Ian spent the rest of the morning in Sam's lab with her, helping as she worked on a new naquida regulator. He had been the one to give her the idea – a way of using the energy stored in naquida in carefully controlled bursts that might make it useful as a fuel for some new kind of propulsion engine which she hadn't actually started building yet, but had begin to consider. She had to have the regulator ready before she could know how to build the engine, and the regulator itself was far from finished. But it was coming along, and Sam knew that a lot of the credit went to Ian, who seemed to always be able to come up with a solution when a new problem with the technology presented itself.

As she watched him test the energy fluctuation in the small amount of naquida they were using, Sam decided that he looked a little distracted. Ian always looked somewhat distracted. Sam knew it was because he had a lot on his mind; not only the things he was doing with SG-1, but the things he was helping her with, the work he was doing with his assignments with the academy, spending time with Andrew, self-defense with Teal'c – and sometimes Jack – and of course, his relationship with Cassie.

Ian was one of the few people that truly awed Sam. Not because he was intelligent, because she knew a lot of intelligent people, but because for someone so young, he was as disciplined as they came when it had to do with taking care of the things around him. He was still raw in many ways – including how he reacted and acted towards those around him – but he was showing the signs of the man he'd someday be, and Sam couldn't wait to see that man.

So, because of all the things he had on his plate, it was really no wonder that he looked so distracted, she knew. This seemed a little different, though.

"Ian?"

He looked up, his hand stilling on the diagnostic tool he'd been using.

"Yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

He hesitated for only a moment, and then nodded.

"I'm fine, Sam."

She caught the hesitation, of course. Not only that, but Ian was about as easy to read as a billboard. Especially if you knew him well. He was terrible at hiding his feelings, and a horrible liar. Of course, since he never felt the need to hide what he was feeling, and was always willing to tell someone exactly what he thought of them, it made sense that he had very little practice at either.

"You sure?"

He nodded again, looking down at the naquida, and Sam knew he wasn't telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth when he did that.

"It's just been a little hectic this week…" he said, shrugging.

She believed that, but she didn't believe that was the reason for the distraction. Of course, she also couldn't just come right out and force him to tell her, either. It wasn't like he wasn't allowed to have secrets, after all, and maybe he was trying to come up with a present for Cassie's upcoming graduation, or maybe he was just working on something complicated in his head. Who knew? Whatever it was, she had asked, and he now knew that if it was something she could help with, he could ask.

She nodded, and they went back to work, but once they stopped for lunch, Sam told Ian she wasn't going to go back to the lab. She wanted him to have some time to himself, and he wasn't going to get it if he was helping her – no matter how much she appreciated that help.

Ian had accepted that, and declined her invitation to eat with her and Jack – and Jake. He had debated telling Sam about the guys in the black suburban, but Sam had enough on her plate without dealing with his as well. She had Jake, and work, and Jack was hurt, and this new regulator that would eventually become the hottest drive ever built – even though they hadn't quite figured it out yet. She had enough to worry about without trying to worry about something that was probably no big deal anyways. Besides, she and Jack had already done so much for him; he didn't want to be more of a burden than he already had been.

He stopped long enough to tell Jack goodbye – and decline the invitation to help change Jake – and then he headed for the nearest pizza place, figuring he'd stuff himself with lunch and then head back to his place and maybe spend the afternoon doing nothing at all, since he didn't have anyone to do anything with. At least not until school was out for the day.

OOOOOOOOOOO

The phone rang three times before Nathan answered it, and he cursed before he did, because someone was going to pay dearly for calling him and pulling him out of the shower.

"Yeah?"

"Nate, it's Ian. Do you have a minute?"

The anger at standing naked in the middle of his bedroom, dripping onto the carpet and knowing that if Maggie happened to walk in on him like this she'd have been delighted to tell the story to all the women in her dance troupe, faded away instantly.

"Sure, Ian. I was just…" he looked down at himself. Maggie was out of town, so his dignity was safe. "…doing a crossword puzzle."

"Pulled you out of the shower, did I?"

Piper's voice was amused, and Nate just shook his head. Smart-ass just knew him too well, that was all.

"What have you learned, Ian?"

"You know who Samuel Leaf is?"

"Navy guy? Rear Admiral?"

"That's the one."

"Sure, I know who he is… I don't know him personally, but-"

"He has a guy named Phillip Morgan working for him."

"Yeah? And?"

"Phillip Morgan has a guy named John Smith working for him. It's very hush hush, Nate – and I won't tell you who told me, since I was sworn to secrecy."

"So this John Smith guy really exists?"

"If it's the same guy, he does. It's possible he is, since at the moment, no one knows where Morgan or Smith are – and apparently they disappear all the time."

Meaning they weren't going on long vacations together. Nate understood the implications to that as much as Piper did – and for the same reasons.

"We're sure it's the same guy?"

"Guess who Leaf works for, Nate…?" Piper said. The way he said it assured Nathan Brooks that the answer wasn't something he was going to like hearing.

"Who?"

"Vice President Robert Kinsey."

"You're shitting me."

"You know I wouldn't, Nate. Not about this."

Of course he wouldn't. Brooks was quiet for a minute, deciding the ramifications of what he'd just heard.

"What are you thinking?" Piper finally asked.

His gaze falling in the twin Berettas that were sitting on the dresser, Nate's eyes grew cold, and his voice followed suit.

"I'm thinking I need to take a short trip to D.C. in the morning."