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Detective Hawkins walked into the conference room the military had taken over while they searched for Sheppard and his wife. O'Neill and Ronon looked up.
"Anything new?" O'Neill asked hopefully.
"They finally got in touch with the clerk who was on duty last night at the time that your people were at the store. She said they both came in, got the few things they needed, paid for their stuff and left. She remembered that the guy was teasing the woman about all the snack stuff she needed but she said they never spoke with anyone else in the store."
"Does she remember anyone else coming in around that time and leaving before buying anything?" Ronon questioned.
Hawkins shook his head. "She said they were the only ones in the store at the time. She remembered them specifically because she said she thought they were so cute. Apparently Sheppard kept asking his wife's stomach if the baby wanted anything also."
Hawkins then held up a disc. "The store manager did give me the security tape for that time. It won't show where Sheppard's car was but it does show right outside the door of the convenience store. Maybe we'll get lucky and see something."
"Did anyone call David Sheppard yet and let him know what happened?" Carson asked from across the room. "John and Teyla were supposed to fly back and pick up wee Torren just about now."
"Yeah, I called him a few hours ago," Sam acknowledged. "He wanted to fly right up but I convinced him he should stay with Julia and Torren. Julia's only got a few more weeks until her baby is due and honestly until we know what and who we're dealing with, I don't want Torren unprotected. Dave understood and said he'd take extra precautions."
"And I'm guessing since we haven't gotten any ransom demands that this has nothing to do with John being David Sheppard's brother," Jack surmised.
Equipment was rolled in and the disc was inserted. The others in the room continued to scroll through data on the laptops that had been provided. Radek had all sorts of programs running trying to figure out where they could possibly have gone. O'Neill was checking on recent Trust activities that might have gone wrong. Carson was analyzing the findings he'd gotten on what was in the darts and how it would effect a pregnant woman. Everyone was helping in some way but all were frustrated that there were no clues as to who had actually taken them.
"How long should we wait until we tell Jennifer and Dr. McKay?" Marie asked from her spot in the corner. "You know they'll be upset if we don't tell them."
"I think we should give it a little more time," Sam suggested. "Their plane barely touched down and they should have at least a little bit of a honeymoon before we go ruining it for them. And maybe we'll get a lucky break soon. Someone has got to have seen something."
"My men are still combing the area and doing interviews with residents of that section of town." Hawkins consulted his notepad. "So far we have a few people who said there may have been a white paneled van parked in the lot for a little while but no one actually saw what happened. They're still working on it though. If someone saw something, we'll find out."
Silence resumed in the room and all you could hear were the clicks of computer keys and the occasional sigh.
"Woah, look at this," Dusty called out pointing to the screen she was looking at. "It's a white paneled van and you can see it passing by the front of the store. It's barely a minute after the Colonel and Teyla walked out. Can't be coincidence."
"Radek, can you zoom in on that?" Sam asked the physicist. "It almost looks like you can see his face as he drives by."
Radek stepped over and Dusty jumped out of the chair to let him sit. He tapped away at a few keys and the image blew up and he ran it back and forward until they saw a man look both ways before he drove away and in doing so looked right in the direction of the camera. He pressed a few more keys to clarify the picture.
An audible gasp arose from the crowd assembled. Hawkins looked puzzled at the group. "I take it it's someone you all know."
The eyes that all gazed at him were a mixture of fury, surprise and fear. O'Neill was the one to reply.
"That's Colonel … or maybe I should say ex-Colonel Jeffrey Armstrong. And he's got a strong dislike of Sheppard and Teyla."
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Armstrong's hands raised high with the knife and swiftly lowered toward her. Teyla heard the cry that was torn from her lungs and terror slashed through her as surely as the knife was about to. She twisted and turned furiously knowing it would do no good as her hands and feet were still securely tied to the bed posts.
John's voice thundered across the distance and Teyla could feel his fear wash over her. She closed her eyes waiting for the pain … but none came. A thud and gust of air blew on her left side and she opened her eyes to see the knife handle sticking out of the mattress mere inches from where she had been lying.
Intense relief flowed through her, though she knew the danger was far from over. She attempted to control the sobs that shook her body at the close call then gazed toward John whose breath also came in short choppy waves. His eyes were tortured and she could feel relief intermingled with horror at what could have happened.
Armstrong just stared down at her and an evil cackle escaped from between his lips. More laughter came and he looked around the room and his eyes settled on John who was attempting to get control over his fear and anger.
"Did you think I would end it that easily, Colonel Sheppard?" he sneered and then snickered some more. "Now what would be the fun in that? I've been living in a dump eating cereal every day trying to stay hidden from big brutes I owe money to. Over eight months I've been in hell and I've spent every minute of that time thinking how I could make your life as miserable as mine."
He pulled the knife from the mattress and put it up against Teyla's neck. She held her breath and could feel John waiting anxiously for what the maniac would do. Then she felt John's emotions shift and she knew he was desperate.
"Armstrong, please, "John begged softly, his voice gruff and filled with emotion. "Let her go. You can do anything you want with me, torture me all you want, just let her go. Untie her and let her walk out that door. It looks like we're in the woods so it could take her a while to actually find any people and in that time you can do whatever you want."
Teyla heard her husband's words and could feel that he truly meant them. But she had always known that John would do anything for her, give his life for hers. And she would do the same. But right now she could feel John's thoughts in her head and she knew he was pleading with her not to fight him on this. She needed to save their child and if he needed to give up his life for them both, he would. She had known that since their discussion on board the Daedalus when they were traveling to rescue Ronon.
It did not make it any easier to accept though. And as she looked into Armstrong's craze filled eyes, she did not think he would accept John's suggestion anyway.
He pressed the knife harder against Teyla's throat and she gasped at the pain; hers as well as John's. She felt a trickle of what must be blood drip down the side of her neck and closed her eyes to send John as much love and strength as she could. But then the pressure eased and the Marine backed away.
He took a few steps closer to John and smirked. "Sure, I'll untie her … but not until I've had my fun. And believe me I haven't even started yet. That's one of the reasons I brought her along. I knew that causing her pain would cause you pain. Killing either one of you right now would be too quick. You don't deserve to have it quick and easy. I want to see you suffer."
With that, Armstrong punched John one more time then kicked over his chair again and walked back to the door where he had left a few bags. He picked them up and carried them to the small counter across the room. John saw him pull out a case of beer and throw that and some other items in the mini refrigerator.
"You had a few hundred dollars in your wallet. I hope you don't mind that I borrowed it. I figured you wouldn't be needing it any time soon." Armstrong gave an evil chuckle and finished, "In fact I don't think you'll be needing it at all."
He turned back, grabbed one of the beers and what looked like a box of chicken and moved to the upholstered chair that was facing the fireplace. He sat down, put his feet up on the foot rest and began to eat, paying no attention to John and Teyla at all.
John lifted his head and saw Teyla still twisting and turning trying to get her hands undone. He could sense her panic and wanted to assure her everything would be all right. But he really couldn't do that. He didn't think everything would be all right.
He knew they'd been gone a while and Ronon would be frantic wondering what had happened to them. But he didn't know if Armstrong had left any clues or exactly how much evidence there was that he was the one who had them. And then even if they did know it was Armstrong, he wasn't sure precisely where they were and if this cabin belonged to the Marine. He didn't think so as the man had said he'd been living in a dump. Not that this place was great but if he owned it he could have sold it to get some cash.
"Teyla," John breathed out softly trying to get her attention without Armstrong noticing. She looked down at him and he tried not to wince as the chair dug into his arm from his weight. He took a few deep breaths and sent her as much love and comfort as he could. He then directed it at the baby too. He knew his little girl had been confused by all the emotions her parents had raging through them the last hour.
Teyla felt what he was doing and joined in with her own comfort and love. She felt the child settle inside her and gazed gratefully at her husband. It was just like him to think of others before himself. And she could still sense his thoughts, that they must protect the baby at all costs. Even if it meant sacrificing his life. Teyla couldn't disagree but the pain she felt at the thought of a life without John Sheppard was too great and terrifying.
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"This is taking too long!" Ronon roared as they sifted through information with very little results. "We need to get out there and find Sheppard and Teyla."
"Yes, Ronon, we do," Amelia tried to calm him. "But it won't help them at all to just run around blind. For right now, this," and she pointed to the dozen people sitting around computers, "is how we're going to find them. You have to be patient. Once we know where they are, then you can rush in, guns blazing and rescue them."
Ronon gritted his teeth and pulled Amelia close to him. There were a few surprised faces but he just glared at them until they looked away. He hated feeling useless and he knew he didn't have as much skill in using these computers as everyone else in this room. And it had been far too long that Sheppard and Teyla had been missing, especially if they had been taken last night. It was now late afternoon and there had been no new information except they now knew it had been Armstrong who had been responsible.
"Well, satellite in orbit has confirmed that the Colonel and Teyla are still within a hundred mile radius," Zalenka announced looking up briefly from his laptop. "Unfortunately it can't give us a closer estimate than that. Now if we had the Daedalus or the Apollo …"
His thought just drifted off as they all knew that would solve the problem right away. They could just beam them aboard once they located their transmitters.
Sam sighed. "We've already contacted the Apollo to see if they could make it back any faster but Colonel Ellis says they're already traveling at maximum speed. Five days is the quickest they can get here. I'm hoping we'll have found them by then."
"What else have we got?" O'Neill asked the room in general.
"They found where Armstrong rented the van from but the address he gave them is fake and he hasn't returned it yet," Teldy added.
"We've got APB's out for the van and have distributed pictures of Armstrong as well as Sheppard and his wife to all law enforcement agencies," Hawkins put in. "If they're out there moving, we're on the lookout."
"I just spoke with Mitchell and Teal'c," Jack informed them. "They're checking out the last address we have for Armstrong. It's some crummy dive but the landlord said he hadn't seen him for a few weeks. Mitchell and Teal'c will see if there's anything there that might point us in the right direction."
"Sir," Dusty called out. "I was finally able to get the Colonel's phone records. They're right here. He made a good number of phone calls in the last month or so. We should probably check them out."
Amelia reluctantly released Ronon and moved to the computer she had been working at. "Print those up and divide them. This could be what we're looking for. He had to have made arrangements for wherever he decided to take them."
Teldy grabbed the sheets as they came out of the printer and handed them around. She hoped something in there would lead them to her CO and friend. "Let's go!"
The room fell silent again, all except the sound of keys clicking away. Teldy just hoped that time wasn't ticking away for their friends as well.
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John's right arm had completely gone numb from the pressure of the chair against it. He had tried rocking the chair to get it to move but every time he made any kind of noise, Armstrong would come over and kick him a few times and yell at him to stop moving. Then he would get another beer and sit back down again.
John wasn't sure what his deal was now. He guessed just making the two of them sweat and worry. He was grateful at least that Teyla was resting on the bed. The position he was in was not one that would have been good for her. Not that it was good for him. His bruises had bruises and they hurt like hell.
As it was he knew Teyla had to be hungry and thirsty as they both hadn't had any food since the wedding yesterday. And she was probably dying to use the bathroom. Her bladder wasn't quite what it used to be. But he hadn't felt any extreme discomfort from her, mostly still the fear and anxiety of wondering when Armstrong would do something else.
But the man hadn't been doing much other than drinking and eating. And John worried about him drinking so much. Would it make him even more unbalanced or just put him to sleep? He was really hoping for the latter.
John watched as Armstrong got up and moved to the refrigerator again. The man tossed his old can in the trash and grabbed yet another. But then he glanced over to where John was still lying on his side cuffed to the chair and a nasty smile lit his face. He started walking in his direction and John could tell it wouldn't be good just by the look on his face.
The Marine stopped right in front of John and gazed at him curiously for a few seconds then his foot lashed out and John caught it right in the gut. If he had any food in his stomach he knew he would have retched.
Armstrong leaned down and John could smell the alcohol on his breath. "You're pathetic, you know that Sheppard. I thought you were this big hero and here you are, can't even escape from a few handcuffs."
John wanted to throw back at him that he wasn't freakin' Houdini but figured silence truly was golden in this moment. The last thing he needed to do was rile the man up even more. He had been fairly passive over the last few hours, well all except the kicks he'd kept giving him. But he had left Teyla untouched. He didn't want that to change.
Unfortunately the man's eyes left John and traveled to Teyla who now had blood dripping down her arms from the ropes that had cut deeply into her skin. Then he traveled over and sat down next to her on the mattress.
"You know if you weren't a freakin' alien I might want to have a little fun with you myself and see what all the hoo-ha is about."
He got up and lifted John's chair back upright and made sure he was facing the bed. "But I'd want your husband here to get a nice bird's eye view if I did that."
John stifled the groan that left his mouth at finally having the chair lifted off his arm and growled at the ex-Colonel. "Armstrong," John reminded him, "you said yourself that she's an alien and shouldn't be with us humans."
John emphasized the word and hoped Teyla would understand what he was doing and wouldn't take offense. But right now he honestly couldn't worry about that. He didn't want the man touching Teyla in any way.
But Armstrong did go back and sit next to her again and lifted his hand to run down the side of her neck to her shoulder then up her arm to where the rope bound her to the bed. John gritted his teeth but kept his mouth shut. Maybe the man would realize that he was caressing an alien and stop.
No such luck.
"Such soft skin," he commented and leered at Teyla and bent down closer to her face. "Do all the men tell you that? Is that how you rope them in and get them to do your bidding?"
John could tell Teyla was disgusted but she was trying not to cringe too much. But as Armstrong's hand moved up to her throat and then lowered to the V of her neckline, she attempted to pull away.
"Get your hands off her, Armstrong," John yelled viciously. "You said we shouldn't interact with aliens so why are you doing it?"
Armstrong lifted one eyebrow and grinned at John. "And we shouldn't but I am wondering if she's like regular Earth women. I think I might find out."
His fingers pulled at Teyla's top and moved it lower so he could gaze at her rounded breasts. John started a frenzy of twisting and rocking attempting to loosen the chair up even more. It had taken a bit of a beating each time Armstrong had kicked it to the floor.
"Get your slimy hands off her you bastard!" John yelled as Armstrong continued to check out Teyla's chest. After a few more obscenities from John he finally got up and snatched a rag from a side table and stuffed it in John's mouth and tied it tightly behind his head.
"That should keep you quiet awhile." And he walked back to the bed. "I wonder if they feel as good as they look. Do they, Colonel?" he sneered at John then leered at Teyla as his hands groped her heaving chest.
Teyla struggled wildly and John howled through his gag. He kept rocking the chair back and forth and could feel the joints weakening. But it wouldn't help him at all unless he could completely break the chair. It was the only way to get the handcuffs off the rungs.
Armstrong ran his hands down Teyla's side and then her cloth covered legs and smirked again. "You know I am truly wondering now what it's like to fuck an alien. Is it good, Sheppard? Better than an Earth whore? Is that why you did it? Maybe I'll have to see for myself." And his hands moved to the top of her pants.
Teyla screamed and twisted and Armstrong hit her across the face yelling, "Shut up, bitch! I'll do whatever I want with you!"
But as his hands slid under her waistband his disdain for her condition showed through and he got to his feet and scowled.
"Nope, can't do it!" he growled and walked a few feet away. "Especially not with that half-breed, mutant hybrid she has growing inside her. You know, Sheppard, that is truly an atrocity. You are aware that I can't allow that to continue, right."
John tried yelling again but the gag muffled any words that he attempted. His heart beat so rapidly he thought it might shoot right out of his chest. He could feel Teyla's fear and disgust at what Armstrong had been saying and doing but now her horror multiplied by what he had just insinuated.
He pulled on the cuffs again but they simply cut further into his already torn and bleeding skin. There was no budging them. Then Armstrong got up, picked up the long hunting knife that he had cut Teyla with earlier and knelt so he was straddling her legs.
When he positioned the knife on Teyla's abdomen John honestly thought he would lose his lunch if he had actually had any. Fear and terror and horror streaked through him as Armstrong traced the knife around the bump in Teyla mid-section. John could feel Teyla's fear and it stoked his higher. Or maybe his was stoking hers higher.
"So this is the part where I make sure this country is safe from any alien entities trying to infiltrate our race. This interbreeding," he waved the knife around and pointed to the baby, "cannot be tolerated and must be removed."
John began rocking the chair even more ferociously as he saw Armstrong lean slowly into the knife and saw it pierce Teyla's skin.
Teyla screamed and John felt her agony, both physical and emotional. Armstrong simply laughed.
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"I think we've got something," O'Neill yelled to the group in the conference room as he closed his cell phone. "Seems one of those numbers he called was an old buddy of his. This guy claims Armstrong asked if he could use his hunting cabin for a few weeks. The place is only about an hour from here."
Ronon jumped up from his seat and headed for the door. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
O'Neill showed the location to Hawkins and the man nodded. "We have a few SUV's that are ready to go now. Myself and one of my men can drive so that leaves six seats open for your people."
O'Neill looked around the room and knew immediately those spots would be taken up by the military in the room. But then he looked at Carson who had a determined look on his face.
"General," Carson spoke up. "I know I don't have as much training in rescue as some of these people but I think having a doctor along would be wise."
O'Neill thought of Armstrong and how long their people had been in his custody. He only hoped that they'd still be alive to need a doctor. He'd seen the man after his trial and he had been batty as a fruitcake, wailing about the incursion of aliens we were encouraging and how it needed to stop.
"Okay, Doc, you're in. Carter, Teldy, Mehra and yes, Ronon, let's go."
Carson insisted he get his medical bag out of the rental car that they had thrown all their suitcases into once they'd checked out of the hotel. Weapons were dispatched to the others while Ronon quickly dug through his bag and pulled out his gun, thankful he had smuggled it here. He had been told he wouldn't need it, but he knew it was always a good idea to have it. Now he was glad he did.
But Armstrong was gonna regret it, especially if he had hurt either one of his friends.
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