'I'm sorry Doctor, I wish I could be more help. I haven't seen any sign of Jack.'
'I didn't think you would but I thought it was best to ask, in case he somehow ended up back in the present.'
'What was he doing in 1998 in the first place?' Martha asked from the other end of the phone. The Doctor continued to walk down the path ways, a good mile or so away from the park now. 'I don't know,' he replied, then a thought occurred to him. 'I saw Rose around here, maybe that's why, do remember he said he used to watch her grow up? Maybe that's what he was at.'
'You saw Rose?' Martha said, surprised. He knew she would've honed in on that detail, forcing him to talk about it.
'Yeah, she was in the park with a friend,' he said, trying to sound casual. He stopped at a red pedestrian traffic light with a large group of other people, waiting to cross.
'Did she recognise- Well she wouldn't have would she?' Martha said, answering her own question. The Doctor swallowed, hoping they would get back to talking about Jack. The light turned green and he was off again, still trying to keep an eye out for anything unusual while simultaneously listening to Martha.
'Do you think she's safe Doctor? If there's something sinister wandering around 1998-'
'I'm not sure. If they were after Rose I don't know why they'd take on my form, it's years before we met, it doesn't make any sense. Maybe they were just after Jack. Have you been in touch with the guys at Torchwood lately?' he asked, rounding a corner and almost bumping into an old man with several shopping bags in both of his hands. The Doctor mouthed sorry and walked on. 'Not really, not since I've gone freelance. I'm really sorry Doctor but I've got to go, we're having a bit of a Cyberman problem up here at the moment. I'll call you back if I can find anything out. Let me know if you need me ok?'
'I will, goodbye Martha, and good luck with those Cybermen, they're tricky buggers.'
She laughed and said goodbye before hanging up.
The Doctor pocketed his mobile and ran his hands through his hair. He noticed a group of teenagers staring at him, he had a feeling they'd just caught the end of his conversation with Martha. He placed his hands in his pockets and walked on, feeling their eyes on his back as he progressed through the street. A moment later his phone pinged once again. It was typical, he rarely had much use for it, but once it started ringing it never stopped. He pulled it out of his pocket again and saw that he had received a message.
'Jack lives no more Doctor, and he won't be the last.'
Dread ran down his spine in chilling waves. Oh course Jack would just bounce back to life in a matter of time, but where was he? And who else was this creature going to target? He thought of Rose, young teenage Rose who didn't yet have to knowledge of how to defend herself… The Doctor stared ahead, then made a quick decision. He turned on his heel and began to head for the estate where the Tyler's lived. He knew it was dangerous, he ran the risk of totally altering their future, but this time was in flux, if he didn't warn her, if she didn't know she might not have a future.
He had been running for a good fifteen minutes and was nearing the park for a second time when his phone buzzed again. He slowed down a little and removed it from his pocket, maybe it was Martha with more news, unless she was now in peril too, had he sent the impostor after her somehow by involving her? But his conclusions were wrong, it wasn't Martha at all.
'Doctor, where are you?'
'Jack! You're back!' he said, relief cascading through him as she came to a halt, grabbing hold of a lamp post for support as he caught his breath.
'I certainly am. I'm in Little Hangleton at the moment, this nice lady here's kindly allowed me to borrow her phone,' he said, casual as ever. The Doctor could practically see him wink at the woman whose phone he was using as he spoke.
'Little Hangleton, that sounds familiar somehow. What happened? I was sent a message from your phone saying that you'd been killed.'
'Yeah, I figured he'd do that. I woke up in an old house, it's practically a mansion. My phone was gone, so was my teleport device.'
'So he can travel to any time or place now,' the Doctor said, the situations always had to get worse before they get better. He let go of the lamp post and stood away from it. 'What else happened Jack? Tell me everything you remember.'
'He walked in while I was in the bathroom talking to you. He had this stick, a wooden stick and he pointed it at me and I woke up in the old house.'
'A wooden stick? Like a wand or something?'The Doctor asked, having to open his mind to every possibility.
'Yeah, I suppose that must be what it was. So, he forced this liquid on me, it seemed like a potion. It don't remember much after that, I feel like I zoned out. The last thing I remember seeing was this green light.'
'Green light…' the Doctor said, thinking aloud, trying to make sense of what Jack was telling him. 'Look Jack, stay where you are, I'll come and get you in the TARDIS.'
'Ok, see you soon. It's probably best if we meet at the house, we don't want to draw attention to ourselves.'
'Right. I'll get there as soon as I can, and, try to lay low while you're there Jack, don't get into anymore trouble.'
'I won't,' Jack said, probably with his signature winning smile in place. The Doctor hung up and headed for the alleyway where he had parked the TARDIS.
