Despite his assurances that Ian was old enough to know better and all that crap, Jack did put in a call to Daniel's cell phone much later that afternoon while Sam and Shawn were outside with Jaffer. Daniel answered almost immediately.
"Hello?"
"Hey."
"Jack. How's Shawn?"
"He's okay, Daniel." Jack looked over at the glass sliding door that led to the back deck. "Listen, I need a favor."
"Sure."
"I need you and Teal'c to go to LA for me."
"LA?" The surprise was obvious in Daniel's voice, and Jack could imagine his face just then. His eyebrows were probably in his hair, and the puzzled expression was probably wrinkling the area above his nose. "Why? Is Sam having some weird craving?"
"I wish." He explained to Daniel as quickly as he could what he knew so far about Ian's disappearance.
"Jack, even if we left right now, driving straight through, we'd probably not make it there in time to stop him from doing anything. If we fly, we'd still have to wait for-"
"Daniel. Hush." Jack scowled. "You don't have to fly, or drive. Probably."
He pulled out the small hand-held device that had been given to him by a certain little gray alien, and looked at it. "I think I can get you an instant trip there. Just come over, okay?"
Still confused, but resigned to it – since Jack confused him all the time anyways – Daniel nodded, even though Jack couldn't see it.
"We'll be there shortly."
OOOOOO
They made good time, and Jaffer bolted to the door when he heard the knock only half an hour later.
Shawn paled slightly, thinking it might be his grandparents, but Jack knew better just from the way the black lab was acting. Jaffer only looked so excited when it was someone he knew and liked on the other side of the door. Not even a pizza delivery guy caused that much happiness.
"I'll get it."
He opened the door, and a streak of yellow flashed passed, barreling excitedly into Jaffer, who growled happily and started wrestling with Jack (the dog). Daniel and Teal'c made their appearance only a moment behind the yellow lab, and Jack closed and locked the door behind him.
"Teal'c. Daniel." Sam looked at Jack – who hadn't told her or Shawn that he'd called them.
"Hey, Sam." Daniel waved weakly, and then looked at Shawn, his eyes suddenly sad. "How are you doing, buddy?"
Shawn nodded; heartily tired of people asking him that question, but knowing that Daniel actually did care how he was feeling. Besides, Shawn knew that Daniel had lost his own folks when he'd been even younger than him – and Daniel had actually seen it happen – which Shawn couldn't imagine living through.
"I'm okay, Daniel. Thank you."
"We are here, O'Neill," Teal'c said. "You will have to watch Jack for me while we are gone, however. I will not risk him in the crowded streets." Teal'c was just as protective of his yellow lab as Jack was of Jaffer.
"Crowded streets?" Sam repeated, looking at Jack.
"Teal'c and Daniel are going to go to LA and try to find Ian."
"But you said-"
"I know what I said, Shawn," Jack agreed. "But if we call in a little help, we might be able to get to Ian before he does anything that will affect his future too profoundly." AWOL wasn't unforgivable, after all. Murdering the Vice President – or trying to – was another matter entirely.
"What kind of help?" Sam asked.
"Thor."
Jack pulled the device out of his pocket and activated it.
"I'll probably vanish in a-"
Sure enough, a moment later there was a bright light in the room and Jack vanished – which explained to Sam and Shawn why Jack had locked the door, since that would have been a bad time for someone to come barging in, forgetting to knock. Not likely, but you never knew, and it was always better to be safe than sorry.
There were matching growls from both labs, who were pulled away from their impromptu wrestling match by the annoying noise that assailed their ears every time the Asgard transportation device was activated around them.
"Greetings, O'Neill."
Jack smiled, glad to see Thor, and grateful that he'd answered so quickly. He had been counting on the fact that the little Asgard had lessons with Andrew that day – Jack had asked Andrew to inform Thor what was happening, so Shawn's own lessons could be put on hold until things were more settled.
"Thor, it's good to see you." Jack told him, sincerely. "I need a favor."
The little alien paused for a briefest of moments.
"I assumed such was the case, O'Neill. What can I do for you?"
Jack didn't go into much of an explanation, he just pretty much told Thor that he needed him to beam Daniel and Teal'c to another city, and that it was really important. And that he had to make sure that he beamed them someplace that was deserted – like an empty room – so that no one would see them pop in out of nowhere.
"I can do that, O'Neill."
"Great. You don't need to keep an eye on them once you drop them somewhere." They couldn't risk involving Thor in anything too complicated without having some way of communicating with him, because there was no way they could run the risk of someone seeing Daniel or Teal'c just appear of disappear. "Once they're there, they can handle things."
He hoped.
"Very well." Thor was getting used to being called upon for help – and as long as it was little stuff like putting someone from one city to another, or simply 'beaming' someone up, it wasn't interfering with the treaty with the Goa'uld. Obviously sending Daniel Jackson and Teal'c to another city wasn't going to change the course of things on Earth or anything.
"Great!" Jack looked around. "Is there anyone new at my house that wasn't there a minute ago?"
Thor checked his scanner readings.
"No."
"Then beam me down and beam up Teal'c and Daniel. They'll tell you where they need to go."
"Very well."
An instant later Jack was standing back in his living room and at the same moment, Daniel and Teal'c vanished.
"Well?" Sam asked, more impatient than Shawn – or more ready to ask.
Jack shrugged.
"We'll have to wait and see. Hopefully Daniel will call us when they know something." He looked at his watch. It was fairly late in the afternoon – almost evening, for that matter – and Mae and Randy hadn't made an appearance yet. He wondered what was keeping them.
As if his thought of them had summoned them, a moment later there was a knock on the door, and Jaffer and Jack (the dog) both headed for it, Jack barking excitedly. He never had knocks on the door to answer on the base!
Calling both dogs back – and getting instant obedience from them – Jack opened the door and saw why the Adams' were late. Instead of coming alone, they were accompanied by another man. Who absolutely had to be the lawyer. The time had come.