Friday was a beautiful sunny temperate day; an obvious sign Sam wasn't really being buried. Jack was sure the heavens would released torrential rains on the day of Sam's funeral because it was only appropriate that the world mourn her passing.
Daniel comforted a sobbing Cassie at the graveside service. General Hammond, General Landry, and Jack stood stoically in a line as Mark was presented with Sam's flag. Poor Mark was not aware that it was not his sister being placed in the ground on this day. Jack decided he was too great a security risk. Behind Mark stood Pete Shanahan. Pete's sorrow struck a cord in Jack. He wasn't happy to see him but liked knowing Pete cared enough for Sam to be here.
General Landry held the wake at his home, since Jack no longer owned a home in Colorado and Daniel only had an apartment. The majority of the off duty SGC personnel showed up for both the funeral and the wake. Jack spared no expense, just as if it was all real. Bouquets of roses, lilies, tulips, and carnations surrounded the grave and alcohol flowed freely at the wake. Jack's mood was intensely somber, and this he didn't have to fake.
Jack was anxious to begin the search for Sam. All the hullabaloo surrounding the fake funeral was necessary but he still felt like it was just wasting precious time. He was tired of waiting for everyone to figure out they had over stayed their welcome.
"Let's go, Daniel." Jack walked up between Daniel and one of the geeks from Sam's lab at Area 51. The geek looked stunned at Jack's rudeness, but Daniel was only surprised it had taken this long.
"I'm right behind you." Daniel apologized to the scientist and followed Jack towards the door. Jack was slowed down on his approach to the door by well-wishers, giving Daniel a chance to get Cassie's attention and catching up. Daniel, Cassie, Teal'c, Jack and Mitchell left the wake and went to Daniel's apartment.
"Based on these airline records, Sam got on a direct flight from Washington to Denver. The plane was diverted to Chicago and ordered to land. Sam was called off the plane but she returned twenty minutes later. The flight resumed as scheduled. It landed in Denver and Sam took a puddle jumper to Colorado Springs. We saw the video footage of her picking up her bags in Colorado Springs. When we zoomed in we didn't see any sign of a cut or bruise." Mitchell put down the pad he'd taken notes on. "We assume the switch happened in Chicago but it could have happened in Denver. We didn't have access to the Chicago or Denver footage if any exists."
Mitchell finished and looked over at Daniel, an indication it was his turn to take over the story. "The security tapes at the SGC confirm it was the clone that returned from Washington. Teal'c didn't see any evidence she was snooping into anything unusual or setting booby traps. There was a definite decline in her level of happiness that I assume was intended to help us believe she'd take her own life. I don't think there is anything more on the SGC footage that would help you find her."
Jack nodded his head. "I'll start in Chicago. Do you have the flight crew roster?" Mitchell flipped through his notes, took out a sheet, and handed it to Jack. "Good. I'll talk with the flight crew and review the security footage in Chicago. If I get confirmation the switch happened in Chicago, then I'll start working on where she could have been taken. I need you guys to keep working on why she was taken."
Cassie grew impatient as she watched the exchange. "What can I do?"
Jack looked over at her and sighed. "You can go back to school."
Cassie jumped to her feet and glared at Jack. "There's no way I can just go back to class now, knowing Sam's out there somewhere, and you all are looking for her."
Daniel reached up and gently grasped her arm. "You have to, Cassie. If you don't go back to school, it will look suspicious. We all have to look like we are mourning her loss, but getting back to business like she'd expect."
Daniel gave her his best puppy dog look, and she slumped back onto the sofa. "Fine, but you better keep me up to date." Cassie crossed her arms and huffed. Daniel nodded and put his arm around her.
Jack left the room and returned with a plain brown box. He opened the box and handed out cell phones. "We have to assume our phones are being monitored. These little babies have special security features that should help prevent eavesdropping. They're not foolproof, but it's better then what we currently have. These are the only phones we should use to communicate about Carter. We should continue to contact each other on a regular basis using our usual phones and sound grief stricken. It's all part of keeping up the act."
Daniel watched the nods around the room and decided he couldn't put off asking one last question. "How long do you think we have to do this?"
Jack sighed and glanced at Daniel out of the corner of his eye. "We'll do it for as long as it takes, but we'll do our best to get her back as quickly as possible."
Daniel sighed. "That's a non-answer Jack. It's not like you can put off Washington indefinitely."
"You find out what Ba'al's up to, and I'll deal with Washington." Daniel shrugged his shoulders, but he accepted Jack's answer.
Jack drove up to his cabin the next day. He hauled his bags inside and turned on the lights. The cabin was chilly but not freezing. Jack heard a door close down the hall, so he dropped his bags.
"Hey, Siler. Did you have any trouble sneaking in?" Jack grinned at the technician as he walked down the hall.
"No sir. I parked the rental pickup truck behind the abandon barn a mile over like you said. The trail through the woods was easy to follow. I waited until dark and came in through the back. I haven't used any lights or built a fire."
Jack slapped him on the shoulder. "Good man. Now that I'm here you'll be able to live like a civilized man. When you go outside be sure and wear a hat and sunglasses. Stay out of town. I've brought you tons of supplies. A few more trips to the truck and you'll be set for a month."
Siler's eyes got wide. "A month sir?"
Jack shook his head. "I don't plan to be gone more than a week, but I wanted to be sure you had plenty of supplies. General Landry knows you're helping me with an assignment. If you need to speak with him or me, then use this secure phone and call us at these numbers. You can also use this it to keep in touch with family." Jack handed Siler a phone identical to the ones given to the other official members of the find Carter alive team.
"That won't be an issue, sir. I told the family I wouldn't be able to contact them and wasn't sure when I would return. General Landry will keep in touch with them for me."
Jack nodded his approval. "You're a good man, Siler. I couldn't do this without you."
Siler grinned. "I guess it doesn't matter that I don't know what you're doing."
Jack grinned. "It's better that way."
Siler put away the supplies as Jack unloaded his truck. After everything was put in its place the men ate dinner and waited for night to fall. Once it was dark outside, Jack snuck out of the cabin and made his way to the rental truck Siler stashed about a mile away. Jack drove to a small airstrip fifty miles from the cabin, where a small plane waited for its pilot, Charlie Jacobs. Jack registered at the airstrip under his new alias using his geek proof identification and took off for Chicago. He included a couple of brief stops at little airstrips along the way to throw off any attempts to track his movements.
Big thanks to Nibikko for the beta. Any remaining mistakes are mine alone! The best way to thank her for me is look at her vids at http/nibikko(dot)com.