Power and Punishment
Chapter Three: ...Corrupts Absolutely

by Jb

On horror's head horrors accumulate.
Shakespeare  (Othello)

Kinsey was livid. Once again, he struck his clenched fist against his chest.

He felt wretched; unshaven, eyes red, clothing rumpled from having tried to sleep in his office chair all night. He hadn’t dared leave. He needed to be close by, for when the President summoned him. For when they would all apologize to him. For when he would be officially vindicated.

Now it was mid-morning, and they still had not called for him. He had no way of knowing what was going on. Again, Kinsey hit himself on the chest, irked to no end that he was forced to wait. He had called several times, but had been put off. Even when he called and, in his desperation to be let in to the inner circle, said he might be willing to reveal his source – the dead Armin, naturally… but they didn’t know that – he had been told to wait a bit longer; told that the President would see him later.

There was another call which he had not received, as well. That missing call, the one from his man who had been sent for the final clean-up, was also worrisome. ‘Maybe… maybe Jackson was still alive? No, that’s impossible.’ Kinsey could feel the man’s death; he had dreamed about it only just hours ago, while in a fitful sleep. He had seen his blood, heard the screams. Kinsey knew Jackson was gone. ‘Or, maybe his body was discovered… No.’

Kinsey wouldn’t allow himself to even contemplate anything which would interfere with his ultimate goal. Soon, very soon, he would be back on top and the cretins at the SGC who had been responsible for his temporary fall from grace would be discarded in contempt.

Kinsey had planned this thoroughly, and besides, his operative – the one that had been on-site – had confirmed successful disposal of Jackson and the other two. If that operative was still alive out there somewhere, having triumphed over the latest man sent out… well, that was all right. Kinsey knew who he was. He had ways to find him, deal with him later.

Kinsey picked up the offensive certificate, traced his fingers across the carelessly handwritten message with which Jackson had thumbed his nose at Kinsey. His anger was abruptly replaced with glee. ‘Well, I get the last laugh, don’t I, Doctor Jackson.’ Kinsey smiled. Soon. Soon, the world would know who truly was virtuous.

As he slowly rubbed his cheek against the face of the certificate, lasciviously reveling in the thought of Jackson’s painful death, Kinsey once again felt the heat and the stirring.

Jack didn’t know whether to feel relieved or even more anxious. That the tape would turn out to be a fraud he’d had no doubt – it simply had to – but now that it was confirmed, his fears for Daniel’s safety were rapidly climbing to the stratosphere. Carter said it was a near thing… the tape was almost too good. That meant that whoever created it was very much afraid of Kinsey being able to identify it as being flawed.

If Kinsey thought the tape was perfect, uncrackable, then what did that mean for Daniel? Was Daniel dead, Kinsey eliminating him so he couldn’t try to defend himself and the SGC program? But, if Kinsey thought the tape and his other evidence was so flawless, then why bother taking the risk of committing murder? Jack was trying to figure this all out, but somehow the sense of it eluded him.

"Aw, crap, Danny. Where-the-godamned-hell-are-you!"

"That is, as your people might say, the sixty-four thousand dollar question, is it not?" Jack jumped as Teal’c entered the briefing room. Jack hadn’t realized he had spoken aloud.

"Captain Carter informed me that the tape has been proven false." Teal’c dipped his head slightly. "There could not have been any other outcome."

Jack acknowledged the Jaffa’s loyalty with a half-hearted smile. "Yeah. Not that it helps Daniel much at this point… "

"General Hammond will keep concealed this new information?" Jack nodded, and the Jaffa continued. "Good. That is the correct decision."

Jack smiled more openly. Teal’c always was pretty smart. Absently, Jack wondered if Daniel’s words on the tape had hurt Teal’c as much as the ones about Jack had stung himself. Temporarily, of course.

"Senator Kinsey would not place himself in danger, therefore he must believe himself to be immune from connection with the creation of the tape. However, in the event the truth of the tape is revealed, he might wish to take further steps to avoid any unnecessary risk of detection. It would not help Daniel Jackson if his persecutor was discredited before we can find our friend."

Evidently, Teal’c was not going to even briefly entertain the notion that Daniel could already be dead. For that, Jack felt great gratitude. Plus, he was relieved not to have to explain the situation again. Carter had been upset at their reluctance to reveal her conclusions about the tape to anyone just yet. Jack wasn’t too certain what she had thought would happen… that she could just say the tape was phony, and poof, a vindicated Daniel would appear unharmed on their doorstep?

"Teal’c, we have got to find him.. The problem is, I just don’t know where to look."

"Perhaps he might have tried to contact you?" Jack’s head snapped around at Teal’c’s question. ‘Of course… check the machine, you nitwit.’ Jack snatched up the telephone and hurriedly dialed his own number, entering the code for message retrieval just as the machine picked up.

A message from the bookstore – his magazine was in…

A message from Sara – her brother was in town; could they visit…

A message from – a fax machine... ‘whoa, that was loud…’

A message from…. ‘hang on a minute here…’

Jack strained his ears in disbelief, as faint agitated voices and unidentifiable scrabbling noises came from the receiver. Then there was a pause, what might have been his own name called out, another pause… and then a sudden increase in volume as a voice he didn’t recognize suddenly yelled out the words ‘no’ and ‘don’t’.

Jack stared up at Teal’c, as the recording from his brand new digital machine continued on. There were a couple of minutes more of indistinct noises and distant voices, and then a brief silence. The last thing Jack heard was a familiar and very alarming sound which he definitely did recognize…

It was a gunshot.

Daniel stared dejectedly at the telephone. He had called Jack’s number frequently all morning, hoping that Jack might go home; that Jack might think that Daniel would try to go or call there. Then Daniel had dispatched John to do some drive-by’s, and the man had just returned, reporting that airmen were outside both Jack and Sam’s homes.

Daniel knew they were probably on the inside as well. Now Daniel knew it was unlikely that Jack would go home, after all. He was glad he hadn’t left any messages... or, at least, as far as he knew, he hadn’t.

He sighed deeply, wincing at the painful tightness in his chest. Shifting sore muscles to find a more comfortable position in the bed, Daniel pulled the covers more tightly around him, shivering slightly. ‘A fever…’ He had developed a fever. That brought his attention back to his left arm, to the red streaks and intensely painful hardened veins. He needed to get on with this, get it all over with. Daniel knew he really needed medical attention.

If he couldn’t contact Jack soon, he just might have to take the risk and call Kinsey himself or have Samuels do it; try to rout the man out. Of course, if Sam hadn’t managed to debunk the tape, or even if she had but Kinsey didn’t know about that yet, Daniel would just be signing their death warrants by calling Kinsey. If the senator still thought the recording was beyond reproach, some huge unknown hulk would seek them out faster than Daniel cared to think about. And if they couldn’t arrange a meeting with Samuels, Daniel knew that the huge hulk he did know would just as effortlessly do the final deed.

Samuels lay on the second bed, fully clothed on top of the covers. He hadn’t spoken to Daniel in hours, ever since John had supported Daniel’s contention that they needed Jack to contact Kinsey for them. Daniel understood Samuels’ objections; he recognized the reluctance as originating on an emotional level, despite all of Samuels attempts to rationalize his point of view. The man was scared beyond tolerance.

Samuels was scared of John, scared of Kinsey’s retribution, even to a certain extent afraid of Daniel himself… although Daniel suspected that was more due to guilt than anything else. Jack… well, he was just one more powerful personality for Samuels to be frightened of. Daniel had no doubt that Samuels was well aware of what Jack might try to do to Samuels when he found out all of what had happened.

The thought of the anger he knew Jack would feel over his mistreatment was actually a source of solace for Daniel.

"So. How long we gonna wait?" Daniel sighed again. John. He wished the man would just leave him alone. He was always pushing just that little bit, teasing, provoking Daniel. John may be the reason they were still alive – provisionally – but that didn’t mean Daniel had to appreciate the man.

Unwilling to face the man, Daniel buried his face in the pillow. "Why don’t you just leave me alone? I told you; you agreed. We have to wait until we know Kinsey is backed into a corner."

"Yeah. You know, Doc, I’m usually a patient man, but in this case I’m getting restless. I joined up with you guys because I figured I needed you, to be sure I’d be free of Kinsey forever. Turns out, you’re just a big tease, Buddy. We got the tapes. Let’s just show them to him."

On the next bed, Samuels’ entire body started to quiver alarmingly. His fear flooded the room.

"Oh, sure. Right. Here… here’s the telephone. Call him. See how long you live after that." Daniel shifted uncomfortably, trying to pull the covers even more firmly around him. "We need someone we can trust to call…" Daniel broke off as John’s face came into view, hovering over him. The man was grinning widely.

Obviously, John knew perfectly well why they couldn’t just dial up Kinsey. ‘Shit. Why does he insist on playing with us like that?’ Even more perplexing to Daniel was why he kept falling for it. Not for the first time, Daniel’s anger flared at being treated like someone’s personal entertainment toy.

On the table between the two beds, Samuels’ cell phone abruptly trilled, startling all three of them. Daniel lunged wildly for it, his own hand curling around the phone and snatching it off the table just ahead of Samuels’ wild grab. Not quite knowing why he had gone to such an effort to get to the phone, Daniel stared at it as it rang a few more times, not sure if he should answer it or not.

"Don’t answer it… it’s Kinsey, it must be him…"

Samuels’ urgent and shaking voice made up Daniel’s mind for him. ‘All right, let’s just see…’ He punched the ‘send’ button to answer it, and held the phone up to his ear.

"Samuels… you there? Answer me, Samuels… you slimy blood-sucking lily-livered parasitic…"

‘Oh, God.’   "Jack?"

Feeling very smug at having just heard from the President, Kinsey was in an expansive mood. Finally, the call had come; the President himself had thanked him for his very fine work and invited him to join the Secretary of Defense, later this very afternoon, on a trip to the Cheyenne Mountain Complex. He had a couple of hours to prepare, and then they would be off to Colorado.

Basking in delight, and despite the annoyance of the earlier more unwelcome interruptions, Kinsey decided to accept the latest phone call.

That buffoon Colonel Jack O’Neill had been very insistent throughout the late morning and lunch hour, plaguing Kinsey’s secretary with repeated calls despite being told that, No, Senator Kinsey would not speak with him; not under any circumstances. Now, one blessedly silent hour and one blessedly wonderful call from the President later, his secretary had told him that an unknown female was calling… refusing to leave her name, but delivering a cryptic message instead; saying that the secretary should tell the senator that ‘a friend with mutual interests’ was calling.

Curiosity overcoming caution, pleasure at his accomplishment overcoming uncertainty, Kinsey spoke his own name into the receiver. A woman’s voice, one which he did not recognize, answered him.

"Senator. It’s come to my attention that you have done some excellent work of late."

Kinsey didn’t like innuendo, unless of course it was of his own creation. He thought he would take control of this conversation right at the outset. "Madam… whoever you are… I am very good at everything I do, and I am also a very busy man. If there’s something you wish to speak with me about, perhaps you’re best to send a fax on the subject to my secretary…"

"Oh, No, Sir. It’s to our mutual advantage that this particular subject not be dealt with in writing. You want more than just the doctor? I can give you more; a whole lot more."

"I don’t know what you are talking about."

"We both know that with things the way they are, the leader of the group will walk away with little more than a slap on the wrist."

‘O’Neill.’ Kinsey knew his caller was referring to O’Neill, but she was wrong. O’Neill would suffer; he’d be investigated himself, discredited and humiliated… at the very least O’Neill would be thrown out of the military for being taken advantage of by the Goa’uld spy, Jackson.

"The leader? Listen, ma’am, I don’t know who or what you’re referring to. The only leader I know of is about to lose his place in line."

A derisive laugh tinkled across the wire. "You would settle for that? Such small punishment for such great complicity."

‘Complicity?’ Kinsey was hooked.

Sam Carter carefully guided her car into the parking space beside Colonel O’Neill’s jeep. As she got out of the vehicle, she could hear the soft pinging noise coming from the Jeep’s engine compartment. She touched the hood; it was still hot. ‘He’s only just gotten here’, she thought.

That made sense. She knew that he had gone to speak with General Hammond – which Sam suspected had been a long and probably not altogether comfortable conversation – and had made mention of having to get something to take to Daniel. Sam and Janet Fraiser had managed to contact Kinsey only an hour after the Colonel’s last unsuccessful attempt and Sam and Teal’c had left immediately after that, stopping only to have their own quick word with the General.

Sam was both pleased and nervous at the same time; pleased that Daniel was all right and that Kinsey had been so easy – pleased at the good news she was about to deliver – and nervous about the unknown nature of Samuels’ involvement and what might happen next. She wasn’t sure why they were doing any of what they were; O’Neill had been irritated after his short conversation with Daniel, reluctantly agreeing to do what Daniel had asked him only because it was Daniel who wanted it done.

Catching sight of the room number they were looking for, Sam indicated the location of the proper door to Teal’c. The Jaffa had his attention elsewhere, however. He was slowly circling a large yellow panel van parked several spots away, seemingly concentrating on the tires of the vehicle.

"Teal’c? It’s this way."

"Captain Carter. I believe this might be the vehicle used by whoever abducted Daniel Jackson. The tire tread pattern appears to be very similar to that found in the oil stains in the parking garage." Concerned, Sam hurried over to have a look at the vehicle.

"Teal’c… there have to be lots of trucks with these tires. The Colonel said that Daniel told him he was okay… that it was safe." She turned at looked doubtfully at O’Neill’s jeep and at the door to room number 107. "He never would have gone in there if he wasn’t certain…"

Teal’c looked at her impassively. "It would be helpful to know if Daniel Jackson’s kidnappers are here."

Just then, the curtain in the window of room 107 twitched and Sam caught a glimpse of O’Neill peering out into the parking lot. Catching sight of her he nodded, turned his head away for a second, and then turned back and waved her forward. Relieved, Sam grinned at Teal’c. "There he is, Teal’c. It’s okay… let’s go inside and see Daniel."

Eagerly she walked over to the door, glancing back once, only to notice that Teal’c had lingered at the van. Reaching for and turning the knob, she looked back at him and grinned again, motioning for him to join her.

So as she entered the room, Sam just happened to be looking back behind her at Teal’c, instead of forward.

She crashed right into a large, solid and very immovable object just inside the doorway. That object had arms made of steel and suddenly she was spun part way around, grabbed from behind, and felt her own arms pinned to her chest in a strong grip. Involuntarily, a short cry escaped from her lips and even as she heard herself, she heard another cry from somewhere else in the room.

Sam snapped her head around to see Jack O’Neill standing not six feet away. He was glaring silently at her, one hand slapped up to his forehead in a gesture of obvious frustration. Right next to him, rearing up on the bed closest to the window clutching white sheets to his waist as he worked to balance himself into a kneeling position, was… Daniel. It was his voice she had heard, calling out her name in alarm.

The arms around her relaxed almost immediately, one of them releasing it’s grip entirely. Sam stared at Daniel in shock. He looked… awful. The sight of pale skin, deep purple bruising on his chest and two black eyes barely registered before Sam’s attention was drawn away by movement off to her left. Teal’c appeared in the doorway.

The response from the big man who had grabbed her was instantaneous. Sam felt the remaining strong grip on her tighten and flex, and she was abruptly flung around further into the room as a large handgun swiftly appeared and was leveled directly at Teal’c’s chest. In rapid-fire succession – virtually simultaneously – Sam felt herself impact the wall behind her… saw the weapon… saw the anger and surprise on Teal’c’s face… saw O’Neill roll his eyes and quickly raise both his hands, palms facing outwards towards the man with the gun.

She heard sharp voices; O’Neill growling "No, dammit!" and a strangled voice calling out much more urgently. Daniel.

Daniel.  Sam turned her eyes toward where she had seen him, to the bed by the window. Daniel was still on his knees, but now reaching out in panic toward the two men in the doorway. He obviously took the threat to Teal’c very seriously. Daniel began to chatter loudly, speaking so quickly Sam could barely understand him.

"John-no-don’t. Just put it away. If-you-want-to-get-outta-this… just-put-the-gun-away please-John-don’t… he can help us…"

The mattress was soft and Daniel wobbled slightly. In his anxiety, he had reached out far enough with one arm and leaned forward enough that he was in danger of toppling over. O’Neill reached out for his friend and grabbed him by the upper arm.

And inadvertently pulled him right off the bed.

Sam gaped.

As soon as the door in front of him opened, O’Neill was aware of three things. He caught a glimpse of Samuels across the room, just disappearing through a far doorway. He saw Daniel on his left, sitting up in the bed. And he saw, close up and personal, the wrong end of a rather large handgun not two inches from his nose.

His first thought was ‘Damn it, Daniel…’, quickly followed by ‘Dammit, Daniel…’ as he took in the battered face of his friend. For a moment, seeing the ugly gash which stood out starkly high on one pale cheek and the pain evident in two very blackened eyes, O’Neill was more afraid for Daniel than he of was the weapon in his own face. Then Daniel smiled at him.

"Jack!"  Daniel happily called his name and reached out in his direction with both arms. The childlike gesture, the utter brilliance of that smile and the innocent joy in the voice made Jack feel as if he had slid down the wrong rabbit hole. There was a big ugly son-of-a… um, of-a-gun sticking an equally big ugly son-of-a-gun up his nostrils, Daniel looked like he should be wearing a toe-tag, Samuels… well, Jack could see Samuels poking his head out from around the corner of the door and the man looked like he’d seen a particularly scary ghost…

Yet here was Daniel greeting him as if he was laden with gifts coming over for some kiddy birthday party.

An amused snigger from in front of him immediately preceded the removal of the menacing weapon. "Don’t think I ever saw anyone so happy." The weapon’s big ugly owner turned to face Daniel. "Geez, Buddy. I’m hurt. You like him better ’n me."

Daniel’s face darkened immediately and the outstretched arms fell to his sides, hands clenching into fists. Jack quickly moved to his side.

"Daniel… you okay?" Receiving a definite nod in reply, Jack turned his attention to the big man with the gun. "Just who is this clown?"

"I thought we discussed dropping the ‘buddy’ name-thing." Jack looked on in confusion, as a very obviously angry Daniel faced off against the son-of-a-gun. "Or is your brain too small to handle such a complicated concept?"

"Hey, it was my brain got us all…" The retort was cut off at the sound of car doors slamming outside. "Expecting anyone else, Doc?" The thug with the gun placed himself solidly in front of the door, both his tone and his facial expression hardening. Daniel gave Jack a questioning look.

"Oh… yeah, actually. Carter…" Jack peeked out through the gap in the curtains on the window. He turned to Daniel and nodded, before turning back to wave at Carter. "…is here right now."

"What the hell is this… a convention?"   The look on the thug’s face was murderous, his voice a rough snarl. It was clear that the man hadn’t expected anyone other than Jack.

Just as Daniel raised his hand and opened his mouth to speak, the door swung open and Jack watched in dismay as Captain Samantha Carter, his ever-vigilant second in command, burst backwards into the room and plunged right into the ugly-son-of-a-gun with the equally ugly temperament.

A very brief and hectic few seconds later, Carter was up against the wall, Teal’c stood in the doorway with the gun up his nostrils, and an agitated and vocal Daniel was about to pitch forward on the bed right onto his battered face. Seeing as Daniel was not only closest to him, but also was the only one in imminent danger of some degree of bodily harm who didn’t have a huge angry man holding a gun in his immediate vicinity, Jack figured that was the place to start.

Reaching out and grabbing Daniel’s arm intending to haul him upright and offer some support, Jack underestimated the weakened state of his friend. With surprising ease, Daniel’s body yielded to the intervention, overbalancing toward Jack… and came right off the bed.

Now Jack was once again aware of three things. He heard a huge guffaw which rapidly turned into outright hysterical laughter. He saw the menacing gun drop away from Teal’c’s face. And he suddenly had his arms full of a falling, squirming, and very much naked Daniel Jackson.

Then there was a fourth thing. Teal’c, his tone harsh and menacing, said "You are the abductor of Daniel Jackson." And the laughter abruptly ceased as an impressive Jaffa haymaker made solid contact with the nose of one heck of a big ugly son-of-a-gun.

General Hammond summoned up every last ounce of persuasive ability he had, putting as much earnest entreaty and urgency into his voice as possible. "Please, Mr. President… try again. Our technician can tell you exactly what to look for. The recording is a fraud… I promise you."

The President was reluctant to even try, saying that the original tape had been put through it’s paces time and time again throughout the previous night; saying that perhaps the irregularities found on the tape sent to the SGC were simply the result of that tape being a copy of the original. When he heard that, General Hammond’s heart had lurched in his chest and his resolve had faltered momentarily. But he had to believe in his people; he had to have faith in Captain Carter’s abilities, and above all in Daniel Jackson’s loyalty.

General Hammond knew that any lack of faith on his part would be instantly recognized. Jackson’s fate, and the fate of SG1, would be sealed. He listened to the President tell him that he had dispatched the Secretary of Defense to the SGC so that the situation could be formally dealt with; that the man would arrive later that afternoon. And he listened with a mix of growing dread and excitement as he heard the President tell him that Senator Kinsey would accompany the Secretary of Defense.

"Sir. You know I have always placed the interests and security of the United States, of this entire planet, above everything else. It may not seem so to you right now, but in asking you to re-check the recording, that’s exactly what I am doing now."

The platitude sent down the line from the other side simply wasn’t good enough. Taking his career and his reputation in hand, Hammond gave it his last shot. "No, Mr. President. With respect, Sir, that’s not helpful. We have compelling evidence of our own here to back up what you will find on that tape. Surely you don’t doubt my word or my loyalty… We’ve been through too much, and I’ve always done my best for you. Mr. President, I must insist… re-evaluate the tape, Sir."

With great relief, Hammond listened to the quiet response. Then his relief turned to surprise.

The President was coming.

Daniel was a mess.

The extent of his friend’s injuries had become quite apparent as Jack had tried to prevent Daniel from hitting the floor. Grasping him around the waist had resulted in a hiss of pain which left no question as to the soreness of the bruising over both of Daniel’s flanks. A quick shift in Jack’s grip to Daniel’s arms had provoked an outcry which had led Jack’s sight to Daniel’s left forearm.

As he had pulled Daniel up and supported the kid at his side, Jack had had a chance perform a more organized inspection. Daniel’s face; his chest; dark bluish-red areas on his neck which could only be the product of a tight chokehold; the obvious fist marks buried in the dark bruising over both kidneys; the crude splint on the fingers of Daniel’s right hand… and his left arm; swollen and bruised in a dozen places, with deep red streaks extending past the elbow into the underside of his upper arm.

Anger swelled in Jack, filled him to bursting.

Even through the red haze of fury, Jack knew that this was an instance in which the phrase ‘first things first’ rang especially true. The very first thing was to get Danny safely back to bed. The second thing was to get control of himself; to refocus on the situation itself instead of his anger over it. Then the third thing was to try to understand what was happening.

Now, with Daniel safely back under the covers, the big guy slouched resentfully in a chair with a cold wash cloth held to his nose – silently glaring at Teal’c who hovered menacingly over him – and Samuels still pathetically hiding in the bathroom, Jack had a moment to take care of numbers two and three; to take a few deep breaths and try to control his still growing rage, and to try making sense of all this.

‘Everything comes in threes’ Jack thought. Three down, a million sets of three to go.

The first thing he tried to make sense of – it was becoming very distracting – was Carter’s current behavior. She was standing at the bathroom door in reach of the sink, repeatedly gulping glassfuls of water. But it was impossible to make sense of that; to his mind, her sudden thirst and inappropriate behavior was inexplicable. He thought, ‘Must be a girl-thing.’ Even as he thought that, though, Carter put the glass down and with a slight straightening of her shoulders and toss of her head, his captain turned toward him, a 'let's get down to business' look on her face.

The next thing to deal with – also because it was a distraction Jack thought he’d like to get rid of before settling down to the nitty-gritty – was Samuels, who was still shuttered away in the washroom, annoyingly peeking out from behind Carter. Jack gave him his very best antagonistic look and growled the man’s name loudly. The insipid face disappeared.

Number three was… ‘just who the hell is that man and what the hell is going on here?’

Jack turned to Daniel, trying to keep his voice light… trying not to express his anger at the one person who didn’t deserve it. It wasn’t hard; one look at his battered friend was all it took to remind him of what was most important here. He placed a hand on Daniel’s shoulder and immediately felt the heat of Daniel’s body, which had not registered with Jack earlier. That flush on Daniel’s face wasn’t entirely discomfort and embarrassment.

"Daniel… who’s the creep?"

As Daniel simply looked down at the bed, it was Teal’c who answered. "This is the person who abducted and mistreated Daniel." The Jaffa scowled at the big man. "Are you not?"

"The name’s Mich… uh, John, and yeah, I am."  John quickly added his primary defense. "And you can’t touch me, see, because I got him outta there and Doc Jackson here promised we’d all make it outta this mess in one piece, together. No jail, no bruises, no bodies by the side of the road. " He looked up at Teal’c. "Got it?"

Jack thought that okay, maybe he was just that little bit wrong about something here. Maybe it was time to direct a little anger and frustration in a particular direction.

"Daniel! Just what the hell were you thinking?"

"All right, it’s all set." Sam hung up the telephone, trying to suppress a grin. Colonel O’Neill was in no mood for a grin right now. Sam knew that Jack O’Neill understood the choices Daniel had made here, even if he refused to admit it. Even after – especially after – the events of the past few days had been thoroughly explained, the Colonel was very angry at being forced to spare Samuels and the other man.

It was clear that the abuse Daniel had suffered upset O’Neill, tore him up, in fact – it upset her and Teal’c, too – but Sam felt that more than anything, being unable to do any more, for the time being, than direct sarcastic comments and dark glares Samuels’ way was the main source of the Colonel’s negative attitude. Vengeance… he wanted vengeance. Daniel did, too… but Daniel wanted more than just that; he wanted vindication and freedom from future persecution. Sam knew that the Colonel could see that; could see that what Daniel wanted was more important, even though it made it impossible for O’Neill to get what he wanted.

Sam understood why Daniel had set out on this path; she even agreed with his choices. Daniel had made a pact with one devil to ensure he could get out from underfoot of another. If that’s what he needed to do, then she would do her very best to help.

Daniel gave her a hopeful look. That was an improvement… neither of them had been able to meet each other’s eyes until now. Sam felt terribly guilty about her earlier behavior, about the inadvertent "wow" which had escaped her and about her subsequent need to slake her sudden thirst. She figured they’d need to talk about it… later, when all this was over with and Daniel was, better… uhm, no, that’s not, ah, possible… when he was, uhm, feeling better.

"Guess what?" Back to business.

The raised eyebrow from the Colonel made it clear she should get on with it. "Well, apparently both the Secretary of Defense and Kinsey are on their way to the SGC. General Hammond thinks they should be there any time now. The President sent them earlier. They tested the tape and didn’t find the hidden signal."

Samuels let out a low groan, but Daniel simply nodded. Sam continued. "No, it’s okay. General Hammond convinced the President to check it out again, and told them what to look for. General Hammond got the return call just before I reached him… they found it."

"Did they tell Kinsey? Will they let us take it from here?" Daniel’s questions were urgent.

"No, and yes. Nobody knows about it yet. The President agreed that General Hammond should tell the Secretary, and apparently the Secretary is supposed to take care of informing Kinsey." She held up one hand at the alarmed look on Daniel’s face. "And yes, General Hammond said that he trusted us to handle Kinsey. Except, he said his rear will be in a sling if he doesn’t follow orders, so he has to be the one to tell the Secretary. He wants to be sure that Kinsey is off the base when he does that, so the Secretary won’t have the chance to talk to Kinsey right away."

Nods of understanding came from everyone except Samuels. He looked as though he was in another world altogether. "So, General Hammond suggested that you meet with Kinsey off the base." Daniel looked annoyed and nodded, as if that was a given which hadn’t been worth mentioning. "He said that if we set the time and place, he’d make sure Kinsey was there." The annoyed look changed to one of gratitude.

"But, Daniel… he’s not very happy about any of this. He insists on knowing what’s going on first." Jack O’Neill and John both snorted, Samuels whimpered and started to fidget, and Teal’c looked very thoughtful.

Daniel shook his head rapidly. "No, Sam. We can’t tell him. He’s a General in the Air Force… I can’t make him party to blackmail and conspiracy to conceal a crime."

O’Neill rolled his eyes. "Oh great, Danny. But you can do it to Carter and me. And Teal’c."

"O"Neill. It was you who involved myself and Captain Carter, and insisted upon being told.  Daniel Jackson simply asked for you to make the phone call and deliver some clothing." O’Neill waved a hand at Teal’c in disgust. Teal’c seemed unoffended. "Perhaps, since Dr. Fraiser was the one who initially made contact with Kinsey, she should be the one to draw him to our location."

Sam thought that was a great idea. She turned to a confused Daniel. "When Kinsey wouldn’t accept any of Colonel O'Neill's calls, I had Janet call him and imply that she had evidence of some, uh, well, complicity between you and Colonel O’Neill."  Daniel almost smiled. O’Neill rubbed his forehead and groaned.

"He was very interested. He said he’d meet with her, and gave her his cell phone number. He didn’t mention that he was coming to Colorado, though. Just when she should call him back."

Daniel reached for the bag O’Neill had placed at the foot of the bed. "Okay. Sam, call her. Tell her to contact him. This is as good a place as any to meet with him. Say… what? Seven, tonight?"

As Daniel rummaged in the bag, Sam nodded in satisfaction and picked up the phone. Then she ducked her head as Daniel’s voice suddenly became plaintive.

"Jaack… there’s no underwear in here."

Daniel shook his head in resignation as he watched out the window. Jack and Sam, having already moved their own vehicles, had cornered John at the van. Their interaction was animated, to say the least. Sam stood back chewing on her lip, wincing visibly from time to time, and intermittently extending and withdrawing one arm as if to be certain she was prepared for either fight or flight at a moment’s notice. Jack was nose to nose with the big man, his mouth moving rapidly, stabbing John in the chest with one forefinger as his face contorted in anger.

John… was laughing.

Almost relieved to see that he himself was not the only person which John used for his twisted, sadistic personal pleasure, Daniel turned away, absently pulling at the back of his fatigue pants as he did so. Whatever would happen, would happen. Kinsey was on the way, and as far as Daniel was concerned any interpersonal matters amongst any of them just weren’t worth his attention at this point.

Samuels, on the other hand… Daniel turned to the man. "Is it all set up?" Samuels was nervous, and Daniel wanted to be sure no mistakes were made. Especially, he had to be certain that Kinsey wouldn’t see the microphone mounted just behind the curtain valence overtop of the window. Samuels nodded an affirmative, and reached under the bed. There was a slight noise, and then Daniel heard his own voice, saying ‘Is it all set up?’ Good.

Daniel couldn’t believe that Kinsey had agreed to come here. One would have thought that the man would have insisted on meeting in public, or somewhere private where he at least would have some control over the setting and time of arrival of both parties. Daniel thought that Kinsey must be awfully sure of himself to be willing to take such a big risk. But, maybe, if Kinsey was convinced that anyone who could conceivably know of his part in this was dead… maybe Kinsey didn’t think of this as a risk at all.

Daniel couldn’t fathom why Kinsey would be that stupid, though. Even if the man thought that Daniel, Samuels, and the kidnappers were dead, surely he’d know from Janet’s phone call that someone out there suspected him of being more than just the messenger… This was bothersome. Daniel couldn’t help thinking that maybe Kinsey had an ace up his sleeve that Daniel hadn’t anticipated. Kinsey must be feeling very very sure of himself indeed to agree to come to an unknown motel, alone, not knowing for certain just who it was he was meeting with.

Daniel’s thoughts were interrupted by the return of Teal’c. The Jaffa pulled off his baseball cap and dangled the keys he held. "The criminal-named-John has secured the adjacent room. There was no difficulty." Daniel nodded, and only realized that he wasn’t wearing a watch as he brought his left arm up. He winced as a fresh stab of pain ran through his arm and up past his elbow toward his armpit.

Teal’c noticed the gesture. "It is just past six o’clock." His eyes flicked up and down Daniel’s body. "You cannot do this. One of us should stay. You are injured, and will be in need of protection."

Daniel was pretty sure that Teal’c was right. But nobody else could be there in the beginning; it had to be just himself and Samuels. Kinsey would be afraid of John, and nothing useful would be said. If Kinsey had any fear at all of himself and Samuels, Daniel knew it was limited to fear of exposure. Kinsey’s hatred of him and his disdain for Samuels would get the man talking; would provide Daniel the opportunity to deliver his message to Kinsey, loud and clear. Daniel was sure of that.

The recorder under the bed was Daniel’s ace in the hole. It was his protection against any change of heart on the part of both Kinsey and Samuels, and even if revealing the content of the tape which was yet to be made would convict Daniel himself of blackmail, he would not hesitate to use it if he had to. The rest of SG1 simply could not be in that room; placed at risk in that way.

"No, Teal’c. Look, I know you want to help, but being in here wouldn’t be helping. As long as Kinsey comes alone, I can handle him…"

"And if he doesn’t come alone? What then Daniel?" Jack stood in the doorway, his face still dark from his confrontation with John. Sam crowded up behind him.

"Daniel, you can’t meet with him alone."

"Sam, it’s okay. It has to be this way… besides, Samuels will be here."

"What! You didn’t say anything about me staying here! I’m not talking to him. No way am I…" Samuels was white-faced, his hands fluttering around like some manic butterfly.

John pushed his way past Sam and Jack at the doorway, and settled himself into the only chair in the room. He directed a laugh in Samuels’ direction. "With him? You’re better off without him. Anyway, you won’t be alone…"

Jack advanced on the big man swiftly. "Don’t you think for even a minute…"

Daniel was at low ebb. He felt alternately hot and cold, he hurt everywhere – some everywheres more than others – he had a massive headache, and goddam these stupid pants!  He yanked hard at the seat of the fatigues. He had figured he’d get an adrenaline rush – put some gas in his tank, so to speak – once the time drew closer, but so far it hadn’t happened. He wondered if it would happen at all; if he even had any of the magic juice left in him.

His irritability broke through. "Enough! Everybody… look, enough okay? I don’t have the energy or the patience for this. You want to help? Great! So help, then." Even that short burst of opposition was exhausting. Daniel sank down onto the bed. "Please, just… just trust me, okay?"

Jack tried one last time. "Danny, we should just expose the tape and bring you back and let the bruises speak for themselves." He turned a threatening glare onto Samuels and John. "And put these two away for a long long time."

"No Sir. Daniel’s right." Sam looked over at John. He leered at her. "First off, even though we can use the tapes Daniel made before, of Kinsey on the telephone with these two…" she waved a hand at John and Samuels "…we can’t be one hundred percent certain that he won’t somehow pull strings and stay out of prison. He is on the Appropriations Committee, Sir; Kinsey is powerful, and the President and the Joint Chiefs did fall for the tape. That embarrassment is bad enough for them. These are politicians, Sir. Powerful politicians."

"A politician... one that would circumvent God."  Daniel said it softly, but they heard it. Jack gave him a look as though he thought Daniel was exhibiting a symptom of a serious head injury.

Sam smiled at Daniel. "That's Shakespeare. It's from Hamlet.  Very good, Daniel."  She turned to O'Neill.  "Don’t forget… the Stargate Project is top secret. I think what Daniel is trying to say is that anything could happen..."

Daniel looked at her thankfully. At least someone understood.  "Jack, you think they won’t strike a deal with Kinsey to keep him quiet?  Even if Kinsey does get sent to jail, he obviously has some sinister connections or he couldn’t have come so close to pulling this off. Whether he stays out of prison or not, Jack, unless I can use some leverage against him I’d be dead in a week."

Jack turned away, dismissing the argument. "Crap. The man isn’t God. We’d protect you, Daniel."

Daniel peered at Jack through bleary eyes. "Hell. I am so tired. Do you think I’d be doing this…" he tipped his head in Samuels’ direction "…any of this, if I thought there was any other way? I got started thinking about how to stop Kinsey and once John snapped it up, there was no way to stop it. God, Jack."  Daniel’s voice picked up speed in his desperation to make Jack understand just how trapped he felt.

"I should have said no, right from the start. But I was confused and afraid and everything hurt so bad… I tried, but there didn’t seem to be any other answer. Oh, Jack…all I could think about was you guys… about how John would probably kill me if I said I wouldn’t help and then Kinsey would still be there, to try again…"

Daniel tried to keep the tremor out of his voice. "I, I'm sorry, I guess I wasn’t thinking straight; I should have just said no…"

Daniel closed his eyes and let his voice trail off. He didn’t know what else to say. Jack’s disapproval was a painful weight pressing down on his chest. Then he felt the hand on his shoulder, and the slight squeeze that said that even if he didn’t agree, Jack was there for him.

John was glad that he’d had the foresight to make some surreptitious preparations. It looked like he might need them, now that it had been decided that only Jackson and Samuels would meet with Kinsey. Still, though, maybe there was a chance that he could persuade Jackson to change his mind... after all, his life was on the line here just as much as Jackson’s and Samuels. John knew he had every right to object to Jackson’s plans. He figured now was the time to speak up, and he’d better make it good.

"Whoa a sec there, Doc. What’s this about it being just you and the weasel? What about me… I’ve got as much at stake here as you do. Besides, your friend is right. Kinsey could have a gun or something, and you said it yourself… the three musketeers here can’t be anywhere around."

Daniel’s answer was swift and short. "No way."

John hadn’t really expected anything else at this point. "So how do I know you’re gonna hold up your end of things if I’m not there?  I need to hear it, Buddy. Hell, what’s to stop you from dealing with Kinsey on the side; from turning me over?" Out of the corner of his eye, John noticed all three of Jackson’s friends stiffen visibly. He sat back in the chair, satisfied that they were listening to him and taking him seriously.

Jackson was shaking his head. "Don’t give me that…" John abruptly leaned forward to give his words added weight. "Don’t forget… wasn’t me that beat the crap out of you. I saved your life. I risked everything to put an end to it and get you outta there in one piece. I know you think I’m the lowest life that crawls on the face of the Earth, but…" He pointed a finger at Jackson. "… don’t you ever forget… you’d be fertilizer now if it wasn’t for me."

"Hey!" O’Neill pointed a finger of his own. "There’s no way we’re going to leave you alone with Daniel. You’re not leaving my sight, Buddy."

"Jack…" Daniel rose and placed himself between the two men. He addressed John. "Look, you can’t be there… Kinsey doesn’t know you, right? Right. First of all, you’d scare him off; he’ll never talk with a stranger in the room, and second, he might not even believe that you’re who we say you are."

"I need to know that you’re keeping your word. You promised…" As Jackson lowered his eyes, John knew he was close. Just one last push. "Hey, y’ know, the world I grew up in wasn’t the same as yours… trust doesn’t come easy for guys like me…"

O’Neill rolled his eyes and raised his hands in the air. "Ohh yeah, right…"

John jumped to his feet, his voice loud in order to drown out O"Neill. "You gave your word… look, I godamned well saved your life… I didn’t take that risk and spend all this time waiting on you just to end up standing on the outside looking in. Even if I can’t bring myself to trust you, you should trust me by now."

The compromise came from a unlikely source. Samuels took a tentative step forward. "Wait. We’re recording the meeting with Kinsey, right? So, why don’t we do it like Dr. Jackson said, but after Kinsey agrees, then you can just come in."

As the man spoke, John gave himself a silent pat on the back. Sure, he had agreed that Jackson should bring in a third party to arrange the meet with Kinsey, but he had only expected one other person. One more would have been manageable. But he’d ended up with three more; one of them a sizeable mountain of a man, and another an annoyingly belligerent fly in the ointment. The third sure was nice to look at… just maybe, with a bit of planning and luck, he’d have an opportunity to do something more about that, once everything was settled.

But back to the present… Now John had some unexpected help in getting out from under the oppressive thumb of these three. ‘All good things come to those who wait’, he thought. ‘Just gotta learn to adapt… and thank God for weasels.’

Daniel looked reluctant, but slowly nodded all the same "All right… We can call you in, and then play the tape for Kinsey. That way, you’ll know just what we talked about and Kinsey will know that we have his confession and agreement on tape." He turned to the others. "He can stay next door with you, and we’ll bang on the wall or something."

John could see that Jackson’s friends didn’t like the idea. There was one other thing John figured he could do, though, which might help to convey pure intentions; which might help to ensure that the three stooges wouldn’t interfere with him joining the meeting with Kinsey. Their main concern was Jackson’s safety, after all.

John pulled out the handgun which was nestled in the back of his waistband – the one he had gotten from the van earlier – and extended it, handgrip first, toward Jackson. "Here. You solved my problem, but not yours. You might need this."

As Jackson stepped back, his hands raised in front of him and looking as though he was seeing a particularly horrible apparition, O’Neill grabbed the gun from John and strode over to the bed nearest the window, shoving the gun under the pillow.

"This doesn’t mean I agree with the jerk or anything… this thing’s a lot better off here with you, Daniel, than with him." His tone softened. "It’s okay, Danny… I know. There’s been enough violence.

"Look, it’s here if you need it, okay? Just… just look out for yourself, hear me?"

Go on to part two of Chapter three

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