"Shut up, Beiers, before I have Teal'c gag you!" Jack growled from his seat next to Sam. Jacob and Teal'c sat across form them in the executive style jet that was taking them to D.C. for trial while Daniel and Janet sat talking quietly across the aisle facing Admiral Chegwidden and Commander Rabb.
"You can't do that," Beiers retorted angrily as he continued to tug at his restraints where he sat at the back of the plane as far away from the others as they could get him.
"Watch me," Jack threatened as he twisted in his seat to look back at the man cuffed to his seat and the seemingly impassive guard seated next to him. His knuckles were white from the force of his grip on the paperback book he held in his hand.
Sam surreptitiously placed her hand on top of his arm to keep him from chucking the book at Beiers. "No, Jack" she whispered so quietly she hoped no one else would notice. When he turned back around his eyes still burned with anger, but he nodded subtly to Sam acknowledging that now definitely wasn't the time to add charges of assaulting a junior officer to the one they already faced.
"Jack, I know how you feel, but you've gotta take it easy," A.J. warned his friend though his face showed the anger he too felt at what Beiers had done.
"All due respect, A.J. No, you don't know how I feel," Jack told his old friend. The mask of calm control that was his habit slipped even further revealing the haunted grim face Jack O'Neill had been keeping carefully hidden. "You weren't there on Panersh. You didn't have to look at their faces," he said before swallowing hard and clearing his throat. "You didn't have to stand by and let it happen. You didn't have to watch..." Jack's voice broke then. They could see the anger and self-hatred in his eyes. "Excuse me," he said as he abruptly unbuckled his seatbelt and made his way to the small lavatory locking himself inside.
Sam debated going after him for a minute. She could see the same debate on the faces of the others before one by one they looked to her to decide. "Leave him alone for a minute," she ordered in a quiet voice that shook from her own internal battle with her emotions. She leaned forward resting her elbows on her knees holding her face in her hands. Jacob reached out and gently rubbed her back saying nothing knowing eventually she'd speak. "It was so hard," she finally whispered. "Knowing we couldn't help."
"Sam..." Jacob sighed but found he couldn't find the words to continue.
"Their eyes were the worst," she continued. "It was bad enough for me. They hated me because I had him and they didn't, but Jack...they begged him with their eyes. Begged him to protect them too, but we knew...if he'd protected more than me, they'd see him as a threat to their power and turn on us. Our situation was already so precarious."
"You did right, major" a voice from behind said surprising not just Sam. She turned to see General Moore standing with his hands resting on the back of her seat. "I'll still prosecute you because it's my duty. I don't have to like it. I just have to do it. But I wanted you to know that personally, I think you and Colonel O'Neill did what you had to do to stay alive."
"Thank you, sir" she told him. From the corner of her eye Sam could see Jack emerge from the lavatory.
"What she said," Jack added quietly as he once again took his seat next to Sam. "But I have to ask. Why, sir? I know you didn't feel that way when you first arrived at the mountain."
"Because of the interviews I've conducted since then, Colonel" Moore said. "Every person I talked to said pretty much the same thing. Yes, the two of you had a close relationship, but you would never act improperly. I was told about the incident with the entity in the mainframe and quite a few others. In each case, you never put your personal feelings for one another above duty."
"How touching," Beiers sneered from the back of the plane. "You admire him for breaking the regs fucking his second in command, but I fuck a native girl and I'm scum."
Jack's face hardened and he started to stand, but General Moore's hand on his shoulder forced him back into his seat. "Allow me, Colonel" he said snapping his fingers at the guard seated next to Beiers. "Gag him," Moore ordered. The man looked relieved as he rose from his seat to find something with which to gag his prisoner.
"We appreciate the silence," Daniel said.
"And your candor, sir" Sam added.
"Then let me speak frankly about something else while I can," he said very quietly keeping his eye on the door to the pilot's cabin where he'd sent his aide at the beginning of Colonel O'Neill's outburst. "Colonel Rivers was assigned as my aide two days before my arrival at the SGC."
"Why are you telling us this, sir?" Commander Rabb asked.
"There's something about him I don't trust," Moore answered. "Considering the current situation, I suspect he's NID. Be careful of what you say around him," he urged them.
No one responded as Colonel Rivers chose that moment to return to the cabin. "We're ninety minutes out, sir," he told General Moore who nodded to his aide pleasantly enough but the expression didn't quite reach his eyes.
The rest of the flight went quickly and silently. When they landed General Moore and Colonel Rivers escorted Beiers away to the cell that would be his until his trial while Admiral Chegwidden and Commander Rabb escorted the others to JAG headquarters. "Leave your bags," A.J. told them. "You'll stay at my place." Jack nodded as he helped Sam from the back seat of A.J.'s SUV then steadied her as she swayed slightly with exhaustion. Once Sam had regained her balance Jack withdrew his support knowing they had to try to keep up appearances. Chegwidden shared a concerned look with Teal'c who raised an eyebrow in return. "Colonel McKenzie, Commander Turner, Lieutenant Roberts, Lieutenant Singer, Gunny" A.J. called as he weaved his way among the desks. "Conference room, now."
"Aye, sir" they acknowledged in unison. Gunny picked a file folder up off his desk before following the others into the room.
"How was your trip, Harm?" Mac asked.
"Out of this world," he replied irony dripping from his tongue with each word. She gave him a curious look but didn't ask any further questions.
"Commander Rabb and I have volunteered our services to Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter in their court-martial," Chegwidden explained without preamble as he gestured to the two Air Force officers who had gratefully seated themselves side by side at the table. Sam had leaned forward with her elbows resting on her knees. Jack had also leaned forward in his seat wrapping one hand around Carter's arm to catch her should she pass out.
"What are the charges, sir?" Bud asked.
"Fraternization," O'Neill answered. Sam had laid her head on Jack's shoulder at his urging and closed her eyes giving in to the constant fatigue that had become her frequent companion since waking on Thor's ship.
"You're not making defending you any easier, sir" Turner pointed out.
Sam opened her eyes but didn't lift her head from Jack's shoulder as she said, "Two weeks ago I gave birth to twins. Denial is not exactly an option."
"So why haven't you plead guilty, ma'am?" Roberts asked. "Taken a plea bargain."
"Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter have some very strong mitigating circumstances," Harm said but refused to elaborate further.
"Sir, I'd like to volunteer to be second chair," Singer offered much to the disgust of the others in the room.
"Not this time, Lieutenant" A.J. denied. "You don't have the necessary security clearance. Colonel McKenzie, you've got the necessary clearance levels."
"I'd be happy to help, sir" Sara offered.
"Thank you," A.J. said. "The rest of you are going to have to pick up the slack. We've only got three days to prep the case. Commander Turner, I'll leave the disposition of Commander Rabb and Colonel McKenzie's cases up to you."
"Yes, sir" the submariner said.
"Turner, Roberts, Singer. You're dismissed," A.J. told them.
Each acknowledged with a salute before turning to leave the room though Singer glanced back at Gunnery Sergeant Galindez who had remained.
"Gunny, that favor I asked," Harm said as soon as the door shut behind them.
"Most of the addresses were empty houses," Gunny said as he stepped towards the conference room table. "There was one that had a lot of security though. I took a chance that was what you were looking for and went back with a camera," he explained as he set the folder he'd been carrying on the table and began spreading out the photos that had been inside. Gunny stepped quickly out of the way as the visitors surged the table and began rifling through the prints.
It took only a moment before Daniel said, "Look who I've got. Senator Kinsey." He held a picture of the Senator stepping out of a car in front of the non-descript building.
"I'll see your Senator Kinsey and raise you Alexandro Rivera," Janet said holding up a second picture. In it, Dr. Rivera stood outside the same building smoking a cigar.
Sam sat down abruptly as she said quietly, "Kinsey and the good doctor together." She fanned the pictures out in front of her as Jack took the seat next to her and grabbed her hand. The final picture in the group with Kinsey and Rivera showed the two men shaking hands. She took a deep breath before saying, "I had hoped we were wrong."
"Sit down, Gunny" Colonel O'Neill ordered. "We're going to need to know everything you saw out there. Every detail."
Jacob sat down next to his daughter and began methodically going through the pictures. Spreading them out in such a way that they could see the entire compound.
"Cameras," Daniel murmured as he leaned across the table to get a better view. He grabbed a couple markers from the holder on the side table and began circling the camera placements.
Jacob took the marker Daniel handed him and began making his own notations on the pictures.
"How many guards?" Sam asked the sergeant.
"They were patrolling in pairs, ma'am" Gunny answered. "Two pairs along the fence line. They completed a circuit every fifteen minutes. Another pair was patrolling the building exterior. Their circuit looked to be about five minutes."
"What about the fence?" Jack asked.
"Electrified," Gunny told them confirming what Jack had already suspected. "High voltage, too."
"How much coming and going did you see?" Jack asked as he pointed out another camera for Daniel to circle. He wondered if they could sneak in with the traffic.
"Just the Senator," Victor answered. "It's locked down tight, sir. I couldn't see any way in."
"Jacob...isn't that..." Daniel mumbled as he pointed to a blurry shape barely visible on top of the roof of the building.
"I can't tell what it is," Jacob said as he began shuffling through the photos for a better view of the roof.
Teal'c was the first to find it though. "A goa'uld shield device," Teal'c firmly stated as he laid the photo in the center of the table where everyone could see.
"Here," Jacob said pointing to a small object protruding from the ground at the base of the fence. "The shield covers the entire grounds. The only way in is going to be the front door" Jacob confirmed.
"Where the Hell is...G. Gordon?" Jack growled just catching himself from confirming G. Gordon's identity.
"We'll send him a message," Sam said soothingly knowing that at least one of them had to keep a cool head at all times if they were going to get their children back. Today it just happened to be her turn. "He'll check in soon."