TITLE: A Night at Doc's Place
AUTHOR: NNWest and Gillian Taylor - Dark Aegis
DISCLAIMER: Not ours. But we can dream, can't we?
AN: The character of Tom Dekker was first introduced in the Virgin New Adventures novel "Blood Harvest." He's a Private Investigator working in Chicago during the late 1920's. At this point in time, Dekker has met the Seventh Doctor and Ace. The Seventh Doctor opened a speakeasy in Chicago called 'Doc's Place' and Ace served as his 'muscle'.
As a point of note, 'Shamus' is another word for a P.I. The 'Big Boss' is Al Capone.
We decided to try something different for this fic, therefore it's in the style of a film noir. Essentially it's from one POV rather than the third person. We have two POVs in this story - one from Dekker's POV (written by Gillian) and the other from Jack's POV (written by NNWest).
It was a dark and stormy night. The wind would leach away whatever warmth you had, leaving you feeling cold, wet, and miserable. Needless to say, I felt sorry for the poor saps that were stuck outside on a night like this. Thankfully, Doc's Place was warm and welcoming. I ignored the press of the patrons in favour of ordering another drink. The nit and grit of Chicago tended to clog my throat, and only the cool burn of Doc's whiskey could drive it away. That was, of course, when he walked in.
Though I don't swing that way, he was what I'd call a 'looker' if he was a she. Almost too pretty, come to think of it. And he had that look in his eyes. He was trouble. With a capital 'T.'
The stranger stepped up to the bar, sliding into the chair next to me with a sigh that carried just a hint of world weariness for those who knew it well. I normally don't strike up conversations with strangers - and no, Miss Ace and the Doc don't count. They pole vaulted past being strangers and into partners in crime the day that I took Capone's job to investigate them. True, I might have compromised myself, but I knew they were a good sort. Just the type of people to have with you in fight, especially Miss Ace. However, there was something about the man that struck a cord deep within me. "Evening," I greeted with a faint smile while tipping back my glass with a practiced flick of my wrist.
He flashed me a smile that, if I were a woman, would have me separated from my socks in a split second. I finally found a label for him besides trouble - dangerous. There was a look in his eyes that reminded me of some of the Boss' hired thugs, but it was currently clouded by a hint of sorrow and something else, something far more tenuous. He spoke, and in his words I heard an offer that, in most reputable bars, would get him chucked out on his backside. However, it was rough beyond Doc's doors and I didn't have the heart to send him out into the cold and wet Chicago night. I settled for keeping silent, downing the rest of my drink.
"Another?" he offered as I set down the empty glass.
Hell, who am I to turn down a free dose of the Doc's best? Best medicine there is. Especially when it comes to a city like the Big Boss' town, Chicago. You were either scared of running or running scared. I wasn't quite sure what I was, but if I had to label my new friend...I'd have to say he was running scared. Kept going because he had to, not because he wanted to. It was almost sad. "Sure. Get me another one of these." I tilted the glass suggestively, and the bartender nodded.
When we had full drinks set before us, I turned toward my companion and introduced myself. It was the polite thing to do, after all. "Dekker. Tom Dekker."
He smiled, but did not offer me a name. "Rough night out there."
"Always is in Chicago." I shrugged.
Before he could reply, she walked in. She was a blonde haired beauty with legs that did not know when to quit. The red number she had on left little to imagination, but I was definitely imagining it. My friend had yet to notice her arrival, but apparently she knew him all too well. Her lips narrowed into a look that rather reminded me of the Lady in Black, Doc's enforcer. My newfound buddy was in trouble. "Looks like we've got company," I warned him.
"We're in a bar," he quipped. "There's always company."
I pointed out the Looker, and his face fell. "Oh no."
.oOoOoOo.
Fate had to be conspiring against me. The sign by the door said 'Doc's'.
I smiled my way past the doorman. The bribe didn't hurt matters, but the fact that he took such a small one meant he had been going to let me in anyway. He was just enjoying the small measure of power he held by making a man stand outside on a night like this.
Standing in the entryway and shaking the rain off my hat and coat, I took in the room with an appraising eye. At least the bar was warm and dry. Dark, but inviting. The weather outside was foul. Nice, it matched my mood - a mood that had been brewing ever since I set foot on his miraculous ship. No, from the moment he lifted my blaster in the hospital. That was the moment I should have cut and run, should have known I was only hanging around to be played by a master at the game. Why did I ever bring them aboard my ship?
I'd slipped away from the Doctor and Rose without a word. I was taking a risk, I knew, that the Doctor would get itchy and just leave without me. But, I needed time to think and to assess the situation I'd been dropped into. I had yet to figure out why the Doctor hadn't just dumped me on the first inhabitable rock he found. Come to think of it, why he'd stopped to rescue me at all. No, wait - I knew the answer to that one. Rose.
Besides, if they left me behind, all the better. Most of my troubles would go with them. I'd already scanned and found another temporal signature. Where there's a trace, there's a time travel vehicle. And where there's a time ship, there's usually someone I can wheedle into giving me a ride. And, if I can't...there's always a ship to lift.
But before all that, I needed a drink - or four. Then, I needed to get laid. The first of these requirements would be filled at the bar. The last may well be found there too if the mark seated at the counter panned out. The blond had been sizing me up from the second I walked in. Good looking, muscled, undoubtedly armed. Just my type - well, one of them anyway.
His gaze locked briefly with mine. I recognised that look in his eyes. It was the same look that I have after another mission. World weary - or perhaps just plain weary of it all. Seen too much, done too much, all for the sake of the job. There was only one thing that I could do - sit down and buy him a drink.
The fuck would come later.
As I slid into the seat next to him, he greeted me. I replied with my most charming smile and an innuendo that would serve as an invitation to bed if he took it rightly. A small shadow of surprise flitted across his features before he firmly squashed it. So, he took it rightly. It was a risk during this time period to make such an offer. If he was a cop, he could book me. But hell, I was feeling reckless and it's not like I'd never evaded arrest before.
He was hesitant, but he didn't pull a badge and he didn't take a swing at me either. Probably thought it wasn't his thing, that he wouldn't enjoy it. But he had definitely thought about it. I'd run into plenty of reluctance in the past and had yet to send away an unsatisfied customer. Besides, I'd seen it when I walked through the door. He wanted me. The morality of the day wouldn't let him acknowledge it to himself, but his body knew better.
I could wait. After all, I hadn't had my drink yet and I found that he'd finished his in his avoidance of my proposition. "Another?" I offered as he set down his empty tumbler.
"Sure. Get me another one of these." He caught the attention of the barman and we were soon equipped with a round. He turned to me and gave his name. "Dekker. Tom Dekker."
A little smile tugged at my lips as I committed the name to memory. If things went according to plan, he would probably appreciate it if I got it right during the heat of the moment. I decided not to give him mine, not yet. "Rough night out there."
His shrug said, 'What can you do?' "Always is in Chicago," he voiced matter-of-factly as his eyes strayed to the door behind me. "Looks like we've got company."
"We're in a bar. There's always company," I quipped, but there was something worrying about the warning in his tone.
I turned to find Rose wearing a scarlet dress that was beyond racy for the time period. A dress that I definitely wouldn't have minded peeling off of her had I been in a better mood and it not been made abundantly clear she was the Doctor's property. Forbidden fruit, but so damn tempting.
The TARDIS must be parked close, or it had stopped raining. Not a drop on her, every golden hair in place. Gorgeous, and she'd seen me. "Oh no." What was the line? Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world... A movie that wouldn't be made for another - what - thirteen years. Chicago wasn't exactly Morocco, but in that minute I could empathise with poor Rick Blaine confronted with his Ilsa.
.oOoOoOo.
"Jack," she said, finally identifying my friend. "We've been looking for you everywhere. Where've you been?" She was a Brit. What was it about this place and Brits? It was getting to be that they were more common than flies around here, and that was saying something.
"Not now, Rose."
"Jack..." She was definitely a looker. The dress, the slight pout of her lips, and the impeccably styled hair all marked her as a lady. Admittedly, Doc's was not the place for a lady unless her name was Miss Ace. Then again, I doubt she'd appreciate being labelled a lady. She was a quicker draw than I was, after all.
"I said not now. Tell him that I'll come back when I'm good and ready. I just want to sit here, have a drink with my friend here, and just ignore the world for a while."
"What's wrong? This isn't like you," she protested.
"How do you know?"
There was definitely some history there. History that wasn't too pleasant, from the looks of it. Vaguely I wondered if I should take my drink and go, but the pleading glance he sent my way made me keep my seat. Great. I hate domestics.
Fingers struck up a new tune. He was the best piano player in Chicago, and he only played at Doc's. Somehow, he knew what sort of music suited the scene. I was just growing more uncomfortable by the second.
"Jack," Rose hissed, "this isn't the place. Let's go home. Please."
"Home?" he laughed bitterly. "I don't have a home. You do. Maybe I should just give up, y'know? Just sit here in this bar and drink my life away."
She just looked at him in shock.
What was it about me that attracted the depressive drunks? Sure, I've had my share of funks - what Shamus hasn't? But this...there was definitely more than meets the eye going on behind the scenes between these two. There was almost a shadow hanging over them, a presence that could be felt even though it wasn't there. Like they were haunted by someone or something. I've seen my share of hard knocks, but this was something else entirely.
"Listen, mister," I finally interjected, "I don't know what kinda mess you and the lady are in...but whatever it is, it can't be that bad." I knocked back the rest of my drink. "Giving up never works. Believe me, I know. Life has a way of dragging you back into it. Kicking and screaming, maybe, but it does it. It's either that or you end up sleeping with the fishes down by the pier."
He gave me a disbelieving look, while the Looker smiled. She knew what I was talking about.
"Jack, we need you," Rose said.
"He doesn't need me." Jack shook his head. "You? You might. Am I another conquest for the indomitable Rose Tyler? I heard about Ricky and Adam. Trying to add another notch to the tally?" His tone was nasty, and I could hardly believe anyone would talk like that to a lady.
"Hey!" I protested even as she reacted with a stinging slap. Jack's cheek was a brilliant red from the force of the impact, and I could not say that I blamed her for her actions.
"Don't you dare think that," she snarled. "Don't you ever think that again. If you do, then maybe you should just drink your life away. You certainly don't belong with us."
Pain marred his features as he reached tentatively toward her. "Rose, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."
Her eyes were bright with unshed tears. "You're hurtin', and you wanted to make me hurt too. What's going on, Jack? Why are you doin' this?"
He sighed. "I don't know anymore."
I did. I knew exactly what was going on. I've seen it before: guy meets girl, girl already has another guy, guy is heartbroken and wants to drown his sorrows in the Doc's finest. Hell, I'd been there before. Then again, I had broken the cardinal rule of my job - I had fallen for a client. I shook myself slightly, this was not the time to start dwelling on Betsy Mahoney.
Rose sighed and slid into the seat next to Jack, hiding the exquisite glimpse of white leg behind his body. Shame, really. She was meant to be admired, not hidden.
"What can you tell me?" she asked.
He shrugged. Even I could share her annoyance with his reluctance to talk. Then again, though he seemed to wear his heart on his sleeve I could see that that was nothing more than a mask. He was a real pro.
.oOoOoOo.
"Jack, we've been looking for you everywhere. Where've you been?"
"Not now, Rose." I suddenly felt as weary as my mark looked. I didn't want to deal with this - my feelings for her, my feelings for the alien who would only call himself 'the Doctor'. It was why I retreated in the first place.
"Jack..." She made it abundantly clear she wasn't moving.
"I said not now." I was fighting to keep my voice even. "Tell him that I'll come back when I'm good and ready. I just want to sit here, have a drink with my friend here, and just ignore the world for a while."
Predictably, she protested. "What's wrong? This isn't like you."
I nearly laughed. That was rich. She barely knew me, and half of that time I'd been lying or, at the very least, exaggerating wildly. "How do you know?" It came out a bit more bitterly than I'd expected. Inwardly, I swore at myself. What was it about this girl that my game face crumbled before her?
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Dekker shift uncomfortably in his seat. Things were heating up and I didn't blame him one bit for wanting to run. I shot him a pitiful look calculated to keep him close. Maybe, just maybe, if he were around, I wouldn't have to get into this with Rose.
No such luck. "Jack, this isn't the place." Her voice had dropped to a level designed not to carry over the jangling piano in the corner. "Let's go home. Please."
"Home?" This time I did laugh. She was referring to the Doctor's ship and it certainly was no home to me. I told her so. "I don't have a home. You do. Maybe I should just give up, y'know? Just sit here in this bar and drink my life away." I admit, it wasn't much of a plan, but it sounded damn good at the moment and at least I knew where I stood.
She just gaped at me as if every word she'd ever had at her command had escaped her.
"Listen, mister, I don't know what kinda mess you and the lady are in... but whatever it is, it can't be that bad," my newfound friend said, taking her side. He finished his drink before continuing. "Giving up doesn't work. Believe me, I know. Life has a way of dragging you back into it. Kicking and screaming, maybe, but it does it. It's either that or you end up sleeping with the fishes down by the pier."
I stared, probably quite stupidly, at him while I wondered why I made him stay. Rose was smiling, happy to find a collaborator, no doubt.
"Jack, we need you," she told me.
I shook my head. "He doesn't need me. You? You might." The words were tumbling out before I could stop them, venom-laced and biting. "Am I another conquest for the indomitable Rose Tyler? I heard about Ricky and Adam. Trying to add another notch to the tally?"
Dekker looked shocked, opening his mouth to defend her. Of course, he quickly found himself having to change tack as he discovered that the Lady Tyler could defend herself.
"Hey!" he protested lamely as Rose's hand connected with my face in a slap that rattled my jaw. I'd known it was coming. You could always tell when a woman's hand was going to fly when the fury boiled just so in her eyes. My words had sent Rose straight past that point and I hadn't even bothered to duck. As I rubbed at my cheek, I prayed to God that this particular oversight wasn't some sort of subconscious attempt at self-punishment for being such an ass to her. Deep down, I knew it was exactly that.
It wasn't the first time I'd been slapped, though I have to say Rose was pretty good at it. Teach her to curl those fingers into a fist and she'd have a mean hook. What was I doing? Now I was contemplating being around long enough to teach her to fight! Perfect.
She was pissed off now and she didn't care who knew it. "Don't you dare think that! Don't you ever think that again. If you do, then maybe you should just drink your life away. You certainly don't belong with us."
The image of Rose Tyler in a killer red dress, virtually incandescent with rage was something I was not going to forget anytime soon, if ever. Firstly, in two and a half galaxies, it was one of the most stunningly magnificent things I'd ever seen. Secondly, shockingly, it made me realise that she cared, and not just a little, about what happened to me. Not like someone may care that some poor stranger got hit by a passing transport, or that their neighbour's cat died. It truly and deeply mattered to her what I did with my life, whether or not I did.
I really had been an ass. Her tears were beginning to show. I never wanted to hurt her. I reached out to her, certain she would slap me again. Wouldn't blame her if she did. "Rose, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me." The way I'd acted, the apology could never be enough.
"You're hurtin', and you wanted to make me hurt too. What's going on, Jack? Why are you doin' this?"
I could only sigh. I certainly couldn't tell her the whole truth. "I don't know anymore," I told her. There was some truth in that.
She sighed as well, slightly exasperated. Should have known she'd see through it. It was impossible for me to maintain the con with her around, with the Doctor either for that matter. There was just too much about them that left me unsettled, unable to focus.
Carefully maintaining her dignity and her modesty in the skirt, Rose arranged herself on the seat next to me. "What can you tell me?" she asked.
I studied the counter top, shrugging in response to her question. I knew if I spoke, the paper-thin front I'd barely been sustaining would fall.
.oOoOoOo.
The doors banged open, letting in a shock of cold air and rain. Happy, the doorman, looked rather surprised and I circumspectly rested my hand on my gun. I thought Al had declared Doc's to be neutral territory - no one was supposed to mess up the place. Maybe I was wrong. The man that strode in wore a dark leather jacket but it was not his clothes that really alerted me to him, it was his walk. He entered Doc's like he owned the place, his brilliant blue eyes darting over the decor with an air of familiarity that surprised me. I was a regular here, and he definitely was not. The stranger's gaze rested upon mine, and I swore that I saw a hint of recognition before he looked at my companions.
Suddenly, everything became clear. This was the shadow that had been hanging over them both, and from the way the leather clad stranger's eyes rested upon Rose I knew that this was the one Jack had lost her to. Poor man. That was when I caught the look he shot at Jack - an inkling of concern, exasperation, and something else. Whoa, definitely interesting. Very, very interesting. There definitely was more to it than man meets girl, falls in love, and she belongs to someone else. He crossed the room to stand behind them, though he pointedly ignored my questioning glance. "Jack," he said, and my friend jumped at the sound.
I caught a flicker of pain in his expression as Jack slowly turned. "Hello," he said, grasping his drink like it was a security blanket.
"I'm glad Rose found you. We were getting worried."
Rose shared a triumphant glance with me, and I found myself rather surprised that she had decided to include me in this domestic argument.
"Whatever for?" he scoffed. "It's not like you need me."
Shock marred the dark man's features as he rocked back on his heels. "What brought this on?" he asked rhetorically. There was something in his stance that made me feel like he was uncomfortable - not with the conversation, but more with the location. He held himself like he expected to get a bullet between his shoulders at any second. Just what had I gotten myself into?
I knew he wasn't talking to me. Hell, I knew that he wanted to forget that I existed while their little confrontation went on. I even knew that it was probably the height of stupidity to weigh in with my opinion. However, as Miss Ace would say, I wasn't born too smart. "Look, I don't know you folks, but I do know what I think is wrong with this picture. He," I indicated Jack with a short jerk of my chin, "Feels like he doesn't belong with you. You and Miss Rose over there are a pair, everyone can see it. He feels like he's in the way."
Jack shot me a wounded look. I just shrugged. "I'm just tellin' it like it is."
"Is that true?" Rose asked quietly.
My soon to be former friend sighed. I could almost hear the crack as his emotional mask shattered. "Sometimes," he confessed.
A creak of leather heralded the movement of the other man as he placed a comforting hand on Jack's shoulder. "You're our friend."
"I'm still in the way," he replied.
Rose's slender arm reached around his shoulder in a half hug. "No, you're not. Don't you see, Jack? We need you."
"Why?"
"You know I need help keeping 'im in line." She grinned.
"Oi!" the dark man protested.
"And someone needs to help teach him how to do some 'Spock'. The TARDIS is lonely without you, Jack. Please come back?" Rose asked.
"She's right. Seems to be a tradition with this incarnation to ask companions to join me twice. So, Jack...care to travel in time and space with us?" There was definitely something I was missing. Time and space? Had to be some sort of code phrase, unless he just means travel together for a while across the States. But how is that space? I was fairly convinced that trying to wrap my mind around the man's phrases would only give me a headache.
I could see hope and incredulous joy in my friend's eyes. "You mean it?"
She slapped his shoulder gently. "Of course we do, don't be daft."
"Okay."
"Fantastic!" The other man grinned widely. "Then let's go home. I'm already in too many places here." I could definitely feel a migraine coming on. Too many places? What?
"'Kay. 'Sides," Rose said as she stood, revealing that tantalizing hint of leg to my admiring gaze. "What we do...it's better with three."
If I had thought Jack's first smile was enough to knock someone's socks off, this one put that first impression to shame.
"Tom," he said, holding out his hand to me. "Thanks."
I gave him a lopsided grin as I shook his hand. "All part of the service. Take care of yourself out there, Jack. And take care of them."
"We'll take care of each other," the dark man replied with a hint of a manic grin. Now that I thought about it, he really did look familiar somehow. As I wracked my brain for where I knew him from, the trio headed toward the exit.
Before they reached the exit, the doors swung open again, only this time to admit the Lady in Black. Miss Ace started to brush past the leather clad man, but she paused as if she had caught something familiar about him. "Do I know you?" she asked, her eyes narrowed. I knew that tone. I may not have been around her for long, but I knew when she spoke with a hidden threat to be wary.
The man shrugged but I could not see his expression. "Just got one of those faces."
Ace frowned, but continued inside as the others left, shooting him a strange glance. "Dekker!" she began, before recognition darted across her features. "It can't be," she muttered, and turned around to head outside.
I definitely knew that tone. I put down the glass of whiskey and stood. "Ace! What is it?"
She didn't bother to answer as she strode through the doors with me on her heels. The aura of violence that she carried about her like a cloak was strangely muted as she looked up and down the empty street. Wait a minute. My brow furrowed in confusion. "Where'd they go?" They were walking. The rain had turned to sleet so progress would be slow. So why couldn't I see them?
A strange grinding noise that reminded me of the ironworks my father used to work in echoed through the streets, overpowering even the sharp staccato of a gun's report. Before I could ask what that could be, I noticed that Ace's jaw had dropped open.
"No way..." she whispered.
"No way?" I repeated. "No way what?"
She shook herself before giving me a bright smile. "Nothing. Say, don't I owe you a drink?"
Sure, she didn't answer my question, but I was sure she had her reasons. Besides, who am I to turn down a free drink? I gave her a wide grin and turned back to Doc's Place, holding the door open for her. "You sure do."
Chicago might be a rough town, full of danger and criminals that would sooner shoot you than look you in the eye. But, it certainly had some great people in it. I spared Jack one last thought before I followed Miss Ace back inside. Better with three? Given what I had learned just from the man's body language, I'm sure it was.
.oOoOoOo.
The doors behind me banged open. I didn't look up. Please don't let it be him, I pleaded to any deity that would listen. In my periphery, I saw the blond man move to brush aside the corner of his jacket, hand covering the revolver I figured he was carrying. Dekker studied the new arrival and my stomach dropped. It had to be him, had to be the Doctor. For a second cold fear mingled with a measure of astonishment that he would deign to come in to get me. Then I realised that he was probably just after Rose - had felt that she'd spent too much time on her wayward charge.
"Jack." I tensed when he spoke my name. I wanted to bolt. Didn't want his attention, didn't want to face him at all.
I forced myself to relax. Taking up my glass, I turned deliberately. "Hello," I managed.
"I'm glad Rose found you. We were getting worried."
Glad? We? Worried? A little of the astonishment was back. He couldn't mean it. "Whatever for? It's not like you need me."
"What brought this on?" The Doctor's voice was puzzled and for a fleeting instant his expression was the most open I've ever seen it. He did mean it. Forget astonishment, I was dumbfounded. Struck completely speechless.
It took me a few seconds to realise that Dekker was talking. "-know what I think is wrong with this picture," he was saying. "He feels like he doesn't belong with you. You and Miss Rose over there are a pair, everyone can see it. He feels like he's in the way."
Great, now I was being psychoanalyzed in a speakeasy by a guy who I'd talked to for less than half and hour. Worse, he was almost completely right. I felt like bashing my head against the bar top. Repeatedly. Dekker must have seen my distress. He shrugged and directed, "I'm just tellin' it like it is," at me - as if that made it better.
"Is that true?" Rose's voice was quiet. I almost didn't make out what she said over the piano.
I finally saw it. "Sometimes." I was trapped. Had been from the second I plucked a pretty blonde off a barrage balloon in the middle of a WWII air raid.
The Doctor's hand came to rest on my shoulder. "You're our friend."
"I'm still in the way." The protest was weak.
"No, you're not. Don't you see, Jack? We need you." She slipped a hand around my shoulders. After a moment the coolness of her fingers seeped through my jacket, through my shirt. There just wasn't enough of that dress to keep her warm. It was in this moment, with her arm around me, his hand on my shoulder, I was suddenly breathless. The creeping reality set in that in these two I had found everything I ever wanted.
"Why?" Why would they need me? What could I possibly offer? A con man. A playboy. A whole slew of other, less kind, labels I'd been given.
"You know I need help keeping 'im in line." She grinned. God, she was beautiful when she did that.
This drew an objection from the Doctor. "Oi!" There was mirth dancing in those bottomless blue eyes.
Rose continued, ignoring him, "And someone needs to help teach him how to do some 'Spock'. The TARDIS is lonely without you, Jack. Please come back?"
"She's right. Seems to be a tradition with this incarnation to ask companions to join me twice. So, Jack...care to travel in time and space with us?"
Call me an idiot, but I was hooked, my spirits soaring. "You mean it?"
She swatted lightly at me. "Of course we do, don't be daft."
"Okay." The biggest, dopiest grin was about to break out on my face. I could feel it.
The grin did break out on the Doctor's. "Fantastic! Then let's go home. I'm already in too many places here."
"'Kay," Rose said to him, standing. "'Sides..." She put a hand to my chin, tilting my head back, looking into my eyes. "What we do...it's better with three."
I smiled up at her. When she stepped away, I turned to Dekker. I didn't get my lay - which was a pity. But, he helped open the door to something that promised to be a hell of a lot more satisfying. For the first time in I don't know how long, I felt like I had a place. Somewhere to belong. "Tom, thanks."
He grinned wryly as he shook my hand. "All part of the service. Take care of yourself out there, Jack. And take care of them."
"We'll take care of each other," the Doctor put in.
On the way out, a brunette in a deadly black dress pushed through the doors. Studying her a little more closely, I found the dress wasn't the only thing about her that was deadly. Something about her look, her walk. This place wasn't really a place for a lady, but this girl fit perfectly. I had no doubt this one could take care of herself.
She breezed past Rose with a slightly surprised, but discounting glance. Apparently, our blonde didn't rate very high in the threat analysis. Before she got to me, the woman's attention was arrested by the Doctor. Taking in his dark clothes and leather jacket - not exactly period dress - she stopped. I couldn't tell if this would be trouble or not. "Do I know you?" she asked.
I couldn't see the Doctor's face as he shrugged away her question. "Just got one of those faces," he told her as he moved on determinedly.
She didn't press the issue, but she did send one last curious glance toward the Doctor's back before he got outside. I heard her address Dekker as the heavy doors swung shut. Lucky guy if that was his girl. I'd forgive his reluctance to have me. Just this once.
Outside, the Doctor set up a blistering pace back to the TARDIS. Sure, the weather was bad, but usually he didn't seem bothered by such things. It was almost as if he couldn't get away fast enough. "Hello and goodbye, Ace," he murmured.
Suddenly, something he said earlier swum to the surface. 'I'm already in too many places here.' A crazy theory clicked into place. The lady in black's question. The other time ship. The placard by the speakeasy's door, 'Doc's Place', brought up worlds of interesting possibilities.
"Doctor?" I kept my voice pitched so it carried to only him as we hurried along. "Did you own that bar?" I couldn't believe I was asking.
"In another lifetime, perhaps," he replied vaguely. His expression was unreadable.
I tried again. "What about the lady in black? Did she really know you?" Rose was ahead of us and had already unlocked the doors and found refuge from the icy rain within the ship.
The Doctor paused on the TARDIS' threshold and grinned enigmatically. "Not exactly." Hardly an answer, but I knew I would get no more from him as he dashed up the ramp to the console. "Now Captain, get up here and lend us hand."
I was happy to comply.