Chapter seven

The streets of Tok'ona were crowded with revelers celebrating the three year anniversary of the settling of Egeria, as well as the beginning of the newly established government. People from Earth had been invited too, and for many it was a reunion as well.

Jack and Sam hadn't seen Retired General George Hammond since their wedding almost ten months ago, and they were very glad he had been able to come. Even Jacob Carter had managed to clear his schedule long enough to attend.

"Well, Jack...Sam...you've done me proud. But then I knew you would," George told them. They thought it was odd to see him in civvies, but they were glad he seemed to be enjoying his life outside of the Air Force. Jacob stood there beaming with pride at his daughter and son-in-law. George was really glad to see that his old friend had finally buried the hatchet between him and Jack. There had been many times when Hammond thought that Jacob would drive the two apart. So he was very relieved to see that Jack and Jacob seemed to be getting along just fine now.

"Thank you, Sir. We couldn't have done it without you...or without most of these good folks," Jack said, as he indicated the myriad of people on the stage and below it with the sweep of one large hand.

They were currently standing on a stage that had been set up just for the occasion, and where just minutes ago the current President of the United States, a seemingly likable man named Robert Kinsey, had completed his celebratory speech. There had also been speeches by General Wm. Reynolds, the CO of the Tauri military forces on Egeria; the newly elected Mayor of Tok'ona, Malek of Jarosh; and by Lt. Col. Samantha O'Neill, who had just been elected as Vice-Mayor of Tok'ona.

Much to Jack's dismay, Sam had gone on in length to describe all of the accomplishments of her team of scientists and of the Army Corps of Engineers, who had built every structure on the planet, including a huge airport, a hydro-electric dam, and a wind-powered electric plant larger than any on Earth. Her speech had been quite long, causing Jack to doze off a time or two.

And there had also been a speech from Jack as the first commanding officer of the settlement, although he had kept his remarks much shorter than the other speakers. Jack was really not a man of words, but that fact was well known.

"Let's go get something to drink, George," Jack suggested as everyone headed for the stairs. "I don't know about you, but I could really use something to wet my whistle." George smiled and patted Jack on the shoulder as they made their way down off the stage.

Sam, retired Generals Hammond and O'Neill, and General Reynolds had just said their good-byes to the President, when an excited and very pregnant Janet Frasier-Jackson came running up to the four of them.

"Sam! Jack! Oh, hi Generals! Will you please excuse us, Sirs? Sam, Jack, can I have a minute alone with you," she huffed, obviously out of breath. Daniel had sailed up beside her and grabbed her elbow.

"Honey, slow down! You don't really want to have our baby here on Egeria, do you?" he asked in exasperation, as he hung on to the arm of his wife.

"I'm fine, Daniel. I really need to talk to you two. Come with me," she urged as she grabbed Sam by the arm. Daniel hung on to Janet and Jack did his best to keep up as they weaved in and out of the crowd. Finally they were standing under a tree next to the hospital and away from the throng of people.

"Janet, I didn't even think you'd be here! What on earth is so important?" Sam asked her friend. Sam hadn't really expected to see Janet there because her baby was due any day...or more like any minute. And now here she was running around like a chicken with her head cut off!

"I simply had to tell you this in person. It's Mellie!"

"What! Is she hurt? What's wrong?" Jack almost yelled the words as he grabbed Sam's hand. Sam and Jack had left twenty-six-month old Mellie and eight-month-old Anna Rose O'Neill in the day care center. Was Janet trying to say she'd had some sort of accident?

"No, no, she's fine! I just have to tell you something that's gonna be quite a shock. I know it was to us!" Daniel and Janet were both looking at them in the strangest way, but there was definitely a smile playing at their lips.

"Okay, Janet. Tell us! For cryin' out loud, woman, SPEAK!" Jack did yell this time, and Janet imagined she saw steam coming out of his ears.

"Maybe they should sit down first," Daniel suggested. That was the final straw for Jack, who grabbed Daniel's shirt collar and almost picked him up off the ground by it.

"I swear, Daniel, if one of you doesn't tell us right now, I'm gonna..." Sam and Janet both pulled on Jack's arms, as Janet shouted her news.

"Jack, let go! You're Mellie's father!" Janet looked from Sam's face to Jack's and back again, as Jack released Daniel's shirt from his grip. It was clear by their confused looks that they hadn't quite gotten the message.

"When I was going over some of the blood work-ups that were in the most recent computer update, I noticed that Malinda's blood does not contain any naquada...none at all. As you know, all human-Tok'ra offspring have a small amount of the mineral in their blood, but Mellie doesn't have any! That's when I decided to compare her blood with Anna's."

Jack just stood there with his mouth hanging open, but as usual Sam had questions.

"So when we thought Malinda was early, she really wasn't?" Janet nodded frantically. "So even though I had my period, I was already pregnant?" Janet nodded again. "Then Jack has to be her father!"

"That's what I'm trying to tell you! Mellie and Anna have the same biological parents!" Janet said, jumping up and down. Daniel put his hands on her shoulders, trying to put an end to his wife's bouncing about. She might not care, but he wanted her to have this baby on Earth! ...or at the very least, inside a hospital and not out here in the town square!

"That means they're both ours? As in mine and Sam's?" Jack asked, a look that said the information was finally registering inside his slowly functioning brain.

Sam just nodded. She was too choked up to speak. Jack pulled her into his arms and held her for what Daniel and Janet thought seemed like forever. But they didn't mind; they knew what good news this was, and they were just glad to be the ones to tell them.

When the two finally separated, they turned to their friends and Jack spoke first, which kind of surprised them all.

"Thank you, Janet. I take back all those awful things I said about you being a Napoleonic power monger! You're the best doctor ever! If it wasn't for you, I would never had known I was Mellie's real father!" he shouted, and then he bent down and kissed Janet on the mouth. Then Sam hugged Janet, and Jack hugged Daniel, albeit quickly. Daniel was shocked to see tears in Jack's eyes.

"Thank you...for everything," Sam said quietly, tears streaming down her face. "I think we need to go see our girls now." Janet and Daniel nodded and let them go, watching as the two walked hand-in-hand over to the newly completed school building, where their daughters were being watched by volunteer marines and airmen from Earth.

Daniel hustled his wife as quickly as she could waddle, directly to the stargate, where they gated home.

Right before entering the building, Jack pulled Sam around to face him. He needed to say something in private, and he needed to say it right now.

"Sam, I always loved her...even when I didn't know the truth. I want you to believe that," he said softly.

"I believe you, Jack. And I treasure you even more because you are the kind of man who could love someone else's child. You're very special, you know." And then she kissed him...not a passionate kiss, but one that told him just how much she loved and respected him as a person.

"Sam, I know I haven't told you this in so many words, but I forgive you for turning to Martouf. I was being really selfish and stupid, and I know that now. But if I ever do anything that stupid again, I hope you won't look elsewhere for something I'm not. I know that it would be easy to find someone better than me, but I really don't want to lose you, Sam. I know I can be hard to live with, honey, but I love you more than I even thought it was possible to love someone."

"I know you do, Jack. Thank you for telling me how you feel. But you don't have to worry, honey. I don't intend to leave you for anyone else. If you do anything stupid again, I'll just handcuff you to the bed and beat you senseless with that whip you bought me, until you see things my way," she said with a seductive grin.

He had just ordered the whip recently from on on-line, sex toy company, and he'd been eager to have her try it out. But Sam hadn't seemed very interested in it, so the fact that she'd mentioned it had shot an urgent message straight to his groin. And the message said "Get her home right now, you fool!"

"Let's go say 'hello' to the girls, and then how about if we go home for a while by ourselves?" he suggested, as he held open the door to the school. Sam gave him a smirk as she entered ahead of him.

"What do you have in mind, Jack?" she asked him.

"I think we should celebrate our good fortune. ...maybe with those things I ordered from ," he suggested, as he reached out and pinched her ass. Sam swiped his hand away just as they got to the door of the nursery school classroom, where many of the town's children were being cared for, while their parents celebrated.

"Jack, behave! We'll say 'hello' to our daughters, and then I'm gonna make you pay for being such a naughty boy," she hissed. Jack's little general jerked a salute and then settled down to wait patiently.

TBC