Chapter Fifteen

Thanks to everybody who's reviewed so far – this chapter's for you!

Disclaimer: If I ask really nicely, please please pleasecan I have Torchwood?

Toshiko shook her head, speechless. She readjusted her glasses and tapped a couple of keys on the keyboard.

"If I can find where this message was sent from..." she started carefully. "Then­­— that's odd."

"What is it?"

"It appears to be that this message wasn't sent at all. There's no e-mail address." Tosh tapped another few buttons.

"What can you find?" Jack said, crossing his arms defensively. "Can you find how it got into your Inbox?"

Toshiko shook her head. "There's nothing – the message seemed to have just... appeared."

"But how is that possible?" Jack asked in confusion.

"It isn't. There's no way that any of this is possible," Toshiko said grimly. "Phones shouldn't be able to work from the bottom of the ocean. They shouldn't be able to influence Ianto and make him ill like this. They shouldn't be able to do any of this."

Jack frowned and read the email again.

Torchwood – you might want to stop this investigation before somebody gets hurt. Go away and leave us alone. Mr Jones will be fine if you return to Cardiff – all of you. You won't get out of it by sending him back alone. Stay here much longer and we promise you he'll suffer.

If you value his life in any way, stop this investigation. It's got nothing to do with you or the Rift.

Stay away.

"But surely we can do something," he insisted.

Toshiko met his gaze evenly. "Like what? I can't see any loophole in this."

Jack was silent. Neither could he. He felt helpless, and Jack Harkness was never helpless. Jack Harkness always had a quip or innuendo to make everything better.

But he didn't now.

"Should we tell Ianto?" Tosh asked nervously.

Jack worried his lower lip. If he told him, then Ianto would feel liable for the investigation being called off. On the other hand, he disliked purposely keeping things from him, and he knew that Ianto would feel betrayed if he didn't explain why they were turning around.

For, of course, they would be turning around. There was no way he was going to risk Ianto.

"Maybe," he said finally. "What do you think?"

"I think you should tell him," Toshiko said instantly. "He would want to know."

"Yeah, I would," Ianto agreed.

Jack and Tosh spun around in surprise, to see Ianto standing in the corner, pale-faced.

"I thought I told you to go back to sleep," Jack said sharply. He could have bit off his tongue when he realised how abrupt he sounded.

Ianto's face registered the hurt for a fraction of a second before he had schooled it back into neutral blankness.

"Sorry," Jack apologised. "I didn't mean it to sound like that."

"You don't mean a lot of things," Ianto returned coolly, stepping further into the room to look at the screen of the laptop. "But it doesn't stop them hurting when it happens."

Jack's heart missed a beat. "What are you saying?" he asked in shock.

Ianto ignored him. "I think we should carry on with the investigation," he said after reading the message.

"No way," Jack said instantly. "We're going back home first thing tomorrow."

Ianto raised an eyebrow. "I think I should get to choose, don't you? It's me they're threatening, after all."

"Yeah, but—"

"And I say we carry on. They could be bluffing," Ianto interrupted him.

"And they could be serious!" Jack retorted, starting to feel angry at the Welshman. "Don't you see? They chose you because they knew we wouldn't be able to manage without you!"

"That's true," Toshiko agreed quietly. "They chose the most important member of the team that they could actually hurt in some way."

"This is all my fault," Jack said quietly, staring at the ground. "I should have come by myself, instead of dragging you all out."

"And manage a group of unknown aliens all by yourself?" Ianto scoffed. "Fat chance. And you wouldn't last two days without my coffee."

"See?" Jack said. "None of us could manage without you, and not just because of the coffee!"

"What are you saying?" Ianto asked quietly, meeting Jack's gaze evenly with calm blue eyes.

Jack dropped his gaze. "I'm saying that I couldn't manage without you, Yan."

Ianto's lips quirked into the faintest trace of a smile. "I'm well aware of that, sir," he remarked. "But I still think that we should carry on. I'm not a child, Jack, I can look after myself."

Jack stared at him for a moment. "Do you realise what you're suggesting?"

"I'm well aware of what I'm suggesting," Ianto replied. "I know what's at stake."

Jack let his arms fall to his sides. "OK, then."

"Jack—" Toshiko started.

"Leave it, Tosh," Jack said warningly.

Ianto stifled a yawn and turned back to the cabin door. "Now, I don't know about you two, but I'm going back to bed."

Review, people – please! Another chapter might be up later today, but more likely tomorrow. I'm trying to be more regular with my updates now.