5
In someone's apartment their intercom buzzes.
An elderly male neighbour in a bathrobe shuffles over while muttering to himself as he picks up the receiver to hear a great deal of static. "Hello?"
A voice is indecipherable. Thinking the intercom has gone out, he hits the door-release button. "Bloody thing, never fuckign works."
Lud holds a small device tweaked to emit static up to the intercom. The door lock buzzes open.
Lud puts in an earpiece. The earpiece is a coms unit. We hear the very faint voice of a dispatcher and Beat Cops. Lud grins as he walks along the hallway like he owns the place, so pleased with himself. It's all going well.
Lud kneels at Ianto's door. He opens his bag to reveal a towel, hacksaw, flashlight, drill, etc. He takes out a "pick gun", a battery-operated locksmith's tool that aligns tumblers electrically. He goes to work on Ianto's new dead bolt.
Ianto is in the living room as Myfanwy sleeps on the bed, he is looking at the door. He can hear soft clicking sounds and a slight electric hum.
"Shit."
Light comes from beneath. Ianto watches.
.
.
.
John and Toshiko hurry through the narrow passage.
"The light could've been on a timer" Toshiko pants. "Fucker has it all planned out."
John's cell phone rings. Once. By the time he gets it out of his pocket it's stopped. Instinctively, they both look at the ID.
Ianto and Jack.
They start to run.
.
.
Ianto puts his phone in his pocket. He looks around. He goes to fire escape window. As he opens it, he hears ... a click. His dead bolt turns. Then the doorknob starts to click and hum.
"Jack" he hisses "stay there… fucker is coming in."
.
.
John runs along the rainy street. Toshiko follows fifty yards behind.
.
.
Lud pushes the door open with his gun. He grabs the towel but leaves his tools in the hallway. He enters, closes the door, and wraps the towel around his gun. Ianto is nowhere to be seen. The bedroom door is closed. The storm blows in from the fire escape window. He investigates; the escape is empty.
He moves toward the bedroom.
The phone rings.
It rings again.
And again.
On the third, Ianto's machine answers.
"Sorry. I can't come to the phone right now, but here's the beep." And after the cue tone, Lud hears Owen's voice over the speaker ... "I can see you motherfucker"
Lud looks from the phone machine up to the Surveillance apartment; it's too dark to see anyone.
He hesitates as he wonders if John had a partner.
In Ianto's bathroom the shower curtain is closed. We move over the top to reveal Ianto huddled behind it; he holds his cell phone as his dog assumes the position. In the bedroom under the bed Jack is grinning with anticipation. Gonna get him some arsehat tonight.
Lud's not yet convinced that there is anyone watching; he continues to the bedroom door.
Ianto winces as he hears the bedroom door open.
Lud looks around. He moves toward the closed bathroom door as the intercom buzzes out in the living room.
He freezes.
John pounds on the buzzer as he works a key.
Inside the shower, Ianto waits and listens. He hears footsteps, soft, furtive. He realizes they are creeping toward him. Ianto holds his dog more firmly as he knows Jack is also waiting out there for something to happen.
The footsteps move closer.
Closer.
He can see a form with a gun.
He holds his dog with a frantic tap to tell her to hold and remain silent… he controls his weapon.
The shower curtain rips back. Ianto screams. He jumps.
"Sorry." Jack sighs as Ianto collapses into him. "He broke in ... "
"Lud?"
"I don't know."
They move to the living room to find John and Toshiko in there.
All the lights are on.
Lud is clearly gone. John chased him away somehow… fuck… out the bloody window? At least the motion detectors will have some clear footage right? Damn it, running means John did not check his phone to see the 'hold' signal. They lost their chance to corner Lud. Owen calls to say he did not see him exit the building. He got away.
Toshiko is soon at the door filling the outer keyholes from a tube of epoxy. Ianto sits cupping a mug of coffee someone made. Finally Myfanwy emerges to glare at everyone, slouching to her bed.
"You won't be able to get in until after it's replaced."Toshiko warns. "The fire escape will be your only in and out. You two are gonna need to stay elsewhere."
John enters and Toshiko closes the door. He puts a handgun on Ianto's table. "Make sure we get it back. This is not a sonic, it's as old as Jack's and unable to be traced like a sonic is."
Ianto looks over at Jack as they share the same thought.
Why are they in the middle of this shit?
They both know where they would rather be right now.