Jack held up his hand, once again. They'd been moving forward, slowly, and Jack had just seen something. Softly telling Willem to wait, he got down and carefully crawled forward.
"You're here alright," he said to himself. In front of him was a booby trap. There was a wire, practically invisible, that ran perpendicular to where they were walking. If it hadn't been for a quick ray of sun shining on the wire, and the suspicion of one Jack O'Neill, they wouldn't have seen it.
Jack followed the wire with his eyes, and saw it disappear into a tree. As carefully as possible, he made his way in that direction, still crouched down. It took longer than he would have liked, but he knew they couldn't afford to get caught, hurt or killed before rescuing Sam and the boys.
He finally made it to the end, and saw it was attached to some kind of weapon. It wasn't anything he'd seen on Varid, nor was it something he'd observed when he was with Meron and his gang. He debated what to do, before realizing that they simply had to avoid it and go around tree to continue.
He motioned Willem over, warning him through gestures to be careful. A few minutes later and the two men were moving. If – no when he got Carter back, he'd have her look at it and disarm whatever the thing was.
Instead of heading back towards to path, Jack decided the best thing was to stay in the trees and bushes over to the side. It made the going much slower, and he still watched for traps, but he figured it was safer.
It was almost 40 minutes later when the two men finally came to the caves. There were a series of them, so they lay prone on their stomachs, quietly observing.
They hadn't seen or heard anything from Abel or Hiram and Jack hoped they were okay. He should have said more about the possibility of a stargate, he realized. He'd had some information from both Willem and Hiram, although it was Willem who had confirmed that there was a stargate, or Chappa'ai on Varid.
Jack still couldn't believe that all their sleuthing had accomplished nothing and yet there had been a way to get home all along. A swift thought followed that. He realized he was grateful they hadn't found it, at least not before this. If they'd returned immediately after he had escaped – or at least after he'd reconnected with Sam, he realized he would have missed out on some very important things. He wouldn't have gotten to know Ethan, nor would have grown to love two little imps. And then there was Sam. Things weren't great between them, because of what had happened to him, but at least they were friends, and he got to spend time with her.
That brought him instantly back to the present. He glanced at Willem and couldn't help the small smile that appeared. He missed his Earth friends, especially Daniel, Teal'c – and of course Janet, Cassie and Hammond, terribly. But here on Varid he'd also made good, close friends. His life was rich here and he knew that if they didn't make it back, he could be content.
"There," Willem suddenly whispered. Jack nodded, as he too had seen movement. He watched carefully, to see a man – it was Leron – walk out of the trees and head directly to one of the caves. Bingo! They've found the villain who had hurt those he loved.
"Where is his cart?" Willem whispered.
"Probably hidden," Jack replied softly. "I expect in the trees. He was carrying something with him – he probably went and retrieved it." He continued to walk, and then saw Leron exit the cave, to head back the way he'd come.
"What should we do?" Willem asked.
"Let's get closer – but be careful and be quiet. He may have more traps set, and I expect that sound may be amplified as we're in a bit of an amphitheater here."
Willem looked at him with a puzzled expression, but then just nodded. Jack didn't have time to explain the word, so he just gestured to the hills that surrounded the area with the caves. The other man nodded again and then the two started moving, cautiously and slowly, but now with definite purpose.
Sam tried to figure out what she was going to do. If it had been just her, it would have been easy. Now, she had to think about the welfare of the two little boys. They were still sleeping, but she'd seen Simon move a bit and figured they would wake up soon. They were probably both hungry and thirsty.
Sure enough, it was only a couple of minutes later when the two started to awaken. Once they were awake, both boys started to cry. All she could do was hug them tightly and whisper that it was okay, that Uncle Jack would come and save them all. Finally, they stopped, although she could continue to hear the small sobs and hiccups from their crying.
"Here," she told them, "I want you to have something to drink and then you can have something to eat." The boys each took a bottle and drank. She pulled the food from the bag that Leron had tossed, to see that there was bread, cheese and a piece of some kind of meat.
"Nice," she said softly and sarcastically. She divided up some of the bread and cheese, figuring it would be easier for the boys to eat. As she watched them take small bites – they were hungry but still upset, she glanced down at the bag.
That gave her an idea. She reached over for the piece of the stargate and put it inside. She closed and tied the bad. At least she now had a kind of weapon.
"What's that?" asked Simon.
"It's to protect us," she told him. "Promise you won't say anything about it when the bad man comes back?"
"We won't, Auntie Sam," Simon told her. Jankin nodded. "I pwomise too."
"Good boys!" she gave them both a hug. "Now, there's something else I need you to do for me," she told them. "It might be scary, but I'm going to keep you safe, okay?"
"Are you going to make the bad man go away?" Simon asked, innocently.
She sighed and rubbed her neck. She had a terrible headache but knew she couldn't focus on that right now.
"I'm going to try," she said. "But – I may need to, uh – to hit him," she said. "He's a very bad man, and we need to escape."
Four little eyes grew big and looked at her. Their Mommy and Daddy, then their Grandpa and Uncle Jack had told them it was bad to hurt other people.
"Normally we would never do something like this," she told them, "but it's important to protect ourselves from bad people."
"Would Uncle Jack hit him?" Simon wanted to know.
She almost laughed at that, thinking about what Jack would do. "Mmm hmm," she nodded. "He would. You see this bad man is being really mean to us so Uncle Jack will do whatever it takes to protect us – and so will I."
At that the boys both nodded. "Make da bad man go away!" Jankin told her. "Hits him weawy hawd!"
She suddenly wondered if this situation was about to create two blood-thirsty little boys. She couldn't blame them – she certainly felt that way.
"Now – I want the two of you to move back a little bit until you're by the wall of the cave. I'm going to be close, but I don't want you to be too close, in case the man comes back."
"We want to stay with you, Auntie Sam," Simon told her, his lip quivering.
"And I'm going to be right here, close by. Look, you're a big boy and your job is going to be to protect your brother, okay. If you sit back, just a little bit, you can hug each other. I'll put the blanket over you, and you can be all cuddly."
Jankin looked like he was about to cry again, and Sam felt terrible. These poor little boys were going to be traumatized by this whole thing – if they all made it.
"Stop that, Sam," she told herself softly. She had to believe they were getting out of this. "Now come on, let's be my courageous little boys. I'll be able to tell Uncle Jack how brave and strong you both were."
The two scurried back a few feet and she carefully tucked the blanket around them. She also gave them one of the water bottles and some more food. "Now, if the bad man comes in, I want the two of you to pretend you're sleeping. Can you do that?"
There were two answering nods, and she couldn't help but grin. "Good, I'm proud of you both. And if you see me – fighting – with him, just stay out of the way, okay? I want to make sure you're both safe."
"But what if you get hurt, Auntie Sam?" Simon wanted to know.
"Don't worry about me. Your job is to look after Jankin."
"What's about me?" Jankin asked.
"Your job is to be as quiet as a possible and to listen to your brother. Pretend you're a little mouse!"
That got her a smile, and the boys both snuggled down into the blanket. She prayed they would fall asleep, even thought they'd slept already.
Sam took a deep breath, then a swig of the water. She tried to eat a bit, but her nerves were too tightly strung. "I hope you're coming for us, O'Neill," she said.
She pulled the bag with the piece of stargate close beside her, hoping he would think it was nothing more than left-over food.
Then she waited.
Willem reached out and grabbed Jack's arm. He pointed to where Leron was again coming from behind the trees toward the cave. He nodded, indicating he's seen him too.
Once Leron had gone into the cave, both of the men stood and began to walk quickly down the rest of the hill. A moment later they heard a shout and other noises coming from the cave. Jack started to move as quickly as he could, followed closely by Willem.
The mouth of the cave darkened, and she could see Leron's silhouette. He paused briefly and then entered.
"So, how are you doing Samantha?" he sneered. "You and the brats enjoying yourselves?"
"Why are you doing this to us?" she asked. "We've never don anything to you."
"So? You're simply a means to get revenge on that man of yours."
Sam's brows lifted. "Jack is a friend, nothing more."
Leron snorted. "O'Neill is in love with you," he said, "that's obvious. And he adores the brats. There's nothing that will hurt him more than for something to happen to all of you."
"You really are an asshole, aren't you?"
The villain looked puzzled for a moment – it was obviously not a word used here on Varid. A moment later his face cleared, and he laughed. "Oh Samantha, you think that words are going to hurt me? You just sit there and shut up. I don't bother with weak little women - at least I'm not afraid of them, but I do enjoy using them."
Sam had to keep from glancing at the boys. She was pretty sure they were awake, but so far, they were keeping quiet. She really hated the thought that they were witnessing this.
Leron began to move closer, and she tensed. She got herself into position, so that she could stand easily and quickly, however she didn't want to telegraph her intentions.
The bag was lying beside her, and she made sure she could grab it quickly. She watched Leron carefully, and pretended to be that frightened, "little woman" he obviously thought she was.
"So, Samantha, I think I'd like to get a taste of O'Neill's woman. He'll not want you when I'm done with you." He stepped closer to her and then leaned down to grab her arm.
At that moment she struck. She quickly grabbed the bag and swung it as hard as she could at his head. Unfortunately, his reflexes were too quick, and he flinched back in time to save himself from having his head bashed in. However, the piece of naquadah did hit the side of his head and his shoulder with quite some force. It knocked him back long enough for Sam to get to her feet.
She tried to swing the bag again, but Leron kicked out at her and swept her feet from under her. As she went crashing to the ground, he attempted to grab her. What he didn't expect, was that she would quickly role away and surge back to her feet.
Leron was frowning, obviously not expecting a woman to be able to fight him. "What are you doing, Samantha," he taunted, "you know you have no chance."
"No?" she asked. "I think you're wrong." She swung the bag again, and this time hit him on the arm. He yelled in pain and clutched it, but unfortunately it wasn't hard enough to knock him down and he stepped back away from her so she couldn't follow up with another blow.
The two of them circled one another cautiously, with Sam trying to get closer to use her home-made weapon. Leron was clearly waiting until his arm recovered from the blow. A moment later he grinned and then pulled out a knife from a sheath at his waist – a very long, wicked looking knife.
"Watch out, Auntie Sam," Simon called.
"Don't worry sweety," she answered, not taking her eyes off their captor.
"I'm going to cut you up and then enjoy you," Leron hissed. "I like to hear my women scream!"
"You're more likely to have had women throw up around you, asshole," she told him. Without warning, she quickly rushed forward and attacked, swinging the bag directly at the hand with the knife, knocking it out of his hand.
Leron screamed and grabbed his wrist. Sam grinned, knowing that that must have hurt. She moved quickly to finish the job, when Leron pulled something quickly from behind his back with his good arm.
The next thing she felt was a bolt of electricity and had a brief moment, knowing she'd lost.
When Jack heard the shout he'd rushed towards the cave. Just as he arrived at the entrance, he heard Leron scream and watched as Sam swung something at him. He then saw the bastard shoot her with an alien weapon and he watched her fall.
"NO!" He would later curse himself for crying out, as it gave Leron a warning. The villain turned and would have shot him as well, but Jack managed to launch himself and collided full force against him.
The two men went flying and landed on the ground. Jack knew that this would be a fight to the death – and he was determined it would be Leron's death.
He didn't know what kind of shape Sam was in, or even if she was alive. All he knew is that he had arrived too late, and if she was dead, he would never forgive himself.
The two men rolled on the ground, both fighting with everything they had in them. Leron was strong, and a relatively good fighter, but Jack knew that if he'd been at his best the man would have been no match for him. The problem was, he had been out of action for over a year and his skills had diminished.
But not enough to matter! The fighting went on and soon both men were sweating and breathing heavily. They continue to roll on the ground – clutched closely to one another. It was only when he saw something flash, that he realized that Leron had somehow gotten ahold of a knife – a very large, deadly knife.
He grabbed the man's arm as it started to descend towards his chest. Even though Leron wasn't as skilled of a fighter as Jack, he was strong, and the dagger inched closer.
It was at that moment that Jack heard Simon's voice, loudly telling him to "beat the bad man, Uncle Jack." He also heard Jankin crying.
That gave him the strength he needed, because there was no way in hell he was going to leave the boys – and hopefully Sam – unprotected.
"Not today, you bastard," he gasped. He managed to push Leron's arm away, and to flip them over so he was on top. The movement caused the man to lose his knife, which went flying across the floor.
A moment later they rolled again, and this time Jack knew what he had to do. He reached up with both hands, which left him vulnerable for just a moment. Leron took advantage and started to pummel his chest and ribs. Jack didn't let it slow him down but instead he concentrated on grabbing the other man's head. With a deep breath, he twisted as quickly and as hard as he could. He heard a loud "snap", and Leron's body collapsed onto his.
There was dead silence in the cave, except for the very soft cry of a little boy. The next thing he heard was a shout – and Willem, Hiram and Abel all surged forward.
"Check – on – Sam and the – boys," he panted, praying she was going to be okay, and the boys were unhurt.
He felt Leron's body being lifted off him, enabling him to breath.
"You okay?" Hiram asked softly.
Jack attempted to sit up, but in the end needed help. "Yes," he said shortly. "Sam -antha? The boys?"
"The boys are fine," called Abel, "just a little scared but they're unhurt and being very brave."
Jack just nodded, incredibly grateful, but he was still waiting to hear about Sam.
"Samantha?" he asked again, leaning on Hiram and trying to stand.
"I'm fine, Jack," her voice answered. She sounded a bit off, but she was alive.
He closed his eyes and sagged back down. The adrenaline suddenly left, and he felt shaky and weak – but incredibly grateful. Sam and the boys were gonna be okay.
"Hey, are you alright?" Hiram asked worriedly. Jack took a deep breath and tried to regain his equilibrium.
"Yeah," he said. He took another breath, and this time answered more strongly. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit winded and I'll have a few bruises, but nothing serious."
"Uncle Jack," two little voices called out to him. He looked at Hiram, who reached over and helped him to his feet.
"I'm here, boys," he called. The next thing he knew, two little bodies had rushed over and were wrapped around his legs. "Sam?" he called.
"I'm fine, Jack," she answered. "Just a bit woozy. He shot me with some kind of stun weapon, but I don't think it did any damage."
"Thank God," he said, as he knelt down and wrapped his arms around the boys. "It's okay," he told them. "You're safe now."
"Is da bad man sweepin'?" asked Jankin.
Jack glanced at Hiram and then Willem, and grimaced. "Yes, he's sleeping. I think it would be a good idea for us to all get out of the cave and get some sunlight," he announced. He looked over at his friends once more, and they gave him a nod. They'd deal with the body.
Still holding on to the boys but making sure that Sam was coming with them, they all made their way out of the cave. Abel helped her, as she was a bit wobbly, but as she moved Jack could see her start to regain her strength.
Once they were all outside, the four of them came together. The boys wouldn't let go of him, although they also reached for Sam. They began to cry uncontrollably and Jack knew it was the relief and the reaction to what they'd been through.
Sam talked softly. "They were both so brave, Uncle Jack," she said. "You would have been so proud of them."
"I am," he answered, "I had no doubt they would be. You're both very brave," he told them directly, "and I am proud of you."
"In fact, they gave me the courage to fight the bad man." She looked at Simon. "Thank you for warning me, Simon – and thank you for being quiet and listening to your brother," she told Jankin. She leaned down and kissed both boys. The next thing she knew, Jankin had jumped into her arms, once more beginning to cry.
She looked at Jack in concern. "They need lots of TLC right now," he told her. "Are you sure you're okay, Sam?"
She nodded. "I feel fine. How about you?"
"Well, this time no one poked me full of any holes," he quipped. "I should have just shot him with the damned zat, but when I saw you fall -"
"I get it," she said with a small smile. "You needed some – uh physical contact," she said carefully, glancing at the boys.
He nodded and grinned in reply. It's not that he ever liked killing anyone, but in this case, he was relieved to have rid this world of – as the boys would say – a very bad man.
Just then Willem exited the cave and walked towards them. "Everyone okay?"
"Yeah, we're fine. Thanks for your help, Willem."
"I didn't do much," the other man said. "I think the two of you did just fine on your own." He glanced at the boys, so clearly was being careful what he said. "Uh, Hiram is cleaning up everything in the cave," he said, giving Jack and Sam a look that meant he was dealing with the body. "I've sent Abel to find the wagon. I think we'll need it to take Samantha and the boys back home. We can drive to where we left the rounceys."
"Where are Hiram and Abel's animals?" Jack asked.
"They left them over there," he nodded with this head. "We met up just as you – uh – threw yourself at Leron. It was pretty spectacular, I must say."
Jack nodded, suddenly feeling tired. He knew most of it was emotional, but the fight hadn't helped. He had known it was a fight to the death and that was enough to leave him exhausted.
The boys had quieted down so Jack picked up Simon. Willem offered to carry Jankin, but the little boy refused and clung to Sam.
"Can you carry him," Jack asked, feeling concerned. He knew Sam said she was okay, but he still worried.
"Yes," she nodded and gave him a smile. "Come on munchkin," she told the little boy. He held up his arms and soon the four of them were walking to where they assumed the cart had been left.
"Be careful," Jack suddenly called. Willem stopped. "There might be more traps."
Willem nodded and walked ahead of the other four. They met up with Abel, and he gave them directions to the cart.
"It was hidden slightly, but I saw the rouncey's so found it pretty easily," he said. "Hey, I'm glad you and the boys are okay," he told Sam. He then looked at Jack. "Wow, that was some fighting. I wouldn't want to be on your bad side."
Jack reached out and slapped him gently on the back. "I don't think you ever have to worry about that. Thank you for all your help!"
"My pleasure," Abel grinned. "I'm gonna go and help Hiram. Let me know if there's anything you need."
Jack and Sam both thanked him and began walking and were soon at the cart. The rounceys were in a small corral, obviously created by Leron.
When they arrived, both boys were fast asleep, so they made a little bed in the back of the cart and carefully put the boys down.
"Willem, can you stay and watch them?" Sam asked. "I need to show something to Jack."
"Sure," he nodded. "Don't worry. I'll watch them carefully."
Jack looked at her with a puzzled expression. "What is it?" he asked.
"You'll see," she told him.
They walked towards the caves, but suddenly Jack stopped. He closed his eyes, the reaction setting in. Without any further pause, he turned towards Sam.
"What is it?" she asked.
"This," he told her. He took a step and put his arms around her and pulled her to him. "I thought he's killed you," he said, his voice sounding shaky.
"No way," she told him, laying her had in that familiar place on his neck. She could feel the tension slowly seep out of her. "I would not give that bastard the satisfaction of dying!"
Jack chuckled. "I'm glad," he said softly into her hair. He held her even more tightly. "I'm sorry it took so long to find you."
"You don't need to apologize, Jack. I didn't doubt for a second that you would come and save us. I told the boys that as well and they also knew you'd come."
"It looked like you gave a pretty good account of yourself," he told her. "My warrior woman."
"Yeah – I tried to bash his head in and would have succeeded if he didn't pull out that damn weapon." She started to get sleepy. She was warm and cozy and being held by the man she loved. She allowed herself to relax into him.
"What was it that you had in that bag," he asked suddenly.
"Hmm?' she asked sleepily.
Jack grinned as he felt her weight grow heavier. She was falling asleep in his arms. Rather than repeat his question, he simply allowed himself to enjoy the moment. He closed his eyes and held her. As he felt her body press more deeply against his, the worry, the fear, the anguish slowly seeped out of him, to be replaced by a feeling of tenderness and warmth and – what the hell?
His eyes popped open when he realized that his damn body was – hell! He was, he was – hell! He couldn't help but grin. Although it was entirely inappropriate at this exact moment, he rejoiced in knowing that things were, well, working!
"Jack?" a soft voice interrupted his thoughts. Damn, he hoped she hadn't noticed, or he'd be really embarrassed. Fortunately, she sounded pretty sleepy. He slowly moved his lower body back a bit, not wanting her to feel his – uh his response.
"What is it?" he asked, speaking into her hair.
"I love you," she told him.
His face cracked in a wide smile. He was pretty sure she didn't realize what she was saying, but hell, it was wonderful. "I love you too," he answered softly.
He allowed her to doze for a few more seconds, while he got his libido under control. Another wave of tenderness washed over him.
"Okay Sam," he finally said, "I think everyone is going to wonder where we are."
"Hmm?" she asked.
"Wake up, Major," he said gently. "Time to go."
He watched as she took deep breath and stood straighter. Suddenly her eyes popped open, and she tried to step back.
He kept holding on to her, although his grip loosened. "It's okay – it's just that we should go."
"I'm so sorry," she told him. "I don't know what came over me."
"I don't know either," he told her, as his arms dropped, and they began to walk towards the cave. "A little thing like being kidnapped, threatened, keeping two little boys safe, fighting with a very, very bad man and then being knocked out by an alien weapon shouldn't affect you at all."
She snorted. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I just feel bad about falling asleep on you like that."
"Samantha, of all the things that have happened in the last day – hell, in the last year, I can tell you that that is by far – far, far, far down my list of things I didn't want to happen. In fact, that was one of the best things to have happened to me in a long time. There is nothing I like more than having Sam Carter sleep in my arms."
She stopped and stared at him. After what he'd shared with her, what he'd said about there not being a future for them, she didn't know what to think about what he'd just said. "Uh –"
He grinned, took her arm and led her forward. "You're thinkin' too much," he told her. "Now, what was it you wanted to show me?"
It took her a few minutes to get her thoughts together, but finally she brought herself back to the moment at hand. When they arrived at the cave Hiram was there, looking slightly hot and sweaty.
"I put the body in one of the small caves," he told them. "Abel helped me gather some rocks and dirt to put over top, although there's not much we could do without a shovel."
Jack nodded. "That's fine. If anyone wants to come back, we can bury him more carefully."
"Does anyone have a tinder box?" Sam asked suddenly. "It's dark in the cave, and I need to show something to Jack."
"Here," Hiram handed them a small box. "I grabbed in, knowing we'd be going to the caves."
Sam thanked him and then indicated they should go inside the one where they'd been held. She found a branch and lit the end, hoping it would last long enough.
She moved to the back of the cave, followed by Jack and a curious Hiram.
"What is – oh my God," Jack stopped and looked at the DHD. "Is that what I think it is?"
Sam nodded, even though she knew Jack's question was rhetorical. It was obvious what it was.
"And the stargate?" he asked.
She grimaced slightly and grabbed the bag that was still lying on the ground. She opened it and handed the piece to Jack.
"What it is?" he asked, giving her a puzzled look.
"Look at it closely," she told him, holding up the flame so he could see more clearly.
He glanced down at it, but it took a few seconds for it to register. "It's a piece of the gate," he whispered.
She nodded. "I haven't had a chance to check anything more out, but it looks like it may have been destroyed.
He nodded, but then motioned to her to give him the torch. He then turned and walked to the back wall of the cave.
Although it was still hard to see with only the flame from the torch, it soon became apparent that there were more pieces lying on the ground. In fact, it looked like the entire gate was spread out around the back of the cave.
Jack sighed, not knowing how he felt about the whole thing – which was odd. He should have felt devastated, but instead a part of him felt relieved.
He finally turned and looked at Sam. "I think the whole thing has been destroyed."
She nodded, looking as stunned as he felt.
"I guess this means we're not going back to Earth."
J