Title: Tears of the Weevil

Summary: With Toshiko gone the team must decide whether to risk Lacey by saving her or leaving her.

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: Don't own Torchwood, the characters or anything related to the show.

A/N: I've gone from working 7 hours a week to almost 17 and I'm doing the same next week…so I'm still stuck for time to write.

"Miss Sato, welcome back." Elliot Emmerich watched as Toshiko sat huddled in the padded cell, her knees tucked protectively in to her chest. "Don't worry this time we don't require any information from you. We simply want Miss Cassidy to pay a visit…" She trailed off as she realised Toshiko was not sobbing as she'd first thought, but laughing.

"She won't come." She looked up defiantly, no trace of madness or vulnerability on her face; like the last three years hadn't happened, like she was the same resilient Toshiko. "I've made sure of it."

Lacey looked puzzled as she pulled out her mobile and found a text from Toshiko, it had been sent while she'd been in the middle of being abducted. It was simply a Url. Ignoring the others she logged on to the computer at Toshiko's workstation and typed in the Internet address. The others fell silent as a pre-recorded video appeared on the screen.

"Lacey, sweetie, if you're watching this then I'm in danger. Once I found out you were the cure I knew Emmerich would come after me. My brave strong Lacey, I'm your only weakness." The blonde watched silently as Toshiko spoke, looking more alert and certain than she had in months. She understood what she was asking. "I don't want you to try and save me. You must protect yourself. You're the key to ending this. Everything we have endured, everyone who has suffered or died…the only way to justify that suffering is for you to survive, to find the cure. So please sweetheart, don't come after me." The screen went blank as the video ended, Toshiko's image disappearing from sight.

"She's right." Owen hated himself for saying it, but Toshiko had a point. Lacey was more important in the grand scheme of things. If it was between Gwen and finally getting the thing he'd been fighting for for three years he wasn't sure which he would choose. He wouldn't do it lightly but he wouldn't completely disregard her sacrifice either.

"What if it was your daughter?" Her question caught him completely off guard.

"That's not fair."

"Neither is asking me to give up Toshiko!" The blonde objected, her gaze dark and stormy. "It's my fault she was caught by Emmerich. They tortured her for days Owen! She barely survived and if I don't save her this time then she won't survive…and I'll be alone. Again."

Seeing her wide-eyed and pleading Owen gave in and nodded. "Then I'll help, but first we need as much blood from you as we can get."

"Fine. Take it now, but we're leaving tonight."

"Do you really think she'll stay away?" Toshiko ignored Emmerich, staring silently at the padded wall. It reminded her of being locked up with Ianto, trying to reassure him everything was all right while she'd looked for a way out. She'd rather face cannibals than Emmerich. "You know she'll come. So will the rest of them. Then we'll have our cure, the founding father of the Weevils, the mysterious Jack Harkness and-"

"Owen won't bring Gwen anywhere near you." She sneered. Emmerich scowled. Gwen had always been a soft spot for the agent. She'd been obsessed with her beyond the search for a cure.

"She'll come, after all she's been rather active lately, for a corpse. I think it's time you explained how."

"Gwen." She looked up as Owen entered the boardroom where she'd been sitting on her own for the last hour. "We're leaving in two hours…it's up to you whether you come or not. I know nothing I can say will stop you. Just watch your back." Gwen nodded, pulling herself to her feet.

"So what's the plan anyway?"

Owen explained the plan in relatively simple terms. They'd dress as B.A.D. agents and infiltrate their Cardiff base to break their missing member out. He forgot to mention how heavily secured the place was. She and Lacey dressed as agents in plain black uniforms with caps pushed down over their faces, their fake I.D pinned to their jackets.

The building was crawling with security and armed agents, yet no one bothered to ask for any identification while they entered the front door, wrestling with a restrained weevil. They put it down to luck, but were proved to be wrong. A swarm of agents waited for them on the other side of the door. "Get the Weevil and Miss Cassidy to the cells. I'll take care of Miss Cooper." The agent whose arm Owen had broken grabbed her roughly and marched her through the complex to an office on the third floor. He pushed her inside and then slammed the door shut.

Gwen gasped as her cap was yanked off and thrown aside. "That's better." Emmerich grinned before taking a seat at her desk. "So Toshiko informed me of what they did. I guess you don't know me yet. I'm Elliot Emmerich." She extended her hand but Gwen ignored it. "I missed you after you died."

"I might not know you but I know what you've done. You tortured Toshiko."

"Part of the job I'm afraid. We used to be on the same side you know. I used to be a DI-"

"And now you're no better than the criminals you used to arrest." Gwen protested. Emmerich scoffed.

"I'm no different than Torchwood. We both want a cure…"

"We don't kill and torture innocent people."

Emmerich laughed again. "How many innocents have died thanks to Torchwood?" Gwen fell silent. It was true people died because of Torchwood, but they did their best to protect innocent people; they didn't torture them.

"It doesn't matter what you think of me or the organization Gwen. We not only have the entire Torchwood team but the cure too." Emmerich stated matter-of-factly. "All that remains is what we do with you. I'm willing to offer you a job as an agent; working for the right." She held out her hand, offering her the deal. Gwen slapped her, defiantly standing her ground.

"I already work for the right side."