The front door of a tourist office was the last place Mark thought he'd be. He was rather confused and still worn out by the events that led him here. But it felt so good to tell John some of the truth. He was still scared. John noticed this during the whole ride over in the taxi. Mark would shiver and John kept holding him tighter. It suddenly occurred to John what that bastard Asher must have done to this kid. That knowledge was killing John.

He didn't want to begin to know what that mad man had done to his lover. He guessed some; having been part of Darby's work himself. But eight years was a long time to be held captive by a sadist. There is a lot more to this story than Mark was telling, John assumed. But to push someone like Mark to murder, it must have been really bad. Mark was not the type. But how much did John know about him? That damn caution sign waved in front of him again, and it was starting to make John sick. He didn't want to lose this love he just found.

Mark stood his ground as John motioned for him to enter the room. He froze. He looked at John with pleading eyes. Why did this seem like a trap? What if he was being imprisoned again? Would they torture him also? He started to back away. He turned to run. With in moments he was fleeing. He was panicking "Not again. I won't let this happen again," he told himself. Thoughts of Blue and that accursed room that he last saw him in were clearly in his mind now. He was not going to let anyone touch him like that again.

From Jack's office, Ianto watched the scene unfold before him. He had no idea why John had bought Mark here. But when he saw Mark take off and John run after him, he thought the worst. He went to find Jack.

Jack, feeling relaxed after their "policy" discussion earlier, was talking with Gwen and Sally.

"Jack, we have a problem," Ianto interrupted as he headed for the lift.

"What is it?" Gwen inquired.

"John's brought Mark here. Something went wrong and now John is chasing him. I can't get a hold of John on his mobile."

Jack's eyes widened, as his worst fears hit home. He was going over the data about Mark's past with Dan. Dan had thought it was funny that Mark showed up around the same time as the Vortex Manipulator signal had become visible. Jack put it out of his head, because he couldn't understand why John wouldn't have known if Mark was Asher. Unless Mark was sent by Asher or Asher had altered in his appearance. With this thought, Jack was right behind Ianto. Sally and Gwen grabbed guns before they took off after them.

Mark raced away to protect himself. He had to go far away. His heart was breaking in a million pieces. As much as John meant to him, he was never going to be a prisoner again.

John was gaining on Mark. As much as John hated to admit it, he was worried about Mark's reaction. He should have noticed Mark's state of mind a little more closely. The kid was terrified. John mentally kicked himself for bringing him to the Hub. It made something snap inside Mark. He had to get to him before he did something stupid.

They were at the railing surrounding the bay. Mark, breathing heavily, turned to face John. He stopped short of Mark. Panting, he gasped out to him.

"Mark, it's okay. I understand. We don't have to do this. Please baby, just come to me." John moved slowly towards him waving his hands, beckoning for Mark to come to him.

Mark whimpered and climbed up on the rail. "I won't go through that again. I won't! I'm sorry. I love you, but I can't! Not again!" Tears fell down his cheeks as he climbed over the rail and got ready to jump. The water looked cold and at this distance, Mark didn't think he could survive the fall. Then again he didn't want to if it meant a life without John.

John screamed for Mark to stop. It was around that time that Jack and the others showed up. As they got closer, Jack realized that John was in trouble. He was trying to get the young man not to jump. Jack immediately stopped the others from getting too close. He signaled for the girls to stop but their weapons had been already lowered down and they moved back.

"Mark, please get down. I'll take you home. Anything! Just don't do it," John was moving towards the frightened young man slowly.

"I can't go on like this, John. All my life, except for a few moments, has been filled with hurt. Please let me end it. I will always love you." He went to release his grip and allow gravity to take its course.

Something in that voice made Jack react. Something familiar made Jack look at the young man who was ready to jump. His heart stopped. The blood drained out of his face as he recognized Andy. 'How?' He thought. 'It was impossible.' Andy was dead. Without conscious control of his own body, he ran towards Andy.

Mark was just about to let go as he heard a voice call out Andy. He looked to see Blue running towards him. He knew that the universe played tricks on bad people. It was doing so now. With that in mind he let go of the rail.

Andy/Mark fell towards the water.

Jack ran toward the rail. John was already diving after Mark when he arrived. All he could do was hope John got to him in time. And that John would also survive as well. Jack called to Ianto and the others. "Quick, get the police and rescue teams here! They need help." With that said, he dove in after them.

The water was freezing. John raced to get to Mark's now unconscious body. He made it and checked for life signs. He was still breathing. A hand on his shoulder made him look. Jack was there beside him turning blue in the water.

"Is he alive?" He asked

"Yeah, but he isn't in good shape. He killed Asher, Jack." John said as he bobbed up and down in the water pulling Mark close to him.

Jack swam around to the other side of Mark and helped support him. The old feeling of his love for Andy came back as he made contact with the young man. He reached over a touched his sleeping face. "John, his name isn't Mark. His name is Andrew Perry."

End Part 24