Chapter 31 – Put in Motion
Samantha Carter O'Neill tossed and turned in bed all night. Her thoughts and emotions went up and down the entire time, almost as if she were on a roller coaster. Her eagerness at getting her little boy back was tempered by the fear that something would happen to cause her to lose him forever. Had she made the right choice in sending him through the quantum mirror? Was he really safe on the other side? Most persistent, though, was the nagging feeling deep within her that something was not quite right in her world.
At 0430, Samantha finally gave up all pretense of trying to sleep and disentangled herself from Jack's arms as she crawled out of bed. For such a light sleeper off world, Jack O'Neill slept the sleep of the dead when he was snuggled up to his wife, so her restless movements had not kept him awake. The lack of her presence did wake him, however, and he stumbled out of bed fifteen minutes after she did. Searching their quarters, he found her in the room that was JJ's, sitting on the floor and holding his teddy bear in her arms, tears streaming down her face.
Jack settled in next to her on the floor and took her in his arms, pressing her face into the crook of his neck with one hand as he rubbed her back with the other. He whispered words of comfort and assurance to her as she continued to cry her loss and frustration at not having her baby near.
When her cries had subsided, Jack pulled back and held her face tenderly in his hands. "We will get our son back, Samantha. I promise you. In a little more than 24 hours, he'll be back in your arms, calling you momma and chewing on Bart," he added with a grin.
His comments brought a smile to her face as well as she recalled how much JJ loved his Bart doll. She would never forget the look of pride on Jack's face when he brought it home, shortly after JJ was born. She never had the heart to tell him that she thought the doll was a bit ugly!
Jack brushed her tears away with his thumbs and leaned forward to kiss her fully on her lips. He pulled back when he felt her tremble under his touch. He looked at her with questioning eyes. "What is it, Samantha? Something else is bothering you."
"I'm sorry, Jack. It's just…I have this feeling that something awful is about to happen. Some plan about to unfold to keep JJ away from us. I know it's crazy but…"
Jack kissed her once more before pulling her to her feet. "It's not crazy. After everything that has happened this week, I'm not surprised that you're feeling this way. But believe me, sweetheart when I tell you that nothing is going to stop us from reclaiming our child. Nothing."
On another part of the base, the Asrak was putting the final touches on his plans; getting equipment ready and taking one final dose of the medication he needed to conceal his true identity from those who could sense it. He would leave this reality within the hour and take his time surveying the other world before he made his move. With the bold arrogance that was common to his race, he felt assured that he would be back in this reality in 12 hours with his trophy in hand.
-
Sam had finally fallen back into a restless sleep after assuring herself that JJ was safe in his crib. She couldn't quite shake the feeling of foreboding that permeated her whole being but, unable to vocalize to Jack just why she was so frightened, she had urged him to go to bed and had lain awake for a long time. When she did sleep, images of JJ, Jack and the alternate reality Samantha Carter flashed through her dreams. At 0545, seemingly in a deep sleep, Sam sat up abruptly, clutching the sheets in a tightened grasp. She frowned as she looked around the empty room, trying to get her breathing under control. All she heard was the quiet breathing of JJ at the foot of her bed. What had woken her up and startled her so?
-
Holding his hand up, he waved the colored ring in front of the two guards, rendering them catatonic. With a malicious grin at how easy that had been, he entered the room where the quantum mirror was kept. He had no need to fear the security cameras as he had stopped there first and disabled them, knocking out the guards who manned that station as well. He placed the dialing device back where he found it, held up his left hand which contained a hand device that covered his entire palm, and, with one touch in its center, he quickly activated the mirror. Quickly running through the various rooms that appeared, he stopped when he spotted what he was looking for; a blue baby blanket tied to the side of a metal shelf. Nodding with satisfaction, he readied himself for his trip through the mirror. He glanced at the timepiece strapped to his wrist. These humans and their need to know the time! It would come in handy for one purpose only; to tell him how long it took to complete his objective. The watch read 5:45 am.
Straightening his shoulders and holding his left palm, he stepped through to the other side. Immediately upon his arrival, he scanned the room for the security cameras he was sure would be in place. Finding one in the corner, he quickly obliterated it with the power that came from the palm device. He incapacitated the two guards who stood outside the door in a manner similar to the one used in the reality he had just come from. He had no desire to kill these guards; that would attract far too much attention. No, he would just render them useless. Now to find where they were keeping the child.
-
Jack had woken at 0700, showered, and found Sam and JJ in the living room. JJ was sleepily gulping down a bottle but gave Jack a grin when he spotted him. Jack returned the smile and came over to sit beside Sam on the couch, taking in her tousled hair, lines of stress around her mouth, and the circles under her eyes in one glance. She obviously had not slept well at all, despite her assurances last night that she would be fine. Jack scowled at the thought as his eyes raked over her once more.
Noticing his growing annoyance and sure as to its reason, Sam quickly interrupted anything he might be ready to say. "I'll be fine, Jack. Just a sleepless night. We've both had more of those over that last 7 years than either one of us can count. I'll survive," she assured him with a smile.
Before Jack could respond, the phone in the suite rang and Jack went to pick it up. "O'Neill," he stated into the phone gruffly. He still wasn't satisfied with Sam's explanation. Jack's eyebrows rose as he looked over at Sam, "Um, no, Sir. Nothing at all happened." He turned away from Sam's intense gaze with a frown, muttering a submissive, "Yes, sir," before hanging up the phone.
Jack turned back to her, the look of annoyance back on his face. "What was that all about?" Sam asked with concern. She didn't like the look she was seeing from Jack.
Jack waved his hand dismissively, "Nothing, I hope. The General just wants to see me about something." At the questioning look she gave him, he continued with a sigh. "Apparently, it was brought to his attention that I was in your room for some time last night. He would appreciate some clarification, I guess."
Sam closed her eyes in disbelief and some embarrassment. This was all her fault. She stood up with JJ in her arms and walked over to him. "I'll go. You shouldn't have to explain anything when it was my fault. Here, why don't you get JJ dressed and take him down for some breakfast. I'll meet you there when I'm done with the General."
Jack pushed JJ gently back into her arms and gave her a stern look. "I'll go, Sam. Hammond specifically requested me. And nothing that happened or didn't happen last night was your fault. If he doesn't believe me, then I will be more than happy to let you talk to him. But for now, let me handle this. Please," he added when she looked as if she was about to argue.
Sam sighed with resignation. "Ok, but promise you'll come for me if you need me."
Jack surprised them both by saying quietly, "I'll always need you, Sam." They stood and stared at each other for a few moments in uncomfortable silence before Jack turned away. "Uh, OK then. I'll see you both in the commissary soon. Unless of course, Hammond sends me directly to the brig; do not pass go, do not collect 200," he quipped.
Sam laughed then and threw back at him," Don't worry. I'll sell one of the railroads and bail you out."
He turned and gave her a look of affront. "What? Not Broadway or Park Place? Am I not worth more than a stinking railroad to you?"
She shrugged and grinned at him, "I do have to think about my retirement, you know."
Jack growled, "You'd better watch it JJ, she might sell you out for Baltic Avenue!"
"JJ? Never!" Sam stated dramatically and hugged the little boy to her, givingthe babya quick kiss on the cheek. "Say bye-bye to daddy, JJ."
"By-by, Dada!" JJ dutifully responded as he waved at Jack.
Jack left the room feeling much better than he had a few minutes ago. It was amazing how that one particular woman and child could change his outlook in a heartbeat!
-
His meeting with Hammond had been brief and to the point. Jack had assured him that nothing had happened. He explained how Carter (he couldn't very well call her Sam in front of the General) had experienced a nightmare and he had just been checking on her and the baby. It had taken a while to calm her down and reassure her that nothing was going to happen to JJ.
"Frankly, Sir, Carter has been pretty stressed these last few days, what with everything that has happened to JJ; and to her. I'm not at all surprised that she's having nightmares."
"Neither am I, Jack. Frankly, I've noticed how both of you have become quite attached to the little boy. I hope that is not going to be a problem when it comes time to send him back, Colonel," Hammond stated with determination.
"No, Sir. It won't be," Jack assured him.
The General looked him over with a critical eye before nodding his acceptance. "Off the record, Jack, I think you and Major Carter might have some things to discuss when this is over with. Things that may affect how you work together in the future as a team."
Jack couldn't hide the surprise on his face at Hammond's comment. Wanting to assure him that nothing would happen between them, he said, "Sir, nothing that has happened will compromise the safety and cohesion of our team. I want to assure you that…"
Hammond raised his hand to stop him. "I am not suggesting that it would, Jack. I just think that some issues may have been raised in the last week that have made both of you more aware of certain aspects of your relationship. That is all I am going to say on the matter. Now, as this is most likely your last day with JJ, I suggest you put it to good use and spend as much time as possible with him. I don't want anything to happen on our end that could compromise the return of that child to his rightful parents, understood?"
Jack nodded his head, still in somewhat of a daze over the latter part of the conversation. "Yes, Sir. I'll make sure JJ is safe and well cared for, as will Major Carter."
"All right then. You are dismissed. And Jack," Jack turned from the door he was heading out of, "When this is over, all of SG-1 will have one week of downtime; off base. I don't want hear from anyone that they saw a certain Major lurking about the labs during that time, do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, sir," Jack answered with a smile. Downtime was an excellent idea and he for one would be looking forward to it. He left the room, and nodded absently at Siler and Davis as he passed the control room, still deep in thought. Had General Hammond been implying what he thought he was? Well, that was one part of the conversation he wasn't going to mention to Sam…at least not yet!
Hammond sighed as Jack left his office. Between the call from security at 0545 when the cameras had gone out in the storage room where the quantum mirror was, and his discussion with Colonel O'Neill, General Hammond was tired. And it was just past 0730! This was going to be a long day, he thought to himself.
-
Still deep in thought, Jack stepped off the elevator on his way to the commissary and bumped into someone coming the opposite way.He muttered a quick "Sorry" before looking up to see who it was. "Sgt. Davis?" he asked in confusion. Hadn't he just seen the man on level 28 in the control room?
"Good morning Colonel O'Neill. I'm sorry about that. I wasn't looking where I was going," replied the other man, not looking the least bit flustered at literally running into the 2IC of the whole base.
Jack frowned at the man. "Weren't you just…" he indicated behind himself with his thumb, then lowered it slowly. He hadn't really been paying attention when he left the General's office, so he must have been mistaken. "Ah, never mind. Have a good day, Sergeant."
"You too, Sir," Davis answered and continued walking the direction he had been going. When he rounded the corner, he stopped then looked back. Colonel O'Neill was walking down the corridor in the opposite direction, whistling to himself as he sauntered along. He has no idea who I am, the Asrak thought to himself with a smirk. It won't be too long before he finds out. And by then, it will be much too late…for I will have what I came for!
For those of you who have never played the game, Sam and Jack's little banter about passing go and collecting 200 comes from the boardgame Monopoly.
More to follow soon!
