"This sucks."

Carter looked up from the notes she was reading, and glanced over at Jack, who had taken to brooding in her lab whenever he had a free minute to think about just how wrong the whole Melony and Daniel off on a mission without him and probably not coming back alive thing was.

"It'll be over soon, Sir."

Jack scowled, but he didn't say what he wanted to say, since Brad Anderson was in the room as well, and no matter how hopeless Jack thought it was, he wasn't about to say anything with Brad sitting there looking through the notes and trying to give himself a measure of reassurance that the technology Melony had would see her through this crazy plan alive.

"I wish she'd send another message."

Brad nodded his agreement, and sat down on one of the stools that lined the experimentation table that ran the length of Sam's lab.

"At least tell us where she is."

Jack glanced over at Anderson, worried. The Major had lost a lot of weight in the last few weeks, and his expression had grown more and more bleak as time passed. Even news that she and Talon – and Daniel – had taken out the second Goa'uld in her two-part plan hadn't eased the worried look in his expression. If anything, it increased, since it was that much closer to the day Brad was relatively certain Melony was going to be killed, along with Talon and Daniel and her little Fugly ship.

"They're probably on some tropical planet, hanging out with the natives on the beach, drinking something fruity with an umbrella sticking out of it."

Brad forced a smile, but it didn't reach his eyes, and the worried look never faded.

"Yeah."

Sam looked over at Anderson as well, frowning.

"When's the last time you slept?"

He shrugged.

"Maybe you should go home and get some rest. You look tired."

He shook his head, but didn't tell them how hard it was for him to go home to Melony's big empty house and sleep alone in the bed that he'd only briefly been allowed to share with her before she'd whisked off-world to take on the Goa'uld. Of course, he really didn't need to tell either of them. Especially Sam, who was a bit more sensitive to those sorts of things than Jack was.

She looked at her watch.

"It's late, and I'm ready to go home. Why don't you come with me, Brad? Get your mind off things for a while?" At least she could insure that he ate, and maybe he'd even crash on her sofa and get some much-needed sleep.

"Thanks Sam, but I think I'm going to stick around here. In case the Tok'ra call with word, or she does."

"Major, go with Carter," Jack said. "If she calls or we get word, I'll let you know."

"I'm fine, Sir."

"That's an order, Anderson. Go. Now."

"But-"

"An order." Jack repeated, enunciating clearly.

Anderson scowled, but there wasn't a whole lot he could do – even though he was pretty sure that O'Neill couldn't actually order him to go with Carter. He wasn't sure. He stood up, looking at Carter.

"Yes, Sir."

Sam smiled, and acted for all the world as if Brad had accepted her invitation willingly and happily.

"I'll meet you topside in five minutes."

He nodded and left without a backward glance.

"That wasn't very nice." Sam said once he was gone.

"He looks like shit, Carter," Jack told her, shrugging. "He likes you, maybe he'll eat for you."

"Will you eat for me?"

"What?"

"You're not looking all that great yourself, Colonel," Sam replied. He wasn't, either. His eyes were just as tired and worried as Brad's, and she knew he'd been hanging around the base far more than he normally did, hoping for some word from the Tok'ra that the system lords were falling for the trap. Sam had seen him constantly checking the device on his wrist, as well, hoping for a message of some sort.

"I'm fine, Carter."

"Uh huh."

"Really. I'm just..."

"Worried."

"Yeah. Bad enough Melony's out there, but I hate that Daniel is, too. He doesn't have a symbiote to heal him if something goes wrong."

Sam didn't bother to tell Jack that if something went wrong with the plan, it was going to go so wrong that there was no way Talon would be able to heal the damage done to Mitchell. She understood he was worried. She was, too. Which was why she was burying herself in her studies of the technology behind Fugly, trying to get a grasp on what the ship was capable of, and to see if it could do what Mitchell said it could do. It was a very impressive ship, but she wasn't sure if she could dare hope for the best.

"You just have to trust them to get home safe."

"It's supposed to be my job to get him home safe."

"You don't think Colonel Mitchell is capable of taking care of Daniel?"

Jack scowled. He actually did have a lot of faith in Mitchell. She was smart, and clever, and was very good at keeping her wits about her when things were falling apart around her. He just knew what they were facing this time, and didn't have high hopes that everything would turn out okay. The plan was too crazy. Too reckless.

"I trust her."

"You don't trust Talon?"

"No, I trust him, too." He was probably the only symbiote – besides Selmac – that Jack did trust. And liked.

"Then go home and get some sleep, Sir."

Jack sighed, and rubbed his face, tiredly. Maybe he would. For a few hours, anyways.

"I'll see you in the morning, Carter."

She nodded and reached down and grabbed her purse.

"Good night, Colonel."

He felt her hand drop on his shoulder for just a moment as she walked past him, then she was gone. Jack looked at the papers that were scattered on her table, and sighed. Looking down at the device on his wrist, he decided he might as well send her a message. At least he'd feel a little like he was in contact with her.

He picked up the papers and put them away for Sam, then sat down at her rarely used desk and activated the device on his wrist.