Torchwood Three; Cardiff, Wales
Jack Harkness hated giving bad news nevertheless to those he cared about. The situation was truly puzzling. He told Gwen initially in private. As one of the unfortunate, bizarre cases Torchwood sometimes saw, he had no choice but to discuss it with the team. He would have to break the news to Luc and the general soon.
"We have very little," Jack said from the head of the table. "Rhys is seen entering the bathroom on CCTV but does not come back out. Scan readings indicate a temporal displacement inconsistent with anything I have seen. It wasn't the Rift."
Gwen sat across the room staring at the table next to Anwen who held her hand. She cried when he told her. For the moment, she was numb. There was little he could say to her. She blamed herself. Torchwood was the only possible explanation they had so far and it wasn't be the first time he'd been hurt because of her job.
"What about the exploding man in the hallway?" Bree sat opposite of Anwen. She was the only one in the room who didn't know Trefor was responsible. She wasn't ready for the information, and Gwen wasn't willing to share.
"Not directly related. We've seen it before. Consistent with what we know of the phenomena, the man had bad intentions toward the kids. He paid for it."
"Facial recognition identified him as Marvyn Tew." Ianto sat next to him holding Trefor. "He has an extensive police file. He was under investigation for arson-for-hire involving a commercial building fire/insurance scam last month. He's suspected of everything from stalking to extortion. Anything he could get paid for."
"He expected us," Anwen said quietly. "He had tech or someone watching us from a distance."
"What about the mall employee?" Bree asked.
"Ken was with us when dad disappeared. He's a friend of John's and knows about him and Uncle Jack working for Torchwood."
"What did Ken say before you left the store?" Jack asked. He wished he could contact John. The paramedics transported the young man for psyche observation. The hospital admitted him.
"He asked where my dad went. Which I thought was weird until he mentioned he'd been gone too long. He offered to walk with us." Anwen rubbed her face. "It wasn't Ken. The only question he asked that didn't involve the store was why I told dad he was a friend of Jack and Ianto's instead of mentioning John. I didn't say anything specific and he didn't ask. Everything after that was about Disney." She sighed. "We went into the Disney store because dad was worried about leaving me and Trefor alone. I saw Ken as an easy solution."
"The constable?"
Jack wondered that himself. The man had a history of editing information to avoid Torchwood. Rather than trust the police system, he contacted Andy Davidson. Cowley was at the mall following a lead on an unrelated case. "Nearest available when security called 999."
"Could it be related to the device from the Red Dragon Centre car park?" Gwen looked at him with haunted eyes.
"I don't know." Jack didn't think so. None of the scan results or details were the same.
Jack contacted Nova Scotia first. While Luc lived at the building with them in Cardiff, he'd gotten along with Rhys. For whatever reason, Luc clashed with Anwen which led to complications. But he'd connected with Rhys over shopping and building chores.
"Are the energy readings comparable to anything?" Luc sounded overwhelmed.
"No." If they were, he would have a place to start.
"I need something to work with, Jack."
He knew the feeling. "Have Kailen write a program to search the Internet for unexplained disappearances. The majority of the cases will be inaccurate or fabricated. Results need to be checked to determine if the person existed. We need to research any possibilities."
"That we can do. Eryn made friends with the local librarian. It'll help. Please tell Gwen we're doing everything we can."
"I will. Make sure you sleep." Jack needed to send Eryn an email. Luc got stressed and didn't care for himself. It wouldn't help anyone, if he wound up sick.
Discussing the situation with the kid was simple compared to the next call. The general's relationship with the version of Rhys he knew growing up was complicated. He stayed in contact with Gwen, and spoke to Anwen on occasion. He made no attempt to connect with Rhys.
"Williams."
"Evening. I'm sending details." Jack took a moment. "Rhys disappeared at the mall today."
"What?"
"He walked into a bathroom and disappeared without a trace."
"How is that possible?"
"We don't know. Luc is researching possibilities."
"What else?"
"Does the name Mervyn Tew mean anything?"
"No. Why?"
"He approached Anwen and Trefor near where Rhys disappeared. Before Anwen could grab him with the Rift, he exploded. Readings are similar to the alien that threatened Nessa."
The general exhaled. "I was seven or eight the first time the ability manifested."
"How does it work?"
"Its a targeting system. It identifies a threat and the threat explodes."
"What type of threats?"
"Aliens mostly. The first person I killed was a paedophile."
"Did it apply to childhood threats? Bullies?" Jack wasn't sure what to ask.
"No. The threat is bodily harm to self or loved ones. I was bullied in school. I never killed any of the bullies."
"We need to determine if Trefor is dangerous."
"I don't know." The general sounded tired. "How's mum?"
"Not good."
"Keep me updated. I will review the information, check reports and see what I can come up with. Nessa can review the details for possible alternative explanations."