February 19, 2021
"Stop it." Ianto Jones laughed. "We're going to be late."
Convincing Jack to wear a tuxedo was always an experience. Getting their bow ties straight while dodging Jack's hands was worse. After a few minutes, Jack gave up on Ianto's buttons and grabbed him by the shirt, pulling him in for a kiss.
"We don't have to go." Jack wrapped an arm around Ianto's waist.
He took a moment to compose himself. "We were invited to a formal event by a member of the House of Lords. He's a distant relative of the Queen. We're going."
"We missed Valentine's Day last weekend," Jack countered. "We have a private indoor pool, garden and catered meals through Sunday."
"The sooner you cooperate, the sooner you can meet Baron Houghton, and the sooner we can leave."
"We can blame aliens." Jack spun him around.
Ianto lowered his head a moment. "Formal event. Meeting with the Baron. Then we can have our weekend."
Jack kissed him again.
Ianto used his knee to nudge Jack lightly in the leg. Ianto would have stepped on Jack's foot, but his shoe would have to be polished again. "Stop it."
Jack Harkness smiled at the valet and handed her the keys to Ianto's car. Ianto shook his head slightly as Jack joined him on the other side of the car. Jack offered his hand, and they walked up the steps to the large London mansion hand-in-hand. Ianto presented their invitation at the door, and they handed over their coats.
People moved through the house wearing formal gowns and tuxedos. He would have enjoyed meeting people on a different night. After everything, he wanted a quiet weekend for him and Ianto without a Torchwood crisis. The scandal surrounding Cory gave Jack the idea to ask for help planning. It would be fantastic if they ever got there.
"Jack." Cory walked over.
"Impressive party."
Cory lowered his voice. "Baron Houghton will speak with you in a few minutes."
"Thank you," Ianto said.
"Mind if I stay with you?" Cory asked.
"No."
"Why?" Jack asked.
"The scandal has gotten out of hand. I've been propositioned half a dozen times tonight."
"Increased prospects?"
Cory glared at Jack. "Most of my connections are from matchmaking."
Ianto Jones stepped away from the conversation to check the buffet. The rumors started out as harmless jokes and resulted in problems for not only Jack but Cory and the general. It would fade away. Except for Andy witnessing Beddoe's death; that wouldn't fade. While they weren't sure that was related, it was possible. With Deidre dead and Leith refusing to talk, they might never know.
"Long day?"
Ianto looked up from an hor 'd oeuvres plate. The soft-spoken twenty-something looked uncomfortable. Despite the impressive jewelry, he suspected she wasn't used to formal events. Her date probably got the invitation. He could sympathize.
"A long drive." He motioned at the food. "The caters outdid themselves."
She smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Cory only works with the best. I'm Chelsea."
"Ianto."
"Does it get easier?"
"What?" He asked.
"Dating an older, powerful man."
Ianto looked back at Jack. "I guess." He never thought of Jack that way.
"Was it an arrangement?"
"No." Ianto turned back thinking about what Cory said about matchmaking.
"Oh."
Ianto often forgot how much younger he appeared. He'd lost ten years. "We met at work." Jack looked fifteen or more years older than him. Not that it mattered.
She nodded. "I thought you might understand."
"Are you safe?"
"Yeah." She wandered back into the crowd after that.
Jack Harkness stopped to tell Ianto where he was going before following Cory back to Houghton's second-floor library. The noise faded as they climbed the steps. Cory opened the door and motioned him inside. The room had towering bookshelves on all the wall space and smelled faintly of tobacco.
"Evening." Baron Houghton stood gazing out the large window behind the only chair in the room.
"Evening."
Houghton motioned him across the room. "The garden bathed in moonlight is relaxing." He picked up a photo from a small table next to the armchair. He opened it and held it out. "This is you."
Jack recognized the uniform. The man with him looked vaguely familiar. He'd seen another picture of them together. Graham Houghton, Jack thought. It was part of Ianto's background research. They served together in WWII. Torchwood recruited after the war.
"My father's brother. He would have gotten the house and the title but died in the South Pacific. A sea monster killed him." Houghton obviously reconsidered his previous thoughts on the story. "Why would a man walk away from everything to fight monsters?"
"It was the life he wanted."
"I wonder…" Houghton sighed. "I asked you here, Captain Harkness, as a courtesy to both my uncle and your young friend downstairs. There are people in London, and even Whitehall, that doesn't want Torchwood rebuilt. Those who believe in aliens blame the Institute for the attack that destroyed it. Others think it's a conspiracy to allow the EU and US to gain a foothold in England. Or somehow they think if they ignore what happened it will all go away."
"It will be rebuilt."
Houghton nodded. "The folder on the chair has information on the opposition. Rex Masterson was chosen to lead Torchwood in an effort to disrupt the project. For unexplained reasons, it's believed that half or more of your team doesn't trust him." He paused. "From stories and a retired MI6 contact, he has a highly classified background." He set the photo album back on the table. "There are rumors Masteron's a vampire and can't die."
Jack gave it a moment. "What worries you?"
"The London sleep center." Houghton stared out the window for a few minutes. "There was an unethical sleep study in London in the late 1960s that ended in a blood bath. I thought about it when I read the reports on the more recent sleep center." He hesitated. "I later overheard comments about how Torchwood overstepped its authority and had no right to disrupt decades of research. It came down to money and the concept of disposable people." He paused. "If the Torchwood Institute is rebuilt under your leadership, with facilities for those victimized by researchers, and the shelters are cleared to prevent easy targets, it's going to be harder to hide unethical and unthinkable research."
"Rex is expected to allow it?"
"He's CIA."
Ianto Jones noticed a few odd looks and people glancing quickly away as he waited for Jack. When Cory returned, Ianto walked over to him.
"Why are people eying me?" Ianto asked quietly, turning away from prying eyes.
"You're the only person here who openly arrived with a same-sex date. Jack is meeting with the Baron. And you spoke to Chelsea, the Baron's girlfriend."
"He's old enough to be her grandfather."
"How old is Jack?"
Ianto paused. "She looked unhappy."
"Her mother arranged the relationship. As far as I know, she's better off here where her mother can't do any further harm."
"Mother?"
Cory nodded. "That's reportedly how Chelsea's parents met."
Ianto couldn't process that. He had problems with his family, but he couldn't imagine his mother doing that to his sister. Mum tried matchmaking more than once before Rhiannon married Johnny but under different circumstances.
Jack Harkness returned from the meeting with an uneasy feeling. The Baron finding a link between the sleep study in the sixties that sent Dawn fleeing for her life and the recent sleep center wasn't surprising. People with certain connections were expected to be upset by plans to remove access to easy victims. The corporations had to have government ties to operate. What worried him was the knowledge outside of Torchwood that some of his people didn't like Rex. That was future knowledge they gained from time agents, someone from the future, or there was a leak somehow.
Jack offered his hand again, and he and Ianto headed back the way they came. The same valet smiled and returned the keys and the car. He'd been lost in thought and hadn't realized Ianto was upset. He waited until they were in the car and heading out of the car park.
"Did something happen?"
"No."
Jack wondered but let it go. "Do you need anything before we get there?"
"Do we have to cook?"
"No. All the meals are prepared and waiting in the kitchenette."
"Then no."
Jack checked the car's digital clock. 9:08 PM. "It's earlier enough for a restaurant."
"No." Ianto set a hand on Jack's knee.
Ianto Jones stepped from his car and stared. The round building looked like a cross between a small castle and a greenhouse. Torch-like outdoor lamps extended from the stone building and illuminated the snow-covered lawn. Jack walked over, rested his child on Ianto's shoulder and hugged him.
He ran his hands over Jack's arms. "Two days." He wanted to believe they could manage two days without a crisis.
"We have candles, wine, privacy, and no reason to unpack."
Ianto laughed. "We're going to run around naked for two days?"
Jack nipped at his ear. "Why not?"
"Hide and seek?" Life had been a lot different before the 456. The hub had been their playground after hours.
Jack laughed. "Let's get out of the cold."
Inside was more impressive with an indoor garden. A black tile floor separated trees and flower beds. Fairy lights hung from the circular outer wall. The domed greenhouse ceiling offered an impressive view of the clear night sky. Stars twinkled above, and the tiles sparkled below.
The pool lights illuminated the center area. A small table for two was already set with unlit candles, a bottle of wine in a bucket of ice, and covered plates. A single, long-stem red rose rested over one cover. A trail of rose peddles led through an archway into the bedroom. A stain glass window offered dim light from the outside lights or moonlight and cast a mosaic of covers over the white bedspread. Another doorway led to a large bathroom with similar black tiles to the walkway offering a combination shower and tub with jacuzzi jets.
"How?"
"Does it matter?"
"No." Ianto could only guess it had something to do with Cory.
Jack took Ianto's hand and drew him back into the bedroom. "Two days. Just us. No schedule. No interruptions."
February 22, 2021
As the digital clock switched from Sunday to Monday, Jack Harkness stared at the stars. Ianto absently ran a hand across Jack's stomach as he woke. They opted to finish off the last fruit and cheese tray picnic style under the stars. They'd fallen asleep tangled in blankets between the table and the wall.
"Is it morning?" Ianto's head rested in the middle of Jack's chest.
Jack ran his fingertips over Ianto's back. "Technically."
"We knocked over the table?"
Jack laughed softly. "The empty platter is floating in the pool."
"I don't remember." Ianto slowly moved back and sat up.
"I'm that good."
Ianto rolled his eyes. "We should go to bed. I'm too old to sleep on the floor."
"It doesn't bother me." Jack propped himself up on his elbows.
"You regenerate," Ianto said, exasperated. "I don't."
Jack enjoyed pushing Ianto's buttons. The last two days reminded Jack of how much had changed, and they needed more time to themselves. It was more than running around naked. Stress made the light dim in Ianto's eyes. While there had been more personal conflict in the beginning before Ianto left, they had more fun.
"What's wrong?"
"You don't smile enough." Jack ran a hand over Ianto's cheek toward his ear.
"Is that concern or a complaint?"
Jack lightly traced his thumb over Ianto's lips. "Concern. I don't want you getting bored with me."
"You're a lot of things. Boring isn't one of them."
After the alarm had sounded, they shared a shower and prepared to leave. Ianto Jones unpacked jeans and a shirt and had just found his shoes when Jack's mobile rang. Ianto waited. It was probably a situation. He should be grateful they got through the weekend without a new crisis.
"We'll be there as soon as we can."
Ianto met Jack's eyes as the call ended.
"That was Rex. Baron Houghton, his girlfriend Chelsea, and his staff are in the hospital." Jack rubbed his face. "There was a home invasion. The live-in employees distracted the gunmen long enough for Chelsea to get the Baron's hunting rifles and a box of shells. She shot one, and the groundskeeper got another one. They aren't sure how many there were."
"Why us?"
"Houghton asked for me. The meeting on Friday was about Torchwood. He provided information about objections in London to rebuilding the Institute."
Ianto nodded. He needed a suit instead of jeans and repacked his clothes.
Jack opened the garment bag. "Where did this note come from?"
"What note?"
"'There is a lot Baron Houghton didn't tell you,'" Jack read aloud.