When he saw the bruising on Sam's face, Jack's stomach dropped.

He'd been too late. And it had taken every ounce of strength to not end Knight right then and there. To not skewer the blade through his heart and call it a day.

But as much as he hated to admit it, she was right. If they killed him, they'd be running forever. And although there was a part of Jack that longed to have her all to himself, somewhere far, far away from the SGC, he knew it wouldn't be fair to her.

It took a herculean effort to let her go; already missing the delicious warmth of her body against his. Their reunion had ended far too quickly for his liking, and even though he loved Teal'c like a brother, he still felt an undeniable twinge of jealousy when he was forced to pass her off to him.

Now he was pacing, twirling the knife absentmindedly as he determined a course of action.

It was his internal clock that finally got him moving. The authorities were sure to be enroute after their not so quiet rescue, which meant, he didn't have a whole lot of time to get his point across.

Squatting down, Jack canted his head and admired his handiwork. After they'd been zatted, he had drilled a knee into Knight's face to ensure he stayed unconscious while he took care of Sam. And could tell by the awkward angle and drying blood that his nose was broken. Good.

Now, time to wake him up.

Jack reached out and sunk the tip of the knife's blade into muscle neighboring Knight's clavicle. As expected, Knight's eyes fluttered open and widened, his face twisting painfully. "Ah!"

As he cried out, his body shrunk down and away as he palmed the site of new wound; meeting Jack's icy stare.

A flip of the blade and Jack had the flat edge of it pressed under Knight's chin, applying upward pressure. "Up."

"Okay, okay…" The words came tumbling out as Knight pushed his palms against the paneling to obey the command. Wincing as he straightened, he muttered a curse as his hands cupped loosely around his nose.

"You don't want to do this Colonel." Sniffing, the clogged inhale made his eyes water as he pinched them closed from the pain. "Fuck, I think you broke it."

"There no thinking about it. And yet, I'm still not satisfied."

When Knight's eyes opened, he dropped his arms to his sides and Jack could hear the anger in his voice as he lifted his chin defiantly. "I hope you realize what will happen if you kill me. My clients will be very upset. And what you and Major Carter went through this time…" He waved a hand, "will look like a fucking picnic compared to what you'll be up against. The bounty on your heads will attract mercenaries from around the world."

Jack's eyes narrowed as he spun the blade and tightened his grip. "You know, I'm starting to think it would be worth the risk if it means I wouldn't have to listen to your smarmy, self-righteous ass ever again."

There was a tight intake of air as Knight's eyes followed the movement of the knife. Jack watched as his eyes jogged to Monty's body still lying in a puddle of blood behind him. Putting a hand up, he swallowed hard. "Listen, all I'm saying is…you let me go and I can make this all go away."

When Jack didn't respond, Knight's anger flared again. "Come on Colonel, let's not pretend you're even thinking twice about my offer. I've read your file; I know who you are. So how about you just say yes, and we'll put this whole thing to bed."

Jack did his best to mask the irritation and growing malice in his voice. "So, you think you know me?"

"Yes, I do." Knight smirked confidently.

Forcing his grip to loosen on the knife, Jack nodded and pursed his lips. It was time to take this to another level. One that a guy like Knight would understand.

Allowing his tightened muscles to relax, Jack slipped into the commanding role he had been relying on for years to camouflage his true emotions; tacking on one of his signature smirks.

"I see. Well listen Dennis, I really don't have the time or the patience to argue with you right now. In fact, every time you open your mouth, it's getting increasingly more difficult not to gut you like a fish. So, here's what's going to happen…"

He tapped the flat of the blade against his hand nonchalantly. "The moment I step off of this plane, you have a week. That's seven days to get our lives back to exactly the way they were before you swooped in and shit all over them."

When Knight opened his mouth, Jack cut him off with a stiff wave. "Ah! Ah! Pay attention now, because this is important. That means no pending murder charges, no threats on our lives from one of your little clients, and no military backlash. Just our lives, exactly the way they were, before we even knew you existed. You got me?"

Knight flashed a broad smile as he shook a finger at Jack. "See, I knew were a smart man Jack. It is Jack, right?" Not waiting for an answer, he plowed on with a flick of his wrist. "Anyway, don't you worry, my contacts on the force will see that all the evidence involved is destroyed." He placed a hand on his chest, a gesture of sincerity. "And I will call the judge personally to ensure the warrants against you are rescinded."

He chuckled lightly, touching the bridge of his noise gingerly. "You know, if you ever tire of the Air Force, I could certainly use a man like you by my side. I promise I'd make it worth your while."

Jack squinted, plastering a mirthless smile on his face as he rocked back on his heels. "Oh, let's not get ahead of ourselves, first thing's first…" He pointed the knife at Knight playfully. "Don't forget now…one week."

Knight smiled and pointed back. "One week."

Jack gave him a curt nod, turning towards the door. Two steps later, he stopped.

There was a sudden shift in the air. A deafening silence as Knight froze behind him. There was a sharp sound, a scuff in the carpet as Jack spun around. The smile was gone. His words slow and deliberate. "There's just one thing before I leave."

Knight's eyebrows furrowed, looking wary. He made a sweeping motion with his hand, as if to chase away any concern. "Sure…"

A rumble sounded in Jack's chest as his voice dropped an octave. "Which hand was it?"

Knight shook his head minutely, his jaw shifting back in confusion. "What?"

"Major Carter. I just can't remember which hand." Jack's expression steeled as he gritted out. "Which hand did you have wrapped around her neck?"

Knight's breath rushed out nervously. "I don't see…."

"It's a simple question." Jack interrupted coldly, taking a sure step forward. "A fifty-fifty shot. Right or left?"

"Listen I don't know…."

Jack put up a finger, cutting him off. "Wait a minute. I think I remember now. It was your right wasn't it?"

Knight swallowed, his forehead creasing as he realized that the previous five minutes had been a ruse. That whatever he thought he knew about Colonel Jack O'Neill was wrong.

Fanning the embers of rage glowing inside of him, Jack took another step forward, spitting the words like acid as Knight squeezed his back against the wall. "Yes, it was your right." He pointed the knife to the spot next to Knight's head, "Well, go on…put it up against the wall there and let me see it."

Knight's eyes widened as he shook his head emphatically, curling his hands into fists at his sides as he hunched his shoulders. "What do you…n-no. I'm not doing it. Why?"

Face twisting, Jack thrusted his forearm into Knight's chest, knocking the air out of his lungs as he lodged the knife against his throat. Knight gasped for air and then yipped in pain as the teeth of the blade bit into his jugular; a steady trickle of blood marring the dark polo below.

Jack growled, baring his teeth. "Because I said so. Because if you don't, I'll take your fingers off one by one until you're begging me to stop."

Knight let out a whimper as he complied, raising he right hand limply, the fingers curling into a soft fist as he laid the back of it against the wall.

"Go on…" Jack hissed. "Open…nice and wide."

Knight shook his head as blinding panic set in. "Please...I'll give you whatever you want, money, cars…do you want this plane? Take it, it's yours."

Jack barked impatiently. "Now!"

Knight slowly unfurled his fingers and Jack met his eyes with an empty smile. "See, that wasn't so hard." With a flick of his eyes, Jack struck with deft precision, spearing the blade through the center of Knight's palm, and crushing it between the metal of the hilt and the wood paneling.

Knight eyes bugged as he let out a deafening scream, his body writhing against the wall as he watched the blood flowing freely from his hand and down his arm. "Oh God! Please… take it out! Take it out!"

"Stop screaming."

Knight ignored Jack as he cried desperately for help, his voice going hoarse from the effort.

Jack pressed his forearm into his neck and cinched off his air, cutting the next yell in half as Knight's face turn precarious shades of red. "Stop screaming or I'll cut your tongue out next." He warned. "Trust me, the pain will be considerably worse."

When he let go, Knight gasped for air, his panting loud and ragged as Jack leaned into him. "Look at me."

Knight glanced up with terror in his eyes as he started to blubber.

Jack cupped his chin and jerked it hard. "What I did to your hand is an inconvenient scratch compared to what I'll do to you if you lay your hands on her again."

Grabbing him by the hair, Jack slammed Knight's head against the wall and leaned into his ear. "I'm going to let you in on a little secret. That woman is all I have. Do you understand? She is everything to me…"

His lips quivered with raw emotion. "And God forbid, if something happens…" He swallowed hard, unable to bring himself to say the words. "If I lose her…"

Jack pulled back, meeting Knight's terrified gaze with unflinching surety. "There will be nowhere for you to hide. No country, no planet, no solar system. I will find you. And when I do, I will string you up and take my time cutting pieces off of you and bleeding you dry. I will get my pound of flesh."

Knight cried out as Jack palmed his face hard, hearing a resounding crunch of loose bone as he flattened his nose to his cheek.

"And while you beg and plead and pray for the days it takes for your life to slip away, I will destroy everything you've ever cared about. I will burn those precious buildings of yours to the ground. And I will wipe every trace of your existence from this world."

Jack leaned forward and whispered vehemently through his teeth, his eyes flashing with wild fury. "And then finally…finally, when you've taken your last agonizing breath, I will follow you into Hell, and sell my soul to torture you again, and again, and again."

Knight's body shook like a leaf as he peeked through the slits of Jack's fingers. A distinct aroma of ammonia wafted up between them as Teal'c's calm voice cut through the silence.

"O'Neill, there are sirens in the distance, we must take our leave."

Jack leaned back, his palm sliding slowly off of Knight's tear stricken face. "One week. If I catch even a hint of betrayal or spot another one of your moles at the SGC, that hand will be a fucking souvenir. Nod, so I know you hear me."

A tight sob seeped out between Knight's lips as he bobbed his head. "Y-yes."

Jack turned. A step later he spun on his heel and swung, landing a big right cross to Knight's jaw and knocking him out cold. "Now, now you know me," he muttered as he yanked the knife out of Knight's hand, letting the body slump to the floor.

"Sammie?"

Her eyes fluttered open at the sound of her dad's voice and croaked. "Dad?"

When his face swam into view above her, she struggled to sit up and he laid a hand on her stomach to stop her. "Whoa kiddo, not so fast. Everything should be healed up, but your body is going to need a moment to adjust."

She groaned and took in her surroundings as Jacob tucked some hair behind her ear. The hard floor of the cargo hold wasn't exactly comfortable, but she was grateful for the balled up SGC jacket cushioning her head.

Besides a slight headache, she felt almost normal. "Thanks Dad."

The memory of Jack cradling her to his chest rushed into her mind and she tried to sit up again, looking around for him. "Jack…"

Jacob's brow rose as he eased her back down. "So, it's Jack now huh?"

Sam bit back a groan, cringing at her slippage. "Dad…"

He held up a hand with a resigned sigh. "He's fine Sam. Still on the plane. The important thing right now is that you're okay. You scared the daylights out of me you know. I couldn't believe it when Daniel and Teal'c filled me in on everything. I only wish we'd gotten to you two sooner."

"Sam, you're awake." Daniel closed the distance quickly, shoving his hands in his pockets as he offered a concerned smile. "How're you feeling?"

She gave him a tired smirk. "Better now, thanks. You guys had impeccable timing. It was about to get…well…worse."

Jacob thumbed to the door and stood. "Well, I should get back up front. I can't imagine we'll have a lot of time to get out of Dodge when Jack gets back."

Daniel sat down next to her, resting an arm on his knee as a corner of his mouth quirked up. "So, you and Jack huh?"

Her mouth went dry. "He…he told you?" The surprise on her face had him huffing a laugh as he shrugged.

"He didn't need to actually; it was pretty obvious when he almost took Jacob's head off earlier."

Eyes bugging, her mouth opened in shock. "What?! What happened?"

He waved her off. "Ah, nothing to worry about. Just two guys letting their worry for you get the best of them. They made up…well, sort of," he mumbled.

Sam let out a breath of relief as Daniel grinned wide and clapped his hands together. "So…let me just say that it's about time and I'm happy for you. We're happy for you. Well, Teal'c didn't actually say anything but he did that thing with his eyebrow that, you know, pretty much said it all."

She snickered and reached over to squeeze his hand. "Thanks Daniel."

The lingering smile faded as she worried her bottom lip between her teeth, looking down between them. "Everything's going to change now."

Daniel frowned. "Well, sure. Isn't this what you want?"

She nodded. "Of course, with Jack and I. I mean, I know we can't go back to the way it was. I don't want to." Her eyes teared up. "I love him…so much. But I'm going to miss our team and working with him."

He cupped her cheek and swept away a runaway tear before resting his hand on her shoulder. "Sam, change is inevitable. Teal'c has already pledged to take on a more active role with the Jaffa rebellion. Jack has mentioned retirement more than once over the last year. And I…well, I don't have any real plans yet but that might all change if we find the lost city." He gave her shoulder a gentle shove and smiled. "Hey, either way, no matter what happens, you know Teal'c and I will always be there for you guys right?"

Sam sniffled and nodded, then sat up and wrapped her arms around him. "Thanks Daniel."

He engulfed her in the hug and kissed her temple. "Anytime. We're just glad to have you back." Pulling back, he dipped his head and peered at her over the edge of his glasses. "Now, what can I get you? How about some water huh?"

She nodded gratefully and after helping her up, Daniel walked to his rucksack while Sam took a seat on the cargo boxes next to her. Offering his canteen when he returned, he watched as she unscrewed the cap and took a couple of big swigs.

Sam's blunt nails picked at the dangling plastic cap before she cleared her throat nervously and met his gaze. "Daniel, is Jack…when you talked to him, did he seem mad at me?"

Daniel frowned. "Mad? No. I mean he was angry when we picked him up but… Why do you think he'd be mad at you?"

She screwed the lid back on and set the container down next to her before clasping her hands together in her lap. "I…I was right there when they grabbed him from behind and cuffed him." Her face pinched with obvious shame. "I just watched it happen and then I left him there." She could feel the tears welling up as she wrung her hands together, whispering out her confession. "I can't believe I left him there like that Daniel."

"Hey." He sat next to her and pulled her into a side hug. "What you did was buy us the time we needed to get to you guys so don't …"

A noise distracted Daniel from finishing, and they looked up to see Jack jerk to a stop just inside the doorway of the cargo hold. Daniel's arm dropped from around her as they both stood.

Sam sucked in a quick breath of air, a familiar swooping sensation seizing the pit of her stomach at the sight of him.

There was an intensity in his features as she met his eyes and for the first time in ages, she was unable to get a true read on him. His expression was a far cry from the relief and affection she'd felt when he rocked her in his arms earlier.

His loosely curled hands clenched into fists at his sides as the muscles in his chest and arms flexed. Sam flushed as a rush of heat rolled down her spine. One thing she knew for sure; whatever he was feeling, he was holding back. His whole body was coiled like a spring.

Daniel cleared his throat uncomfortably, splitting the viable tension in the air between them. "Hey Jack."

Jack didn't respond, his piercing eyes never leaving Sam's as she rubbed her palms against the seams of her jeans; her fingers itching to touch him.

Daniel looked back and forth between them before edging away from Sam and making a slow arc around Jack, motioning towards the door. "Ooookay….so I'll just…head up front and you know…see what's going on…up there." With an awkward cringe, he quick-stepped it out of the room, and the door slid closed behind him.

Sam searched Jack's face. Desperate for any sign that he was still with her. That she hadn't ruined the one thing in her life that had finally brought her true happiness.

He didn't look angry, but he didn't look thrilled to see her either. And the daunting silence was only making it worse.

Unable to take it any longer, she took a hesitant step forward. "Jack?"

It was a hopeless plea at best. And she could only pray he would realize how sorry she was. How leaving him in that room had been the hardest thing she'd ever done in her life.

She pushed past the lump in her throat to tell him just that...until Jack began taking determined strides, heading right for her.