11 – Reality Check

Dr. Lam watched her father's back as he hastily exited the mess hall. She'd figured this 'lunch meeting' wasn't going to be about her staff when she'd agreed to it. She'd played along though until he'd asked after her mom and then the old resentments had come rushing back. Carolyn set her fork down, her appetite gone. She didn't know if she'd ever get back to where her dad wanted them to be, the typical father and daughter relationship, but something was going to have to give if she was going to continue working at the SGC.

Lam gathered her father's untouched tray with her own and left the mess hall after dumping them on the way out. She'd almost reached the infirmary before she was called to the control room. Her desire to turn and leave at the sight of her father had been great, but she heard Colonel Mitchell's voice on the monitor and couldn't help moving closer to hear him on the MALP video feed.

"...quarantine the sick. Vala's using the healing device to cure them as they come in, but they're piling up pretty quick."

"Symptoms?" Dr. Lam asked. Her training allowed her to ask questions and catalog the information Cameron was providing while she observed him. He looked exhausted and the strain in his voice tugged at her on an emotional level.

"How are you and your team, Colonel?" she asked toward the end of the check-in.

She didn't miss the fact he looked away from the MALP camera as he assured her they were fine. His parting words, But I reckon we could use some backup, haunted her all the way back to the infirmary where she quickly gathered supplies and donned one of the hazmat suits alongside her team.


General Landry stood just outside the Gateroom watching the medical team approach for their mission. He was having trouble finding his daughter as he wished them all luck, the hazmat suites obscuring all but their faces.

As the last person approached he immediately knew it was her. "Carolyn," he began, needing for the last thing they said to each other not be the argument they'd had at lunch.

Carolyn had been down this road many times with her father and she didn't have time to argue with him. "I'm chief medical officer on this base, it's my call who goes on this mission. Given my work with the CDC, infectious disease is my specialty. I am easily the most qualified for this."

Landry gave her a small smile. "I know. I'm your dad. I just came by to wish you luck... and be careful."

Ready for him to attempt to pull rank and restrict her from going, Lam was almost at a loss for words. "Thank you. I will."

The General watched her go. He knew their relationship was strained at the moment, but he was willing to put in the hard work now that he had this second chance with her.


Colonel Mitchell acted as guide once Carolyn reached the planet, moving her through the rows of the sick and explaining the symptoms they'd seen so far. A few rows over she caught a glimpse of Vala moving among the ailing, doing her best to alleviate some of their pain with the Goa'uld healing device, its effectiveness diminishing with each passing hour.

Lam couldn't help the furtive looks she kept casting Cameron's way. She'd noticed his stilted talk when she'd arrived, and now could see the sheen of sweat on his face; he was definitely fighting a fever. The frustration at her inability to make even one positive discovery concerning this illness was weighing heavily on her.

A commotion to her left caught her attention and she turned to see its cause. When she stood up from the unconscious woman she was tending to, she could see the fallen body of Colonel Mitchell between two cots. She stamped down the panic as she swiftly made her way over to his position, calling his team mates as she reached his side. The vulnerability she saw in Cam lying at her feet scared her more than she could fathom.

Teal'c lifted Cam's pliant body without much effort and followed Daniel and Vala into the pyramid, laying him on a low cot and stepping away. With a hovering team, Dr. Lam made quick work of checking Cameron's vitals and making him as comfortable as possible, wishing there was more she could do for him. His team was soon called away, the entire village needing attention, so many falling ill by the hour.

Carolyn watched Cam's chest rise and fall for several minutes, no longer able to look at his face. His face had looked so different… lifeless and pale. So instead she concentrated on his breathing and willed her mind to grasp at any piece of information concerning this illness hoping that something would lead her to a solution that was currently eluding her.

No other member of Mitchell's team was ill and yet she hadn't been able to find any reason why. She still planned to send samples of their blood through at next check-in and hoped that her lab would be able to find something she'd missed here in the field.

Lam reached out and laid her palm lightly upon Cam's rhythmic chest. She just as carefully pulled it back in the next moment when she felt the heat from his fever. She needed to make rounds to the new victims and recheck some older ones, but she allowed herself one more moment. She lifted his hand and carefully grasped it, willing him to keep breathing, living.

Dr. Jackson came around the corner to fetch Dr. Lam, but stopped short at the sight before him. Dr. Lam and Mitchell… he watched for a few moments, adjusting to the concept before interrupting.

"Dr. Lam."

Carolyn's head whipped up at the sound of her name. She'd forgotten her surroundings for a moment, but was glad Jackson had brought her back. She nodded at him that she understood he was summoning her.

She leaned just a fraction closer to Cam, wishing to not be too intimate, but unable to stop herself. "Don't you dare quit on me now, Cameron Mitchell. I'll be back to check on you soon and I better see you fighting just as hard as you can."

Dr. Lam gave the soldier one last look before she stood up and moved quickly to join Jackson by the door. She took a deep breath as she moved into the courtyard and began looking at patients again. She must have missed something and she desperately needed to figure out what it was.


Cameron sat on a bed in the infirmary lacing up his boots. The rest of his team had already completed their post mission physicals and had left for the mess hall to eat dinner. Dr. Lam had ordered one more panel of blood tests after they'd gotten back to the SGC's infirmary. He'd sent his team on ahead, not sure he really wanted to eat, let alone cafeteria food.

"Are you not feeling well?" Dr. Lam asked as she approached Cameron, surprised to see him still there. She was unsure of how she felt about the Prior healing everyone in the village. It wasn't that she wasn't grateful; she felt helpless and didn't see how they could stop it from happening again.

"No, just trying to work up enough gumption to head home."

"Not going to eat with your team in the mess hall?" She asked, knowing they'd all headed out a while ago.

"Movie and take-out at home feels more my speed tonight." Mitchell stood up and reached for his jacket. "How 'bout it, Doc? Take pity on a man who almost died and join me?"

Carolyn tried to ignore his wink, but couldn't keep a small smile from tugging at her lips. The relief she felt at his teasing was a bit overwhelming and she couldn't keep herself from needing to touch him.

Cameron was startled to find himself enveloped in a firm, although awkward, hug and he quickly wrapped his free arm around her for a slight squeeze in return.

"Thank you for not dying, Colonel," she mumbled into his shoulder before pulling back.

Mitchell gave her a small smile of acknowledgement, but he let it quickly turn mischievous, hoping to lighten the mood. "So, are you saying I was a cooperative patient?"

"Because you were an unconscious patient," Carolyn emphasized with an impatient tone, taking an additional step away from the man.

"Shouldn't I get a reward for being cooperative? Maybe you could say yes and join me for a quiet evening? You can keep an eye on me that way and make sure I continue to follow doctor's orders and rest."

"If you think you need my watchful eye, Colonel, I can order an overnight stay here in the infirmary," she warned with raised eyebrows.

"Won't be necessary, Doc." Cameron swung his jacket over his shoulder, "I promise to remain cooperative tonight and be restful at home." He quickly turned to leave before she could change her mind.

Dr. Lam smirked once his back was toward her before deciding it was time to make her final rounds so that she could get going. She was already going to be late meeting her mom for dinner. Being late and having to reschedule stuff was quickly becoming a habit that she hated.

Carolyn locked up her office and trudged down the hall toward the elevator, checking her watch and hoping that the traffic was light this time of night. She knew her mom would be quick to reassure her that it was okay, but that was almost worse. Lam had grown up with her father constantly late or flat out missing dinners and her mom constantly telling him it was okay. Carolyn didn't want to be like her dad; in fact she had struggled to be the opposite for most of her life. Now it seemed that just a few months working for the military and she was already starting to make similar habits and patterns with her mother.

The problem was that despite feeling bad about being late to dinner, she really would've made the same call and gone on the mission to deal with the outbreak. Her mind kept whispering that her father had probably found himself in similar circumstances. Carolyn probably needed to ease up on him a little, but letting go of the past was proving to be hard for her to do.