Mistaken Identity - Chapter 3
Created | Updated Mar 8, 2007
Chapter 3
Stargate Command
Colonel John Sheppard and Dr Elizabeth Weir were pacing the briefing room, waiting for answers concerning the disappearance of Major Evan Lorne. They were waiting for a photo-fit picture of the last person to see him, a woman and her daugher at a gas station, who seemed to think he was someone else. Landry came back into the room with a piece of paper in his hand. On the paper was a computer image of a pretty, dark-haired, green-eyed woman. He passed it to Elizabeth, who studied it and then passed it on to John.
'Ever seen her before?' he asked, John shook his head, and so did Elizabeth, 'Okay, we'll get it out on the wire. All we can do now is wait.' Colonel Sam Carter knocked on the doorframe. 'Yes, Colonel?' said Landry.
'I've just had this from Agent Barrett.' She handed a piece of paper with a picture on it over to Landry.
'Lorne,' he said. Sam shook her head.
'No, sir. I thought that first of all, but this guy's name is Garrity.' Elizabeth took the paper out of Sam's hand and looked. 'This guy is a federal agent working for the National Threat Assessment Centre in Seattle, and guess what?' she said.
'He's missing,' replied John.
'Yep, went missing on Friday,' said Sam.
'Same day as Lorne,' said John.
'I've seen him.' All eyes turned to Elizabeth. 'I was in Seattle delivering a lecture. I thought he was Lorne so I stopped to talk to him,' said Elizabeth.
'Contact Agent Barrett and tell him what we've found out, ask him if he knows anything about our "Ms X",' said Landry.
NTAC, Seattle
'Okay, this is as near as I can make it,' said Marco as he began to print the woman's image. Tom Baldwin picked up a copy and studied it before handing it to his partner, Diana Skouris.
'Seen her before?' he asked the group, to a universal shaking of heads. Nina Jarvis, the head of the department, swept in and went up to the group around Marco's computer.
'This just came in on the wire,' she said as she handed Tom a picture.
'Garrity?' asked Tom.
'No, an Air Force major named Evan Lorne.' Diana gasped and grabbed the paper out of Tom's hand. 'Seems he disappeared on Friday, same day as Garrity. Also, this came through the wire, too.' She handed Diana a paper that had a computer image of her on it. 'The Air Force are looking for you, Diana. It seems you were the last person to see this Major Lorne.'
'I must have been. I saw him at a gas station in Colorado. I thought he was Garrity so I went over to talk to him. I was embarrassed when it turned out not to be him.' Diana drew in an uneasy breath. 'As we drove out Maia called out to him. She said, "Don't stop on the interstate".'.
'Okay, I'll contact the Air Force and tell them what we know, get that picture out there and find that woman. And Diana, have a word with Maia. She may be able to help with this,' said Jarvis.
Lorne gingerly opened his eyes. His throat and his lungs hurt like hell. He wondered how that Isabel woman had done what she had to him. If he didn't know any better he'd swear she was a Goa'uld, but her eyes didn't glow and her voice was normal. He breathed carefully and wondered what this Garrity guy knew to warrant this type of torture. Outside, he could hear voices.
'Nothing, he told you nothing?' said Dennis Ryland.
'I did everything I could short of killing him,' replied Isabel. 'I think he is telling the truth; I don't think he is Agent Garrity.'
'What do you mean, he's not Agent Garrity? I worked with him, I know what he looks like, this is him,' said Ryland.
'I don't know what else to do. He keeps insisting he is Major Lorne,' replied Isabel. Ryland pulled out his mobile and dialled.
'See if any of the test subjects have the ability to bend wills. If not, find me Tess Doerner,' Ryland barked, and cut the connection. 'She's part of Jordan's circle. If Garrity won't talk, maybe she will.'
Garrity wondered if he would ever get rid of his headache. Whatever weapon they had used on him made him think his brain was leaking out of his ears — and what was with the voice and the eyes? His first thought had been that either Jordon Collier or the Nova group had kidnapped him, but whatever shit this Lorne guy was mixed up in, it was weirder than anything the 4400 could throw at him. He sat up gently as he heard voices outside the door.
'I do not think he is Major Lorne,' said the first man.
'What do you mean? Our intelligence points to this man; you saw it yourself,' said the woman.
'No one has withstood the hand device for so long without breaking,' said the second man.
'The Tau'ri have not perfected cloning. If this man is not Major Lorne, maybe they are related in some way?' said the first man. Another woman came up and whispered into the first woman's ear. 'I think we may have the answers,' she said to the men.
Stargate Command
John Sheppard and Elizabeth Weir were in the mess hall with Dr Daniel Jackson and Colonel Cameron Mitchell when Sam Carter came running in.
'There you are, I've just had word back from Agent Barrett.' She sat down and spread out four sheets of paper, all bearing pictures. She picked up the one with Elizabeth's picture on it. 'The National Threat Assessment Centre put this out on the wire. They want to speak to you, as you were apparently the last one to see him.' She pointed to Garrity's picture. Sam then picked up Diana Skouris's picture. 'She is also an NTAC Agent in Seattle,' Sam said.
'And she was the last one to see Lorne,' said John. 'This is getting beyond coincidence.'
'Colonel Sheppard and Dr Weir to the briefing room,' said a voice over the tannoy. John and Elizabeth ran through the door as General Landry got off the phone.
'We've had word back from NTAC,' said Landry.
'And?' said John.
'They want to meet, there's a ride waiting up top, you're to meet with Agents Tom Baldwin and Diana Skouris,' he said.
NTAC Headquarters
'Got a name for the face,' yelled Marco over the top of his computer. Tom and Diana hurried over to him and peered over his shoulder.
'Well?' said Tom.
'Dr Elizabeth Weir, former negotiator for the UN, broached a couple of high profile deals about five years ago, since then niente — but I did call in a few favours, and boy do you guys owe me,' he said.
'Get on with it, Marco,' snapped Tom.
'She's involved with some top-secret project for the Air Force and, get this, she is this Major Lorne's boss,' said Marco with a smirk.
'This is no coincidence,' said Tom.
'Bingo, got it in one,' replied Marco smugly.
'The Air Force are sending a couple of their people over to talk to you,' said Nina Jarvis to Tom and Diana. 'A Colonel John Sheppard and Dr Elizabeth Weir.'
'At least we'll be able to get some answers,' remarked Tom.
