SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1
Ch. 2 – Busted
"So why did you become a cop?"
"It's no big deal. I had a bit of a rough time when I was growing up. Truth is, I probably would have ended up in jail if it wasn't for this one particular cop who took an interest. He really made a difference in my life and I admired that."
"It's an honorable job."
"Well my ex-wife didn't think so. Did you ever see the episode where Barney comes home and all his stuff is on the front lawn with the divorce papers stapled on top?"
"No."
"I didn't blame her. I mean the hours suck and you never know if...I didn't have a choice, it's who I am."
"I can understand that."
"Really. Deep Space Telemetry is who you are."
"I wish I could tell you more."
"You don't trust me?"
"I'm not allowed."
Pete quickly gets out of bed and starts getting dressed.
"Where you going?"
"I'm gonna drive back to Denver today and file my report."
"Pete, aside from getting in huge trouble myself. I could be putting you in danger."
"Oh now you're trying to tell me that joke about your boyfriends all ending up dead is true?"
"Pete...Please."
"The problem is, I feel like I've just scratched the surface with you Sam. How can we have a future if you won't share your life with me?"
SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1
"Thank you for your time, Agent Farrity, you've been most helpful."
After making another brief call, Sam Carter hung up the phone with a rueful sigh and closed the file that had been laid open on her desk. After she had finished her discussion with Colonel O'Neill she had intended to go straight to Pete's private infirmary room and confront him. But she'd gotten halfway there before doubling back to the Colonel's office. Upon reflection Sam had decided she might as well as have all the facts laid out in front of her and get a couple questions she had answered, so she had asked him for a copy of the report involving Pete. Hence she was still sitting in her lab while the subject of said report was probably wondering where she was.
SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1
"Hey, Pete, they treating you ok?" Sam asked as she entered his infirmary room and walked over to sit on the side of his bed.
He was curious as to the nature of the folder she carried in her hands, but figured she'd tell him about it in due time. "Yeah. Who would've thought there's a hospital under Cheyenne Mountian?"
"One of the best anywhere."
"This place is unbelievable!"
"You've no idea," came her mysterious reply, and it piqued his curiosity about what she really did under this mountain even more.
"I believe I lived up to my end of the bargain."
And there it was. Sam knew it was going to come up again. He was a detective after all, they were known for their curiosity among other things. Until recently, she had fully intended to keep the promise she had made, but what she had learned since, what she held in her hand, was simply too much to ignore. But she wouldn't reveal her knowledge quite yet. She still had questions she needed answered and she figured that if she showed her hand too soon she wouldn't learn what she really wanted to know. Were his actions motivated simply by curiosity and maybe a dose of foolishness, or something worse? Since she knew that wasn't the sort of question she could get a straight answer to, Sam decided to take the 'tactical' approach. Sam laughed quietly to herself; it certainly wasn't a good sign that she was viewing this conversation as a battle to be won.
"What you've seen, and what we discuss here is classified under section 11C9 of the National Security Act."
Pete laughed outright, "Chicks with laser beam rings and glowing eyes are classified under 11C9."
Sam narrowed her eyes and continued as if he hadn't interrupted, "Which means that if you discuss with anyone what you saw there or here you can be tried for espionage and treason."
"Right. Got it. Serious stuff." he said, his face still sporting a grin.
"I'm not kidding."
This time Pete didn't miss her serious tone or her near-glare. "Ok," he nodded, "continue then."
"First, I have to ask you a couple more questions. What were you doing before you came up to me?"
"Like I told you, I just happened to be walking by when you stepped out of that van. I was surprised to say the least, but I have to admit I was curious as to what you were doing there yourself."
Sam resisted the implied question and continued undeterred, "You said my name as soon as I stepped out of the van, and you couldn't have possibly seen my face as I had my back to you."
Pete smirked, "Sam, I'd know you anywhere, even the back of your head."
It didn't seem like he was going to be forthcoming without her being at least a little more confrontational, so she lay down one of her cards. "There is the possibility, of course, that you already knew I was in the van."
Silence reigned. They both knew there was only one way that was possible.
"Pete, did you follow me?" At this point Sam figured his reluctance to admit the truth was evidence of him either knowing the answer was something she wouldn't like or he knew he'd done something wrong.
"Nah, of course not! Why in the world would I do that? It was pure coincidence."
She wordlessly handed over the file folder she had held in her hand. As Pete paged through the report on his recent activities, Sam watched curiously as first shock, denial, and then resignation crossed his face. No regret. Finally, he set his jaw in an obviously defensive attitude. This was not going how she had hoped. She had really thought that maybe he had just let his curiosity run away with him, but so far it wasn't looking that way.
SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1
"Federal Bureau of Investigation. How may I direct your call?"
"Special Agent Farrity please."
"I'll transfer you now. Please hold."
After a few minutes of your typical 'on hold' music, the line was picked up again, "Farrity."
"Agent Farrity, this is Major Sam Carter, I have a couple questions regarding a background check you recently did on me."
Carter could hear his guarded tone as he replied, "Major Carter, of course, I'll be glad to answer your questions if I can."
"That would be in your best interest, Agent." The implicit threat was delivered by way of what she privately referred to as her 'quiet' command tone. "Did Detective Shanahan give a reason for requesting the background check?"
"He didn't say anything beyond that he was in Colorado Springs on a case and needed the background check as a favor."
"That's what I needed to know, thank you."
"Wait, Major Carter?"
"Yes?"
"My apologies for asking a personal question, but by chance are you dating Pete?"
Sam hesitated briefly, "I was…am… Why do you ask? Has he asked for this sort of off the record 'favor' from you before?"
His sigh was quite audible, "Once or twice."
"I see."
SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1
"Pete, that first call you made to Agent Farrity took place right after you left my house that morning, the second was routed through the cell tower closest to my house. He warned you to back off and yet you still followed me. Not to mention the fact that when I spoke to him he indicated this wasn't the first time you've run a background check on a girlfriend. Neither did you go to Denver like you told me you were going to. I called your supervisor; he hasn't spoken to you since you asked for time off." Sam's tirade was cut off with Pete's indignant and slightly bitter response.
"So you and your Air Force buddies were checking up on me, huh?"
"An investigation like this is standard operating procedure when an unauthorized person gets involved in one of our ops. So is following up when background checks are run on base personnel. Combine the two with the fact you were following me and you're lucky the Air Force isn't pressing charges, Pete."
"What did you expect me to do? I tell you all about why I became a cop, and then you feed me this BS line about what you do, and that you're 'not allowed'…" the disdain and disbelief were obvious in his voice, "…to really tell me about your work. How are we supposed to have a future together if you won't even tell me what you do for a living?"She was not going to let him run a guilt trip on her, "I wasn't lying, Pete. I'm really not allowed. And when I approached my CO to actually ask permission to tell you what I do, I was denied due to your own actions." Boy, was this going downhill fast.
"Oh come on! You can tell me, and no one has to know that you did."
Sam couldn't believe it, did he really not understand? "Are you asking me to commit treason? Because that's what it would be, even if no one 'found out'. What I find most entertaining, is your difficulty in accepting what I do or don't do for a living after you went on about how your ex-wife didn't like your job. The Air Force is who I am, and that includes keeping a secret when they tell me to, whether I like it or not."
"So, what, you're gonna keep on lying to me? I'm your boyfriend, Sam, I deserve to know!"
"Not anymore," Sam muttered inaudibly. She took several deep breaths, her temper was very close to being shot, something she couldn't afford right now. "I disagree. I think we're through, Pete. You obviously mistrust me, when I've done nothing to deserve that. And, no, refusing to commit treason to sate your curiosity doesn't count." As she began to stand up to leave, Pete's hand shot out and grabbed her arm, holding her in position."
"Wait! Sam, I'm sorry! We should talk about this, not make rash decisions in a moment of anger. I love you, we can work this out!"
As Sam glared at him, she was nearly in shock at his sudden change of demeanor. He'd gone from self-righteous indignation to what could only be described as near begging. And then it hit her like a ton of bricks. His guilt trips, belittling of her job and oath, lies, investigating what she did at work, and now his begging. She'd had first-hand experience with this sort of thing before, but while the methods were a bit different, the end result was the same. He was trying to manipulate and control her, whether he was intentionaly doing it or not was beside the point. God only knew what he'd try next, he'd likely try and slap a ring on her finger and buy 'them' a house to cage her in.
"That would be Major Carter to you, Detective. And you can release my arm." Aside from the emphasis on his title, her voice was quiet and flat. If Pete Shanahan had really known her, he would've also known it was in his best interest to release her as quickly as possible.
"After what happened a couple nights ago, Sam, I think we're well passed formalities, don't you?" He smirked and waggled his eyebrows suggestively as his grip on her arm tightened.
"Obviously you didn't hear me." With her free hand, she grabbed his and twisted it up, pretzel-like, towards his shoulder, holding it there while she stood up. Sam was mildly amused when it appeared like he was struggling to avoid whimpering. In his attempt to relieve the tension of her hold he had leaned forward, which obviously wasn't doing his injury any service.
"Detective Shanahan, I feel compelled to remind you that anything you've seen or discussed in relation to and including the operation you witnessed is classified under the National Security Act. As such, discussing said experiences without explicit authorization will result in you being tried for espionage and treason. The maximum penalty for both, should you be convicted, is death. The SFs here will assist you in calling a cab or friend when you've been released. I do not want to see or hear from you again."
And with that, she released his arm and was gone.
SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1SG1
A/N: I found Pete a bit difficult to write here. I know that when he didn't get the answer he wanted in the conversation I quoted at the beginning, he attempted to put Sam on the defensive by making her feel bad. Plus, for all the times he's appeared in the show, two words come to mind to best describe him at any given time: overeager and/or manipulative. So I tried to extrapolate from those thoughts, it was just difficult to not overdo him (and I think I may have anyway).
