May I present, Threads of My Wings book one, "The General's Daughter"
Chapter 1: In My Daughter's Home
Jacob Carter picked up the framed photo that stood on the end table in his daughter's living room. The photo showed Sam and the other members of SG-1 sitting in some bar and grinning broadly. Daniel and Jack had their arms around Sam's shoulders and Teal'c stood behind her, a cryptic Jaffa smile on his face. Thinking back to his first meeting with Pete Shanahan earlier that day, Jacob found himself wishing vainly that one of these men would step past their professional boundaries just enough to see that Sam deserved better than the thick skulled civilian police officer.Jacob shook his head slightly. He'd spent far too much time worrying that his little girl didn't really have a family, that she spent too much time cooped up in the dank military base, that she was going to loose herself in her work. But now he was beginning to see that the reason she spent so much time there was that that was where her family was. That SG-1 was her family, even if Jack O'Neill no longer led it.
Sam came into the living room carrying two cups of coffee. She handed one to her father and sat down in one of the armchairs while he sat on the couch. After a moment of sipping at their coffee, Sam cleared her throat and looked apprehensively at Jacob. "Well?"
"Well what?" Jacob looked innocently back at his daughter.
"It's been hours since Pete left and you haven't said a word."
Jacob set his cup down, leaning back on the couch. "I did so."
" 'He seems nice'?" Sam's lip curled.
"I believe that's three words," Jacob pointed out. "Sam, I just met him. What do you want me to say?"
"A little encouragement might be nice." Sam grumbled. She looked up, saying quietly, "You don't like him, do you?"
"Selmak thinks he's a charming person, and Selmak's a great judge of character." Sam didn't look convinced, so Jacob added, "Sam, he makes you happy, I can tell. That's good enough for me."
Sam nodded, covering her inability to say anything by taking another sip of coffee. Jacob watched her in his usual way, his head tilted slightly to one side and a thoughtful expression on her face.
'I did not think he was charming!' Selmak thought sharply. 'I think as much as you do that Jack O'Neill would be much – '
'I only said that to make her happy, you know that.' Jacob retorted. 'Now something else is bothering Sam, I have to figure out what.'
"Sam," Jacob said aloud, leaning forward slightly. "Is something wrong?""What?" Sam blinked, startled out of her own thoughts.
"Is something wrong," Jacob repeated. "You seem a little out of it."
Sam shook her head. "I was just thinking…things are getting kinda crazy at work…"
"Crazy as in goa'uld taking over the galaxy, or as in General O'Neill crazy?"
That got a chuckle out of her. "General O'Neill crazy." She sighed. "We haven't heard from Daniel in weeks…I miss him so much but General O'Neill won't let us have a memorial service because he thinks Daniel isn't dead. And I'm not saying that I'm giving up hope or anything, but…" Tears were welling in Sam's eyes and she hurriedly wiped them on her sleeve, then grumbled. "He's too busy with his new girlfriend."
Jacob said nothing. He did, however, note the bitter tone in his daughter's voice. For a second he thought Selmak was about to reprimand him, then suddenly a dull pain shot through the base of his skull. Jacob winced, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand.
"Dad?!" Sam was instantly by his side, tears forgotten, replaced by a worried expression.
"I'm fine, Sam," Jacob said, waving her concern away. "I'm just tired, it's been a long day."
Sam's forehead was still furrowed. "You sure?"
"Positive." Jacob smiled reassuringly at her. "If something was wrong, Selmak would take care of it." He yawned, stretching a little more than necessary as if to prove that he was indeed tired. "I think I'll turn in."
"Ok…" Sam said quietly, getting to her feet. "Here, I got the guest room ready for you…"
To his own relief as much as Selmak's, Jacob was able to sleep in the next morning. He awoke to sunlight filtering in through the curtains, then got up, dressed, and went in search of Sam. When he didn't find her in her room or the kitchen, Jacob stuck his head out the back door. He smiled as he recognized the blond figure laying beneath the large tree in the back yard.
Sam didn't open her eyes as Jacob walked over and sat down on the grass next to her; she was too lost in her own world. For a moment Jacob closed his eyes as well, then said softly, "The wind in the trees almost sounds like rain."
Sam's eyes flew open and she sat up. "Dad…! I didn't hear you…"
"Some soldier you are," Jacob smirked. "If I had been a goa'uld you'd be dead by now."
"Huh." Sam leaned back against the rough trunk of the tree, taking a deep breath of the fresh morning air. "I don't think a goa'uld would come sit under a tree with me."
Jacob chuckled. "I remember how you used to lay under that willow tree in the yard back home."
"Yeah." Sam looked up at the sky and had to squint against the bright morning light. "The day of Mom's funeral I went and sat out there for three hours rather than talk to anybody."
"Sam…" Jacob felt a tug at his heart. His wife's death marked the breaking of the Carter family, they'd never been the same afterwards, and no matter what anyone said to the contrary, Jacob always felt that it had been his fault for not being their for his children. "I'm so sorry." He whispered the words. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when you needed me."
Sam gave him a 'Dad, don't be stupid' look. "Dad," she smiled. "I never blamed you. You've done so many great things in the past four years…" She gave him a meaningful look. "Including spending more time with your family. So, don't be so hard on yourself."
"That's what Selmak keeps telling me."
"You should listen to him more."
'Exactly!'
'Selmak, be quiet. I'm having a meaningful conversation with my daughter.''Fine.'
"So what are your plans for today? You've got off, haven't you?"
"Yeah," Sam nodded, picking up a leaf and twirling the smooth, fragile stem between her thumb and forefinger. "I have to go to the florist with Pete later. You?"
"Mark wanted me to stop by and see him and the kids this evening, which means Susan will probably ask me to stay for dinner," Jacob said. "Other than that, I think I'll probably just kick back for a while. It's nice to not have to worry that your position could be compromised any moment." They both chuckled, then the sound of the phone ringing sent Sam charging back into the house.
She returned a moment later, pulling on her jacket. "Trouble at the base," she said, looking worried. "Teal'c is back and he says Anubis is planning an attack…We should get over there."
"Ok," Jacob stood up as they headed back into the house.
"I just have to call the General…"
Jacob was feeling rather pleased with himself for ruffling Sam's feather a little, even though he knew he shouldn't. She was having a rough enough time as it was, but she really did need to take a day off. The free Jaffa wouldn't fall just because she went to go pick out flowers for her wedding, and the tension between her and General O'Neill was making it hard to breathe in the room anyway.
'He'd be good for her.' Selmak took advantage of the fact that Jacob wasn't preoccupied.
'Hrmph. He's what…sixteen years older than her?'
'Stop being such an overprotective father!' Selmak reprimanded. 'Samantha's a grown woman. And O'Neill is a responsible man. I would trust my daughter with Jack O'Neill.'
'If you had a daughter.''It' s hypothetical.'
Jacob sighed. There were no two ways about it. He'd have to talk to Sam more when she got back from –
Pain lanced through him and he found himself grabbing the edge of a nearby table for support. Selmak's presence suddenly seemed to weaken, and panic shot through Jacob. Something was wrong, something was deathly wrong… Before he realized it his knees buckled and he collapsed to the floor.
"Sir!" An airman ran over, then grabbed the phone, and called for a medical team.
Jacob's thoughts seemed hazy. He found all that he had the strength for was urging Selmak to hang on. When Selmak got up the energy to tell him to shut up, Jacob's thoughts turned to Sam.
He couldn't ruin her wedding. He had to hang on long enough to see his little girl happy…
A/N – like? Hate? Want to read more? Please review! Jack/Sam goodness coming up as well as some crazy goa'uld, a daring rescue, and some over cooked steaks!