Chapter 8 – Disquieting News

Despite the windows being closed, Daniel was still very cold as the night passed, but the idea of putting a blanket over his back was more than he could stand. Even a sheet would be too painful. Morning came and a guard brought food. Daniel had just managed to get himself up to go to the bathroom, but he looked at the plate of food without interest and went back to lie down on the bed. It was sausage and eggs and greasy fried potatoes, and at the moment it turned Daniel's stomach.

"You need to eat," said the guard, and Daniel recognized Gregor's voice.

"I'm really not hungry this morning," he replied without looking up. He clutched a pillow to his chest to elevate his head slightly. "Would you mind taking it away, actually? The smell is making me feel sick."

Gregor came over and squatted by the head of the bed. "Do you think you could get some broth down or something like that?"

"I'd rather not talk about it, if it's all the same to you," Daniel said, grimacing. "Look, Gregor, I'm serious, I really don't want anything to eat."

The other man rested a hand on Daniel's head for a moment. "All right, Daniel," he said. "I will take the food away, but you must eat lunch."

"We'll see."

Gregor left, taking the tray and the smell of sausage and grease away with him. Within a half hour, though, he'd returned with a space heater and got it set up. Then he started running water and Daniel closed his eyes. He didn't want to face the pain of having the whip scores washed again, but he didn't want an infection any more than they did.

Once again, Gregor was very gentle. There hadn't been the slightest hint that Daniel's insane surmise of the previous evening had been correct. Gregor hadn't made the smallest noise that sounded like interest. Daniel began to believe that he was simply paranoid.

When he was done, Gregor cleaned up after himself walked towards the door. As he passed the head of the bed, he dropped a small book in front of Daniel. He didn't stop, he didn't make any kind of a production out of it, he simply dropped it, as if by accident, then went out the door.

Daniel blinked at the slim red volume, then shifted so that he could pick it up. It was in French. He flipped it open and looked at the first pages. It was a novel that was printed in very small font, so it was longer than it looked at first glance. Daniel heard footsteps outside the room and hastily tucked the book under the pillow.

The door opened and two people walked in, Lizaveta and a guard he thought was Piotr. He really didn't want to be lying down in front of them, so he started to get up. Before he moved very far, Piotr moved forward and put a hand on the back of his neck, pushing him back down. "Stay where you are," he said.

Daniel reluctantly relaxed so that he was still lying on his stomach and listened as Lizaveta moved around the room. Piotr released his head and stepped back out of sight and Daniel turned just enough to be able to see where they were. Piotr was by the table, and Daniel heard the chair moving against the floor. Lizaveta was completely out of sight which made Daniel decidedly nervous. He turned back. Twisting wasn't gaining him much, and it was painful.

"Do you not think, as I do, Dr. Jackson, that your government should never have let things get this far?" she asked from behind him. He didn't immediately reply, and she placed a hand on his back just above the highest whip cut. He stiffened. "I asked you a question," she said softly, then her hand moved lower on his back, sending agony through him. He started to turn, to try and shift the vulnerable portion of his body out of her reach, but the pressure she placed on him when he did that made him gasp with pain.

"I think you're a nutcase," Daniel ground out.

"I do not understand your loyalty to people who wouldn't do anything to get you out of this position."

"You wouldn't," he replied.

"Perhaps you can explain it to me?" she asked

"What would be the point?" he demanded.

"Do you like pain?" she asked, pressing her hand against his back again. He let out a grunt. "It is foolish to refuse to answer."

Daniel grimaced. "Fine. I wouldn't be loyal to them if they would do anything to get me back. There are things that are wrong, and I wouldn't want anyone to do them on my behalf."

"That makes no sense."

"I said you wouldn't understand," he said, knowing he was pressing his luck but unable to stop himself.

"Perhaps a few more days will suffice to persuade you to do some work for us," she said, pressing on his back as she got up. He groaned, unable to stop himself. She walked away, and he heard water running, then she left the room. Daniel was uncomfortably aware that Piotr hadn't left.

There was silence for several moments, and then Piotr spoke. "I hope you do not think that you can use Gregor's infatuation with you as a means of escape," he said.

"What are you talking about?" Daniel asked, his heart sinking.

Piotr pulled the chair further up towards the head of the bed so that he could meet Daniel's eyes. "You are a more perceptive man than that, Dr. Jackson." Daniel swallowed uncomfortably. So he wasn't being paranoid. "I plan to keep a very close watch on Gregor. He may find you bewitching, but if he even thinks about helping you to get away, I will kill him."

"I think you must be misinterpreting his behavior," Daniel said, choosing to appear obtuse instead of acknowledging that he'd seen what Piotr was referring to.

Piotr shrugged. "Pretend if you like, Dr. Jackson. And hope that he doesn't get impatient."

With that, the other man got up and left the room. Daniel let his forehead thump against the bed. This just kept getting better and better. One thing he did note, Piotr had said nothing about Gregor while Lizaveta was in the room. He wasn't sure how he could use that information, but he filed it away for future reference.

After awhile, he remembered the book and pulled it out nervously. He didn't know what Piotr or Lizaveta would do if they found it, to him or to Gregor. For all he knew, Piotr already knew about it. He sighed. Gregor had seemed a pleasant enough fellow. Probably Piotr had just been trying to alarm him with his remark about impatience.

Daniel opened the book and started reading. French existential novels were not his cup of tea, but it was thought that originated outside himself, and as such it was exceptionally welcome. When footsteps announced the arrival of his lunch, Daniel shut the book hastily and tucked it under the pillow.

The guard who delivered lunch was blessedly silent and didn't touch him. He just handed across the plate of sandwiches and soda, thoughtfully provided with a straw so Daniel didn't have to sit up. Then he left again. Daniel ate and then put the plate on the floor beside the bed. Pulling the book back out, he started reading again.

Trips to the bathroom were less than pleasant with his back a mass of aching, bloody welts. He was on his way back to the bed when he heard footsteps outside the door again. Darkness outside combined with the rumbling in his gut suggested it was dinner time. The door opened and a single guard came in with a box of medical supplies.

"How are you feeling, Daniel?" Gregor asked.

Daniel bit his lip and took a deep breath. "I'm in pain," he said after a moment. "No dinner yet?"

"I wanted to make sure how the cuts were healing, and see if I could bandage you yet."

"Ah."

"So, if you could just sit down . . ." Gregor got him situated how he wanted him, and Daniel was uncomfortably aware of his own suspicions and Piotr's outright allegations every time the other man put his hands on his bare torso.

"I think we can bandage this, though it may prove uncomfortable." Gregor put his hands on Daniel's shoulders, and his fingers stroked back and forth along the skin. "It's up to you."

"Which do you recommend?" Daniel asked.

"Well, comely as you are topless, I think you would be happier with a shirt on, and you won't be able to wear one without bandages."

Daniel blinked, very glad that Gregor couldn't see his face. "Right," he said. "Well, let's go with the bandages, then."

It involved much winding of long strips of cotton, and though Gregor did nothing inappropriate during the process, the fear that he might kept Daniel on edge. When the bandaging was done, Gregor helped him into a t-shirt and a long-sleeved overshirt. The guard sat down as Daniel finished buttoning the shirt up.

"So, are you enjoying the book?" he asked.

"I've started it for a second time through," Daniel said.

"I wondered," Gregor said. He stood up and went over to the bed, then glanced at Daniel.

"Under the pillow."

Gregor nodded, lifted the pillow, pulled another book out of his shirt and made a quick swap. "I can't bring more than one at a time for fear they'll notice something, but I'll try to make sure you have things to read. Now, I'd better fetch your dinner." Daniel remained sitting upright while he waited. It was nice not to be flat on a bed. There wasn't much he could do to defend himself in this position, but being flat on his face on a bed made him feel incredibly vulnerable.

Gregor returned with his dinner and lingered while Daniel ate. "Tell me," he said after a few minutes, "do you like working with the American military?"

Daniel chewed on the stuffed chicken breast, thankful that the food in his mouth gave him an excuse not to respond immediately. When he had swallowed, he said, "I really don't think I can answer that question."

"I am not Lizaveta. I will not try to use it against you, and I won't tell her."

Daniel shook his head. "That's not the point, Gregor," he said. "You're being very kind, but I still have to . . ." He ran out of words. Uncertain how to express himself without giving offense, he grimaced. "I'm sorry."

"I should probably go. If I spend too much time up here, the others will ask questions."

Daniel nodded and Gregor left. This was all getting far too complicated, and the repeated punishments they'd inflicted on him had rendered him incapable of even attempting escape should the opportunity present itself.

He had no way of understanding the socio-political interactions of the group that was holding him. For all he knew, this was a ploy to get Gregor in a position where Daniel would talk to him. He couldn't – shouldn't – trust any of them. He had very little impression of personality from any of them besides Gregor and Piotr, which actually made him trust those two less. Why were they setting themselves apart from the rest, seeking his notice? Was there some goal, some 'good cop / bad cop' manipulation going on with the two of them? Or maybe 'bad cop / worse cop.'

Had they actually sent the video tape of his flogging to the States? Did Jack know about it yet? Had Sumner and the others been sent home? Daniel hated this waiting, but since asking questions could give away information, he thought it wise to avoid it. Ordinarily, he'd try to engage in some sort of dialogue with his captors, but this situation was different. First, he found Lizaveta so thoroughly revolting that he didn't think he could be civil to her. Second, most of the time when he was being held prisoner, it was by people with a markedly different cultural viewpoint. They weren't from Earth, and so had limited points of reference with which to interpret his words. They also were unlikely to be able to apply whatever they might learn.

Russia might be a different country, but it was still Earth, so neither of those situations applied. And in this particular case, with them actively seeking information from him, he had to be even more careful. Jack had to be out there somewhere. Daniel put his head in his hands. There had to be some way he could help them find him.

Unfortunately, he couldn't think of any.

This book was a thriller, also in French. It made Daniel wonder if Gregor was raiding some little-used portion of the house library. It was odd and vaguely amusing to be reading about a young woman being held prisoner by a ruthless madman in a castle out in the middle of nowhere. That was where the similarity ended. He very much doubted that he was going to be rescued by a handsome young suitor, unless Gregor counted.

He hid the book under the mattress and lay down to sleep.

Gregor woke him in the morning and removed the bandages. He cleaned the wounds, and Daniel controlled his reactions, both pain and disquietude. After re-wrapping his chest so that his torso resembled that of a b-movie version of a mummy, Gregor stood and said, "We'll be coming for you in an hour or so. Lizaveta wants to talk to you again."

Daniel closed his eyes. "Thanks for the warning."

"Just don't act like you know, please?" Gregor said. "I'm not supposed to tell you."

"Of course not," Daniel said. "Thank you."

Gregor smiled and touched his shoulder. "I will have to be rougher then, please understand."

"I do," Daniel said. Gregor nodded and left, and Daniel stared blindly through the window. What did Lizaveta want with him now? Surely there could be no more punishments for awhile, and he didn't want to think too hard about what the next one might be. So far the strictly physical attacks had escalated steadily. First a beating, then electric shocks, and now flogging. What would come next? Branding irons?

Jack got notice that Teal'c would be arriving in the morning, so he sent Feretti's team out with their native guides and sent Carter out with Captain Myers and Lt. Antonov. They were, at this point, mostly getting nothing much, but hope springs eternal.

When they'd gone, he sat down at the desk to write a lack of progress report for General Hammond. It took longer than he'd expected. Just writing 'we're getting bloody nowhere' seemed insufficient. He was deep in an explanation of the dearth of information they'd gained at Metzov's apartment when the phone rang. He reached out and picked it up.

"Sir, we've got a definite lead on where the boyfriend is," Carter said. "We've run across an old friend of Lizaveta Metzov, so we're getting some good information, and I thought maybe you'd like to take Teal'c and meet with Vasilii Borodin."

"That sounds good, but then we don't have a translator."

"Borodin teaches English at a university," she replied. "I don't think there'll be a problem."

"No, that should cover it," Jack said. "Where?"

"In Novgorod, so you may need to get someone to fly you over, but our guide called to check and see if he was still teaching there, and he is."

"I'll get on it."

He hung up and then dialed his contact in the Russian military immediately. There was a knock on the door. He walked over, opened the door, saw Teal'c and gestured for him to come in, leaving him to close the door. When he had finagled a chopper for them to get to the western city, he hung and turned around.

To his surprise, Teal'c was not alone. Colonel Sumner was with him, and he looked less than certain of his reception. "The medicos release you?" Jack asked diffidently.

"They did, sir," Sumner said. "I asked General Hammond if I could come along to help retrieve Dr. Jackson and he gave me permission."

Jack nodded. "Well, you're more than welcome. Have you both seen the latest ransom demand?"

Teal'c nodded gravely, looking murderous. The intimidation factor would be there, Jack was glad to see. The only question was whether he'd be able to channel it properly.

"That was part of what inspired me to come, sir," Sumner said, his eyes narrowed. "They sent Jones and Harvester stateside on the plane that brought Teal'c, so it was a good time for me to come."

"Good, well we're on a chopper in about fifty minutes, so let's get the two of you checked in." Within ninety minutes, they were in the air on their way to Novgorod. He filled the two of them in on their mission on the way.

"How will we speak with the man we are going to see, O'Neill?" Teal'c asked curiously. "If he does not speak your language."

"He teaches English," Jack said. "Presumably that means he can communicate using it, though one never knows, I suppose."

After that, they were silent, three men thinking dark thoughts. At least, Jack's thoughts were dark, and he guessed by the expressions of the other two that they weren't thinking about bunnies and kittens. He leaned back against the side of the chopper and contemplated exactly what he'd like to do to the man who had so thoroughly whipped his best friend for no good reason.

By the time they landed in Novgorod, the powers that be had located Professor Borodin for them and had arranged for a meeting at the local police station. Jack wasn't altogether sure that he appreciated having the first contact with the man taken out of his hands like that, but it was water under the dam . . . or over the bridge . . . or something.

Their driver took them to the police station where the military officer who'd been sent to locate Borodin was waiting. He led them into an interrogation room where a dark-haired man in his mid-thirties was pacing impatiently. When they entered, he looked up with some surprise. Teal'c was wearing slacks, a shirt, and a hat pulled low over his forehead, but both Jack and Sumner were wearing their undress blues. Their status as foreign military officers wasn't precisely subtle.

Borodin said something in Russian, and Jack felt his lips tighten. Rudeness never impressed him unless it was calculated for effect.

"This is a matter of national security," said Gubinov, the Russian officer. "These men are here from America and they have some questions for you. Your government would appreciate your complete cooperation on this matter."

Borodin looked uneasily at Jack and then at Teal'c and Sumner, both of whom were radiating hostility. Jack smiled. "My name is Colonel Jack O'Neill, of the United States Air Force."

"I am Dr. Vasilii Borodin. How can I help you?"

"Let's sit down," Jack said, gesturing with his head towards the table. Borodin gave them all another uneasy look, but he walked over to the table and sat down opposite Jack. Sumner took the seat beside Jack and Teal'c remained standing. Looming.

Gubinov took a look at the dynamics and sat down on Borodin's side of the table.

"All right," Jack said, "we're looking into one Vladislav Metzov." Borodin's eyes widened. "I take it you know the gentleman?"

"I would not call him a gentleman," Borodin said darkly. "Why do you want to know about him?"

Jack pursed his lips. "As a result of a number of classified events – classified in both our countries, mind you – he has managed to abduct a non-military member of my command. A colleague of yours, if I'm not mistaken. You are a doctor of language?"

"Linguistics," Borodin said, nodding.

"Yes, Daniel has a doctorate in linguistics, as well as one in anthropology and another in archeology." Borodin's eyes widened. Jack gave the man a charming, disarming grin. "He's a bit of an overachiever." He didn't have to be the scary one this time, not with Sumner just about glowing with his willingness to do damage. Teal'c's presence alone was enough to get questions answered.

"Why would Metzov want such a man?" Borodin asked. "And what is he doing attached to a military command?"

"That's not important, what is important is that we're beginning to think his daughter might be involved, and we have information that you and she were dating at one time."

"We were engaged," Borodin corrected. "But her father was the end of that."

"Really?"

"Da. When I met her, she hadn't seen her father in nearly fifteen years. Her parents had an unpleasant divorce, and he seemed not to be interested in a young daughter. Then, about a year after we got engaged, her mother died and her father came to the funeral. Lizaveta changed practically overnight. She'd always been a bit . . . aggressive." He shrugged. "But once she started spending time with her father, she seemed to want to be more like him, and he was not a pleasant individual. I had dinner at his apartment several times, and he was very rude to me. He seemed to think that the only people of any worth were soldiers. Lizaveta started echoing his opinions, then she announced one day that academics had neither honor nor courage and she couldn't marry a man without such traits."

"Sounds charming," Jack said.

Borodin shook his head. "After she changed so much, after she left, I began to realize that it wasn't so much a change as an opening up of her real nature. She'd always shown signs of flexible morals and a streak of cruelty, but I'd chosen to overlook them in my . . ." He shrugged again. "Love is supposed to be a form of insanity, is it not?"

Jack blinked. "I suppose so," he said. "Look, if I played you a recording of a voice, could you tell me if it was hers or not?"

"I am sure that I could."

Before Jack could even ask the question, Gubinov said, "What sort of a player do you need?"

"A laptop, probably. It's a video."

"Well, surely you have a picture of her," Borodin said. "If she's on a video –"

Jack's smile tightened. "Her voice is on the video, she's not."

Gubinov left the room and Jack sat back. "So, can you give me any idea of where they might have taken our friend?"

Borodin shook his head. "Nowhere specific. She did mention, shortly after she first started spending time with her father, when I was still worth talking to, that he'd taken her to some kind of place up in the north that he owned. He'd bought it with money he'd gotten from some kind of shady government deal. That's what she said, at any rate, with a glee that disturbed me."

"We haven't found that he owns any property," Jack said.

"Assuming it was true to begin with, he might not own it in his own name."

Jack nodded slowly. There were people in the Russian government investigating that, but he thought he'd just mention this to Hammond so that he could maybe get some of their folks looking into it. Gubinov returned with a laptop and Jack turned it to face himself. No need for these guys to see the attack on Daniel. He popped the disk in and it started up. He fast forwarded to the end and turned up the volume so that the woman's voice was more audible.

"You should take action now, and not waste this man's valuable intellect, loyalty and self-sacrifice," she said, and Jack could almost hear Teal'c's teeth grinding.

He looked up and Borodin was nodding. "That's her."

"Is there anything else you can tell us?"

"Only that she has something of an attitude towards academics. You said he's not a military man?"

"He a very stubborn civilian," Jack said, sighing.

"Very stubborn," Teal'c agreed.

"She will have no respect for him, then," Borodin said. "And nor will her father. I do think he believes that academics are . . . what did he call them? 'Weak and without honor.'"

"That would not be an accurate description of DanielJackson," Teal'c observed dispassionately.

"So, no more information than some kind of facility in the north?"

Borodin pursed his lips. "She said it was within ten miles of a village, and I think she said it had been a fortress in the past, a military fortress. In a forest."

This was sounding promising. "If you think of anything else . . ." He trailed off, suddenly unsure what to tell the man to do.

Gubinov chimed in smoothly. "Call me," he said, handing Borodin his card. "Tell them it's to do with Dr. Jackson and they'll get –"

"Dr. Daniel Jackson?" Borodin exclaimed, eyes widening as he looked about at all of them in apparent surprise. "I'm sorry, it took a moment to sink in. He is the one who is missing? But I know him!"

Jack blinked. "You know Daniel?"

Borodin nodded earnestly. "Indeed. There were problems with my hotel reservations in Stockholm during the International Symposium on Linguistics and Culture Studies and he very kindly shared his room with me."

Jack took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Yeah, that's Daniel, all right."

"He seemed very knowledgeable, and I was surprised that he was not more widely published. I have watched for his name since, but I still do not find his works published very often."

"Most of his work is classified," Jack said. He considered that for a moment, then pursed his lips thoughtfully. "And the fact that it's classified is also classified, now that I think of it."

Borodin blinked. "I see."

"In any case, yes, it's Daniel that's missing."

"What is she doing to him?"

Jack grimaced. "I think that's probably classified as well," he said. "Thank you Dr. Borodin, you've been a great help."

"I wish it could be more. I hope you find him soon."

In the chopper on their way back to Moscow, Sumner said, "Does Jackson make friends everywhere he goes?"

"Nope," Jack said, leaning back against the wall of the chopper. "People like Metzov and his crazy daughter see him as a challenge."

"Where is Colonel Metzov?" Teal'c asked.

"That is the question," Jack replied.

"No, I believe you have misunderstood me. The woman on the tape sounds most authoritative, not as if she is getting instructions from another, and the strategy makes little sense, as if someone inexperienced were making the decisions."

"We know Metzov has him," Sumner said, shaking his head.

"Pardon me for contradicting you, Colonel Sumner, but we know only that he took DanielJackson from the cell in the Russian stargate command. We have no way of knowing if he put him in another's custody after that."

Sumner blinked and sat back, looking thoughtful.

"Maybe you're right, Teal'c," Jack said. "I've been thinking as I read through what they gave me of Metzov's file that this was a pretty amateurish operation for him to have been managing it."

"Why would he hand someone as important as Dr. Jackson to an inexperienced operative?" Sumner asked.

"According to Dr. Borodin, he does not have much respect for men like DanielJackson. He thinks they are weak, and no doubt that they are easily controlled. It is possible that he thought a strong enough show of force would cause DanielJackson to cavern."

"The word is 'cave,' Teal'c."

"Indeed?" Teal'c said, tilting his head.

Sumner ignored the byplay. "So he might have thought that his daughter could handle a 'weak academic.'"

"Whereas she is unprepared for a man of DanielJackson's stubbornness and convictions."

Jack sighed. "Someone with flexible morals may have difficulty grasping that other people's are less flexible. And Daniel probably has the least flexible morals of anyone I know."

"True enough," Sumner said.

"At least now we have something of a new direction to look in. North. Trees. Village with old military stronghold within ten or so miles. How many places in this vast country could that describe?"

"Several hundred?" Sumner replied with a sour grin.

"At the very least." Jack tilted his hand down over his eyes. "I think I'll take a nap."