In the TARDIS, Martha found herself watching the Doctor and Kayla pilot the TARDIS. Occasionally, the Doctor would lift his leg up and smash down a button with his foot while flipping a few levers.
"Alright, we've done one trip to the past so…one trip to the future?" the Doctor asked, giving Kayla a grin.
Kayla shrugged and looked over at Martha. "You okay with that?" she inquired.
Martha nodded and gave the couple a grin that made Kayla's heart tighten. The black women still didn't know that Hamlet was now Hamnet and this fact was taking a toll on the couple, especially the Doctor. So far, despite it only being a day since they had thrown out the plays, the Doctor was feeling very, very guilty. And his growing guilt was bubbling over to Kayla, which made the brunette woman, who was already pretty irritable, more irritable. Plus with the Doctor trying to explain to her and Martha that due to the time vortex, every day was like a week to her and she was now 8 weeks looking like she was pushing onto 16.
Glancing over at her at this during Kayla's mental run-through, the Doctor gave her a weak smile and then turned to Martha to address her, who was patiently waiting for the two to finish whatever they were doing.
"How about a different planet?" he offered to the woman.
Martha grinned widely. "Like yours?" she shot back, "Can we go to yours?"
For a long moment, the TARDIS and the Time Lord couple paused. "What?" Kayla finally choked out, the first to break the silence.
"Can we go to the planet of the Time Lords?" Martha repeated, this time not sounding as excited or thrilled.
"Martha, the planet of the Time Lords…it doesn't…"
The Doctor suddenly pulled down a lever more violently than he ever needed to and grounded out, "Ahh, there's plenty of other place!" he said in a forcefully cheery voice.
Kayla's head instantly whipped around to stare at the Doctor, but he was staring down at the console. Due to her position, this meant that Martha couldn't see how the Doctor looked as he technically lied to the woman, but Kayla could. This meant that Kayla was very able to see the Doctor's jaw clench as he forced himself to smile and turn to Martha with a grin.
Not noticing this, the black woman continued to press the issue, however, "Come on, though! I mean, Planet of the Time Lords, that's got to be worth a look! What's it like?" Martha asked.
The Doctor just shrugged before responding. "Well, it's beautiful, yeah."
Martha frowned, obviously not pleased with the general answer. "Is it like, you know, outer space cities, all spires and stuff?" she pressed.
Kayla glanced over at the Doctor who shifted idly before muttering, "Suppose it is."
Blissfully unaware of the Doctor's shifting and Kayla's tense and worried looks, Martha grinned and continued on. "Great big temples and cathedrals!"
"Yeah," the Doctor agreed softly.
"Lots of planets in the sky?" Martha asked.
A wistful expression started to grow on the Doctor's face, something that made Kayla frown and look over at him. "The sky's a burnt orange, with the Citadel enclosed in a mighty glass dome, shining under the twin suns. Beyond that, the mountains go on forever – slopes of deep red grass, capped with snow," he explained. By the time he was done, his eyes were locked on the console of the TARDIS, which was humming in a soft, almost mournful way.
Kayla, having never seen the Doctor so…wanting for Gallifrey, took a step forwards and placed a soft hand on his shoulder. He jerked and turned towards her. He shook his head slightly at the questioning look the brunette was giving him. He gave her a small kiss on the lips which made Martha huff and say in a louder tone than the one she was using before:
"Can we go there? To your home planet?"
Spinning around and away from Kayla, the Doctor seemed to snap back to his old mood. He started to pull down several levers and shook his head. "Naah! Where's the fun for me? I don't want to go home! Instead…"
Kayla crossed her arms but for the sake of the Doctor, she made herself smile so that Martha didn't know. Yet another lie the dark skinned girl was being told by the two.
"This," the Doctor started, "is much better. Year five billion and fifty-three, planet New Earth! Second hope of mankind! Fifty thousand light years from your old world, and we're slap bang in the middle of New New York. Although, technically it's the fifteenth New York from the original, so it's New New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York. One of the most dazzling cities ever built." By the time he was done talking, the TARDIS had shaken one more time and then it had landed.
Grabbing his overcoat and throwing it on, the Doctor took Kayla's hand and walked with her out of the TARDIS with Martha behind him. Instantly, the three recoiled back at the feeling of cold liquid, rain, pouring onto them. Martha scowled and made a groaning noise as she quickly zipped up her jacket while Kayla ducked slightly and pressed back against the TARDIS.
"Oh, that's nice! Time Lord version of dazzling," Martha grumbled as she followed Kayla's actions and pressed against the wooden box.
The Doctor gave Kayla and Martha a grin. "Nah, bit of rain never hurt anyone. Come on, let's get under cover!"
Gripping Kayla's hand tighter, he started to hurry though the streets with Martha behind them. The alleyway that they seemed to have landed it twisted out into a slightly less narrow street but that was equally as grimy and dirty as where they had been before.
"Well, it looks like the same old Earth to me. On a Wednesday afternoon," Martha remarked.
Kayla nodded towards a screen, though it had static on it, with a slight grin. "That doesn't look like Earth," she pointed out.
The Doctor smiled and walked over to the screen. "Hold on, hold on. Let's have a look." Pulling out his sonic screwdriver, he soniced the screen, which made it come back to life. Suddenly, the voice of a pleasant-sounding woman reached them.
"– and the driving should be clear and easy, with fifteen extra lanes open for the New New Jersey expressway." The image on the screen shifted from the woman's face to an unfamiliar landscape of rolling, oddly tinted hills. Behind said hills was a spiraling city that sparkled in the sun and was surrounded by a glistening lake. Sleek vehicles, cars most likely, flew through the air.
"Oh, that's more like it! That's the New we had last time. This must be the lower levels. Down in the base of the tower, some sort of under-city," the Doctor explained with a nudge to Kayla. "Remember that time you weren't feeling well?"
Kayla looked over at the Doctor with an odd expression on her face as she thought, but then her lips made a small 'o' shape as she realized when the Doctor was talking about. "Rose," she said softly.
The Doctor gave a slight nod and held her gaze. 'I want to make better memories here. Memories with you.'
The brunette blushed slightly at that and leaned in closer to the Doctor, which made Martha shuffle awkwardly behind the couple. "So we're in the slums?" She asked in a light voice.
The Doctor jerked slightly. "Much more interesting! It's all cocktails and glitter up there. This is the real city," he explained to her.
Martha rolled her eyes while Kayla just gave the Doctor a smile. "You'd enjoy anything." Martha remarked.
"That's me," the Doctor agreed. Tilting his head up, he grinned as he felt the rain start to slow down. "Oh, the rain's stopping! Better and better!"
The dark skinned girl looked over at Kayla, who gave a shrug. "So…you guys were here before?"
Kayla shook her head. "No, he brought Rose here while I wasn't feeling well."
"Rose?" Martha asked sharply, the clearly female name startling her.
Hearing the name, the Doctor frowned. "She was our last companion."
Martha crossed her arms and frowned. "Last as in no more companions?"
The Doctor nudged Kayla slightly, which made the brunette roll her eyes at his actions. The Time Lady was warming up to Martha and had started to enjoy the idea of her being a full-time companion, but the Doctor
"Last," the Time Lord corrected, "as in the one before."
For a moment, Martha was silent, but then she asked, "You're taking me to the same planets as you took her?"
Kayla shrugged. "I never got to come here," she informed the girl.
The Doctor wrapped his arm around Kayla's waist. "She wasn't feeling well so I brought Rose. Now that Rose is gone, I decided Kayla should see New New-"
Before the Doctor could continue with another 'new,' Kayla kissed him lightly on the lips to stop him. It worked, which made the brunette pull back and smirk at him for a few moments before she then turned to back to Martha, who was grinning but also shifting in an uncomfortable manner.
"Sorry," she apologized, "but otherwise we would be standing here for way to long." She tapped the Doctor's shoulder, which made him look over at her and then grin.
"Come on then," the Doctor said. Taking Kayla's hand he walked with her out of the alleyway, Martha tagging along afterwards with a slight shake of her head.
As they walked out of the alleyway and into a rather run-down circler area, a man in a street vender cart flipped open his cart's door. At the noise, several other carts opened up until all the carts were opened and the venders were yelling out.
"Oh! You should have said. How long you been there? Happy! You want Happy!" the first vender yelled out.
Another vender called out, "Customers! Customers! We've got customers!"
"We're in business! Mother, open up the Mellow, and the Read!" A woman said in a loud and happy voice.
The first man seemed to frown for two seconds before he raised his voice over the girl and started to repeat, "Happy, Happy, lovely happy Happy"
"Anger! Buy some Anger!" the other vender from before offered.
"Get some Mellow, makes you feel all bendy and soft all day long!" The woman continued to cry out.
The first man rolled his eyes. "Younger, them. They'll rip you off. Do you want some happy?" he asked the Doctor directly.
The Doctor frowned and squeezed Kayla's hand as the brunette said in his mind, 'They're selling patches of emotions as if they are drugs.'
"No thanks," the Doctor replied to the vender who had offered him happy.
Martha looked over at the couple, a frown also starting to form on her face as she listened to the people offering the different emotions. "Are they selling drugs?" the black woman asked.
The Doctor shook his head. "I think they're selling moods," he corrected.
Martha shrugged. "Same thing, isn't it?" she countered.
Suddenly, the cries for sales, which has settled down since the Doctor, Martha, and Kayla had started talking to the vender and themselves, started up once more as bedraggled people started to walk into the circle. One pale woman dressed in very dark clothes stood out as she walked with intent towards the carts. The noise of her shoes made Kayla and the Doctor, and then Martha, turned towards her.
"Over here, sweetheart! That's it, come on, I'll get you first!" the woman vender said, her voice dripping with sweetness.
The vender behind the trio of time travelers tried to compete with a, "Oy! Oy, you! Over here! Over here! Buy some Happy!"
The pale woman, however, ignored him and continued to walk towards the female vender. "Come over here, yeah. And what can I get you, my love?" the vender asked in a soft, sweet voice.
"I want to buy Forget," the pale woman said in a soft voice. Her accent had a slight lilt to it, as if English was a second language for her. And, judging by her paler-than-normal skin and red eyes, the woman was not human, which made Kayla point this out to the Doctor. The Time Lord had told her that New New York, and New Earth in general, was not that opened to obvious non-humans.
"I've got Forget, my darling. What strength? How much you want forgetting?"
The woman looked down and paused before swallowing hard. "It's my mother and father. They went on the motorway," she answered.
The vender shook her head sympathetically. "Oh, that's so sweet," she said…and then got down to business. Turning around, she grabbed a small and circular stamp of sorts and placed it on the counter in front of the woman. "Try this. Forget Forty-three. That's twopence."
The Doctor, seeing the pale woman pay to buy something that would make her forget about her parents going on a motorway, grabbed Kayla's hand in a better grip and walked purposefully towards the woman to stop her. Just as she was about to put the stamp onto her neck, the Doctor held his wrist out.
"Sorry, but – hold on a minute. What happened to your parents?" he asked.
The woman looked up at the Doctor and Kayla, her face a mixture of shock and sadness. "They drove off."
Martha, seeing the Doctor and Kayla engaging with the woman, came over to say, "They might drive back."
The pale woman just shook her head. "Everyone goes to the motorway in the end. I've lost them."
"But they can't have gone far. You could find them," the Doctor pressed after giving Martha quick smile.
Looking at them with confusion, the pale woman just sighed and, to their collective horror, stuck the stamp to her neck.
"No, no – no, don't!" the Doctor protested, though he was far too late. By the time he was done speaking, the woman was just staring at him with a blank, serene expression on her face.
"I'm sorry, what were you saying?" the woman asked, sounding blank.
The Doctor exchanged a worried look with Kayla. The brunette was looking very uncomfortable. When he briefly touched into her mind, he saw that it was completely empty. Squeezing her hand, he took a step back with her so that she didn't have to listen to Martha try to convince the girl to remember her.
Eventually, the pale woman walked off, which left the black woman to turn to the Doctor and Kayla with a scornful look on her face. "So that's the human race five billion years in the future. Off their heads on chemicals," she scoffed.
And then, everything went to hell as Kayla felt an arm wrap around her waist. She let out a noise of surprise and started to try and move away, when she heard Martha yell out angrily. Realizing that someone was trying to hurt her, Kayla started to fight against the grip. But as she tried to heave her way out of the person's grasp, she felt one of her hands glide over her stomach, which made Kayla freeze. She had a child, and if she hurt that child by fighting too hard than she would never forgive herself.
So she allowed herself to go limp. She looked up to see the Doctor running to her, his mouth open in horror. Feeling the man press something to her neck and her mind start to go foggy.
'Kayla!' The Doctor cried out into her mind as he felt a similar fogginess and stumbled some. Next to him, Martha grabbed his arm and looked over.
"Bring her back! Bring her back right now!"
"Kayla!"
'Doctor…find me.' And then everything went dark.
The Doctor was on a warpath. He had grabbed Martha by the arm, because the girl was just standing and staring after the car and the two that had grabbed Kayla, and had then dragged the woman until she started to stumble after him.
"Doctor," Martha tried to start, but the Time Lord just ignored her. Instead, he stormed up to one of the carts and banged on the flap until it opened. The male vender from before, the one that had offered him Happy, looked out with a surprised look on his face.
"Do you want some Happy?" He offered, "I think you might need some."
The Doctor nearly growled. "Where did they take her?" he asked in a steely voice.
At the question, the vender blinked and then shifted uncomfortably. "You sure you don't want some Happy?" he tried.
Before the Doctor could do something to force the information out of the vender, the woman vender from earlier poked her head out. "Looked like carjackers to me." She shook her head. "They've taken her to the motorway."
"The motorway?" Martha asked.
The Happy sender sighed and nodded. "The motorway. Used to be thriving in this place. You couldn't move. But they all go to the motorway in the end."
The Doctor rolled his eyes. He was clearly not in the mood of reminiscing about when the drug/emotion trade was a bigger. Making sure he had both sellers in eye sight, he barked at them, "He kept on saying three, we need three. What did he mean, three?"
"It's the car-sharing policy, to save fuel. You get special access if you're carrying three adults," the woman explained.
The Doctor nodded and briefly glanced over at Martha with a clear question in his eyes. In response, she gave a nod in return. "This motorway – how do I get there?" he asked the sellers.
The woman seller sighed as if she had expected this. "Straight down the alley, keep going to the end. You can't miss it," she answered.
Without looking back, the Doctor hurried down the alleyway. Martha started after with a hurried, "Thank you," before she followed the Time Lord to the motorway.
Kayla was no stranger to emotions drugs, like the Sleep that was used on her. The Time Agency had extensive training for any sort of drug their agent could come across. Feeling the throbbing continue, she ripped the drugged stamp off and read the label. 'Sleep 14.'
Reaching up, she rubbed her eyes as she thought through the side effects for the drug. Nothing that she thought of included anything that could harm her child. Still, she briefly ran both her hands over her stomach and left out a breath of relief as it felt the same.
Not sitting up yet, she focused on the voices of her kidnappers. One was clearly male and the other was female. Both sounded pleased. There was a few beeps from the vehicle she was in, because she was sure she was in a vehicle judging by the constant movement, which made her sit up just enough to look around. She was on a small cot of sorts. Cans of what appeared to liquid and pills were stacked nearby.
Sitting up more, she got a look at her kidnappers. The woman was dark-skinned. She had brown hair that was pulled up and rather messy and was wearing a black shirt and pants along with a wool-looking jacket. Next to her was a man with slightly lighter skin but the same dark brown hair and black shirt and pants. These were her two kidnappers.
Eyeing them for a few more moments, she looked around to try and find something to use on one of them to get the other to turn around. Guns were useless, as they hardly every work in this time period. She briefly eyed a small metal object nearby but then sighed as she realized it was just a mirror.
Sitting up fully, she decided the best course of action would be to grab one of the prevision jars as a weapon. As the two kidnappers prattled on about apple grass, Kayla moved silently to the cans. As she reached the group and tried to pick one up, the brunette realized the can was connected to the other ones to keep them from falling. Disconnecting them would take time she didn't have, so she instead settled on moving back to the cot and 'coming to' in a noisy fashion.
At the noise of her groaning, the woman kidnapper swiveled around in her chair. "Good, you're awake." She nudged the man next to her with a small grin, "I told you we didn't give her the wrong dose."
The man didn't really move except for a small smile he sent towards the girl. This made the girl roll her eyes and give Kayla a friendly smile. "What's your name?"
Kayla raised an eyebrow slowly, which made the woman shrug. Seeing that the woman was actually trying to be polite, the brunette replied, "Kayla Hark. Former Time Agent."
Having expected some sort of response from the name of her former job, Kayla was surprised when the woman beamed and asked, "What's a Time Agent?"
Kayla just shook her head. "You really don't want to know," she stressed. Getting up, she moved so that she was closer to the couple. The woman grinned widely at this, probably seeing the movement as a show of trust on Kayla's part.
"Well, I'm Cheen, and this is Milo. And I swear we're sorry. We're really, really sorry. We just needed access to the fast line, but I promise, as soon as we arrive, we'll drop you off and you can go back and find your friend."
Kayla scoffed at this. "Seriously?" She pointed out, and then shook her head. "Like I would believe that."
The woman, Cheen, shook her head. "I swear! Look –" Moving a bit of hair that had fallen and covered the side of her neck, Cheen showed Kayla a small patch with 'Honesty' typed on it. "Honesty patch," she finished unnecessarily.
Kayla rolled her eyes. "You still kidnapped me to get into some sort of 'fast line,'" Shaking her head, the brunette looked out the window in front of her. Outside the vehicle, all she could see was some sort of dirty smoke. "Where are we?" she asked, not recognizing the surrounding.
"We're on the motorway," the man, Milo, answered as he steered the apparent car.
Trying to think of where she might have heard the name and then frowning when it came up blank, Kayla peered outside again. "So is that exhaust?" She asked.
Milo nodded. "We're going out to Brooklyn. Everyone says the air's so much cleaner, and we couldn't stay in Pharmacy Town, 'cause…" pausing, he rubbed Cheen's knee and sent her a loving grin.
"Well, 'cause of me. I'm pregnant. We only discovered it last week. Scan says it's going to be a boy," the woman finished.
Kayla blinked at her and then, almost automatically, one of her hands drifted down to her stomach. "I don't know yet," she said in a softer voice, "My….my Bonded and I want to keep it a surprise."
Cheen nodded and then gave Kayla a huge grin. "We could tell. That's why Milo and I grabbed you. We were going to grab the other girl with you but then we realized our kids could grow up together."
By the end of Cheen's sentence, Kayla was completely frozen. "Are you…are you insane?" She almost hissed. "You kidnapped me. I'm not going to let our kids be close. Besides, I am not giving birth for a long time. What makes you think I'll stick around? The Doctor will find me, like he always does."
Once Kayla was done talking, Cheen looked very hurt while Milo shifted uncomfortably.
"Fine, if you want to be like that. But we're going to be in the same car for six years-"
"Hang on," Kayla cut in, interrupting Cheen, "six years?"
Milo nodded. "We'll take the motorway to the Brooklyn flyover, and then after that it's gonna take awhile, 'cause then there's no fast lane, just ordinary roads, but at least it's direct," Milo explained.
"It's only ten miles," Cheen put in, "so six years." The brunette stared at Cheen in horror as the woman giggled and rubbed her stomach. "Be just in time for him to start school."
"Why is it going to take six years to go ten miles?" Kayla hissed.
Having been picked up by an older cat-man named Brannigan, his human wife named Valerie, and their tiny kitten children, the Doctor and Martha stood in the moving car as Brannigan explained that they had been driving, on the motorway, for twelve years.
"Started out as newlyweds! Feels like yesterday." Brannigan said with a fond smile to his wife.
His wife gave him a slightly less fond smile. "Feels like twelve years to me," she replied with a shake of her head.
Having probably heard her irritations about how long the driving was taking before, Brannigan started to tickle Valerie's side. "Ahh, sweetheart, but you're still lovely," he promised.
Next to the Doctor, Martha shifted uncomfortably and the Time Lord scratched the back of his neck before interrupting, "Twelve years?! How far did you come? Where did you start?"
"Battery Park. It's five miles back," Brannigan answered with a seemingly pleased expression on his face. Though how driving five miles in twelve years was a good thing to him made no sense to the Doctor and Martha, and any idea the Time Lord could come up with made the man very, very worried about the fate of his Bonded.
"You travelled five miles in twelve years?" Martha asked sharply.
"I think you two are a bit slow," Brannigan stated with a teasing look.
Giving her husband a small smile, Valerie looked up at the two time travelers. "Where are you from?" she asked.
The Doctor just waved his hand, knowing that the true explanation of 'I'm an ancient alien race from a planet that doesn't exist because I blew it up' might worry the woman, especially because of her children.
"Never mind that, I've got to get out. My wife is in one of these cars. She was taken hostage. I should get back to the TARDIS." Nodding to Martha, who gave a shrug, the Doctor slid opened the door Brannigan had pulled them through only to be welcomed with a cloud of smoke that prompted a coughing fit.
Seeing that he was too busy coughing, Martha quickly shut the door. Putting an arm around the Doctor to help him turn around, Martha started to pat him forcibly on the back to help him cough as she gave Brannigan a pointed questioning look.
"You're too late for that. We've passed the lay-by," the cat-man explained. "You're a passenger now!"
Martha shook her head and looked over at the Doctor, who looked horrified at this information. "When's the next lay-by?"
Brannigan paused and seemed to have to think on the information, something that made the two time travelers exchange stricken and worried looks.
"Oh…six months?" Brannigan guessed with a shrug.
In Kayla's vehicle, Kayla peered through at the fog in front of the car. After she had gotten over her shock of how long six miles would take, she grilled the couple so that she could find out that the reason why it would take twelve years. The reason was not good. It was because the entire motorway was just a giant traffic jam. That was why no one reportedly came back from the motorway, if they somehow reached their destination, something that Kayla was starting to doubt, then who would get back on the motorway?
Shaking her head, Kayla tried to see another car outside the vehicle, but couldn't see any. "How many cars are out there?" she finally asked Cheen. Despite how much she did not want to talk to the couple, they had kidnaped her after all, the brunette had decided that she could at least get information from them. It would be a way to bide her time until she could contact the Doctor, because to stop himself from passing out, he had blocked off his mind. Until he opened it back up, Kayla couldn't contact the Time Lord and tell him where she was.
Cheen looked over at the brunette, a slight expression of hope on her face. "I don't think anyone knows," she answered with a shrug.
Kayla sighed and crossed her arms. "How far are we from the bottom? From the fast lane?"
"Oh, it's right at the bottom, underneath the traffic jam. But not many people can afford three passengers, so it's empty down there. Rumor has it you can reach up to thirty miles per hour," Milo explained.
Kayla rolled her eyes. She wasn't much of a driver, but even she knew that driving thirty miles per hour was nothing. "Wow," she mustered up sarcastically.
Cheen and Milo laughed and then a silence settled in the car as Cheen munched on a recycled waste product wafer.
"Oh, another gap, this is brilliant!" Milo cheered as he drove forwards.
"Car sign in," a female automated voice requested.
Milo nudged a very excited Cheen before he spoke into the transmitter, "Car Four Six Five Diamond Six, on descent to fast lane, thank you very much."
There was a pause, and then, "Please drive safely."
Milo grinned widely as he drove the car to a descent. For better or for worse, Kayla was headed to the fast lane.
Having blocked up the link to Kayla so that he didn't end up passing out, the Doctor stood in the moving car with a vocal transmitter in hand as he tried to contact New New York's police. Behind him, Martha was peering at the screen that had a rotating New New York Police Department insignia.
However, what was very troubling about the New New York Police Department was that when the Doctor had barked his urgent method that he needed to talk to the police, an automated voice replied with, "Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold."
Martha blinked at the words that also appeared on the screen, and then looked at the Doctor. The Time Lord looked just as flabbergasted as the black woman felt.
"But you're the police!" the Doctor protested with a shake of his head.
"Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold," the voice merely repeated.
Seeing that they were not going to get anywhere else with the police department, the Doctor scrambled to the front of the car to talk to the couple. "Is there anyone else? I once met the Duke of Manhattan; is there any way of getting through to him?" he asked the sitting two urgently.
Martha stared at him and made a noise that was a clear, 'really?' In response, the Doctor just waved his hand at her, not in the position to respond.
Seeming to agree with her response, Brannigan gave the Doctor an odd look as he tried to imagine him meeting with the Duke of Manhattan. Since he couldn't he decided to ask say, "Oh, now, ain't you lordly?"
The Doctor just shook his head. "I got to find my wife."
"You can't make outside calls. The motorway's completely enclosed," Valerie explained with a shake of her head.
The Doctor frowned and looked over to Martha. "What about the other cars?" she asked the couple.
Brannigan grinned at that. "Oh, we've got contact with them, yeah. Well, some of them, anyway. They've got to be on your friends list. Now, let's see – who's nearby? Ahh! The Cassini sisters!" Grabbing the transmitter, he held it up to speak into it. "Still your hearts, my handsome girls. It's Brannigan here."
After a crackling pause, an older woman who was clearly smiling replied, "Get off the line, Brannigan. You're a pest and a menace."
Brannigan grinned and nudged Valerie, who rolled her eyes and gave the Doctor and Martha a simple shrug. "Oh, come on, now, sisters. Is that any way to talk to an old friend?" The cat-man protested jokingly.
"You know full well we're not sisters. We're married," the same woman informed him.
"Oooh, stop that modern talk! I'm an old-fashioned cat. Now, I've got two hitchhikers here, one calls himself the Doctor and the other one is…" pausing, he looked over at Martha.
"Martha," the black woman introduced.
Brannigan nodded and relayed the name into the transmitter before handing it to the Doctor.
"Hello. Sorry. I'm looking for someone called Kayla Hark, though she could be going by Kayla Smith or Kayla Harkness. She's been carjacked. She's inside one of these vehicles, but I don't know which one," the Doctor explained urgently.
"Wait a minute," another older woman's voice came over. After a slight pause as she opened something with pages in it, the woman asked, "Could I ask, what entrance did they use?"
Martha looked over at Brannigan and asked, "Where did you pick us up?"
"Pharmacy Town," the cat-man answered.
Hearing the answer, the Doctor relayed the entrance name as well as the time of about twenty minutes ago. Seeming pleased with the information, the second older woman said, "Let's have a look."
The other older woman sighed and then grumbled, "Just my luck, to marry a car-spotter."
Ignoring this, the second old woman said, "In the last half hour, fifty-three new cars joined from the Pharmacy Town junction."
Frustrated, the Doctor ran his hand through his hair. "Anything more specific?" he urged.
"All in good time. Was she car-jacked by two people?" the second woman asked.
The Doctor nodded. "Yes, she was, yeah," he sighed. Hearing the defeat, the utter sadness in his voice, Martha gave him a small squeeze on the Time Lord's arm as they waited for the woman to reply.
Finally, she said, "There we are. Just one of those cars was destined for the fast lane. That means they had three on board. And car number is four six five diamond six."
"That's it! So how do we find them?" the Doctor asked, a wide smile on his face. They were finally, finally getting somewhere.
"Ah. Now, there I'm afraid I can't help," the woman said with a sigh.
Martha turned to Brannigan. "Can you call them on this…thing?" she requested with a wave to the transmitter.
Brannigan shook his head. "Not if they're designated fast lane. It's a different class," he explained
"You could try the police," the second woman tried.
The Doctor shook his head. "They put me on hold," he informed her.
"You'll have to keep trying. There's no one else," the first woman informed him.
Sighing and running his hand through his hair, the Doctor said, "Thank you," and handed Brannigan the transmitter.
Once again, the Doctor felt completely and utterly stuck. His Bonded had been kidnapped and he and Martha were stuck in a car for six months. Closing his eyes, the Doctor decided to risk passing out and opened up his mental link to Kayla.
'Kayla, are you alright?'
Instantly, the brunette replied, 'Doctor! Doctor I'm in a car headed down to the fast lane.'
'I know Kayla. Martha and I are going to find you. I promise.'
'I know you will, Doctor. I love you.'
'I love you to.'
Opening his eyes, the Doctor grinned at Martha. "She's okay," he told the black woman.
Martha blinked at him and then, picking up on who he was talking about, the woman smiled widely. "That's great!"
The Doctor nodded. "And we're going to get her and then get back to the TARDIS."