48

They were in the shower, the water cascading over them both as Ianto slid into Jack's arms feeling the warmth and comfort there. Jack held him and used the soap in his hand to create lazy circles on Ianto's back, humming softly as his lover sighed and let himself relax for a moment.

Jack knew what he was thinking about even without a bond. They had returned after finding those attendants to get the cats and found a Decayed they had missed, standing in the aisle watching them silently.

A small child. A little girl with her pretty dress, white socks with lacy tops and little buckled shoes. Ribbons in her hair that was soft little blonde ringlets in pig tails either side of a little round face. Those eyes glassy and seemingly sightless but not really.

Not really.

Ianto had reacted first, Jack slower with an arm full of doggo and as Jack had cried out with alarm, Ianto had fired, blasting the little girls face off, half her skull flying back into the aisle behind her as she seemed to lean back for a moment, then straighten, still upright for a moment before she sank to her knees, grunted and then flipped over.

She had not died straight away. Well… you know… died again straight away. Something that was as alarming as the fact it was a child about to attack them. Until now, it had been adults. All of them, and John no doubt seeing worse but not reporting it, and to see that little girl the same size as their son, knowing she was someone's little sweetie… it wss hard to shake.

Finally Ianto stepped back and Jack knelt. To wash the dog you disgusting minded people. Yes, the little terrier was in there as well, in some form of shock where each time it lost sight of them it would howl. Jack said as he scrubbed it's fur "Who knew a dog could get PTSD."

"A living creature with a soul, thought processes and a heart… not that surprising I guess" Ianto said as he stepped out and reached for a towel to wrap around himself, then another to hand Jack for the dog one the water was off "They are empathic to us, imagine the terror in that place for those few moments of agonising death. Even though he was safe, he must have heard and felt everything happening so close by,"

"Poor little guy" Jack crooned "Isn't he cute."

Ianto smiled as he saw where this wss going "Best find out where he was going first, maybe he still has someone waiting for him Cariad."

Jack pouted, "Aw, spoil sport!"

They entered the Main Control Room where Gwen was breastfeeding while talking on the phone to John, scolding him as she reminded him that sexual harassment was not OK during business hours. A cat was sitting in the back of the sofa with it's eyes gleaming, twitching a tail with boredom and Ianto looked around to see the other one the plane also in a high spot. Right. Beckett.

"Right. Flash there is three years old and has all his vaccinations, worked, flea treatments, form what I can tell from the veterinarian I spoke to with the trail from his microchip, this is a healthy little man" Lucy said as she watched Jack sit with the dog still wrapped in a towel in his lap, rubbing at it absently as he listened.

"Family?" Ianto asked.

"Were all on board, back from a family vacation. Looks like a bust there …ah…. Mum, Dad, teenage son and apparently the little girl was only…. What." she said as she saw Ianto grimace, then watched Jack make a face at Ianto with his eye wide, pouty mouth and it was such a clear case of begging as Ianto seemed or consider.

"Flash." Ianto finally said softly.

"Yeah. Being a Jack Russell, they called him Jumping Jack Flash. Flash for short."

Jack grinned as he cuddled the dog closer, "See? We are meant to be!"

Ianto now saw that he was going to be outnumbered the moment Daniel saw what ws in his father's arms and actually… secretly he did like the little man too. This was more a case of letting Jack think he had fought for it and won. A victory needed after a day of loss.

"Well, the cats are mine! Right? I said baggseys back on the tarmac as we unloaded them!" Beckett said with a furtive look around the base.

"Well … I guess so" Ianto said begrudgingly, watching Jack light up as he rose to dance with the dog that seemed to have good graces about him, not alarmed by a mad man.

"Cute" Gwen said from the sofa "John wants a word, want it on the speakers?"

"Yeah" Jack said as Gwen punched a button hoer phone and the room boomed with John's voice still talking to someone "… so you see… I can fit it and then… hey. Am I on speaker."

"Speakers… you are in stereo surround sound" Jack said as he grinned.

"Right. We got everyone out, their luggage is out and we are pairing up luggage to passenger right now. No one unaccounted for and the Decayed was counted, Globs incoming. They sound like a great idea to cover tracks, anyway… so far we haven't found the drugs."

"Look for the cabin crew's sleeping area. Usually up in the top of the plane, like a little sleeper area. Their luggage will be up there" Ianto advised "get the plane's specs off someone and look, you will see the little crawl space where they have beds and lockers. Usually it is not high enough to stand up, but they can crouch or crawl."

"Really? I did not know that. Sounds like some on the space freighters we were on Javic."

"Yeah, close quarters." Jack agreed, "Hell when you didn't like one of your crew members. A lot of fights in those small areas. I know… you instigated some of them."

"They all deserved what they got! Anyway…will do."

Ianto leaned back against a desk and considered "UNIT will want what they can get, once we find her stash we can make a show of letting them in. Replicate the drugs with something else, some meth or something so they can spend time pulling the thing apart to find it and be excited. We will see if they share or not, if not then we know for sure they are pocketing our evidence."

"I like him Javic, have I said this before? I like him."

"Yes Johnty… so do I" Jack laughed a she saw Ianto's plan for it merit. Either way UNIT would be on notice from not only Torchwood… but Her Majesty's Man. If they conceal the drugs… she will know.