Chapter 5
Summary: Repercussions of Betrayal – it all starts here.
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Sam wanted to say something, anything, but all that came out was stuttering. Her stuttering didn't last that long before Jack continued.
"Hammond wanted to tell you that we have a mission briefing in an hour. Of course, since we couldn't get a hold of you, I had to come down and deliver the message. Briefing, 1100 hours."
In a blink of an eye, he left the doorway and quickly walked down the hall. Sam ran to catch up with him and try to explain, but he blew her off.
"I—"
"Carter, I don't want to hear it."
"But—"
Jack turned around to face her.
"Sam! Do I have to make that an order?"
She could see the anger flare in his eyes. She felt like he was towering over her when, in fact, a couple inches separated their height. Although she was right in front of him, there was that barrier that he put up that she couldn't get through, making conversation with him hopeless at the moment. The only words she could say were the response to his question, which was "No, sir."
She stood there and he sternly walked off. A tear slowly rolled down her cheek as the situation finally hit her full force. She turned around and walked back to her lab as more tears started to fall. She could taste the salt in her tears as she caught one on her tongue. She didn't want to hurt him, but didn't know how to tell him. Now it was too late.
He sat behind his desk, his feet propped up on the desk and his chair leaning back. The only light in the room was the desk light in front of him, which failed to light up most of the room. He sat there in silence, thinking of what just happened, how he reacted, how he could've reacted differently. What about her? What about their plans after the Air Force, after the objectives were completed? He had nothing to look forward to. Maybe his cabin in Minnesota and the fishing in a lake with no fish could be something to do. He would ponder the thought of getting a dog. He had nothing to lose anymore.
He had felt this way before, on the first mission. Archeologists found the Stargate and brought it over to Cheyenne Mountain Complex. The military wanted him to return to active duty. Two officers came to his house, when his wife was around. He was in Charlie's room, mourning his death. He couldn't get over the fact that it was his gun Charlie shot himself with. After awhile he cleaned himself up and appeared at the base. He thought of this as a last mission. He would have nothing to lose. Since he had gone on the mission, his wife would be gone when he came back. When he came back home, he retired, figuring it was last time. But a year later, he returned to active duty again. Something came through the Stargate, and he just had to know what it was. Then the head of Stargate Command finally found out that his team didn't complete their mission. His team went back and completed their revised mission. The threat out there was more dangerous then previously thought. There was a need for teams to be organized to find Apophis and take him down. That's where Sam came in. She was so determined to go through that Stargate and prove that she was as tough as any man. His life had new meaning then, he took a different perspective on life. As the years went on it was a definite fact that they were meant for each other. They said they would be together after their jobs were over.
It's all different now. No more of that "walking into the sunset" cliché. This was real. He had been betrayed.
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TBC…
