Ianto had only been gone a few minutes, but Jack was already pacing back and forth. He'd shown nothing but confidence in their plan to avoid discouraging Ianto, but deep inside, he felt very differently. Ianto was correct; their plan was riddled with flaws. It was borderline insane to try to shake the Morlok free. He wished there were more options for them to choose from. But here they were, with no options and probably no time.

The longer they waited, the higher the risk Ianto would be caught helping him. Torchwood might stop at retconning him if they found out, but there was no guarantee they wouldn't take things further. Under no circumstances would he allow anything to happen to Ianto. Jack had to get him out of this mess as soon as possible.

They had agreed that Jack would wait about thirty minutes before sneaking out of the room and going downstairs to make his way into the basement undetected. The door to the vault was open and unsupervised while Ianto and Evan were carrying down the crates. He shouldn't have trouble getting in; he just had to stay out of sight.

The plan was solid up to this point, but there were many unknown factors after reaching the basement. Jack would have to improvise. The rough plan was to sneak in, find a way into the Morlok's prison and feed the curing salt to the creature.

Jack came to a halt and looked down at himself.

He sighed disapprovingly. For a moment, he stood still, hands on hips, contemplating what to do. He looked up at the ceiling and nodded resolutely. Jack Harkness preferred to meet alien threats dressed accordingly. He needed his clothes back.

Jack knew exactly where to find them, thanks to Ianto's investigations a few days ago. If he left now, he would have enough time to break into the director's office and make it to the basement.


The corridor lights were turned down this time of night, and everybody in the nurses' wing was fast asleep as Jack hurried up to the third floor and broke into the director's office. Finding the drawer holding his clothes, coat, and belongings didn't take long. Putting on proper trousers and boots felt good. He snapped his braces back into place.

Jack shook out his greatcoat and slipped into it. His fingers slid over the coarse fabric, and a smile formed on his lips. He'd missed the weight on his shoulders and the way the coat swung around his legs. He'd felt almost naked without the heavy garment.

Wallet, watch vortex manipulator, everything neatly arranged in a box. Thank goodness Constance had no idea about the worth of his vortex manipulator, he thought as he wrapped the strap around his wrist. He couldn't find his Webley, which was a disappointment. His gun would've come in handy tonight, he thought wryly.

It was time to go. Jack couldn't afford to be idle any longer, or the basement door would close, and he'd be locked out.


Halfway down the corridor, Jack heard a door open. He stopped dead in his tracks and glanced around. There was nowhere to hide. He became very still and tried to disappear in the darkness's shadows.

Lynn Hopkins stepped out of the shared bathrooms, lost in thought. When she realised, she wasn't alone, her steps slowed, and she looked up.

Jack stared at her but didn't move. He put his finger to his lips to signal not to speak up.

Lynn's eyes flitted around, unsure of what to do. Then their eyes met, and she locked her gaze on him. She was measuring the strange man in a military coat standing in front of her in the middle of the night.

"Is this when the really strange things are about to happen?" She asked hesitantly, recalling Ianto's warning.

Jack furrowed his brows but didn't take his eyes off her, pondering the right response. He finally nodded.

Her shoulders sagged as she sighed.

"Promise me you'll take care of Ianto," Lynn said quietly.

A small smile appeared on Jack's face. "I will."

Lynn nodded, obviously pleased with the answer. She turned around and quickly vanished into one of the rooms further down the corridor.

Jack pushed the strange encounter from his mind and hurried down the stairs. As he approached the ground level, he hid in a dark corner and observed the activities in the entry hall.

Constance and Griffith stood at the door murmuring to each other while Ianto and another man, probably the caretaker, carried large boxes from the driveway into the entrance hall to the waiting lift.

After a while, the Torchwood agents followed their helping hands into the cellar.

Without wasting any time, Jack left his hiding place and ran through the hallway to the metal door that was slightly ajar. Hidden behind the door were an old lift and a narrow staircase. He could hear the lift rumbling and slowly rising from the basement. He crept into the stairwell and hurried down the old stone steps, careful not to make a noise.

Jack pressed his back against the wall and pricked his ears after reaching the lower level. He could hear faint voices coming from the direction of the vault with the cages Ianto had mentioned. There had to be another way to get into the Morlok's room.

Quietly, Jack slipped out of the stairwell and walked down the corridor in the opposite direction.


All eyes were on the Morlok as it devoured its prey until the last of the creatures had vanished into its vast mouth.

It had been terrifying but also fascinating to watch the long tongue sneak out of its throat and gyrate around the room, catching helpless creatures even in the farthest corners. Nothing could escape its insatiable appetite.

Ianto wondered what the Morlok looked like. Most of its body was hidden beneath the surface. All he could see was its enormous mouth. If the situation weren't so serious, Ianto would find it amusing that the creature resembled a Sarlacc sitting in the sand dunes of Tatooine, waiting for its prey.

Ianto tried his best to appear calm while his anxiety grew. Was Jack already down in the basement? Bryanna was finishing her report; otherwise, there was no work left to be done. They'd be retconned soon and sent back to their beds.

"Just one more footnote and... we're done," Bryanna chirped. "Thank you very much, everyone, and that's all for today."

"Not yet, love," Constance replied, shaking her head.

She was still upset about the recent turn of events, but she would not question London's orders. The fact that Griffith had even dared to leak the research information bothered her the most. She'd thought she knew him better and hadn't expected such a blatant betrayal of trust.

"There's one more thing we need to do. Ianto, Evan, go upstairs and get Jack Harkness. If necessary, restrain him."

"Oh yes, the Morlok wants dessert," Griffith said gleefully.

Ianto had already steeled himself to be retconned again, but this caught him completely off guard. He tensed, and his heart leapt into his throat.

"Jack? "Why?" he inquired cautiously.

"We don't need his services any longer," Griffith grinned.

Ianto remained silent, but a glint of rage danced across his face. Griffith, to his chagrin, had noticed the fleeting expression.

"Would you like to make an objection to our decision, Ianto?" he asked, a dangerous edge in his voice.

"No, sir, I don't," Ianto said quickly, locking his true feelings behind a neutral mask.

This wasn't going as planned at all. He couldn't just go up there and pretend that everything was fine. When they discovered the empty bed, all hell would break loose.

Evan grabbed his arm, pulling him along, and Ianto reluctantly followed, his mind racing for a solution.

Constance had a thoughtful expression as she watched the two men leave. Nurse Richards' words of caution about Ianto Jones came back to her mind. The complaints against him were vague but shouldn't be dismissed either.

Maybe it hadn't been such a good idea to send him and the caretaker upstairs alone.

"Griffith, we shouldn't have given this task to Ianto. He'd worked as Jack's nurse. You know what Jack is like, how easily he manipulates people. Go after them and make sure they bring Jack down without losing him along the way," she said.

"Yes, ma'am," Griffith said as his features darkened. Without another word, he drew his gun and followed them.


Ianto grunted as he dragged an unconscious Evan out of the lift. He had overpowered the caretaker as soon as they had entered the lift, holding him tightly in a choke hold until the other man had passed out.

He remembered a wardrobe in the entry hall - the perfect place to hide an unconscious body. Ianto wanted to lock him inside and return downstairs to search for Jack. Together they would put an end to all of this.

Ianto locked his arms under Evan's shoulders and yanked him up, dragging him across the floor. Just a few more steps. The hard metal of a barrel against the back of his head brought him to a halt. The click of a gun being cocked echoed in his ears.

Ianto tensed and became very still.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Griffith hissed behind him.

Ianto let go of Evan and let him slump to the floor. Slowly he raised his hands, saying nothing.

Griffith increased the pressure of the barrel against his head.

"Say something, you moron!" the Torchwood agent roared angrily.

"There's no need to go upstairs," Ianto finally answered. "You're too late. Jack Harkness is long gone. I helped him escape."

Griffith smacked him in the head with the broad side of his weapon. Ianto stumbled but managed to catch himself. While turning around to face his opponent, he pressed his hand against the throbbing back of his head. Griffith was aiming at him, his finger on the trigger.

The caretaker regained consciousness and groaned as he pushed himself up.

"What happened?"

Griffith sneered, "You got knocked out by a nurse."

The Torchwood agent ordered Evan to go upstairs and check on Harkness. Only a few minutes later, the man returned to report that the room was empty. There was no trace of Jack Harkness anywhere. Griffith reached into his pocket and pulled out a vial containing today's dose of retcon pills. Never lowering his gun, he tossed the vial to Evan.

"Take these and go to sleep. We won't need your services again tonight."

Evan didn't need to be told twice; he quickly shoved the vial in his pocket and ran up the stairs to his room to put as much distance as possible between himself and what was about to happen.

Griffith motioned for Ianto to enter the lift. "You and me? We're going down to the basement."