. He silently regarded his friend and started to talk.

When he had finished, Daniel thought he had seen a slight sheen in Jack's eyes. But the hardness was still present. No matter what Jack might have been feeling emotionally, he stayed in control.

Daniel didn't quite know what to say. He had never been an idividual that people would say "was at a loss for words". He probably had more words in him than the normal human being, but this time he was at a loss for words.

"Jack, I'm sorry." It was really the only thing he could say to his friend.

"Yeah, well..." Jack just let the rest of the comment hang.

Deep within Jack realized that Gayle's appeal to him went beyond the obvious set up. He knew he was ready for something long term. He needed something long term. Needed another human being in his life that would give a rat's ass about what happened to him. Needed another human being to love him and openly love him. Openly. That was the key for him. His heart and soul were hungry for the need to shout for joy about loving and being loved. And for the longest time, he could only hold it inside, close to him... Loving his friends and his family-well that was part of it, but loving someone for himself, that was quite another.

"Do you blame yourself for what happened?" Daniel asked him.

"I did," Jack answered him honestly. "I felt that had they not wanted to get to me and Carter so badly, this woman would have lived out her life on whatever planet she came from. Now...now she is in some area 51 autopsy lab."

The flight from New York landed at the Colorado Springs airport at midnight. As it was a private jet, they didn't need to worry about flight delays and cancellations from the regular Airlines using that airport.

The two British MI-6 agents got off the plane without much fanfare. They had preferred to land and take a cab to their hotel. They were staying at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort. In a fit of whimsey they resgistered themselves as Charles and Camilla Winston. Both realizing with some amusement that had they used Windsor, as they had originally planned, they would have received less comments about their name. But the head of their division, a loyal Monarchist with a large sense of propriety and a small sense of humor declared that off limits.

Settling into their room quickly, Charles aka David Kennedy used his cell to make a quick call to a certain American friend.

"Rick?" Charles was quite pleased to hear his friend's voice."Yes, yes, the trip was wonderful." He listened for a few minutes and then said, "No, Rick, really...you do not have to put us up with you and Amanda. Give her our love. We'll see you tomorrow."

As he put down the phone, he couldn't help but laugh when he asked Rick to give Amanda their love. He remembered how Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter had pretended to be husband and wife when they all worked a case together in England. Their undercover personas certainly caused a few heartstopping moments, in more ways then one.

David watched as his wife undressed to change into her pj's. They had met and married while they were quite young in the service and both understood the danger the other was in. To be allowed to still work together as husband and wife was a both a gift and a curse. Sometimes when you had to have two service members pose as husband and wife, it was easier if they really were husband and wife.

"Victoria?" David queried her. "Do you suppose there is some connection between what is happening here to what we dealt with in the Manchester area?"

"Regarding that Kelowan, Jonas?" Victoria puzzled that before. "Very possible. We are dealing with people who have no scruples." She walked over to her case, pulled out a folder and sat on the bed next to David.

"Says here that they are quite worried that Major Carter is in physical danger."

She handed David a copy of the picture that Jack found on one of their off world trips.

Shaking her dark head she continued. "I can't fancy how that picture got on the planet without anybody noticing and what a fluke it was for Jack to find it. It could have gone unnoticed."

David agreed. It was fortuitous for both sides. "I think that Jack would rather not have to worry about this, you know? What with the lady friend of his being an alien and dying as well. There must be a ship or something that we are not seeing with our radar."

"Well David, Jack did mention that these alien vessels do have cloaking devices. Sounds so very science fiction you know, when you think about it."

"Indeed it does. But after what we've already seen with our own eyes and then this report... I'd rather be a fly on the wall when Major Carter is finally told about this. She is not going to like the decision they made about her safety."

Victoria grunted in agreement. "No...I don't fancy she will."

"General Hammond?" Jack called him at his house and reported that Charles and Camilla had landed safely and were now checked into their hotel.

"Very good Colonel. I suppose the meeting is on for the morning then?"

"Yes Sir!" O'Neill responded. "1000 hours."

"Good work son."

They both bid each other a good night and hung up.

Jack lay back in his bed, his eyes focused on the ceiling.

His second in command is going to hit the roof when she finds out about what is going on. Transferring her to Area 51 is not going to be taken very well and he couldn't blame her. She was never one to run and she would see this as running. "And she would be right," he thought to himself. He would have felt the same, but what else could they do? Placing her in her father's care would endanger the Tok'ra. Jacob argued for it, and surprisingly, so did Selmak. But the Pentagon and the President overrode them. President Hays felt that she would be safer on Earth than on another planet. She would be someplace she could be guarded easily. And aside from that, her enemies would know that her father would have her, if they couldn't find her on earth. "Hide in plain sight," President Hayes had urged. "We can better protect her and figure out what they want to do."

Jack wasn't so sure. He felt she would be safer at the SGC. But then, he was just a lowly Colonel, what did he know?

Janet sat at her desk at the hospital. Her eyes were bleary from reading the autopsy reports...reading and re-reading them. It was late. She was tired. But the reports confirmed what they had first believed.

Her friend, Dr. Greene, was sitting in the chair opposite her sipping from a bottle of water. She had long abandoned her contact lenses and put her glasses on. She cursed Janet for still having perfect vision, but then when you reached a certain age...

"So, nothing has changed then?" Beth asked her.

Janet shook her head. "Nope." She threw down the reports with disgust. "I don't know how they did it, but they did. Aplastic Anemia. It shouldn't be. There is just no medical documentation that supports it."

"Jon did say that these aliens had ways of doing things that we wouldn't even dream of. Guess he was right."

"Colonel O'Neill is very rarely wrong about that. Of course he has had long practice with being naturally skeptical and a dyed in the wool cynic."

Janet noticed Beth rubbing her temples. She had been doing that most of their time together, so Janet asked her about it.

"You know Delores Phillips?"

"Sgt Edgar Phillips', wife?"

Beth nodded "I saw her in the ER today."

"Oh no!" Janet was dismayed. "Please don't tell me...not again."

Beth nodded. "I have such a headache."

"I'll bet you do. How is she?"

"Not good," Beth answered. "She is in a coma right now. They have her on a ventilator. The ER docs are not very hopeful of her coming out of it. They have asked me to call the family. Janet..."

"I know how you feel. You 'd like to take a stick to him, wouldn't you?"

"Man, I have talked myself blue in the face to her about him and she wouldn't budge."

Beth's golden eyes looked in her friends brown ones. "I'm afraid our 'good old boy' killed her this time."

The two women were silent for a few minutes. Edgar Phillips was a thorn in their side because of the way he treated his wife. He wasn't the nicest man when he was sober, but when he was drunk he was someone you really wanted to avoid.

"Janet, why don't you go home?" Beth asked her. "You don't have to stick around, you know. Not your night."

Stretching out her back, Janet decided Beth was right. "Yeah, my turn to do these long shifts is coming. You going to be okay?"

Beth nodded. "Oh yeah. I've done the vampire shift for a lot of years. You're body hates it, but it manages it."

They both knew that Beth was avoiding talking anymore about Delores Phillips. One of his co-workers had confided to Beth that they had seen him "drunker than a tree full of owls" and that he had a temper "hotter than the barrel of a $2.00 gun".

Janet stood then and walked over to give her friend a hug.

"How are the wedding plans?"

"I stay out of the way. The important pieces are already picked out. I have my dress and Ben is wearing his uniform. After that, I am leaving the rest to my mother."

"Sounds like a safe plan."

"Yeah it sure does." Beth took a quick look at the ring on her finger. It was the one Ben had bought for her before everything exploded on Samantha Carter. He had wanted to get her a different ring, but this ring with the heart shaped amethyst and diamonds touched something in her and she wouldn't have another one.

Janet smiled watching her friend. Beth and Ben had traveled a long road to get to where they were now. A more than 30 year long road and she was glad that they managed to find a way to do this last part together.

Janet gave Beth a quick hug and then headed home. Tomorrow was going to be a rough day. Both women knew what was going to happen at the briefing in the morning. They expected the shit to hit the fan and make one hell of a mess.

"You've decided to do what?"

The people in the room have heard Major Carter lose her temper before, but never before the General and certainly not in front of representatives of other government organizations. Well, maybe one other time when she called Harry Maybourne an idiot (and he was), but that was an entirely different situation.

"Sit down and quiet down, Major." Hammond hated using that tone with her. He was also aware that she would be angry. They made a decision concerning her without her input or knowledge and she had every reason to be angry, but this would get out of hand and ugly if he didn't take control.

Major Carter sat down with a vengeance, shooting dark looks at Jack. He had the grace to blush as he returned her regard.

Inspector Devlin was damned, she was sure of it. She heard of yelling during a meeting of the minds, but this went beyond anything she had seen.

She put her fingers to her lips and let out a shrill whistle. All eyes suddenly turned to her.

She took advantage of the sudden quiet to comment. "Ya'll must think that Major Carter here is a child. I can guarantee that you don't get as smart as she did by not paying attention. Maybe if you would bother explaining things to her." With her red hair and green eyes, she gave the impression of fitting right into the hot headed red head stereotype and in reality, she did fit into it.

She continued, "I don't know much about what all of this is and I certainly am not going to bluster my way out of this. But why, when you have ways of hiding this woman on another planet, are you putting her in a position where she can be snatched at any time?"

Patiently Major Davis explained the Pentagon's plan to hide her in plain sight.

"My ass," Maggie responded. "This here ain't the witness protection plan. We don't have Federal Marshall's moving her to Podunk Wyoming and changing her name. She is still going to be front and center and everybody will know where she is."

"That Agent Devlin," Davis patiently tried to explain, "is how we are going to keep her safe."

Maggie snorted. "From the information you have shared with me..." She paused to put on her glasses and pick up a folder to re-read the information about the Asgaard beaming technology. Then she put the folder down and she looked over her glasses at Major Davis as she finished her thought. "You expect to have some kind of personal shield on her so that it would repel an abduction from space?"

Jack smiled. Agent Devlin had, somewhat more diplomatically then he, voiced the same argument. Well, diplomatic until she uttered the word "Horse shit!"

"I beg your pardon?" Hammond was taken aback slightly.

David Kennedy suddenly spoke up. His clipped British accent did little to hide his amusement. "Agent Devlin is it?"

He lifted a dark blonde eyebrow when he looked at her, his amusement clearly showing in his eyes. "I happen to also agree with you. However..." He tapped his index finger on his copy of the file and continued. "This really isn't our call."

Maggie regarded the Englishman. She had worked with Kennedy before and liked him. He was, however, very correct in his statement.

Sitting back with her arms folded across her chest she noted that he was indeed, "quite correct".

"However," Agent Devlin with an insistent tone added, "you are opening yourself up for her to be snatched into thin air and you have to consider that".

"Agent Devlin, we've made up our minds." Hammond was going to continue his thought, but was interrupted by a still irate Major.

"But nobody decided to ask me about my mind." Sam was angry. She believed down to her soul that staying at the SGC with SG-1 right there to watch her six, would be the safest place for her. They have always kept each other safe. He has always kept her safe.

Jack reached out and touched Sam's elbow. That simple act caused a 20 degree drop in the temperature of her anger. Damn him, but he was always able to get her focused by doing that.

Sam sat down heavily in the chair, a mutinous look in her blue eyes.

"You are to leave for Area 51 in 4 hours, Major. Grab what you need and anything else we can send you."

Hammond looked at her, almost daring her to say something. When she just continued to stare at him he nodded and then dismissed everyone.

Agent Devlin held back when the room started to empty and grabbed Jack by his forearm. Anybody else would have been scorched by the look he gave her, but Maggie had seen and done worse and just held on.

"You're no fool, Colonel. Why did you let yourself get railroaded into this?"

Jack regarded her for a minute. "What makes you think I was railroaded into this?"

His question was deceptively simple. Not many people could read him and he didn't think this agent could either. But, in this case, he thought wrong.

"Your eyes," she answered him. "They told me different."

That stopped him.

"You know they can't be with her all the time. And what happens when she has to take a trip or work off site? You going to have the whole Air Force following her around?"

"Agent Devlin, I am an Air Force Officer. I have no opinions."

She snorted. "That would be a first." She let go of his arm and watched as he walked away.

Agent Kennedy left his wife and walked over to her.

"Don't let him fool you, Maggie my girl, he's as smart as they come."

Maggie nodded. "Except when it comes to her." And then she left the conference room.

David's blue eyes widened a bit and a slight smile crossed his lips. He vaguely heard Victoria smother a laugh and he did laugh.

"Oh, I believe that Maggie hasn't lost her touch with reading people."

"That is what makes her so good at her job, old man."

"Indeed. Lunch then?" David took his wife's arm and headed to the cafeteria.

Jack's thoughts were in a turmoil. Agent Devlin got too close to his thoughts about where they were sending Sam. He knew that being in the SGC and going off world would be dangerous for her. He began to think that anyplace would be dangerous for her, but certainly being with her father, which was the next best thing to being under his, Jack's, eye would be less of a danger to her.

"Damn them," he thought harshly. They wanted her brain more than they wanted her safety. He told George as much and Hammond didn't argue, but as Jack told Agent Devlin, Hammond was also an Air Force Officer, and for that reason he didn't have an option of having an opinion.

Jack was unpacking his groceries and chatting with Daniel who watched him with an amused eye. Jack packed his own groceries and it always amazed Daniel that his fruits were not squished (and fruit and Jack in the same sentence?) and his eggs were not broken.

They both heard the front door slam and at first they thought that maybe Sam made a break for it and was going to hide out. However the curly haired blonde that stormed into the kitchen provided proof it wasn't Major Carter. It was, however, a severely upset Dr. Greene. Jack wondered by the storm in her eyes if she had a fight with Ben, but there was a certain disturbance surrounding her that told him otherwise. He didn't say a word as she went into his vegetable drawer and pulled out a bagged salad. He didn't say a word when she pulled a pair of bandage scissors out of her cargo pocket and cut open the bag. Nor did he say anything when she, after sniffing the dressing first, poured it into the bag.

Beth shook the bag, handed it to Jack and then hiked herself up on the counter and took back the bag after she rummaged through the drawer for a fork. Then she started to eat the salad from the bag.

Jack regarded his friend as she was eating. She knew he was looking at her so she raised her eyes to stare back.

"You going to tell me what's wrong?"

Beth only pointed to the fridge and Jack sighed before opening it and grabbing her a bottle of water.

Trying to get her to smile, he asked her if she wanted him to open it as well. The look she gave him could have boiled that water in his hand. He silently opened it and handed it to her. She took a good healthy swig and continued to eat.

Daniel didn't miss the byplay between them, it was almost as if they had their own way of communicating. It made sense though, considering their history.

Jack looked at Daniel and remarked that Beth spoke in complete sentences when she was a year old, but sometimes wouldn't talk when she could make people do what she wanted by pointing. After Jack explained that, Daniel started laughing and Beth just shrugged. But a sudden tear caused Jack to walk over and grasp her chin. Then the tears spilled and Jack pulled her into an embrace.

"What happened Beth?"

He took the salad from her and put his hands on her shoulder, forcing her to look up at him.

"Mrs. Phillips died two hours ago."

"Damn." Jack cursed at this.

Daniel's face just blanched.

"Sgt. Phillips wife?" He asked. He dreaded knowing the answer.

Beth nodded. "Yeah, he beat her so bad this time, she never regained consciousness. They turned off the life support when the brain scan showed no activity."

"They didn't let him decide, did they?" Daniel asked.

Beth shook her head. "It was her children and her parents that made the decision. The Ethics Committee, the Treatment team and Father David from their Church met with them. Delores didn't want to be kept alive artificially, she had a living will. They just wanted the family to be able to feel like they had some control and to say goodbye."

Beth was silent for a few minutes. "I begged her to leave him. Every black eye, every bruise, every broken bone and she wouldn't do it. It was the "booze that made him stupid, Dr. G". Stupid is right. He is going to be charged with murder. I just don't know what degree though."

"Does George know about this?" Jack asked her.

"Probably by now. He is going to be pissed off."

"That..." Daniel observed, "Is putting it mildly. You know Sam is at Area 51?"

Beth nodded. "Yeah, Aaron told me. He is thrilled. He has wanted to work with her for years."

"He didn't say anything more did he?" Jack wanted to know just exactly how much Aaron shared with his sister.

"Nope," Beth responded. "You know he was always closed mouthed as a kid. If it was a matter of national security, not even my 3 star General dad would get it out of him."

Jack stroked Beth's cheek and then handed her back her salad.

Once Beth left Daniel asked Jack if she really did talk in complete sentences that early, or was it an urban legend.

Jack laughed."Oh it's true. Her brother Mike and I thought we had all the angles covered. Men of the World. That's what we four year olds thought we were. We anticipated her every request. It took me until I was about 5 to find out she played me. I heard her having a serious discussion with her mother right after her second birthday. She was using words no two year old had any business using. When I walked into the kitchen to see if my ears were working, she look straight at me, shrugged and continued her conversation. Her mother later told me that Beth was talking since she was a year old and was perfectly capable of making her needs known, but because Mike and I decided that we were going to take care of everything, she let us."

Daniel didn't stop laughing for 5 minutes.

Seeing that his friend was still disturbed, Daniel sobered up.

"Something else is bothering you?"

Jack seemed to come out of a trance and raised a brow.

"Something about Sgt. Phillips?"

"Yeah, something really big."

Jack sat on the barstool near his counter and hooked one over for Daniel to sit on.

"You know I've been drunk many times in life. I've been a maudlin drunk, a moody drunk and a drink myself into a stupor drunk, but I have never, ever, been a mean drunk. Sgt. Phillips is a mean drunk and I mean a mean drunk."

"So...?"

"So...I have never, ever met a man as nasty as he was when drunk."

"So, why haven't you thrown him in the brig or whatever?"

"Come on, Daniel. You know the military mentality by now. As long as he came to work, did his job and didn't screw up anything on the base, he can be as destructive a drunk as I have ever seen."

Jack gave a heavy sigh. "Siler said that man is a wizard with a wrench, hence the nickname Wiz. He could fix anything. And if he got a little feisty and took it out on his wife, well, you know how it goes..." Jack looked at his hands. "And Delores, bless her, would never say he did it. Beth knew. Janet knew. They both pleaded with her to press charges, to leave him, to do something. She wouldn't go. She loved him. She used to tell Beth, the vows say 'til death do us part'."

Standing up Jack stretched his back and continued. "I guess she fulfilled that vow didn't she?"

"What happens now?" Daniel asked him.

"MP's will pick him up, throw his sorry ass in jail. Then a JAG investigation and once that is done, a military criminal trial for murder . Thank the good Lord that Ben is involved in something else, I would hate to have him defend this man and look Beth in the eye."

Daniel nodded and helped Jack put the rest of the groceries away and clean up before heading out to the SGC.

Once they got on base, they saw the Military Police leading away a defiant Sgt. Phillips. As the two of them made their way to General Hammond's office they noticed Teal'c gave Phillips an odd look. Jack immediately headed over to him with Daniel trailing in his wake.

"Teal'c?" Jack's question held more than just the saying of his friend's name.

"I had the most unusual feeling when he passed me, O'Neill."

Jack's radar went into high alert immediately and he could feel Daniel stiffen beside him.

"The, he's a Goa'uld feeling?" Jack watched with narrowed eyes as the elevator door closed on Phillips and his military escort.

Teal'c nodded.

"Jack..." Daniel turned back to the two men. "You've felt there was a mole in theSGC. You don't suppose...?"

Jack nodded, quickly turned and headed to Hammond's office. Teal'c and Daniel were close on his heels.

When Jack had finished telling his theory to a stunned General Hammond, the older man immediately called for Walter to come into the office.

"Walter, I want Major Davis, Agents Kennedy, Sullivan and Devlin here on the double."

Walter saluted and spun out of the office.

"How?" Hammond looked to Teal'c.

The big man shook his head. "That I cannot tell you, GeneralHammond."

"That, George, would explain how that AF pin got onto that planet. We were being toyed with. If it wasn't for Phillips..." Jack paused. He couldn't even bring himself to say it. It took the murder of a good woman to find their mole.

Hammond nodded.

An hour later the team met in the briefing room.

"Might I suggest," David said, "that you get someone over to the jail to talk to this man before the Goa'uld inside of him decides to take action?"

"That is quite right." Victoria added. "They can kill themselves and their host almost immediately. As long as he doesn't suspect that we know, we might be able to take precautions."

Jack agreed that it might work and headed over to the jail with General Hammond and Major Davis.

When Jack saw Phillips through the two-way mirror of the interogation room, he didn't seem to be the wife-beater he was.

Edgar Phillips was a thin and gaunt looking man. He was in his mid-fifties and already balding. Jack also knew that to think he was "scrawny" along with being thin was a mistake. He was a strong man for his lean look. He supposed one had to be in order to do what he did around the SGC. But there was something else there...well something else missing. There was no emotion in the man's eyes. None. No fear, no sadness, no guilt, nothing. Jack wondered how he could have missed that look.

They watched the detective talk to him. His JAG representative was there and urging his client to answer the question he was just asked. Finally Edgar turned to his attorney and hissed something in his ear. The JAG Lieutenant paled and said out loud that his client demanded to speak to Colonel Jack O'Neill and only him.

The Detective excused himself and walked into the other room.

Before the man could say a word, Jack indicated he heard. "Yeah, I'll go." He nodded to General Hammond and walked to the room. He took a breath before he walked in and sat down.

Phillips turned to his attorney and said one word. "Leave!"

The man attempted to argue, but when he saw Edgar's eyes flash, he got the message and left the room.

Jack tried to remain unmoved by this quick revelation, but didn't quite succeed.

"Surely Colonel, you are not that surprised to know this." The Metallic voice sounded almost amused.

"I am more surprised that you revealed yourself so soon."

"There is no need for me to hide. You are aware that this pitiful specimen murdered his wife."

"Probably with your help," Jack retorted.

The Goa'uld laughed. "I can assure you Colonel, that this man was a drunk and a wife beater long before I used him."

"And you found what he did amusing?"

"Infinitely," the Goa'uld answered him. "Made it so much easier to control him."

"So, who are you exactly? And what is it you want from me?"

"Ah, you do not beat around the bush. Good, I like that."

"Okay, so we have established you like people being direct. So...answer my question...what is it you want from me?"

"My freedom."

Jack stared at the individual in front of him. "What?"

"I believe that your hearing is unimpaired, Colonel."

Jack sat for a minute thinking. "Ok, before we get to your request, who are you?"

"My name is Se'rak."

Jack waited for what was sure to be the other shoe.

"I can tell you when, where and how they will kidnap Major Carter."

Jack's heart stopped. "You have no idea where she is."

"Foolish human. Area 51."

Jack laughed. "You do know her father is host to Selmak." Jack watched the Goa'uld's eyes when he said that and knew he struck a nerve.

"And because of that, she can be anywhere, in any universe. And you know my good buddy Thor?"

Another home run hit. "She can be on his homeworld, or in the Pegasus Galaxy. You really have no idea where she is."

Jack paused. "You really aren't telling me something I didn't know. You arranged to have those little clues on the planets we went to. You were the one dropping the hints that you can find us anytime, anyplace and that Major Carter was the target."

Disgusted Jack sat back in his chair. "You expect us to just release you on the hopes that you would be telling us something solid? Please."

Jack then leaned forward. "You realize, of course, that Phillips was a big drinker when you took him over. Do you know what happens to an alcoholic when they don't get their daily fix of liquor?"

Se'rak's eyes glowed slightly. "Are you trying to frighten me, Colonel?"

"No, I'm just laying out the ground rules for your freedom is all."

"You dare!??" Se'rak's voiced was raised. How dare this human dictate the terms. "I can snap you in half with my bare hands."

"With Phillips bare hands and I invite you to try."

Se'rak never having faced a situation like this did not know what to say and tried to bluster.

"I can help you protect Major Carter."

"Maybe you can and maybe you can't. But I am holding the cards here."

"Are you-you do know that..." Before Se'rak could finish his thoughts Jack zatted him.

"Try that again, " Jack warned him, " and I'll finish you off."

As the host body of Edgar Phillips lay on the floor in pain Jack patiently explained why he would be playing ball with him.

"Search your hosts mind. He has gone, what we call 'Cold Turkey' before. It isn't pleasant." Jack paused for a minute and then added. "Now listen very carefully to me."

Jack explained what sudden withdrawal from alcohol could be like...told him about the shakes, the paranoia and most importantly about the pain.

When he finished he looked at the Goa'uld with a thoughtful expression.

"But we have ways of mitigating the DT's," Jack told him. "Something that will keep you from feeling all that comes with withdrawal. You want your freedom? You play by my rules."

Jack abruptly stood up and walked around to the side of the table where Se'rak sat and then sat down on the chair his JAG attorney had sat on next to the fallen figure.

"Now which is it? Simple, calm and safe detox or possibly fatal detox?" Jack then slipped out a syringe he had and gave the fallen figure an injection of a tranqulizer to insure the Gao'uld didn't try to kill himself and his host.

The JAG attorney, predictably, was incensed when Jack came out the door. Jack just shouldered his way past the man and headed to where the rest of the team was waiting.

Maggie Devlin sat astride her chair and had an amused grin on her face when he walked into the room.

"Cute trick there O'Neill," she said. "How did you get him to change his voice like that?"

Jack knew that she was sarcastic and didn't bother to answer.

"Should we try and remove the Goa'uld?" Hammond asked.

Jack shook his head. "Not until we get some answers from him."

It actually didn't take long.

"Well Colonel, what's next?" The clipped British tones seemed to startle Jack so quickly did he turn to face the other man. But David knew that Jack moved very quickly normally and didn't startle easily, if at all.

"We head over to area 51, grab Carter and give her to her father." In a slightly angry voice he added. "Something we should have done in the first place."

David only nodded. They had to get Major Carter out of harm's way. Hopefully the Goa'uld hadn't had a chance to process that she would be on earth.

The two men quickly headed to the SGC.

The heat in the Nevada desert at this time of year was no fun. Sam wiped the sweat from her brow for the, oh, umpteenth time. Beth's older brother Aaron was in the tent praying the portable air conditioning unit would keep it cool enough so that the computers wouldn't fry.

Sam giggled at some of the words coming out his mouth. Beth had taught her some of the same words and she knew they weren't "polite company" phrases.

Aaron stopped typing and raised an eybrow when he turned to see what Sam was laughing at. He realized that she was giggling at him.

"What can I say?" he asked. His sky blue eyes danced merrily. "If I said what I wanted to in English instead of in Yiddish, it wouldn't be as much fun."

He sat back and then stretched his arms over his head in order to work out the kinks in his shoulders and back.

"Is the warehouse cool enough yet?" he asked her.

"Almost. Probably about another 45 minutes and it will be the right temperature."

Aaron nodded. He couldn't wait to get to the machine they were working on into a cooler area. Damn those bureaucrats. It was so typical for the governmental paper pushers to send such sensitive machinery into the desert to test, without making sure there was a cool enough space to store the machinery during the testing phases.

"I can't say I'm sorry that you are not with the SGC right now. I have been wanting to work with you for years."

Sam blushed. Aaron's field was Mechanical Engineering and he really appreciated the expertise she brought with her background.

"How did someone with your background get into this Aaron?"

"Not real sure. I think Dad had something to do with it. He knew that I was bored where I was and thought that Area 51 would be the challenge I needed. Smiling at the memory. "General Dad" as he'd taken to calling his father sometimes, had quite a few people jump through hoops, including him, when he brought up the suggestion. "This place just caught my imagination and here I am."

They continued to work in companionable silence for the next 45 minutes. When the tech came in and told them the warehouse was cool enough, they bothed sighed in audible relief.

The host that was Edgar Phillips stirred suddenly in his cot. He slowly opened his eyes and looked around his room to see if anyone was sitting with him. He noticed the camera that was in his room silently recording what was going on. He was thankful for the implanted device that allowed him to communicate with the ship by telepathy. A device that, as yet, the Tauri and the Tok'ra were not yet familiar with.

"How did it go?" Se'rak heard Si'Serra's voice. Urgent in its tone.

"Ridiculously easy. " Se'rak told him. "He believed every word."

"You almost gave it away Se'rak. That was not acceptable."

"He accepted my story in the end," Se'rak answered him, irritation evident in his response.

"Yes he did. Foolish ...stupid man."

Se'rak laughed harshly. "It amazes me how, after all your altercations with the Tauri and particularly Colonel O'Neill, you would still refer to him thusly."

"Do you not value your life Se'rak?"

That caused him to laugh again. The guards watching him on the screen wondered at his sudden and loud laughter, but made no move to check the room. They figured that Edgar was just detoxing and talking to what ever colored elephant was telling him jokes.

"I do indeed value my life, such as it is right now. It will be worth nothing when O'Neill returns."

"Do you truly expect any of them to live?"

Se'rak was quiet for a minute and then his mood turned darkly sarcastic. "Ask Molem or the great trainer of Warriors about O'Neill's intelligence and cunning."

There was a snort before the answer. "He is a formidable warrior, but that is all."

Se'rak laughed again. "Yes I suppose you only consider his warrior training and abilities. The intelligence of SG-1 has almost always been anchored by Major Carter. But I have heard about O'Neill's intelligence spoken of at the SGC. He leads people down what my host referred to as "the garden path"."

"Which means?"

"Which means that you underestimate his intelligence. Do you think the Asgard chose O'Neill because of, what is that phrase the Tauri use, oh yes...because of his "beauty and charm"?"

Se'rak shook his head. "My life is forfeit. You will not rescue me. I already knew that this was a suicide mission and when O'Neill returns from his mission, he will personally kill me. Listen to me well. For your sake and the sake of the mission we are on, just take Major Carter and go. To engage O'Neill is a dangerous and foolish tactic. As long as you hold the woman, you control him."

Molem answered that it was probably the truth. "Take Major Carter and leave enough clues to draw O'Neill to her rescue. She means much to him. He will come."

"And bring the others." Si'Serra reminded him.

"What does it matter in the end. We kill him and some more of these cursed Earthers. Matters not, as long as he and Major Carter die in the end."

The soldiers, no matter how fast they moved, could not move faster than the poison a Goa'uld secretes to kill itself and the host, By the time they got to Sgt. Phillips, he was already dead.

"Colonel O'Neill is not going to like this."

"O'Neill." Jack grabbed his cell phone from its holster as he, Teal'c, Daniel and SG teams 2 and 3 headed towards the convoy that would take them to the air force base to board the plane taking them to Nevada. He knew the FBI would be sending Agent Devlin and her team to meet him at the base and ride along with them. He was hoping that her acerbic wit was not the only wit she brought with her. They will need cunning.

"Shit!" Jack exclaimed and then hung up his phone.

"Jack?" Daniel was startled not so much by the word, he heard Jack curse before, but the explosive tone behind it.

"Phillips is dead."

Daniel echoed Jack's word. "Now what?"

"Now we hurry."

The convoy moved with military escort and raced to the base.

The cloaked ship hummed with the energy of its Naquadah powered engines.

The Aschen representative had his eye glued to the screen in front of him. They had long ago acquired the energy signature for Major Carter and they knew exactly where she was now.

TBC...

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