STARGATE SG-1: Operation Checkmate
Summary: When General O'Neill is incapacitated, Carter finds herself in over her head as the helpless puppet to a madman! ...
Season: 8
Pairing: Jack/Sam (suggested)
Spoilers: New Order, Lockdown
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in Stargate SG-1. Please don't sue me for this story!
Author's Note: OK, so... Chapter 2... Thanks to everyone who reviewed the first part. I got a good laugh out of a great many of them! And hope to do so for this part's reviews (hint, hint!). So, please R&R as always. Thanx. Enjoy!
WARNING: Strong Language!
Operation Checkmate: Chapter 2 – J'Adoube
"... Police are putting this morning's tragedy down to a faulty fuse box combined with a gas leak. No fowl play is suspected," the anchor-woman reported solemnly.
Sam angrily turned off the television, unable to stand seeing the pictures of Mrs Wilson's house going up anymore. Apart from the fact that she had seen it all first hand, she was also the only person who knew what really happened. She was also the only person who couldn't lift a finger to set the police straight.
Apart from anything, they would quickly dismiss her account as being from a woman who was simply looking for attention. They had their evidence and therefore it was case closed.
But also, there were other people to think of in the equation. One in particular. Jack. The second she went to the police, FBI, NID or anyone else with what was going on, he would be dead for sure. Or at least that's what she had been promised.
And at this point, she was in no position to argue. She had seen what he was capable of. Whoever 'he' was. There was no way she was endangering Jack further. Not with him being in a coma.
She was, quite honestly, helpless in this one. A mere pawn in his game.
In her mind, she went over the conversation time and time again. Analysing every part of it. Trying to work out where it had all gone wrong for her.
'Just sit tight. I'll contact you soon enough,' he had told her when she finally caved to his threats and agreed to co-operate. 'Oh, and Samantha? No cops. You got that?'
She half wished she hadn't heard that part. Not that they'd do her any good at the moment.
But she hated being powerless.
0
Two days later, Sam was back on the base ready to greet their temporary replacement for General O'Neill.
"Colonel Carter, could I see you in my office, please," General Crawford asked at the end of the official greeting.
"Yes sir," Sam complied.
She settled herself in the seat opposite what was usually Jack's desk and waited for the new General to speak.
"I hear you recently got command of SG-1, congratulations," he said.
"Thank you, sir," she replied.
Crawford smiled. "I knew your father, that's all. It surprised me to hear his little girl had come so far already. I could have sworn you were still in high school!"
Sam forced a smile. She was used to this sort of conversation, being a military brat and all. But it had been a while since she had been on the receiving end of one. And, combined with recent event, it wasn't what she needed at that moment in time.
"I understand you and General O'Neill were close?" Crawford pried.
Sam stared at the desk and wandered where he had got that intelligence from. Was it just something from a harmless file, or had he been 'contacted'? She proceeded carefully.
"He's been my CO for going on eight years now. I'd like to think we were friends as well, yes," she said in all innocence.
"I see," Crawford commented, apparently buying her cover. "I was sorry to hear about his attack. You were with him, yes?"
Sam nodded, but couldn't help wondering where he was going with this.
"My point is, Colonel. Something like that can't have been easy to take – even for a seasoned officer like yourself. I want to put SG-1 on down time for a while. Maybe even until O'Neill is back on his feet."
Sam looked up at him, eyes wide in disbelief.
"You have no missions scheduled for the moment and Dr Jackson and Teal'c are both still recovering from injuries, is that correct?"
Sam nodded again.
"And from what I've read about you, Colonel, you rarely take time off when it's offered. I think it would be beneficial for your team and especially for you if you had a few weeks away from the base."
"Yes sir," Sam muttered quietly.
"Don't think I'm trying to get rid of you or anything. I just know how Jacob would react if knew how much you threw into your work," Crawford joked.
"Oh, I think he has a pretty good idea," Sam replied.
"All the more reason to take the down time! I'll even let you take some of your science projects away with you if it makes you feel better."
Sam smiled gratefully. "Was that all, sir?"
"Yes. You're dismissed."
Sam quickly made her way to her lab to collect a few items that she would need on her downtime. As she entered the room, the phone rang.
"Carter?" she answered, professionally.
"Colonel, its Dr Brightman," came the reply. "I just wanted to let you know General O'Neill is being moved to the Air Force Hospital in Colorado Springs today. They have better facilities there for his condition."
"Thank you Doctor," Sam replied. "Just make sure they know to keep me updated, that's all I ask."
"I'll make sure they do."
"Oh, and I'll be off base for a few weeks, so you might want to give them my cell phone number instead of this one."
"I'll do that."
"Thanks again."
The conversation was quickly wrapped up and Sam returned to packing her things before the phone rang again.
"Carter," she answered as before.
"Hey there, Samantha. How's it going?"
Sam froze as she recognised his voice.
"I see you got that down time I put in for you. Isn't that nice and handy for us?"
"And the General being moved? Was that you too?" she spat.
"No. That was Dr Brightman's doing. Not that it makes the slightest bit of difference," he said calmly.
"So, what? You've rigged all the life-support machines in the county?"
"Who said anything about life-support?" He was almost laughing in his tone of voice.
Sam was rapidly seeing red in the way he held dominion over so effortlessly.
"You said you were controlling machines!" she said desperately. The last thing she needed was yet another unknown factor in Jack's predicament.
"That's right," he said simply. "Oh come on, Samantha! You're letting me down here! I would have thought someone of your profession would have worked it out by now. Especially given your past with the General..." He trailed off, waiting for her to figure it out. But she wouldn't yet.
Sam creased her brows and stayed silent, hoping he would just get frustrated with her and blurt out what she was supposed to know already.
"No guesses yet?" he queried. "Oh well. You'll get it eventually."
"Look, what do you want with me this time?" Sam said, overwhelmed with the same desire to be rid of him as she was faced with in their fist encounter.
"Not a lot. Just a few files. Have a look under the work bench in the centre of you lab," he ordered.
Sam did as he said and noticed an envelope sellotaped to the underside of her desk. Her heart nearly stopped when she saw it. The thought of him being in her lab sent a cold chill down her spine and through her nerves. It was bad enough feeling like he was watching her all the time without adding the idea that he had access to everything she did.
"How very original of you!" she said sarcastically, determined not to let him see how much he was getting to her.
"Hey, the classics are often the ones that work the best," he replied.
Sam opened the envelope and pulled out the single sheet of paper that was inside. On it was a list of names and numbers
"The names are all Air Force officers," he told her. "The numbers are NID files."
"Let me guess?" she said dryly. "I go talk to the people about these files?"
"Way off, sugar!"
Sam's stomach turned when she heard him refer to her as 'sugar'.
"I don't think there's anything you could tell these people about these files that they would understand or care about. No these people are the sorts of officers that give the Air Force a bad name. what I need you to do, is pick up their files and deliver them to me."
Sam's patience was quickly warring thin again. "And where exactly do I pick them up from?"
Once again, she heard him smile done the phone at her. "The same place you'd pick up any Air Force file, Samantha... The Pentagon."
"You gotta be fucking nuts!" Sam retorted.
He just laughed at her. "Nice turn of phrase there, honey. Of course just how you get to the files is entirely up to you. But then, you've got covert training. I'm sure you'll put it to good use."
"And the numbered files?"
"Same story, I'm afraid. Only these are slightly more tricky," he told her.
"More tricky than breaking into the Pentagon?" Sam quipped.
He laughed again. "Oh, I love how much wit you've picked up from the General. It really does suit you!"
Sam closed her eyes and breathed deeply trying to bite back the string of insults she was dying to hurl at him down the phones line.
"But as I was saying..." he continued. "Its trickier because these files – instead of being handily stored in a filing cabinet at NID head-quarters – are only accessible through the NID mother board computer. You need lots of carefully controlled security passes to get to those. So, yes. They're trickier."
"And may I ask what they are?" Sam queried, hoping he would allow that little piece of knowledge.
"You can ask," he said pleasantly. "But I won't answer you. The address for sending the Pentagon files is on the back of that paper you're holding. I've e-mailed you the account to send the NID files to."
"Account?" Sam questioned.
"As in internet account? E-mail address? Honestly, you spend too much time in that mountain. You need to join the 21st Century, Samantha!" he said with a hint of irony in his tone.
Sam bit her teeth together hard, trying not to rise to his provocation.
"One more thing, Samantha," he said, sensing she was about to hang up on him. "There is a time limit for this. I want everything where it should be by 2130 on Thursday. That gives you three days. If anything's missing, you know what'll happen to our boy Jack?"
Sam closed her eyes again as a wave of nausea hit her hard.
"You understand?" he prompted when she didn't reply.
"I understand," she said, defeated.
"Good," he said jovially. "You'd better get cracking then!"
With that, the line went dead.
Sam hesitated for a moment before she put the receiver down. She quickly left her lab with her box of experiments and her instructions.
When she reached the elevator, she stopped dead in her tracks as Jack's gurney was wheeled past her into the waiting carriage. Her muscles suddenly felt like led as she thought about how 'he' was using Jack to manipulate her. He clearly knew her too well as nothing else was as effective at gaining her co-operation as holding Jack's life on the line.
When she finally reached the surface, she was just in time to watch the ambulance disappear out of the base parking lot on its way to the hospital.
"I'm doing this for you," she muttered after the vehicle. She sighed heavily as she loaded her things into the back of her car.
Silently, she pulled out of the base and turned, not to go home, but towards the Airport. In a few minutes, she parked again outside the terminal.
With a heavy heart, she made her way to the check in desk.
"One return ticket to Washington DC," she said.
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Author's Note: I think that'll do for now. Hope you're still enjoying this as mush as I am! The best way to let me know is in a review! (Of course!). So, till next time, then. Happy reviewing!