Gallagher woke up with a start and then groaned as the pain in his head slammed him back down on the bed. What had happened and where was he were the two most important questions going through his mind as he pressed the palms of his hands to his eyes.
"Jack?" he heard Carter say softly. "How are you feeling?" He shivered at the touch of her hand on his arm and he pulled his hands away to look at her.
"Am I dead?" he asked "Surely I've gone to heaven just to see the vision in front of me." He stared at her reaction to his statement. Her smile always had the same affect on him.
"Flattery will not get you anywhere, airman," Carter said, her face was shining in relief and he wondered if she was really worried about him.
"What happened," he said to bring himself back to reality. He was never going to have her. "Where's Teal'c?" he said as he started to remember.
"Lay still, Gallagher," Carter said as she pushed him back down to the bed. "Teal'c is fine and so is Daniel, for that matter." Teal'c is sleeping right now, though. It seems that those darts they were shooting had some substance coated on them and you are not going to be feeling well for some time now, or at least that's what the Terrean doctor has been telling me."
"Substance?" Gallagher asked. Great, he survived the food to bite it with a dart. Life really sucks!
"I'm not quite sure exactly what is involved, but apparently the darts are coated with a chemical that paralyzes the victim, allowing the attacker the opportunity to use a knife to finish the deed," Carter explained. "It's pretty…."
"Cowardly!" Gallagher finished for her with a growl.
"Yes, but our weapons have impressed Froden and his gang, seeing that none of your attackers are alive and they were chomping at the bit to add this to their negotiations." Carter's face took on an uneasy look as she said, "I don't think General O'Neill is going to be too compliant in their request."
Gallagher could just hear what the General would say to it, considering it was probably the exact same thing going on in his mind. He grinned at Carter, "Want me to ask him?"
Carter glared at him and was gearing up to start in on him until she saw the wicked grin he had on his face and she grinned and shook her head. "No thanks. You'd have him so mad he would probably say no to the medicines just for spite!"
Gallagher couldn't argue with that and he put on a little pout to show how disappointed he was.
Carter just laughed and got up to fill a glass with some water. "The doctor has already treated the affects of the chemical and you should be up and around by tomorrow," she said handing him the glass. He suggests that you not try to do too much today until the chemical is totally gone and I am asking you to not make me order you to stay put." The glare was back.
"Do you think that's wise considering that Teal'c and I were both attacked?" Gallagher knew it was a mistake the minute he saw her shoulders go back.
"Are you questioning my command, Cadet?" she asked him, the words spoken quietly but with the heat of her anger in her voice and her eyes. Gallagher couldn't remember ever seeing her like this, in fact, did Carter ever get angry?
"No Colonel Carter. I trust your command implicitly. I have always trusted you." He put his hand on her arm willing her to look at him, to see that he was telling her the truth. "You are in command here, Colonel. Remember telling me that?" he said with a small smile, still trying to get her to see his words for what they were.
Carter stared at him for what seemed like hours as he waited for her to respond. "Ma'am?" he said.
"I'm sorry, Gallagher," she said. "I am still trying to come to terms with Jack O'Neill talking to me through a much younger version of him. It doesn't help that you are the spitting image of him, well, a younger version of him." He saw she was trembling and he swore he would do his best to do whatever she wanted him to do, no questions asked.
"Sorry, Colonel," Gallagher said, "I'll try not to look like him anymore."
Carter gave him a brilliant smile before looking away and mumbled something about him being incorrigible. "Ma'am?" he said wearing what he hoped was his most innocent look.
"Stay put, Gallagher, until the doctor gives you the okay. I'm going to need you up and ready when the negotiations start up again tomorrow. Understood?" she said and he could see the humor in her eyes.
"Understood." Gallagher nodded. "Ma'am." He added while she was shutting the door on her way out.
Gallagher spent the rest of the day in bed and he was not in the best of moods. He had forgotten to ask Carter about the kid that was there with them during the shootout and there was also Teal'c to worry about. If he remembered correctly, Teal'c no longer had a symbiote to heal him. Not to mention that he absolutely hated lying around. He needed to get up and do something.
He found out the hard way that he was not ready to get out of that bed yet. He had tried to stand and found himself face first on the floor feeling like all kinds the fool. He was able to move his legs and feet, they just refused to support his weight. He grumbled some more while he dragged himself back into the bed.
It was getting dark and Gallagher thought about trying to get out of bed again when there was a knock on the door. "Come," Gallagher called out.
Daniel came in carrying a tray with some food on it and Gallagher backed away remembering the sight of the food that was on the table earlier.
"It's not the same stuff," Daniel said. "I swear it. I brought you some of that bread and some letchers. They really are good, if you can get past the slimy texture."
"Slimy lechers?" Gallagher asked and both men laughed.
"Try them, they're good. They have a nutty flavor… Stop it Jack!" Daniel held up his hand to stall Jack's next comment. "How are you feeling?" he asked.
"Fine, for an old man," Gallagher said. "I was just about to see if my legs would hold me up when you walked in." He gave Daniel a thoughtful look and continued. "I think I'll wait until you leave before I try again in case I fall flat on my face."
"I can help you if you did," Daniel said as he walked over to the dresser that held the pitcher of water. "Want some more water?" he asked, as he nodded at Gallagher's glass.
"Yeah sure. I am a little thirsty," Gallagher said. "You okay Daniel?" Something was bothering his friend, he could tell.
"Sure," Daniel replied. He grabbed a chair and pulled it up to sit next to the bed. "The doctor says that the effects of the chemicals should wear off sometime tonight. It's rare that he has had to treat your symptoms as the use of those weapons have been outlawed. Good thing they had a cure."
"Yep. Good thing for me," Gallagher said. "How's Teal'c doing?"
"He's up and around. The tutonium that he has to take to live works almost as well as a symbiote. It will take a whole lot to bring that guy down."
"What about the kid," Gallagher asked. "I've been worried about him all day."
"What kid?" Daniel replied. "You and Teal'c were the only ones there… well besides your attackers, that is."
"He must have got away," Gallagher said more to himself than to Daniel.
"I guess," Daniel said as he grabbed some bread and handed it to Gallagher. "Bon apetit!"
"Thanks," Gallagher said as he eyed the food wearily.
Daniel grinned and stood up to go. "Look, Jack, everything will be just fine until you get out of that bed. Don't rush it, okay?"
"'kay," Gallagher said before taking a bite of the bread.
He finished the food despite the smell and made an attempt to stand. His legs held him up this time, though he did still feel weak. He put the tray on the dresser and walked around the room until his legs no longer trembled.
He laid down after finding a chamber pot (for crying out loud!) and tried to sleep. He sat up once to make sure his gun was handy then laid back down and closed his eyes.
He woke up to the sound of someone opening his door. He kept his eyes closed and turned over so that his hand was lying on his gun. The silence was unnerving him, whoever it was just stood there staring at him, and he risked opening his eyes just a crack to see who it was.
Through the darkness of the room he saw the figure moving closer to him, his hand tightening on the gun.
"I had to come to thank you for what you did for my son and for what you will do for my daughters and myself," said the woman standing in front of him.
It was the dark-haired beauty he had met earlier in the town and he trembled when he saw that she had loosened her blouse.
"Uh, no need to ma'am," he said still staring at the opening in her shirt. He forced himself to swallow and brought his eyes up to look into hers. "Really, it was no problem."
She walked up to him and sat down on the side of the bed, taking his hand in hers. "Please let me do this," she said.
Gallagher's voice had fled completely as she placed his hand on the bare skin of her chest. She leaned down and placed her mouth on his, pressing her warm soft lips onto his own. Gallagher returned the kiss with a fervor and cupped her face in his other hand.
After a few minutes of trying to devour each other, Gallagher released her and held her at arm's length. "You are so beautiful," he breathed. "But I don't think this is the right thing to do. I mean, what about your husband?"
She pressed a finger to his lips, staring into his eyes, and the silence lengthened before she spoke again. "My husband is dead, killed by a neighbor."
"A neighbor?" Gallagher asked as he continued to stare into the green depths of her eyes. He was getting desperate but he also knew that this was too soon, this woman must be just as desperate as himself to just throw herself at him.
She pushed herself down past the hands that were holding her away and took his mouth in another mind numbing kiss. He could tell she was removing her shirt and he started to panic, he was losing control here.
"Wait, wait," he said pushing her back up again. "Just wait a minute." God, what was he doing? He didn't even know this woman, it could be a trap.
"You really don't have to do this," he gasped. Oh God, the woman's hands were on his stomach moving south. "Stop!" he demanded as he grabbed her hands to halt their descent.
She stopped and looked at him, the hurt evident in her eyes. "Am I undesirable?" she asked with tears sparkling in her eyes.
"No, yes, oh God, you are so beautiful!" he said trying to calm his racing heart. "It's just that I don't know if you are here to kill me or not. I mean I was already attacked once today, how do I know this is not another form of killing me." Course I would die with a smile on my face, he thought.
"No, I couldn't kill the man who is here to save us," she said and began moving her fingers along the skin of his stomach.
"Hey," he said sucking in the muscles of his stomach. "Look, please just don't worry about any of that right now, okay? I appreciate this, really I do, it's just that I don't think this is the right thing to do. There are other ways to thank us," he went on. "And besides it's not just me involved in this treaty, in fact I am not even in charge here." Please understand, he thought, while his hands left hers and moved up her arms.
His movements were not lost on her and he saw her smile as she reached up and covered one of his hands with hers. "I would like to finish this," she said. "Please."
"What's really going on here?" Gallagher asked. He was losing this particular battle, he knew he was. "There has to be more to this than just thanking me. I haven't done anything yet."
Treya sighed and sat up. Her skin looked like velvet in the darkness and Jack let his hand slide down the silkiness of her arm. "What is it?" he said.
She didn't say anything, just sat there and stared at her hands. Jack sat up to sit behind her. "Tell me," he said.
"I can't lose another child," Treya said, the tears evident in her voice. "I can't!" She turned to face Gallagher again and he saw the tears streaming down her face. "I hope that you will never know the agony of losing a child," she said looking into his eyes. "And now two more of my precious children are dying. I can't go through that again!"
Jack put his hand on her cheek, wishing there was something he could say to help her. He knew her pain all to well and he wanted to help her more than anything.
She sat there and cried and he pulled her into a hug, willing her to take strength from him. His heart ached right along with hers. He held her until she finally stopped crying and she pulled away to look him in the eyes again.
"I want you to know that I never wanted to hurt you," she said as she stroked the back of her hand along his cheek. "I was just so desperate and Trant told me that you wouldn't give him the medicines we needed. Please understand," she begged.
"I understand," Jack said, "Well maybe I don't. Why did you come after me?"
"You are a leader," Treya said. "I could see it as you walked down the road. I knew you could help me."
"I'm not a leader, Treya. In fact, today is my first day on the job. I have absolutely no say in who gets the medicines. That would be up to the leaders of this community."
"They will not help us," she said getting up from the bed to pace the floor. Gallagher found himself wishing she had put her shirt back on before she did that. On second thought, no he didn't.
"They are the men who had my husband killed!" she ranted. "He was killed because he demanded that the doctor treat our daughter…." She turned to face him, tears shining on her face again. "She was so beautiful, dark hair, flashing eyes and she loved to laugh, oh how she loved to play." Treya's voice broke as she said, "They killed her just as sure as they killed my husband."
She came back to the bed and sat down again, taking Jack's hand in hers. "Now my two remaining daughters are ill and I'm afraid the leaders will do the same thing, only this time I won't be able to survive it. They will not help us because of what my husband did. My children are going to die!" she said, tears streaming down her face again. "Please help us. Please?"
"I'll try, Treya, that's all I can do," he said wiping the fresh tears off her face. "I'll talk to Colonel Carter and to her superior if I have to, but I can't guarantee their answer. I promise I will do my best, just please know that I may not be successful."
"Thank you," she said. "I know you will." She leaned her forehead against his and smiled. "By the way, what is your name?"
"Jack," Gallagher said smiling back at her. She really was a prize, he thought. "Jack Gallagher."
"Jack," she breathed and Gallagher lost the battle with temptation.