AN: Just so you know, this chapter skips back to Season 8. Sam is still in the infirmary recovering from the injuries she sustained in the earthquake. Hopefully all this skipping around in time is not too confusing. : )
Chapter 8: Visiting Hours
One Year Later (After Season Eight's 'Endgame' and Chapters 1-5)
Daniel and Teal'c strolled into the infirmary, anxious to see if there had been any change in Sam's condition. When they arrived at her bedside, both were somewhat surprised to see Pete Shanahan sitting beside her, tightly clasping her one free hand between both of his.
Daniel nervously cleared his throat to get the detective's attention, before greeting him. "Detective Shanahan… I had no idea you were going to be on base today. I guess Jack got in touch with you."
Pete turned to face the two men and nodded somberly. "Yeah. General O'Neill arranged for me to come down here to be with Sam. Even gave me free access to this level so I can walk around and stretch my legs a bit."
At this news, Daniel was slightly taken aback. As far as he knew, Pete had been on base only once before and he had been accompanied by Sam or an SF at all times. And he had been stuck in the infirmary almost the entire time. As soon as he recovered from the injury he sustained during the Osiris stakeout, Sam had immediately taken him home to Denver.
Knowing that Jack would normally have a major problem with granting Pete free access of any sort while on base, Daniel warily replied, "Oh… that was very nice of him. How are you doing?"
Pete let out a weary sigh. No matter how he personally felt about Sam's husband, Daniel could not deny that the man was deeply troubled at her current condition.
"I don't really know, Doctor Jackson," Pete answered. "I mean… there was always the chance of something like this happening. I knew that. But I never expected it happen so soon. And for it to happen on a routine mission like that…"
Daniel smiled sympathetically, while Teal'c merely gave him an understanding nod.
There was something else that was bothering Daniel about Pete. Maybe it was the way the man nervously played with Sam's fingers…or maybe it was the fact that Pete knew that Sam had been injured on a 'routine' mission.
'How the hell would Pete know something like that?' he thought. He shrugged off his suspicions, assuming that Jack or Dr. Brightman must have informed Pete of all of the details of what had happened.
"Good afternoon, gentlemen," a female voice announced from behind them. "Back again so soon?"
"We have procured the nourishment you suggested, Doctor Brightman. We are now prepared to keep watch over Colonel Carter until she awakens," Teal'c replied.
"It could be anytime now, Teal'c. The swelling on the Colonel's brain is slowly going down, and she should be waking up sometime today I would think."
"What did the neurologist say yesterday?" Pete asked in concern.
"Well, Detective Shanahan…Dr. Richards gave a very promising prognosis. He believes that the blood that is accumulated in Colonel Carter's brain is being reabsorbed as it should and that surgery will be unnecessary - at least at this time. It's important that we keep on monitoring it to make sure there is no reoccurrence or long-term side effects, but both Dr. Richards and I are very hopeful that she will have a full recovery. We were lucky that we got her back to the SGC relatively quickly."
"That's wonderful news. Does Jack know?" Daniel exclaimed.
The doctor shook her head. "Actually…I haven't been able to get in touch with the General today. Apparently, he is on base but he hasn't been in his office all morning. I'm sure he'll be by sometime today and I will be sure to tell him the good news then. I'll let you get back to your visit." The doctor turned and slowly walked away from them to check on her other patients sleeping nearby.
The three men silently sat around Sam's bed for the next five minutes. Neither Daniel nor Teal'c had any idea what to talk about with Pete sitting there in the same room. Any conversation they had could not contain any classified information, or any discussion concerning the SGC, which made topics rather hard to come by. Once it became apparent that no one was going to talk, Pete rose from his chair, obviously eager to escape the awkward atmosphere in the room.
"I'm going to take a little walk. I've been sitting in that chair for what seems like hours. I'll be back in a few," he explained before he sauntered out of the infirmary.
As soon as he was gone, Daniel turned to Teal'c. "Boy… that was awkward. We really need to come up with some topics we can discuss in front of Pete. After all, he's married to Sam now. We're going to be spending a lot more time with him. It would be best to find some things we all have in common that don't involve the SGC."
Teal'c tilted his head, deep in thought, and replied, "I cannot think of anything, Daniel Jackson."
"Well…we're two pretty smart guys. I'm sure we can come up with something if we put our minds to it."
Unexpectedly, another voice entered into the conversation. "What's up with all of the noise? Don't you know some of us are trying to get some sleep here?"
Both men turned to behold the sleepy blue eyes of Sam Carter struggling to stay open.
"Sam! You're awake!" Daniel shouted, a huge smile breaking out on his face.
"Daniel… keep it down. You would not believe the massive headache I have right now."
"I can imagine. You gave us all quite a scare, Sam." Daniel smiled at her, relieved that she was going to be okay. Suddenly he remembered something. "Oh… Pete! I should go get him."
"Pete's here? At the SGC?" Sam asked groggily.
"O'Neill invited Detective Shanahan to visit you while you recover from your injuries. He has just left your side to refresh his legs," Teal'c informed her.
"I'll go get him," Daniel offered. As he reached the door, he turned back to look at Sam. "Now, Sam… don't go back to sleep just yet. I promise I'll be back in a jiffy."
Sam stared at Teal'c, a look of confusion on her face. "Teal'c… did Daniel just say 'jiffy'?" Teal'c smiled slightly and nodded in acknowledgment.
She sighed lightly in relief. "Good… for a second there I thought I hit my head harder than I thought."
Daniel rushed down the halls of Level 21, frantically looking for Pete. But the missing detective was nowhere to be seen. Turning the corner, he accidentally bumped into Sergeant Harriman, sending the frazzled airman's stack of papers and files scattering to the floor.
"Walter… I'm sorry, I didn't see you coming," he apologized as he helped Walter pick up his papers. "I was just looking for Detective Shanahan… you know… Colonel Carter's husband. She's just woken up!"
Walter's eyes widened and he appeared to be almost as excited as Daniel. "That is very good news, Dr. Jackson. I'm sure everyone on base will be thrilled. The staff has been so worried about the Colonel…"
"As have we all, Walter. But it looks like she will make a full recovery," Daniel reassured him.
"I'll pass on the good news, sir."
"Oh, Walter… have you seen Detective Shanahan? He was supposed to be walking around on this level."
Walter picked up the last file on the floor and straightened his pile of folders before responding, "Yes, Dr. Jackson. I just saw him go into the restroom. He must have needed to use the facilities."
At this information, Daniel was once again puzzled. 'Why would Pete need to go into one of the bathrooms out here?' he asked himself. 'There's one in the infirmary.' Again, he shook off his suspicions and headed for the restroom, determined to find Pete and get him before Sam went back to sleep once more.
He opened the bathroom door and was relieved to see Pete standing there with his back to him. Just as Daniel was about to call out and inform Pete of the good news, the detective's image began to flicker. Daniel blinked a few times and when he again opened his eyes, Pete was no longer standing before him. General Jack O'Neill, however, was.
"Jack…?" he asked incredulously.
Jack immediately turned around to face him. There was a hint of nervousness on the General's face, which was quickly replaced by a genial smile. "Oh... hey, Daniel. I was just going down to see Carter. Needed to… pee first." He waved towards the urinals lining the back wall of the bathroom. Normally Daniel would've taken Jack's explanation at face value – it was a typical Jack response. But this time Jack's words seemed more like an attempt to conceal what was really going on.
Daniel's mouth opened and closed several times before he managed to mumble, "You... you… you were just... Pete."
"What the hell are you talking about, Daniel?" Jack huffed in annoyance.
"You were just Pete," Daniel stated again, more sure of himself this time.
Jack walked up to him, his face filled with concern. "Did you hit your head on something... or have you gone nuts again?"
"No... I know what I just saw." Daniel was adamant. "I was walking down the hall, looking for Pete in order to tell him that Sam had woken up..."
At this news, Jack immediately became agitated. "Wait a minute... Carter is awake? I've got to get down there..." He anxiously tried to push past Daniel, but was restrained when the younger man firmly grasped his shoulders.
"Oh, no you don't, Jack. As I was saying, I walked into this room and Pete was standing there, facing away from me. Then he began to flicker and instead of Pete, you were standing there. Do you mind telling me what's going on, Jack?"
Jack shook his head roughly and pulled out of Daniel's restraining hold. "Not now, Danny. We need to get back to the infirmary. Carter's waiting…"
Daniel stood resolutely in front of the door, blocking the exit. "Not until you tell me exactly what is going on and why you are posing as Pete. You're using one of those mimic devices, aren't you?"
Finally, Jack sighed and conceded, "I promise I will explain everything, Daniel. Just... after I see Carter, okay?"
Daniel looked at Jack, his discerning gaze searching for the truth behind Jack's stony façade. But the only expression he could see in Jack's dark eyes could only be described as desperation. At that moment, Daniel knew Jack would do anything to get to Sam. And he wasn't stupid enough to stand in the man's way for one second longer.
Daniel nodded in acquiescence and moved aside, "Okay, I'll let it go for now. But, promise me you will tell me. Soon."
"I promise," Jack answered before he rushed out of the restroom and down the hall, making his way to the woman patiently waiting for him in the infirmary.
Daniel chased after him, unable to keep up. When he finally reached the infirmary, Daniel found a very interesting and poignant sight. Jack was standing next to Sam's bed, huge smiles plastered on each of their faces. When he looked down at the bed, he noticed that Jack and Sam's fingers were intimately and comfortably entwined – as if holding hands was an act they engaged in everyday.
"Hey you," Jack softly murmured as he stared affectionately down at Sam. "I hear you've been slacking off, Colonel. You know I can't have that on my base."
"Sorry, General. I'll try to not let it happen again," Sam replied drowsily.
"See that you don't," he ordered jokingly. "I can't have my top officer sleeping in the infirmary all day long."
"Yes, sir…" Sam sighed as her eyes drifted shut once again and she fell back into a deep sleep, a contented smile still gracing her face. Jack continued to stare tenderly at her as she drifted off to sleep.
"Did you not find Detective Shanahan, Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c inquired.
Daniel did not quite know how to respond to the question. Had he really found Pete Shanahan? Or was there even really such a person? "To tell you the truth, Teal'c, I have no idea…" he answered as he glared pointedly at Jack.
Jack gently extricated his hand from Carter's, reluctant to relinquish his contact with her. "It seems I have quite a story to tell you guys. Why don't we head up to my office and I'll explain everything."
TBC