A/N: This is it, the last chapter...gets a little fluffy at the end but what did you expect? (Don't go there first, no no no! ...slaps hands away from mouse... You have to read it in order!)

"General O'Neill?"

Jack rose to his feet in the hospital waiting room, focusing an instantly intense gaze on the surgeon approaching him.

"Doctor?"

"Colonel Carter is in recovery. She's going to be fine."

"Can I see her?"

"She'll be under for a while yet, but you're welcome to sit with her. Just one of you, for now."

Jack glanced down at Daniel and Teal'C. They nodded their affirmation.

"Thanks Doctor. Oh... what about Ms. Bennett?"

"She's been treated for some mild dehydration and will be released shortly."

"We'll take her home, Jack, you go see Sam."

Jack nodded his thanks to his friends and followed the surgeon to the recovery room. There was Sam, laying very still and pale in a bed in the far corner. She was the only occupant of the room. Jack looked back at the doctor just as he was about to leave.

"Uh, Doc," he stopped him. "Colonel Carter is part of a classified program in Colorado Springs. I've instructed our doctor there to call you and arrange the Colonel's transfer to our facilities sometime today. Anything you can do to expedite her transfer would be greatly appreciated."

"I understand, General." He nodded, then turned and left Jack to watch over Sam.

Sam was already beginning to stir around feebly as her consciousness fought the remaining anesthesia in her bloodstream. Jack leaned in close to her face, watching her eyes flutter.

"Sam, you're in the hospital. Sam?"

"Mmmfph."

"It's me, Sam. Hey there. It's Jack. You're in recovery and you're going to be fine. Can you understand me?"

"Sschure." Her eyes blinked open and managed to stay open this time.

"Jack."

She smiled sweetly, and Jack's heart made an odd little leap in his chest. It was so good to see life in her eyes again and to know she was okay.

"You've had surgery to repair the bullet wound to your shoulder. You're going home today or tomorrow, and you're going to be just fine."

"What about Miriam's father?"

"He's in police custody for now."

"How's Miriam taking all this?"

"She's pretty upset about it all. I'm going over to talk with her in a little while. We've got a lot to discuss."

"I wish I could go with you."

"I wish you could too," Jack answered fervently, gripping her hand.

"Hey, Jack? Don't forget. As soon as I'm up and around, we have a concert to go to."

Jack smiled uncertainly, and Sam thought he almost looked nervous.

"Uh, Sam, I know you made that up. About the concert. I went back to your lab Saturday morning to see what time the concert was. I saw you stuff something under the papers on your desk on Thursday, so I went back to do some snooping. I found the ticket- not to a concert, was it now? That's how I found out you came up here."

"I'm sorry I told you a lie. I didn't know what else to do. I could tell you didn't want to come back up here. Jack, I still want to take you to a concert."

"Come on Sam," he protested uncomfortably. "You don't have to do that."

"But I want to. I'll find one. I have a date with you, General, and you're not getting out of it that easily."

At that, Jack relaxed and smiled openly. "Yeah?"

"You bet." Sam reached out and put her hand on his unshaven cheek. "Forgive me?"

"Of course."

Jack couldn't help himself. He was kissing her before his brain had time to realize what his lips were doing. And then his brain decided it wasn't all that bad of a decision anyway. Sam's hands crept around the back of his neck and tugged him closer. The kiss continued on in the most delightful of ways.

"I guess the patient is doing well, hmm?" The voice of a nurse interrupted.

"Amazing," Jack mumbled against Sam's mouth.

Sam pulled back, blushing.

"And the color in her face has improved greatly," the nurse approved laughingly. "Maybe I'll come back and check your vitals a bit later."

"Yeah, why don't you do that," Jack agreed, his eyes never leaving Sam.

When Sam fell asleep again, Jack decided it was time to have that talk with Miriam. He drove back to Miriam's home in North Inlet, where Daniel, Teal'C, Teddy and Miriam were sitting in her living room eating fast food burgers and drinking cokes. Miriam was just picking at the fare they had bought for her, but the three men were happily wolfing down their sandwiches.

"Jonathan," she greeted him nervously.

"Miriam. You feeling better?"

"Yes. How is Colonel Carter?"

"She's going to be just fine. So, Miriam, do you feel like telling me what started all this? Why was your father after Sam?"

"The story starts long before today, Jonathan. I'll tell you what I know."

She took a deep breath. Daniel and Teal'C stood to leave, but Jack stopped them.

"Stay, if you want; I'd, uh, I'd really like you to stay."

They sat back down, deeply honored by Jack's trust.

Miriam looked around at her audience and began.

"When you left home years ago, my father began openly spending a lot of time with Mary. Your mother was lonely, a widow, so I thought nothing of it. But my father had nothing good to say about you, Jonathan. Ever since I was a small girl, he said bad things to me about you and your father. He thought your mother had a sad life, and he felt sorry for her, he said. It was just me and my father then, so I believed him. As a result I didn't like you."

"I remember." Jack softened his comment with a tender smile. "Go on."

"After I was grown, my father found work in another town and left North Inlet, but I kept the house for him here. When he left, he suggested that I work for your mother, who was not well and needed a housekeeper. So I did. Your mother continued to build my poor opinion of you. She felt like you avoided all contact with her."

Jack nodded unhappily. "I guess I did."

"Well, it hurt her. I felt even angrier at you. I understand now why you stayed away. But back then, I came to the conclusion that I was more her family than you. So when she died, I was angry that she had left her estate to you in spite of your indifference towards her. I forged a different will. And you didn't catch on; you didn't contest it.

Then about a year ago, my father came to visit. He was acting very strangely, and he kept insisting that there was money hidden somewhere in your mother's house, and that it was his. Well, your mother had spoken of your father's lost fortune to me a few times. She said he was from a rich family, but she never got any benefit from that. I knew the money, wherever it was, couldn't be Dad's. He was acting crazy. But I began to be suspicious of just what he did know about your parents, so I looked around the house myself.

I discovered pictures. And letters. Proof that your mother had had an affair with my father. An affair that had started before your father died, and went on for years. I was shocked that I never knew, but it made sense to me, strangely enough.

I confronted my father. He became very angry, and accused me of betraying him. Imagine! I betrayed him?"

Miriam stopped to catch her breath, and Jack handed her a glass of water.

"He said some things about your father then that horrified me. He said your father had hidden his money from your mother, because he knew she had been unfaithful. He said your father deserved what he got. And that he and Mary deserved every penny of that money. I began to suspect that my father had had a part in your father's death. I had always heard that his death was an accident, but I wasn't so sure any more.

So I called you, Jonathan. And gave it all back. I didn't want to know any more about the whole dirty business, but I wanted a clean conscience. I thought you could get some happiness back by having your house and your parent's things, but that you need never know the rest."

Miriam stopped and waited, watching for his reaction.

"I guess I should be upset. I mean, about my mother's part in this, but to tell you the truth, I'm not. I guess I knew, somehow. I've always known something was wrong there. So...why did your Dad come back? And why was he after Sam?"

"He wanted one last chance to look for the money before the house was sold to strangers. He was very angry that I'd given the house back to you. I told him that you were considering putting it up for sale.

When he went in the house he surprised Colonel Carter just as she was pulling this out of a hidden cranny..." Miriam pointed to the cigar box.

Jack got up. "So, what's in it?" He asked.

Miriam's face broke out in a cynical smirk. "You won't believe it. It's of no value at all. My father spent his whole life chasing a fantasy. Fitting, wouldn't you agree?"

Miriam walked slowly to the fireplace and pulled the old box off the mantelpiece. Turning to Jack, she placed it in his outstretched hands.

Jack lifted the lid. Smiling with a dawning light of recognition, Jack reached in and reverently held up for all to see a brightly feathered fishing lure. Jack burst into triumphant laughter.

"What is it, Jack?" Miriam asked curiously.

"O'Neill, does this object have some significance for you?" Teal'C questioned.

"You betcha. Come on, I have to take you somewhere. You'll see."

Jumping to his feet, Jack waved them all outside towards his truck.

Minutes later, Jack pulled up at the side of the highway just out of town. The beginnings of a dirt trail led away from where he had parked and down through the woods towards the lake. Jack jumped out and took Miriam by the arm. Haltingly, he led the entourage down a short, sandy path that ended at a rundown fishing shack perched on the side of the sparkling lake. Jack left Miriam's side and went to the door.

"Dad and I kept this padlocked. The key is over here." Jack pulled a worn, tarnished key out of a wooden cubbyhole under the eaves. He ably unlocked the door and pushed it open.

They walked into the little shack, almost filling the whole thing up just by standing together inside. Jack walked with calm surety to a set of shelves built into the far wall, lined with lures, and pointed to an empty hook.

"That's where this lure goes," he announced. Reaching up, he grasped the hook and unscrewed it from the wall. As it came out, the end of the screw was revealed to be curved, and pulling on it served to open a small door just big enough to hide a small object.

"My Dad and I built this little compartment together. It was our secret mailbox." Jack's voice cracked and fell silent.

Jack reached in and pulled out a small parcel, wrapped in paper and secured with a rubber band. The rubber band was so old that it fell apart as soon as Jack tried to remove it. He removed a key from the wrapping and then opened up the wrapping paper itself. With a voice full of hushed anticipation he read:

"Box Number 503, Minneapolis Bank of America."

Jack looked around at the chorus of open mouths.

"Now what do you suppose is in that lockbox?"

Sam was bored.

Bored, bored, and even more bored.

Not only was Jack still gone, but Daniel and Teal'C were with him. The SGC doctor was being overly cautious with her and she was currently confined to the infirmary. Without a laptop.

Bored.

Bored.

Bored.

With a huge exhale of bored air particles, Sam got out of bed, against her doctor's express wishes, and unearthed her cell phone from her bag that lay at the foot of the bed. She dialed, hoping against hope he would answer this time.

He did.

"Jack! Where are you? Why haven't you been answering your phone, for crying out loud?"

Jack chuckled on the other end. "Sorry, no cell service in the sticks. We 're on the way home now."

"That's great news! How close are you? I'm so tired of sitting here with nothing to do!"

"Okay, number one, that's good for you. Number two, Daniel, Teal'C and I are at about Level...7...8..."

"AGGHH! You're HERE?"

"18..."

Sam hung up just as the three men walked through the door.

"I can't believe you're here!"

Sam was beside herself. The doctor was suddenly in the room with them, frowning disapprovingly.

Sam quickly deposited herself on the bed.

"See, laying down..." she smiled anxiously. Without a word the doctor sniffed and left.

"Okay, so tell me everything."

"General O'Neill is now in possession of much wealth." Teal'C announced.

"Yeah, he's filthy rich." Daniel confirmed.

"Aw shucks." Jack sat down next to Sam and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, being careful not to jostle the bandaged one.

For the next hour, Sam listened while all three took turns describing the amazing turn of events.

The discovery of the lockbox key in the fishing shack.

The drive from North Inlet to Minneapolis.

The discovery of over five million dollars in bonds carefully socked away in Jack's name in a lockbox in a bank in Minneapolis.

How the first thing Jack did upon cashing in the bonds was to establish a comfortable bank account for Miriam and Teddy.

How Mr. Bennett was now being cared for in a mental institution, getting the help he needed, also paid for by the General.

How Jack had called in his resignation and was now going to finalize it by putting it in writing--

"Okay, guys, stop, that's enough, Sam's getting tired." Jack interjected.

Sam looked at Jack accusingly. "Is that true?"

"Look, there will be plenty of time to..."

"You can't resign! The SGC needs you."

"I'm resigning, yes, and retiring from the Air Force. I'm not going anywhere. I'm still going to be around if an emergency comes up."

"Well, what are you going to do?"

Sam felt suddenly very sad. She couldn't bear the thought of not seeing him every day.

"That's kind of up to you. Uh, guys?"

"Oh, yeah," they hemmed and hawed as they quickly exited the room.

"Jack?" Sam asked, wide-eyed.

"We stopped one other place before we came to the SGC. So let me ask you: would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Sam stared, dumbfounded.

Jack began to doubt his timing as the silence continued.

Finally, she smirked, as if she thought he was making fun of her. "Wow, this is way better than a classical concert."

"I'm not kidding around, Sam. Will you marry me?"

A real smile began at the corners of her mouth and slowly captured her entire face with an expression full of a blinding joy.

"I would love to."

"Good," Jack breathed in relief, "because like I said, we made one other stop. I bought this."

He pulled a small velvet box from his pocket and gently, carefully pried it open.

There sparkled the biggest diamond Sam had ever seen, with the exception of the Hope Diamond she'd seen once from behind a protective barrier in Washington, DC.

She couldn't speak. Or breathe.

"Put it on. It's..." Jack pulled out a certificate, "...15 and ½ carats."

"Good Lord, Jack, I can't wear that to the grocery store!"

"Oh," he said disappointedly, "you want me to take it back?"

"Not yet," Sam countered hurriedly, holding out her left hand with a regal flourish. "Not yet."

The End

and yet

The Beginning

for Jack and Sam

A/N: Okay, before anyone comments, I have no idea if there is a 'Minneapolis Bank of America' or how much a 15 ½ carat diamond costs. (I know there is a 'Mall of The Americas', does that count?)This is pure fiction/fantasy/fluff. Okay? Okay. Now that we got that straight, thanks so much for reading!