"Sam."
"Hmm?"
"Sam, we're almost there."
Sam's eyes opened slowly. Looking around, she got her bearings before sitting up and moving forward in the jumper. As she sat down she looked out at the sprawling city of Prague below them.
"Where are we going to land?"
"I'm looking into that." Jackie responded, studying the computer display in front of her. They circled the city a couple times before Jackie decided on a clearing in a clump of trees near the river. Landing, Jackie was glad that she didn't have to disengage the cloak – this was going to be difficult enough without having to worry about being spotted.
"Are you sure you should be parking this thing in the middle of the city?" Sam asked.
"It was either this or park out in the country and have to walk into the city until we could catch a cab. The jumper should be fine here, there's not a lot of traffic through these trees, and it is cloaked."
Sam shrugged as the two women headed out of the park carrying their overnight bags. As they reached the road, Jackie hailed a taxi.
"Where to Ladies?" The taxi driver asked in Czech as the two women climbed in the cab.
"A friend of mine told me about this great little bistro in Old Town." Jackie responded in Czech, her accent perfect. "I can't remember what he called it, but he said that they have the best pastries."
"Ah, yes. I know just the place of which you speak." With that the cab driver took off down the road, winding in and out of the many streets in Prague.
"Jackie?"
"Not to worry Sam. We're going to that little bistro that Daniel told us about." Jackie responded to Sam in English, her British accent once again in place. "Then we'll check out some of those sites he suggested." Sam simply nodded, confusion flashing briefly in her eyes.
"Here you go." The cabby said in his native tongue.
"Thank you." Jackie responded in kind. The two women stepped out, and Jackie turned to the cabby's window. "How much do I owe you?"
"30 Euros." He responded. It wasn't until Jackie was about to hand him the money that she realized he had spoken in broken English instead of Czech. He noticed the surprise on her face and smiled. "Many tourists come to our city, some speak Czech, but almost all speak English, better for business that I do as well." Jackie smiled and turned to go. "Miss?" She turned back. "Be careful as you walk around town. Especially your friend, she has a definite American accent, and some of my people despise Americans. I however like Americans, they are good for business." He finished with a smile and nod before driving away.
Jackie couldn't help but smile at the cabby's last words. Turning towards the sidewalk, and Sam, she made a left and moved away from the bistro that they had stopped in front of.
"When did Daniel suggest a bistro?" Sam asked curiously.
"He didn't. While you were asleep I took the liberty to study up on Prague. I figured it probably wasn't a good idea to ask a cabby to take us to a gun shop, so I looked for something else that was close. Fortunately many of the locals claim that this bistro does indeed have the best pastries in the city."
"You're back to speaking with your British accent." Sam noted.
"Yeah." Jackie shrugged. "I have found in my travels that many people respond better to me when I am speaking with a British accent compared to an American one." Sam seemed to take the hint.
Five minutes later the pair turned a corner and could see the shop front that they were looking for. Jackie wished that the walk had been a little longer. She really had no idea what they were going to do once they were inside – guns were really not her thing. Sam sensed Jackie's nervousness as they walked closer. She decided to take charge.
"Jackie why don't I handle this? I'll talk to him; try to get some information out of him while you look around."
"That would be great." Jackie responded in relief.
The bell above the door rang as Sam and Jackie entered the shop that was apparently dedicated to guns and knives of both the past and the present. There was no one else in the room, so they began to browse. They hadn't gone very far before a short, round man bustled out from the back.
"What can I do for you ladies?" He asked, speaking in Czech.
"You can start by speaking to us in English." Jackie responded, in English.
"Of course, of course." The round man cajoled. "But how did you know that I can speak English?"
"With all of your historical weapons you must get a number of tourists through here." Jackie stated.
"Yes, yes. That I do. That I do. I am Serge, what can I do for you ladies this fine day?"
Sam took her cue.
"My name is Colonel Carter, I'm US Air Force. I have heard from many of my colleagues that you have the best sniper rifles and ammo in many countries."
"You are in need of such items?" Serge asked, looking her up and down in disbelief.
"I am."
As Sam continued to talk with Serge, Jackie wandered around the room. She was intrigued by some of the old knives and had to wonder if they were real, or just cheap duplicates. She wasn't quite sure what she was looking for, or what she expected to find. After all, this was a shop full of weapons. What could she hope to find that would help them? She would just have to hope that Sam would be able to weasel something out of the creepy owner.
Jackie circled the room and was about to head back to where Sam was when something caught her eye. Walking towards the far wall, she tried to keep her pace steady and the owner unaware of what she was doing. As she neared the wall she came face to face with shelves. Most of the shelves contained some of the coolest knives she'd ever seen, ones that she knew Daniel would love to get his hands on. But it wasn't the knives that had caught her attention. Dead center in the columns and rows of shelves was what appeared to be a holy shrine.
"My god." She whispered. It couldn't be, yet it was. "Sam, come here." She called across the room, never once taking her eyes off the shelf before her.
Sam was glad to finally hear Jackie's voice. It had been half an hour since they had entered the shop, and she wasn't getting anywhere with Serge. He was definitely a pro, and wasn't about to slip easily. Excusing herself, she turned and headed over to where Jackie stood, transfixed.
At first it looked like she was staring at row upon row of ancient knives. Sam thought about Daniel and how much he would love to look at these, but she couldn't figure out why Jackie had called her over. Then she saw it. She stared for a moment, taking it all in. Suddenly she whirled around and in a flash was across the room, pinning Serge against the wall, her arm across his throat.
"You son-of-a…" Sam could barely contain the anger. Her eyes flashed with the intensity of her fury.
"Sam…" Jackie, who had followed Sam across the room in a hurry, said as she laid a hand on Sam's shoulder, trying to calm her down.
"I should kill you where you stand." Sam hissed.
"No, no please." Serge pleaded. Looking at Jackie, he continued, "What is wrong? Why is she trying to kill me?"
"I won't let her kill you." Jackie assured. "However, there may not be much I can do for you, seeing as how the United States government may do it for her."
"Why…why would the US want to kill me?" Serge stammered.
"Does this look familiar?" Jackie asked, holding up a ziploc baggy that had a single bullet within it. Serge's eyes got big as he saw what she held.
"But I did not shoot that. I have been here in my shop…"
"True. But that is one of the fallouts of being the only place in the world that one can buy these bullets, they can be traced back to you. And since you are at the end of a very short list, I'm afraid the US may very well hold you accountable." Jackie inwardly smiled at the fear coming from the man's eyes.
"Why would your country kill me, a simple merchant, for one death?" He was grasping at straws.
"It is very likely that the US would not extradite you for just any murder." Jackie conceded. "Unfortunately for you this bullet killed one of America's best and bravest. For a general who has served as heroically as the one killed by this bullet, you can be certain that the US will call for your trial."
"O'Neill was a general?"
Both women stared at the little man in surprise. This was something that they had not been expecting. Sam's hold tightened on the little man and Jackie wondered if she would be able to keep her from actually killing him.
"Please, I did not know!" Serge squealed. "I did not know who he was!" Sam's arm kept getting tighter. "I know who killed him!" Sam's arm loosened. "I have a tape…from my security camera." Jackie followed the man's eyes, noticing the camera in the corner for the first time.
"Let's see it then." Sam said, letting go of Serge.
Ten minutes later, Sam walked quickly out of the shop and headed down the street. Jackie, who had paused momentarily, nearly had to run to catch up to Sam. Serge watched the two women hurry out of his shop. He shook his head. The US agents who had him under surveillance could have saved themselves months if they had just sent those two women in the first place. Then again, he glanced over at the bookshelves, they did not appear to be working with the agents, they seemed to know a lot more than most people did.
Serge shook his head again. He couldn't say that he wasn't relieved. If those two women could succeed – and he believed they could – he would finally be free. He glanced again at the far wall – he hoped they wouldn't be too late.
Sam was walking so fast that Jackie could not completely close the gap between them. As she turned a corner just seconds after Sam, she nearly ran into her. Upon turning the corner Sam had stopped and steadied herself against the wall, unconsciously placing herself directly in Jackie's path.
"Sam?" Jackie asked, placing her hand on Sam's shoulder in concern. Walking around to face Sam, Jackie saw anger and grief in her blue eyes. She also saw the tears threatening to overflow.
"Is everything okay?"
Jackie looked up, surprised. Seeing the cabby that had driven them earlier, she coaxed Sam away from the wall and towards the car.
"Where to?" The cabby asked as the two women settled in.
"American Embassy." Jackie responded as she dug through her bag. "Mind taking the scenic route?"
"Sure." The cabby responded, watching as Jackie handed Sam a bottle of water and what looked like a couple aspirin.
The taxi had been going through the streets of Prague for barely 15 minutes, when Sam fell asleep. Jackie was well aware that the cabby was watching them through the rearview mirror. She shifted slightly so that Sam's head wouldn't slip off her shoulder.
"How is Colonel Carter?"
"She's…" Jackie stopped and looked up in shock and concern. "How do you know her name?"
"My name is Agent Adrien Williams." The cabby said, dropping his accent. "I've been at the embassy for several months keeping Serge under surveillance."
"That doesn't explain how you know Colonel Carter." Jackie commented, also dropping her accent.
"Part of my job is to keep tabs on those who visit Serge's shop. There's a camera in the rearview mirror."
"I see." Jackie said coolly. "So you were waiting for us when we left the shop."
"The agent in charge knows the Colonel. He wasn't very happy when he saw her picture."
"And who is the agent in charge?"
"Agent Barrett."
Jackie nodded. She knew the name. Sam had worked with the NID agent before. He was one of the few honorable agents that worked at the NID.
"Why are the two of you here? And what would possess you to visit Serge's shop?" Agent Williams asked.
Jackie reached down and pulled the ziploc baggy with the bullet out of her bag. She held it up so that Williams could see it.
"My god, you knew one of his victims." Jackie nodded at Agent William's statement. "Someone close?"
"Are you NID, Agent Williams?" Williams nodded slowly, knowing that there were many who disliked, even hated the NID. "Then the name General Jack O'Neill should be familiar to you."
"O'Neill?" Williams exclaimed, shock and dismay lacing his voice. "Oh god, please tell me O'Neill wasn't killed by this guy."
"Friday." Jackie replied sadly.
"So your local detective traced the bullet, told you it was from Serge's shop, and you and Colonel Carter caught the first plane out here to investigate." Agent Williams summarized.
"Something like that." Jackie responded, not caring to reveal the existence of the puddle jumper.
They road in silence for a few more minutes, both lost in their own thoughts. Agent Williams rounded a corner and there in front of them was the gate for the American Embassy. Pulling up, he stopped in front of the gate and spoke quietly to one of the marines standing guard. A minute later the gate swung open and the taxi pulled into the inner courtyard. Standing at the front door was a very irate Agent Barrett.
Agent Barrett's face became even angrier still when he opened the taxi door and saw Sam sound asleep. Upon Jackie's brief explanation about a prescription and sleeping pills, he ordered two marines to get a gurney and take Sam upstairs to one of the VIP rooms, and then he turned and ordered Jackie to follow him.
Barrett's office door was barely closed behind Jackie when he laid into her.
"What the hell is going on? Who are you and why did you bring Colonel Carter to Prague? Why were you seen entering and exiting Serge's shop? How the hell did you get into the Czech Republic without us knowing about it?" The questions continued to pour from Agent Barrett's mouth as he paced up and down his office. He stopped mid-step – and mid-sentence – when he turned and saw the ziploc baggy and bullet in Jackie's extended hand. Sitting down hard in his chair he asked, "Who?"
"General Jack O'Neill."
"Damn." Was the only reply that escaped from Agent Barrett's lips. After several long minutes he looked up at Jackie. "How's SG1 handling it? I know they were all close."
"They're handling it as well as can be expected." Jackie said softly, warming up to the agent across from her.
"I'm guessing you found Serge to be less than helpful." Barrett finally said, returning to the issue at hand.
"On the contrary." Jackie responded. Barrett looked at her surprised. She smiled. "When you've worked at – or at least known about – the SGC for as long as Colonel Carter and I have, you tend to pick up on things that other people might have missed."
"Such as what?" Barrett asked gruffly.
"This." Jackie said, handing Barrett a digital camera across his desk. The picture was of the shrine Jackie and Sam had found in Serge's shop.
"It's a religious shrine. How was it helpful?"
"It pissed Sam off." Jackie said smiling. "It was all I could do to keep her from killing the man on the spot. Fortunately his life was enough incentive for him to hand over a very important surveillance tape." Jackie pulled the tape out of her bag.
"What's on here?"
"Your sniper…and his orders to kill General O'Neill."