Chapter 3

Jack pauses behind Gwen's seat and gives her shoulder a squeeze. She glances up at him from her screen.

"You okay?" he asks.

"Little freaked out," she replies. "I mean a whole year. And you…"

"Don't ask Gwen. I can't talk about it. Not yet."

She smiles sadly at him. "Any luck reaching the Doctor?"

Jack shakes his head and walks over to Martha. "How you doing?"

She is sat on the arm of the sofa, with her arms folded. "Feeling useless."

"UNIT not helping?"

"They know less than we do."

Jack reaches out and cups her cheek. "We'll get through this."

Martha raises her eyebrows at him. "I think we should call it a night Jack. We've been staring at screens for thirteen hours and getting nowhere. And I think we've freaked Tish out enough today." She glances over at her sister who is sat on a chair worrying a fingernail between her teeth. "And my hotel is probably wondering why I haven't checked in yet."

Jack smiles. "I'd better send them home shouldn't I? I don't think any of them have eaten anything more than biscuits all day either."

Martha gives him a hug and goes to collect Tish and her suitcase before heading for the door.

"Guys," Jack calls to his team who all look up at him. "I think we should call it a night."

They all stare at him for a moment then return their faces to their screens. Okay so not calling it a night then. Jack grabs his phone and dials the number for the pizza place down the road. Might as well feed his team then. "Yeah hi, I'd like a large pepperoni, one medium Hawaiian, one medium hot 'n' spicy and a side of garlic bread. Yeah, yeah. Add a medium vegetarian supreme to that to. Yeah. Harkness."

"He's amazing mum. He has all these stories!"

Jackie Tyler rolls her eyes at her daughter who is still trying to talk around a mouthful of mashed potato. "If I didn't know better I'd say someone had a crush."

"What? Mum no!" Rose's cheeks colour instantly.

Jackie laughs and silence reigns for a few minutes except for Rose drumming her fingers on the tabletop. "Rose will you stop tapping, it's really annoying."

Rose looks down at her hand. "Sorry, didn't realise I was doing it."

Jackie looks at Pete. "So this Harold Saxon guy, what's he like?"

Pete shrugs. "Dunno. Haven't met him. Just signed the papers to put him and this woman up in one of our safe houses for the night." He looks at Rose who is staring wistfully into space. "Don't pin all your hopes on this being the thing Rose. We've been down this road before."

Rose is about to retort when the doorbell rings. She hurries to answer it.

"Mickey!"

"Hi babes," he grins at her. He is leaning on crutch but looks well despite it.

Rose gives him a careful hug. "You should have called!"

"I did. I called the office. You were out." He raises an eyebrow at her. "Something big happening?"

She grins happily at him. "Maybe the biggest."

Mickey raises the other eyebrow and hobbles into the hallway. "Biggest biggest?"

"I hope so."

"What we got?" he asks suddenly all business.

Rose leads him towards the dining room. "Let me tell you all about Harry."

"Is that Torchwood Three?" The man's voice is silky smooth over the phone line.

"Yes. Gwen Cooper speaking." Gwen cradles the phone in the crook of her neck and accepts the coffee cup Ianto has just handed her. She takes a grateful sip of the hot liquid and nearly spits it out again when the man on the other end of the phone says, "My name is Harry Saxon. I don't believe I've had the pleasure of speaking to you before."

"Uh…uh…sir. How can I…How can I help?"

The Prime Minister laughs lightly at the other end. "Please call me Harry. I'm just sorry this is a business call. There is a serious threat to British interests brewing in the Himalayas. I need you and your team to go investigate for me."

"Us? I don't know if we're equipped for the Himalayas."

Ianto's head shoots up and he stares at her. "Himalayas?" he mouths at her silently.

Gwen nods impatiently. Ianto throws his hands up in the air and wonders where he can get climbing gear, survival equipment and possibly a Sherpa on such short notice.

"Oh but I'm asking for you personally Miss Cooper." His tone takes on mock-sadness. "Please don't let me down. I would simply hate to have to call Torchwood Two."

"Torchwood Two? We'll do it. Only…"

"Only what?" His voice is all concern.

"Captain Harkness is missing."

"I'll deal with Jack when I see him Miss Cooper, don't you worry your pretty head about that. Pass my regards to your team won't you? I'll have the Secretary of State e-mail you the details and plane tickets."

"Yes sir…Harry. Thank you."

"Oh and Gwen?"

"Yes?"

"Do this job well and I may be in a position to reward you all handsomely."

"Thank you sir." The phone clicks off just as Owen and Tosh bundle into the main room. Owen clicks the television on.

"Watch this!" he demands of Ianto and Gwen.

On the screen a grainy CCTV image of Jack Harkness, another man in a long coat and a black girl shows them running down a half-deserted high street.

"Jack!" Ianto says in shock stepping closer.

The news feed reel at the bottom of the screen scrolls on repeating the words 'Do Not Approach. If seen please call…'

"What?" Ianto looks confused. "Jack couldn't…he wouldn't…"

"Be Britain's most wanted?" Owen asks. "He could and he would."

"But he wouldn't!" Ianto insists.

"He's probably loving it!"

"Enough!" Gwen snaps. "We have more important business at hand. I just spoke to Prime Minister Saxon..."

Toshiko's head is in Owen's lap; he is snoring lightly with his head laid back on the sofa; Gwen is curled up with Ianto's arm around her shoulders and there is a pizza box in his lap. His head is resting in his hand, with his elbow propped on the arm of the sofa. Jack pauses to look at them before snagging the last slice of pepperoni from the box. He hadn't had the heart to wake them and send them home when they finally dozed off around midnight. Seemed an unnecessary cruelty in the light of everything.

He flips open his mobile phone and presses the speed dial for the Doctor. He holds the phone in the crook of his neck and folds the pizza slice in half between his hands. He listens to it ring and waits for the answer phone to kick in. There is a soft click as the phone is answered. Jack's head shoots up and he fumbles not to drop the phone. The pizza is left hanging, forgotten, in his other hand.

"Doctor?"

The voice on the other end is low and hard. "Stop calling me, Jack."

"Doctor, please listen…"

"Goodbye Jack."

The phone clicks as the Doctor hangs up.

Jack swears loudly at the phone, stuffs the whole pizza slice in his mouth and redials. The phone rings once then clicks straight to the answer phone. He swears again round the mouthful of pizza.

"Wha?" Ianto sits up straight, suddenly awake. "Jack what's wrong?"

Gwen is blinking herself awake, having been disturbed by Ianto moving.

Jack waves the phone at him and mumbles round his mouthful of pizza. "Hmmmpphh Doctor mmmhmmph."

Ianto pulls a face. "That's disgusting sir." He gently unhooks his arm from around Gwen. "Gwen? Time to wake up."

"Rhys?" she mumbles.

"No it's Ianto." He strokes her cheek softly with a hand. "Wake up Gwen."

Suddenly she sits up, giving a half scream. Ianto jerks his hand away like he has been shocked. He suddenly remembers. Remembers something that did not really happen. Like she is. You died. You died because I couldn't keep you awake. And I stroked your face right before you died.

Toshiko nearly rolls off the sofa in fright and Owen swears, "Fuck Gwen! I like women to wake me up in nicer ways!"

Toshiko sits up and fusses with smoothing down her hair, not looking at Owen, trying to pretend she hasn't spent the night drooling into his crotch.

Gwen and Ianto are staring at each other, wide eyed. They can see their own thoughts mirrored in each other's eyes.

"Are you alright Gwen?" Jack asks. He reaches for her shoulder. She stands suddenly and buries her face against his chest. He pauses, surprised for a moment, then wraps her arms around her.

Ianto pushes himself off the sofa. "I'm so sorry Gwen." He turns and disappears into the kitchen where he leans against the worktop breathing hard.

"Yan?" Tosh creeps into the kitchen behind him. "Are you okay?"

He turns and can't help but smile at her sleep rumpled hair. "Not really," he finally answers. "How is Gwen?"

"Shaken but okay. Owen threatened her with a tranquilliser if she didn't calm down."

He smiles very weakly. "Good." Ianto tries to smooth down his crumpled suit jacket with one hand, obsessively pressing down one particular crease over and over again, so he does not have to look at her.

"Stop that!" Tosh grabs hold of his hand and roughly strips the jacket off him. "There that's better."

Ianto blinks at her. "Okay. If that's your seduction technique I'm in."

She flashes him a smile at his attempt to change the subject. "Tell me what you saw."

Ianto swallows. "Gwen died. In the mountains. She died. I couldn't keep her awake and she died."

"Oh Ianto." Tosh puts her arms around him. He lowers his head to rest it on her shoulder and hide the angry tears he can feel coming. Angry at himself. She presses a kiss just behind his ear. "Its alright. We've got each other. We're a team remember."

Ianto raises his head just as Jack walks into the kitchen.

Tosh glances between them. "I'll go see if Owen and Gwen have killed each other yet," she says tactfully and retreats.

"Yan…"

"Don't sir…"

"Don't what?" Jack raises an eyebrow and traps Ianto against the worktop between his arms. "Care? That's never happening." He leans in and stares into the other man's eyes. "I promise you that."

Ianto breathes out shakily. "I meant don't ask me how I am. I'm not fine with this sir. I don't like who I became…who I could become." He swallows. "And I became that man for y…"

Jack cuts him off with a sharp kiss. Ianto blinks surprised. Jack pulls back, gives his hand a squeeze, turns and walks out of the room leaving Ianto staring at his back.

"You're going out?" Jackie raises her eyebrow as she stands in Rose's doorway.

Rose hooks her earring through her earlobe and looks at her mother reflected in the mirror. "Yeah."

"Again?"

Rose pouts her lips into the mirror to check her lipstick, and turns, scooping up her jacket as she does so. "What? I'm meeting Harry and Lucy."

Her mother rolls her eyes. "That's all we hear from you these days. Harry this, Lucy that. Harry said this. Just going out with Harry. Lucy this, Harry that."

"No it isn't!" Rose protests. "I just like them, that's all."

"I think you like him. Be careful Rose, he's a married man remember?"

"What? I don't…Mum!"

Jackie just smiles knowingly and disappears from the doorway. A moment later Mickey is standing there, leaning on the doorway.

"Not you too," Rose says petulantly.

Mickey looks steadily at her. "Be careful Rose. I don't like this."

"Don't like what?" she shrugs her jacket on over her dress.

"Harry Saxon. Something is off about him."

"You only met him once!"

"Once was enough! I know they say they knew the Doctor but Rose, don't you think it's a little odd that they can appear here and he can't?" She folds her arms as he continues. "Have you even asked Lucy how she got here? I think you need to ask these things Rose."

Rose nods. "I know I should…but I get with them and we just have so much fun that it never seems the right time y'know?" She glances at her watch. "I've got to go Mickey." She crosses the room to him and presses a kiss on his cheek. "Be good."

"Be careful." He suddenly has a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Love you babes."

She frowns at him oddly. He hasn't told her he loves her since he got shot and thought he was going to die. "Bye Mickey."

"Bye Rose."

"How did you get here?" Rose presses Lucy once they are settled at a table in the very exclusive, posh London bar. A proper black tie venue.

She just smiles mysteriously. "He told me how." She smoothes a non-existent wrinkle from the skirt of her long red dress.

"I need to know."

Harry places a hand on Rose's arm. His fingers are cool against her skin, despite the heat in the room. "All in good time Rose." He is wearing a smart black suit and bowtie, looking completely at ease in the formal wear.

"But how did the Doctor never find a way if you could?" she asks, unable to let it go. "How do you know the Doctor anyway?"

"We're old old friends," Harry says smiling, his brown eyes twinkling. "And there are some things the Doctor just doesn't think of."

"But Mickey said…"

He raises an eyebrow and looks her directly in the eye. "Mickey? And since when do you really care what Mickey thinks?"

Rose bites her lip hesitantly, suddenly unsure why she is following Mickey's paranoid line of reasoning.

"You're old enough to think this through yourself Rosebud," he says gently to her, the nickname seeming both affectionate and innocent at the same time. "A drink is in order I think don't you?" he says reaching for the bottle.

Rose sips the glass of champagne Harry has just poured for her and smiles at him. "You shouldn't have bought this."

"Nonsense," he says back. "Why shouldn't we celebrate?" He holds up his glass in a toast to the two women and smiles wolfishly. "We're all going to get what we want."