AN: Good morning campers! Didja miss me? :D Here's chapter 3. As a ide note if you ever want to lose weight but you hate exercising just for the sake of it... take a retail management job. I'm down 14 pounds (a stone to you britts) in a month. I imagine I'll be back down to fighting weight in no time.

Chapter 3

"Commander Rabb? What can I do for you?" George Hammond asked the young Navy officer. It was Hammond's off day and Harm had found him in his backyard, practicing his putting.

"Sir, I'd like to have an off the record conversation if you have the time." Harm told the man in front of him who was dressed in nondescript beige slacks and a polo shirt.

Hammond looked around thoughtfully. "Grandkids are at a birthday party for a classmate. What do you need from me, Commander?"

"Sir… frankly, I'm a little confused about this case. My SO told me the case is cut and dry but it clearly isn't. You, Major Carter, Dr. Jackson and Mr. Teal'c have all expressed that Colonel O'Neill is innocent but he wants to plead no contest anyway." Harm was frowning in frustration at this point.

"That's something you need to ask Colonel O'Neill about, Commander."

"That's the thing, sir. He won't talk to me. Sends me off on paperwork jobs to manage his estate and make sure his child is provided for but refuses to discuss the case. Why?"

George looks at him for a long moment. "Let's go have some lemonade." He tells Harm as he sets down his putter and walks back to the house. Harm follows the man who was probably about the same age as A.J. and wonders how they knew each other.

Hammond pours them both a drink before taking them to the office at the back of the house. After they both take a seat in the comfortable chairs overlooking the backyard, Hammond finally speaks. "The SGC is given a great deal of latitude because of the nature of our branch. In particular, SG-1 has been given a pass many times when other commands might have written them up. Be that as it may, there are reasons for that. SG-1 isn't a normal military unit and they don't operate under normal military conditions."

Harm just sits and listens. He wonders if part of that latitude is looking the other way about personal relationships.

"I believe I need to bring you up to speed on an incident to help you understand the situations for both Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter."

Harm placed his lemonade on the table, indicating that Hammond had his complete and undivided attention.

"Rather recently Senator Kinsey blackmailed me into retirement in an attempt to take control of the Stargate and the Program."

"Sir…" Harm sits up in surprise.

Hammond held up a hand, warding off any questions. "He kidnapped my granddaughters and threatened worse if I didn't step down. He then took that opportunity to install one of his own people as head of the SGC. Jack 'retired' so he could go to great lengths to restore me to my former position." Hammond paused to let this information sink in and watched as Harm started to connect the dots. "During that time, Hank Bauer ran the SGC with an iron fist… butting heads with most of the command units. Things came to a head shortly after he assumed command."

He looked Harm in the eye before continuing. "When he wanted to run a bomb test that would have wiped out an entire world and, potentially, ours, Major Carter was not very cooperative. The science was on her side and her primary motivation was the safety of the American people whose lives would have been lost. The bomb might have wiped out all of Colorado. It might have wiped out the western half of the country." Hammond explained.

"Bauer acted like he respected Sam for sticking to her guns and saving everyone but time and being further manipulated by Kinsey – this is conjecture on my part – but I believe these incidents have led to him wishing for revenge for his perceived humiliated professionally by a mere Major."

"I see."

Hammond nodded. "As for the rest, well… Colonel O'Neill's first priority is and has always been to protect his team regardless of any personal cost to himself. There have been several occasions he has willingly offered his life in exchange for theirs." Hammond sipped his lemonade. "Without asking him, I know Jack is taking responsibility for this current situation to protect Major Carter from Bauer."

"Because he loves her."

"Commander, Colonel O'Neill loves all of them. He'd do the same for Dr. Jackson, Teal'c, most of the people on the other teams, myself, Sergeant Harriman, the SFs guarding the main entry… Jack gets emotionally attached to everyone he serves with. It makes him an excellent commanding officer, but it also bites him in the ass when one of them needs his protection." Hammond admitted.

Harm let out a slow thoughtful sigh through his nose. "So, all of this is to protect his second in command."

"It is. Jack has been grooming her for command for years. An incident like this could siderail her advancement by several years. He's invested a lot of energy into her advancement and doesn't want her held back now because of a situation he tried to avoid entirely and wasn't given a viable alternative to. Jack was forced just the same as Sam was. He'd never allow her to be raped if he could ever prevent it."

"Commendable of him. Why him though and not a member of the team that would be a non-issue?"

"For that, you will need to talk to his team. They were there. I recommend Major Carter though."

"Least likely to lie?"

"Most likely to have observed the entire situation rather than its direct relation to themselves. Teal'c could tell you as well but you are unlikely to get much of an answer out of him."

"Why's that?"

Hammond chuckled a little. "Teal'c takes taciturn to new heights, Commander."

"He seemed fairly chatty with me yesterday." Harm mused.

Hammond nodded slowly. "He may consider this sufficiently important enough to do so. Once he's said what he intends to, though you won't get much more out of him."

"I'll keep that in mind. What about Dr. Jackson?"

"He'll talk your ear off if you let him." Hammond admitted. "But he's your best man for explaining the situation they were all in. He's an archeologist by trade but an anthropologist by nature."

"I'm told you've been keeping them on base." Harm said.

Hammond snorted. "I'm not about to give Bauer or his NID goons the opportunity to snatch any of them, especially not Major Carter. Even if she wasn't seven months pregnant, I would not trust them with her safety."

"That sounds like there's some history." Harm muses.

"Extensive, Commander but none of it to do with the business at hand. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go work on my putting a bit more." Hammond told him and got up.

"I'll see myself out, sir." Harm told Hammond and followed him to the back door then around the front of the house.

Jack had once asked him to buy back his soul for him one day. George supposed today was the day.

"Major Carter, do you have some time?" Harm asked the tall blond woman who was absently rubbing at her tired back while sitting on a lab stool.

She blinked at him twice as though coming back to reality from wherever she was mentally.

"What do you need, Commander Rabb?"

"I was hoping to speak to you regarding Colonel O'Neill's case."

She nods, cuts her eyes to the side thoughtfully. "Not here." She tells him and heads out of her lab with no indication that she expects anything other for him to follow her. Harm knows authority when he sees it and falls in line behind her.

She heads for the elevators and presses up. When one arrives, she motions him in and presses one of the buttons. A moment later, she presses another and the elevator stops. "You have about three minutes before Siler figures out something is wrong and another ten before he fixes it. Go." She says.

"Ah, well," Harm shake his head at her thought process. "Did Colonel O'Neill sexually assault you."

"No."

Realizing he needed to tread lightly, Harm almost asked if they had a sexual relationship prior to capture but kissing could be considered a sexual relationship. "Were you and Colonel O'Neill engaging in sex prior to the events that lead to your capture?"

She looked at him oddly as though she knew he'd asked that question in a very specific way intentionally.

"We were not."

Harm nodded. "Was Colonel O'Neill forced to engage you sexually against his will?"

"He was." Sam told him.

"Is General Bauer trying to ruin your career for personal reasons?"

"Yes, he is."

"Do you have proof?"

"I have a witness." She told him.

"Who?"

"Teal'c."

"Ah." He said. "Will you tell the truth on the stands even if Colonel O'Neill requests you don't?"

"We all will, Commander Rabb." She told him firmly, referring to her team.

"Even if it costs you your commission?"

"We didn't have any choice if we wanted to get out of there alive." She told him simply.

"Major Carter, are you all right?" Came Siler's tinny voice over the small speaker in the elevator.

"Everything's fine, Siler." She reassured him.

"All right, well, I'm going to go hit the override, Ma'am."

"Thank you, Siler." She said and gave Harm a significant look.

"If you want specifics on why we chose the actions we did, I recommend you talk to Daniel next, Commander Rabb."

"You didn't have any other choice?"

"We really didn't." The elevator rumbled back to life. "Siler will ignore the emergency stop button was pressed." She told him.

"Hammond told me O'Neill would do anything for his people, including sacrifice his life for them."

Sam nodded. "He would."

"Including sacrifice to protect his child." Harm prompted.

Sam sighed, putting a hand on her stomach. "It's not the baby. He'd have been this way regardless."

"So I hear." Harm said and ended the conversation.

"Dr. Jackson." Harm said to Daniel and put out his hand.

"I was wondering when you would get to me." Daniel said, shaking the other's man hand.

"Well, I wanted to review your brief on your imprisonment first." He gave Daniel a thoughtful look. "It's very thorough."

"That's what Jack tells me right before he starts yawning." Daniel told him. "What can I do for you ah… Commander?"

Harm nodded. "You can just call me Harm if that's easier."

"Sure. Call me Daniel."

"All right, Daniel. What can you tell me that isn't in that mission brief?"