"What do you mean she's already at the auction?!" Jack yelled at Omar. "You promised me 24 hours, it's been twelve." He ached to punch the man, but Daniel stepped in.

"Omar, what happened?" Daniel asked gently.

"Zabar heard of your arrival; he thought you had left for good," Omar rushed to explain.

"Oh we're back," Jack seethed.

"I told him you'd return, but he would not listen," Omar bowed his head.

"That is unfortunate," Teal'c said with a terrifying calmness. "Perhaps we cannot avoid bloodshed, O'Neil."

"Please understand," Omar pleaded. "Zabar has the army on his side. I, along with the rest of the ruling council do not approve of his actions. The society you see today stands against everything Anire teaches us."

"Anire?" Daniel asked.

"She is our goddess. She moved on from our planet long ago, but she left texts describing a society based on love and peace, where women were worshipped. Zabar and his extremists have twisted her teachings. As part of the resistance, I am trying to eliminate the auctions and end the caste system, but it must be done slowly. The majority people's minds currently belong to Zabar."

"Jack," Daniel turned to him, "it's not unlike the religious zealots on Earth. Extremists from all types of faiths twist the peaceful teachings to condone their own sick beliefs."

"And I don't care," Jack said grabbing Omar by the front of his shirt. "You are going to take me to Sam, and you better pray to Anita or whatever you call her that Sam's not hurt, because if she is…" he left the sentence trail off. He couldn't handle the thought of Sam being hurt. These psychos had had her for twelve hours already, and he didn't want to think about how much damage they could have done.

"I'll take you," Omar said, "but know that I did post two of my guards by your woman's cell. They are loyal to me, to Anire's teachings. She is unhurt."

"Lead on," Jack gave him a little push.

Omar led them through a series of hallways that opened up into a larger space filled with about fifty men milling around a stage in the center of the room. The sight on the stage made Jack's stomach turn.

Four women stood on the stage, hands tied behind their backs. They were dressed in various ways. Two wore filthy rags and had smudges of dirt on their faces. Their hair was unkept and tangled. The other two women were dressed in clean clothes, but the outfits were incredibly revealing. They had obviously been treated better than the first two, but not by much.

Omar saw his stare and explained, "the first two women are orphans who are now of age; no one has ever claimed them, so the were sent here. The second two are from the middle caste, sisters disowned by their father."

"Where's Sam?" Jack asked him tearing his eyes away from the sight. As much as he wanted to help the women, his second-in-command was their primary objective.

"Jack," Daniel started.

"Daniel, don't," Jack guessed what the idealistic young man was about to say. "We can't afford to interfere, Sam's counting on us."

Daniel merely nodded, but Jack could tell it pained him to walk away from the women. Perhaps, General Hammond could persuade the President to support Omar in his fight against Zabar. Jack would gladly lead the first wave of soldiers.

"Your woman will be the first to be auctioned," Omar nodded toward the opposite end of the stage. Two guards appeared dragging a woman along with them. Jack immediately recognized her golden hair even though he couldn't see her face. Unfortunately, Zabar came around them to stand in front of her. With a loud crack, he pressed a Goa'uld pain stick against her; Sam's cry of pain reverberating through the large space, capturing everyone's attention.

Jack started forward only to have Omar grab his arm, "do not interfere or you'll be ejected from the auction," he warned. "She's uninjured."

"Bullshit," Jack spat as he got his first glimpse of Sam's face. A large bruise darkened her cheek, her lip split underneath. "I'll kill him," he pledged as he watched Zabar's sadistic smile. The asshole was just waiting for another reason to shock her.

Jack's control almost snapped when she raised her eyes; her gaze locking with his. The fear he saw there threatened to break him.

"Sir," Sam called straightening up and trying to take a step forward.

Zabar lashed out with the pain stick, striking her middle. She cried out doubling over in agony.

"Son of a bitch," Jack started forward again, only to have Teal'c grab him.

"You will do Major Carter no good if you are removed," the Jaffa told him. "Bide your time, retribution will come." Jack knew Teal'c well enough to realize the man thought of Sam like a little sister, one he'd protect at all costs. Teal'c spoke the truth, so Jack pushed the need to kill Zabar away and willed Sam to look at him again.

After several moments, she finally lifted her eyes to his again. Once he was sure he had her attention, he nodded to let her know they would get to her. She gave him a brief nod back and straightened to her full height. Zabar waited, wanting her to do something else he deemed punish-worthy. Fortunately, Sam put on her bravest face and managed to look serene. As the men in attendance began to grow restless, Zabar turned from her and began to address his audience.

"Welcome to tonight's auction. I know we called you here on short notice, but I hope our first offering will make you glad you came," he gestured to the guards holding Sam and they pushed her forward. "We have a special treat. For the first time, up for auction is a woman from our highest caste. Now a slave, she hails from a land far, far away. Her people no longer have need for her, and left her to us. I present to you woman P4536."

The crowd murmured loudly as the guards forced Sam up onto a raised platform. Trying to give her something to focus on, Jack held her gaze. "Focus on me," he mouthed to her. Her chin quivered, but the movement was barely noticeable, in fact if he wasn't trained to pick up on intricate details, he wouldn't have seen it.

"As you can see," Zabar leered at Sam, "she is a beauty; filled with fire and spirit. The one who wins her will have much pleasure breaking her."

Jack saw Sam's eyes snap with fire at the disgusting words. Zabar reached for her arm, but Sam jerked away; still she kept her eyes focused on Jack's.

"See what I mean," Zabar laughed, the crowd joining him, but becoming restless. Jack thought he noticed a few men adjusting themselves in his peripheral vision, but he refused to break eye contact with Sam.

"Start the bidding, so she can warm my bed," a deep voice called from behind them.

"You wish, Hallor, you aren't man enough to break her," another voice called, followed by a round of laughter. Before the first man could respond, Zabar held his hands up.

"Fight with you money, not with your fists, gentlemen," he soothed. "Bidding starts at ten gold pieces."

The voice identified as Hallor bid first, "ten."

Another man shouted, "twenty."

Hallor responded, "twenty-five!"

Admiration swelled in Jack as he watched Sam keep it together. He knew she had to be experiencing many violent emotions, but she maintained her serene expression and kept her eyes focused on his.

"Jack," Daniel whispered, "aren't you supposed to be bidding?"

"Wait for it," he told him. He needed to make a statement, ensure that no one dared bid against him.

"Thirty!"

"Thirty-five!"

"Forty!" Hallor made the last bid.

"Forty gold pieces going once," Zabar called.

"Jack!" Daniel hissed.

"Going twice!" Sam merely kept her eyes on his. The trust he saw in them was humbling.

"One-hundred gold pieces," Jack called out and was rewarded with silence, followed by an explosion of chaos.

"Quiet! Quiet!" Zabar shouted.

"You have proof of funds available today?" Zabar asked him. In such a public forum, Jack knew Zabar had to play by the rules and denying his bid was unacceptable.

"I do," Jack said simply, his eyes still locked with Sam's.

"Any further bids?" Zabar asked, but Jack could sense the disappointment when no one responded. "The woman identified as P4536 is sold for one-hundred gold pieces."