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"I have got to get out of this goddamn room!" Daniel hissed. He had dressed, and was pacing the room like a caged animal.

Casey looked at Jack. "Maybe we could take him out to the garden, just for a little bit?"

Jack nodded. "Come on, Danny. We'll take a bit of a walk."

Relieved, Daniel raced toward the door. The four of them began to walk down the corridor to a 'back' door that led to a lovely garden. There were several arbors, and a waterfall that cooled the area slightly. The flowers were bright and colorful, cheery enough to lift even the lowest of spirits.

Daniel walked slightly ahead of his Wife and friends, his hands shoved into his pockets. The craving…the need…for the drugs was almost overwhelming. He focused his mind on his anger, his hatred of Betsy Harris. She had done this to him…she had taken him from his family. Emily had been shot. Nicholas was having seizures. They were both suffering from nightmares. Then there was Casey. His sweet, beautiful Casey. Nearly dead because of that damned nanovirus. Now, here she was, having to take care of him, when she should be home taking care of their babies! Goddamn bitch! I'm gonna kill that redheaded psycho! With my bare hands!

Casey reached out, gently caressed him. Smiled when she felt that caress returned. 'Are you all right?'

He smiled. 'Yeah, I think so. Just…jumpy.'

'I'm so proud of you.'

'What for?'

'Fighting this. You're so much braver than I would be!'

His smile became a grin. Casey was the bravest person he had ever met. 'I doubt that, Angel. You're an incredible woman.'

'Thank you. I think you're the most amazing man the gods ever created.'

'Sweet talker.' He stopped walking, let her catch up to him. "Love you, Angel."

"Love you, Stud Muffin."

He caught her hand, they wandered the path that meandered through the garden. Jack and Teal'c found a bench to wait on. "I feel so…out of control," he said softly.

"It's the addiction," she replied.

"No kidding!" He cringed. "Sorry. It's just so damned irksome! I want a fix so bad I could scream."

"Then scream."

He stopped walking, and looked at her. "What?"

"Scream. Rant. Rave. Whatever it takes to help you get through this," she said softly. "I'll even scream with you."

He chuckled, pulled his fingers from hers and settled his arm around her shoulders. "Guess we'd better get back inside."

She looked at him sharply. "Daniel?"

"I'm starting to get the shakes again. I'd prefer to not collapse out here," he explained.

She wrapped her arm around his waist. "We're almost through, Daniel. Doctor Montigue says that about twenty-four hours is when it will be the worst. Then it's almost over from there."

He nodded. "We're getting close."

"I know."

"You're my life, Case. Everything I need, everything I want."

She smiled. "You're everything to me, Daniel. Love you."

He kissed her forehead. "Love you, too."

She led him back to the door, her arm around him, her head on his shoulder.

As they walked to his room, they passed a cart that held the medications for the patients in the rooms around him. He stopped, looked at the assorted pills and tablets…and two syringes. His mouth began to water, his body began to shake, and the need that overtook him was almost unbearable. He turned desperate eyes to his wife. "Please," he begged in a whisper. "Just one shot, Case…please?"

She shook her head firmly. "I know it's hard, Daniel. But you can beat this. You're almost there, it's almost over," she whispered in return. She reached out to caress his cheek. He roughly shoved her hand away.

"What the hell do you know about it? You're not the one in pain!" he spat.

"Let's get to your room. You can lay down," she said, tugging at him.

He stared down at the cart. "You're a cold-hearted bitch! You like seeing me like this!"

She stared at him, the pain in her eyes obvious to everyone but Daniel.

Jack grabbed Daniel's arm. "That's enough! Come on." He pulled the young man with him.

Daniel planted his heels and refused to move. "Let go of me!"

Teal'c took his other arm, and he and Jack literally dragged Daniel back to the room.

Once inside the room, the shakes that had started in the garden overtook him. Casey, with Jack's help, managed to undress him and get him into the bed. She put the blankets over him, rubbed her hands over his arms when his teeth began to chatter.

She glanced at the clock. "It's been twenty-four hours, Daniel. It was twenty-four hours ago that you had that last fix. It's almost over, Sweetheart," she whispered.

"I hurt," he managed to say through chattering teeth.

"I know, My Heart."

"I need it, Case," he said.

"No, you don't need it, Daniel. Your body wants it. You're tougher than this," she replied.

"I hope so."

She continued to rub his arms. He had rolled to his side, curled into a ball, trying to get warm. "Jack, can you find a couple more blankets?"

"You bet," the older man said quietly.

"H-h-h-ho-old m-m-me," Daniel stuttered.

Without a moment's hesitation, Casey climbed into the bed. She pulled her husband against her body, rested his head against her shoulder, wrapped her arms around him. He was shaking so hard that he was moving her and the bed. Jack came back with two heavy blankets and wrapped them around the archaeologist.

Daniel closed his eyes. His body was shaking, he felt as if somebody had beat the crap out of him, the craving was so bad he didn’t think he could stand it for another second. He cuddled closer to her, breathed in her sweet scent. He could feel how tightly she was holding him. She was singing softly, her cheek pressed against his forehead. He concentrated, focused his mind on the words to the song she was singing. He managed a smile. She was singing 'Life in the Fast Lane'. One of her favorite Eagles tunes.

Casey looked down at him. The tremors had ended, but he was still cold, it seemed. He had snuggled closer, now it appeared that he was asleep. Almost over, her mind told her. Soon he would be free of these cravings and the physical manifestations of his addiction. They would go home, and they would have their life back. Soon, very soon, she thought.

Dr. Montigue came into the room. "Well, the next few hours will be the worst. By this time tomorrow it will be over."

"Even the cravings?" Casey asked.

The doctor nodded. "As soon as his body has rid itself of the toxins, the only addiction he would have would be psychological. Considering the…circumstances…of his addiction, I don't foresee that to be a problem."

She sighed softly, smiled up at the doctor. "Thank you."

"Daniel, and you, have done all of the hard work. Let me take another blood sample while he's calm," the doctor said.

The prick of the needle in his arm woke Daniel up. "No! No! I have to fight it!" he mumbled, beginning to struggle.

"Shh…no, Daniel, lay still!" Casey commanded. "Doctor Montigue is taking blood."

He concentrated on her sweet voice. "I don't want to leave you, Angel. I want to get over this!" He was still trying to pull his arm from the doctor's grasp.

"You are getting over it, my Heart. Let Doctor Montigue take some blood. For a toxicology test."

Take? Not giving him those damn drugs? "No drugs?"

"No, Daniel. No drugs," she said softly. "Shh, relax, Sweetheart." She began to smooth his hair from his forehead. She hummed softly.

He closed his eyes again. Safe. If Casey was here, then everything was okay. She was his Tiger. She wouldn't let them put that shit in him. He just needed to rest, for a few minutes.

Dr. Montigue finished drawing the blood sample. "You deal with him very well. His body should go through one more serious purge, and then it will be just a matter of building him back up with a few good meals."

She nodded. "Good. I don't know how much more of this I can take. To see him hurt so badly, so ill…it's a good thing none of those drugs are available. I'm afraid I might have caved in and given them to him…just to make the pain go away," she admitted softly.

The doctor smiled. "This is why cold turkey is just as difficult on the care giver as the addict. I guess in this case, I should say victim. Daniel was never a willing addict."

"Doc, just how the hell did that bitch get her hands on that stuff?" Jack asked quietly.

The older man turned to face the general. "She had to have had help procuring those particular drugs, that much is certain. They're not typical 'street drugs'. Neither can be purchased by anyone other than a licensed medical facility, and neither are widely used. I had the lab run a check on the batch numbers on the vials of Ambryxodyle. That particular batch was produced nearly nine months ago. It would seem that Doctor Harris had been planning this for some time. She did her research, and found drugs that would do exactly what she needed them to do."

"And that was?" Jack asked.

"She needed him addicted…that created the dependency on her. She needed him controllable. She needed him susceptible to suggestion. She needed him…content, as well. Both drugs did that. Together, it's a wonder he was ever conscious. I went over the results of the blood tests I ran on the Phoenix. There seemed to be more Ambryxodyle than Bentaladrine, that's what she injected him with, in his system. For some reason she stopped giving him the shots."

"When I was 'talking' to him, he said that there was a syringe, but he couldn't see anything to fill it with. Just the vials of powder," Casey said.

"Then it's possible she had used it all. From the number of vials that remained, unless she had a source nearby, Daniel would have begun going through withdrawal in about two days," the doctor informed them.

"So she had to have a source nearby," Jack surmised.

Dr. Montigue nodded his head. "I assume so. Which could be another reason she chose Terra. Duncan was surprised that she went there, I believe."

"Okay, I'll give Duncan a call, have him see what he can find out through diplomatic channels. So far the Terran government has been very cooperative. I don't think they're going to be happy to learn that somebody is out there selling this stuff on their turf. They have some of the strictest laws concerning pharmaceuticals in the sector," Jack said.

"Well, I'll leave that to you. If you need me, I'll be staying in my office tonight. This will be the hardest part," he said, looking at Casey.

"I know," she replied, smiling softly. "We'll make it through."

"If he needs anything…for the pain, the nausea, just let me know."

"He's made it this far without anything," she said.

"Like I said, he's about to hit the worst part. I'm leaving a standing order; pain killer, anti-nausea meds, and a mild sedative, just in case," the doctor said. "Don't be afraid to use them. For his sake as well as yours," he said softly.

She nodded her understanding. Her heart was pounding with fear. Just how bad was it going to get?

A  A  A  A  A  A

Daniel was able to eat a bit of dinner, although Casey had to feed him again, he was shaking too badly to feed himself. She was able to get more juice into him. Thirty minutes later, it seemed that all hell broke loose.

"Case?"

"Hmm?"

"Sick."

"Oh, god…T?" She cast a glance at the tall black man as she grabbed the deep bowl. Teal'c carried Daniel into the bathroom, helped Casey get him situated on the toilet. "It's okay, Daniel, if you need to throw up, do it," she said softly.

He did just that. Once again his body seemed determine to rid itself of everything in every part of his digestive tract at once. He wrapped his arms around his stomach and moaned in pain. Fifteen minutes later he was still retching, the dry heaves wracking his body. His legs were jumping and shaking, his hands and feet were cramping. He wanted to die. All he wanted was to curl up somewhere and just die.

Casey pulled her lip between her teeth as she cleaned him. "Teal'c, call the nurse. I can't let him go through this," she whispered. She cleaned him, helped get him back on his feet.

Teal'c nodded his approval. He picked up the thrashing body of his best friend, and gently put him into the bed. "I shall return with the nurse."

She nodded, wiping Daniel's face with a damp cloth. He was sweating now, still moaning in pain. "I love you, Daniel. Just keep fighting, please, my Heart. You can do this," she whispered. She sent her love to him, gently caressed his mind, trying to ease the pain as much as she could.

The nurse had just entered the room when Daniel began to vomit again. Casey carefully moved him, so that he wasn't laying in the mess, waiting patiently for Teal'c to carry her husband back to the bathroom. "This won't take but a few minutes, please wait," she said softly to the nurse.

"I do have other patients-" the nurse began to protest.

"She'll be glad to wait, Case," Jack said, already stripping the bed. "Right?"

The nurse noted that although General O'Neill was smiling, his eyes were hard. "Yes, I can wait."

Standing in the shower, Daniel's body turned loose for the final time. Casey again cleaned him, whispering her love, telling him how proud she was of him. She put clean boxers on him, and Teal'c once again carried him and put him into a clean bed.

The nurse watched, amazed that these people…Casey Jackson - the beautiful psychic who helped protect all of the SG teams with her ability to sense danger, or dangerous situations; Teal'c - the Jaffa who had single-handedly started the Jaffa Rebellion; General Jack O'Neill - tough Special Ops soldier and the leader of the famous SG-1…would so calmly, so lovingly clean up the well-known Dr. Jackson as he battled the symptoms of withdrawal. The news was full of the abduction of the archaeologist, and a few of the details of his imprisonment. She stood to the side until Casey had made Daniel comfortable. Then she stepped forward with two hypodermic sprays.

"What are they?" Casey asked.

"This one will help with the nausea and stomach cramps. The other will ease the muscle spasms," the nurse replied.

Casey studied the nurse, could sense no deception. She nodded, then stepped out of the way. The drugs were administered, and within minutes Daniel seemed to be resting peacefully. "Thank you," she murmured to the nurse.

"You're welcome, Mrs. Jackson."

Casey smiled, then her attention returned to her husband. He was sweating again. That was a good thing. Let him sweat those poisons out of his system. She filled the bowl with clean, cool water, found a clean washcloth, and gently wiped his face, his arms, his chest, even his legs. His legs and feet had relaxed, the muscles weren't knotted beneath the skin. His hands lay open and still, the fingers curled slightly in repose. "It's almost over, Daniel. My god…my Adonis …My Heart. You're so brave, Daniel. I could never fight the battle that you're fighting. I'm so proud of you," she whispered.

Jack watched, listened. Daniel was one lucky man. He smiled. They were all lucky. They had each other.

A soft knock on the door turned all eyes in that direction as Sam walked in. "I couldn't take it any longer," she said quietly. "I have to be here."

Casey smiled, and walked over to hug her best friend. "I'm glad you're here."

"How is he?" Sam asked, nodding at Daniel.

"I think we're getting through the worst of it now," Casey replied.

"Good." She settled down on Jack's lap, rested her cheek against his forehead.

Jack smiled again. SG-1 was always together when one of the team was 'down'. This was right, that the team be together now. "How are my Pumpkin and my Sweet Pea?"

"They're fine. They miss their Daddy," Sam replied with a smile. "I told them that Daddy was helping Uncle Daniel, because Uncle Daniel was sick right now. I'm supposed to give him a hug and kiss from each of them."

Casey smiled. "Uncle Daniel will like that."

Another soft knock, and Wade entered the room. "Duncan thought it would be all right-" he started shyly.

"Wade!" Casey smiled, hurried across the room, hugged her brother-in-law.

Wade's arms went around her slender frame. He could feel the slight tremor in her body. "How is he?"

"I think we've seen the worst of it now," she said.

He looked down at her, noted the fatigue, marked by the dark bruises forming under her eyes. "You must rest, Casey. We'll take care of him," he said softly.

"But if he wakes up-" she started to protest.

"Then we will wake you." He led her to the cot. "Sleep, little sister. You will not be able to help him if you're exhausted."

She glanced around the room. The looks on the faces of her family let her know this was one argument she couldn't win. She stretched out on the cot, and was asleep within seconds.

"When was the last time she slept?" Sam asked.

"Couple of hours early this morning," Jack replied. "She's been amazing, Sam. Never a cross word, strong when she needs to be…cleans him up and just keeps telling him how much she loves him."

"That's real love, Jack," Sam said softly. "That's what real love is all about. Taking the bad as well as the good."

For nearly an hour all was quiet. Then Daniel began to stir on the bed. He tossed his head from side to side as nightmares began to haunt him. Wade sat down on the bed. He took his brother's hand, and sat quietly, wiping the sweat from Daniel's brow.

Teal'c went to the cafeteria and brought back coffee for everyone, tea for himself. He had taken time to call Carly, and let her know how things were progressing.

"Casey?" Daniel called out, his voice raspy.

"She's asleep, Daniel," Wade whispered.

"Casey? God, where are you? Casey!" Daniel was thrashing on the bed, his eyes open and wide with fear. "Casey!"

His second cry had awakened her. She was at his side in an instant. "I'm here, Daniel, I'm right here."

Daniel's eyes rolled as he tried to focus on her. He reached for her. "Don't leave me, Angel! I didn't want it to happen, you have to believe me!"

Casey climbed onto the bed, pulled him into her arms. His arms locked around her waist. He let his head drop onto her shoulder. "I'm right here, Beloved. I’m not going anywhere, not without you. Everything is all right, Daniel. It's okay. I love you, Daniel," she crooned, her cheek against his hair. She began to rock slightly. "Hush little baby, don't say a word," she began singing. "Mama's gonna by you a mocking bird…"

Quieted by her presence; her sweet, familiar scent filling his senses, Daniel relaxed against her. He was awake now, although he kept his eyes closed, and he wasn't willing to let her go. He listened to her sing, let her love flow over him, through him, surround him…heal him.

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