Date: Fri, 16 Apr 1999 15:43:45 -0600 (MDT) From: "Katherine R. Freymuth" Subject: Mirror - part 31 Message-ID: Quantum Leap Mirror of Deception by Katherine Freymuth and Gary Marsh Copyright 1998, 1999 Part 31 "So you talked to him?" Janet nodded to Sam briefly. "I didn't do much good though. I think he wants to remember the truth but he's just too scared to. Whatever they have driving him, it must be pretty damn strong." Sam frowned with concern. "Nothing?" "Just a glimmer," she told him. "I mentioned his rank and he popped off with his serial number. But the moment he finished, he looked like he was ready to roll into a fetal position and die!" A memory came to Sam: a woman running from him, terrified. *"They tortured me, Sam!"..."I thought you were dead!" "It was worse than death."* He closed his eyes with realization. "He's afraid of being tortured again," he whispered. Janet looked at him with shock. "Tortured again? How do you know he was tortured?" "I just do," he answered, beginning to pace. "So, what are we going to do?" Janet questioned, watching him. "They obviously have a strong hold on him." Sam stopped and looked at her. "We talk to him, remind him of who he reallyis, show him there's a way to get away from them." He started pacing again. "We save him the way we saved Alia." "Alia disappeared," Janet reminded. He nodded a bit. "But at least she's free." He exhaled. "Is he on his way here?" Janet looked at the handlink and nodded. "He's armed," she warned. "He'll be here in about a minute so you'd better make your game plan fast." Sam picked up the proposal from the coffee table before unlocking the front door and standing a few feet from it, waiting. "What are you going to do?" Janet asked, wondering about his actions. Sam didn't have the chance to answer when the door opened quickly to reveal Al pointing a gun at him. "Hello, Al," Sam greeted calmly. "It's good to see you again." Al didn't lower his pistol, his eyes blazing in anger. "Is it?" he glowered. Sam heard Zoe chuckle a bit. "Look at him," she told Al. "He isn't even going to defend himself!" She looked at him firmly. "Kill him, Albert." Sam nodded a bit. "Yes, Al. Go ahead and kill me." Janet looked at him in shock. "What the hell are you saying, Sam?" Al cocked the pistol and aimed it at his best friend's head. "But before you do," Sam put in quickly, "at least give me the courtesy of telling me why I'm about to die." "What?" Al questioned, startled by the request. He lowered the pistol slightly. "He's stalling!" Zoe told him firmly. "He knows already so kill him. Now." Sam shook his head slowly. "She's lying, Al. I don't know why you would even want to kill me. So, please, tell me." Both Sam and Janet watched Al carefully as the older man thought of his words. "You know why. How could you not know? You watched them die!" "Watched who die, Al?" Sam asked carefully as Janet looked on, unsure what to say. There was a small smile on Zoe's face. "Take a guess, Beckett." Al raised the gun again to Sam's head. "Watched my family die, you bastard! And now, it's my turn and I'm an expert shot." Sam took a breath. "I know you are. I know everything about you. You don't have a family, Al." "Yeah, no thanks to you," the armed man bellowed. "Who did I kill, Al? Explain it to me." Zoe glared at Al in fury. "What are you waiting for? Kill him!" "My wife! My sister!" Al bellowed, unsure what to do. He didn't know why he hadn't pulled the trigger yet. "Which of your five wives did I supposedly kill? Beth?" The expression on Al's face, the pain of great loss, told Sam the answer. "Albert, don't let him play you for a fool! Kill him now!" Zoe ordered. Janet looked at Al's face. "I think you're getting through to him, Sam." Sam took a step towards Al. "Why would I kill Beth and Trudy, Al?" Al didn't answer. What had made sense to him before didn't make much sense to him now. Sam took another step. "I didn't kill them, Al. Your sister died of pneumonia and Beth..." "...lives in Baltimore with her third husband and her children," Al finished, looking at Sam with realization. "No!" Zoe screamed angrily. "Oh, gawd, Sam!" Al said, slowly lowering the pistol. "I really was going to kill you!" Sam smiled at him. "No, you wouldn't have. You can't make someone do something against their nature." Memories began to fill into Al's Swiss-cheesed memory. "But I have killed, Sam," he said slowly and painfully. "A kid." Janet nodded. "He's right, Sam," she said quietly. "You can stop gloating, Thames," Zoe was saying as they spoke. "So, you've won. Just retrieve the bastard so I can teach him a lesson." She glared at Al with malicious delight at the thought of hurting him. "We can take care of you anytime we want, Dr. Beckett," she taunted Sam. "Oh, my gawd!" Al remembered with horror. "The link!" He looked at Zoe with fury. "You bitch!" Zoe laughed cynically. "You helped, Albert. Remember?" "Al, what's wrong?" Sam questioned with concern. Janet was looking at the handlink. "They're trying to retrieve him. Ziggy's blocking as much as she can but it doesn't look good." Sam extended his hand to him. "Al, let's go. We don't have much time left." Al looked at Sam with question before taking a step back and cocking the pistol in his hand. "I can't go with you, Sam," he said quietly, placing the firearm at his temple. "I'm sorry." "What?!" the three other people in the room exclaimed in surprise. "He's going to break the link! Bring him back now!" Zoe ordered. "Al, no!" Sam exclaimed, heading towards him. Al stepped further away from him. "I have to, Sam! I can't let them use me to find you anytime they want! As long as I'm alive, no matter where or when I am, they'll be able to track you. This is the only way you'll have a chance of safety." He took a breath. "I'm sorry," he told his friend, pulling the trigger. "No!" Sam yelled, pushing the gun out of the way as the gun fired and barely missed its target. He quickly took the gun from Al. "What the hell is going on?" Zoe demanded to the sky. "What?!" she bellowed. "Hold her there!" A moment later, she disappeared through the rainbow colors of the Holographic Observatory door. "Damn it, Sam! I'm trying to save your life!" Al yelled at him. "By taking yours?" "Yes!" both Al and Janet told him. "They've linked Al with Lothos so, in essence, you're linked with Lothos," Janet told him. She looked at the handlink. "Wait a minute. Something's happening." Both Sam and Al looked at her with question. "What is it?" Al questioned. "Your brainwaves are realigning themselves with Ziggy and..." She looked at him, knowing he could see her now. "The link between you and Lothos is severed." Al exhaled with relief. "Guess I can live then, huh? Tell Ziggy thank you." Sam looked at Al but spoke to Janet. "So, Al's free? And he can see you?" Al smiled at his friend but let Janet answered. "Yes to both questions. But it wasn't Ziggy." "What?" they questioned simultaneously. Janet looked from one to the other. "The link was cut at the source. They have a saboteur in there ranks." Sam and Al looked at each other with question as two blue auras surrounded them, returning the other set of best friends back to their proper time.