Two and a half months later

It amused Ianto no end that slowly, the other workers in Secure Archives were beginning to see Joe in a new light. With the obvious exceptions of Robin Spence, Jon Bourke and Carl Branton, the others were now calling Joe by name whenever he came up for discussion, rather than simply referring to him as 'the freak'. In addition, Ianto was more and more frequently finding himself praised by the others for the ways in which he had improved Joe's living conditions.

Despite the changing attitudes, though, aside from himself, Gage was the only other person who could walk safely into Joe's room, and not feel the need to carry a stun stick for protection. He and Gage were the only two that Joe never snarled at when they came to see him. In fact, whenever either one of them walked in, Joe had taken to greeting them with a rib-cracking bear hug and a loud, wet kiss on the lips.

The latter thoroughly embarrassed them both, especially once word got around Secure Archives, but neither wanted to do anything to dissuade Joe. They agreed early on that they preferred him happy and exuberant rather than cowering and miserable, and so they simply put up with it and the ribbing from their colleagues that accompanied it.

As the days, and subsequent weeks, slipped by, Ianto found himself wondering just what kind of person Joe had been before Torchwood got hold of him. As hard as it was to imagine, he suspected Joe had probably been an extreme extrovert, for every so often he gave them all glimpses of a personality that was completely uninhibited by shame or embarrassment.

A stand-out incident, and probably the funniest in hindsight, had taken place on one of Joe's designated bath days. It hadn't taken Joe long to get to know that particular routine, and he quickly came to look forward to that privilege. He soon got to know when to expect Ianto, and more often than not Ianto would walk in to find Joe hovering by the door, eager to get to the bathroom and to his 'bubbles'.

That was the other semi-amusing point. Ianto had made the mistake of taking Joe into the bathroom one day when he hadn't put any bubble bath formula into the water. Joe had taken one look at the clear water, sat down in the middle of the floor and pouted until Ianto added the formula. Ianto had taken care thereafter not to forget again.

On the day in question, however, Ianto had walked in to find Joe ready for his bath in more than one sense of the word. He'd stripped off entirely and was standing there stark naked, waiting eagerly for Ianto to take him for his bath.

Despite Ianto's best efforts at persuasion, Joe had refused to get dressed again for the short trip to the bathroom. In the end, a very red-faced Ianto had been forced to lead a very happy, oblivious and naked Joe down the corridor. Someone must have spotted them on the CCTV, because all of the female employees of Secure Archives had managed to be there to witness the display, much to Ianto's chagrin.

From that day on, Ianto had been careful to carry a robe with him when he went to collect Joe for his bath. He could have sworn that Joe had actually been pleased with himself over that little performance, but he was too busy trying to suppress his own personal amusement to chastise his charge.

Over the weeks, Joe's comprehension slowly improved, though he remained stubbornly silent, uttering only the occasional word. Though he seemed to use them in their right context, neither he nor Gage were able to be sure whether Joe was just echoing words that he heard others used. Ultimately, Ianto had no way of knowing whether the lack of improvement in vocabulary and speech was a deliberate refusal on Joe's part, or whether his mind really was so badly damaged that he was completely incapable of forming coherent sentences.

There were times, however brief and infrequent, that Ianto would catch Joe watching him, and he would see something in those pale blue eyes beyond the usual, innocent gaze. It was always just a fleeting glimpse, but it gave Ianto hope that perhaps Joe might one day be rehabilitated. Of course, Ianto mused sadly as he settled Joe into bed for the night, there had to be a rescue before there could be any thoughts of rehabilitation.

It was nearly three months since Ianto had officially been instructed to work with Joe. In some ways he'd improved, but in others he was still the same as before – almost animalistic in nature. He liked Gage and would do most things the other man asked. He especially seemed to enjoy it when Gage came and read to him. Whether he really comprehended the stories or not, they didn't know, but Gage was adept at reading with emotion and enthusiasm, and Joe would listen entranced.

Gage, however, couldn't hold a candle to Ianto. Joe adored him, and seemed to be willing to do whatever Ianto wanted him to do, and that in itself worried Ianto deeply.

He recalled only too clearly the Director's instructions about preparing Joe for new tests, and he knew instinctively that she didn't give a damn whether Joe had an IQ of 2, or 200. All she wanted was for him to be compliant in her loathsome tests, and Joe's compliance to Ianto was exactly what she was hoping for.

He had just three months left to find the Doctor and affect a rescue.

Once Joe was asleep, Ianto packed away the puzzles they'd been working on together that evening. Most were simple children's puzzles, but they did wonders for helping to improve Joe's physical coordination. That was something he was rather sorely lacking. More than that, though, the puzzles went a long way to occupying Joe's mind throughout the long days, and alleviating many hours of boredom. Ianto, personally, was impressed by the perseverance that Joe displayed in finishing some of the harder puzzles, even when some took most of the day to complete.

After checking Joe one last time to satisfy himself that he was, indeed, asleep, Ianto stepped out to find Gage waiting for him just outside the room.

"Anything wrong?" Ianto queried, and Gage answered with a casual shake of his head.

"No, not at all. Joe settled in for the night?"

"Mm, still cuddling that blanket of his. I tried to talk him into letting me take it so I could wash it, but he wouldn't let go of it. Damned thing is filthy, but he keeps cuddling up to it every night, and insists on carrying it with him every day."

Gage chuckled.

"He's completely attached to it. Hardly surprising."

Ianto raised an eyebrow quizzically as they walked together to the locker rooms.

"Oh?"

"Well, you said it yourself, didn't you? It's the first thing you gave him, and he fought to hang on to it. In the whole time he's been here, all anyone ever gave him was pain. You were the first person to treat him differently, to treat him better. That blanket is a physical reminder to him that things are better now, thanks to you."

Ianto fell quiet, immersed in thought over that. He had to concede that Gage was right.

They reached the locker rooms, and Gage clapped Ianto lightly on the shoulder.

"By the way, I ran into Sylvia from General Archives at lunchtime. She asked me to remind you about meeting her for dinner tonight. She said she'll be waiting for you in the lobby."

Ianto blinked, confused. He had no plans to meet Sylvia that night. He opened his mouth to say as much when he got a good look at the expression on Gage's face. The other man's eyes were wide, and his expression practically begged Ianto not to argue.

Shaking off his confusion, Ianto spoke in what he hoped was a natural tone of voice.

"Right. Thanks for the reminder. I'd nearly forgotten."

Gage winked at him before strolling out of the room again. Shaking his head, Ianto gathered his things and hurried to meet Sylvia.

"Thanks for getting Gage to remind me about tonight," Ianto told Sylvia cheerfully as he joined her. "I've been so busy, I'd forgotten all about it."

She linked her arm through his, and they headed out together.

"I thought you might. Not to worry, though. I made all the arrangements, so you don't need to worry at all."

Ianto kept smiling until they were well outside the Torchwood Tower, and safely in Sylvia's car.

"What's going on?" he asked tensely, all pleasantness evaporating from his features. "Where are we going, Sylvia?"

"I have a friend," Sylvia answered. "A friend who used to work for UNIT. He's long retired now, but he was fairly high up in the UNIT hierarchy, and he knows... well, he knows a lot. I spoke to him a couple of days ago about your... problem."

Ianto stiffened, panic starting to claw at his insides.

"You mean you told him about Joe? Sylvia..."

"Ianto, honey, he already knew. According to my friend, UNIT has known about Joe for years, and the only reason they haven't tried to take custody of him is because they don't have the means to properly contain him."

Ianto felt his stomach drop unpleasantly. In the event that his efforts to contact the Doctor failed, his next option had been to go to UNIT. All of a sudden, UNIT did not appear to be any better than Torchwood.

"We can't involve UNIT, sweetheart," Sylvia said quietly. "They'll just do exactly the same to the poor love as Torchwood has done."

"But you have involved them!" Ianto protested. "If they know we're trying to find the Doctor to get Joe out of there, they might decide they want him themselves!"

"Ianto, relax," Sylvia told him firmly. "I told you, Alistair is retired, and for the record, he never agreed with what Torchwood did to Joe. Anyway, he won't involved himself now. What he did do, though, was pass on a name. Someone who might be able to help you, love. Someone who apparently used to travel with the Doctor."

"Someone who can contact him?" Ianto asked, his heart pounding all of a sudden.

"I don't know, but it's a start, sweetheart. And if you're certain that you want to contact the Doctor, then you need to start somewhere."

He had to agree there. His own inquiries had so far come to nothing, and time was starting to run painfully short. He was not in a position where he could afford to brush off any offer of help, and he trusted Sylvia to do right by both him and Joe.

"Who are we going to see?"

"Her name is Sarah Jane Smith."

"I don't know that name," Ianto admitted.

"Neither do I, love, but Alistair seemed confident that we could trust her."

Ianto stared out at the passing scenery, his expression troubled.

"This is risky, Sylvia. If anyone at Torchwood finds out..."

"Ianto, if you really want to get Joe out of there, then taking risks is just part and parcel of the whole deal."

"I know. I'm just scared, Sylvia. I'm terrified that I'll fail him."

She didn't respond to that, understanding only too well that particular fear.

Sarah Jane Smith lived in a comfortably large house on Bannerman Road. It was dark by the time they got there, and Ianto's nerves were jumping all over the place as they approached the front door.

"Do you think she knows we're coming?" Ianto wondered.

"Probably not," Sylvia answered. "Just be careful, and don't mention Torchwood until we have to."

The door swung open a moment later, and a mature-looking woman peered out at them. She was quite beautiful in an understated way, Ianto thought distantly, but it wasn't her beauty that caught his attention. It was the look in her eyes – the look of someone who had seen and experienced far more than any human being was ever meant to. It was, he realised with a quiet thrill, the very same look he had seen in Joe's eyes on those rare few occasions when Joe had moments of near lucidity.

"Can I help you?" she asked with the icy politeness of someone who thought they might be dealing with a salesman, or a religious fanatic.

"Miss Smith," Sylvia said quietly, "we were told to come and see you by the Brigadier. We need your help."

"With what?"

"Contacting the Doctor."

After a split second's hesitation, she stepped to the side, and ushered them into the house.

"All right," Sarah Jane said grimly once they were safely inside. "Who are you, and why do you want to find the Doctor?"

Sylvia looked to Ianto at that.

"Go ahead, sweetheart. This is your show."

Ianto drew in an unsteady breath and spoke.

"My name is Ianto Jones, Ma'am, and I have a friend who is in a lot of trouble. I believe the Doctor is the only one who can save him."

Sarah Jane frowned as she put the kettle on the stove.

"This friend of yours, Mr Jones. What sort of trouble is he in?"

"He's being held prisoner, Ma'am. The people who have him want to experiment on him, and I want to get him out of there before that happens."

"Why don't you simply contact the police?"

"Because the situation is somewhat beyond the norm. My friend... He's not exactly a pure, home-grown human, for want of a better phrase."

"Alien?" Sarah Jane queried, but Ianto shook his head.

"No, he's not alien. At least, not that I believe. He is human... or rather, he used to be. It's a little difficult to explain, but basically, the people who have him are beyond the reach of the police, the Government... Practically everyone who might otherwise have been able to help, and it's an extremely secretive organisation."

Slowly, she turned back to stare at him.

"How is it that you know all about this situation, if the company you're talking about is so powerful and secretive?"

Ianto squirmed a little in discomfort.

"Because I... um... work for them."

Sarah Jane stared at him for several long seconds, and her face grew darker with every moment that slipped by. When she finally spoke, there was a threat in her voice that neither Ianto nor Sylvia dared to ignore.

"Get out. Both of you, out! Now!"

Ianto stumbled awkwardly to his feet, feeling a sickening rush of panic.

"Miss Smith, please..."

"You're Torchwood, aren't you? Well, you can just get out! I warned you lot before, you won't use me to get to the Doctor!"

Ianto looked to Sylvia in desperation, terrified that his one chance to find the Doctor was slipping through his fingers. The older woman patted his arm reassuringly, and calmly pulled an envelope from her bag, emptying the meagre contents onto the table.

"What is this?" Sarah Jane asked tensely. Sylvia pushed one of the photos towards her.

"Yes, Miss Smith, we are Torchwood employees, but if the Torchwood hierarchy knew we were here, we'd probably both be executed. Please, all we ask is that you hear us out. If then you want to throw us out, fine. But at least listen first."

Sarah Jane stared at them, her lips pressed tightly together. Finally, she sat, although noticeably on the edge of her seat – ready to move at a moment's notice, Ianto realised ruefully.

"All right, then. Talk."

Sylvia motioned to the photo she'd pushed across the table.

"We know the Doctor has had several different appearances over time, and the man in the left of that photo is one such appearance."

Sarah Jane glanced at the photo with practised indifference.

"I wouldn't know. I don't recognise him."

"Well, what about the girl?" Ianto asked anxiously. "Do you know who she is?"

"I may do," she conceded after sparing the photo another look. "But you're going to have to give me a damned good reason to tell you."

Ianto reached across and pointed to the image of Joe in the photo. He looked so different there compared to the man that he had been caring for over the last few months. In the photo, he looked confident and outgoing... He looked happy.

"This man here, he's the one we've come to see you because of. I call him Joe, though that's because I don't know his real name. No one does. He's a prisoner inside Torchwood Tower, Miss Smith, and he's been there for a very long time. Now, we know he used to travel with the Doctor, but we don't know anything more about him beyond that."

"He refused to talk?" Sarah Jane mused, feeling a quiet respect given that she had a fair idea of what Torchwood's methods of persuasion could be like. Ianto's next words, though, just about knocked the breath out of her.

"No, Ma'am, he can't talk. Not very well, at least. The way Torchwood has treated him over the years has turned him virtually into a child. He can't communicate very well, and he has only a very simple comprehension of what goes on around him."

"Up until three months ago, this was how Joe was treated," Sylvia said, and passed the next photo to Sarah Jane.

"Oh my god," Sarah Jane whispered in horror at the image of the man chained, battered, bruised and filthy dirty in the little room. Her first instinct was to scream at them both for letting something like this happen, but some logic prevailed. She looked up sharply.

"You said, 'up to three months ago'. What happened three months ago?"

Sylvia smiled, and patted her young companion's hand.

"Three months ago, Ianto transferred to Secure Archives. He was given the task of looking after Joe, and pretty soon that turned into this."

She handed a third picture over, and Sarah Jane found herself looking at a CCTV image that was vastly different from the previous photo. Joe was sitting on his bed, and all visible signs of abuse were gone. He was clean, healthier-looking and, by all appearances, much happier.

"I've been looking after Joe as best as I can," Ianto went on, "but in three months' time, the Director wants to start experimenting on him again. I can't let that happen, Miss Smith. I have to get him out of there."

Sarah Jane stared wordlessly at the pictures in front of her. It was certainly true that the Doctor would despise this, and she was sure he would be willing to do whatever he could to get the poor man out of there. However, there was one glaring problem.

"I can't reach him," she admitted, feeling her heart ache at the dismay on the young man's face.

"What do you mean?" Ianto asked. "You must be able to!"

"I'm sorry, but I just can't help you," she said softly. "I have no way to contact the Doctor."

Ianto slumped back, his face ashen.

"But I can't save him on my own. I need help..."

The tears came before he could stop them, and he buried his face in his hands in misery.

"Ianto, it's all right," Sylvia murmured.

"No, it's not. I promised him, Sylvia. I promised I'd get help, that I'd find someone who could save him. Now they're going to start experimenting on him again, and all the progress he's made will be ruined..."

Sarah Jane watched the scene in front of her with regret before returning her gaze to the original photo. It was true, she didn't recognise that particular regeneration, but at the same time she didn't doubt it was him. The way he held Rose's hand was a dead giveaway, even if she hadn't recognised the aura of other-worldly authority that surrounded him.

There were two others in the picture – the man who was apparently now a prisoner of Torchwood, and the young man that she recognised as Mickey Smith. Looking closer she could just make out what looked like the Cardiff Millennium Centre.

"When was this taken?" she asked.

"A little over ten months ago," Sylvia answered. "Just before that mysterious earthquake that nearly cracked open Roald Dahl Plass in Cardiff. In fact, I think it was taken that very morning."

Sarah Jane smiled wryly. She knew that date well. She'd investigated it on the quiet after hearing rumours that the Mayor of Cardiff wasn't quite human.

"Trouble does seem to follow him around, and unfortunately it sometimes rubs off on his companions. Can I ask, what did your Joe do that brought him to Torchwood's attention?"

Sylvia and Ianto exchanged glances before Ianto spoke.

"I think it was most likely his inability to stay dead after being killed. I'm fairly sure they didn't know he was associated with the Doctor before they captured him."

Sarah Jane's eyes went wide.

"He can't die?"

Ianto was quick to correct her.

"Yes, he can. He just doesn't stay dead. We don't know if he only has a limited number of resurrections available, or if he really is truly immortal."

A scowl made its way onto Sarah Jane's face.

"And I'll bet they've been exhaustive in their testing of him. Am I right?"

"Everything except decapitation," Ianto said bitterly, recalling Gage's words on his first day with Secure Archives.

"We can't allow this to continue," Sarah Jane said finally. "The Doctor needs to know."

Ianto looked up at her, puzzled but hopeful.

"But I thought you couldn't contact him?"

"I can't, but there might be someone who can." She touched the young woman's image in the photo. "Her name is Rose. Don't ask for her last name, because I won't give it to you. I believe you're both genuine, but you're still Torchwood."

"We understand," Ianto murmured, and Sylvia agreed. Satisfied, Sarah Jane went on quickly.

"As far as I know, Rose is still travelling with the Doctor. If I can track down her mother, then she might be able to reach them."

"Do you really think he'd be willing to help?" Ianto asked, and Sarah Jane gave him an odd look.

"You think he wouldn't want to?"

"I don't know," Ianto admitted. "All I know is that I showed him a picture a couple of months ago of the Doctor and that girl..."

"Rose?"

"Right. And he got upset. Very upset."

"Define 'upset'."

"He cried when I left him alone, and had severe nightmares. When we asked him about them, all he could say was 'gone'."

"They left him behind," Sarah Jane murmured, feeling a touch of sympathy as she recalled being left behind herself. Ianto nodded.

"That's what I believe. I think that whatever happened to make Joe the way he is now happened when he was with the Doctor, and I also believe the Doctor abandoned him."

Sarah Jane stared down at the photos for a long moment before asking a question that she wasn't entirely sure she wanted an answer to.

"How long as your Joe been a prisoner of Torchwood, Mr Jones?"

Ianto looked thoroughly ill as he replied.

"Over a hundred years, Ma'am. He needs to be gotten out of there, and I only have three months to do it in."

"I'll do what I can to help you," Sarah Jane promised sincerely. "But you need to leave it with me. There's nothing more you can do that won't put all of us at risk."

"What are you going to do?" Sylvia wondered.

"I can't give you any details, and you're going to have to be patient. It may take time. Just go back to your regular lives and go about your days as normal. If I succeed, I'll contact you through the Brigadier." She paused, eyeing them both critically. "No following me, or spying on me, and I mean that. If I get even the slightest inkling that I'm being tracked by Torchwood, I promise you that I'll do my best to make sure you never find the Doctor. Am I understood?"

Both Ianto and Sylvia nodded in wordless compliance.
Satisfied with their response, Sarah Jane picked up the more recent picture of Joe.

"I'll hang on to this, if you don't mind. And now, if you'll excuse me, it's getting rather late."

Ianto stood up quickly, feeling almost light-headed with relief. He honestly felt as though he'd just taken his first real step towards finding the Doctor.

"Thankyou," he told her softly. "Thankyou so much."

Sarah Jane regarded him sadly.

"It's a shame you work for Torchwood, young man. You're better than that."

Ianto smiled equally sadly, and motioned to the picture in her hand.

"For his sake, Ma'am, I'm glad that I do work for Torchwood."

She reached up and patted his cheek in a very maternal gesture.

"For his sake, so am I. But be very careful. You're treading on a deadly path."

Ianto's breath caught. He knew that, only too well.

tbc...