Trigger Warning: This story begins with domestic violence. If you or someone you know need assistance, please know there are people and resources available to help.

Within the United States:

The National Domestic Violence Hotline - 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, the Hotline provides essential tools and support to help survivors of domestic violence so they can live their lives free of abuse.

www . thehotline . org
1 800 799 SAFE (7233)
Text "START" to 88788

**Please take note of the Archive Warning and the additional tags. I will post additional TWs for individual chapters, as needed. That said, Chapter 1 starts off with a bang and the domestic violence TW does apply.**

The icy water jolted Sam awake like a hundred alarm clocks going off in her brain at once. Frigid electricity-like pain shot straight to her bones, blurring reality as the flashback of being cold and afraid wrenched a scream from her throat.

"Jack!" She shrieked, arching upward. All she could process is that they had to be still trapped. Alone. Dying.

"I knew it," a voice sneered, penetrating her panicked psyche as Sam fought to regain her bearings. The voice seemed…familiar. Forgetting about her damaged thigh, she reached for help, moving too quickly. The undue strain on her injury pitched her forward. She landed in a frozen, soggy heap on the hardwood floor.

"I knew you lied and were with him the entire time," the voice sounded disappointed and angry. "I'm not stupid, Babe."

"Pete?" Sam's brain clawed past the initial panic brought on by the flashback as she finally recognized her surroundings. She wasn't in Antarctica. She was home. Safe. But why was she shivering and wet?

Her thigh, a mangled mess courtesy of Anubis' Super Soldier, throbbed. The stitches binding the wound together stretched painfully, tearing delicate skin and muscle that had only begun to properly heal. But the pain helped her to focus on the present and expel the memories.

"What's happening?" Sam forced the question past her trembling lips as she tried to make sense of all the different stimuli. It didn't help that her brain was groggy, sluggish from the narcotics Janet had prescribed.

"What's happening," Pete replied in a soft, sadistic tone, reaching out to trail the backs of his fingers down her cheeks. "Is it's time you learned your place. I don't care how brilliant you think you are. Or how important," he sneered. "You do not get to embarrass me!"

The first blow came as Sam was pulling herself up off the floor. The perfectly placed strike knocked her back down as white-hot fire tore through her thigh. The remaining stitches ripped apart, obliterated from the force of the blow.

With a sharp cry of agony, Sam curled into a fetal position, desperate to protect her head and neck as more blows whipped her body. Her training kicked in and she struck out, using her good leg to sweep her attacker off his feet.

Pushing onto her hands and knees, she dragged herself toward her cell phone, only to realize it wasn't in the charger on her nightstand.

Pete growled, surging back upright. Sam watched in horror as he pulled her phone out of his pocket, taunting her. She didn't have a landline. She was cut off from the outside world.

"I waited," Pete spat. "For two weeks, I waited for you to let me know where you were. But not one word. Not even a text."

"I—I was in the infirmary," Sam tried to keep her voice level as she explained. She needed to keep him talking and not inflicting more damage to her already battered body.

She was pretty sure her wrist was sprained, if not broken, from the initial fall. She wasn't sure about her leg, but she could feel her pajama bottoms sticking to it. "Janet had me sedated for a week," she implored.

"And no one on your team thought to notify me?" Pete yelled at her. "I'm your boyfriend! We've been together almost six months!"

"I know, I'm s-sorry," she lied. Pete had told her several times to add him as her next of kin, but she hadn't. Something inside told her not to; now she knew why.

"Do you know how it makes me look when you disappear?" He stopped his slow advance forward, pausing to look at her with disdain. "I'm a cop, Babe. It makes me looks bad. Real bad."

"It won't happen again," she tried to placate him. "I'll t-tell everyone t-to keep you in the l-loop," she couldn't keep her teeth from chattering as the cold began to seep further into her body.

"That's right, Babe," Pete said, grasping her hair and jerking her upwards. "Because you'll never leave me like that again, right?"

"No, never," she cried, unable to hold back the tears when he wrenched her head backwards.

"That's good, Babe. I hate to see you in pain," his grip on her hair lessened; his fingers working in small circles to soothe the agony he'd caused. "Look at what you made me do," he scolded. His hands finally released her hair to cup her face. "Is your leg all right? Let's get you cleaned up and back into bed. Then I'll make you feel real good . You'll forget all about the pain and give me that beautiful smile," his voice had gone gentle. "You know what your smile does for me Babe, don't you?" He pulled her head forward toward his lips.

Using the brief window of opportunity, Sam used the heel of her hand to strike. Ramming it into his nose and forcing the bone back at an unnatural angle.

"You bitch!" Pete screamed, releasing her and staggering backwards.

Using all the strength she could muster, Sam stepped forward and rammed her good knee into his groin, driving Pete to the floor.

The move put too much strain on Sam's bad leg, however, sending another round of white-hot fire through the damaged muscles. It took every ounce of her willpower to remain standing.

Unable to find her phone, she stumbled down the hallway and into the living room. Blessedly, her car keys were still in the bowl by the door.

Behind her, she heard telltale shuffling noises, letting her know Pete was still a threat. Her subconscious screamed, instinctively knowing she had seconds, not minutes, to escape. By the time she reached her car, she was all but dragging her bad leg.

"Sam!" Pete screamed from the porch as she wrenched open the car door and fell inside, frantically locking the doors. She fumbled the keys in the ignition once before starting the car and ramming it into reverse.

Her shock-addled brain sorted through her options for what to do next. The police station was out, as were hospitals and fire stations. All Pete would have to do is flash his badge to gain access to her.

The base was an option, but the drive up the mountain was more than she could handle in her present state. Besides, she had no desire to disclose to the MPs what had transpired.

Teal'c was on base. Daniel's house was closest, but she didn't know if Pete would try to follow her. Given his state of rage, she wasn't positive Daniel could stop him. That left Jack. They hadn't been on the best of terms lately, but she knew he'd always keep her safe.

The decision made, she ground her teeth against the pain and headed toward safety.