From Whence did she Come?
Chapter seven: The winds of change
Sam was kneeling beside an unconscious Jack when the first police car arrived. He'd hit his head hard when he fell. Sam worried about a concussion. The police called for an ambulance but warned her the ambulance couldn't get close until they'd cleared the scene. Sam understood the need to keep the paramedics safe. Numerous other police cars arrived. Someone brought her a spare bulletproof vest and helmet.
As the police combed the nearby streets Sam wiped Jack's sweaty brow. She'd already unbuttoned the first four buttons on his jacket and made sure there was no blood. Now that police surrounded her she took the time to unbutton his shirt and run her hand over the bulletproof vest that had stopped the bullet from piercing his chest.
"Ma'am?" Sam looked up into the very young face of a police officer. "We have someone in custody and the ambulance has been given clearance. They should be here any minute." Sam mutely nodded.
Jack woke in the hospital emergency room. His disorientation angered him, but Sam's face helped him regain his control.
"Sam? What happened?"
"You were shot." Jack's eyes widened. "The vest stopped the bullet, although you'll have a hell of a bruise. You hit your head when you went down. They figure you've got a concussion. They're going to keep you overnight."
"Like hell they will. I've had more concussions then they've had cups of coffee. I don't need to stay here." Jack tried to push up but instantly was overtaken by a wave of nausea.
"They said each concussion builds on the last one. Eventually it all adds up. This also happens to be a particularly bad concussion." Sam caressed his face as he lay back down.
"Fine." Jack slumped back against the gurney and pouted. The fact he quit fighting so easily told Sam he really felt awful. Sam held his hand in hers and smiled at him. The ringing of her cell phone startled them both. She pulled it out of her pocket and flipped it open.
"Hello?" She glanced down at Jack.
"Yeah, he's awake and acting like himself." Sam grinned. Jack grimaced.
"And what's that supposed to mean? Who is it?"
"It's Daniel. He'd like to speak with you." Jack put his hand out for the phone.
"You got what you asked for, Daniel." Sam grinned as she gave the phone to Jack. He swiped it and gruffly put it against his ear.
"Don't you listen to a word she says? I'm fine."
"I never said you weren't. We heard you were shot. Was it Pete?"
"I don't know. I haven't had a chance to ask but it's on my list of things to do. We'll call you when we know more." Jack handed the phone back to Sam.
"You were right. He sounds just like usual."
"Yep." Sam continued smiling.
"What are you agreeing to? Huh?" Jack watched her smile turn into a quiet giggle. "Are you laughing at me while I'm in the hospital?"
"Never." Sam attempted to sober her expression. A police detective entered the curtained of area and nodded his head. "I gotta go Daniel. I'll call you later." Sam closed the phone, stood, and extended her hand.
"Afternoon, ma'am. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get here but I wanted to speak with the suspect and a few of witnesses. It took a little longer then expected. Please sit." Sam sat back down beside Jack and held his hand. "I just have a few questions." The detective pulled out a notepad and pen.
"And I only have one question." All eyes turned to Jack. "Who shot me?" The detective met Jack's stare.
"We have a Detective Pete Shanahan in custody. He isn't talking but the circumstantial evidence looks pretty damning. Do you know why he might be interested in shooting you?" Jack's jaw tightened. Sam lifted her head and faced the detective.
"He's my ex-fiancée." The detective nodded. It was an all too common story. He preferred this to a terrorist cell going after an Air Force general doing classified work at the pentagon.
"We'll check him out and keep our options open as we finish clearing the scene. Is there anything else you can tell us about him?"
"I never though he would do anything like this." Jack gripped Sam's hand.
"I rarely have people tell me they saw it coming, ma'am." The detective put his notebook back in his pocket.
"If it's alright with you folks, I'll call back when you've both had a chance to rest." They all nodded and the detective left. Jack watched Sam's profile. He knew her wheels were turning.
"She was right."
"Yeah." Jack saw Sam's face darken. "Don't you dare start to blame yourself for this." Sam turned towards him.
"Well who do you want me to blame? I brought him into our lives. I strung him along knowing I didn't really love him just the concept of being in a relationship that could go somewhere." Sam let go of his hand and began pacing the room. "I drove him to this. I let him think I loved him enough to marry him!"
"Bullshit! No man is stupid enough to think if it takes a woman over two weeks to accept his proposal she's committed to him. He knew, even if he wasn't any more willing to admit than you." Sam was breathing hard and still pacing.
"I never should have dragged him along."
"Probably not, but we've all made mistakes. That doesn't give anybody the right to shoot to kill." Jack watched Sam's frantic pacing. It was driving him batty. "Com'ere." Jack held his arms out. She just looked at him for a moment before moving in his direction. She sat on the edge of the bed and leaned down into his arms.
"I'm sorry, Jack."
"I know, but it's over now and I won't let you torture yourself. He made this choice and he alone has to pay. If you let this drag you down you'll end up paying too. You don't deserve that…we don't deserve that." He stroked her hair as he spoke.
"General O'Neill, I'm Dr. Matthews. It's good to see you awake." Dr. Matthews stepped to the end of the bed as Sam sat up. Jack didn't let go of her hand. His thumb caressed the back of her hand the whole time the doctor spoke. "We have a room for you upstairs where we can monitor you all night."
"Let me guess, you plan on waking me up too often and making sure I have a miserable night."
"I wouldn't have put it that way but it does just about sum it up. I guess you've been through this a few times?"
"That's one way of putting it. I can do all the waking up stuff much more comfortably at home. If necessary I'll sign myself out against medical orders but I am leaving."
"Jack, I thought you…"
"We are going home together tonight." Jack lifted a hand up to her face. The doctor saw what was happening. He'd gotten enough of a report from the police to understand the General didn't want his girlfriend to feel responsible for his injury.
"I'll allow you to leave if your MRI doesn't indicate a brain bleed. I will have a nurse call you every two hours. If she doesn't hear your voice I will order her to send an ambulance to your house, with MPs if necessary." Jack grinned.
"I get it. Thanks, doc." The doctor left and was quickly replaced by a nurse who took Jack to the MRI center. Sam was asked to wait in a dimly nit waiting room. She managed to sit and stare at the ridiculously happy posters lining the wall. The MRI was clear so Jack was released after only five long hours. Sam took him straight home.
Sam was due to leave the next day. She knew Jack was healthy enough to be on his own but she still wasn't excited about going back to the SGC. That morning after a leisurely breakfast with Jack Sam got a disturbing call from Cassie's college. Cassie had been hospitalized with alcohol poisoning. Jack and Sam caught the first plane out of Washington. By the time they arrived she was out of danger but feeling plenty rough.
"Hey Cassie!" Cassie's face paled. She squeezed her hands on the rails and cringed.
"Please don't Uncle Jack." Jack shook his head in frustration. He leaned over the rails of her bed.
"Why Cassie?"
"You wouldn't understand." She whispered her answer.
"Yes he would, and so will I. Give us a chance sweetheart. We've both been to hell and back. We can help better then most." Sam ran her fingers through Cassie's hair and looked down at her.
"She's right kiddo. We've both been in bad places and we know the kinds of stupid things you can do as you try to find a way out." Cassie looked from Sam to Jack and back to Sam. She began to cry and leaned against Sam. Sam wrapped her arms around her.
"I was just trying to forget. I didn't mean to let it get this far. I'm so sorry." Sam kept petting her hair as she sobbed.
"Did you mean to kill yourself?" Jack's voice was restrained and quiet as he asked the question he needed answered.
"No…no…never!" Cassie turned her tear stained face towards him. "I'd never do that to you, to either of you. I just wasn't thinking. I'm so sorry." Her tears began in earnest again so Sam held her tight.