A/N: Hi there… I know it was a long time since the last update, sorry about it. I didn't have much time… and I had a bit of a writer's block considering this particular story… Should be okay now… :o) Hopefully you will all forgive me… there are few other small stories coming up pretty soon as an apology :o) For now I can promise two for sure :o)
Also - this chapter might be reposted later - it looks like I have a beta :o) But she didn't have much time either... but I didn't want to make you wait any longer so... I will let you know with chapter 15 if there's been any changes here :o)
By the way – I promise that I will make it up to you all for all this angst… you know, I really AM a good girl ;o) Besides – I simply love fairy-tales so… happily ever after? Yeah, maybe… probably… we will see :oD
LOVELY LITTLE LADYBUG – CHAPTER 14
General Hammond was sitting in his office. He couldn't quite believe what Jack has told him in the morning. The simple horrifying conversation kept on repeating itself in his head, it was like a broken record. Jack wasn't sure about telling him, he was worried and he looked stressed. It must have been pretty difficult on him.
"Sir, a word?"
"Sure Jack, what's up? What can I do for you?"
"We have a problem, Sir."
"What's going on?"
"Can we talk … off the record, Sir?"
"Sure, son. Now will you tell me what's going on?"
"It's Fraiser, Sir. She's been abused."
"What!"
"She confessed to Carter yesterday. And as you know, I left a bit earlier to pick up Cass and in the evening she told me the same thing. She was worried sick, Sir."
"I had no idea…"
"Yeah, Fraiser did damn good job with keeping everything to herself. That bastard has threatened her with hurting Cass."
"We won't allow that."
"No Sir, we won't… Well, Fraiser sent that rat to hell. He has hurt her pretty much, Sir."
"What do you want me to do, Colonel?"
"Take it easy on Fraiser, for a start. She needs friends now. She might be a bit distracted so it would be good to have somebody to help her on the base all the time in the infirmary. Just in case."
"Sounds reasonable. I will arrange that."
"And I would like to leave early today as well to pick up Cass. I just want to make sure she's safe."
"Of course."
"We will inform the Police and let them find the bastard and deal with him…"
"You do that, son."
"Yes, Sir."
"Keep me posted."
"Will do, Sir."
"And keep them safe, Jack, both of them."
"I'm planning on to, Sir, don't worry."
So of course Hammond helped him as best as he could. He couldn't quite believe it. How could somebody, anybody, use a teenage girl like this? And hurt the amazing woman that was her mother? The world could really be a sick place to live.
He was surprised when his phone rang. He didn't expect anybody to call him. But well, being the CO of the whole base came with certain duties. One of them was to be the guy on the phone when the situation required it.
"Yes?"
"Sir, it's me."
"What's wrong Jack?"
"We have a problem, Sir. Fucking huge problem."
"Cassandra?"
"Possibly kidnapped, Sir. They saw a man grabbing her and taking her into his car. I have the car description but nothing else."
"Do you have a plan?"
"Yes. Sir, send Carter home in case Cassie will go there. Then send Daniel over to my place, same reason, he has a spare key. And if you can, send somebody with Fraiser over to her place, Ferretti for example. Cassie might go home but I don't want to take any risks."
"Consider it done."
"Thank you, Sir."
"Jack?"
"I will check few places I know Cassie likes, just in case. If I don't find her I will call you. We might need to decide what to do next then."
And they both know what that meant. It was dangerous to ask the locals to help with the search, it would be also pretty dangerous to call for real help, somebody from the FBI would come or NID or whatever and it would put Cassie into some serious problems. And they still weren't sure if the guy that kidnapped her was Drew or … somebody even worse.
"Find her, Jack."
"I will."
And one of the worst possible phone conversations ended. This couldn't be happening. Hammond knew he had to act quickly but he was not looking forward to telling Dr. Fraiser.
He walked to Walter and asked him to call all three doctors and Ferretti into his office, ASAP.
Walter has been on the base since the program started. He was one of those that have witnessed all the good and all the bad, he had known all the people and he also got to know the General pretty well. So when he saw his face, he knew that something terrible has happened. He tried to call the infirmary, he tried to call their quarters and then he tried to call the commissary. And so he found them, all four of them actually.
He talked to Dr. Carter. When he asked her to take the other three people and go into the General's office, he has heard her sigh. She was worried because of something. And when he told her that it was urgent, she just said 'yes, we're on our way'. Somehow he knew that those people would get some pretty bad news soon. He could tell. And so he was ready to offer any possible help. He knocked on the General's door.
"Come in."
"They are on their way, Sir. They will be here any minute."
Hammond nodded. He couldn't say anything. He had to think about how to approach Dr. Fraiser with this information.
"Sir?"
"Yes?"
"If there is something I can help with…"
"Understood."
Walter smiled at him, nodded and left the office. Hammond knew that this man was a fine one. They were lucky to have him… he has never been appreciated much but still he stayed. And he was a good friend.
In the commissary Sam looked for Ferretti. She found him sitting with two marines. She waved at him. He gave her a puzzled look, excused himself and walked over to her. Janet noticed him and she looked worried suddenly.
"Sam, what is it?"
"I don't know. I just got a call. Hammond wants the four of us in his office, ASAP."
"Ideas?"
But nobody knew what this could have been about. They got up and made their way to the General's office. Sam knocked and they all entered.
"General, you wanted to see us?"
"Yes, I did. Have a seat."
Janet and Sam sat down. Daniel was standing behind Janet, looking worried. He didn't like the way the General has been looking at them.
"General? What happened?"
"I just got a call from Jack, Dr. Jackson."
"Oh my God… he went to pick up Cassie…"
Janet was far beyond being worried. She looked scared. She started to shake. Daniel put a hand on her shoulder to give her a reassuring squeeze. How did she manage to pick up on the fear in Hammond's voice so fast anyway? Had to be mother's instinct.
"Yes, he was about to pick her up but she wasn't there. She was seen with a man. He grabbed her and made her go with him."
Janet gasped, tears sprung into her eyes, she couldn't breathe. She felt Sam's hand clasping hers.
"We don't know what happened. We have a plan though. It's possible that with her training she might have escaped. So Sam, please go home in case she goes there. Dr. Jackson, Jack told me you had a key to his house. Please, go over there, same reason. And Colonel Ferretti will accompany Dr. Fraiser home, again, the same reason."
"What if she…"
"Jack will check out her favorite places, maybe he will find her. If not, we will decide whom to call to start a regular search for a missing person. Questions?"
"Sir, are we to be armed?"
Ferretti asked. He didn't know what the hell was going on but the girl was kidnapped and clearly in danger.
Hammond had to think about it. They were not allowed to carry guns outside the base. But on the other hand…
"Dr. Fraiser do you think that in case the man was Mr. Hulett your daughter might be in danger?"
"Yes."
It shocked him that she didn't have to think about it.
"Okay then. Colonel, take a gun with a special permission. Use it only when it is damn necessary, understood?"
"What about Sam, sir?"
"I hate to say this but I cannot allow you to have a gun, Sam."
"I know, Sir, that's okay."
"And if somebody gives you one, please, be careful and don't tell me."
He said that and started to go through some papers on his table. The conversation was over. Sam knew what he was doing and she was grateful. She didn't know how she would get a gun though. Before stepping into the elevator Ferretti looked at her and smiled.
"I have my own one and now I will get another one. Everything's clear."
Sam nodded.
In few minutes they were all on the surface, getting ready. Janet was way too disturbed to think clearly, she was worried and she didn't know what to do. Daniel came to her and hugged her firmly. She was holding onto him for dear life.
"Don't worry, she will be just fine, she's a tough kid, she's smart and strong."
"I just…"
"Shh… Ferretti will take care of you okay? Everything will be fine. I know it's hard to believe it but please, trust me. It's gonna be okay."
She nodded against him and he kissed her forehead then.
They all knew it would be dangerous to let Daniel drive. Luckily Hammond arranged him a transport. One of the soldiers would drive him over to Jack's place. Before leaving Daniel made sure that Janet had her seat-belt on and he tried to reassure her once again. He knew it was pointless though. There was nothing he could do and he knew it. They just had to find Cassie and bring her home safely.
Ferretti assured her that he would take care of her and that if somebody could find her daughter, it was Jack O'Neill. She actually smiled at him.
"Don't worry, doc, it will be okay."
"I'm not sure… Eh… Lou do you know what is going on? Has somebody told you?"
"No."
"And yet…"
"You think I would let you drive when your daughter is missing? Can you imagine what would Jack do to me in case something happened to you?"
"So it's just a self-preservation thing?"
He smiled at her attempt to lift the mood up a bit. She really was a strong woman.
"I was dating somebody, you know? And he turned out to be … abusive. He hurt me and when I wanted him to leave he told me he would hurt Cassie."
"What?"
"When he seriously hit me, hurt me… I couldn't go on pretending and keeping it from my friends. I told him to leave. He wasn't happy about it."
"And you think it was him who took her?"
"I don't know. It's possible…"
"But we all know how many people wanted her…"
"Yes."
"Well, as I said earlier, doc, don't worry. Jack will find her. And I already feel sorry for the bastard that took her."
"You think he would…?"
"I don't know doc. But I know what I would do if somebody would take away my kid. And Jack has already lost one so…"
She looked at him, shocked, crying. He didn't know what he screwed up but he must have done something.
"Doc?"
"I didn't realize it."
"What?"
"That he sees her as a daughter."
"Well, then you are probably the only one, doc. We all know he loves her as a father and from what I've seen, she has him as the father figure in her life as well. The rest of us? We're just bunch of uncles…"
"I hope he won't do anything stupid."
"Yeah, me too."
"I just want her to be safe…"
Ferretti couldn't stand her worried expression, voice thick with emotions and tear-filled eyes anymore. He reached over and clasped her hand in his. It wasn't the best thing to do while driving but he was hoping he would manage. He felt her squeeze back and he knew he has done the right thing this time.
They reached her house, she ran inside, hoping Cassie would be there. She wasn't. Fraiser sat down on the couch and hugged a pillow to her chest. She hated feeling helpless. She hated not knowing anything about her daughter. She hated everything. And she couldn't help it, she had to blame herself. One tiny little part deep inside her has blamed Daniel. If he wouldn't push her away, she would have never ended with Drew. But she knew that this was stupid and she didn't believe it. Especially after the talk they had. He cared about her and he thought he was doing the best thing all the time ago.
Ferretti was standing there, not knowing what to do. He checked the house to be sure everything was clear and okay. He had his training after all. He wasn't any good at waiting so this was pure torture. Every time he looked at Dr. Fraiser he wanted to do something to help her, he wanted to offer comfort and he wanted to shoot something in anger. He settled for going to the kitchen and getting some water. With all the tears the doc cried she could most definitely use it.
He handed it to her and she thanked him, she even managed to smile a little.
"Doc… is there something, anything, I can do right now?"
"You're as bad as O'Neill when it comes to waiting, aren't you?"
"I'm afraid so… but give me some credit, I'm usually nice to the nurses…"
She had to smile. There were many things those two strong men had in common.
"Janet… I know that I have no right to say a thing but… don't blame yourself, okay?"
She looked at him, not knowing what to say. She decided to be honest. Lying and pretending led her nowhere recently.
"I'm trying."
"But it's hard."
"Very."
He sat down next to her and for a moment he looked like O'Neill, elbows on his knees, head in his hands, all tensed and unsure when it came down to some serious revelation.
"Every time we step through the Gate I'm worried that I will do something wrong, that something will happen and you know that something always happens. It's my call to go, my call to run, my call to stay. And when somebody gets hurt, I keep on asking what I could have done differently. I blame myself for not being stronger, better."
"Lou…"
"When Skaara and Sha're were taken by Apophis, I was blaming myself, doc. I was there. Then Kowalski got hurt and again, I was blaming myself. I was there. I could have done something. But we stayed, on Abydos, it was my call to stay by the Gate, my call, doc. And many times during those years I had to face the same decision. I wanted to do something, I wanted to go somewhere and I took my team along, on a mission, specifics have never mattered. And when they got hurt, when things went wrong, I had to ask myself why I made that call, why it happened. I was blaming myself every single time."
"Are you trying to tell me that I have to forgive myself and stood up for my decisions?"
"Sort of, yeah…"
"Thank you."
"But doc… I have this strange feeling that there is more in it, isn't it?"
"Huh?"
He needed lots of courage to ask her.
"Why did you start dating him anyway?"
She looked down then. She couldn't face him. She felt humiliated.
"Janet?"
"Somebody rejected me and I needed company."
"Ah… so that's the reason why things started to get weird between you and Dr. Jackson?"
She looked directly into his eyes, shocked and not believing. And the poor man looked worried even more by then.
"I'm sorry, Dr. Fraiser. I didn't mean to pry or imply anything, I'm sorry."
"It's okay… you're just trying to understand why are you here sitting in my living room and having to take care of me after mild emotional breakdown."
"Wow… what a way how to put it…"
Janet didn't want to say anything more. She was afraid. She didn't need anybody else to know about her big mistake… but this was the man that was here to protect her and her daughter, the man that has always been kind and helpful, funny and smart, one of those that could keep Jack O'Neill at bay when the situation has needed it… This was Lou Ferretti.
"The answer is yes, Lou."
And he got the message. Deep down she was blaming somebody else. And it sucked.
"So… let me tell you one more thing, okay?"
"What thing?"
"After coming back from Abydos the second time, I wasn't just blaming myself. Yeah, I screwed up, my men got hurt and so did people from Abydos. I had to face Dr. Jackson and everybody after seeing Sha're and Skaara being taken away. I had to face the worst fear possible, that there were more of those bastards with glowing eyes. But I was blaming somebody else for what happened. I couldn't bear all the guilt I felt so I needed somebody to share it with. I needed somebody to blame, that was self-preservation thing. Pure and raw. Deep down I knew it was wrong and stupid and I knew that it was irrational, but it seemed to help in the beginning. In the end it was eating me alive from inside out and I had to face it again."
"Point taken."
"Good."
"Can I ask you something?"
"Yeah, sure."
"Have you ever told Jack?"
Of course she would know about whom he has been talking about. This was Fraiser after all. And he didn't want to deny a single thing. After all, this was hell of a honest conversation.
"No."
"Oh."
"I didn't have to, doc. He came to me and told me to stop blaming myself, he felt as guilty as I did. And then I realized how stupid we both have been."
"Wow… wish I could have seen that…"
"What?"
"You two beating the crap out of each other in order to make the other realize that it wasn't his fault."
"I didn't tell you we have been fighting…"
"Come on, Lou. You think I forgot? I met you both with bruised hands, all sweating, looking exhausted. And when I asked you what happened, at first you looked worried but then O'Neill looked at you and you both just grinned, nodded at each other oh sooo seriously and said 'oh nothing doc, just a guy talk'. I will never ever forget that…"
Ferretti was blushing a bit now. He has never seen it this way. Oh they must have looked really ridiculous.
"I thought I would lose my job back then, I thought he would press the charges. He would be right to do so… but he didn't do it. He proved his qualities once again."
"You respect him very much."
"I do. I learned how to respect lots of people from the base, doc."
And by the look he gave her she understood. He respected her. This man respected her and obviously trusted her enough to tell her the story. Wasn't he O'Neill's cousin or something?
Janet smiled at him and then started to cry again. These tears weren't those of pain and guilt, these were full of sorrow and sadness. They were also tears of relief. It felt like something heavy has been taken away from her shoulders. And it felt nice.
"Thank you, Colonel. You're a very good man. And a good friend."
"Stop it doc, I have my reputation to take care of!"
"Here comes the influence of Jack O'Neill again…"
"Wow… don't you ever dare to tell him that."
He tried to lift the mood up again a bit. And he would never be able to tell why he did it, but he moved closer to the lovely doctor and put one arm around her shoulders. She had the option of leaning away but instead of that she leaned closer.
"It's okay to cry, doc. I won' tell a soul. I promise."
And this simple sentence made her smile into his jacket. He was incredible, wasn't he? Natalia was a lucky woman to have him. But this was the time she was supposed to help him lift the mood up a bit, wasn't it? Yeah, she could do that now.
"You're just worried I would tell somebody about how you fainted few years ago when I had to clean the cuts on your … "
"On my ass, just say it doc…"
She giggled through her tears. Silent tears were coming down her cheeks but she didn't feel that bad anymore. She was only worried, she missed her daughter, she missed Daniel, but no matter what, she felt safe and protected. There was nothing better about living on Earth than having friends.
Ferretti kept on caressing her hair and she didn't feel bad about it. It was nice. He didn't have the same touch as Daniel did but it was nice anyway.
Daniel was pacing through Jack's living room, not quite knowing what to do. Yes, this was one of the places where Cassie would go if she needed to feel safe and if she needed to hide. Something bittersweet remained in him from this thought.
Cassie has always seen Jack as her father. He knew that. Everybody knew that. And despite how much happy he was for them he couldn't but feel a bit of regret. He loved her as well, she meant the world to him, she was a kid of a woman he loved. She was amazing and smart and he has always had a soft spot for her. Since the first day he has seen her.
Yeah, it took Jack a bit longer to find the courage to love her, but it was understandable after Charlie. But in few weeks Daniel could see how much they both have changed. They needed each other desperately. And he was left to be one of the uncles around her. He knew she cared, he knew she liked him and yet sometimes he would wish for more. Sometimes his heart ached to feel the amazing sensation of being loved as a father. It was selfish, it was mean, it was… pure.
And now, standing in Jack's living room, he felt a bit jealous as well. Nobody went over to his place in case Cassie would show up there. Why? Well yeah, they have never spent time there, he would usually come over to Janet's place, but still…
He knew he should get a grip, he knew he should do better than this, it was just too damn difficult sometimes.
Hopefully Cassie would be okay. Yeah, she would be okay.
Daniel knew Jack would do anything and everything to get her, to have her safely at home. One part of him was hoping that Jack would kill that bastard. Another part of him was hoping that Jack would just tie him up and bring him over to the police. His friend had enough of nightmares to deal with it. He didn't need anything else. But it was all about Cassandra and Jack truly did see her as his kid. And if Daniel knew something about Jack for sure, it was the raw simple fact that he would go beyond anything and everything to protect those he loved.
He sighed in frustration, this was just crazy and wrong, all wrong.
He wondered about Janet, how was she doing. Hopefully Ferretti would be a good company. Then another punch of jealousy landed right at his gut. Ferretti was with her while he was here, staring into nowhere, sitting on Jack's couch. That was just great… But maybe it was better this way. He wouldn't be much of a help for Janet now.
He had to calm down and he didn't know how to do it.
Sam was at home, doing laundry. She couldn't just sit and wait so she decided to use that time for doing something … helpful. And she really needed to do the laundry.
She remembered what Jack used to say… 'Hey Carter, I can practically hear the wheels in your head turnin' and this time… she could understand. She could hear them too. And it was scary. She couldn't focus, she couldn't do anything, just sorting out her dirty clothes and hanging those washed ones and it was all just … frustrating.
So many questions and no answers available. What happened? Who was that man? Was Cassie okay? Was … she alive? Was Janet okay? Was Daniel okay? What should they do? What was Jack doing? What was he thinking?
She got worried about him. He would try hard to find Cassandra, she had no doubts about that. But he wouldn't be merciful then. If that low attempt of man would get into Jack's hands it would get bad, nasty even. Sam knew that Jack has never particularly liked this specific training but there were times when he would use it and not regret it. She has always thought that she got to know him pretty well. And yet in times like these she wasn't sure at all. She didn't know what he would do, she didn't know and it made her worry and feel angry even more.
Sam was only hoping that their new found trust would help him to deal with it, that they would be able to talk and discuss things and help each other and help Janet and Cassie… she was hoping that he would not shut her out. She was hoping that their fragile relationship wouldn't break under the weight of this situation. She wouldn't survive it, not this time, not again.
Well, she wanted him to trust her so she should do the same. So she decided to trust his judgment and to trust him as a man.
Jack was in his car. He knew what happened. His training kicked in. His forsaken black ops training kicked in. He hated it and yet this time he welcomed it. It allowed him to stay focused. He locked away all his emotions and feelings. His face wasn't showing a single thing. His eyes were dark, he knew that, he has been told so. He shielded everything inside of him so nobody and nothing could reach it. He was no longer Jack. He was no longer O'Neill. He has become Charms again.
Yeah, he got that nickname about two weeks after joining the training… And it had nothing to do with his 'military' abilities at all.
They were young and new, there were rules, written and not-written on the base. High ranking officers were supposed to get some cake after dinner. And he managed to charm one of the women in the kitchen and so he got some cake as well. He even managed to get some for his buddies. So they started to call him Charms. He didn't like it. It was not a good nickname. But somehow it got stuck with him.
And he could do even worse, he knew. Besides nobody would ever believe that man with his training and his record would be called Charms. His former CO told him that he was a natural leader, that he would never fail, his missions would never go wrong, he would never leave a man behind and that he would always get what he wanted with that smile when it came to women. So yeah, he has become Charms. And hell yeah, he hated it. It was never nice to be coming back to this… but this time? This time he would survive it. This time it was about saving Cassandra and that was worth everything.
He checked her favorite restaurant, the library, her favorite coffee shop, book store, he checked the park where she was going every morning for a run, he checked the playground she has seen as the first one on Earth but he couldn't find her.
He tried to think about her situation, he tried to think about what she could have done, where she would have gone. She was smart and she was strong. But whatever that man told her, must have shaken her a bit. She wouldn't have come with him just like that… So… if she managed to escape him, she would most probably go somewhere where she would be safe, where she would feel save. And it wouldn't be something obvious in case she'd be followed.
He checked the museum where Daniel used to take her every Sunday when she was a kid but she wasn't there. He checked the observatory where Carter used to take her but she wasn't there either. He was slowly losing hope when he realized that there was one place he hasn't been to yet.
It was outside the city. He took her there once. They had to walk through some bushes, they had to climb a bit and they had to follow one trail through the small forest there. The trail's end was by a small pond with soft grass around and spectacular view of the night sky. He took her there once. They actually got lost and ended there and she liked it. Sometimes they would go there, just the two of them, they would lie down onto sleeping bags and watch the stars, listen to the wind.
Jack went over there. During the last year they found a regular path leading there. He took it and in the end he saw Cassandra.
She was sitting there in the grass, her clothes ripped. Her blouse was missing a piece of sleeve. Her hair looked horrible. She had bruises on her legs and arms, some small cuts as well. He would say that she got those while running over here, to this secret silent place. She had no shoes, her feet were bleeding. She wasn't crying, she wasn't shaking, she was just sitting there, watching the grass with such an intense look, her hair moving around in the wind. His heart broke for his little girl.
Still it looked like she escaped the man and that he didn't manage to hurt her, not much anyway. It looked like she fought him and that she managed to run away. She was a fast runner. And she also picked some of the moves he has shown her when she asked him to help her not to feel so helpless. He was sure that the man that kidnapped her was somewhere safe now, licking his wounds.
He needed to go over to her but he didn't want to startle her or make her feel worried. He knew how fragile people could be in situations like this.
He managed to lose the mask from his face. He needed to be Jack, just Jack… in order to help her. He didn't want to scare her by being a cold black ops soldier. He loved her too much for that.
"Cassie?"
He tried softly. She didn't respond at all, she just stayed focused on the grass. He approached her softly. He sat in front of her. She still didn't move.
"Munchkin?"
She didn't say a word. Jack was starting to get really really worried then. He knew it would be a bad idea to try to touch her. She had to respond first.
"Cass?"
She didn't move. He tried another approach. He followed her eyes to see what has been there in the grass that captured her attention that much. He saw a small ladybug there. Cassie was watching it.
"She is so small, so pretty… We didn't have them on Hanka."
She whispered it so quietly that at first he thought he has imagined it. But she talked to him! That was a good sign.
"Yes, they are pretty."
She was silent again. Jack was getting nervous. But he knew he had to give her time. He had no idea about what happened, he had to be very careful.
"Sam loves them too."
"She won't love me anymore."
"Sam? Sam has always loved you… we all love you, Cassie."
"You won't anymore… I'm… "
He could hear the tremble in her voice, he could hear the fear. She looked at her hand covered in blood. He couldn't tell if she was hurt or if it was his blood there.
"We love you, we always have and we always will. Nothing can ever change that."
It took her a minute but then she looked up and met his eyes. She was clearly surprised by the clear emotion in his eyes. And by the tears he could feel there.
She started to shake a bit, she was trembling, not quite sure about what to do, what to feel, she was confused, she was scared, she felt a bit lost. In a minute or two she started to cry and he could see all her defense barriers coming down.
"Daddy?"
He didn't make it then. That was the trigger he needed. He reached over and took her into his arms. And she didn't struggle. He was sitting there on the grass with his little girl in his lap, holding him for the dear life, clenching his shirt in her fists. He was firmly holding her, hurting for her, relieved that she was there in his arms and angry that she has been taken away from him earlier.
He was whispering soothing words to her, apologizing for everything. He realized that she was apologizing as well.
"Munchkin, you have nothing to be sorry for, you understand that?"
He needed her to understand but he knew that it would take time. Everything would take time. She was crying and he was crying with her. His tears turned into angry ones. He couldn't suppress them, he couldn't fight them. His heart was about to explode.
"Can we go home, dad?"
"Sure. Your mom is there, waiting for you."
"Can we go to your home? Please?"
At first the question surprised him. But then he realized that if the guy that took her was Drew, and he suspected that it was, she didn't want to go to the place where he has hurt her mom.
"Yes, no problem. Can you walk?"
"I can try…"
And he was proud of her. She would never give up, she always wanted to try. Yeah, with the influence of her mom and Carter he would be surprised otherwise.
He stood up and she stood up with him. After a moment she tried to make a step but she winced in pain. Her feet were hurt after all. Jack didn't wait for her to try again, he took her into his arms. She locked her arms around his neck and buried her face into his shirt. She was strong, he knew that. But he was proud of her that she could also allow somebody to help her.
He carried her to his car. He helped her to climb in, he buckled her in and then closed the door. He had to make few phone calls and he didn't want to do it in front of her.
He called Carter first.
"Yes?"
"I found her."
"Oh my God… is she okay?"
"She looks like she will be… she's hurt but I don't know much."
"Are you taking her to hospital?"
"You think I should?"
"I don't know."
"I thought I would take her home. Fraiser can take a look at her and you can … take pictures."
He hated saying that more than anything. But it had to be done. And it was better if she would do it than some completely unknown nurse in the hospital.
"Okay. Okay… Should I pick up Daniel?"
"Cass asked me to come to my place. I think right now she feels safer there."
"Makes sense…"
"I still don't know who took her but I will find out."
"Is she talking to you?"
"A bit, yeah. She was crying a lot as well."
"That's a good sign."
"I hate to say it but I know."
"Drive carefully. I will call the others, okay?"
"Thank you."
"I'm so glad she's okay…"
"Yeah, me too… Sam?"
"Yes?"
"She called me daddy…"
She was silent for a minute but he could hear her breathing. When she spoke for the next time he could hear the emotion in her voice.
"Bring her home."
"I will. Sam?"
"Yes?"
"I love you."
And before she managed to answer him, he ended the call. At first he just wanted to tell her that he has found Cassandra but somehow he needed to share the information with her and he needed her to know he loved her. All those feelings and emotions he witnessed and felt during the last few hours made him act differently.
Sam called Daniel to tell him they would come there. Then she called Ferretti.
"Yeah?"
"Jack found her."
"Thank God."
"I don't know how much is she hurt or anything specific but he's taking her over to his place."
"We're on our way."
"Lou, do you think Janet will be able to take care of her?"
"I wouldn't want to be the one that would try to stop her."
"Point taken."
"See ya in few, Sam."
She felt better than. She drove over to Jack's house. She didn't know how many traffic rules she has broken on her way but she didn't care at all. Daniel was waiting for her, nervous and worried.
Ferretti had to wake up Janet. She has fallen asleep on the couch in his arms. It was actually a bit weird. But he decided to feel like a cousin or a brother and then it felt quite okay to be with her like this. She was still sleeping there, curled under a blanket. She was exhausted.
He gently woke her up and told her that Jack has found Cassie. She was clearly relieved and happy. He told her that they would meet at Jack's house and that she might need to take care of Cass. She looked at him and he could see the Doctor in her again. He nodded, he got the message.
They drove over. The only missing car in front of the house was Jack's.
A/N: I know you hate me right now but trust me – it was just okay to end the chapter here. I don't know when I will be able to update but I promise – I'm trying to do my best!
And about Jack's nickname… I spent ½ hour with trying to find the perfect name, I browsed databases of pilot nicknames and code names, I was trying really hard but nothing seemed to do him justice. I had fun while reading those names though :o) Well he would either get something strong and confident… or he would do something with the O'Neill trademark… I settled for the second – his eyes, his smile and cake on the horizon? It had to work :o) Hope you don't mind.