They made their way down the corridor until they got to the stairs. Ianto hesitated, concerned that the treads wouldn't bear their weight. He didn't think Dafydd was going to be agile enough to follow him by walking on the edges where the frame could provide more support, so he slowly made his way down the stairs, testing each one with his weight before gesturing for Dafydd to follow him.
It was awkward, walking backwards down the steps, but he wanted to be able to catch Dafydd if something happened. His luck held though, as they made their way down the stairs and out of the building. Dafydd threw up his arm as they reached the sunlight and cowered for a moment. Ianto waited patiently, knowing that the sunlight wherever the other man had been was probably what had caused the damage to his skin.
"It's okay," he said softly, trying to calm the other man. "I'm here." Dafydd lowered his arm and stared in wonder at the sky. Tears were running down his cheeks, mixing with the weeping sores from his blistered skin. After a long pause he stepped back out into the light, though he did hunch down reflexively.
"Almost there," Ianto said encouragingly. He thought about trying to move his car closer, but figured he'd do some damage to the tires if he did. Slowly he coaxed Dafydd across the abandoned lot until they got to his car. Dafydd stopped, staring at the vehicle as if he had never seen one before.
Reaching into the bag over his shoulder, he pulled out a blanket that was usually used for protecting burn patients. He opened the passenger seat and spread the blanket out over it. "Can you sit here?" He wondered if he should just let Dafydd lie in the backseat, but when the other man moved to sit, he backed away and let him gingerly take a seat. Once the other man had gotten both legs into the car, he gently shut the door, making sure that he didn't accidently hit him.
He stowed the bag in the back seat before getting into the car himself. He looked over at the other man, who was gazing in wonder at the interior of the car. It made him wonder what time frame he had been in originally before he was snatched by the rift. He opened his mobile and dialed a number.
"Yes, may I please speak to Helen? Yes, tell her that it is Ianto Jones calling," he said when someone picked up at the other end. "Hi Helen, hope all is well. I have another one for you. Yes, we're on our way. Oh, if you could, that would save me a step in calling the boat captain. Thank you. And you may want to have someone on hand who can handle burns. Yes. Bad. I'll see you within the hour then. Thanks," Ianto said before closing his mobile. Dafydd just stared at him when he pocketed the tiny phone and put it in his suit jacket pocket.
"Are you okay?" He asked softly. Dafydd nodded. Ianto reached down and opened up a bottle of water. "Can you hold this?" He held the bottle out and Dafydd grasped it carefully with both hands. "Drink that, but slowly." He waited until the other man had sipped a few times to bring the level down before he started the car and shifted gears. He was going to drive carefully. The less he jostled the poor man, the better.
It seemed like a long drive until they got to the wharf, but the sun was just dropping to the horizon when they arrived. He was happy that there weren't a lot of people along the waterfront and he got another of the blankets out of the back to shield Dafydd from onlookers when they got out of the car. He carefully wrapped the thin fabric around the other man, wincing at the whimpers he heard from just the light touch of the fabric. They made their way to the waiting boat, Ianto moving Dafydd up the ramp and inside where they would be out of the salt air.
"I'll be right back," Ianto promised before heading up to speak to the captain. "Evening, Captain."
"Evenin'" the older man said with a nod. "Another one, eh?" Ianto nodded. "You go sit back then, and take care of the poor bugger. " Ianto thanked him before turning away, but not before he heard the other man griping about stupid government experiments. He made his way back to the cabin and stepped inside. Closing the door, he sat opposite Dafydd and watched him. He wasn't sure if he should offer food, and decided that it would be best to wait until after the doctors had seen to him first. He still had the water that Ianto had given him, taking a sip from time to time and savoring it, as if he hadn't had anything so good in years. It was possible he hadn't.
Dafydd started as the boat pulled away from the pier and he clutched the edge of the seat in reaction to the slow rolling as they made their way across the water. "It's okay," Ianto assured him. "We're going to a place where someone can help you and you'll be safe."
"Home?" Dafydd asked. It was the only word he had spoken since Ianto had first found him.
"A new home," Ianto said. "One where people can help you." They were making good time across the water as the engines purred below, driving them through the water. "Dafydd, do you remember your last name?" Dafydd just stared at him, not answering. It was possible he didn't remember his first name either, after whatever he had experienced. Ianto sighed and slumped down in the seat, staring at Dafydd and wondering what he had been through. At least he was functional and could understand English. Sometimes when he found someone returned from the rift they were almost catatonic from whatever had happened to them. He had hopes that Dafydd would be able to recover somewhat, since he was still responsive.
Eventually he heard the ringing of the bell which signified their approach to the shore. Ianto made his way out so he could help toss the rope to a waiting attendant, who pulled the boat up to the dock. Usually the captain stayed inside, not wanting to see his passengers if he could help it. Ianto was sure he had nightmares about some of the things he had seen and heard, but he kept on helping them, knowing that they were there to assist these poor, tortured people. Even if he didn't know the real cause of how they received their injuries.
The attendant rolled a set of stairs up to the boat and Ianto went inside to help Dafydd up and over the side. Dafydd resisted at first, scared by the man on the dock until Ianto quietly assured him that the man was there to help. Once he had carefully gotten Dafydd onto the dock, he and the attendant got him seated in a wheelchair and walked up the pathway to the facility on the island. They would have to walk from there, but at least that saved poor Dafydd from walking the whole way.
