Silenced Screams

Authors Notes: Sorry for the long, long delay but my health has been less than perfect lately. I hope there's still someone out there reading this. Your reviews, thoughts and opinions would be greatly appreciated. Also a thank you to everyone who's given me a hand trying to complete this. I have no doubt I will miss some of the names so if I miss your name please, please let me know. I couldn't have gotten it done without everyone's help and I want to thank each one of you. So...thanks to Alison, Jenni and Sue. Also Rockabyss, Telkena, Jami, Sasha 147, RommieG65 and Lilli. As I've said I know I've missed some so please let me know.
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And Now On With The Story...

Chapter Twenty-Four


"Hmmm Hmmm." It was the second time this morning Jack had caught himself humming. Luckily he'd been alone both times because that would so not go with his 'Tough Bad-Ass Air Force Colonel' image. It was hard to hold that face, though, after the fairytale weekend he'd had with Sam. It had been more than 'hum-worthy'. It was taking all of his control not to walk around wearing a huge shit-eating grin that would announce to the world that he'd spent his entire weekend having the best sex of his life. And not just the 'best' sex', no, no, no, he'd had mind-blowing, earth-shattering, hot monkey sex with none other than Sam Carter. Yep, the one, the only, THE Sam Carter, whom men from every planet dreamed and fantasized about. 'I should be allowed to wear a sign or pin or something...I should get a first place ribbon, I mean it's only fair.'

He was so happy, he hadn't interrupted Danny's lecture on P2-something, not even once. He hadn't even whined about his misfortune of having to sit through back-to-back 'Danny-boring lectures'. 'Okay, granted, this time I’ve got the added bonus of Carter sitting right next to me the whole time, and who could really find fault with that?' he chided himself. He'd been so far away during the meeting he hadn't even realized Doc was coming to speak. His ears pricked up a bit to hear what could be on this mission that she'd need to brief everyone on. Sitting a bit straighter, he turned his full focus on her. He knew he'd heard wrong because that last word had sounded like 'autopsy' and that made no sense at all.

Lightly tapping Jack's leg, Sam cleared her throat and restated Janet's last statement. "So, you've got Hanson's official autopsy report. What'd you find that you wanted us all to hear?" Sam had clearly heard when Janet had busted in on their mission briefing with that announcement, but she was sure the Colonel had been a million miles away. She'd learned over the years how to bring 'her Colonel' up to speed on anything he'd missed while his mind floated away to a place where the fish grew 'this big'. She could see the 'Bad-Ass Air Force Colonel' mask snap into place as he focused his full attention on Janet.

"Go ahead, Doctor, what is it you've found that you feel we should be made aware of?" The General had been hoping they'd heard the last of that man last week. He had done more damage to the SGC than all the Goa'uld put together. But it would seem even dead he was still causing quite a stir. Major Carter, hell all of SG-1, had had more than their fair share of suffering at that man's hands.

"Okay, as you probably remember, I'd requested a copy of Captain Hanson's autopsy report. It was just routine procedure so that I could attach it to Sam's file and close out this incident. I was just expecting..." Janet was cut off before she could finish.

"Doctor! Get to the point," Hammond almost snapped, dropping his head to rub his temples before shaking off the unwanted emotion. Looking back to the Base CMO, he said a bit calmer, "What did you find, Doctor?" He shouldn't be taking his frustration out on her, she had enough on her plate already. From her body language the news was not going to go over well.

She fidgeted with her folder, opening it and pulling out several pieces of paper before looking back at everyone assembled around the table. Gathering her resolve with one last cleansing breath, she launched in on her findings

"Alright, as everyone knows, Captain Hanson was found in a building at the end of the same alley where Captain Turner was found so everyone assumed Captain Hanson's cause of death would be a gun shot wound from one of the service weapons fired the night of the sting operation. Or, if not the actual shot being fatal, then blood loss or exposure when he went down." She stopped, checking that everyone was still in agreement on that assumption. All heads bobbed up and down, waiting to see which of those theories turned out to be correct.

"It was none of those." She paused. "Captain Hanson’s cause of death was a broken neck. His neck was snapped at the second vertebrae with one hand. There were no signs of bruising or trauma around the area, no signs of a struggle. It was a clean, quick break made with surgical precision," she finished, finally looking up from the notes she had before her. So far from anything they'd expected, her news came as a total surprise to everyone. She couldn't blame them for not being able to process enough to even ask questions. She understood. She'd sat for over an hour staring blankly at the report before she could even call to verify the report findings.

"So, are you saying he was killed by a doctor?" Daniel was finally able to get out.

"It would almost have to be a doctor or someone with a medical background. They'd be about the only people who'd know how to do it. I don't know of anyone else who'd have that kind of knowledge or training." It was the only answer she could imagine. Everyone was so caught up in her report, that no one noticed the shared look that passed between Teal'c and Jack at that statement.

"As for his time of death, as close as they can narrow it down he'd been dead about a month...around the same time he went..." She was surprised when the rest of her statement was interrupted by the Colonel's quiet revelation.

"I would."

“...AWOL, which would explain why he was AWOL." She finished, as everyone's attention turned to the Colonel.

Again within so many minutes, the room had taken on a stunned silence. She couldn't decide which piece of news had been the cause but, having had more time to digest her findings, she knew which part she questioned.

"How would you know how to break a neck that precisely? That's not the kind of knowledge you just find lying around, Sir?” she challenged.

"Black Ops."

That was all he said. Janet couldn't help noticing the faraway look that haunted his eyes with that admission. Janet realized it was so easy to forget the kind of life the Colonel had lived before coming to StarGate Command. Of course he would have been trained in the most effective and efficient killing methods. And leaving no evidence of it behind would be a must. It was hard to see that cold, calculating killer in the man sitting before them now. But as hard as it was for her to imagine, she could see the struggle was even harder for the others. Even the General, who'd surely seen the Colonel's entire file, was finding it hard to reconcile. The only one unaffected seemed to be Teal'c, who took the news without even raising an eyebrow. Able to move past the confusion and shock, Teal'c was the first to comprehend the full meaning of what was being presented, pointing out the logical conclusion that the others hadn't reached yet.

"In that case, CaptainHanson could not have been MajorCarter's abductor, nor the man seen fleeing her home. That man is still free." His strong, confident voice rang out in the room, adding to the shock everyone was trying to process. No one wanted to consider that possibility, the implication being too horrible to bear.

"It had to be Hanson," Daniel pleaded. "I mean, he did move into Sam's neighborhood. We know he was stalking her. He had a house full of pictures he'd taken of her everywhere she'd ever been. It showed he'd been watching her every move...and he'd been at it a long time. He even told anyone who'd listen that he was gonna get even with her." Daniel's voice was almost a whine, begging the others to see it his way. Janet could see the plea in his eyes as he searched everyone's face, seeking verification of his reasoning. "Maybe he had a partner?" Now he was grasping at straws.

When no one offered an explanation Janet felt she had to get him to understand. She'd had longer to think about this and, as much as she might wish he could be correct, the cold hard facts could not be denied.

"All that's true, Daniel, but it doesn't change the fact that he was already dead when Sam was abducted."

"Killed, not dead," Jack pointed out.

They were the first words he'd spoken since his earlier revelation. His eyes had been glued to Sam throughout the entire discussion. She hadn't moved or spoken a word since Janet began revealing Hanson's autopsy results. All the joy and happiness she'd found in Jack's arms had been blown away with the few words Janet had spoken. She was again plunged into a living nightmare, one she'd thought was over, but had returned full force to drag her and the people she loved back under its spell.

"Stalkers don't usually work with partners Daniel. That's usually a 'lone' person crime," Sam calmly explained, never actually focusing on anyone as she fought to mask her true feelings. She didn't want the others to see just how much this news was affecting her. She would not show fear or weakness. She could feel the Colonel's eyes boring into her, searching for the reaction she was hiding beneath her strong, Air Force Major mask.

“Unfortunately, we're left with even more of a mystery!” Janet's voice trailed off, as her mind continued, trying to make sense of the puzzle before them. “Who would want to kill Hanson??? And why???” she finally voiced aloud. She'd had more time to ponder the situation than the others and just knew there had to be something there she was missing.

"The two incidents must surely be related," Teal'c stated to the room at large, which had gone silent as everyone pondered the new twist this nightmare had taken.

“Okay, so we add 'Black Ops trained' to Sam's attacker's profile. How exactly does that help us figure out who he is or why he's after her? It still doesn't make any sense. So, what does that mean, exactly, 'Black Ops trained'? Daniel asked.

“It means that MajorCarter’s abductor is capable of taking a life,” Teal’c stated bluntly, “whilst leaving no evidence,” voicing the thought the others were trying to avoid.

“Oh my God!” Jack choked out. “THAT'S IT! It couldn’t have been Hanson!" He had too much adrenaline to remain seated as his mind worked at hyper speed, all of the pieces beginning to fall into place. That nagging feeling he'd had for so long had finally come into focus.

"What is it, Son?” Hammond asked, prompting Jack to enlighten the rest of the room as to what had suddenly become clear to him. He recognized that the Colonel liked to play dumb, but he had one of the sharpest strategic minds he'd ever seen. And right now that 'strategic mind' had made a connection that eluded everyone else.

"Carter's attacker could never have been Hanson, and not just because he was dead. The 'profile' didn't match," Jack finished.

"But Hanson did fit the profile, Jack. We all saw it. He was someone from Sam's past who was obsessed with her and wanted revenge. Even you said he fit," Daniel reminded him.

"You're right, Daniel, Hanson did fit the profile of the man we were looking for," Jack quickly conceded. He raised a finger to silence them as he continued. "But...Hanson never fit the 'profile' of the man who committed the crime. Teal'c is right; everything has to be connected. Hanson's killer had to have had 'Black-Ops' training and so did the man who broke into Carter's house. There's no way Hanson was good enough to break into her place not once, but twice, and not leave a single piece of evidence behind. Just like the method that was used to kill Hanson, it takes a lot of training...'Black-Ops' training…to be able to do that. That's what's been bugging me all this time but I just couldn't put my finger on it until now. See, I could get in and out Carter's house and never leave any evidence. The problem is...I forgot that everyone else couldn't. But I know someone else who could, and who DOES fit the profile of who could have done this to Sam! Oh God, why didn’t I see this sooner? I could have done something!"

Jack's rage hadn't diminished as he tried to get the others to see what was now so clear to him, but he didn't have all day to waste on them.

'The answer's been staring me in the face all this time and I missed it!' Jack berated himself for again failing everyone. He'd made more mistakes than even the rawest recruit. Sam's life was at stake and he'd failed her over and over again. He'd allowed his feelings for her and a ghost of the past to get in the way and it had put her at risk time after time. But not anymore. He understood everything now. He was not gonna allow anything to harm her again.

He had all the evidence he needed and now it was time to make him pay...pay for all the pain and suffering he'd caused. Jack would be 'Judge, Jury and Executioner." He stormed out of the room. It was time to make him pay.

Still not fully understanding the meaning of everything Jack had said, the others scrambled to follow, easily keeping track by following the loud curses that floated back to them as Jack made his way several floors below. Still too keyed up to be confined in the elevator, he'd taken the stairs.

The more he thought about it, the madder he got, alternating between disbelief and rage. 'It couldn't be...no way.' He could already feel his fingers closing around his neck. And it wouldn't be some quick, painless death...no, no, no. For what he'd done he would have to suffer a long time. He was more than willing to live with any consequences after he was finished, but he would make him pay.


To Be Continued