A New Road 13

Finding Her

by SJSlashfan

URL: http://www.area52hkh.net/ass/sjslashfan/newroa13.php
Summary: With the help of O'Neill, Sam and Janet try to locate the kidnapped Rebecca.

Sam and Janet hardly slept that first night; they spent most of the night in Cassie's room, soothing her when she moaned in her sleep, and reassuring her that they would do all in their power to get Rebecca back safely.

What little time Sam didn't spend by her daughter's bedside, she spent on the net, researching everything she could find about Brehme and his gang. She was horrified to learn that he had made his way round the African continent, cynically taking advantage of the comparatively poor security measures there to kidnap Westerners. Some of his kidnaps failed to secure him any money at all; others had been more successful. He had done the same over a period of nearly ten years in the Middle East, but had pulled out once the political situation got too dangerous for him. The only slightly 'good' news was that most of the victims were found alive; it seemed that he and his gang only murdered their victims when they got close to being caught. So she realized that she would have to tread carefully with the rescue.

Even if Sam hadn't already decided that she would be the one to break into the complex, she knew now that it would have to be her, and her alone. Bringing in O'Neill, or any of the others, would signal to Brehme that the 'big guns' were involved, and would put Rebecca at unnecessary risk.

"I've got to take my handgun," she told Janet the next day. "They know I'm Air Force. If I didn't take a gun, and they caught me, they'd know something was going on."

Janet blanched. She knew that if Sam were to take a gun, the chances of it being used on her if things went wrong were high.

Sam was one step ahead of her. "Don't worry, hon, I'm gonna rig it."

"Rig it?" Janet was confused.

"Rig it to explode in the user's hand. So if they catch me and take it from me, and then shoot me with it, it'll take the shooter out, not me."

"How the hell can you be sure of that?" Janet was angry. She couldn't bear the thought of losing the woman she had started to think of as irreplaceable in her life. "Can you really guarantee that?"

"Yes," Sam said simply. She caressed her lover's face. "I'll put a tiny pin half way down the barrel. That way, as soon as the bullet is fired, at incredible velocity, it'll hit an unexpected barrier, and the energy created in its firing will have to disperse somewhere. The gun'll just explode. It'd probably take the shooter's arm off."

Janet gulped.

"It won't be pretty," Sam agreed. "And I'm hoping it won't come to that. It's just a safety measure. After all, all I need to do is to get to Rebecca, and to activate the watch. We'll be beamed right out of there. Couldn't be simpler. Hey," she saw a single tear track down Janet's cheek. "It's gonna be okay. Really it will. I'll make sure of it. And General O'Neill's going to help us. With the Odyssey on our side, what could go wrong?"

Janet nodded. Sam took her in her arms and held her tight. "Just promise me you'll be careful, Sam," Janet begged. "I couldn't bear to lose you."

"You won't lose me sweetie," Sam told her, earnestly. "In a few days, we'll all be back together. Everything's going to be okay."

= = =

Cassie's cellphone vibrated and beeped. Sam leapt over and grabbed it from the kitchen table. 'One multimedia message,' announced the screen. With trembling fingers, she pressed enter. She gasped as she saw a photograph showing a dirty and badly bruised Rebecca, tied to a chair. She was holding a piece of card, with the words "$5m. Unmarked notes. 3 days. When/where/how details to follow."

"Okay," Sam breathed. "That's good. At least they're getting in touch."

"Show me," Janet commanded. Sam handed the phone over. "Oh God," she whispered.

"At least she's still alive, Jan," Sam reassured her. "And General O'Neill's got the Odyssey scanning this house. He may have a fix on their position."

As she spoke, her own cellphone rang insistently. "Carter," she answered brusquely. "Oh hi Sir. Any luck? Well that's better than nothing. No, it was sent from Rebecca's phone, we expected that. Brehme may be many things, but he's not stupid. I think so, I need to analyze it properly, I haven't got the right equipment here. I think that may be best, yes. Okay Sir, speak to you soon. And Sir? Thank you."

"No luck?" Janet asked.

"He's narrowed it down to 50 square kilometres. I know," she pre-empted Janet's next remark. "That's a huge area. But there are some clues in the picture. Look, you can see brickwork in the corner there." Seeing Janet's unconvinced expression, she went on, "Not many buildings in this area have brick in them. This could really narrow it down. I need to do a proper analysis. I'm going up to the Odyssey for a couple of hours, if you think you'll be okay here with Cass?"

"We'll be fine," Janet rallied, determined to help as much as she could. "Cassie's sleeping, the sedatives worked. And she'll be fine when she wakes up, physically at least."

"I'll phone every half hour," Sam promised. "Tell Cass I love her."

"She knows that Sam," Janet smiled.

"I love you too, Jan," Sam's voice was full of emotion. She pulled her lover gently to her, and kissed her deeply, her left hand cupping Janet's right breast, fondling it gently.

Janet responded to the kiss, pressing herself tight against Sam. "Go," she told her, hoarsely. "Before I change my mind."

Sam nodded, and pressed the small button on her wristwatch. A white light enveloped her, and she disappeared. A minute later, Janet's phone beeped. "Got here safely," announced the SMS, "see you in a couple of hours."

= = =

Janet made her way back into Cassie's bedroom. Cassie was stirring, so Janet took her hand and held it softly.

"Janet?" Cassie asked weakly.

"I'm here baby," Janet told her. "You're gonna be okay."

"Rebecca?" Cassie looked round, urgently.

"Not yet, Sam's working on it Cass," Janet said.

Cassie's eyes filled with tears. "Hold me?" she asked Janet, who immediately sat on the bed and gathered her in her arms, and held her tight.

"Janet?" Cassie asked.

"Yes sweetie?" Janet was listening.

"Can I call you Mom? I know you're not her, not exactly. But you're just like her. And I want you to be my Mom. I think she'd want that too."

Janet fought to control her emotions. "I'd be honored to be your Mom, Cass. I loved my Cass so much, and I love you too. I can't tell you what it's like to have you here, in my arms."

Cassie sniffed. "Stay with me, Mom," she whispered.

"For as long as you need me Cassie, for as long as you need me," she promised 'her' daughter.

= = =

"So Carter, what have you come up with?" O'Neill asked.

"Well, Sir. The building's obviously made of brick, that much we know. What's more important, though, is the road outside. You can't see much with the naked eye," she admitted. "But looking at 1200%, you can see the usual dirt road here," she pointed to the screen. "But just next to it, you can see a small amount of what looks just like Tarmac. Of course you know what that means Sir?"

"Explain it to me anyway," O'Neill said, drily. He was used to Sam's explanations, and knew she'd come to the point sooner rather than later.

"Tarmac, Sir," Sam said patiently. "There's Tarmac round Cassie's complex in the village, and also in parts of the town. But the only Tarmac near a brick building is the old airstrip, about 35km from the village. I can't be sure, Sir, but my guess is that's where she is."

"Well, Carter, let's go see," O'Neill was delighted that at last they had a concrete lead. He loved Cassie like a niece, and couldn't bear to see her hurt. "What can you tell me about the airstrip?"

"All I know is that it was abandoned three years ago when they built the new airfield. It's derelict in places, so it's not even used for storage."

"Let's go check out the life signs, then we'll make a plan," O'Neill said.

= = =

Three hours later, Sam was beamed back into the house, this time with O'Neill in tow. Janet looked up from the couch where she was sitting with her arm round Cassie.

"Hey Cassie," O'Neill sat quietly on the other side of her.

"Uncle Jack!" Cassie flung her arms round his neck, and he held her in his strong arms.

"We think we've found her, Cass," he told her. "We've got a plan. If it all works out, she'll be back here by tomorrow evening. I know," he held up his hands, "you want her back now. Of course you do. But we want her to be safe. So we're gonna have to watch the place, for anything up to a day, to find the best time to go in."

"He works to a pattern," Sam interjected. "And if we can work out that pattern, we can maximize our chances of success. In previous kidnaps, he tends to stay overnight where the victim's being held. But then he goes off during the day, to attend to his other 'businesses', and often takes his goons with him, leaving just one or two behind to guard the prisoner."

"What other 'businesses'?" Janet was almost afraid to ask.

"Just what you'd expect," Sam's expression was grim. "Drugs mostly. He's also been suspected of involvement in pornography and prostitution. Nice man."

O'Neill sat down with Cassandra, and explained everything to her - how Sam was going to go in and retrieve Rebecca, how they were doing everything possible to minimize risk to Sam and to Rebecca.

When Janet looked up, she realized Sam had disappeared. She found her in the kitchen, disassembling her handgun. "Want a hand?" she asked, quietly.

Sam shook her head. "I'm okay," she replied. "Stay though," she looked up and gave her lover a small, sad, smile. "I could do with the company."

"You look exhausted Sam," Janet told her gently.

"You too, Jan," Sam replied. "It's been a bad time, hasn't it?"

Janet nodded her agreement. "I know you're going to do this Sam. And I know you've got to, I understand that. But I want to give you a sedative so you sleep tonight. The general can run the surveillance. You need to be rested before you go."

Sam shook her head. "No sedative, Jan," she said, firmly. "But I will sleep tonight, I promise. We both will. General O'Neill's already told me that. In fact," she smiled, almost sheepishly, "he's told me that 'no sleep, no Odyssey'. Said he didn't want me taking unnecessary risks. You sure you two haven't been talking behind my back?"

Janet smiled back. "You'll never know," she teased.

= = =

The four of them had dinner together, then the three women made their way to bed, while O'Neill headed back to the Odyssey.

"We're leaving the doors open, Cass," Janet told her daughter as she tucked her into bed. "You do the same. If you need us, you just need to call."

"Thanks Mom," Cass said.

"Mom?" Sam asked, as they reached their room, surprised but delighted by this new development.

"Yeah," Janet answered shyly. "Do you mind?"

"Of course I don't mind," Sam told her, "it's great. Her mom would have wanted that."

"That's what Cassie said," Janet replied, climbing into bed and pulling her lover in with her. She wrapped herself round Sam, and they stayed tightly wound all night, clinging to each other as if each was afraid the other would disappear.

= = =

Sam slept soundly, though she was up preparing for the day at 0500hrs. She talked to O'Neill, who told her that, if Brehme stuck to the pattern of the day before, the best time to break in to the complex was 1445hrs, fifteen minutes after Brehme and most of his gang headed to their other 'office'. "He'll be gone for nearly two hours Carter, plenty of time for you to get in there and get Rebecca."

So as to avoid alerting Brehme to O'Neill's involvement, Sam decided to use Simon's motorbike to get to the abandoned airstrip, and by 1300hrs was ready to leave. Janet was silent, though Sam could see the fear in her eyes. Sam hugged Cassie briefly, before turning to the General. "You'll take them both up with you to the Odyssey Sir?" she checked, for the fifth time.

"As soon as you've gone, Carter," he promised, then he and Cassie tactfully withdrew into the living room, leaving Sam facing Janet in the kitchen.

"I love you," Janet said, simply. "More than life."

"I love you too," Sam's voice was strong and determined. "That's why I'll be back with you tonight. We can celebrate then."

"Okay," Janet's voice was small.

Sam kissed her very gently on the lips. "Look after Cassie," she whispered. "See you soon."

= = =

Sam drew up to the airstrip on the bike, and hid herself and the bike behind an outcrop of rocks. It was only 1420 hours, so she had to sit it out and wait until she got the signal from O'Neill. Just after she settled down to watch, she saw two trucks leaving the airstrip, and counted 11 men. That meant, if the scans had been accurate, that there were two men and, she prayed, Rebecca, still in the building.

Her radio clicked on. "Three life signs in there, Carter," she recognized the General's voice. "My guess is she's at the back on the ground floor, the other two are moving around upstairs. That's also supported by the tarmac at the back of the building. Whenever you're ready Carter."

"Going in now, Sir," Sam replied quietly. "Requesting radio silence." And she headed toward the building. Her lock-picking skills meant that she was inside in less than a minute. She made her way to the back of the building, and found that the back room was locked, using a large padlock. She made quick work of the padlock, and eased the door open.

Sam nearly cried out when she saw a bruised and filthy - but definitely alive -- Rebecca cowering in the far corner of the room. She held up her finger to her mouth, to signify that Rebecca should remain silent. Rebecca's look of relief was clear; however, a second later, fear flashed in her eyes again.

Sam half-turned, when she felt a steel blade against her neck. "Goin' somewhere blondie?" a deep voice called.

Next: Rescue