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Chapter 30 – Mr. Price

The Doctor and Rose walked down the hallways of Torchwood. Lance, Poltious and Gobbo walked with them. The men were all dressed smartly in their suits, while Rose wore a lovely blue dress. The Doctor and her held hands and she could feel he was still annoyed with the morning's events.

She looked back at him, "Could you stop dwelling on it?"

He groaned. "I will. Just as soon as I talk to Jake."

They walked together to the Doctor's office. Michelle stood up and smiled at them. "Well, Rose! Doctor! It's lovely to see you both!"

Rose walked over and the ladies kissed one another on the cheek to greet one another.

The Doctor smiled. "I need to see Jake. As soon as you can get him here."

Michelle sensed the urgency and picked up the phone. "Right away."

They all walked into the Doctor's office. Rose looked around and smiled. "I've not seen this yet. I like it. Is it larger than your other one?"

The Doctor put his arm around her and walked her to the window. "And the best part, no building over there to hide a sniper in."

Lance collapsed on the sofa and groaned. "The windows are also bullet proof. Which, I feel is a bit….over the top."

The Doctor looked surprised. "They are?"

Lance thumbed through a magazine and nodded his head. "Yes. All windows at Torchwood are now bullet proof grade."

Poltious put his hands on his hips. "That is good and bad."

Rose asked, "Why would that be bad?"

Poltious pointed out, "Well, if you need to break a window to get out, it's going to make it more difficult."

Rose crossed her arms and nodded. "Just shoot it first. But, yeah. I see your point." Rose looked around the room. "And none of you carry a gun. I haven't thought about that."

Lance shook his head. "There are other ways."

The Doctor waved his hand. "Ah. The Time Weaver was eliminated. We have to move on with our lives, guys. And remember, there is always a way out of a corner."

Poltious chuckled, "Yeah. Evaporation."

Rose laughed and sat down next to Lance on the sofa.

Pete opened the door and looked frantically around the room. He spotted Rose and put his hands on his hips. "You are here."

Rose smiled. "With Quauthin Warriors…everywhere. I'm fine, Dad."

He forced a smile. "It's nice to see you, but….well…."

The Doctor finished his sentence for him. "Why is she here? Well, I need her for something real quick."

Jake walked in, "Michelle said you needed-" He looked around the room at Pete and Rose. "Oh, this isn't good. What's happened?"

The Doctor pointed at the door. "We'll get there. It's not as bad as everything might seem."

Pete groaned. "I'm all ears. What's up?"

The Doctor sat on the top of his desk. "I've got to go back to Plentitude. No sorry, Andromeda. Rose has to remain here for various engagements."

Pete looked shocked. He looked back at her with his hands on his hips. "Engagements? What are you doing?"

Rose sighed, "Filming those lectures, some appearance with Mum. Dad. I'm not going to always be able to go off planet with him."

Pete asked, "How long are you gone?"

The Doctor groaned. "I'm trying to get myself back here in three days. Maybe four. Trust me, Pete. I've been up all night thinking about it. She's right. And, yes. I feel the same way you do at this moment."

Pete threw his hand up. "Well. Lewis can't-"

The Doctor held up his hand. "Lance is now Rose's Primary. He's also in charge of the Guard in my absence. I'll take Lewis with me and help him with Arles. I need to drop off Luce and Licis, anyway. Lance will join them in a few months."

Lance held up his finger. "Maybe. I'm not sold on that yet. It can wait. I'm a young man. Lewis needs me here. I'm his Two. That takes priority."

The Doctor nodded. "Alright. Maybe."

Jake crossed his arms. "Okay. You need some agents when you are going to be out in public, Rose. I'll sort that out. Get some of the Wolves to help. You know them. I trust them."

Pete sat down next to Rose and Lance. "Maybe Jack-"

The Doctor grit his teeth. "That's the other thing."

Jake looked concerned. "Thing?"

Rose spoke. "Jack has used the Vortex Manipulator and won't be returning for several months."

Jake crossed his arms, "How many is a several?"

The Doctor spoke. "The best I can tell…15."

"15?!" Jake asked in surprise. "What the hell did he do? What was he thinking?"

The Doctor shook his head. "It was a malfunction. That Vortex Manipulator is in need of repair. He jumped before I could look at it."

"Why did he go?"

The Doctor shook his head. "I can't tell you that."

Jake nodded. "Right. I remember that."

Pete shook his head in disbelief. "15 months? Really, son?"

Jake rubbed his face and shook his head. "I don't want to go into it at the moment, but there's more to that. What else do you have?"

Rose spoke. "I've worked out how I can train the agents here, but…there are going to be conditions."

Pete's eyes got huge. "You?! Training agents?!"

The Doctor crossed his arms and nodded his head. "Oh, Pete. We're on the same page with this."

Rose pointed at Lance. "Lance has to help train people to fulfill some requirements for something he's working on. He's my Primary now, and can assist me. I'm only going to fill in until you find someone to help. So, get to looking."

Jake nodded his head. "We can set up a place for you to arrive. Here probably would be safest. And we'll have agents and Quauhtin with her at all times."

Rose stood up and pointed at Jake. "Also. There needs to be agents walking the building and keeping an eye on everything here. Every lab. Eyes on everyone. Not to be the Big Brother, but to keep everyone safe. Malcolm doesn't remember anyone even attacking him, but everyone here is on edge because they know they are not safe. I want two agents on each floor, patrolling and keeping everyone safe. At all hours. If someone is on that floor, so is an agent. And the same agent for the areas. So, they will be more comfortable with the people that work there. No rotations. It's time this comes to an end."

Jake smiled proudly. "Of course. Consider it done."

"Actually, Jake. We just need to chat." Rose insisted. She looked at the conference room and pointed in that direction. "Doctor. We're going to be in there if you need us. We need to work on some stuff."

He smiled proudly. "Certainly, Rose."

Rose and Jake walked into the conference room with glass walls and sat down to discuss security. Lance went with them, closing the door and then taking a seat.

Pete walked over to the desk next to the Doctor, cross his arms and smiled. "I am happy to see her here and back to herself. Maybe I shouldn't have made that demand to keep her out so long."

The Doctor chuckled. "I always knew that was a losing battle. In fact, I'm willing to bet she takes a more active role here. Jake and her have already been chatting about things."

Pete groaned, "I really hope not. I want her happy, but I want her safe, too."

The Doctor nodded. "Hiding her away on an island was never going to work for long. She has a life that she needs to live. We have Quauhtin. As she …. demanded, we need to 'let them do their jobs'."

"She said that?"

"Oh yes."

Pete laughed proudly. "That's probably Jacks in her. I doubt any version of Pete Tyler would act like that. When are you leaving?"

The Doctor rubbed his face. "In a few days. I might as well get it over with."

"You're alright with this?"

The Doctor shook his head. "No. But, it's not completely up to me. She's my wife. Not my child."

Pete pointed at himself. "Well, she's my child. Well, close enough to it. But, she's an adult and can make her own choices. Believe me. I've had to convince myself of that so many times. She has to make her own …. Decisions."

The Doctor nodded, "I didn't mean-"

"I know, son. We're together on this. God help us both to marry women that have their own mind to them."

The Doctor smiled, "If she doesn't scare the hell out of you a little, then she's not the one."

Pete pointed at him, "See, Howie's logic works here, too. I'm going to see him in about an hour. Go with me. It will help, smooth over everything. He's still ….well, Howie's not used to something going balls up on his watch."

The Doctor laughed, crossed his arms and relaxed, "It's not balls up. But, yes. I know what you are saying. I know what I'm doing, Pete."

"I didn't say you didn't, and I'm not taking sides on this. But, you need to go and talk to him. Just like Rose, you are an adult and can make your own decisions."

"Well, there's simply no need to insult me."

Pete laughed. "I'll help keep an eye out for her. Let me know before you go. My Tony will probably want to go with you. Before you leave though, would you look over her medical records? She had stopped sleeping before when she had that unexplained sickness."

"She slept last night, and had a long lie in this morning. I'm planning on pushing her into a sleep while I'm here, and I can give her something. Maybe it will keep it from happening again. I looked over everything, scanned her and don't see anything is wrong at the moment. She's promised me that she'll nap with Sam in the afternoons while I'm gone, and I can tell when she's sleeping. It's something I'm keeping an eye on."

Pete smiled and pointed at him, "Good man. Keep me posted."

There was a knock at the door and Michelle stepped in. "Doctor Smith. Your 2:00 is here."

He nodded, "Send them in, please."

Michelle walked back out of the room.

Pete looked at him, "Who are you meeting with?"

"Do you have a few minutes? I'd like you to meet them, too. It will be well received."

Pete shrugged his shoulders. "Sure."

The door opened and one teenage boy, a young man of about 22 and a grey haired, middle aged man walked in. They were all dressed in nice suits and wore a look of surprise to find themselves there. The teenager stopped walking as soon as he spotted the Doctor and Pete. He turned and spoke to the older gentleman.

"Dad. He's really here."

The Doctor, hopped off of the desk and walked over to greet them. He shook the older gentleman's hand first. "I'm Doctor Johnathon Smith. This is my father in law, Pete Tyler. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Price. Are these your boys?"

Mr. Price smiled proudly. "Indeed. This is Henry and Peter."

Pete laughed and shook Mr. Price's hand. "Good names! I'm rather fond of the name, 'Pete' myself."

The teenager smiled. "That's what my friends call me."

The Doctor showed them to the sofa. "Come in and have a seat. This won't take long."

They all sat down. The teenager, Pete, noticed Rose, Jake and Lance in the conference room. He was star struck. "Is that Rose Tyler?"

The Doctor looked back at the conference room and smiled. "Yes. That's Rose. She'll join us in a bit. First of all, I'm sure you are probably curious why I asked you to come by."

Mr. Price nodded his head. "It is unusual. We've never met before. Well, not to my knowledge."

"Well, we both know…or knew….someone. It's customary that if it's allowed by those in charge of such operations, to have the people involved to report the ….ummm….soldiers final wishes."

Mr. Price looked confused. "I'm not aware of any soldiers that would have known you. Or Mrs. Tyler."

The Doctor nodded. "Of course. You wouldn't have known. I've spoken to President Harriett Jones and all of this is no longer classified. Everyone is aware of the Cyber Invasion at this point. Your wife, Angela Price, worked as a secretary with Cybus Industries."

Mr. Price nodded. "Yes. That's right. She was killed in a freak accident there at the factory. I never will understand how any of that happened though."

The Doctor continued. "That's because that's not what happened. Angela Price, we knew as Mrs. Moore. And she fought along with the resistance and discovered the company that stole away humans for Cyber upgrades. She figured out that International Electromatics was a dummy company established by Cybus."

Pete nodded his head, finally realizing what this meeting was about, and who he was speaking of. "Yes. Incredible, brave woman."

The Doctor nodded. "Me and her went into the Cyber factory to find a way to stop them all, and she was ….. electrocuted. By a Cyberman. Died quickly. Didn't suffer. Saved millions. If not, billions of people."

Mr. Price wiped a tear from his eye and held his son's hand. "Angela? My Angela? A soldier?"

"She said she had accidently discovered a file at work. She knew when men with guns came to her home, that she had to do something to keep all of you safe. She asked me to never tell the other guys that worked with us, one of which is Director Jake Simmons. He's in there with Rose. You'll meet him in a bit. I had asked him to contact you regarding this. He had a hard time finding you and the family."

Mr. Price nodded his head. "We moved away after the Cyber Invasion. We had vacationed in Florida, many years ago. So, I took the boys there. Seemed a peaceful place to ….. start over. Angela's will insisted we go there."

The Doctor nodded his head. "I understand. And my intentions are not to upset you. I felt that you deserved the truth. She died a hero."

The adult son, who hadn't spoken a word until now, spoke, "This is all …..remarkable. You knew Mum?"

The Doctor nodded. "Yes. She said the only way to keep you lot safe was to make you think she had died. She was the one that sent you the explanation of what had happened to her and simply disappeared. She had every intention of returning to you after that night."

Mr. Price nodded his head. "Thank you, Doctor Smith. Mr. Tyler. This helps bring closure to the entire thing."

The teenager wiped tears from his cheeks. "Wow."

Rose opened the door on the conference room. Jake and Lance stood with her. "You asked for us?"

All of them stood up. The Doctor held out his hand. "Yes. Rose. Jake. Please, come meet….Mr. Price and his boys, Pete and Henry."

She smiled and shook their hands. "Lovely to meet you."

Mr. Price kissed her hand. "The honor is mine."

The Doctor explained. "You knew Mr. Price's wife as Mrs. Moore. That night with the Preachers. She drove the van."

Rose looked back at them as she realized who they were and why they were really there. "Oh! She had a family? I didn't know."

He nodded. "Yes. I've told them what really happened to her."

Mr. Price nodded his head, "I can't tell you how much I appreciate this. I always knew Angela was an amazing woman. I've told the boys that since the day they were born. But, to hear this. Well, I hope it makes them realize how special and brave she really was. Thank you."

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The Doctor, Jake and Pete walked down the hallways of Torchwood to the lift. Adriano and Gobbo walked behind them.

Pete, as if he was continuing their conversation, "You know, son. I actually see this as encouraging. If you are going someplace, without her, then…"

"Yeah. She trusts me."

Jake asked, "Well, you trust her. Right?"

"Of course. I just worry about her safety."

Pete rocked on his feet and punched the button for the lift again. "Yeah. I get that."

Jake asked, "Where were her and Lance off to?"

"To check on Banner. Timon took him something that I really want her to have a look at. I think she might be able to help."

Jake smiled, "Having the famous Rose Tyler check on you couldn't hurt."

The lift finally arrived. The Doctor nodded, "That's very true."

They walked inside and the doors closed.

The Doctor sighed, "We'll go check on Malcolm and then go to see Howie. This is lining up to be a busy day."

Jake teased, "Well, when you don't come into work until-"

The lift made a loud noise. Then suddenly, they all were lifted off of the ground as the lift dropped. Everything happened at once. Pete saw Jake come off of the floor and hit the ceiling just as he braced himself from hitting roof with his arms. There was a loud crack on the other side of the ceiling, which caused the lights in the lift to go out. The lift was in a free fall. Through the darkness, Pete heard Gobbo shouted something in Quauthin. Pete immediately felt hands grab him around his chest and he was popped away.

The lift crashed onto the bottom floor and an explosion rocked the building.

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Pete couldn't breathe. He was confused. Just as he realized he was in water, someone pulled his head above the surface. He gasped for air. He knew how to swim, but somehow had forgotten. The ocean waves rocked and slapped him in the face. Someone, still with their arms wrapped around his chest, pulled him to the back of the Doctor's yacht that sat anchored off of the island home. The sky was dark as a storm was approaching. Pete coughed as he tried to catch his breath.

Pete heard Gobbo shout from the water, "Got him?"

Adriano shouted back from a distance. "Come give me a hand."

Pete was pulled on board the rocking ship by Exton and Aemilius. Exton knelt down and put his hand on Pete's head. "Pete's hurt."

Pete was still in a daze. Everything had happened so fast. "I'm fine." He heard himself say.

The Doctor, completely soaked, came over and knelt down in front of Pete. Exton uncovered the wound so the Doctor could see it. "I've got him, Exton. Get the first aid kit. It's just in there."

Exton stood up and walked away. Pete felt the Doctor put his hand on his head and put pressure on it. "Pete. Tell me. What planet did I take you to after the explosion?"

Pete was confused. "I'm fine, son."

The Doctor was looking at his eyes. "What planet, Pete?"

Pete couldn't remember. He then felt a pain in his head and grimaced, "I don't know."

Exton had returned with the first aid kit. He opened it and pulled out a gauze pad. He put it on Pete's head. "I've got him. Go see to Jake."

The Doctor looked back at Pete and took off his wet jacket. His wet vest and oxford stuck to his body. "Pete. Stay here with Exton and I'll be right back."

Pete closed his eyes tightly. Exton spoke to him. "You're safe, Pete. They popped you out of the lift just in time."

The pain in Pete's head grew worse. "My head really hurts. What did I hit?"

Exton shook his head, "I don't know. Probably the ceiling of the lift."

The pain grew worse. Pete felt as though he was going to be sick. "Gobbo. I'm….going… to…" Pete passed out. Exton caught him as he slumped over.

Exton shouted, "John!"

The Doctor looked back and saw Exton holding Pete in his arms. He quickly got up and rushed back over to them. He checked Pete's pulse, then looked up at Gobbo, who was with Jake. "Gobbo. Bring Jake to the ship."

He took the remote transport device out of his pocket, pressed the green button on the side and transported Pete and Exton with him to the med bay of the Asclepius.

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