Thanks for reading and for all your comments and reviews. Your support is greatly appreciated.

Special note: For all of you that have been patiently/impatiently waiting for Pete "to get his"... And if Pete is one of your favorite characters...well, I hope you finish reading, too. Feel free to 'let me have it' in the reviews!

Warnings: Language, Violence.

…and now on with the story

Tangled Web 15 – Confrontation

Jack pulled the truck into a parking space at the supermarket and reached for his cell phone. He'd told Sam he'd be home around 1830 and if he hurried, he just might make it. The phone rang several times and just as a concerned frown started to shape the features of his face, someone picked up.

"Carter." Her voice was thick with sleep and Jack smiled into the phone. Well, at least she'd been resting, but she wasn't supposed to answer the phone.

"Carter, why are you answering the phone? Where's Daniel?"

"Um, I don't know. Out back I guess, they were going to start the grill."

"Right. Sorry to wake you, I'm at the store and I should be there shortly. Need anything?"

"No. Just come home, Jack."

He smiled at her use of his name and let his mind consider, just consider mind you, the thought of going home to Sam everyday – yeah, that could be pleasant. She heard the smile that colored his voice as he spoke to her. "I'll be there in a few minutes, Sam."

"Ok, Bye."

He knew she was smiling, too and it magnified his own as he snapped the phone shut and hurried into the store, a little extra bounce in his step, anxious to get home and enjoy the company of his friends.

Sam rubbed a hand across her sleepy eyes as she fumbled to place the phone back on the table. Suddenly she felt another hand gently guiding hers and as a chill ran across her body, she slowly opened her eyes.

"Pete! What are you doing here?" She felt her heart rate quicken as she immediately sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed, her eyes wide as she glanced around the room for any avenue of escape.

"Funny! I was just going to ask you that same thing?"

"Get out of here, Pete! Now!"

"I just got here, Sam."

"I don't have anything to say to you. Not now, not ever. Just go!" He was standing right beside the bed and knowing that she was easily within his reach, her mind was racing to find a solution for escape. Suddenly she remembered her friends and her eyes flashed up at him angrily. "Where're Daniel and Teal'c?"

"I'm sorry, honey, I didn't see them. Are they supposed to be here?"

"They are here. What did you do to them?" He stepped back away from her and she saw the gun in his hand, silencer attached to the barrel. 'Maybe they were still in the back yard' she thought to herself, but as she continued to gaze at the gun her breath hitched in her throat as her mind efficiently listed the possibilities of her friend's sudden absence. None of them good.

"I told you, I didn't see them. Maybe they went to the movies or something." He reached out to twirl a bit of stray blonde hair in his fingers and she pulled away quickly. "So, have you moved in here, Sam?" His tone was almost casual as his eyes surveyed the room. "Seems a little masculine for your taste."

"No, I haven't. Not that's it's any of your business!" Her eyes were alight with anger and for some reason; she felt none of the fear she had felt in the past. Suddenly she stood up, intent on just walking past him but he was too quick and immediately caught her in his grasp, his fingers biting into the already bruised flesh of her arm. Her eyes fell to the spot where he held her and her anger flared at his touch, overpowering her rational mind as she turned on him. "Let go of me! I'm going to find Daniel and Teal'c!"

"No, you're staying right here." His voice was low and threatening, so calm and insistent that it sent shivers up her spine. "I think we'll wait for the General."

"Pete…"

"He's on his way, right? Weren't you just talking to him on the phone? Whispering for him to 'hurry home'?" His voice was still low and menacing but his eyes were seething with rage and she desperately wanted to get away from him.

"Let go of me!" She shouted again and began to struggle. Without any warning his fist impacted her jaw and she fell back across the bed. The coppery taste of blood filled her mouth from her bleeding tongue but it only seemed to feed her anger. Slowly she stood to her feet. "You're not doing this again, Pete! You'll have to kill me this time!"

"I don't want that, Sam…I just want you to come home with me. Everything will be ok, you'll see."

Sam shook her head in disbelief. "Right! You are crazy!" She moved close to his face and spat the words at him, blood droplets spreading across his face. "Never! Do you hear me? Never! You call me a slut, accuse me of sleeping with my CO and then beat the hell out of me! And I should just...what…forgive and forget?"

He smiled broadly and she let him see the disgust she felt for him. He was still smiling when he slapped her face. "Just be a good girl, Sam and you won't get hurt." He admonished her quietly, his eyes emanating the sadistic joy of his actions.

He started to take a step towards her and Sam saw her chance. She threw her right elbow swiftly up to his face, striking him forcefully across his cheek while her left hand came up in a powerful hook that connected solidly with his raised jaw. He seemed to fall backwards in slow motion as Sam watched, anger practically shooting from her eyes. He crashed awkwardly against the nightstand and as the lamp toppled and smashed onto the floor, she ran.

"Daniel! Teal'c!" She could hear him scrambling and cursing as he struggled to stand up behind her, the adrenaline in her system overpowering the protest of her injured legs. She ignored her instinct to flee and ran past the front door. Turning the corner to the living room she tried to stop, but her momentum was too great and she had to leap to avoid tripping. "Daniel!" she yelled again as she landed on the carpet, feeling the sickening squish beneath her feet. He was lying unconscious on the steps, blood pooling slowly around him. "Oh, my God! Daniel!" She knelt on one knee and placed two fingers against his throat, praying to feel his pulse. She hadn't detected a single beat when she heard Pete's loud, angry voice.

"You stupid bitch!"

Sam stood up quickly, her hands fisted and ready to defend herself, but he wasn't where she expected him to be. He had already lunged at her and was only inches away from hitting her with a full body tackle.

His hands reached her first, striking her shoulders and sending her sprawling backwards towards the patio door. Just as she felt his full weight descend on her, her head slammed violently against something behind her and a moment later her body crashed limply to the floor beneath his weight. Struggling to recover from the breath-stealing blow, his fist landed against her cheek and her head snapped to the other side, blood spattering from her already injured mouth. A blinding headache flashed against the backside of her eyes and she blinked rapidly to clear her vision…just in time to see his fist coming at her again.

She jerked sideways quickly and pushed against the floor with both legs sending him tumbling off of her and onto the floor. Through her now fuzzy consciousness, she could hear him yelling obscenities at her and was still trying to focus on him when she saw the gun. It was a couple of feet away, lying harmlessly on the floor between them, abandoned as he'd lunged at her in maniacal rage. Her eyes met his for a split moment before she reached out, desperately trying to get a grip on the weapon.

He pulled it away easily and she heard him laugh as he raised the gun to eye level, pointing it at her. "Little girls shouldn't play with guns, Sam!"

She sat up on the floor, her eyes cold and hard as he threatened her with the gun. "What makes you think I'm playing? You'd better make it good, Pete, because if you don't I'll see to it that you're locked up someplace so dark you'll never see daylight again!"

"Ooh! So tough! My little superhero! Well, welcome to the real world, Sam, I'm a cop! All my friends are cops! They won't do anything to me!"

"No self-respecting cop would want to be remotely associated with you! They'll be happy to lock you up!" Sam was struggling against the pain in her head and every part of her seemed to ache while her heart was still pounding in her chest, warning her that this wasn't over yet. As long as she was alive there was still a chance.

"Yeah? Well, let's just wait and see…"

Jack's truck crunched against the loose gravel as he pulled into the driveway and came to a stop. He was smiling as he reached across the seat to pull out the two bags of groceries he'd purchased and then juggled them haphazardly as he closed the door and started towards the house. He was looking forward to this evening, thinking how nice it was outside and how good it would be to see Carter enjoying herself again. He couldn't wait to see her face light up when he told her that they could get away for the weekend. They were going to have a nice relaxing evening. They all needed it.

For just a moment, he considered going straight to the backyard, but changed his mind at the last moment and headed to the front, remembering he'd have to return to the truck for the special chocolate cake he'd bought.

Opening the door, he stepped into the house almost dropping one of the bags in his arms. Regaining his balance on them, he called out to the quiet house. "Hey, guys! I'm home! Where is everybody?"

He stood absolutely still. Something was wrong. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up as he lowered the bags to the floor and pulled his gun from his back holster. "Carter? Daniel?" No answer. "Teal'c?"

He stepped silently across the hall to the kitchen door. Nothing seemed out of place. In fact, it looked as if someone had just cleaned it and through the window, he could see smoke rising lazily from the grill. Quickly he turned back towards the front door and listened intensely for any sound that would guide his search.

In the living room, Pete was pressing a finger against Sam's lips, warning her to be quiet, as he continued to point the gun at her. She watched him carefully and as his eyes moved towards the hallway, she shouted a single word in warning. "Jack!"

Pete reacted instantly and Sam felt the cold metal of the gun as it slammed forcefully into her cheek, bringing with it fresh pain and blurred vision.

Jack recognized the urgency in her voice as she yelled and instinctively sunk to the floor. He crept silently to the end of the hall and peered carefully around the corner. Just as his head became visible he heard a soft report and jerked backwards as a bullet crashed into the opposite wall spraying wallboard particles all around him. "Dammit!" He snarled out the word as he fell back against the wall. "Let her go, Pete!" He heard Pete laughing as he took out his cell phone and dialed 911.

"You want her? Come out here and get her, General!"

"Pete! Let Carter come to me and we'll all sit down and talk about this!" Jack had caught just a glimpse of Daniel sprawled motionless on the steps as he leaned around the corner and his concern at the situation had more than doubled as he wondered what had happened to Teal'c.

"What makes you think she wants to? We're getting married, General! Sam's coming with me!"

"You need help, Pete! We can get it for you, but you have to let her go!" He lay the phone down beside him on the floor and called out again. "Carter!"

"I'm ok…" Her words were cute off as Pete slapped her harshly across the face.

"Shut up! You don't talk unless I say to talk!"

"I'll do anything I want! You can't stop me!"

Jack grimaced as he heard the involuntary grunt from Carter as another blow struck her. A moment later he heard sirens in the distance and knew that Pete could hear them, too. "Time's up, Pete. Put the gun down and walk out here. No one needs to get hurt!"

Jack heard low, growling laughter from the other room. "Well, I see you called for reinforcements, General!" He huffed out the words. "What's the matter? Afraid you couldn't take me alone? Looks like your friends weren't much help!"

Jack frowned. The guy was definitely over the edge and there was probably nothing that would stop him now. His face grimaced involuntarily as he thought of Carter in the next room, just out of his reach and in very real danger. He felt almost powerless to protect her as his mind searched for a solution, any solution to free her as the sirens drew slowly closer.

He leaned around the corner and two more shots rapidly flew across the room towards him. He heard Sam yell as the bullets impacted the wall. "Dammit, Pete! You bastard! Stop this! This has nothing to do with General O'Neill!"

"I told you to shut up!" Pete yelled back at her angrily and he heard Sam grunt as Pete struck her again. Jack held his ground and listened. "It has everything to do with him! It always has, hasn't it? I'd die for you, Sam! Let's see if he's willing to do the same!"

"Pete, I don't want either of you to die! Just stop this and I'll go with you!"

Across the room, Jack grimaced. There was no way he was letting her leave with Pete. "Carter!" He called out to her in an almost frantic warning tone.

"NO! Every time I turn my back you run to him! You can't stay away from him! I told you not to come here and what would happen if you did!"

"Pete, I was…"

"Shut up! I've had enough of your lies!"

"All right! You want the truth? I tried, Pete. I would have stayed with you, but you wouldn't leave it alone! You refused to accept the truth and you're so damned insecure, you'll never be happy with anyone! You're crazy if you think I'd willing go anywhere with you now? You're nothing but a low-life, a worthless, idiotic…"

'Stop pushing his buttons, Carter,' Jack thought. Then he realized what she was doing, she was distracting him, but in this volatile situation, it was a dangerous thing to do. He knew she probably wouldn't stop and every muscle in his body tensed as he prepared for the right opportunity.

Jack stood to his full height and gripped his weapon with both hands. When he heard Pete start to speak again, he stepped out from behind the corner and his eyes quickly absorbed the scene. Pete was on his knees on the floor with Sam sitting crookedly right in front of him. He was holding onto her with one hand and moving the gun back and forth, covering both himself and Sam with the other. She was lashing out with the only weapon she had left, the words tumbling out of her so quickly, he didn't know what she was saying, but Pete did…and his eyes were locked with hers.

"Pete!" Jack yelled to draw his attention away from Sam. He had him now. "Back off!"

A chilling grin spread across Pete's face as he spoke to Jack. "She's dead, General. You can't save her!" Then he turned to Sam, his grin turning to something evil, but Jack had already detected the slight movement of Pete's hand and without hesitation, fired his own weapon twice.

Jack was a marksman and at this range, never missed. The bullets slammed home and Pete started to fall. As his muscles clenched involuntarily from the pain in his chest, trying desperately to hold on to life, his hand squeezed the trigger.

"No!" Jack's anguished cry echoed across the silence as he fell to his knees and watched helplessly as Sam slumped to the floor next to Pete, totally unaware that behind him, the local police were storming through the door.

"Drop your weapon!" Two officers stood directly behind Jack surveying the mayhem in the room. Three bodies were spread across the room. Tables were overturned, lamps broken and blood pooling into the carpet. "We don't want to hurt you! Drop your weapon!" Jack sat motionless, his eyes locked on Sam's still form.

Suddenly there was another voice behind him as Detective Raynard arrived on the scene and came running into the house. "Hey! Hey! Wait, I know this man." She placed a hand on Jack's shoulder and squeezed gently. "General? General O'Neill! Give me the gun, Sir!"

Jack turned slowly to look up at her and surrendered his weapon. "Sam."

"Get an ambulance here! My God! We'll probably need two! General, are you all right?"

Jack slowly looked up at her. The space behind him was filled with policemen and there were others moving about in the backyard. One of them had kneeled down beside Daniel and was checking for a pulse. Suddenly Jack was on his feet and heard the click of guns being raised behind him, it didn't matter. He had to get to Sam.

Locked in the sight of their weapons, he crossed the room and knelt down besides her, vaguely hearing someone yell 'hold your fire!' He placed his hands gently behind her head and felt her warm blood spilling freely into them. "Sam! Sam, answer me!" She was totally still and blood covered her upper body. "Oh, God, Sam! Don't you die on me! You hear me! I won't let this bastard have you!"

Concentrating all his efforts on Sam, Jack failed to see Pete's arm rise slightly in one last threatening gesture. The low voice suddenly speaking beside him took Jack totally by surprise and he turned slightly to face Pete. "She's dead, General and so are you!" He sneered.

Jack saw the muzzle flash as Pete fired at almost point blank range and a heartbeat later felt the burning pain of the bullet as it crashed through his chest. He reached towards the pain with one hand as his face contorted and he fell forward next to Sam. In the same breath, three shots rang out as the police officers behind him fired simultaneously and Pete's arm dropped lifelessly to the floor.

"Sam," Jack whispered her name once more and then everything went black.

TBC

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