Life In the Shadows – Part Eighteen
Teal'c offered to work alone the next day. Daniel was torn in two, knowing they needed to keep going. He was worried about leaving Sam, but deep down he was also very afraid that Jack would die when he was gone.
Teal'c seemed to sense his indecision and became insistent that he would work alone – someone had to, they still had to eat, regardless …
After Teal'c left, Daniel made a drink and sat down close to Sam, offering it to her. She'd been extremely quiet, refusing to budge except to occasionally lie down to rest at his insistence, and when she did, she'd lain down close to Jack. The gasping breaths that Jack drew sounded loud and ominous in the room; the air had more chill than any fire could warm.
Daniel sat quietly; his attention was fixed on Jack, in particular his chest. He watched its faltering rise with each strained breath. He was so intent on the motion that he jumped violently when a croaked gasp called out.
He saw Jack's eyes staring at him intently, dark eyes, dull with pain.
"Jack … God, I'm sorry, I was miles away," he apologised trying to fix a smile on his face, forcing himself to focus.
"Hey." Jack's voice was faint. "S… am?"
Daniel motioned the prone figure, less than three feet away. "She's okay. Stay still, she's sleeping."
He put his hand under Jack's head and helped him to take a sip of water, but the man only managed a couple of drops, panting badly.
"Sam … okay?" he asked again.
Daniel nodded. "Yes, she's okay." He felt the overwhelming guilt of how he'd spoken to his friend earlier. "Jack … I'm sorry I …"
Jack shook his head slightly, as if he knew what Daniel was trying to say.. "It's…okay."
Daniel stared down at the man. The dull eyes gazed back steadily, but the expression in them frightened him – as much as, if not more than, Sam's words had.
xoxoxoxoxoxo
The tremendous pain Jack felt as he became aware of being conscious was partly overshadowed by the suffocating pressure he was feeling in his chest. He truly understood the meaning of the expression 'a fish out of water' at that moment. He tried to slow the gulping he felt he was doing and fixed his gaze onto the figure sitting close by.
Gradually, his vision cleared. An elusive thought was prickling around in his head, but he concentrated on Daniel, trying to speak to him.
Crap! Was that his voice? He even sounded like a floundering fish now … did fish ever make a noise?
Trying to stem the crazy thoughts swimming in his head, he fixed his attention once more on Daniel … Jeez … what the hell was the man apologising for now?
The water felt good, but he couldn't swallow and breathe and air seemed more important just now. He realised after a few minutes that his left arm was immobilised across his chest. It felt heavy, no wonder he couldn't breathe – damn, had he dislocated his shoulder? He couldn't remember …
Weakly, he felt across the bandages, only to have Daniel grasp his wrist.
"No, leave it. Your arm is fine. Sam did that. You've got to keep yourself still."
"Wha …" He sucked more air in, "What …"
Daniel stared down at him for a moment as if weighing up what to say.
"Err, Sam said … it's your ribs … something flail? I think …." Daniel's voice died.
Jack thought for a moment, digesting what Daniel had said. He knew what that meant … he'd seen ribs that badly broken twice in his time in the military …
"K," he whispered, his eyes closing as he drifted away on the tide of pain once more.
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Daniel saw that Jack was actually taking in his words and knew that his friend understood. Daniel closed his eyes for a moment, wishing he'd not said anything, but knowing it was too late to take his words back. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Jack losing the battle to stay conscious.
He sat for a long time, his hand still on Jack's wrist, unmoving.
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Sam woke from her troubled sleep, filled with nightmares and regrets. She saw Daniel sitting unmoving, holding on to the Colonel and her heart lurched painfully, the fear rising in her throat like bitter bile.
"Daniel," she whispered, her hands going up to her mouth, her eyes wide with horror.
At her voice Daniel's head whipped around to face her. His eyes widened questioningly for a moment, then he realised what she'd thought.
"No … he's okay …" He frowned at her "He woke for a little while."
Sam groaned. She didn't bother to get up; she just scooted the few feet between them to sit beside the two men.
"Breathing's no better," she whispered as she listened intently while she felt for Jack's pulse. "He needs oxygen."
Daniel sighed, "If we could get him back …"
"He wouldn't make it to the gate, even if we had a way out." Sam could feel the tears threatening again. She dragged deep breaths in - she had to be strong … had to hold it together … for now.
xoxoxoxoxoxo
Sam sat beside Jack while Daniel fetched more fuel and water. She was so deep in thought she almost missed the flicker of brown … almost.
"Hey," she smiled down at him as the flicker steadied to a slit of brown.
"Hey," was the choked response back.
Sam kept her smile steady as she gazed into his eyes.
"You … okay?" he panted.
She widened her smile. "I'm fine … a bit bruised," she added as she saw him frown. "Don't try and talk, you're not getting enough oxygen as it is."
"Sam …" She frowned at him as he spoke again despite her words. "The … water …" She looked around for the cup, but as she stretched to get it, Jack frowned and his hand stilled her. He shook his head slightly. Puzzled Sam sat still, waiting. "River … light …" He frowned and panted harder, his eyes closing for a moment.
"Sir, don't …"
Impatiently, he squeezed the hand he'd grasped. "Way … out …" he wheezed, "water …"
Sam listened intently, feeling each breath he drew, the urge to echo his struggle for breath almost taking over her own rhythm.
"Light? The river, do you mean the lantern?"
Jack shook his head, "Day…light… in wat… water …"
"Daylight? You mean when you were looking in the river, that's what you saw?"
Jack squeezed her hand to confirm she'd understood correctly.
Sam kept herself calm, trying not to get her hopes up. It could be just his mind, confused with the lack of oxygen. His general pallor, the unhealthy blue tinge to his lips and the darkening of his nail beds, all showed the signs of hypoxia. He was slowly suffocating and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it.
The pressure on her hand slackened as Jack passed out again, the battle to speak obviously too much for him.
When Daniel returned Sam told him what Jack had said, carefully keeping her tone neutral.
"You stay here, I'll check it out," said Daniel.
"Be careful. Don't go in the river, not alone, promise me?" she urged.
He only nodded grimly as he left.
xoxoxoxoxoxo