Authors Note: I'm so sorry my dear readers. It's been three months since I last updated this story. Real Life has not been kind to either myself or my dear beta naughtybunny23 so writing and reviewing had to be put on hold. Things are a lot better now so I hope that I can back on tractk soon. In the meantime here is the next chapter with promises to bring you chapter seven as soon as I can.
End of chapter five: You get one chance … just one, to do the right thing. Give her back to me!"
An ominous silence filled the air after the Doctor's ultimatum.
Ert was still out cold on the storage room floor while Griff appeared too terrified to speak a single word.
"Well?" asked the Doctor tersely.
Griff gulped in a mouthful of much needed air. "I can't," he finally replied.
The Doctor's mood, already stormy, darkened even further. He took a few steps towards the frightened man. "Wrong answer. Do it again and you'll find out what I am really capable of."
"No, No. You don't understand," pleaded Griff, his voice a few octaves higher than normal. "I really can't … please let me explain."
Verging on irrational thought, the Doctor did not hear the man's plea. No one had the right to keep him from Rose and anyone who did so would pay the consequences. He moved closer to Griff, intent on carrying out his previous threat. Suddenly through the anger he felt an insistent tugging on his arm that breached his yearning for revenge. Turning around he saw Darcia, a plea falling from her lips. The storm in his mind prevented him from hearing what she said but it was the look of terror on her face that stilled the tempest inside him and slowly pulled him back to sanity.
Her frightened pleas rang in his ears. "Doctor, stop this now, you're scaring me half to death. Rose, remember Rose. She wouldn't want you to do this, to hurt someone. She wouldn't want you doing something you'd regret later on."
At the mention of his beloved's name the Doctor raggedly gathered together the remnants of his self control and slowly but surely forced the savage fury from his mind. Once rational thought was his again he turned his focus towards Darcia, his unspoken apology evident in his eyes.
"All right, Doctor?"
"Yeah, I'm all right," he grunted and that was the end of that. No further explanation was given; instead he shifted his attention back to Griff who still looked as if he would die of fright at any given moment.
"Okay," he began in a controlled manner. "Talk, and make it quick. Why can't you get Rose back for me?
Griff, realising that for the moment he was no longer in immediate mortal danger, attempted to compose himself and answer the question directed to him by this man who called himself the Doctor.
"Right, the quick version," he started, words falling over each other. "Rose has been put up for auction. I can't get her back because she's got a 'chip' inside her that if not deactivated can be programmed to cause her pain or even kill her. Me and Ert, we're just procurers in this auction business so have no chance in hell of accessing the security codes to shut down the chip but –" seeing the intense frown on the Doctor's face he quickly added, "- I can still help."
While the exchange between the Doctor and Griff was occurring, Darcia kept her eye on Ert. Looking around the storage room she eventually found a decent length of rope which she promptly used to tie up the inert body of the thug on the floor. Considering the bruises he had left on her earlier, he was very lucky that she did not cut off his circulation. She had just finished when he let out a loud groan, followed by a few choice swear words upon discovering he could not move.
His little temper tantrum caught the Doctor's attention. "Ah, so you're awake and I see my friend has taken the initiative to immobilise you. The authorities will be alerted soon. Your days of kidnapping and hitting defenceless woman are over. You can think about that while you're serving your sentence out on one of the less civilised penal stations.
At the Doctor's words a few more expletives fell from Ert's lips until Darcia found a wad of material and shoved it into the man's mouth, an action that prompted a brief chuckle from the Doctor before his face became serious once more as he directed his attentions towards Griff again.
"And you, what makes you think I want or need your help? Quite the genius me, capable of solving most problems given time."
"Yeah, well time is something you don't have a lot of here. The auction would have started by now which means you've got less than twenty-four hours to save your friend. The place is loaded with intricate security and well guarded." Griff paused for a moment, feeling rather smug. "The only way you're going to get Miss Tyler back is to buy her yourself and you can't do that without me."
"Why?" broke in Darcia. "Why do you want to help and how do we know you won't betray us?"
The smug expression faded from Griff's face and was replaced by look of sadness. He sighed heavily.
"I have a daughter," he said eventually. "Truthfully, I hated this job and what I had to do, but it was a job and it paid good money. Meant that I could keep my daughter and we could be together."
"And what about all those families whom you've torn apart by kidnapping their loved ones?" growled the Doctor.
Griff bowed his head, his countenance flushed with shame. "I know. I was getting out of the job soon. I sent my resignation to the main office last week." He stopped and looked at Ert, mumbling an apology. "Sorry, Ert, but you and I were never going to last long as partners. You're too violent for my taste."
He turned back towards the Doctor and continued speaking. "It doesn't excuse what I did but I tell you now I would do it again if it meant keeping my daughter with me. I couldn't bear to lose her. She's everything to me."
The Doctor appeared to be undecided about the course of action he should take. Everything in him was shouting to turn Griff over to the local law enforcement, not to listen to his personal pleas. Yet on the other hand there was that tiny, tiny voice ringing out from the depth of his soul reminding him of the agony he had felt when he lost everything and how he had continued to feel until he met Rose.
"Doctor," whispered Darcia as she laid her hand on his arm. "I think we should let him help us."
He sighed. If the time constraints were as short as Griff had mentioned then help from any quarter should not be wasted. With eyes as hard as steel, he faced the other man.
"You will be held accountable for your actions but if you help me get Rose back, I'll arrange it so that your sentence can be served here on Gwilgoloth. In return for being able to see your daughter, you agree to help the authorities track down as many of the other kidnapped auction victims as possible. However," he declared coldly, "if you betray us, the ends of the universe will not be far enough for you to outrun me."
Griff gulped audibly, knowing that the Doctor's words were no empty threat. He was without any doubt being absolutely sincere. "I won't betray you," he promised.
"Good, we have a deal then; now tell me more about this chip. How did it get into Rose's body?"
"The drug we laced her drink with does two jobs. One, it knocks her out and two, it contains a combination of intelligent life forms that the brain boxes in the labs call nanites When these nanites reach the abdomen they apparently solidify into something very similar to a living microchip. This 'chip' stays in the person until they are sold. Once payment has been made the chip can be deactivated using the correct security coding. Once that is done the subject's body will flush the defunct nanites out by normal means."
"What happens if the usual course of events doesn't play out?" questioned Darcia.
Griff continued his explanation. "If an auction subject escapes or an attempt at rescue is discovered then the 'chip' can be programmed to attack the body's support systems. This would result in severe pain and possibly even death."
The Doctor scowled. "If that happens to her, then there will be hell to pay."
Griff could well believe it. "If you let me take you through the proper channels, Doctor, then nothing should happen to Rose but there is one more thing you should know. Ert and me have never met our boss so I don't know who he is but he appears to know who you and Rose are."
The Doctor's head shot up. "What? How do you know this?"
"Um … well, when we," said Griff, gesturing to himself and Ert, "went to check up on Rose earlier, she got a bit upset at her predicament and said her piece. The boss was listening in another room but he spoke to her over the intercom, indicating that he knew her and you. Said it was a pity we didn't capture you, too…" he trailed off seeing the anger in the other man's eyes.
"So, this is personal," uttered the Doctor, his voice hard as nails. "Fine, we'll play his game for now but –" He turned to Darcia as he spoke again. "I think it's time to put that gift of yours to good use. If I'm supposed to be a prospective buyer then I can't go in looking like myself. Can you change me?"
Darcia nodded and smiled. "No problem. Any preference on hair and eye colour?" she joked, trying to get him to relax a little.
Her question melted his iciness a fraction as a ghost of a smile played upon his lips. "Yeah," he said, thinking of Rose's beautiful brown eyes. "Brown eyes and can I be ginger? Always wanted to have ginger hair." As an afterthought he added, "er, and slightly smaller ears would be good."
A little giggle lifted from Darcia's throat. "Easy, Doctor. Would you like a smaller nose as well?"
"Oi, nothing wrong with my nose." However this time his smile was genuine.
Their discussion was interrupted by Griff who was completely baffled by their strange conversation. "What on earth are you two talking about? If we're going to do this then you need to hurry. If another local bidder decides to buy Rose outright then you will never get her back."
The Doctor focused his attention back on Griff. "I'll need a disguise so I won't be recognised. My friend here has a very special gift of her own." To Darcia he nodded before continuing. "It's okay, Darcia, show him who you really are."
To Griff's shock and surprise the woman in front of him slowly transformed her whole image until once again the brown skinned purple haired female he had first seen in the ladies amenities was revealed.
"In all my born days…" he began. "I guess I should apologise …"
"Don't," broke in Darcia hotly. "Save your sorry's for Rose and all those other people you kidnapped. Besides you didn't hit me, he did," she said as she gestured to Ert still tied up on the floor.
"It's time," remarked the Doctor. "I'm going to talk to the café owner for a moment and have him lock this storage area so our friend over there can't escape. Once that's done I want you, Darcia to change your appearance again and then work your magic on me. Griff, once we've changed, you'll take us to the auction house and introduce us as interested buyers. Do whatever you have to but I want to see Rose and make sure she is safe. Understand?"
Griff nodded. "Yeah, I understand.
The Doctor regarded the other man for a full minute praying that he had not made a huge error. Finally, he spoke again. "Right, let's do it."
Approximately fifteen minutes later Darcia emerged from the café's amenities block with a completely new image. She now sported flaming red hair, and had changed the shape of her eyes but kept the colour emerald green. She was slightly taller then before but now wore a crisp white blouse and summery green skirt. Affixed to the blouse was a similar pin like she had worn earlier, ready to capture the events to come.
She made her way to a shadowed alleyway between the café and another building where the Doctor and Griff waited. Turning to the Doctor she asked him if he was ready.
"Yes, let's get it done," he replied.
"Okay, well it's best if you close your eyes. I've got to form an image of you in my mind as you are now and then slowly change your features starting from your hair downwards."
As the Doctor closed his eyes so did Darcia. A picture of the Doctor in his current form was lodged in her brain. Slowly and carefully she subtly changed his features and his clothes until the new image was complete. When she opened her eyes, an exact copy of the picture inside her head stood before her. Gone were the blue eyes, big ears and closely cropped hair. This new Doctor had a crown of shaggy ginger hair, wide brown eyes and smaller ears. His usual armour of leather jacket, black denim jeans and jumper had been replaced with a red casual open collar shirt and dark trousers.
Handing him a small compact mirror from her makeup bag she enquired, "So, Doctor, what do you think?"
"Hmm, not bad, not too bad at all, really," he replied just a little vainly. However he quickly snapped the compact mirror shut, ready to face what lay ahead.
He turned to Griff and addressed him in a slightly friendlier tone than earlier. "You would have seen that both Darcia and I were defenceless for a few minutes. You know you could have had the chance to escape back then but you didn't. Good man." Without waiting for Griff to answer him he continued in a firm but warm tone. "Let's go and find Rose."
The whole process of finding and entering the hotel which doubled as the auction house was surprisingly easy. Griff used his identification to gain access inside before he charmed the receptionist into letting him organise the paper work for this 'new' prospective buyer. Finally it was all done. Griff led them along a well lit passageway before stopping outside an ordinary white door.
The Doctor's hearts beat faster. Through the closed door he could hear Rose's troubled thoughts in his mind and wanted nothing more than to go to her and wrap her up in his arms, promising her everything was going to be okay.
As previously agreed, Griff went in first to advise Rose that a local buyer had arrived. The Doctor almost felt sorry for Griff as through the locked door drifted the sounds of one very angry Rose Tyler and although he could not make out the words, he smiled as he pictured exactly what she would look like.
"I think I'm going to like this Rose Tyler," said Darcia, interrupting his thoughts. "She certainly sounds like she can hold her own."
The Doctor gave a heartfelt laugh, the first since Rose had been taken from him this morning. "She certainly can at that and yeah, I do think you two would get on famously." Suddenly his face was sad again. "I wish I didn't have to go in disguise though. Just can't take the chance in case we get discovered. I'll not have her hurt."
Darcia could not help but feel just the tiniest amount of jealousy. Whatever the relationship between the Doctor and Rose it was certainly something special. One day she hoped to experience something similar herself.
"She'll be okay, Doctor. She's got you."
A genuine smile was on his lips. "Thank you Darcia. So … are you going to come in with me?"
"No, I'll wait out here, I think. Just remember, don't go more than three metres away from me. If you stay more or less near the door I should be able to keep up the illusion. Besides, someone still has to keep an eye on Griff 'though my gut instinct is that he will remain true."
At that moment Griff appeared, flying through the open door. There came a crack as something was thrown at the rapidly closing door followed by the tinkle of broken glass. Griff looked up at the Doctor, wishing he could ask him why he wanted this little hell cat back but seeing the storm brewing in the other man's eyes decided that he liked living. Instead he pointed to the door. "You can go in and see her now. When you've finished, hit the intercom that is located to the right of the door and you will be let out. Oh and just one more thing, she's un …" but the Doctor did not hear him as with great speed had already opened and walked through the door shutting it behind him.
Since forming the plan with Darcia and Griff earlier, the Doctor had thought of nothing except this one moment of seeing Rose again. There had not been anything in that plan though that had prepared him for the scene in front of him. His Rose, stood before him, wearing nothing but a stormy look and a pair of flimsy knickers.