AU: When an exploration mission goes way off the left field, Jack and Sam are left to patch up their lives. Will that door stay open?
Disclaimer: All recognisable characters are the property of MGM/Amazon. No copyright infringement intended. I am once again taking my favourite two Gaters for a walk in an Alternate Universe. Takes place after 5.05 Red Sky with some canon episodes skipped (overlooked) and others referenced.
Rating: Mature.
Chapter 36: Subversion
Thursday morning - Janet (fits in towards the end of Chapter 35)
"Janet, have you done the thing yet?" Daniel asked gesturing the act of drawing blood with his thumb and two fore fingers, well at least I think that was what it was supposed to be.
"Have I shot myself up with…" I returned with a smirk.
"No." He huffed, putting his hands on his hips in a mimic of what I had been doing with the insufferable Colonel O'Neill for over a week now. "You know what I mean." He jokingly admonished. It surprised me that he was capable of making jokes after his ordeal with the Colonel. No matter how hard I tried, I could not stop staring at the bruised welt wrapping around one side and the front of his neck. Yet he seemed completely unfazed by its presence.
"Yeah." I couldn't help but to laugh, "But your little gesture was more like what a druggie would do rather than a medical professional trained in phlebotomy." I responded, holding Sam's medical file to my chest.
The results were ready, in fact I had been on my way to the lab when Daniel accosted me. No matter how much he meant to me, Sam's results were private to everyone except General Hammond and Colonel O'Neill, though I strongly suspected that the Colonel already knew which is why he lashed out at Daniel the way he did. I couldn't think of any other catalyst than Daniel's decision to be the father of record. He was lucky that Teal'c was prepared otherwise things could have ended very differently.
"So?" He pressed. Clearly, he really wanted to know if he was going to be an honorary father. He had been bugging me about Stephanie's response to my request for a UTI litmus all morning. Once I revealed what I had decided to look for in my latest round of blood tests, he had not stopped asking, even while bedridden.
"Yes, Daniel, its done. No, the results are not back and no, I'm not telling you anything when they do come back." The white lie rolling off my tongue with ease, backed up with the use of my doctor face.
"But Janet!" He hissed out his complaint.
"No, Doctor."
"Fine." He relented, "I'm going to see Sam."
As he turned to stalk off, I called out, "You can't. MacKenzie had you all banned, remember?" He looked resigned, but didn't say anything. I knew he was hurting like the rest of the team. SG-1 were such a close team, which is probably why Sam and the Colonel suffered from more chit-chat at water coolers than any other unisex teams. Well, that and they were madly in love with each other. "Perhaps you should try and patch things up with the Colonel? He's in the gym, well at least I hope his is." I suggested.
"Yeah, sure." He responded glumly, then turned back towards the elevators presumably to get changed.
"Hey!" I called out. He stopped and looked over his shoulder. "We are working on getting her back. You can see her then. I promise." He nodded and tried to smile. I knew he was worried. We all were. "Oh, and remind the Colonel that once his muscle spasms have stopped, he needs to present for his routine medical." I added. There was no point trying this morning since some of the tests were strength and stamina based and he wouldn't have been able to do them. Daniel merely huffed, which made me laugh a little. I knew it would be a cold day in hell when Jack submitted for a routine medical without General Hammond having to order him to attend. With the General technically still on leave and Jack in charge, I doubted he would be gracing us with his presence anytime soon. He would no doubt wait until General Hammond ordered him or I threatened to pull his active-duty status, something I was prepared to do if necessary.
Originally, I had not planned on being here until tomorrow, but when Stephanie called me last night and informed me of MacKenzie's diagnosis, my time off was quickly cancelled. Cassie understood. As soon as I told her what was going on, she insisted I come and stop it from happening. My confrontation with MacKenzie at the hospital had the whole ward talking. Seeing Sam so out of it had fuelled my anger and I placed a call to General Hammond only to discover that Stephanie had already called him, that was when I found out about the Colonel's attack on Daniel. The General was already on base and putting calls into the General in charge of the Academy hospital wing requesting Sam be transferred back to the SGC. If I had been here, the transfer would never have happened, because I would not have signed off on having her moved. Daniel had been right about James and William, but there was no point in dwelling on that now. Turning on my heel, I headed towards the lab.
We had been running tests on Sam's blood for two weeks now, but everything kept coming back inconclusive despite testing HCG and estrogen levels, so I decided to add a different element to the mix this time. We knew that Jaffa and hosts received protein markers and Naquadah from their symbiotes. Since Colonel O'Neill's download a few years ago, we had noted an anomaly in his blood not unlike Sam's Naquadah. So far, we had not been able to identify it, however given the child was Jack's, there was a chance that Sam now carried the same anomaly. It wasn't a hard and fast solution, however if Sam had this same anomaly in her blood, we could reasonably assume that her sickness, and volatile hormones, maybe even some of her mood swings were attributable to a pregnancy rather than the now healed head injury. Failing that, we could attempt an ultrasound, though not much would be visible since she could not be more than four or five weeks along.
Walking into the lab, I greeted our newest addition. "Good afternoon, Lauren." She was a young Second Lieutenant straight out of the Academy with a very promising future. As a lab technician, she had been given limited clearance since she would see all sorts of weird and wonderful things turning up in test samples.
"Doctor Fraiser, I want to say again how happy I am to be here. My brother insists this is the best possible posting." She chuffed with an enthusiasm I remembered having as a young officer.
"Your brother?" I queried, looking through the files in the completed reports tray.
"Yeah, he's the one that put a good word in for me. He's a Lieutenant Colonel at the Pentagon working as a liaison to the Joint Chiefs and Congress." She smiled, clearly impressed with her brother's achievement. Good for her. Smiling at the young woman, I turned back and continued checking the folders.
"Where are Major Carter's results?" I asked since I could not see them in the tray.
"Oh. I have them here, Ma'am." She jumped up to grab the file from the top of the fax machine. Opening it up, I scanned the information. Sure enough, Sam had the same blood anomaly, though not as strong as the Colonel along with her Naquadah and protein marker. As well as that, her HCG was finally reading in the high 600's, which was almost four times what it had been last time we tested and on par with a pregnancy of five weeks. Likewise, her estrogen levels had skyrocketed. As to why none of those had shown in previous tests, well, I had no idea. There was no disputing it now. Sam was pregnant and the presence of that additional marker meant the baby was Colonel O'Neill's, though hopefully no one else would bother looking for the only thing that could prove paternity at this early stage.
"Thanks Lauren. Your rush on this is greatly appreciated." I told her, motioning to the file in my hands. She beamed at me. I smiled back at her enthusiasm. "Keep up the good work and you'll go a long way." I encouraged before turning and leaving the room.
Walking down the corridor, I was almost back to my office when it occurred to me that Sam's file had been in an unusual location. The fax machine. Why would her file be sitting on top of the fax machine? Then it occurred to me that Lauren was Second Lieutenant Samuels.
"Oh, my God." I exclaimed out loud much to the astonishment of Lieutenant Nicolls who had just come out of medical storage. "Stephanie, summon the General – Stat! Medical lab three." I ordered before turning and running back the way I came.
Walking back into the lab, I found Second Lieutenant Samuels on the phone. The clack clack of my heels alerted her to my presence, and she hung up the phone without saying goodbye.
"Who was that?" I demanded.
"Umm, no one... Ma'am." She responded, adding the honorific as a afterthought while a sheepish look crossed her face.
"Don't play coy with me!" I barked, causing her to flinch. "Who did you send this to?" I demanded, waving the file in front of her face. "Answer me, Lieutenant!"
She swallowed and looked nervous. "I… I don't know. I was given a number and ordered to send any medical test results for SG-1 and then ring this number." She shakily handed a piece of scrap paper to me, dropping it before I could grasp it. Catching the paper before it fluttered to the ground, there was no name, only a phone number scrawled in blue ink.
I opened my eyes wide and gritted my teeth, "You shared highly classified, sensitive medical information without prior approval from the SGC Base Commander?"
She started hyperventilating when I finished my tirade. "Oh my God, oh my God. Yes. I was ordered." She nervously confessed, clearly showing distress at her actions. "I was ordered. He said it was important."
"Who ordered you to do this, Lauren?" I asked in a calmer, though still edgy voice. This was a major breach of privacy. We knew SG-1 and the SGC had internal enemies. General Hammond and Colonel O'Neill had cleaned house a few years ago, but we were always on the lookout. Clearly, they had stooped to grooming young officers to do their dirty work.
"Ah, a General Kennedy, Ma'am." She said shakily. Closing my eyes, I cursed. Kennedy was a newly minted Brigadier General working with the NID alongside the indominable Colonel Frank Simmons. Kennedy had been a Colonel last time I saw him. The same Colonel who, with then Major Bert Samuels and Colonel Maybourne, wanted to experiment on Teal'c.
"I'm sorry, oh God. I didn't know. The General said he oversaw the SGC." She explained.
"You spoke directly to General Kennedy?"
"Well, no. Colonel Simmons told me when he handed me my orders, Ma'am."
"Were these additional orders in writing Lieutenant?" I asked. She shook her head and put her hand to her chest. I could see her starting to shake.
The sound of two sets of feet, one in combat boots and another in high shines thundered down the corridor. "What is the meaning of this, Doctor Fraiser?" The General asked me as soon as he entered with Colonel O'Neill hot on his heels.
"We have a breach of security, Sir." I informed him, looking back at a very nervous, very distraught young airman. Unfortunately, such a breach of information and subversion of the chain of command was an offence punishable by dishonourable discharge. "Second Lieutenant Samuels received orders from…"
"Samuels!" Colonel O'Neill barked taking a menacing step toward her, making the young girl flinch and tear up. I didn't blame her. Being on the end of Colonel O'Neill's dissatisfaction was not a fun place to be, especially not at the moment. It was anyone's guess as to whether we would see restrained professional O'Neill or psychotic choke the life out of someone O'Neill.
"Sir, please. She received a set of orders from General Kennedy. Verbal orders. Delivered to her from Colonel Frank Simmons." I explained to the General and Colonel O'Neill. The General looked at Lauren with exasperation, his face turning red. Colonel O'Neill looked ready to tear strips off her.
"My office. Now." General Hammond said, motioning to all of us. I looked at the young Lieutenant, her pallor as white as a sheet.
"Lauren." I said shaking her shoulder. She turned her head slowly, her eyes were dull and unresponsive when I shone my light at her pupils. "Lauren." She swallowed convulsively and fluttered her eyes as she sank to the ground. Grabbing a waste paper bin, I managed to get it up to her face in time for her to be sick. "Sir! Call the infirmary! She's in shock." I ordered the Colonel. Despite his look of derision, he picked up the phone and requested assistance.
Moments later, Lieutenant's Fisher and Nicolls were on site along with two of our orderlies. We lifted her onto a gurney and watched as they led her down to the main infirmary.
"Considering the circumstances, Sir…" I started.
"Let Warner handle it; we have another fire to put out. Colonel, you handle the Lieutenant." General Hammond said, giving me a significant look. That could only mean something with Sam that he did not want Colonel O'Neill to know about.
"Sir, don't you think…" Jack started.
"Colonel. We have a leak, one who is not aware that she is a leak. We need it plugged. Preferably without them knowing." The General explained. "Try not to injure the girl, Colonel." He ground out.
"Yes, Sir." The Colonel responded with gritted teeth. He was not happy which suddenly made me concerned for Lieutenant Samuels, especially after his dealings with Daniel yesterday.
"Relax Janet, I won't go..." He waved his hand in a faint gesture that I assumed to mean off the rails. "Promise." He added, then smiled.
"Doctor." General Hammond motioned for me to join him. I nodded and we walked in silence to the elevator. When we arrived, he hit the button and picked up the emergency phone. "Sergeant, find Teal'c, send him to the infirmary." He ordered then looked at me as he hung up. Nothing further was said until we entered his office. "Take a seat Doctor." He offered while he eased himself into his own seat.
"Sir…" He held his finger up and picked up the phone. I tentatively took one of the chairs and waited for him to finish.
"Security." I heard Dave say down the phone.
"Colonel Dixon. Review the CCTV footage from medical lab three. Report as much information as you can find on every facsimile sent within the last seventy-two hours by Second Lieutenant Lauren Samuels. I need numbers, dates, times and if possible locations."
"Yes, Sir."
"Thank you." He replied, then hung up. "You were saying Doctor."
"Sir, I don't think Lieutenant Samuels is aware what she has done." At least, I hoped she didn't because selecting her had been my choice. I firmly believed everyone deserved to be judged on their own merits, not those of their family. Sam had taught me that, never allowing her relationship to Major General Carter to direct her career in anyway, even when he offered her assistance.
"Doctor, Lieutenant Samuels is an Academy graduate. She is well aware that sharing of information with external parties is a breach. She acted on verbal orders from a superior officer not in her chain of command. An officer who isn't affiliated with the SGC." He explained calmly. Unfortunately, he was right. What Lauren had done amounted to gross negligence regardless of however unknowingly she did it.
"Yes, Sir."
"What information did she send?" He asked.
"Major Carter's test results, Sir. She's pregnant. Between four and five weeks is my best guess." I confirmed, handing over the file.
"You are sure this time?" He asked, flipping open the file and reading the single page outlining the different hormone levels we had been tracking since she returned injured. "What is this?" He asked, pointing at the last line on the report that was simply referred 'Paraprotein of Undetermined Significance'.
"Sir, that is an additional protein present in Major Carter's blood, over and above her Naquadah and the protein marker left by Jolinar. We believe it is coming from the foetus." I explained, folding my hands in my lap. He looked at me slowly and nodded with a heavy sigh. The General was an intelligent man, so I did not have to tell him that it matched the protein found in the Colonel's blood after his brush with the Ancient Repository of Knowledge.
"Have you told either of them?"
"No, Sir. Though Sam has known for at least a week." I replied with a tired sigh. "Major Carter has gone out of her way over the last six days to conceal her condition, to the point of recruiting Doctor Jackson and Teal'c to assist with keeping it quiet. I can safely assume that after the events of last week, she did not wish anyone else to be informed of her condition." I explained, being careful to not name drop who that anyone else was.
"Doctor, after the events of yesterday, I think it is safe to assume that they know." The General said with an earnest stare. "Why on Earth Doctor Jackson thought it would be a good idea to claim the child as his, I will never know." He continued as he closed the file and placed it in his top drawer.
"What are you going to do, Sir?" I asked the tired looking man in front of me. He sighed heavily and looked out of his window. I watched as he moved his hand to under the desk, then saw out of the corner of my eye the red light stop blinking. Ah, so we were going into off the record territory.
"We are in a bind, Doctor. The mission reports elude to the fact that Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter, whilst under the influence of alien technology, may have engaged in sexual intercourse. Major Carter is pregnant, and her medical results have been leaked outside the SGC. Now Doctor Jackson is claiming that child as his. You can see the problem this presents." He outlined for me.
"Oh, I see." I replied softly. That was a problem. I had read the reports, well report because neither Teal'c's nor Daniel's mentioned anything of that nature. The Colonel's, however, did, though his words were incredibly vague which left them up to interpretation. That could be a good thing, or a very bad thing. "Considering the vagueness of the report, would it not be prudent to go with the Doctor Jackson as the father version?" I asked, ignoring the stab in my chest at having to share my man with anyone.
"There's a big problem with that. Jack is not likely to accept it. Either way, I am going to reassign Major Carter to another department until her pregnancy is complete. Unfortunately, the option of returning to an off-world team may no longer be available. You know as well as I do the stance the Air Force has regarding primary parents of children on frontline teams." The General stated wearily. "It will be all I can do to prevent a court martial, especially after Colonel O'Neill's attempt on Doctor Jackson's life was caught on camera."
"Yes, but I firmly believe that the real Colonel would not have done that. The effect of the alien technology has been documented." I stated, hoping that that 'alien influence' would fly this time. Surely that excuse was wearing thin by now, especially after the multiple incidents involving SG team members who were high as a kite on various forms of alien juice or technology, the General included, I felt we were a very small dog barking up and very tall tree.
He smiled ruefully, "I don't think so, Doctor. Probably more like lots of favours and the 'they've saved the Earth a few times' line. Right now, our immediate task is to get Major Carter's diagnosis overturned. Doctor Warner and Colonel Reynolds' witness statements have been taken and Colonel Dixon's team is reviewing the CCTV for visual evidence of the second O'Neill." He confirmed, then came to his feet. "With any luck we can prove extenuating circumstances which will hopefully avoid a court martial and enable the Major to stay at the SGC, but out of Colonel O'Neill's chain of command. Dismissed."
"Thank you, Sir." I replied, coming to my feet, and backing out the door. The last thing I heard as I closed the General's office door was him praying to 'all that was holy' that Jack and Sam did not put him in an early grave.