Once Upon A Time …
Day Eight: 21 December 2008
The choristers were the first to notice the additions to the Christmas display. The clergy and the congregation had walked past oblivious, seeing only the crib and special flower arrangements. On this last Sunday of Advent, the choristers were gathered at the back of the Cathedral and that was when Delwyn spotted them.
Nudging Peter who was next to him in the procession, he whispered, "See those?" nodding to the large jars ranged along the side wall.
"Where'd they come from?" Peter hissed back. Delwyn shrugged.
Behind them, Trevan had heard and seen what his fellow choristers were doing. "Wine," he murmured, just loud enough for them to hear.
The procession started to move so the boys had no time to consider Trevan's suggestion. They adopted serious expressions and concentrated on walking up the aisle while singing the anthem. It was ten minutes later when they discovered Trevan had been wrong.
At Mermaid Quay the Torchwood team was in the Hub. "How's Rhys?" asked Jack, stopping to speak to Gwen. "Got over his fright?"
"Yeah. Thanks for getting him out." She swung round in her chair and saw his grin. Rhys had told her about his spell in gaol and she appreciated Jack looking out for him. "These other blokes, they really outlaws?"
"Uh huh. Good ones, well, successful ones I should say. I expect the bounty hunters will be sniffing around soon enough."
"They're easier to look after than the other mob," added Ianto, coming up to join them. He handed them their coffees. His shadow, Princess Talia, settled on the sofa with her drink looking bored. "Any chance of getting rid of them too?"
"The bounty hunters might take them. Not such a profit in them, unfortunately." Jack sipped his coffee thoughtfully. "I wonder where the rest of them are."
"Are there really forty?" queried Gwen. Twenty one of the exotically garbed thieves was enough for her.
"Oh yeah. They use numbers to overwhelm their victims while the Merry Men have skill and guile."
"Sounds like you admire them," laughed Ianto.
"I do. They've got - " Whatever he was going to say was lost in a loud crash from the kitchen where Cendrillon was supposed to be tidying up. Ianto sprinted off, having had a number of her minor disasters to sort out.
"Oh dear!" laughed Gwen, looking after him. She turned back to the PC and continued checking the Rift.
The police had received a dozen calls from the congregation at the Cathedral and responded immediately; with the Bishop taking the Service they were not taking any chances. Within seven minutes of the first call being received, two police cars had arrived and officers were guarding the main exits. As more officers attended the scene, all the doors were covered and a senior officer had taken charge. Andy Davidson was assigned to the West Door – huge double doors with a small normal sized door cut out of one of them - along with Steve Barnes, Mervyn Simmonds and Harry Jackson. From inside, he could hear muffled shrieks and raised voices. The calls had said that the congregation and Clergy had been taken hostage. It was being treated as a terrorist attack and Andy knew that the Armed Response Units would be arriving soon.
"Andy!" Steve yelled. He was pushing back hard on the little door behind him. Someone was trying to get out.
Andy and the others rushed to join him and they kept the door closed, as ordered. Harry radioed in and a couple of the reserves jogged over to help. A sudden hard push from inside the building forced one of the larger doors open a crack and Andy was looking straight into a fierce, bearded face under a yellow and red conical cloth hat. The door slammed shut again but Andy had seen enough. The man was dressed like the thieves he'd help capture at the St David's Centre. He fumbled for his mobile and called Gwen.
The Cathedral was surrounded by police vehicles when the Torchwood SUV drove up. Jack sent Gwen to talk to the man in charge and outline their plan while he and Ianto ran to the West Door where a dozen officers were pressed against it, keeping it closed against the men inside. Jack went to the left of the door and Ianto to the right, holding a fragile-looking net between them.
"Okay, boys, step aside and let them out," ordered Jack, getting a firm grip in the net.
"That won't hold 'em!" protested Andy.
"Just do as you're told."
With a roll of his eyes and a nod to his colleagues, Andy stepped away from the door, moving to the side. One large door swung open and a horde of men in Eastern clothing fell out, unable to stop themselves before reaching the net. Instead of breaking, which was what Andy Davidson had expected, the net stuck to them, tangling around their legs and arms. The more they struggled, the more tied up they became. Jack and Ianto played out the net and used it to mop up those at the back who had avoided getting tangled immediately. Very soon, thirteen men were contained within the net.
"You two," ordered Jack, pointing at two of the police officers, "keep an eye on these. The rest of you, with me. There should be six more inside."
Jack dived into the Cathedral where the congregation – larger than normal given the presence of the Bishop and the time of year – was cowering in the pews. They had seen enough of their fellows threatened with the vicious swords and daggers to keep their heads down until help arrived. Ten minutes later, the last of the thieves – for that is what they were – had been rounded up and secured. The frightened congregation was receiving medical attention and the police were taking statements.
"Mister." Jack looked down at the small chorister tugging on his greatcoat. "Mister, they hid in jars." The boy was pointing to the side.
"Show me." Jack and Gwen followed the boy and saw the shattered remnants of the large jars, normally used to contain oils and wine.
"I don't believe it," she said. Another part of the fairy tale was coming true.
"They did, miss," persisted Delwyn. "They smashed out and ran all over the Cathedral." His eyes were round and excited; this had been the best Sunday morning ever.
Jack ruffled his hair and grinned. "Hey, I believe you." He and Gwen sent the boy back to his mates and made sure someone knew to sort out the broken pottery.
"This is getting pretty regular now," grinned Rhys when he rolled up in the minibus.
"Enough for a discount?" asked Ianto, pushing the first of the handcuffed thieves into the vehicle.
"No! And Sundays is extra."
Gwen had caught up with Andy. "Thanks for the call, Andy," she said.
"Not so loud," he muttered, pulling her away from his colleagues. "You're not exactly top of the hit parade around here, you know."
"Sorry."
"How's Cendrillon?"
"Okay. Why?"
"No reason. Though, well, if she's not doing anything that is, I could, well, maybe I could take her out for a drink tonight." He knew he was acting like a lovesick teenager but he didn't care. "What d'you think?"
"I don't know. I'll see what I can do." Gwen smiled, amused to see him so tongue-tied and nervous. She wasn't sure whether Jack would agree to Cendrillon going out on her own with Andy, it was a bit of a risk as she could say and do the strangest things.
Andy got his wish, though not quite in the way he had hoped. For the first time he was allowed into the Hub where he spent the evening on the sofa holding hands with Cendrillon under Jack's watchful eye.
