Ch. 44 Revelations
"General, what's all this about?"
SG-1 had arrived on base in the wee hours of the morning. Now they were all crowded in Hammond's office and Jack was demanding answers.
"Let's have a seat at the table," Hammond suggested, gesturing towards the next room.
"With all due respect, sir, it's the middle of the night. Can we just cut to the chase?" Jack complained, on the verge of insubordination.
"No, Jack. I think you'll want to sit down for this."
Jack closed his mouth, which was open in protest. He glanced around to Daniel, Teal'c, and Jennifer. They all seemed equally surprised and intrigued at Hammond's words.
"Is this about the president's review?" Daniel questioned as they filed into the briefing room and found their normal seats.
Hammond sat at the head of the table and clasped his hands together. Jack studied his features, trying to read him, but with no success.
"No," he answered simply. "Although we're in the clear as far as that's concerned."
The tension in the room eased.
Then Hammond delved into the situation at hand. "During your downtime, we sent SG-3 to P4X-993," the general began.
"Yes," Daniel nodded. "It's one of Tisiphone's newly acquired planets. It's got a rich naquadah deposit and a mining operation is set up there."
"That's right Dr. Jackson. The mission went without a hitch," Hammond replied.
"Why do I feel a big but coming on?" Jack wondered as he leaned back in his chair.
Hammond smiled gently. "Perhaps because there is one." He paused before continuing. "We received some news regarding Major Carter."
"Of what are you referring to?" Teal'c asked, his head tilted slightly in thought.
Hammond knew there was no beating around the bush, so he simply said it. "We found her."
Jack had always hated the phrase about silence and pins dropping, but at that moment, it was quite literal. The room was deadly silent…until Jack broke the quiet.
"What do you mean by that?" he asked. Jack's eyes narrowed and his stomach began to churn. Found her? She was gone. Sam was dead. He'd been there when she'd taken her last breath. Maybe they had found remains? Or a clone, a robotic version, an alternate universe Carter. This couldn't be the real one. Or perhaps it was just a sick joke, but Jack knew no one would ever play it.
With bated breath the team waited for Hammond to speak. "It's her, Jack," he said as if reading his 2IC's mind. "She's alive."
Hammond watched as Jack bolted from the room. No doubt he was headed straight for the infirmary. Daniel and Teal'c tore after Jack, leaving their chairs spinning in circles in their wake. Hammond looked to Jennifer, who was sitting alone and perplexed.
"Come along, Lieutenant," he said. There was about to be a reunion. And as much joy as it would bring SG-1 to have Samantha Carter back, there would be equally as much pain. The woman in the infirmary was not the same lively officer he'd sent through the gate all those months ago. Hammond bowed his head, suppressing a sigh. Not even close.
o-O-o
Jack's heart threatened to pound right out of his chest as he careened around the corner. Teal'c and Daniel were close on his heels. His mind screamed no, but his heart shouted yes just as forcefully. Jack wasn't sure what to expect when he reached the infirmary, but he had to see, however bewildered he might be at the moment. He could only form two coherent thoughts.
Sam.
Alive.
It repeated like a mantra in his head.
Then he ran straight into Janet Fraiser.
"Whoa, there," she cautioned him, holding up her hand. "I was told to expect you."
Jack put his hands on his knees, bending over to catch his breath. Then, standing fully upright, his eyes bore into Janet's.
"Doc…"
Janet looked over the three men. The expressions on their faces held hope and trepidation. Those same emotions ran through her. "Please, come to my office." An open area was not the place to have this discussion. Janet saw Hammond and Jennifer bringing up the rear and motioned for them to follow as well.
Once they'd all crammed into Janet's tiny office, she began. "On SG-3's recent mission they came across a woman locked away with the Tok'ra. At first, there was some…confusion…as to who this person was."
"Fraiser, please," Jack almost begged. The small room was almost suffocating him and the urge to run was almost overwhelming. Jack certainly would have gone to Sam if he'd known where she was…or heck, if he even knew what was going on. He couldn't linger to hear the whole story. He needed to see her. Now.
"Colonel O'Neill."
Jack almost physically shrank back at Janet's tone.
"I am trying to inform you of what's going on. I know you don't want to sit here and listen to this, but sir, you need to," Janet tried to explain.
"Jack, do as the doctor orders," Hammond gently chided.
Jack nodded and crossed his arms, glumly relenting.
"As I was saying," Janet went on, "there was some confusion. Most of the test results are back and I can, with great certainty, say that the woman retrieved today is Samantha Carter."
Daniel clasped Teal'c on the shoulder, disbelief spreading across his features. He didn't even attempt to wipe away the moistness gathering at the corners of his eyes.
Teal'c looked down to the young archaeologist and smiled softly. He felt as if a weight was lifted from his shoulders. Hope was restored. Teal'c's softened gaze fell to Jack.
He was turned, his forearms against the wall and his head resting against them. Jack was gathering his thoughts, checking his emotions. Heaving a shuddering sigh, he finally faced the group again. "Can we see her?"
How and why this was possible, so many questions pummeled their minds. It wasn't something they could quite grasp. There were questions, yes, but those could wait. To see confirmation of Janet's words, to see her, that was what they all wanted and needed.
Janet's lips turned slightly downwards. "I can only speak to her physical health, but even without being qualified, I can tell you that emotionally...she's scarred."
Jack's own frown deepened. "Oh, God…" he murmured as realization dawned on him. "God!" he yelled, slamming his fist on the wall.
Janet fell away from the larger, angry man as Daniel rushed to Jack's side.
"Jack…don't do this…please."
"Sir?" Janet interjected. She could see how upset he was. It was as clear as day. What wasn't as clear was why.
"Don't you get it? After just a few days there she was messed up. It's been almost a year!" Jack shouted lividly. "We left her behind with that monster, Daniel. We left her behind!" Thousands of horrible, unmentionable images raced through his mind.
Jack lifted his fist again, but Teal'c caught it before he could launch it into the concrete. "O'Neill. You took the correct course of action. There was nothing we could have done. Nothing," he reiterated firmly. "If you wish to see Samantha, let Doctor Fraiser finish. What is done is done. We can only move forward."
Jack shook his head in reluctant agreement, shaking his fist away from Teal'c's grip. They didn't leave their people behind. That was rule number one, but he'd broken it and Sam had been the one to pay.
Janet cleared her throat. "Major Carter…Sam…I'm not sure how she will react to seeing you all. She's very withdrawn. She seems to recognize me and I'm the only one she's let get anywhere near her since they brought her back. Even still, it's not been easy. As I said, she's withdrawn. And I mean very."
The doctor remembered how difficult it had been to help the woman. To clean her up and tend to her, to perform the procedures that would tell Janet if Sam really was who they thought she was. If the tests hadn't confirmed it, Janet wouldn't have believed it. It simply wasn't Sam. The major who had returned through the gate had come home with a crushed spirit and a broken body.
Sam had been woozy and not entirely sure what was going on around her. However, she'd been conscious enough to fight against Janet. She hadn't wanted to be poked and prodded, touched or spoken to. But Sam had not resisted long. She just didn't have it in her.
The blonde had been completely dejected as Janet had gone about her work. As she'd tended to her, Janet had seen the physical injuries, but could only imagine what was going on in the woman's head. By the time Janet had finished up, Sam was crying quietly, bewildered and upset. It had been a distressing experience for both parties.
"Okay…" Jack drawled slowly. So she was introverted. That wasn't a surprise, but he needed to know more. He could handle this. Sam was back, and no matter how screwed up she might be, she was there.
"How so?" Hammond asked, glancing towards Jennifer. She had been standing silently, taking it all in. The lieutenant waited for the doctor to speak.
"Well, as I said, I'm the only one she'll let around her. But even then, she's adverse to just about any type of contact. I'm no psychologist, but it seems as though Sam has been abused…physically, emotionally…something was done to make her so standoffish. But I'll leave that to Dr. Mackenzie." Janet heaved a sigh and rubbed her forehead. "Sam's quite perplexed. I think she knows she's at the SGC, but I don't think she quite believes it. She's got a concussion, which I believe is worsening her confused state." Janet could see her friends' looks of puzzlement, so she decided to go ahead and fill them in on Sam's physical condition.
"Physically, there's nothing that won't heal up within a few weeks. Sam looks to have been involved in some kind of accident," Janet told them.
"Accident?" Teal'c queried, clasping his hands behind his back.
"Yes, from the injuries she's received, it appears she was caught in a collapse of some sort. Besides having a concussion, her right side is sporting some injuries. Bruising and lacerations along her leg and torso, amazingly only one bruised rib, and a dislocated shoulder, which has now been put securely back in place." Janet flipped through her charts and continued. "There's slight dehydration and malnutrition, but…"
"But what," Jack prodded impatiently. "What?"
"I believe there has been sarcophagus use. Not excessive use, but I did find slight variances in her endorphin levels and electrolyte imbalances, among other things. Besides that, if I didn't know better, I wouldn't know that this woman has been off world for the better part of a year. Other than her recent injuries, I find almost nothing else off kilter. For someone in her position, I would anticipate seeing tissue damage, tooth decay, extreme weight loss, and other evidence of being imprisoned off world. While some of these things did come up in her physical examination, they were nowhere near the degree I expected."
"And shouldn't this be a good thing?" Daniel wondered.
"We have no idea what she's been through. Any indications were erased as soon as she was put in that sarcophagus. Now, from the condition of the clothing Sam was wearing we can deduce…" Janet paused. Her personal relationship with the patient was getting in the way. She was having a difficult time staying objective. Her best friend was back from the dead and honestly, the whole situation was unsettling to her.
"Doctor?" Hammond asked, obviously wanting her to continue.
"That it was hell," she whispered, leaving the room in a staggered silence. They were still stunned at the news that Sam had come home. Compounded with this type of information…it really hadn't hit them yet.
"There wasn't supposed to be a sarcophagus," Jack finally murmured. The group's attention turned to him. "We didn't think Tisiphone had one. We could hav-"
"Jack," Daniel cut him off. "We couldn't have known. And even if we did, we couldn't have saved her. We would have never made it." They couldn't get caught up in the what ifs and the if we'd onlys. That would only make this more difficult to deal with.
We. Why did he have to say we, Jack bemoaned. It was his fault, not theirs. He should have gone back and found her and saved her. Even if he'd failed and not made it out, he could have at least tried. Jack didn't know which was worse, failing to save Sam and being killed or held captive again, or being back on Earth, safe and sound, while Sam had been imprisoned for so long. However, there was a positive side to this; no matter how grim things had been or were, Sam was alive. Worse for the wear, but alive. Pushing the guilt and anger aside, he focused on that.
Janet began again. "Well, as of now, we have no clue what has occurred in the time she's been gone. I don't know how forthcoming with that information she will be, but it's not something we should push."
"Can we see her?" Jack interjected, his patience worn thin and his need to be reunited with Sam overpowering. "Please?"
Janet smiled sadly at Jack. She could hear the desperation in his voice. She could somewhat identify with him, but she wasn't sure he was prepared. There really was no way to be. "It's not a good idea to flood her room with visitors, but perhaps one of you can go in with me."
Me! Jack yelled internally, his heart rate increasing.
"Colonel O'Neill, why don't you accompany Dr. Fraiser to Major Carter's room?" Hammond suggested. If Jack didn't go, the man would fret incessantly, and that would do no one any good.
"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir!" Jack replied, resisting the urge to hug the general. His nervous energy needed to be channeled somewhere. At the moment, he was rocking back and forth on his heels, ready to follow Janet down the hall. He looked to Daniel and Teal'c and felt sympathetic toward them, but fortunately they didn't seem upset. Jack wasn't going to pass up this opportunity for anything.
"Okay then," Janet nodded. "Let's go, sir."
They walked down the hall to the private rooms. Janet didn't feel it was right to put Sam with other patients in her present condition. They came to a stop by one of the doors, but Janet stood in the way, preventing Jack from getting a look.
"Sir, listen… I know you're glad she's back, we all are. But just don't get your expectations up too high. By that I mean don't let anything she says or does be taken personally. She's been through a lot," Janet said, unwitting tears prickling her eyes. "I'm sorry," she said hastily, wiping them away, angry her personal feelings were getting in the way.
Jack laid a hand on her shoulder, comforting her. "I know, and thank you. For everything," he replied sincerely. Janet smiled in return.
A nurse walked out of the room, surprising them both. "She's asleep, ma'am. Just checking her temperature," she told them, tucking a strand of curly, dark hair behind her ear.
"Thank you. It's important we keep that under control," Janet acknowledged.
"What?" Jack asked, uncomprehending.
"Sam's got some wounds that became infected. She's had a bit of a fever, but she'll be fine," Janet relayed. She took a deep breath. "You ready?"
"Yes," Jack answered. His calm reply belied his anxiousness and anticipation. He was ready and he was excited, but more than that, he was downright petrified. He knew some people thought grown men weren't scared of anything. That a seasoned Air Force colonel couldn't feel such fear. But at that moment, Jack had never been more terrified in his life.
TBC in 'Captivated'
