I don't own Torchwood, much as I'd like to. Russell T. Davies and the BBC do.

Okay, this is how it goes: Rhys is dead. Owen takes Gwn to the hub, but on the way disaster strikes...


Lighting Strikes Twice

Gwen looked around. Tears were pouring down her cheeks, but she had barely noticed them. Why did life have to be so damn complicated? Rhys had left her just a week ago. Then this morning Andy, her old police colleague had turned up at her flat. She had known it was going to be bad by the way he looked at her. He had to tell her that Rhys had been found murdered in a ditch at 3am. She glanced at the clock. 10am. She should've been at work, but she couldn't even bring herself to stand up. Her mobile was in her hand. She wanted it to ring. But she wanted it to be Rhys. She wanted to apologise to him. She wanted to tell him to come home. She wanted to hug him and never let go.


Just then someone started hammering on her front door. "Open this door Gwen!". It was Owen.

"Fuck off!" yelled back before dissolving into more tears.

"No!" Owen shouted back. "I'm on orders! Jack is ready to kill you! He wants to know why you haven't turned up!"

"Well he's gonna have to wait 'til tomorrow, isn't he!".

"Open this door, Gwen, or I'll break it!". Gwen knew that he would follow that threat through. Slowly she stood up and opened the door to face Owen.

"Bloody hell" was all he could say when he saw her face. Then all at once his expression changed. He put his arms round his distraught colleague and held her tight as she sobbed on his shoulder. He stroked her hair.

"What's the matter, babe?" He whispered.

"It's Rhys" she mumbled quietly, "He's dead".

"What are you talking about?!" Owen asked.

"His body was recovered this morning. He was murdered!" Owen hugged Gwen to him even tighter and they stood there in silence for a moment. But Owen's phone rang, causing Gwen to let go of him and stand staring into space.

Owen peered at the caller ID. It was Jack. He pressed the call button and jammed the phone to his ear. "What?".

In the Torchwood hub Jack Harkness pressed the speaker button on the Torchwood phone. "Why isn't Gwen here?" Jack asked. He could hear sobs in the background and he could only assume it was Gwen.

Owen's voice rang out through the hub. Both Tosh and Ianto turned to where Jack stood. "It's Rhys". Owen told them.

"What about Rhys?" Jack asked.

"He… he's dead, he was murdered. His body was found this morning".

Suddenly Jack couldn't think of anything to say. "Oh".

"Shall I take her to the hub?"

Jack thought for a moment.

"Yeah, it might be for the best" Jack told him. He glanced at Tosh and Ianto. Both of them looked shocked. Tosh saw him looking and hastily turned back to her computer screen. Ianto turned back to the coffee machine. Jack walked slowly towards the concealed door leading in and out of the hub. He wanted to wait their for Gwen and Owen. Las t time Rhys had wound up dead before the rift had opened Gwen had been so distraught. She was likely to lash out. He just hoped Owen had the sense to be nice.


Slowly Owen led Gwen over to his car and opened the passenger door. Slowly, as though in a daze Gwen slowly got into the car. Owen got into the driver seat and put the key in the ignition. The journey back to the hub was silent and seemed to take longer than usual. No-one spoke a word. Both of them were too wrapped up in their own thoughts. Owen turned to look at Gwen, to make sure she was okay. But, in the brief moment that Owen had not been concentrating on the road was enough for the car to swerve into a passing lorry…

Where the fuck were Gwen and Owen? That was the question going through Jack's mind. It had been 20 minutes since he had called Owen. It wasn't busy in Cardiff that morning, and it didn't take that long to get from Gwen's flat to the hub.


"Jack, Jack!". Jack turned round at the sound of his name. It was Tosh, she was running towards him. "It's Gwen and Owen" She said as soon as she reached him.

"What's happened?!" Jack asked in alarm.

"They've been in a car accident! They've both been taken to hospital".

"What the fuck happened?!" Jack asked.

"Owen's car swerved, and, well I don't know!". Tosh told him as they turned to walk back into the hub.

"Conditions?"

"Owen's got a couple of minor lacerations and a broken wrist"

"And Gwen?"

"She… she's critical. They don't know if she's going to pull through". Tosh looked at him. She was almost crying.

"Right, we're going visiting" Jack told her, "Go and tell Ianto, lock up the hub. Both of you meet me in the SUV in 5 minutes. Tosh ran off. Jack walked towards the place where they kept the SUV.

What've I done? That was all Owen could think about. Gwen might be dying. He wanted to see her, he didn't think he could really believe what had just happened without seeing. His wrist had been set in plaster. He had a couple of stitches in his cheek, but apart from that he was fine. Physically anyway. But Gwen wasn't, and he was the only person that could be blamed...