7
"I have no idea how it got out" Gwen defended, "Maybe the girl did it. If I had been allowed to watch her I can tell you now she would have been better controlled than…"
"If you speak of Mica like she is a bloody dog one more time I will tie you out front as bait" Jack snarled, "We all know one of us must have let it out, she is too small to reach the dead bolt at the top of the door. Owen and Ianto were with me, Suzie was on patrol and clearly visible on the cameras, Andy and Rhys were killing chickens and plucking them for the meal and can vouch for one another….you gonna tell me Tosh did it?"
The room was silent as Ianto settled in a chair, Crypto upstairs with the child who was now colouring happily, her earlier worry about her dead father and brother gone as children tend to let things go.
"I…well…how do you know the last person didn't just forgot to bolt it?" she asked with a pout.
"Me and Tosh visited it this morning and took it water that it didn't want" Owen snarled, "Tosh? Did I bolt the door?"
"Yes Owen, you did" Tosh said in a low snarl, her hackles definitely raised.
"Look, just tell us why you released it" Ianto said softly, "I just don't understand when you knew it would be trapped in here with us. If it was because you were sorry for it, why not drag the cage to the perimeter fence and let it go so it was outside? You let it go inside the very area we were fencing off. Did it not occur to you it would have nowhere to go except towards the house? Mimi? Us?"
Gwen flapped her hands as she started to cry again.
"Gwen?" Rhys sighed, "Come on. Did you see it? Did you even see what it was"
She nodded, "It was…not a little girl. Not a child … I thought it would be…not that."
"So, you thought it might be a little girl like Mica and you would … save it? It shocked you and you ran?" Ianto surmised, "Jesus wept. Gwen… you have some serious issues. I am sorry you lost your daughter but… no other can replace her. OK? Your beautiful, perfect little princess that never made it… no other little girl can ever be as special. You need to accept that and stop trying to find one to fill the void."
She looked around with worry then sighed as she threw up her hands, "You don't know how it feels to lose a child!"
"So stop making it happen" Ianto roared, calm gone, "Christ alive woman, you almost cost me Mica. You think taking another child's life makes up for your own? Really? Let's kill all the children and we can all feel better. Wanna piss on some graves? Yeah? I loved me sister, me nephew. I will defend the last piece of her I have."
"Ianto" Jack pulled him in, trying to calm him and he was horrified to feel the shaking, "Easy love Hey."
"I can't do this" Ianto sobbed softly, "I just…I can't do this. She's…I mean… I thought killing Lisa was the worst thing I would have to do but … Rhiannon laying there in the water and… she hated begin wet…hated the cold…my sister…my lovely sister and Lisa and … David… it's too much."
"Easy now" Jack crooned, "I am taking Ianto upstairs so we can sit with the only person in the entire mess who should have been safe, not out there with that thing loose."
Jack led Ianto up the stairs and the sound of flesh hitting flesh had him glancing back in time to see Suzie shaking her hand from the sting.
Good girl.
Jack trained her right.
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So ends Diddims. Gwen is lucky Jack didn't shoot her, I know. But I still have plans for that one ya know. Next instalment will be called House Rules. Ianto is about to roar. And yes, I know some of you are desperate for the boys to finally bond ... it is coming.