Chapter 2
As Sam entered the room, she heard someone calling her name and turned to see Paul walking toward her.
"Sam, it's good to see you. Sorry we didn't get a chance to chat when I saw you in Washington."
"It's good to see you too, Paul. Congratulations on your recent promotion."
"Thanks. I've heard nothing but good things about you from General Hammond and the President since you've been here."
"That's nice to know. I really enjoy the work we do here."
"You don't miss all the excitement of getting kidnapped or shot at?" Paul asked with a grin.
Sam smiled. "Not in the least. I'm glad that part of my career is behind me."
As they talked, Sam glanced around to see Jack holding a cup of coffee and talking with one of the men from Huntsville.
Paul excused himself to go speak with someone so Sam sat down at the table and looked through her notes.
Feeling someone watching her, she looked up to see Jack staring at her.
She smiled nervously and he gently smiled back.
They continued to stare until Paul walked up beside her and said something as Jack sat down in a chair on the other side of the table.
Paul closed the door so no one in the corridor could hear what would be said in the room and as he came to the podium, he asked everyone to be seated.
As he was about to start the meeting, the door opened and General Hammond walked in.
"Sorry I'm late" the General said as he closed the door and took a seat.
Paul smiled. "You're not late, sir. We were just about to begin."
Paul paused for a moment. "Two weeks ago, President Hayes, the Joint Chiefs and Colonel Samantha Carter met with you in Washington. Each of you signed a nondisclosure agreement regarding the content of that meeting. I just want to reiterate that this meeting is classified and the nondisclosure agreement stands. In the meeting you were informed about the stargate and the fact that there are other inhabited planets throughout the universe."
As Paul spoke, Jack kept his eyes on Sam. The last time he had seen her, her hair was short but it was now down to her shoulders. She looked beautiful.
Sam glanced down at her lap and looked up to see Jack staring at her. Their eyes met for several seconds until she turned her head, looked up at Paul and tried to concentrate on what he was saying.
From the end of the table, General Hammond watched Jack and Sam. Knowing they were still in love with each other, he thought that if they could just be alone together without any interruptions, maybe they would finally talk. He just wanted to set both of them down and tell them that life was too short to be apart.
Paul continued. "As you have learned, Colonel Carter heads the research division here at the Center. Also with us today is Major General Jack O'Neill who was Colonel Carter's commanding officer when they worked together in the Air Force at NORAD. They have traveled together through the stargate to numerous planets so I'm sure all of you have questions that you would like to ask them. I turn the meeting over to you, Colonel."
Paul took a seat as Sam stood up. Feeling her hands shaking, she laid down her notes and gripped the sides of the podium.
Sam explained about joining the Air Force, when she had first been told about the stargate and reassignment from the Pentagon to NORAD and her position now at the Center.
She glanced at Jack. "I first met General O'Neill when he was a Colonel and I was a Captain. General Hammond was the commander of the base during mine and General O'Neill's time at Cheyenne Mountain and he put us on the same team. He sent us to explore other planets where we met some very nice people and some not-so-nice people. Believe me when I say that we encountered races who wanted nothing more than to kill us or enslave us."
The six officials glanced at each other at Sam's comment.
"I would like to take you on a tour of the area I'm in charge of so you can see for yourselves the work that my staff and I do here. We will return here after the tour is finished for a question and answer session. Please come with me."
Everyone stood and Sam led the way out of the room.
Jack and General Hammond met up at the door and shook hands.
"How are you, Jack?"
"I'm okay. How are you doing?"
"Just fine."
The group followed Sam and everyone got on an elevator. No one said a word as they watched Sam place her palm on a security scanner, the elevator doors closed and they rode down several floors. When the elevator came to a stop, they stepped off and Sam led the way down a long corridor.
As they walked, Jack realized they were underground and because of the nature of the work that Sam and her staff were doing, they had been secluded away from everyone else at the Center to remain in secret. He noticed that there wasn't anyone else around and there were no doors along the corridor until they came to the very end.
Stopping in front of a large steel door, everyone watched as Sam once again pressed her palm against a scanner to allow access to the room. A red light on the scanner changed to green and the door slid open. Sam let the group enter ahead of her and after everyone was inside, she closed the door, locked it and started the tour.
Everyone looked around the large room. There were computers, test tubes, microscopes, safety goggles and lots of other lab equipment. On one wall was a large blackboard with physics equations written on it and on a table in the middle of the room were three open cylinders, similar to nuclear weapons.
Sam introduced each member of her staff and explained that person's job to the group. Having known the members of Sam's staff when they had been at the Mountain, Jack and General Hammond stopped to chat with each of them as Sam continued the tour with the officials.
After the tour was over everyone returned to the conference room.
Paul informed the group of Jack's background in the Air Force and how he came to Stargate Command.
"General O'Neill, I now turn the meeting over to you."
Paul sat down as Jack came to the podium. He told them about his first trip through the gate and some of the things that he and Sam had witnessed during the years they had worked together.
He also explained about the different SG teams and the intensive training they go through before they're allowed to travel through the stargate.
Sam found it hard to look at Jack. His hair was a little grayer and he had gained a little weight, but to her he was even more handsome now than the last time she had seen him.
When Jack finished his comments, he asked if anyone had a question. All of the officials raised their hands so Jack took the first question from a woman on his left.
For the next two hours, Jack, Sam, Paul and General Hammond answered questions about what they had just seen in Sam's lab, the stargate itself, the many kinds of races that the stargate teams encountered, the dangers that Earth could be facing and the costs to the government to produce the weapons.
Paul wrapped up the meeting by telling the three officials from Huntsville that a car was waiting outside to take them to the airport.
General Hammond leaned up from his chair and clasped his hands together on the table. "Colonel Davis, I'd like to say something."
"Go ahead, sir."
"I know that Colonel Davis mentioned this at the beginning of the meeting but I want to go over this again. All of you signed the nondisclosure agreement. You are not to discuss the meeting that was held in Washington two weeks ago nor are you allowed to discuss with anyone what we talked about or anything you saw here today. When you walk out that door, you cannot tell anyone about the stargate, not your spouses, children, family members, co-workers, friends, neighbors, strangers, not even the family pet. If the President, the Joint Chiefs and the people involved in the stargate program find out that you have breached this agreement, you will possibly spend time in prison. Do you understand the seriousness of this?"
The officials nodded their heads.
"Good. Maybe someday the world will be ready to learn about the stargate and what that entails, but for now the President and Joint Chiefs believe that it would only cause world-wide panic if everyone knew about the dangers we might be facing."
"Thank you, General Hammond, and thanks to all of you for coming" Paul said as the meeting ended and everyone began to leave the room.
Jack stood up, thinking that now would be a good time to leave quickly but General Hammond stopped him.
"Jack, it's good to see you. Glad you came."
"Didn't have much choice. This certainly wasn't how I would have preferred to spend my day."
General Hammond lowered his voice. "Because you had to see Sam?"
"Yes sir."
Sam watched Jack as he talked with General Hammond. Wanting to at least speak to Jack before he left, she came around the table and slowly walked to where the men stood.
General Hammond saw Sam coming and smiled as she came to a stop beside them.
"Sam, excellent presentation and great work you're doing here."
"Thank you, sir."
Jack turned to face Sam but he didn't change his expression. "Yes, Carter, I'm impressed."
General Hammond glanced between them as they stared at each other. "You two need to stop this nonsense and talk to each other."
Jack and Sam watched as he walked out of the room and closed the door behind him, leaving them alone.
Sam looked into Jack's eyes. "Would you like to have lunch with me?"
"I'm not hungry so I think I'll be heading out."
"Please, Jack? We can still be on speaking terms, can't we?"
Jack didn't know what to say. Just looking at Sam was pure torture.
He stuck his hands in his pockets. "I'm not sure we can" he finally said.
Jack could see the disappointment on her face.
"Okay. If you think it's best."
Jack started to walk away but suddenly turned around and Sam could see anger on his face.
"You had to tell me goodbye in a letter, Sam? You didn't have enough guts to tell me in person?"
Taken off guard for a moment, Sam stared at Jack. "I explained in my letter why I was leaving. Writing you that letter was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. When we went to your cabin, I had hoped that you would tell me if you felt anything for me but you didn't. I thought you didn't care about me. I felt that nothing was ever going to change between us, that we had missed our chance. I couldn't face you anymore and it hurt too much to be around you. You gave me no good reason to stay."
The door suddenly opened and they turned to see Paul. He came to a sudden stop when he saw that they were still in the room and could tell by their expressions that he had interrupted something.
"Excuse me. I'll just be a second." Paul hurried to get his hat and quickly closed the door behind him.
Jack looked back at Sam. "I have to go. You're doing a great job here and that really doesn't surprise me. You've always been good at everything you do."
As Jack walked away, he quickly looked back over his shoulder to see tears fill Sam's eyes.
Sam dropped her arms by her side and took three steps toward him. "Jack . . ."
They stared at each other for several seconds until Jack opened the door and fled.
Sam sat down, propped her elbows on the table, clasped her hands together and put her forehead against her hands. She knew that seeing Jack again would upset her but she had not realized how much until now.
Knowing that anyone could walk in at any minute, she blinked back tears and tried not to cry.
Jack hurried down the corridor to see his driver waiting at the door. They went outside and got in the car as it began to rain.
The driver started the car and drove away as Jack stared out the window, wishing he had not been ordered by the President to come here. Seeing Sam had broken his heart all over again.
Arriving at the airport, Jack thanked the driver, got out of the car and headed to the plane as the rain continued to fall.
~oOo~
Sam sat staring at the table when she heard the door open and General Hammond came through. He closed the door and came walking toward her.
"Sam."
She quickly wiped her eyes, turned around to face him and started to stand. "Sir."
He could see that she was upset as he motioned for her to stay seated and he sat down beside her. "I saw Jack leave. Are you okay?"
Sam shook her head. "Not really, sir."
"Jack didn't want to come today but President Hayes insisted. He knew it would be hard to see you again."
Sam stared at her hands. "It wasn't easy for me either."
"Jack is still in love with you."
Sam looked into his eyes. "How do you know that?"
"I asked him not long ago and he confirmed it."
"I asked him to stay and have lunch with me but he didn't want to. I don't know why I even bothered to ask."
"Maybe because you still love him and you wanted to see if you could work things out?"
"He's mad at me for giving him a letter instead of talking to him in person."
"It really hurt him when you left and he hasn't gotten over it."
"What was I supposed to do, sir? He wouldn't give me any indication of his feelings. After my broken engagement, I was hoping things would change between us but they didn't. I felt my life was wasting away, waiting for something that was never going to happen. I couldn't work with him anymore. It hurt too much. If he really loves me, why didn't he come after me so we could work things out?"
"Did you want him to come after you?"
"At first, I didn't think so but now . . . I just knew we couldn't go on with the way things were between us. Why couldn't he have given me just a hint that he cared about me? Maybe I would have stayed."
General Hammond sighed. "I don't have any answers, Sam, but I do know that you're both unhappy. Can you take the afternoon off?"
"Yes sir."
He stood up. "Come on. Let's get out of here and go somewhere and talk. I've got some time before I have to leave."
"We can go to my place, sir, and I'll make lunch."
"That sounds good but only on one condition."
"What's that, sir?"
"You've got to start calling me by my first name."
Sam smiled. "Okay . . . George."
~oOo~
Jack removed his hat, jacket and tie and put them on the seat beside him. Feeling a headache coming on, he sat down in the pilot's seat and rubbed the back of his neck.
After getting clearance from the air traffic controller, he got the plane in the air and headed home.
He was glad that he had some time to himself as he settled in for the two hour flight and thought about Sam. Seeing her again made him realize how much he had missed her and how much he still loved her.
He remembered the day they had met and she challenged him to arm wrestle.
After their meeting in the briefing room that day, he wanted to find out more about her so he had checked her personnel records. She had graduated first in her class at the Academy, earned her doctorate degree in astrophysics and had served in the Gulf War as a pilot, risking her life to save others.
He had to admit that he was impressed by her credentials but he was curious to see how she would stand up to his scrutiny if they went through the stargate together. As fate would have it, he did not have to wait long to find out.
On one of their first trips through the gate, he, Daniel and Teal'c found themselves staring at Sam as she stood before them wearing the blue Shavadai dress. Even though she had protested, he thought she looked very pretty and later when she had challenged Turghan and won, his admiration for her grew to new heights.
When they had rescued Cassie, the young girl had trusted no one but Sam and she had risked her life to save Cassie when they thought she had been implanted with a Gou'ald device to destroy Earth. He could still remember his heart thumping in his chest when they had taken Cassie to the abandoned nuclear facility and Sam had disobeyed his order to leave Cassie and return to the surface. He could have written up Sam for insubordination, but knowing she had risked her life for Cassie, and would do so again, he had not had the heart to go through with it.
When they had been rescued after nearly freezing to death in Antarctica, he lay in the infirmary with a broken leg and cracked ribs, staring at the ceiling while trying to convince himself that he was not going to fall in love with Sam.
He would never forget when the alternate Sam and Kawalski had come through the quantum mirror and he learned that Sam and her Jack were married in her reality. She had been so upset over watching her husband die, that when he held her in his arms as she cried, he couldn't help but wonder if holding the Sam in his reality would feel this good. After Sam watched him kiss alternate Sam goodbye, it was several days before they could look at each other again.
Then came those three months when he was stranded on Edora and had finally been rescued. His team had been so glad to see him but as they made their way back to the stargate, Sam had clammed up and wouldn't look at him. When they arrived back on Earth, Daniel and Janet had told him that Sam had worked so hard to bring him home that she had put her health in jeopardy. He had tried to thank her but it had taken them several weeks to get back into a cordial working relationship.
The day came when he sat in front of Anise, as Sam, Janet and Teal'c watched, and he admitted that he cared more about Sam than he did himself. Trying to lock his feelings away that day had been one of the hardest things he had ever done.
He replayed all the good times and the bad times they had spent together but the one time he thought he might have finally lost her was when she had been stranded on the Prometheus. He had slept very little the whole time that Sam had been missing and had gone on every rescue mission that Hammond had authorized. Just before Sam returned, Teal'c stood behind him in the locker room, telling him that Sam had a similar reaction to his disappearance when he had been stranded with Maybourne on the planet's moon.
He took a deep breath as he remembered one of the worst days of his life was when Sam started to hum as they rode the elevator together and she admitted that she had been set up on a date with Pete. After getting off the elevator, he hurried to his office, closed the door, sat down in his chair and stared at the wall. He had tried to be happy for her but he had never told anyone how much it had hurt when she and Pete got engaged.
Time after countless time, he and Sam had saved each other's lives and he admired her for so many reasons. She had a brilliant intellect and was an amazing woman, friend, astrophysicist, soldier and confidant.
He thought about the last time he had seen her before she had left for Houston. He had watched her drive out of his life that day when he had parked close to her house.
He now had to admit to himself that he could not blame Sam for leaving because as she had told him just today "you gave me no good reason to stay."
Swallowing the lump in his throat, he finally realized that General Hammond was right. It was his own fault that he and Sam were not together. She had given him a chance to change their situation when she had been at his cabin but he had done nothing. After she had given him her letter, he should have gone to see her and asked her forgiveness. He had wasted these last two years being stubborn and prideful, two whole years when he could have had this intelligent, kind and beautiful woman to share his life.
He knew he had to rectify the situation. He wanted to turn the plane around and head back to Houston but he was almost home and there wasn't enough fuel in the plane for a return flight.
As soon as he landed, he would call Sam and apologize and hopefully she would not hang up on him. If she did, he would return to Houston anyway. He had to make her understand that he loved her, needed her and wanted her with him. He had to make her understand just how empty his life had been without her. Even if it meant he had to retire and move to Houston so they could be together, it would be one of the wisest decisions he had ever made.
As he came closer to Colorado Springs, the rain splashed against the windows and lightning flashed around him as the pain increased in his head.
After talking with the air traffic controller and getting clearance to land, the plane touched down.
Suddenly feeling very weak and dizzy, the plane slid down the runway, veered off into the grass and slammed into a metal fence.
TBC