The Doctor stepped out of the medi-bay as he opened the cell phone. He dialed Martha's phone number and let it ring once before immediately hanging up. Chastising himself under his breath for being a coward he decided another cup of tea was in order before he tried to make the call again. Pocketing the phone once more, he made his way to the kitchen to put the kettle on. As he neared it, though, the phone in his pocket began to vibrate. He pulled it out staring at the screen as he saw Martha's name appear. Sighing he opened the phone.
"Martha Jones," He said happily into the phone. He heard her giggle and it made him smile despite the situation. He continued on his way to the kitchen as he spoke to her.
"I can't believe it is really you, Doctor. I never thought that I would hear from you again," Martha told him. The Doctor sighed not wanting to tell her that if it hadn't been for Jack she probably wouldn't have. He didn't like looking back. "So I know you didn't call just to catch up, so how can I help you?"
"I need to know what happened to Jack after I left," The Doctor informed her. He put the phone on speaker laying on the counter so that he could put the kettle on while they talked.
"I think that you should talk to Jack about that as it isn't really my place to tell you," Martha responded vaguely. The Doctor sighed. He wasn't sure if he wanted to tell Martha that he had Jack currently restrained in his medi-bay but he needed answers. He got down a cup for his tea adding sugar to it as he decided to tell her what he knew.
"I've tried talking to him. He told me that I let innocent people die but he won't tell me who," The Doctor explained to her. It was a safe answer that wasn't a lie but didn't tell her everything. It also apparently wasn't enough either.
"Just give him some time. He will tell you the rest when he is ready," Martha replied. The Doctor swore colorfully in Gallifreyan. He took the phone off speaker as he brought it to his ear.
"Jack won't talk to me. I have tried but he is mad at me for restraining him in my medi-bay," The Doctor told her, he continued quickly before she had a chance to comment. "I know what you are thinking but I had no choice after I found him in a hotel room on a small moon. He is depressed Martha and if you have any information that would allow me to help him, I would appreciate it or I am going to have to find someone who can help me."
"Have you ever heard of the 456?" Martha questioned him. He furrowed his brow as he thought about it, but they didn't sound familiar.
"No," He responded. He listened as Martha explained that they were an alien race who had come to earth to collect the children in order to use them as a type of drug. The Doctor thought that they sounded like the species commonly known as the Collectors but he couldn't be sure. He made his tea sitting down at the table as Martha told him how the 456 had used the children of Earth as a signal taking control of them for a short period of time. She wasn't sure how many children the aliens had wanted but she did know that Jack had tried to stand up to them and they had released a poison into the air that had killed everyone in the building including Ianto. Jack had then used his own grandson, Steven, to send the signal back killing the 456.
"What happened to Steven?" The Doctor questioned. He wasn't stupid, though. He knew that using the boy to relay the signal would have killed him in a matter of hours, depending on how strong the boy was.
"He was taken to a nearby hospital and placed on life support. Gwen told me that Jack left when they decided that he was brain dead and were going to turn off the machines. She called me hoping that I would be able to help him with the knowledge I received from traveling with you. But when I called the hospital they said that he had already been transferred to another hospital for further treatment from a doctor James McCrimmon," Martha informed him. The Doctor felt a smile appear on his face. He had used that name only once before in Scotland with Rose but he was positive it was him. He wasn't sure if he could actually save Steven but he would try and by doing so save Jack.
"Thank you, Martha for everything," The Doctor told her as he finished off his tea.
"I knew it. Doctor James McCrimmon is you isn't it?" Martha asked.
"Yes," The Doctor answered. He put his cup into the kitchen sink before heading towards the control room. As he passed by the medi-bay, he looked into see Jack lying with his eyes closed. The slow rise and fall of his chest indicated that he was asleep and the Doctor was happy to let him rest.
"Then I have a favor of my own to ask. Let me help you," Martha told him.
"Martha," The Doctor started to argue. It felt very familiar when she interrupted him.
"Hear me out. If you already have Jack and are going to get Steven, you are going to need someone that you can trust to help you care for them. You know that I am a trained doctor and can help you with Steven. Plus, Jack trust me. Before he left, he and I spent long hours on the phone just talking. If he is hurting then he needs someone that he feels comfortable talking to and I am sorry Doctor but at the moment that person isn't you," Martha explained to the Doctor. He ran his hand through his hair to rub the back of his neck.
"Where and when are you?" He questioned as he reached for the controls. Martha gave him the time and place to pick her up at and the Doctor hung up the phone so that he could pilot the TARDIS. It took a few minutes to get to the correct place and as soon as he landed he heard a key in his door. A moment later the door opened and Martha rushed in. She looked different from the last time he saw her as she was wearing all black including black combat boots. Her hair was longer and framing her face as she grinned at him. He rushed around the console happy to see her. He met her half way up the ramp as he wrapped his arms around her in a big hug.
"I've missed you," Martha told him. She hugged him back before taking a step back. "There is one more thing that you need to know before we go." The Doctor looked up as another person entered. The man was about as tall as him and also wearing black right down to the black hat upon his head. The Doctor glance at the man's hand to see a gold band on his ring finger. A quick check revealed that Martha also had a gold ring. He watched in disbelief as she reached her hand out and the man took it.
"No, no, no, no. You didn't," The Doctor exclaimed as he looked from one confused face to the other.
"Didn't what?" Martha wondered.
"You did. You married Mickey the idiot," The Doctor told her. Mickey sighed.
"I told you he would be happy to see me," Mickey mumbled.
"He is not an idiot," Martha argued the Doctor. The Doctor shook his head as he turned back towards the controls. He knew Mickey wasn't an idiot. In fact, he was proud of how Mickey had turned his life around from the young man who had coward at Rose's feet to the brave man who stood before him today. He wasn't about to let Mickey know that, though. Mumbling about apes, he set the time and coordinates once more before sending them on their way