Ianto was nervous, confused and sad. He had hated almost everything about the last year starting when Jack had said "don't". When he had come too realizing he was suppose to be dead the first thing he had remembered was the response to his confession of love. Not even as he lye dieing could Jack say it. Packing his meager belongings he looked up to Sarah and saw her tears.

Sarah was the UNIT assigned RN to him. UNIT while disposing the bodies from the Thames House had discovered him still very alive and decided they needed to learn why. From his beloved Tosh Ianto knew that UNIT could be just like Torchwood One at times and this was one of them. Especially when he figured out why the barely 21 year old red head was assigned his personally nurse.

It had been a week into his nice 'visit' with UNIT and he had heard raised voices coming from outside his cell. The captain in charge Captain Willis was giving a verbal set down to Sarah. He was convinced she wasn't trying hard enough, that she wasn't reaching deep enough into his mind. It clicked then, UNIT had their own telepath and a RN no less. He had felt the presence in his mind but it was never invasive and never went to deep. It had felt like a Band-Aid on his brain.

He had thought that with his psych training at Torchwood One he was some how doing it to himself. Trying to heal his emotional wounds but now he realized that it was the vibrant Sarah who was clearly defying UNIT.

UNIT whom Torchwood had semi-trusted was breaking all the bonds of protocol so they could do what. Were they expecting another 456 attack? Ianto knew from picking up bits and pieces of conversation that the 456 had been defeated and that Torchwood had done it somehow, so why were they running test after test on him. More importantly where were Jack and Gwen?

He couldn't believe that the two of them had not come to his rescue. His thoughts ran rampant. Often he envisioned the two of them running off into the sunset together and leaving the rest of the world behind. As much as he loved Jack and cared for Gwen he knew that deep down both were inherently selfish. Tears would run down his face after particularly grueling days and he would cry his sorrows away.

Three months into his 'visit' Sarah found him curled up on the floor of his room at a hard bout of testing trying to deal with the both the physical pain and the mental pain. Without hesitating she slid down onto the cement floor and pulled him into her arms and reached out to him with her mind probing his every thought in such a way she had never done. She showed him that she was learning and planning. She showed him that she was forgotten about a great deal of the time despite her "gift". She showed him the files she had been able to read and what the reports said when Gwen had asked for the body. She had sensed his despair and showed him that they had tried many times to gain access to his remains and eventually were given the ashes of another survivor, ashes that had been disguised as his remains.

She showed him that Captain Willis was basically in control here and was hiding things from UNIT. The biggest was the fact that there had been a survivor of the 456 attacks and it was Ianto. Another was her very existence. It was that day Ianto learned she was a prisoner too.

She showed him how she had been captured as she brought three coma patients back using her gift. She had believed that no one had noticed, but then she hadn't been aware of UNIT and didn't know it was there job in a sense to notice the freaks. They told her they wanted to use her gift for good but she knew what they really wanted and refused. For two years she had given them nothing until she had seen him and heard their conversations and that's when she told them she would help. She knew what they had planned to do and she knew on some level she could and would help. Obviously not in the way they thought but she was sure she could help Ianto survive his time here and maybe help him escape.

She had then whispered to him that she hated invading peoples minds and seeing everything. She believed thoughts were a person's personal diary and last line of defense so why should she read them or see them. She didn't see her ability as a gift; she saw it as a curse. She said a curse because even though she had better control over it now she still didn't have full control and that sometimes led to the most annoying headaches.

It was at that point that she had confessed she had done the one thing that she swore never to do, she looked at his thoughts. She had to know what to do, who to contact for him. She had to know where to start looking. UNIT had given her a small amount of freedom and with that she was using every moment to help him escape.

Apologizing for intruding she said that her current quest was trying to locate Dr. Martha Jones. She was also looking for Captain Jack Harkness and Gwen Cooper, but she wasn't hopeful about that. Feeling him cringe she had pulled him closer promising to do all should could and more to keep him safe and get him back to Jack. It was a promise fulfilled 9 long months later, but still fulfilled.

One morning after a particularly hard day Ianto was painfully lying in his bed when he heard a loud commotion. There were raised voices, the sound of fists hitting flesh, and finally gun fire. It lasted mere minutes and when the door opened Ianto was nervous until the shadow in his doorway took shape and a familiar voice broke through the fog of pain. Martha, Martha had come. Sarah had done it.

Martha had wrenched him into a sitting position and a full assessment right there. She tried to keep the air light, but she knew that it would take awhile. As Martha assessed him he remembered seeing Sarah in the door. She was standing still allowing the reunion to happen. He remembered seeing tears in her eyes and he screamed thank you with his mind. He knew that without her he probably would have been stuck with Captain Willis for years.

When Martha was sure she could move him and things had died down Martha moved him. It was a two hour car ride to the closets UNIT a&E. during the ride Martha told him everything she had learned about the 456, where Jack was, and how Captain Willis had managed to keep so many secrets. She didn't really know much and she admitted the most of the info she got she had received from Sarah.

Sarah was in a different car. She was initially going to be taken somewhere else, but Ianto couldn't imagine being without her and so he had made a huge stink. Martha saw the fear in his eyes so she pulled her weight and both of Captain Willis's prisoners were transferred into her care.

He spent a complete week in recovery wing before he was allowed to explore and another week just to make sure that everything was okay in his system. During those two weeks information was kept from him. Martha and Sarah both deciding that he needed time before they told him the news from home. But after those two weeks Martha sat him down.

"I haven't told anyone yet. I really don't know how. Your sister probably won't believe me and well Torchwood will be suspicious. I can tell you Rhiannon and her family moved into the city and after about 7 months Torchwood is back and running. It took Gwen awhile to rebuild but its up and running now," said Martha.

"And Jack?" asked Ianto.

"Jack too."

"Don't tell them, just tell my sister."

"Ianto…"

"No, I need time before I go back. Time to connect with Rhi, time that I won't have if you tell them right away."

"You don't need to go back. We could tell them your alive but want to take this chance to have a different life."

"I will go back. I want to, but I need two weeks with Rhi. I want to spend time my family. You know more than anyone I won't be able to after I return to Torchwood. Let me have two weeks with my family. You can tell them after I have been out a week, but not before than please."

Martha looked at young man who had risked everything for his country and the world. Before everything she would have given in merely based on his looks. His eyes, they were just too cute, but now there would be no question. She would do as he asked and no matter what she thought of his plan.

Two days later after an exhausting phone call to his sister Ianto found himself packing his bags when Sarah appeared in his doorway. He knew she was worried she was unable to block that message. She felt his pain, his worry and knew he was hesitant. He had long ago opened his mind to her.

Walking over to her he wiped her tears and pulled her into a hug. They stayed like that for awhile until UNIT told him the car was ready. Grabbing her hand and his bag they walked down the hall out the door. He hugged one last time, whispered his thanks and climbed into the car. Turning to face her he waved until he could no longer see her anymore. He felt a keen loss and knew that he owed her everything, but more importantly in the last year she had been his only friend. Turning towards the front of the car he faced Martha and his future. He couldn't even produce a weak smile.

AU: Reviews are welcome. Hopefully chapter 2 will be up by friday. Thanks for reading and as always I don't own Jack, Gwen, Martha or Ianto. That pleasure is solely resevered for the BBC.