The atmosphere in the medical bay was deeply uneasy; the people gathered there projecting feelings of helplessness and worry that swirled almost tangibly about the room.
Rhys had finally been allowed into the Hub to see Gwen before she was put into cryo, but only on the provision that he wear a Hazmat suit to avoid catching the virus as well. He looked lost within the over-sized garment, his face barely visible behind the reflective helmet, yet the slump of his shoulders as he sat at Gwen's side spoke clearly enough of his dismay.
The rest of the team moved purposefully around the bed, getting everything ready for the freezing process. They had only done this a few times in the past, including the failed attempt with Beth Halloran, but they knew precisely what was required and worked together in determined silence.
Jack stood above them all on the upper level, elbows cupped in his hands and brow creased in thought. He was staring, not at Gwen – he'd already said his goodbyes to her – but rather at Ianto.
He'd woken that morning from an (apparently) much-needed sleep and lain in Ianto's arms until the alarm went off, taking the opportunity to simply stop and rest for a while. During those long quiet minutes, however, he'd had time to examine certain facts; details that were gradually coming together in his mind to form a picture of what was wrong with Ianto.
At the forefront of his thoughts had been the rather belated realisation that the scratches upon Ianto's chest were at the entirely wrong angle to have been self-inflicted. They were certainly not the kind produced by paranoid itching and Ianto had to know he couldn't get away with that lie for long, so why even attempt to deceive him with such a weak story?
Jack clenched his jaw unhappily. If Ianto was seeing someone else, why hide it? The young Welshman knew that Jack's beliefs were vastly different to the rigid principles of this era, and whilst Ianto may have been brought up surrounded by them himself, Jack knew he didn't hold tightly with such standards either.
Ianto did not subscribe to all of society's rules, whether it be the insistent labelling or the presumption of exclusivity. He had no respect for those who cheated on their loved ones, but only if the couple had agreed on a monogamous relationship. When it was a purely physical arrangement, a simple enjoyment of what was freely given and taken, then there was no reason to assume a promise of complete loyalty.
So Jack knew that Ianto would not feel he had to keep another lover secret – in fact he'd likely think Jack would want to hear every sordid detail – and he could tell by the intensity in Ianto's eyes when they were together that the young man still wanted Jack and was not looking to bring their fun to an end in favour of another.
And yet there was clearly someone else on the scene. Those scratches confirmed it, even if they didn't provide any clue as to who had made them.
Jack shook his head slightly to himself. Surely this couldn't be the reason behind Ianto's recent erratic behaviour, could it? Could something so innocent have weighed on his mind so heavily?
As though sensing the eyes upon him, Ianto glanced up suddenly. He gave a faint but reassuring smile and Jack knew it was from the heart. He couldn't, however, return the gesture; he was far too perplexed by this mystery to even think of it.
Ianto had spent the past few months acting as though he was over his ordeal with the psychic alien, only to suddenly admit under pressure that he wasn't really coping as well as he'd claimed. Now there appeared to be someone else involved, intimately perhaps, and that new development created more questions than it answered concerning the enigma that was Ianto Jones.
Once Gwen's body had been taken down to cold storage, it was as though all the energy evaporated from the remaining members of the team. They stood together for a good five minutes in the medical bay, exchanging glances and watching the screen Owen had set up to display Gwen's almost non-existent vitals. It wasn't that they suspected she would break the stasis like Beth had, it was rather more the fact they couldn't quite believe they'd had to freeze her in the first place.
Ianto studied Jack's profile as he stared at the numbers scrolling across the monitor. The Captain had been quiet all morning, which was perhaps to be expected considering the circumstances, but it was still unlike the immortal not to at least try and hide his anxiety behind a quip or a declaration that everything would work out sooner rather than later.
Ianto placed a hand on Jack's shoulder in silent support and offered a faint smile before looking over to where Rhys was sitting on the steps, still fully ensconced in his protective suit. "I'll take Rhys home," he said quietly. "And I'll make sure he's got food in the house as well. Gwen wouldn't want him ill because of her."
Jack nodded, but said nothing and Ianto made his way over to the other Welshman, easing him to his feet with gentle words. Rhys had been angry when he'd first arrived, but that had all vanished now that Gwen was packed away, leaving him mute and pliable as Ianto coaxed him through the Hub.
They headed towards to a corridor that would lead, via a clean room to remove the Hazmat suit, down to the car park. All the way across the large central space, Ianto could feel Jack's eyes upon his back and he found himself praying that the usually irrepressible man would not remain this muted version of himself all the time Gwen was in cryo.
When Ianto returned from dropping off the despondent Rhys and checking that the apartment held enough food to get the grieving man through the next few days, he was surprised to find the Hub a hive of activity instead of the quiet maudlin atmosphere he'd left earlier.
He ascended the steps to his colleagues warily, unsure of what to make of the unexpected change.
"Good, you're back," Jack said, turning away from the screen he'd been reading over Tosh's shoulder. "I want you to go get one of those aliens we found the other day and bring it up here for Owen to poke at. Tosh and I are going to have another look at the pod, so you'll have to be Owen's assistant for the day." He gave the younger man a bright smile, which was surprisingly close to his usual dazzling grin.
"Yeah," Owen cheerfully added from his workstation, "so you'd better snap on your prophylactics on and start wranglin' those sluggies!"
Ianto blinked. Although he'd become somewhat experienced at concealing his own thoughts and emotions, he couldn't help but feel surprised when others did it as well. Not an hour after they'd frozen Gwen, everyone was working at full speed, as though nothing had happened at all. He wanted to tell them to stop trying so hard, but then realised how much of a hypocrite that would make him.
Taking their lead, he slipped easily into the disguise he'd been hiding behind for the past few months. "That sounds great," he agreed amiably, moving off towards the lower levels. "I'll go pick one out now."
The smirk on Owen's face soured slightly when Ianto failed to protest and the young man couldn't help but push it a little further. "Didn't it occur to you," he murmured as he passed the doctor's workstation, "that I might enjoy handling thick slippery lengths of flesh?"
Owen spluttered a little in response and Ianto smiled victoriously to himself as he set off to see to his new chore, incredibly comfortable within the mantle of false normality that had fallen across the Hub.
Jack lingered in the doorway and stared at Ianto's back, studying the way he stood with his hands balled into fists upon his hips.
He'd followed the other man down to where the slug-like creatures were being kept only minutes after giving out his orders, too impatient to wait to broach a certain subject with Ianto. The determination that had filled him after they'd finished with Gwen, the resolve to keep the situation from completely disrupting Torchwood's work, had also given him the urge to deal with Ianto as well. Even though he knew he probably shouldn't rush such a delicate operation, he had been unable to keep from pursuing his lover in order to make his request as soon as possible.
Upon finding Ianto in a stance that seemed less than welcoming, however, he'd paused to better gauge the situation, and inevitably he'd begun to question the plan he had devised as a means to discover what was going on with the reticent Welshman.
Ianto tutted to himself and moved aside, giving Jack a view of the small compartments used for captives that weren't suited for the larger cells. The slugs took up the entire middle row of the units and it seemed that they had made themselves fully at home; coating every surface with the thick viscous secretions that covered their bodies. Jack smiled, immediately recognising this to be the cause of Ianto's disapproving posture, and not some dark mood that had settled over him.
"I want you to come out with me tonight," the Captain declared suddenly, the words escaping his lips before he'd even made a firm judgement on his plan.
Ianto's head tilted slightly, the casual movement showing no sign of alarm at the older man's stealthy arrival. "Oh, really?" he asked. He wasn't quite looking all the way over his shoulder, but Jack could imagine one of his eyebrows arching playfully.
The immortal hesitated; it was very rare nowadays that he spoke without thinking, and even rarer that he feel doubt about a plan he'd decided needed to be carried out. He knew what had to be done, but doing it was another matter altogether.
As the silence dragged on, Ianto turned, his expression one of concern when Jack failed to respond in the expected seductive manner. "What's the matter?" the young man asked.
Jack licked his lips, mind tripping over itself as he weighed the pros and cons of his idea once again.
He'd already hinted earlier that week about them going out for a suspiciously date-like evening, hoping that a casual few hours together might encourage Ianto to open up a little more. Perhaps asking him to talk about it would work now, if the atmosphere was relaxed enough; perhaps showing Ianto that he wanted to listen and understand would convince the Welshman to finally explain what was going on.
Jack smiled inwardly at the impossible idea. No, he knew Ianto well enough to know that – no matter how much he hated to deceive the young man – the only way he was going to succeed was by less than honourable means.
He shook his head ruefully. "I need your help," he admitted.
"With what?"
"All the time I was out of the Hub last week, I was looking for something to help Gwen," Jack explained. "I think you might be able to help me find it."
Ianto frowned, his eyes searching the immortal's for more information and Jack had to force himself not to shift under that penetrating gaze. He refused to feel guilty for his decision; he'd given Ianto time to sort things out for himself and when nothing changed he'd asked that Ianto be honest with him and explain what the problem was.
The fact that Ianto had failed to take advantage of those opportunities meant that Jack really only had one last method of discovering his secret.
He was going to have to cheat.