PART 3
�Jack, hey,� Daniel said, grabbing one of Jack�s hands to get his attention, �She�ll make it. You have to have hope--� at Jack�s rude snort and his pulling away, Daniel continued, �Stop it! Sometimes, Jack, all you�ve got to go on is hope! I know. If you can�t or don�t believe when there�s nothing else, it�ll drive you nuts. It�s shitty, I know. Especially for you.�
Jack looked at Daniel warily.
�What the hell do you mean by that?� he asked roughly.
�Jeez, Jack, get your head out of your ass!� Daniel retorted not without a little amusement, �A woman you care about . . . hell, I�m just gonna say it, the woman you love is stuck in that hospital bed in a coma beat to hell by someone none of us knew. Since she had the wherewithal to kill him, there�s not a damn thing you can do except sit here and wait like the rest of us �normal� folks and worry. You�re a man of action who can�t stand waiting or worrying. But I�m sorry, my friend, waiting and worrying and having a little hope are--�
�Sam�s awake!� Janet interrupted joyously.
��what . . . you�re not going to have to do,� Daniel finished with a grin, �See, Jack,� he smirked, �Hope. It�s powerful stuff.�
Jack smiled.
�Yeah,� he said, �I see.�
�Sir?� Janet said, �Sam�s asking for you . . . You can go in, but not too long . . . and don�t let her talk too much. She�s going to need to have her jaw wired . . .� seeing Jack frown, she continued, �Not talking would be the least painful thing for her, sir.�
�Yeah . . . okay,� Jack said distractedly, focusing on the door across the hall, �Can I go in now?�
�Yes, sir,� Janet smiled, �Go ahead.�
Sam opened her eyes slowly when she heard the click of the door. Simultaneously, she heard the beeping of a heart monitor and realized she was alive, and better yet, safe. Her heart knew the footsteps she heard were Jack�s, but her brain insisted it was Jake, the man that had hurt her.
�No! No!� she screamed through the pain in her jaw, �Go �way! I shot you! You�re s�posed to be dead! Go away!�
Her tears started falling as images of Jake�s fists coming at her face flashed through her mind. Even though the sharp pains in her ribs told her not to, she couldn�t stop the sobs as she recalled being raped repeatedly throughout the morning.
�Sam,� Jack said, desperately trying to swallow that lump growing in his throat, �It�s okay. He�s dead. It�s me, Jack.�
Jack knew her terror was of a remembered image, not of him. He�d gone through the same experience when they�d finally rescued him from that hell hole in Iraq. He�d nearly killed one of his saviors, even in his weakened condition, because his brain would not let go of the torture he�d endured.
�Take is easy, Sam,� he continued softly as he stepped closer, �It�s over, now. He�s dead. You killed him. He won�t ever hurt you again.�
He saw the moment her fuddled brain woke up. Recognition dawned in her tortured eyes.
�Colonel?� she asked dazedly.
�Sh-h-h,� he said gently with a smile, �Yeah, Carter, it�s me and you�re not supposed to be talking. So shut it before Doc Frasier comes in and kicks me out, �k?�
�Yessir,� she slurred.
�Now Carter, do I have to make that an order?� he asked with a grin, guiltily happy to hear her voice, however slurred by drugs and pain.
This time she replied only by slightly shaking her head no as she wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand.
�Good,� he smiled fully now.
He moved to her side and pulled the chair closer to her. Sitting down, he looked at her more seriously now.
�You scared me, Carter,� he admitted with a sigh.
Sam reached out to him with her right hand, the question in her eyes. He grabbed her hand before he continued, looking at their hands entwined.
�I-I don�t know if Doc told you, but I�m the one that found you,� he said hesitantly, �I was outside your building when I heard . . . heard the shot. God, Carter, I�ve been through that f-feeling twice . . .� he stopped and took a deep breath, �I . . . I don�t know what I would have done if I�d l-lost you, too.�
He looked up at her with tears in his eyes and was surprised to see fresh tears in hers.
�I�m so sorry this happened, Sam,� he said intently, �While I�m at it, I�m sorry I let you down.�
She frowned slightly and he continued quickly.
�I know this isn�t really the right time for this, but I gotta say it before it gets ignored again. I know you�ve been pretty pissed at me these past few weeks. It�s been pretty obvious. I�m sorry I couldn�t tell you what was going on with the NID mission.�She squeezed his hand and shook her head. He sighed. She had understood. Good.
�Also,� he continued again, �I�m sorry I didn�t have faith in you. I know I let you down there, too. I should have known that you�d get me home from Edora. I should have known that you would never give up until you got me home. I�m sorry I gave up on you. I should have known . . . should have remembered that Major Samantha Carter was on the case; that the most intelligent, most knowledgeable person on the planet about the Stargate, not to mention the most faithful second I�ve ever had, was going to get me home. I�m sorry I forgot that.�