A/N: Thank you to everyone for continuing to read and comment. I'm thankful for you all!
As I mentioned at the end of the last chapter, this one is the start of a dark plot twist. TWs for this chapter include: kidnapping; mentioned violent assault; implied assault.
Jack sat on his back deck, slowly nursing a beer as he stared into the woods. He really wanted to get back to work but Hammond had ordered all of SG-1 on downtime for an extended weekend in light of recent events. Sam, of course, was on medical leave of absence for the next several weeks. Then she'd be on light duty throughout her physical therapy, which meant SG-1 was down a team member for the foreseeable future.
The day after Sam had decided to go home, Jack called his CO and argued that he and Daniel and Teal'c could still engage in diplomatic missions off-world. Hammond had given him a sigh of disapproval then issued a direct order for him to "go rest." Which Jack was unsuccessfully trying to do right now.
The conversation he'd had yesterday with Daniel kept rattling around in his brain. Sam knew how he felt. It was that simple. He'd told her the ball was in her court, so whatever happened from here on out was up to her. Period. End of the line.
"O'Neill!" Someone shouted his name from the side yard. "O'Neill!"
"What now,"Jack muttered as he unfolded his large frame and stood up. Crossing his backyard, he followed the sound of his name being called. The sight of Officer Hyme made Jack stop in his tracks. The man looked like hell. His t-shirt was torn, his hair stood on end. He looked like he'd been trampled by a stampede as he limped toward Jack.
"Shanahan's lost it," Hyme said, his eyes wide. "He's out of control. I couldn't remember where she lived, so I came here."
Jack froze at his words. "I thought Pete was arrested two days ago?"
"Chief changed his mind. Gave him 48 hours to turn himself in," Hyme sank to his knees then tumbled backwards onto his butt. "I called him myself. He agreed. Just wanted to settle a few affairs first."
"Son of a—" Jack sneered. "You mean Shanahan has been out there the last two days and no one thought to tell Carter?!"
"He promised to turn himself in," Hyme protested, looking up at Jack bewildered. "He promised."
"How'd that work out for you?" Jack scoffed, assuming Pete was responsible for Hyme's present condition.
"He went ballistic when I refused to help him," Hyme looked like he wanted to weep and throw up at the same time. "He—he—plans to…" he shook his head.
"Plans to what?" Jack asked in a deceptively calm voice.
"He said he just needed to teach her a lesson," Hyme licked his dry lips. "Teach you both a lesson."
Jack dug his cell phone out of his pocket and pressed one. "Hi, this is Sam…" her voicemail picked up. Cursing, he called Janet. "Are you with Carter?" He demanded as soon as she answered.
"Hello to you too, sir," Janet responded with annoyance. Jack had no doubt she knew everything that had happened between them, but he didn't have time to deal with that now.
"Janet," Jack growled her name.
"No," Janet's annoyance disappeared instantly. "I left Cassie with her while I ran to the store. Jack, what's going on?"
Jack swore. "Shanahan wasn't arrested."
"I left them alone an hour ago," she responded. "You're closer. Go."
Jack snapped his phone closed and took off at a run to his truck, not caring if Hyme followed. Slamming the keys into the ignition, he threw it into drive and spun gravel when he hit the gas. He made it to Sam's house in less than seven minutes.
"Carter! Cassie!" He yelled at the door as he pounded it with his fist. When neither answered, he slipped the key Sam had given him into the lock. "Carter!" He called from the open doorway. "Cassie!"
A loud banging from upstairs drew his attention. Jack took the stairs two at a time. Entering Sam's bedroom, he found Cassie tied up on the floor with duct tape across her mouth.
"Cass!" He gently pulled the tape from her mouth and helped her sit upright.
"Pete took her!" The teenager wailed as she buried her head against his shoulder. Jack untied her hands behind her back, easing her away from him once she was free.
"Cass, I need you to stay calm," he gentled his tone as much as possible. "Did Pete say anything about where he was taking her?"
Cassie shook her head. "He was so mad," she whispered. "He just kept hitting her."
Jack closed his eyes and swore inwardly.
"Sam fought back," Cassie sniffled and wiped her eyes. "I tried to help her, but Pete threw me across the room. I hit the wall hard and sort of blacked out. When I came to, I was tied up." She bit back a sob. "I saw Pete carry Sam out of the room. She wasn't moving. Jack, I don't know if she—if she—" Cassie gulped in air as a torrent of tears overwhelmed her.
"She's alive, Cass," Jack hugged the girl to his chest. "She's alive." He said again, more to ease the ache settling into his chest.
The Wormhole Xtreme theme song rang from Jack's pocket. It was the specialized ringtone Sam had programmed into his phone for her as a joke. "Carter?" He said as he hit the answer button.
"O'Neill," Pete's voice came through the earpiece.
"Shanahan," Jack growled into the speaker. "What the hell have you done?"
"I've only taken back what's mine," he answered. "Check your text messages."
Jack pulled the phone away from his ear and saw two new messages from Sam. He opened them and blanched. The first one was a selfie of Pete holding an unconscious Sam against him as he kissed her. The second was a very much alive Sam glaring up into the camera. From the angle, it appeared she was lying down. She had a gag in her mouth, her arms were stretched over her head, her chest completely exposed.
"We're waiting for you to join us," Pete said. "I'll text you the address. Once you have it, ditch the phone. Come alone or…well I'm sure you know the drill." The line went dead.
"Are you alright?" Jack turned to Cassie. He desperately wanted to go after Sam, but didn't want to leave the girl alone.
"I'm fine," she scrubbed the tears from her cheeks. "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to get her back," Jack responded as he stood up.
"You know it's a trap."
Jack considered lying to her but decided against it. "Probably," he agreed.
"But it's Sam," Cassie voiced his unspoken words.
Jack nodded once.
"Mom will be here soon. I'll be fine. Go find Sam."
Jack followed the directions Pete sent him. He followed the path the bastard had laid out, visiting four locations on all different sides of town, only to find each time Sam wasn't there. Pete had been busy over the past two days, setting up this game of cat and mouse. By the time Jack strode toward the abandoned warehouse, he knew that even if Cassie had gotten word to Daniel or Teal'c, there was no way they could have tracked all of his movements in time to know where he was. For all intents and purposes, he was on his own.
"Carter!" Jack called as he wedged himself through a partially opened door. He looked around for any sign that this was where she was being held. He knew he was being careless, rushing into the warehouse, but that didn't stop him. He had to find her before–
A pop and telltale whiz sounded to his left as something sharp pierced his skin. Reaching up, Jack pulled a small tranq dart from his neck.
"Shanahan!" Jack growled, his voice slurred as he staggered sideways. His knees hit the ground and his vision dimmed. As the darkness closed in around him he saw Pete step out of the shadows.