Daniel pulled off his glasses, pressing the heels of his hands into his reddened and burning eyes. They’d been at this all day already and it was nearly 1900 hours. Teal’c had returned from Jack’s house several hours ago. The specialists had poked around and had collected several samples at the scene, but they weren’t optimistic about the results.

Daniel cast a glance in Sam’s direction. She was still hard at work, plugging away, working her way through as much of Jack’s background as she could access. She’d hacked into the Pentagon files and had hit roadblock after roadblock. At one point this afternoon, Daniel thought she was about ready to throw her computer through the window onto the Gateroom floor.

Now, that would have been impressive.

Teal’c was sitting at her side, pointing at various pieces of information, helping to guide her as best he could.

"Guys," Daniel said, catching their attention for a second. "Do you want to try The Pub?"

Sam looked down quickly, her voice hesitant. "Actually, Daniel, I’m starting to get somewhere with all of this," she said, gesturing to the computer screen before her as she caught his gaze once again. "I think I’d rather stay here and do a little more digging."

"Do you wish me to accompany you Daniel Jackson?" Teal’c asked politely, moving as if to get to his feet.

Daniel waved him back down. "No, Teal’c. You don’t have to go. Stay and help Sam. I have to grab some stuff from my apartment anyway before coming back to base. The Pub’s right on the way—at least according to MapQuest it is."

"Are you certain of this, Daniel Jackson?" Teal’c’s eyebrow had started up his forehead, his gaze level.

"I’m sure, Teal’c. Thank you for the offer." Daniel rubbed the back of his neck as he stood. "I’ll be back in a while. If you need me, I’ll have the cell phone on."

"Okay, Daniel," Sam replied absently, already immersed in her project once again.

Word about Jack had spread quickly throughout the base and Daniel was stopped several times before finally making it to the surface. As much as he was touched at the kindness everyone showed to him and the rest of the team, it also made him feel worse. If it wasn’t for their argument, Jack would be here instead of God only knows where. They’d have been going on a mission tomorrow, but now it was going to have to be postponed indefinitely.

All the way down the mountain, Daniel continued to ponder over all the events of the past few weeks, months, and years. As a team, they’d been through a lot and they’d gotten closer—much closer—as both friends and teammates.

He owed Jack his life hundreds of times over.

The least he could do now was find him.

Not paying attention, Daniel nearly passed the strip mall that housed the small bar, The Pub. Shaking his head in an effort to clear it, he pulled into the parking lot stopping his sedan two spots down from the door.

If he hadn’t gotten directions, Daniel would have never known this bar was here. It was amazing actually, that he’d not seen it before now. He drove by it every day of the week on his way to Jack’s or to the base.

But for the life of him, he couldn’t fathom how this Fred fellow knew Jack.

It was time to find out, however.

Sliding from the car, Daniel closed the door, locking it out of habit, before walking down the sidewalk to the bar itself.

Stepping inside, the smoke and the smell of alcohol drifted over him—not an unpleasant smell at all. An older man was working the bar, drying several glasses and carefully stacking them on the shelf, placing them precisely.

"Good evening, young man. What can I do for you tonight?" the man said without looking up from the cloth and glass in his hands.

Daniel looked around quickly and realized that he must have been addressing him. "Oh, ah…" Daniel said, stepping up to the bar and sitting carefully on a corner stool. "I’ll have a beer. Make it a light beer. Whatever you have on tap."

"One light beer coming up," the bartender said. A few seconds later he placed a tall foaming mug before Daniel with a flourish. "Now, what else can I do for you?"
"What?" Daniel asked, not understanding.

"You’re not here for the beer and you’re not a regular. Are you meeting someone?"

"Actually, I am looking for someone," Daniel said, catching the bartender’s eye. "Are you Fred?"

"Might be. Who’s asking?"

"I’m Daniel Jackson. I’m a friend of Jack O’Neill. You left him a message this weekend."

Fred narrowed his eyes, studying Daniel intently. When he finally spoke, Daniel nearly laughed. "You sure don’t look like Air Force material."

"I’m not Air Force, although I do work with Jack. I’m a civilian consultant."

Fred polished the bar in front of Daniel with his rag, before looking at him again, this time with a much friendlier expression and the hint of a smile. "Civilian consultant, huh? Yeah, that you could be." Fred offered his hand. "I’m Fred. It’s nice to meet you, Daniel Jackson. Any friend of Jack’s is a friend of mine."

Daniel returned the handshake and smile warmly. "It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Fred, although I wish it was under better circumstances."

Fred yelled, scaring Daniel and nearly making him jump off his stool. "I know I should have gotten that boy a cab! Would he listen to me? Oh, no, he never listens."

"Jack was here Friday?"

"Yeah. He came in around nine or so. Stayed for a while. Drank quite a bit. What happened?" Fred asked, his voice firm.

"We don’t know, exactly. Jack’s missing."

"He didn’t crash the truck or anything?"

"Oh, no," Daniel said immediately, shaking his head. "Jack’s truck is parked in his driveway. It seems like he never made it into the house, though." Daniel paused for a minute, before continuing. "Jack….Jack drank a lot on Friday?"

"Five shots of Jack Daniel’s here. Don’t know if this was his first stop or his last."

"Oh."

"He hadn’t been back in a long time."

"He came here regularly?"

"Used to, several years back, just after the accident." Fred’s voice had dropped low.

"Ah," Daniel said, that one syllable full of understanding as realization dawned. After Charlie. Just before the first Abydos mission. That was a dark time in Jack’s life.

"Tried to keep him on track back then. Tried to get him home in one piece mostly. He wouldn’t listen to me then, don’t know why I expected him to listen now," Fred said, his voice quietly sad.

"He still doesn’t listen," Daniel said with a weak smile.

"I worried about him back then," Fred said, his tone somber. "I was worried about him again on Friday. He was in a bad way."

Daniel sighed. "Yeah, I know."

Fred cast a questioning look Daniel’s way and after a few moments of hesitation, Daniel continued. "We…Jack and I, exchanged some…words Friday night. We were both angry…and hurting…for…various reasons. I’ve recently lost…my wife. He was mourning Charlie. Both of us were looking for comfort, but instead…we took our frustrations…and anger…out on each other. We both said things we shouldn’t have said."

"I see," Fred said, understanding and comprehension clearly evident on his face.

"And Jack came here, looking for comfort and a way to forget."

"He was no happier when he left, Daniel. And stop blaming yourself. It takes two people to fight."

"I know, but—"

"You know nothing, young man," Fred said, cutting Daniel off. "Now I know you’re the smart one just by the look of you so I know you’ll listen to the advice of an old man."

Daniel started to speak, but Fred shook his head, bringing one knobby finger up to his lips, shushing Daniel to silence. "Now, Daniel, there’s no sense in blaming yourself entirely. Did you have a part? Yes. But it wasn’t just you. Jack’s partially at fault as well. Knowing Jack, he probably waded in without thinking about anything except food and hockey. Am I right?"

Daniel couldn’t help but smile. "Close."

"He means well, but sometimes he doesn’t know the finer points of tact."

Daniel chuckled at that remark.

"So, now, young man, stop blaming yourself and go and find him. And when you do, you bring him here. I have something to tell him and between the two of us, we’ll make sure he listens."

"Deal," Daniel said, reaching out to grasp the older man’s hand in a warm handshake. "Thanks, Fred. How much do I owe you?"

"No problem and nothing. You didn’t even touch it. That’s why I gave you my favorite. I figured I’d be drinking it before the night was out."

Daniel laughed, feeling a weight lift a little from his shoulders. It was still there, but not quite so cumbersome and smothering.

"Thank, Fred," Daniel said, rising to his feet and walking toward the door.

"Come back anytime, Daniel Jackson. You’re always welcome here."

Daniel waved as he stepped out of the door and back on the sidewalk. His steps were lighter as he made his way to his car.

They’d find Jack. He was certain.

Besides, he owed Jack an apology and a good scolding and nothing was going to get in the way of that.

"I don’t know, Teal’c," Sam Carter said, throwing up her hands in frustration. "We’re just not getting anywhere."

"Major Carter, we are indeed making progress."

Sam shoved the briefing room chair back roughly, getting to her feet and striding around the room. "We’re going too slow. This is taking too long."

"We have indeed made much progress, Major Carter." Teal’c repeated, his voice taking on a lecturing tone. "We have ascertained that Colonel O’Neill is not located at any hospital within a 300-mile radius of the base. Daniel Jackson is speaking to one of the last persons who may have seen O’Neill. We have been through many files ourselves, eliminating a great number of people from our list. What type of progress were you expecting?"

Sam sighed, slumping back down in the chair. "I don’t know. I…we should have found him already. He’s been gone for days. He shouldn’t have to wait so long for us to find him."

"I am sure he understands, Major Carter."

"What time is it, Teal’c?" Sam asked, wearily rubbing a hand across her face.

"Nearly 2300 hours. Should not Daniel Jackson have returned?"

Sam glanced up sharply, a pit forming in her stomach. "Yes, he should have. Oh, God, what if something happened to him as well?"

"Would not it be wise to place a telephone call to establish Daniel Jackson’s current location?"

Sam offered a weak smile at Teal’c’s phrasing. "I’ll call him," she said leaning forward to pull a phone closer.

"Hey guys."

"Daniel?" Sam said, whipping her head around to the door where the archeologist was standing.

"Yeah. You okay, Sam?" he asked, puzzlement crossing his face.

"Fine, Daniel. Just fine. We were getting worried about you," she said as Daniel stepped closer, the musty smell of smoke clinging to his clothing. "How long were you at the bar?"

"A little while. Fred’s a great guy," Daniel said, leaning over the chair to squint at the computer screen. "How are you coming with this?"

"Slowly," Sam answered automatically. "So, what happened?"

Daniel slumped down into the chair at the head of the table, just adjacent to where Sam had set up her computer. "Jack stopped there on his way home, had a few drinks, and went on his way. That’s about it. Fred was just checking to make sure Jack got home."

"Really?" Since when did bartenders call customers, she thought to herself.

Daniel’s voice was quiet. "Jack used to stop there a lot after Charlie died."

"Oh."

"Yeah," Daniel said, sighing. "So Jack and Fred go back a few years. Anyway, enough about Fred, how are you doing?"

"Well," Sam said, glancing back at the screen. "I’ve managed to hack into a little of the Colonel’s file, going back into the 1980s. There are a lot of holes, but a number of names popped up. We’d have to crosscheck them and see if they’re still alive and if they’d have something against him. It’ll take time."

"We’ll find him, Sam," Daniel said, his voice matter-of-fact. He stuck his hand out toward Sam. "Now give me some names and I’ll start looking."

She pulled off the top two pages, handing them to him, her eyes falling on the third page, stopping at the top name.

"Daniel, does the name Geoffrey Selig sound familiar?" Sam asked, her forehead creasing in concentration.

Daniel shook his head. "No, Sam. Should it?"

"Something…" Sam said, tapping her finger against the tabletop. "Teal’c?"

"I do not recognize it, Major Carter."

"How could we know someone from Jack’s past, Sam?"

"It’s the last name that’s ringing a bell."

"What name, Major Carter?" General Hammond asked, stepping into the room. He quickly waved her off, stopping her from coming to attention. Teal’c inclined his head in a gesture of respect.

"Geoffrey Selig. Something about it sounds familiar," Sam replied.

Hammond thought for a few seconds, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Would there be any relation to Armin Selig?"

Sam’s eyes widened. "Who?" Daniel asked, looking back and forth between Hammond and Sam.

"Armin. Wasn’t he the guy…" Sam started to say, but stopped at Hammond’s nod.

"Yes, Armin Selig was the reporter that approached the Colonel when you were in Washington," Hammond said.

"Who?" Daniel asked again, obviously not following. "Did I miss something?"

"Was this the event that occurred while we were on Abydos?" Teal’c asked.

"Yes, Teal’c, it was," Sam answered, her fingers quickly tapping away at the keys before her.

"What?" Daniel was still lost.

"While you visited Abydos and encountered Sha’re, Colonel O’Neill was approached by a journalist who knew everything about the Stargate program."

"He was?" Daniel looked shocked. "Why didn’t Jack mention anything?"

"The reporter was killed and the Colonel witnessed the accident," Hammond said evenly.

"Oh, God. What happened?"

Hammond shrugged. "It was officially listed as an accident by the Washington police. That is all we know. Colonel O’Neill believed otherwise, however."

"Geoffrey Selig and Armin Selig were brothers," Sam said, cutting into their conversation. "But, they’re both listed as deceased. Another dead end."

"Wait, Sam," Daniel said, holding out his hand, stopping her. "Could Armin have died because he spoke to Jack?"

"We don’t know, Doctor Jackson," Hammond said, his back straightening.

"Okay," Daniel said. "Let’s say that Jack was the catalyst for his death just for argument’s sake. Sam, how did Geoffrey die?"

"Let me see if I can find it," Sam said, her voice absent as she began searching once again. A few moments of silence passed before she looked up again. "It appears as if he died on a Special Operations mission in East Germany during the early part of 1984. On a mission commanded by one Captain Jack O’Neill."

"This was not the same mission O’Neill and I were forced to relive over and over again on the Gamekeeper’s planet was it?" Teal’c asked, his eyebrow slowly climbing his forehead.

"Ah," Sam said, checking again. "No. This was after that mission, I think. According to Selig’s file, Colonel Michaels had been assigned to another unit, leaving the Colonel—ah Captain O’Neill in charge."

"Was this Jack’s first mission in charge?" Daniel asked, his eyes clouded ad troubled.

"Ah, I’m not sure. General?"

"I do not think so, Doctor Jackson," Hammond asked, thinking carefully before he answered. "This mission would have taken place almost two years later, I think, from the mission you mentioned Teal’c. During that time, Jack led several very successful missions throughout Eastern Europe and in the Eastern Bloc nations. Although, you did not hear that from me."

Daniel spoke again, his voice thoughtful. "So, Jack could have been involved with two deaths in the same family. Sam, is there anyone else still alive in that family?"

"Let me look," she said, searching the government databases again. "Well, their mother, Linda Selig, died of cancer in 1990. Their father, though, Stephan Selig, is still alive and he works at the Pentagon."

"I think we need to pay Stephan Selig a visit," Daniel said, his expression grim.

"I’ll put a call in now," Hammond said, moving to the door of his office. "You can be in Washington by tomorrow morning. You’d all better get a bag packed."

"Yes, Sir."

"Yes, General. Thank you."

"As you wish, General Hammond." Their comments followed Hammond out of the room.

Sam looked around the table, glancing at each of her teammates. "You know, we’re taking a big risk here. If Selig’s not the one responsible, we could be setting ourselves back by days."

"He’s the one, Sam," Daniel said, his blue eyes hard and determined. "I can feel it."