Thank you for all the great reviews so far!
I promise you'll find out who the mysterious man is soon and what's going on with Rose.
Pete raced down the hall with Mason and his men trailing behind. When he saw the open door his heart dropped as panic seized him. He raced through the entrance.
"Rose! James!" he called.
The living room was empty. He ran into Rose's room, calling her name again. She wasn't in her room and the open door to the master bath told him she wasn't in there either.
"Director!" Mason yelled.
He turned and ran through the living room and into the kitchen where Mason stood. Pete's eyes fell on a still figure crumpled on the ground. James! He watched Mason bend down and feel for a pulse.
"Is he…?" Pete asked.
"Dead. Bullet wound most likely from the trail of blood."
Pete followed Mason's nod and saw the pool of blood near the sink and then a trail of dark droplets that led to where James' body now lay. Someone must have broke in and attacked them, but…Pete looked around the room…where was Rose?
"Looks like he put up a fight," Mason continued.
"We need to find my daughter."
Mason stood up, snapping into action.
"Norton," he called into the living room.
A burly man with wiry brown hair walked into the room.
"Sir?" Norton asked.
"Go down to the office. There are cameras in the halls and elevator. Get all the footage and take it back to Torchwood. I'm assigning you Second Captain. You need to set up a base of operation at Torchwood."
"Yes, sir," Norton said, before walking away to carry out his orders.
"We need to take James' body back to Torchwood," Pete said, suddenly realizing how dangerous it would be if the authorities got hold of him.
"Sir?" Mason asked.
"Just do it."
Pete walked away, pulling out his phone as Mason barked orders at more of his men. He vaguely heard the words body bag and cleaning fluid as he stepped into the hall. He didn't want to call Jacks, didn't want to wake her up with this kind of news, but she would be furious if he waited. It was a damned if he did, damned if he didn't situation.
After four rings she finally answered.
"Pete?" she asked, her voice thick with sleep.
"Hi, luv," he said, rubbing the back of his head with his hand.
"What're you calling this late for?"
"It's James."
"James?" She paused and he could almost hear her heartbeat rise. "Something happened. What is it? What's wrong?"
"He-he's dead. Shot."
"Shot? Where? Was Rose with him? Oh, my God! Is she alright? Tell me she's alright!"
"He was shot in their flat."
He heard her breath in sharply.
"Is Rose hurt? I'm getting dressed. Where are you?"
"Jacks, Rose isn't here."
"Where is she, Pete. Where's my daughter?"
"I don't know. I…I think someone took her."
"Took her? Why?"
"I don't know, but I'm working on it. Jacks, I'll find her. If I have to search hell itself I'll find her. I'll find our daughter."
"Are you at Torchwood?"
"Not yet, but I'm headed there. Why?"
"I'm getting dressed and coming down."
"You should stay at the house with Tony."
"I'll wake the housekeeper. She can keep an ear out for him."
"Jacks, there isn't anything you can do."
"I'm coming and that's final," she insisted.
He sighed. She was coming and there wasn't anything he could do to stop her. She'd always been stubborn like that.
"Fine. I'll meet you there."
He put his phone back in his pocket and walked down the hall to the elevator. He wasn't sure why James was killed and Rose was taken. The visitors who were attacked had gone missing. None of them had been killed as far as he knew, at least, they hadn't found any bodies. And why Rose? She wasn't a visitor. She was human. His daughter, well, his daughter from a parallel universe, but still… It didn't make any sense.
As soon as they got the video footage if the attacker left the same way he…or she…entered, through the front door, they should be able to identify him or her. All they needed was an address, somewhere to start. Find the attacker and they should be able to find Rose. He just hoped they wouldn't be too late. The attacker was obviously capable of murder.
Jackie tried, for the third time, to button her blouse, but her hands were shaking so much that she couldn't get the bloody button through the hole. A knock on her open door startled her and she nearly ripped the button off the silk fabric.
"Mrs. Tyler?" Anna, the housekeeper asked.
She was an older woman with a well formed figure and grey hair that she kept up in a messy bun.
"Yes, what is it?" Jackie snapped.
Anna paused and Jackie felt bad. She didn't talk to Anna or any of the people who worked for them like that. It was the one thing that made her different from this universe's Jackie Tyler.
"I'm sorry, dear. It's just…this bloody blouse. I can't get it buttoned," Jackie apologized.
"Let me help you," Anna said, stepping into the room and walking over to her.
"You said it was an emergency. Can I ask…? I mean, I know I have no right, but it's not…"
"Anna, I told you before, you've been working here forever and as far as I'm concerned you're family. You and your husband. You have every right to ask. It's…it's Rose and James…they… Oh, God," her voice broke, "James is dead and my daughter, she's…she's missing. Someone took my little girl."
She looked at Jackie for a moment and then with an almost grandmotherly instinct, pulled Jackie into a hug.
"I'm sorry Mrs. Tyler."
"I just don't understand why someone would do that."
Anna released her and stepped back, thinking.
"Do you think they want money?"
"Money?" Jackie asked, as if she had no idea what Anna was talking about.
"Well, you have a lot of it." She gestured at the meticulously decorated bedroom. "And there are people who would do such things to get some of it."
"A ransom?"
Jackie hadn't even thought of that. Probably because she'd never had money like this. Not until Pete saved her and brought her to the parallel world. Back in her universe Pete's daft ideas never took off and he died when Rose was a tot, but here his ideas flourished. He became rich and now that she was married to him she was rich too making Rose and Tony their heirs.
If that was true then she'd give up every dime they had to get Rose back. Was that what Pete was doing at Torchwood? Was he waiting for a phone call?
I don't own Doctor Who, any of its Characters, any of its Story Lines, however I do own a fez.
Thank you to all my brilliant readers and if you have time reviews are always welcome! :)