Torchwood: Divergence
Book Two: Adferiad
Chapter 16
It was late afternoon of the fourth day since Ianto had sacrificed himself to destroy the Master's Sanctum. Things had been quiet, which was fortunate, since Jack had rarely stirred from his office since the night it had happened. It was obvious that he'd been spending his nights on the couch near the Autopsy Lab, and conversations now tended to be quick, concise, and nearly monosyllabic if they happened at all. And the more time that had passed without any sign of a Hell portal opening, the worse his attitude had become.
Now here they were with tomorrow being Christmas Eve, and none of the Torchwood team were feeling much in the Holiday spirit. Turlough and Gwen were mostly healed from the injuries they'd received in the sewers with the Xhoquitt, but it wasn't the main thing on their minds. Everyone was watching anxiously for some hint of a Scieron singularity opening, not only because they wanted their friend back, but because their leader's stand-offish behaviour was beginning to really worry them.
The few Rift alerts they'd gone to deal with, had been handled in a very swift and cold-blooded fashion by Harkness… a trend that harkened back to some of the files in the Archived about the Institute's early years. The Captain's heart had gone stony, as had his eyes. Just like after Thames House according to Johnson when she'd stopped by for a few hours the day before, just like when he'd agreed to use his own grandson to stop the 456. Yes, he'd initially vetoed the idea, but it hadn't taken much to change his mind when no other options had manifested. And though he'd cried as he'd watched the boy die, it had seemed more like a conditioned response to the former SAS Commander than actual grief. His heart had already been shattered by that point from the loss of the one person he would have given anything to save… there'd been nothing left to be damaged by the act. She'd told the team that that had scared her more than facing a loaded gun ever had. And at the moment, Jack was beginning to scare them all.
Gwen had gone out to get a coffee, missing Ianto's magic touch with the brew and generally needing to get away from the Hub for a few minutes. The night the young Archivist had destroyed the Sanctum, she'd gone home with Rhys at Jack's insistence, read the copies of his diary pages again and cried her eyes out, fearing he may be gone forever this time. She was praying she was wrong, that somehow the Scieron would be able to bring him back from this. Because if they didn't, it would only be a matter of time before Harkness disappeared for good. He'd been toying with his wrist strap a lot more than usual the past couple of days, and Cooper had no doubt he was planning to do something horrible if it turned out Ianto was lost to him again. The thought both frightened and angered her, but there was nothing she could do to stop him if it came to that. A fact that added depression to the mix as well as left her feeling exhausted. Which was why she merely gave Lois a tired smile on her way back in through the TIC, answering her mobile purely out of habit when it rang.
"This is Gwen," the former PC acknowledged the caller, her voice sounding flat even to her.
[It's Andy,] the voice on the other end of the line stated quickly, her old partner sounding remarkably cheerful and excited. [Tell Captain Jack, it's Cathays, just like last time. The red glow's rising and there's blood all over the ground.]
"Thank God," Cooper all but shouted, wishing she could make the lift move faster. "You're wonderful, you are. I owe you a big hug and Christmas kiss for this, Andy. Thanks for keeping watch. This is the best present I could ever get right now."
[Glad to help,] Davidson replied, a smile in his voice. [Least I could do as the police liaison for Torchwood. I'll keep people steered clear for you lot.]
"Beer and pizza next week," his one-time partner laughed, her relief obvious. "Eb can overnight with my parents. You, me, Rhys, and Sophie'll go bowl or something, yeah?"
[Sounds good,] Andy chuckled. [Keep me posted on Ianto. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help.]
"You've already done the hard bit," Gwen insisted, preparing to disconnect the call. "But I'll keep in touch. Thanks again, mate."
[Anytime,] her friend reassured, then they both shut down their mobiles.
Cooper practically burst out of the lift door, scrambled downstairs and through the cog-wheel opening, leaving her coffee on her work station as she blitzed by before dashing back across the decking.
"Jack!" the former constable shouted, pounding up the steps to the office. "I just got a call from Andy. He's been watching Cathays cemetery for us. A red light's appeared where the portal was the first time, and a blood pool's forming."
Harkness was at the door in second, his expression neutral but his eyes bright and worried.
"Martha, full kit!" the American called urgently. "Gwen, grab towels and blankets from the store room, and bottle as much hot water as you can. Turlough, keep an eye on the Rift, ask UNIT to dispatch if anything comes through. Let's go!"
The Captain disappeared into the farthest recesses of the office once more, only to emerge a minute later with a bundle of clothing and wearing his spare RAF coat as he often did for messier jobs. The whole group was out the side door to the lower entrance of the garage and rushing for the SUV in less than ten minutes. Time to bring their lost lamb home.
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AN: I did promise that the boys would get their nice Christmas together. Though there are still a few unpleasant bumps before they get there.
Thank you to those reading the story. And thank you to those who have followed, favourited, and reviewed. NM