Daughter of My Heart, Chapter Thirty-Seven
[Set during "Reckoning, Part II. Please note that with Carter working in a lab rather than in the field, there is no RepliCarter...]
Sam took the steps up to the briefing room two at a time, emerging breathlessly a moment later to find General O'Neill, Teal'c, Bra'tac, Lieutenant Hailey, and her father, all waiting for her. She frowned momentarily, wondering what had happened to Daniel.
"Have a seat, Major," the General began, uncharacteristically to the point. Sam did as instructed, nodding briefly to those around the table as she did. "Jacob?," O'Neill prompted, getting the briefing underway.
"As you may know, the Rebel Jaffa have just taken Dakara, where legend has it, a powerful Ancient weapon resides."
"I'd heard," Sam replied, nodding.
"Good. We need your help to make it work."
"Lieutenant Hailey is more than..."
"With all due respect, Ma'am, I'd feel more comfortable having your expertise on this one," Hailey interrupted.
"Me too," her dad added. "This weapon is capable of destroying all life in the galaxy. It's a Pandora's box, but with the right modifications, we think it could be re-programmed to target specific life forms, the Replicators in particular."
"I'm sorry, Major, but I'm not looking for a volunteer on this one," the General added. "This mission could mean the end of one colossal pain in our collective backsides, and I, for one, would like it to go off without a hitch."
"Yes, Sir," Sam replied awkwardly.
"You leave in twenty. Take Siler to help box up any tools or equipment you think you might need."
"Yes, Sir."
With that, the meeting was dismissed, Hailey and her dad hanging back to follow her to the lab to gather the necessary gear.
"Carter," the General said, pulling her gently to the side as everyone began to disperse, "Don't worry about Cass. Janet and I will take care of her, and you'll be back before you know it."
"Yes, Sir," she said, swallowing the feeling of dread creeping up within her. "Sir," she asked, before she could stop herself. "Where's Daniel?"
General O'Neill ran his hands roughly over his face, grudgingly meeting her eyes once more. "He's MIA," he sighed. "We suspect the replicators have him."
Sam's eyes widened in comprehension. "But, Sir, if we destroy the replicators..."
"He'll find a way, Sam. He always does."
"You can't know that for sure."
"Carter, need I remind you of the threat the replicators pose to our entire galaxy?," he asked.
"No, Sir. But..."
"But nothing. We eliminate the threat, and pray Daniel pulls another rabbit from his hat."
"Yes, Sir," Sam replied resignedly.
"Don't worry about Daniel," he said softly. "Just get that weapon online. It's what he'd want."
"Yes, Sir," she muttered dismally, turning to go.
The replicators were searching for something, but what, he wasn't sure. So far, he'd only encountered the bug forms, although with his abduction, he could only assume a human form replicator would appear at some point. That, and he was definitely being detained against his will. When he'd attempted to find an escape, the bugs had shackled him in place against a wall, surrounding him with a dozen guards lest he should move.
He'd been in nicer prisons.
"Daniel Jackson," a low voice greeted some time later. Daniel looked up, taking in the older man who stood before him.
"Who are you?," Daniel asked, sizing him up. There was nothing familiar about the man.
"I am a creation of Fifth's. I have no name."
"And why am I here?," Daniel asked, trying to buy time.
"You have information we need in order to survive."
"I do?," he asked innocently.
"You do," the replicator replied, slowly sinking his cold, metallic hand inside Daniel's mind.
Janet was waiting for Cassie when she got home. Cassie frowned, dropping her book bag.
"What happened?," she demanded, fear lacing her voice.
"Your mom was needed on a mission," Janet replied vaguely. Cassie narrowed her eyes.
"Mom doesn't go on missions anymore," she retorted, daring her friend to argue.
"They really needed her," Janet replied, shrugging apologetically. "I don't know any of the details myself, but Jack doesn't seem to think she'll be gone more than a day or two."
"And you buy that?," Cassie asked incredulously.
"Why shouldn't I?," Janet asked. "Jack's a good judge of a situation. If he says it'll be resolved in a day or two, then I believe him."
"Where's my dad? Is he on the same mission?"
"I don't know, sweetie," Janet replied, shaking her head. "I'm sure he's fine, though. No news is good news, right?"
"Yeah. Right," Cassie snorted.
"Look, why don't you grab your things. It's been a while since you've had to stay with me, I know, but we'll make it fun. You'll see."
Cassie stalked off to her room, knowing she wouldn't really have a choice. If the Air Force said 'jump', they all jumped. Even the civilian family members who just wanted a quiet evening at home, eating ice cream and watching TV.
She sighed, grabbing enough clothes for the rest of the week. What difference did it make to the Air Force that her boyfriend wanted to move across the country for school in the fall? What did they care if she didn't think she could manage a long-distance relationship while taking the courses she wanted to take?
Of all the days for her mom to be sent off-world, she really couldn't think of a worse one. Her mom would know what to do. She'd know exactly what to say. And she would totally understand binge-eating chocolate ice cream on the couch all night long.
Cassie threw herself on the bed, burying her face in her pillow as hot tears began to spill down her cheeks. This wasn't supposed to happen anymore! She was supposed to have her mom when she needed her!
There was a soft knock at her door.
"Go away," Cassie groaned, snuffling loudly into her pillow.
Janet crossed the room, sitting gently on the edge of her bed. "Hey. Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not with you," Cassie gripped, feeling a little guilty for taking it out on her friend. It wasn't Janet's fault the Air Force sucked.
Janet sighed. "Look, Cass, I know I'm not your Mom, but I'm still a friend. If there's something you need help with, I'm here for you. Always."
Fresh tears spilled into Cassie's pillow, and she didn't answer.
Janet put a hand on her back, just sitting, waiting. Cassie closed her eyes, wishing it were her Mom there, wishing everything would just be all right again.
"Well, the good news is, I think we can make it work," Sam said, having thoroughly investigated the device.
"I sense a 'but'?," her dad replied. Sam bit her lower lip.
"We may need some outside help."
"How far outside?," Jacob demanded.
"In order to hit every Stargate in this galaxy simultaneously, we need Ba'al's program for activating multiple gates at once," she confessed sheepishly.
"Ba'al?!," her dad shouted in disbelief.
Lieutenant Hailey grinned. "I never would have thought of that, but you're right, it might just work."
"Have you both lost your minds?," Jacob retorted.
"Possibly," Sam replied with a shrug. "But we don't have time to argue. If we want this to work, it's now or never."
"Fine," Jacob growled. "Lets get this over with.
If there was one thing the replicators lacked in their interrogation skills, it was finesse.
Daniel shuddered as the human form replicator once again withdrew his hand from Daniel's head, frowning.
"You are deliberately concealing the information we seek!," he snarled accusingly. "But you will ultimately fail!"
"You know, it might help if you just asked me what you're looking for," Daniel said reasonably.
"Do not taunt me, Daniel Jackson!," the replicator retorted. "I will have your knowledge, or kill you where you stand!"
Ramming his hand back inside Daniel's head, Daniel quickly shifted his focus, allowing his consciousness to trail the upheaval caused by the replicator's search. It was somewhat disconcerting to see the mess he was willing to make of Daniel's memories to find whatever information he was looking for, but Daniel pressed on, watching, waiting for some clue.
He frowned as the replicator paused over his memories of Vis Uban, as if he were close, but not quite...
Realization hit Daniel with a jolt, and he quickly pulled his conscious self away from the replicator's rampage.
He was looking for information on Ascension. The replicators wanted to Ascend.
In the end, Janet left the teen to brood in the sanctity of her own room while she perused the Carter kitchen for something to make for supper. There was no sense pressing Cassie to talk, not right now. Hell, she was worried too. She may not have clearance anymore, but she knew when trouble was afoot.
And Sam being ordered off-world definitely meant something big was brewing.
The worst part was, a part of her knew Cassie was right. As much as she may love and trust her new husband, no one could bluff quite like Jack O'Neill. And as General of the most top-secret facility in the world, there wasn't a doubt in her mind that she'd be on the receiving end of his practiced nonchalance more than once during this posting.
At least Cassie could call a spade a spade. The girl had a remarkable knack for seeing through the lies and empty platitudes a life with the military could entail. Not that that was always a good thing.
Janet was halfway through making supper when she thought to check in on Cassie.
The room was empty.
"Cassie," she called, frowning as she checked the study (empty), and knocked on the bathroom door (no answer). "Cassie," she called a little more loudly, going room to room, searching for the teen.
She was nowhere to be found.
Janet grabbed the phone from the kitchen, quickly dialing Cassie's cell number.
No answer.
Damn it!, Janet thought.
Her own cell phone rang. "Hello?," she asked, hoping beyond hope it was the teen.
"Hey gorgeous. I just wanted to let you know I won't be home tonight. I'm needed here at the base."
"Jack, Cassie's run away!," Janet chocked. "Something happened at school today, but she doesn't want to talk to me...I don't know where she would have gone!"
"Alright. Calm down. There are only so many places a seventeen year old girl will go when she's upset with everyone in her life," he replied calmly. Janet could have slapped him. "Have you checked in with her boyfriend, or any of her other friends?," he continued in that same placating tone.
"Not yet!," she retorted hotly. "I've been a little preoccupied searching the house!"
Jack sighed. "Look, sweetie, I'm sure she'll turn up. She just needs some time to cool down a bit."
"Don't you 'look sweetie' me!," Janet bit back. "This is a child we're talking about, here!"
"She'll be eighteen in just a couple months, Janet, and off to college in the fall," Jack reasoned. "She's not some distraught twelve-year-old wandering the streets without a clue. I'm sure she'll be fine until you can find her."
"Jonathan O'Neill!," she growled. "You are not leaving me alone in this!"
"I'm sorry, Janet, I really am," he said, and she could hear the resignation in his voice. "But there's really not much I can do from here. Especially with everything that's going on right now."
"Jack..."
"If you haven't tracked her down within the hour, I'll send someone to help. I promise."
"Jack!"
General O'Neill to the gateroom, the loudspeaker crackled.
"Crap. I've gotta go," he said.
"Jack, don't you dare..."
The line went dead. "Argh!," Janet screamed, glaring at the phone.
She stormed back up to Cassie's room, searching for some sort of address book. Something, anything that could help her find the teen. After a few minutes of ransacking her room, Janet finally found a slip of paper with Dominic's name and a phone number written on it.
"Oh, thank goodness," Janet breathed, grabbing her phone to dial the number.
"Hello?," answered a boy's familiar voice.
"Hi Dominic, this is Janet Frasier calling. Have you seen Cassandra at all this evening?"
"No," he answered, startled. "Is everything all right?"
Janet closed her eyes, trying to remember to breathe. "I hope so," she replied. Then, having a new thought, "Do you know if anything happened at school today that may have upset her?"
The line was silent, and for a moment, she thought the boy was gone. Then, "Um, we, uh, we sort of broke up," he admitted softly.
"What!? Why?," Janet asked, shocked.
"Well, I told her I wanted to go to this great school out east, and she freaked out because we'd be on opposite sides of the country if we both got into the schools of our choice, and then we broke up," he finished, somewhat confused. "It's not what I wanted," he added hastily. "But she didn't seem to think we could make it work long distance."
Janet silently counted to twenty, trying to calm herself down. No wonder Cassie had been so upset!
"Dominic," she said after a moment, "Do you by any chance have her best friend's phone number?"
"Uh, yeah," he said, scrabbling on the other end of the line. A moment later she had the number carefully written out.
"Thank you, Dominic," she said.
"Dr. Frasier?"
"Yes?," she answered, distracted.
"When you see her again, can you tell her...can you tell her that I'd really like to speak to her again? I just...I really don't want to end things this way."
Janet smiled in spite of herself. "I'll give her the message," she promised, hanging up to make the next call.
The replicators were everywhere. Jacob shot repeatedly at the doorway, trying to keep them out, trying to give Sam the time she needed to finish.
"Almost there!," she shouted, rapidly typing in a new sequence.
"I'm not going to be able to hold them much longer!," Jacob shouted back, taking a step backward as more replicators assailed the doorway.
Hailey grabbed her gun and stood at his side, shooting for all she was worth, knowing every second would count with the program.
Ba'al had long since abandoned the planet to rejoin his fleet, which was being decimated some several thousand kilometers above the planet's surface.
The program was nearly complete. Sam made another adjustment, praying it would work. Praying she wouldn't be the one to kill Daniel, too, when the time came.
"Sam!," Jacob yelled, as he and Hailey were forced back another three feet into the room.
"Almost!," she shouted back. One more adjustment...
The replicators froze. "What the...?," Jacob asked, breathless, looking around the smoky room.
Daniel. It was the only explanation. Her chest tight with emotion, Sam sent up a silent thanks, an I love you, a prayer for his safe return. And then, knowing there was no other choice, she activated the program.
Cassie knew of only one person who might be able to make things right again, only it was going to cost her almost everything she'd ever managed to save to get there.
Her mother would kill her when she found out, but Cassie didn't care. She'd rather have her parents alive and furious than dead and gone. She'd been that route once already, and she wasn't going through it again.
"Here you go," said the attendant, handing her the ticket in exchange for her life's savings.
"Thanks," Cassie mumbled distractedly, turning to find a seat. Forty-five minutes to wait. It could have been worse.
A few older people eyed her curiously, probably trying to decide if she was a runaway or not, but for the most part, everyone let her be. Her cell phone lit up a few times. Janet. Dominic. She really didn't want to speak to anyone.
All she wanted were her mom and dad. If anything happened to them...
If anything happened to them, she'd never speak to Uncle Jack again, she vowed. Stowing her flashing cell phone in her bag, she settled in to wait, certain they wouldn't be able to track her until she'd finished what she'd set out to do.
Daniel felt the human form replicator pause in his search, reaching out to his brethren, commanding, controlling. Daniel reached out, too, pushing past the replicator's defenses, releasing a command of his own.
Please be enough, he prayed, his focus suddenly occupied by the overwhelming task of ordering a full stop.
There was no way to know for sure how well it worked. No way to know if it would buy his friends, if it would buy Sam, enough time to escape, survive. As he struggled to maintain control, he felt the human form replicator fight his way through the command, his free hand lashing out at Daniel even as it changed, midair, into a long blade of doom.
Then everything went dark.
The gate activated along with the program, sending the code to destroy throughout the galaxy.
All the replicators in the room unfroze just in time to dissolve, their molecular bonds severed for good.
Sam had the fleeting thought that Daniel must have lost control right before the end, before she collapsed on the ground in a faint.
No one had heard from Cassie. Her friends were now all as concerned as Janet herself. Worst of all, the lines were all dead at the SGC. She could only imagine what that could mean. What Jack hadn't been telling her on the phone.
Her insides felt like they were tied in knots. Cassie may have been Sam and Daniel's daughter, but she was no less a part of Janet's life. The doctor was terrified of what might happen to her, out there on her own.
And with the SGC out of communication, she was doubly worried that everything was simply going to hell in a hand-basket today.
She couldn't stay in the house a minute longer. Leaving the food where it was, everything turned off, she went out to her car, hoping to get a visual on Cassie while driving around.
She must have a favourite spot to think, or a safe place she'd want to go, Janet reasoned. Apart from her trip to Earth from Hanka, the child really hadn't had much opportunity to travel. She must be around somewhere!
She covered the city twice that night, before pulling over to sob in frustration. Where was everyone else when she needed them? When they needed them? None of this would have happened if Cassie could just have come home to her family.
The security guard must have failed basic English, Cassie reasoned.
"I need to see General George Hammond," she stated loudly and clearly.
"I can't let you through," the security guard reiterated. "You have no id, no invitation, no standing appointment."
Cassie shrieked in frustration, grabbing her phone. "Look, I'm going to call him. You can speak to him yourself, if you'd like," she snapped, dialing the long-distance number on her cell. Just another reason for her parents to be furious.
"Hello?," came the familiar Texas drawl.
"General, it's Cassandra Carter. Could you please tell this meat-head you people have guarding the front door that I'm not some sort of terrorist, and that he needs to let me in?"
"Cassandra?," the General asked, confused.
"Yes!," she replied shortly. "I'll explain everything once I'm inside. But first you need to talk to this...this..."
"I'll be out to vouch for you in a minute," he sighed. "Can you please refrain from causing any further problems for security?"
"Alright," Cassie grumbled, hanging up. The guard was smirking at her. "Oh, what are you laughing at?," she snapped, glaring at the man. "He'll be out in a minute to vouch for me. Then we'll see who's laughing."
True to his word, General Hammond greeted her outside the Pentagon a few minutes later, nodding to the guard to let her in. With a raised eyebrow and a nod, the guard did as requested, shooting Cassandra a considering look as she stormed past.
Silently, the General led her through the long corridors and into the spacious office he called his own.
"Now," he said, sitting down behind his desk, and motioning for her to take a seat, "to what do I owe this surprise?"
"General Hammond, you know I wouldn't do this if it wasn't important...," she began, leaning on the desk to look him square in the eye. "But I'm just so sick and tired of being lied to all the time."
"Cassandra, our work is classified to protect civilians such as yourself," he began, but she glared at him.
"I'm just as classified as the rest of your work!," she snapped, reigning in her temper enough to sit up straight and stare him down. "And there is no reason why my mother, who left active duty two years ago, should have been suddenly ordered back into the fray without any other consideration."
"Cassandra," Hammond sighed patiently. "I know this must be difficult for you to understand, but Samantha Carter is one of the single most gifted minds this country has ever seen. And as long as she still wears an Air Force uniform to work everyday, her country has the right to ask her to use her talents for the greater good, no matter the cost."
"I can't accept that."
"Can you accept being over-run by Replicators? Or having all life in the galaxy wiped out by a Goa'uld? Because from my understanding, that is precisely what both your parents are out there fighting against this very instant," he retorted.
"Hailey's just as smart as mom," she answered carefully
"Lieutenant Hailey is still wet behind the ears," Hammond replied. "Like it or not, your mom is still the best person for the job."
"What if she doesn't come back?," Cassie asked, lower lip trembling.
Hammond sighed. "That is one of the hardest realities of any command. Sometimes good people don't make it back," he said softly. "That being said, I've never known Jack O'Neill to leave a man or woman behind in the line of duty. He will do everything in his power to bring both your parents home to you, every time."
A tear streaked silently down Cassie's cheek, then another. Hammond came wordlessly around the desk, pulling her up and into a huge hug.
"I know you want them to be safe," he said softly, holding her tight, "But they're out there fighting right now to make sure you stay safe. Do you understand?"
Cassie nodded, sobbing into his pristine jacket.
"Look. How about I call Doctor Frasier and let her know you're all right, and you go over to that couch over there and try to get some rest?," he said softly. "I promise I'll wake you as soon as I know anything about your parents."
"Okay," she snuffled, gratefully accepting the tissue he handed her.
Sam woke up in the infirmary, her dad hovering over her.
"Hey sweetie," he greeted tiredly, smiling.
"Dad," she croaked, searching her memory for the last thing she could remember.
"You're going to be all right," he said, scooting his chair closer. "It was just a minor blackout, possibly from the stress of the situation," he added matter-of-factly. "The doctor thinks she'll have you out of here in no time."
"Daniel."
Jacob sighed. "Still MIA."
"No," Sam croaked hoarsely. "He was on one of the replicator ships. He must have been the one to slow them down."
"Sam, we can't know that for sure."
"He would do anything to buy us the time we needed," she reasoned.
"He didn't even know what we were planning," Jacob replied in turn. "He might still be out there. We have to believe..."
"Dad."
"Sam. Don't beat yourself up, kid. Like it or not, you just saved our galaxy."
"At Daniel's expense"
"Look, I'll admit it's a possibility," he sighed. "But Daniel is devoted to you and Cass one-hundred and ten percent. If there's a way back, he'll find it."
"What if there's not? What if this time, it's for good?"
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Jacob replied softly. "In the meantime, I want you to believe."
"Why?," she asked, despair filling her voice.
"Because you're worth it. Because you deserve all the happiness this life can offer. Because he loves you, and you love him, and that's something no one can ever take away from you. Do you understand?"
"What do I tell Cassie?," she asked.
"MIA means we haven't given up hope," he answered sincerely. "That's what we tell her. We haven't given up hope."
Hammond replaced the receiver, relief warring with grief at the news. The replicator threat had been neutralized once and for all, and talks were open between the new Jaffa nation and Earth, negotiating for the destruction of the Ancient weapon. Moreover, Sam Carter had made it home safe. But Doctor Jackson, stubborn, pain-in-the-ass genius that he was, had been declared MIA.
He glanced over to the teenager sleeping on his office's tiny couch, a girl not so unlike his own granddaughters.
He'd made a promise to her, but right then, he didn't really want to keep it. She looked so peaceful, her earlier tears dried, curled up under the relative warmth of his large uniform jacket. The last thing he wanted to do was wake her to tell her that one of her worst fears had come true: one of her parents wouldn't be coming home tonight.
A knock at the door distracted him.
"Lieutenant Colonel Cameron Mitchell, reporting as ordered, Sir," the man saluted smartly.
"At ease, Son," General Hammond replied. The younger officer complied.
"I take it you've recovered enough to be interested in your next assignment," Hammond stated, a small smile curling his lips.
"Yes, Sir."
"Good to hear. You'll be heading to Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado Springs, where you will undergo six weeks of training prior to reporting to your supervising officer."
"Yes, Sir," Mitchell said, standing a little taller.
Hammond grinned, an idea suddenly striking him. "You'll also be escorting a young woman back to the mountain," he added, glancing ever so slightly to where Cassandra slept.
"A young woman, Sir?," the Colonel questioned.
"The daughter of two very good friends of mine," he conceded. "I believe it will be in everyone's best interest if we can keep close tabs on her for the journey home."
"Yes, Sir," Mitchell replied, somewhat uneasy.
"Relax, son. She's a good kid, just a little head-strong. I owe it to her parents to make sure she gets home in one piece."
"Sir, I was planning on driving."
Hammond winced. Twenty-five hours in a car with an unhappy teenager would not be a pleasant introduction to the SGC. But it really couldn't be helped. He was needed at the Pentagon, and there was no way he was sending her back across the country on her own. One trip was more than enough.
"I'll make sure you're fully reimbursed for any food or lodgings required along the way."
"Yes, Sir," the man replied, barely masking his reluctance.
"Can you have your gear together within the hour?," Hammond asked.
"Yes, Sir."
"Good. Then I'll let the SGC know to expect the two of you sometime late tomorrow."
"Ah, Sir? If I may..."
Hammond motioned for him to continue.
"Wouldn't she be more comfortable travelling with someone she knows?"
"Son, all things considered, you're the best option I've got. I'll have her up and ready to move out in one hour. Her mother will be anxious to have her home."
"Yes, Sir." And with one final salute, the man turned and left.
One dilemma down. One to go.
Moving over to where Cassandra slept, he gently shook her awake.
"Mom?," she mumbled.
"Not quite," Hammond smiled. "But your mother is safely back at the SGC."
"And dad?," she asked, sitting up. Hammond closed his eyes.
"Daniel Jackson has been declared Missing in Action," he replied carefully. Her eyes went large with fright, and he hastened to continue. "That in no way means he is presumed dead. His team lost track of him during the fight with the replicators. We hope that he will be able to find a means to return home."
"How did they lose track of him? What happened?," she asked.
Hammond sighed. "I don't have the full report. But with any luck, by the time you get back to base, he'll be there too."
Cassandra frowned. "I never thought about getting back," she confessed softly. "I used all my money to get here..."
"That's all been taken care of," Hammond replied with a smile. "Lieutenant Colonel Mitchell is scheduled to ship out this morning for training at the SGC," he explained. "You'll be travelling home with him."
"You trust him?," she asked cautiously.
"He was one of the F302 pilots in Antarctica covering Doctor Jackson and the rest of SG-1 while they searched for the Ancient outpost," he replied with a grin. "I have it on good authority he'd do anything to help an SGC team, without much consideration for himself."
"But I'm not an SGC team," she replied.
"No. But as the daughter of Major Carter and Doctor Jackson, and the surrogate niece of General O'Neill, I think I can trust him to get you home safe."
"Does mom know I'm here, yet?," she asked softly. He shook his head. "No, as far as she's concerned, you're still safely at home with Doctor Frasier. After what she's been through the past couple of days, we saw no reason to worry her further."
"Is Janet very mad?," she asked next.
"You gave her quite the scare," he replied honestly. "I suggest you spend the trip home coming up with a good way to apologize for running off without so much as a note goodbye. In the meantime, I'll have some breakfast brought in for you."
"General?"
"Yes?"
"I'm really sorry," she said.
"I know you are," he sighed. "And believe it or not, we all know how hard it is for you, having both your parents out in the unknown. We all have loved ones out there, too," he reminded. "You just need to trust that things will work out the way they're meant to. If it hadn't been for your parents going through the Stargate, you never would have come to us in the first place. And Cassandra, having seen the way you've shaped the lives around you, I can't do anything but believe that that was exactly as it should have been."
"Thank you, General," she said, surprising him by hugging him tight.
"Anytime, sweetheart. Just maybe call first before dropping by next time, okay?"
"Okay," she promised, gently letting go.