Author's Notes: I've decided to change my pen name and will be keeping this one for a long time. It's about time, I think. :-)

I also wanted to thank everyone for your reviews and patience. I especially wanted to thank Cal who pointed out that I had the location of Roanoke Island wrong. I've been meaning to fix that glaring goof ever since I read that review, and am going back to fix it now that I am concentrating on this story again. In my defense, I was thinking Lost Colony and mixed it up with the 13 colonies and... well, I think I'll just stop now while I'm ahead. :-) Thank you, Cal, whoever you are! Also, special thanks to TurtleD for being a fantastic beta!


Mac knew without a doubt that they had found his daughter. His mind was already going through different scenarios to follow up on in order to get her out of there safe and sound. The first thing he needed to do, though, was to find out exactly where in the house she was being held.

He took the binoculars from Jack and began a meticulous search of the entire building, taking in every little detail – details such as the rake leaning against the side of the house, the types of windows, even the fact that there was a rolled up newspaper lying on the picnic table. He left nothing untouched as he scanned the exterior of the building. He couldn't tell from his viewpoint where his daughter was located, but he knew the best way to find out was to get closer to the house.

He reached into the back seat to grab his knapsack from the floor behind Jack and started to get out. Jack grabbed his arm to stop him, saying, "Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm going to see if I can find Lindsay and hopefully get her out of there," Mac replied as he looked back at the house.

"We're going to wait until dark," Jack insisted. "Then we move in when I say we move in, not before."

"C'mon Jack. I've told you, this is my forte. Getting people out of situations like this is what I used to do. Trust me on this, I know what I'm doing," he said, not wanting to rehash his expertise with Jack.

He got out of the car and hefted the bag onto his shoulder, then turned toward the ditch on the side of the road. There was a cornfield on the other side of the ditch and Mac sent up silent thanks for this cover, then smiled when he heard Jack following him. He would have been thoroughly disappointed if Jack had stayed at the car. Mac just knew that Jack wasn't the type to stay in the background for long.

"At least give me a minute to call Carter for backup," Jack grumbled as he pulled on Mac's arm to stop him. Mac waited while Jack made the call, working on ideas in his mind as to how he could create a diversion that would enable him to rescue his daughter. He ended up discarding a few, and was thinking about the possible pitfalls of the ones he kept when Jack interrupted him.

"Carter's on her way," he said while staring at Mac with a calculating look. "Do you have a gun?" Jack asked, as he pulled one out to hand to Mac.

"Don't need one," Mac answered with a big grin. "I have all I need in here," he continued pointing at the bag. "Tools of the trade."

"Dare I ask what's in there?" Jack asked warily, as Teal'c joined them.

"Just some duct tape, rope, paper clips – things like that. I usually find what I need at the site," Mac replied with a shrug, then blurting out, "It's a house Jack! It can't get any better than this."

"Right," Jack said, obviously thinking Mac had lost it. "You sure you don't want this?"

Mac just shook his head. "Never did have much use for those things. Thanks anyway." He debated on how to say what he knew he had to say, finally deciding on just getting it out there and over with. "Jack… I know this is your territory, so to speak, but can we do this my way? I mean, if we go in there with guns blazing, Lindsay could get hurt. Let me see if I can get her out of there before you shoot them down, okay?"

"You don't know these people…"

"Yes I do. I've dealt with people just like them and I know what to expect. Besides, I have an advantage over them that I hope will help me get in," he said smugly. "They will think I am you and will expect me to barge in there shooting up the place. What they won't realize is that I am going to steal Lindsay out from under their noses without them even knowing it."

"How will you accomplish that?" Teal'c asked curiously.

"Distractions," Mac responded. "They work almost every single time." Jack was still giving him a skeptical look, so Mac tried again. "You've done your research Jack. You know my background. Let me do this my way, okay?"

"Alright," Jack gave in. "But I will not hesitate to shoot if the situation arises, you got that?"

"Yep," Mac replied, grateful for whatever he could get. Jack seemed to be pretty stubborn.

They made a beeline for the house through the cornfield, with Jack in the front. Mac grabbed a few ears of corn as they passed through the stalks and put them into his bag thinking that they might come in handy. They stopped at the edge of the field and surveyed the area with their eyes, Mac looking for the best route to take. He knew that Jack was looking for possible dangers as well as alternative escape routes. Even though it had been a long time since he had been in the military, Mac still knew the drill.

"Okay, here's the deal," Mac said before Jack could speak. "I'm going over to the back yard to set up the distraction. Once those guys come out of the house, you and Teal'c can take care of them while I go in to find…What?" he asked as he noticed the look on Jack's face.

"Who died and put you in charge?" Jack asked indignantly.

"C'mon Jack, you said we could do this my way, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot," Jack said grumpily. "It's just that I'm not used to taking orders from anyone anymore, especially a wimpy civilian."

Mac immediately took offense to that. "Wimpy?" he asked, anger surging through him. He considered hitting the jerk until he realized that Jack was grinning at him. The anger disappeared as quickly as it had come and he grinned back at his twin.

"Get going," Jack said with a jerk of his head. "We'll back you up." Mac nodded, then made a run for it. He ran toward the garage, hoping to get there before anyone saw him. He did, and he crouched near the wall while glancing back toward the cornfield. He felt a small comfort in seeing Jack and Teal'c kneeling in the dirt, their guns aimed at the back door. Mac was suddenly glad they had come with him.

He worked his way toward the open door of the garage and leaned around to look inside. Oh yeah, he thought, as he saw a tool bench loaded with tools, a stack of wood in one corner, wire casings piled up next to the wood, and best of all, a freestanding car battery by the door. It never failed to amaze him what kidnappers left lying around for him to find.

He slipped in through the door and made his way along the wall, still hoping to elude the kidnappers. He set his bag down next to the wood and got to work. Mac knew that the kidnapper's first instinct would be to investigate any loud noises, so he intended to make plenty of noise in order to get them out of the house. With that in mind, he grabbed the car battery and dragged it over to the stack of wood.

Working swiftly, he grabbed several pieces of wood and laid them on the floor, then with his Swiss Army Knife proceeded to cut off a piece of the rope he had brought with him to tie the wood together. He then went over to the workbench hoping to find something that was combustible and smiled triumphantly when he saw some lighter fluid sitting on the end of a shelf. A nice bonfire should make a great distraction, he figured, all the while remembering the bonfires of his childhood.

Bonfires used to be one of his father's favorite things and Mac recalled many nights sitting out in the back yard with friends and relatives talking and laughing and generally having a great time. The kids would roast marshmallows and make popcorn, while the adults enjoyed their alcohol and coffee, as well as the jokes and stories told by those who could really spin a tale. It didn't even matter what the weather was like, the huge bonfires would keep them warm in the Fall and Winter while the party expanded beyond the fire's warmth in the Spring and Summer. It was unfortunate that the bonfires died out when Mac's father passed away, though. Mac missed those events for months after his father had died.

He continued to dwell on the memories of his youth as he toiled on his work of art. He really didn't want to burn the garage down, so he looked around for something to contain the fire in. He ended up looking outside of the garage and was pleased to find a metal garbage can sitting alongside the garage wall opposite the one with the door. Of course it had to be full of garbage and Mac grimaced as he dumped half of the contents out on the ground. Disgusting, he thought as he dragged the can back toward the door. Once he got the can situated, he went to the pile of wire casings, sorting through them to find what he needed.

Mac's heart nearly stopped and he looked up when he heard a noise outside the door. He waited silently, listening hard for anything to tell him what had caused the noise. Panic built up in him and he had to remind himself that Jack was out there ready and willing to destroy anything that would cause him harm.

He let go of the breath he was holding when a cat strolled in. Damned feline, he thought with a sense of relief. The cat stopped suddenly and stared at Mac, who had apparently passed muster because the cat came over and brushed past his leg. He reached over to scratch its ears then went back to work, vowing to keep his guard up, all the while wondering if these people had a dog.

Mac continued to work on the distraction, finding everything he needed to create a contraption that would make enough noise to wake the dead once it was set off. He put the final touches on his masterpiece, then went to the door and peeked outside to see if the coast was clear. He saw that Jack and Teal'c had made their way to the house and were waiting, half hidden, next to the stairs that led to the back door. Both men had their guns at the ready, and Mac decided that now was the time to make his move before all hell broke loose.

He took one last look at the house, then ran toward it, crouching down next to Jack when he got there. He turned toward the garage, still hoping his plan would work. A few seconds later, several loud explosions were heard. All three men crouched down even further when the door opened and two men hurried out of the house, running toward the garage. Mac took that opportunity to make his move, as he ran up the stairs and into the house.

The house was quiet, although he could hear the racket in the yard as the two men were yelling at each other along with the noise of Mac's distraction. He found that he was in the kitchen and he moved stealthily toward the door to the dining room. He wanted to find Lindsay and to find out whoever else might be there before making any more plans.

He crept into the dining room, then stopped as he heard gunshots from the yard. Damn it, he cursed, feeling the situation slip out of his hands. This was not good and finding Lindsay now became his top priority. He would worry about any other kidnappers if he ran into them.

Moving quickly and silently, Mac found himself in a hallway. He stopped halfway down it as someone came barreling out of one of the rooms with a gun in his hand. Mac felt like a deer caught in the headlights as he stared in shock at the man, who was doing the same thing. Both men pulled themselves together at the same time, with Mac ducking as the gun was fired, the bullet barely missing him. The gun went flying as he tackled the man, knocking him onto his back. He sat up to smash his fist into the man's face only to stop and stare at the man once more, as a spasm of pain made itself known. He stared at his attacker's face just as the man yanked the knife out of his stomach. "Welcome to my humble abode, O'Neill," the man said with a sneer on his face.