Summary: Hey I'm back. I know you missed me. Why, because I so was supposed to update this weekend and totally didn't. Sorry, time just got away from me and before I knew it the week had started again. Plus I was waiting to get this chapter and few others back from my betas. Yes, beta's as in two. Why because either I'm so great I require two people to beta for me or I'm that bad I need two people to beta for me. Because I'm somewhat conceited with an enormous ego I'm going with the first one. Still, I'm very sorry about being late and I will try not to let that happen again. Now enough with the pity party go ahead and read the next chapter. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own this show because if I did Torchwood would have never killed off Ianto or come to America. Just saying.

Author's Note: I am pleased to announce that this fic from here on out will be beta'd by the lovely jerseybelle and Marley who have agreed to take time out of their busy schedule to fix all my mistakes. You guys are totally awesome and I am so glad for the help.

Running From The Past To Embrace The Future

Chapter Ten

The next month brought even more cases of rift incidents, sending the team into overdrive. While his team-mates were busy keeping the world safe from dangerous aliens, Ianto was putting the final touches on his archives. After months of hard work he finally had everything labelled, tagged, and stored away properly. No one could believe that he had been able to finish as quickly as he had, giving Ianto a new sense of pride.

He had just finished putting the last of the artifacts away when he heard a beep in his ear.

"We have a body."

Also over the last month Ianto had not only become the team's driver, getting them everywhere they needed to be, but was in charge of creating cover stories for the police and reporters. He didn't mind. It got him out of the Hub and made him feel closer to the team. It also gave him a chance to keep an eye on the car and make sure it got back in one piece. The only downside to the new job title was the rare instances he had to create cover-stories for a victim's family. It was heartbreaking to look into the eyes of a victim's loved ones and lie to them about the death. A necessity, but still heartbreaking.

"I'm on my way."

The drive to the crime scene was a short one. The victim, a forty-nine year old Caucasian female, was found in an alley with one stab wound in the chest. From what Owen had been told by the coroner, the woman was stabbed once before being dragged into the abandoned alley.

"She probably didn't even see it coming," sighed Owen as he pointed at the trail of blood leading from the sidewalk to the alley.

"And it's just like before?" asked Jack. He was referring to two weeks before when a seventy-two year old woman was found dead inside her own home, a single stab wound to the chest. The team wouldn't have been notified about the second body if the medical examiner hadn't found traces of an unidentified metal in the wound. Or if the weapon used in the murder wasn't in any of the registries. Also, it didn't help that the body gave off slight traces of radioactivity. The murder had the police stumped and they had no choice but to involve the Torchwood team.

Ianto watched from a distance as Owen examined the body, Tosh at his side, while Jack interviewed the man who found the body as well as the officers on the scene. Suzie stood back, an anxious look in her eyes and Ianto instantly knew why. She wanted to use the glove again. Ianto shuddered at the memory of the last victim she used the glove on.

It was a week ago when a Vandicore, a vicious alien, came through the rift and sliced a man's throat before ripping his heart out. Before the team knew that, the man had been awakened with a jolt, eyes wide with fear as he glanced at the people standing over him. Words tumbled out of his mouth, weeping and chattering about the darkness that was coming for him. Suzie tried to ask him about his death but the man was too confused to answer. Finally, close to the two minute mark, he let out a loud gasp before his eyes closed once more.

Everyone looked at Jack with sympathetic glances, upset that they couldn't do more for the victim, but not Suzie. To Ianto, Suzie seemed calm...too calm to have been witness to as many brutal deaths as they've had in the past few weeks. Not to mention the gleam of excitement she got in her eyes every time she slipped the glove on her hand. It was as if something inside of her was sparked whenever she used the glove and her obsession grew even more. That's what scared Ianto the most. He personally knew what happened when one became obsessed with alien technology. It often led to a very dark and dangerous road.

"No, this is Suzie I'm talking about," he whispered to himself as he watched Suzie from a distance as she worked. "She would never do anything to harm another living soul." He hoped that if he repeated the mantra over and over again his mind would start believing it. His gut on the other hand-

"Ianto, are you alright?"

He looked to find Tosh standing in front of him, worry in her eyes as she stared at him silently. Ianto realized that he was so caught up in his thoughts about Suzie that he hadn't noticed they were finished with the crime-scene. The body was now covered and Owen was working on taking it back to the SUV with Jack's help. As usual Suzie was nowhere to be found.

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" she asked, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Because for a moment you seemed-"

"Honestly, I'm fine," he repeated. "It's just...she was so young," he lied, giving her a reassuring smile.

Tosh smiled sadly. "Yeah. These cases are the ones that really get to you, you know."

Ianto gave Tosh a nod. "Shall we get going?"

She gave him a nod in return and the two of them walked back to the SUV, Ianto sliding into the driver's seat while the rest of the team followed.

The thoughts of the evening kept him awake and Ianto found himself unable to sleep. After lying next to Jack, who was sound asleep, for what felt like eternity, Ianto slipped out of bed and padded barefoot to the kitchen. Sitting in the kitchen drinking hot chocolate would be better than lying in the bed, restless.

Jack didn't have to open his eyes to know he was alone in the bed. He opened them anyway to glance at the clock for the time. It was a little after two in the morning and his lover was nowhere in the room. Getting out of bed, he instantly noticed the kitchen light on and Ianto sitting at the table with his head down and a mug in his hands.

"Ianto," Jack whispered as he walked over to the table and placed a soft kiss on Ianto's forehead. "What are you still doing up?"

He shrugged. "Can't sleep," he sighed sadly.

"Well maybe there's something I could do to help you with that."

"Jack, it's been a long day and you're tired. Go back to bed."

"I wish I could but seeing as how I'm your boyfriend, I'm inclined to ask about your well-being every once in a while," joked Jack, but he didn't receive the hoped for smile for his efforts. "Seriously, tell me what's bothering you."

"It's nothing."

"It's something if you can't sleep."

"Sometimes when I have too much on my mind I suffer from insomnia," replied Ianto with another shrug.

Jack wasn't backing down. "What's on your mind?"

"Jack-"

"Ianto," Jack replied in the same stern tone.

Seeing that Jack wasn't going to let the subject go, Ianto finally conceded as he let out a sigh. "When I worked at Torchwood One I was a nobody," he began.

"I sure that's not true."

"No, it's the truth. Sure I had a few friends that I would get together with after work but I mostly stayed to myself down in the archives with the other staffers. I never had to deal with what came through or much less care about it. I was just an archivist. But here-" Ianto paused for a moment, taking another deep breath and releasing a painful sigh. "Everything is so up close and personal. I'm not just seeing objects and items from other planets and filing what they are, I'm seeing what they bring. I see them bring pain and destruction and sometimes death. So much death and...I can't help but wonder if what I do really makes a difference. If we're really making a difference."

Jack back and listened carefully to what Ianto was saying, absorbing it in like a sponge before reaching out and grabbing Ianto's hand. "I like to think we are," he replied softly.

"Jack-"

"No, listen," began Jack. "I know working for Torchwood can sometimes be...draining and it often leads us to wonder if the fight is even worth it. But it is." He paused momentarily, squeezing Ianto's hand tightly. "With every attack we prevent and every life we save it gives me hope that what we do is more important than we could possibly imagine."

"So you're saying that we are the unsung heroes of the Earth."

"That's exactly what I'm saying."

Ianto didn't reply as a soft smile spread across his face. "Thank you, Jack," he whispered finally. "I really needed to hear that."

"Anytime." Jack smiled back as he stood up and held out his hand for Ianto to grab. Once he had it he began leading Ianto back to his room. "Now let's get you back to bed. Think you can sleep now?"

"Yes, I think I so," Ianto answered honestly, lying down in the bed and pulling the sheets over both him and Jack. "Especially if you're here beside me."

"That's very good to know."

A little fluff, a little angst, and more suspicion of Suzie. Now that my readers is a good combination. Hope you liked the chapter and I hope you review. I so love it when you do. Until next time,

Life is what you make it so make it worth while,

LadyCizzle