Author's Notes: I did say that this was the chapter where things started to get real. That was never in question. The only thing that I had to work out was how … how things started falling into place (or how things went to hell, depending on your perspective). As I lay in bed this morning (Saturday), not really thinking about anything in particular, Rhys pushed himself to the forefront of my mind … and that's when it hit me. Gwen is, for lack of a better phrase, an adrenaline junkie. She craves the excitement, she admitted as much when she kidnapped Jack … she loved the chaos and the destruction. Things followed from there, and I finally had the piece I needed … how the Families got their grimy hands on Rhys and Anwen. So. In this chapter, Rhys relives how he came to be a prisoner; Alice learns about the outlines of Jilly's plan; while Lucas begins his journey back to Bulwark.
Responses:
Sandysan2013: It is very hard for them … they know something is wrong. They aren't sure what it is, but something is very, painfully wrong. However, the risks of going forward pale next to the consequences of not going ahead with the operation. I don't think she wants to ask for help, honestly. I don't think it's her panicking and not seeing how to ask for help, I think she doesn't want to ask for it. And funny that you mention Rhys … he makes his first actual appearance in this chapter. You're right … it isn't going to be pretty, at all. It's going to be ugly, but that may be the only way she learns (and I wouldn't put money on that possibility. One truth from the series … Gwen Cooper never learns from her mistakes). At times, I do feel sorry for her … and then she pulls a stunt so stupid and so selfish and so mind-bogglingly ugly that I'm staring in shock which quickly turns to fury that I'm supposed to relate to this woman.
Chapter Ten
The End of the Beginning
Shrewsbury, West Midlands, England
Two Days Later
How in the hell had his life turned into this? Rhys Williams allowed his head to drop back against the wall of his prison, his body aching all over from the beating he'd taken when those thugs took his baby girl out of his arms and out of their cell. When Miracle Day ended and Jack Harkness left their lives, Rhys thought that Torchwood would go with him. Torchwood may have gone, but trouble stayed. It began with Gwen zoning out during conversations. She'd seemed happy, but … distant. Rhys put it down to her missing her 'best friend,' and did his best to take care of her and Anwen.
Distance turned into forgetting things. It was little things in the beginning, things he hadn't noticed or cared about. She'd forget to pick up bread while at the grocery store. He forgot things all the time … it wasn't a big deal. However, it became a big deal when she forgot things and then lied about it. She would tell him that she was going to the store to get something, and when she came home, she wouldn't have the item and tell him that she ran into a former schoolmate or a friend from when she was on the constabulary or someone else. Rhys had to wonder how many times she used that lie before he caught her out by encountering the person she said she ran into.
At first, he thought she might be having an affair. It hurt him deeply, but he still loved her. And she had chosen him and Anwen over Torchwood, over Jack Harkness. Besides, to date, none of her lies hurt anyone but him. But with each lie, the hairline fractures between the couple were growing into a chasm. Rhys began to accept that he might need to take action, especially after Gwen began 'forgetting' things for Anwen. It was one thing for her lies and her 'forgetting' to impact him. It was quite another for those actions to impact their daughter.
And Anwen … oh, she was growing like a weed! She was his precious girl, and he would protect her against the very hounds of hell if need be. And then came the day, nearly two weeks earlier, when everything came to a head. Gwen told him that she knew things were bad between them, and it was long past time for her to explain why. She'd asked him to take her and Anwen for a drive. Her eyes were shining, and she looked so happy. Rhys agreed, and they'd driven to the Midlands in England. She all but gushed over what she'd been helping to build.
He'd been cautious, listening to what she had to say … and that was when all hell broke loose. Rhys closed his eyes, remembering the feel of Anwen in his arms as Gwen introduced him to a man she called Darius. Rhys hadn't liked him. His mouth smiled, but his eyes were cold, and Rhys wondered how it was that his wife hadn't noticed it. It seemed that his wife hadn't noticed a lot, because she looked genuinely shocked and horrified when Darius produced a gun and pointed it at Rhys and Anwen. She'd gone white when they were surrounded with men holding guns. And she looked downright ill when Darius revealed that in her quest for excitement, for a little more spice in her life, she joined forces with the Families.
Her quest for excitement … she wanted to add 'spice' to her life. So, he and Anwen hadn't been enough for her after all. Rhys wanted so many things in that moment. He wanted to be back in his home, watching Anwen play. He wanted to scream obscenities at the woman who had deceived him, again. He had wanted to lunge for the man even now smirking at him, but in the end, he reminded himself that he had his daughter in his arms and her safety had to come first. Someone had to put her first, as her mother clearly hadn't been.
Gwen, of course, tried to apologize, telling him that she hadn't known that she was working for the Families. She thought she was working with people trying to make the world a better place. Darius immediately protested, reminding her that she was trying to make the world a better place, because the world would be better off with the Families in charge. Rhys idly wondered how it was possible for someone to be that pale and still on their feet. However, he ignored her, because Anwen was beginning to fuss and he wouldn't put it past these bastards to kill his little girl because she was crying.
He truly didn't think things could get worse, until Anwen was taken from him a few days earlier by that red-haired bitch. Since then, he'd been here, alone, with only his thoughts for company. That and a parting shot from the woman before she'd signaled the guards to come and take Anwen from him, 'do you really think this is the first time your wife has lied to you, has betrayed you? Do you really think it started with Jack Harkness and Torchwood?' The worst part of it was, she wasn't saying anything that Rhys hadn't thought before. When he was truly honest with himself, he knew that it hadn't started when she met the brash, handsome man with the American accent (what? Rhys was one hundred percent heterosexual, but of course he noticed how handsome Jack Harkness was. Would he have been so bloody jealous of an ugly man, or even an average-looking man?).
He'd thought about nothing else since then. And worse, when he was sleeping, he'd begun having nightmares of a conversation with Gwen in which she admitted to having an affair. But he was starting to think that those nightmares, those dreams, were in fact memories. Too, he remembered Jack offering at the wedding reception something that would remove the memories of the bad parts of the day. And he wondered … did he take this 'Retcon' in the past? Something about that resonated with him, but he'd put it out of his mind at the time. He and Gwen were married, and that was all that counted. Or so he told himself.
And so, here he waited. He wasn't entirely sure what he was waiting for … a chance to escape, to confront Gwen, to get his daughter back? Rhys wasn't sure. The door opened, admitting the ginger who took his daughter from him. She was alone this time, which surprised him. She closed the door behind her, folded her arms over her chest, and said quietly, "Before anything else is said, I know that you need to know that your daughter is safe. She is. The Families instructed me to take her away from you to make you more malleable, but it's probably had the opposite effect. That's why I followed their directions." Rhys blinked. What the hell? Was she saying she was a double agent? The woman continued, "I suspect you've been thinking a lot about what I told you at our last meeting. I don't have any of the answers you want. You'll have to get those from your wife, assuming either of you are alive at the end of this. My bosses intend to kill you and the baby as soon as the trap closes."
Rhys closed his eyes. He wasn't really surprised. However, he was surprised by the woman's next words as she went on, "I won't let them hurt the baby. The woman who is caring for her now … she's dying now, but she's sworn to get Anwen to safety. I … I can try to save you, but you'll have to do something very stupid for it to even have a chance of working. My bosses … they are incredibly arrogant. They hid in plain sight for more than eighty years, deceiving everyone. You would think that they would understand that they in turn can be deceived, especially after Soldier-boy ended the Miracle, but they think they are all-knowing."
The Welshman nodded slowly, seeing her point, and the woman went on, "I need you to trust me. And I know, I know what I'm asking. I chose to serve monsters, not because my hand was forced, but because I wanted power. I … I wanted to be someone, wanted to be special. Even after I saw them shoot someone in the head, even after everything, I still served them. You know, I don't even like children … but I knew I couldn't let them hurt your daughter. You have been lied to and betrayed so many times, Rhys Williams. I swear to you now, no matter how you answer me, I will die before I allow Anwen to be hurt. I'm working on a way to get her out, and I think I can dovetail it with my ideas on saving you. Are you willing to try?"
She'd said the magic words. Rhys wanted to live. But more than that, he wanted his daughter to be safe. He had no idea what would happen to her once she left these walls, but as long as she was safe and grew up into a good woman, that was all that mattered. And the woman was right. It was an incredibly stupid thing to do, trusting her … but if it was his best chance to protect his daughter, Rhys would take it. He nodded slowly, never losing eye contact with her, and asked, "What do you need me to do?" She smiled … not a smile of triumph, but a smile of relief. And that, more than anything, convinced him that he was doing the right thing.
"Right now? Nothing. Continue to do what you've been doing, so you don't incur their curiosity. That'll spell disaster for us all, including Anwen," she answered and Rhys nodded. He could do that. Had a lot of pent-up fury that he could unleash against these bastards. The woman added, "Just be ready to move when I say so, and … and, my name is Jilly." Rhys blinked, not entirely sure why she was telling him this, and she shrugged, adding, "Just thought it was something you should know. Names have power." Rhys inhaled, and then nodded. She was giving him leverage of her own. She smiled slightly, and then left the room, leaving Rhys to ponder the visit … and what came next.
TWTWTWTWTWTWTW
Same building
Thirty minutes later
Alice had just gotten Angel to sleep when Jilly entered their room. She smiled a bit, seeing the sleeping child, and murmured, "I have the beginnings of a plan in place. One thing about my bosses, they carry out the biggest con known to mankind, and they don't think they can be conned as well. Your father gave me the inspiration … he was a con artist himself for a time, and he conned the Families. I conned people into trusting someone who raped and murdered a twelve year old girl. I didn't lie when I told Soldier-boy that Oswald Danes was the biggest bastard in the world, but that didn't stop me from promoting that monster as some kind of savior. You know what the secret is to conning?" Alice shook her head, and Jilly told her, "You give them what they want. You say what they want to hear, and that's as true of the Families as anyone else. You play on their desires, and sometimes even their guilt."
That … made a terrifying amount of sense. Jilly went on, "Some information went down the memory hole, but I found out that your father and some other people rescued a member of his Miracle Day team. The Families were holding her … they tricked everyone into believing that she was dead, with the idea that they would use her against your father at a later date, maybe even programming her to turn against him." Alice shuddered, and Jilly added softly, "It gets worse, though, Alice … she's the woman who took care of him after he was shot and almost died. I don't know if he's in love with her or if she's in love with him, and I don't think it matters … not sure if love is real, not any more … but one thing I learned from my research, they care for each other a great deal."
"So what are you thinking?" Alice asked softly. She knew that Jilly was increasingly being shut out of what the Families were doing, as they were suspicious of her. That right there limited Jilly's options. However, Jilly did surprise her when she smiled smugly. Alice whispered, "You're going to use their distrust of you against them, aren't you?" Jilly nodded, explaining that a test of loyalty was coming up soon, as the trap closed. She intended to use that as a diversion while Alice and Anwen escaped. It was good thinking, and Alice said so, adding, "So, while you're carrying out this test of loyalty, how am I going to make my escape with the baby?"
"Still working on that part. I'm thinking that you might pass for a drudge, if I can find the right clothes for you. You keep your head down and get to my car, and I'll join you if I'm able. The plan is for me to slip away in the confusion. If I can't … would you be able to drive?" Jilly asked quietly. Alice wasn't sure about that, and admitted as much. Jilly nodded her understanding and told her, "Don't worry about that. I'm working out some contingency plans. If you can, wonderful, if not … I'll work something else out. You just concentrate on taking care of yourself and the baby."
"So far, so good. Jilly … they're setting an indirect trap for my father, aren't they?" Alice asked, and Jilly nodded. The daughter of Captain Jack Harkness observed after musing over that for a few minutes, "Maybe we can use that to our advantage as well." Jilly started to shake her head, and then tilted her head to one side thoughtfully. Alice had no idea what she was thinking, but then, Jilly started to smile. Which meant that she had the beginnings of an idea. This would prove to be entertaining, at the very least. Over the last few days, Jilly's ideas had gone from the outlandish to somewhat-crazy-but-workable. Some of her more outlandish ideas made Alice laugh. It hurt at times, but it felt good, too.
"I think I might be able to. Remember when I told you about a satellite of the Families trying abduct the granddaughter of one of his friends?" Jilly asked. Alice nodded … yes, she remembered that very well. Jilly explained, "When he responded, he sent a computer virus in the video. I may be able to use that somehow. One thing about being a PR and communications guru … I can use sound bites, the written word, and videos to say whatever I need them to say." That sounded a bit terrifying to Alice, but she didn't say anything. As long as Jilly was plotting against her employers, Alice would keep her mouth shut.
Instead, she turned her thoughts to her father. She wondered how he reacted when he realized that these monsters had tried to use a little girl to trap him. She wondered how he felt, if he'd thought about Steven dying as he had. After a moment, though, Alice shook her head. She'd seen his expression after she left her son. She knew that he'd been thinking about Steven, and about her. No, she hadn't completely forgiven him, and she knew it would be a long time before she did, but he wasn't the threat. He wasn't the monster. He'd made a choice that no one should ever have to make. No, it didn't make it hurt any less, but if her father had made any other choice, the outcome would have still been the same.
She'd promised herself that she'd stop reacting. It was time for that to start. With that in mind, Alice asked the fateful question, "Where do we start?" Jilly nearly sagged from relief, and began to outline what she was thinking would work in their favor.
TWTWTWTWTWTWTW
Torchwood Manor, Scotland
The Same Day
"We'll miss you."
Lucas North turned away from the packing of his car and smiled at the slim, blonde woman standing behind the boot of his car. Esther Drummond smiled back, adding, "Jack is conferring about something with my grandfather, the sisters had a huge argument … or row, as you say on this side of the Atlantic, and Archie is trying not to tear his hair out. I thought I'd leave while I had some semblance of sanity, and say good-bye to you." Lucas' lips quirked at the last sentence, and Esther added with a small shrug, "Okay, maybe it's too late to retain my sanity, but I still want to say good-bye to you."
"I appreciate that, Esther … along with your desire to get away from those two. I'm surprised Archie hasn't put them in time-out," Lucas answered, stepping closer to the American. She smiled, shaking her head. This marked the third argument the sisters had since arriving in Scotland. Most of the time, they argued in Italian … rapid Italian, at that. Lucas asked, "I don't have any siblings, so I really don't know … is that normal?"
"Sort of. I think in their case, it's just because they're both very strong-willed women. My arguments with my sister always centered on …" Esther began, and then she flinched. Lucas didn't touch her, letting her work through whatever memory of her late sister Sarah. By now, he knew about Esther's rather unorthodox families. There were the Tregarths, her birth family, and the Drummonds, who raised her. Robert Drummond stole her from her birth mother after his own daughter died. She made sure to stress that she was never formally adopted … apparently her aunt (the one currently in England with Bulwark) adopted a little girl after the death of the child's birth mother died, and was accused of stealing the child from her family. Lucas thought that was the most despicable things he'd ever heard. After a moment, Esther continued in a somewhat steadier voice, "My arguments with Sarah tended to center around the way she took care of Alys and Melanie."
Lucas let it go, saying instead, "Well, I was an only child, so I really wasn't sure if that was normal." Esther made a gesture that could be roughly interpreted as 'sort of' or 'somewhat,' and the former spook went on, "So. You came out here to say good-bye." That isn't all, I would wager." He nodded to the bag she held in her arms, and Esther blushed a bit. He wondered briefly what Ros would have made of Esther, and then shook his head. Ros was gone. She didn't know about Esther or Jack or anyone else … or about his betrayal. It was … he was glad that she didn't know about any of that.
"Well, you have a bit of a trip ahead of you, and I wanted you to have necessary supplies. And, I was being selfish," Esther admitted as she passed the bag to him. He peeked inside, smiling as he saw the 'supplies' in question. Bottles of water and reading material filled the bag, with his favorite chocolate doughnuts on top. She really did think of everything. However, he had to raise his brows at the 'selfish' part, forcing her to explain, "I wanted to ask you to look after my cousins and my aunt when you get to Bulwark. I know you would anyhow, but …"
"But they're your family … you're here, and they're there, and you can't watch over them yourself. This is the best you can do, and you'll take it. I understand," Lucas told her. Her shoulders slumped a little as she nodded. Lucas took a few steps back, putting the groceries into the front passenger seat, and then returned to the young woman. He put his finger under her chin, forcing her to look at him, and said, "You're right, Esther. I would watch over your cousins and aunt, even if you hadn't asked. And I can't promise that I won't let anything happen to them. But what I can promise is to protect them to the best of my ability … and ensure that the people who hurt them won't hurt anyone else." It wasn't a matter of vengeance for the former spook … or not simply a matter of vengeance. But in his experience, people like these Families would continue to hurt people they regarded as less than themselves. He was a sheepdog, and these were predators.
"I know you will. And I know they won't go down easy, any of them. But my aunt … she's only nine years older than me, and she's also my best friend. She … she infiltrated the Families compound where I was being held, and she helped me remember that I was Esther, not whoever the Families wanted me to be. And when Jack and the others, including my cousins, birth mother, and other aunt, when they rescued me … God, I'm not making any sense here, am I? I'm sorry. I can't be there to help take care of them. My place is here, with Jack, and I know that. I accept that. Bad things happen when I let the sister and the aunt and the niece and the cousin overwhelm the professional that I'm supposed to be. You're the only person I know who will be there, aside from Mickey and Martha, but they're … they're not in front of me right now. You are," Esther explained. Lucas nodded.
He knew better than to regard this particular operation as routine. The routine could quickly become lethal, even when you took all precautions possible. Sometimes, things went sideways, there was just no way around it. It would be easy to dismiss Esther's concerns due to her inexperience, but Lucas was entirely too experienced to do this. Regardless of the situation, she had every right to worry, because this involved people she loved. But she was doing that most difficult task of all … still worrying, but trusting in the people she loved to remember their train and survive. It was a hard thing to do.
"I know. Your aunt and cousins rescued you when they didn't even know that you were part of their family. I swear I won't do any less for them," he promised. Esther exhaled slowly, offering a tiny smile, and Lucas asked, wanting to make that smile widen, "Now … since that's settled, how about an until-later hug? Because once my training is complete, I'll be the liaison between Torchwood and MI5. I've already been informed that since the most active Torchwood branch is yours, I'll be stationed in Oklahoma." Esther laughed aloud and threw her arms around his waist in a fierce embrace. Lucas wrapped his own arms around her, holding her tightly and resting his cheek against her hair.
Odd … as beautiful as she was, Lucas wasn't attracted to her. It wasn't just because she was with Jack (although that didn't help). He had to wonder if, when the Master unscrambled his brain, he did something to the centers of Lucas' mind that controlled his libido. Esther was a beautiful, bright, loyal, kind woman … and he wasn't even remotely attracted to her. He regarded her more as a younger sister, but that was it. He felt nothing stirring as he held her, and that worried him just a bit. Since the revelation regarding his memories and what the Master had done to them, Lucas had a hard time trusting his own instincts as well as his memories.
In truth, that was part of what he was doing here in Scotland, as well as being cross-trained. He was learning to trust his instincts again … and he was making progress. In terms of being in the field, he could trust his instincts … now it was his emotions that he didn't trust. Well, at least that was some kind of progress, because after what happened with Sarah, he wasn't sure if he should trust his emotions. Then again, was that emotion or libido? It was hard to tell sometimes. Maybe he should call Malcolm once he got back to Bulwark, depending on what he walked into once he returned. His last phone call to Alicia had him a bit worried.
"Oh, I find you in another man's arms, and you didn't ask me along? Esther, for shame," Jack Harkness scolded lightly and Lucas felt the tremors of Esther's laughter. She didn't let go … neither did he. Rather, he smiled brightly over Esther's head, and was rewarded with a grin from Jack. The immortal observed, "Well, I have things sorted out with Carlyon … it was a bit of a misunderstanding, but I think we're on the same page now. Once your training is complete, and you join us in Oklahoma, there's a house on the property that you can use. I didn't even know that it was the property … then again, there's a lot on the property that I haven't seen yet."
"A lot you'd like to see, too," Esther teased lightly, making both men laugh. She released Lucas reluctantly and returned to Jack's side. He kissed the top of her head lightly and sauntered forward to take her place in front of Lucas. She called rather pertly, "By the way, don't think I'll object to you kissing him, Jack. In fact, I'd enjoy watching it!" Both men laughed, although Lucas eyed Jack a bit warily. Not only did Jack notice his wariness, he actually seemed to be enjoying it. Wanker.
"I don't recommend that, mate," Lucas advised, "you may be immortal, but I can still put you on your arse." He barely bit back a groan when Jack smirked at that, muttering under his breath, "Bloody hell, I can't believe I said that … forgot who I was talking to for a minute there." Jack's smirk turned into a grin, and Lucas added, "Fine. Forget me putting you on your arse, I'll deck you if you kiss me."
"Then I won't kiss you … even though it would probably be worth any pain," Jack retorted. Lucas rolled his eyes at that, and Jack added a bit more seriously, "No kisses, but …" He opened his arms, and Lucas didn't even hesitate. He stepped into the other man's embrace, lowering his head to rest on Jack's shoulder. It had been a long time since Lucas North felt safe, but in that moment, with Jack's arms and scent surrounding him, he did feel safe. More than that, he found himself thinking of what he told Harry once. 'As long as you don't trust me, I won't be home. I'll just be back in England.' But here, among these people, with Archie and Jack and Esther and even the sisters, he did feel trusted. Here, he did feel at home.
"You take care of yourself, Lucas North," Jack whispered fiercely, his lips brushing the side of Lucas' head. Lucas merely tightened his arms around Jack, and the immortal added, "You take care of yourself. The Master did a number on you, but in the end, you won. Not because he unscrambled your brains, but because you kept fighting." Lucas didn't point out to him when he had given up. Jack already knew about that and told him that everyone has times when they gave up, even briefly. Jack had done that himself, but returned to the fight. So did Lucas.
"You take care, too. I'll look after your people, I promise," Lucas answered hoarsely, and Jack's own arms tightened around him. After several more seconds, they released each other, these two unsung warriors. They were brothers, they were fellow survivors of the End of the World club (Lucas protested being added, but Jack told him that he became part of that club when the Master put his brain in a blender … Martha told him the same thing, and he wasn't about to argue with them both). Lucas said his good-byes to Archie that morning … so it was time for him to go.
He nodded to both Esther and Jack, before striding to the driver's side of the car. Esther called after him, "Just be careful … my cousin's name is Lucas, so there might be some confusion." Lucas smirked to himself … if they were lucky, that was the worst thing that would happen. Emphasis on, 'if they were lucky.' But … they were never that lucky, something that he knew all too well. With that understanding lodged firmly in his brain, Lucas North began his trip from Scotland into England. He glanced into his rearview mirror, to see Jack's arms wrapped around Esther, her back pressed against his chest, and his chin resting atop her head. He did not look back again after that.
TBC
Additional notes: I almost forgot to mention. If you've seen Captain America: The First Avenger, then you probably know that Richard Armitage (Lucas) was in it. He played the HYDRA agent who killed Dr. Erskine and destroyed the super soldier serum. Yes, that will be addressed when Lucas and Steve Rogers meet (in fact, I have an idea that Jack, Steve, and Lucas will use that against HYDRA when it comes time). Also, Richard won a Saturn for Best Supporting Actor for his work as Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies, so congratulations to him for that … it is well-deserved and his fans are very proud of him. Next chapter, the trap is sprung and all hell breaks loose. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about Owen … I'll explain where he's been the two days since their flight landed.
