'And do we have any possible details on what might be the cause of her death?'
A sock in one hand, Gwen stared at the TV.
'Well, as you can see from all the cars and vans behind me, there's a lot of police presence at this five-star hotel this morning and, although they have yet to release a statement, sources within the hotel who saw Ms Bruno in her rooms before the police arrived say that it would appear that her death was violent and her body was mutilated. Again, I have to stress that these are unconfirmed reports, but given the sheer quantity of police and forensic vans that are here I would suggest that it seems unlikely that her death was accidental or natural.'
'God.' Gwen's heart sank. Mutilated. It would be too much of a coincidence if this wasn't their alien.
'Are you saying this has something to do with you lot?' Beside her, Rhys's eyes were wide. 'Bloody hell, Gwen, but she's a star.'
Gwen shrugged. 'We all bleed, Rhys. We're all human.'
'Apart from maybe whatever killed her though, eh?' Rhys's voice was soft and Gwen didn't answer. There wasn't any need.
On screen, the newsreader touched her headset. 'I'm going to have to pause you there, Judy. We're just getting reports in that the body of a man has been discovered in the Angel Street park in Cardiff. The unidentified man was found by an early-morning dog walker in the area of the swings in the children's safe play area.' Gwen watched as she visibly flinched. 'The police have closed off the park and are treating the death as suspicious. Early reports suggest that the man had been violently mutilated.'
The repetition of the word made even the hardened journalist pause, and Gwen turned the TV off. She'd heard enough. Pulling her socks on, she stumbled into the hallway to grab her boots.
'I take it you're working late tonight?' Rhys leaned on the wall. She gave him a sad smile.
'Looks like it.'
There was a moment's silence while a thousand things went unsaid between them but were at the same time heard and understood.
Boots on, Gwen reached up and kissed him. 'I love you, Rhys Williams.'
'And I love you too, Gwen Cooper. And you bloody well take care out there.'
She grinned. 'I always do.' It was a lie that she knew he didn't believe but still liked to hear.
Seconds later, the door clicked shut, and Gwen Cooper belonged entirely to Torchwood again.
FOURTEEN
Stepping out of the lift that carried her down into the Hub, the first thing that hit Gwen was the sound of phones ringing. Given how few people were even aware of Torchwood's existence, that wasn't a good sign for the shape of the day ahead.
Not stopping to answer any, she found Ianto standing outside Jack's office. As always when he was frustrated with outside interference, their boss was pacing slightly behind his desk. From where Gwen was standing, it didn't look like Jack was getting much of a word in. She watched his lips.
'Yes, I understand… Yes sir, we're doing all we can…'
'Doesn't look good,' she muttered.
'First Minister for Wales was apparently a big fan.' Ianto didn't say who of. The answer was obvious. It wouldn't be the unnamed man in the park. 'As were several high-powered members of UNIT. We've had calls from both Manhattan and Geneva. They want to know if we've got a problem that we can't handle. Seems like everyone wants answers and fast.'
'What about the other body?'
'He's the same. Cutler's securing that scene now. Clothes and skin were fused as they were cut open. And just like Maria Bruno and the others, the vocal cords were gone.'
Gwen chewed the inside of her mouth. 'But no one would be causing all this fuss just for him or those three other poor sods, would they? How crap is that?'
Ianto shrugged. 'It's the way the world works.'
'Yeah, maybe, but it doesn't mean I have to like it. I want to get this bloody alien for all of them.' Biting her lip, Gwen tried to calm down. Snapping at Ianto was a tell-tale sign that she was getting emotionally involved in a case and, as much as she couldn't stop herself, she didn't want Ianto or Jack to see that it was getting to her.
'We all do, Gwen.' Ianto looked at her sideways. 'You think Jack is affected by celebrity? That he sees one victim as more important than another?'
Gwen stayed silent. Ianto was right. She couldn't blame him for the behaviour of the rest of the world. If anyone was untouched by its shallowness, then that person was Captain Jack Harkness. He'd seen too much. He was too different. Jack was, and she couldn't help but feel a tingle run down her spine, Jack was special.
On the other side of the glass, the subject of their conversation slammed down the receiver and flung open the door.
'Get those phones switched off. Now.' Striding past both Ianto and Gwen, Jack ran his hands through his hair. 'Jesus, I can't even hear myself think. If I have to say 'yes sir' or 'no sir' one more time today then I swear to God I think I'll shoot myself.'
Gwen glanced back at Jack's office and the old Second World War revolver that lay on his desk. 'So you think adding a headache to your problems will help us sort this mess out, then?'
Jack glared at her. 'Whereas you seem to think humour will?'
Her smile fell. Gwen could see that he was tired and his patience was wearing thin. While she'd been home with Rhys, he'd been here working.
'Sorry.'
He waved her apology away. 'Not your fault. Just too much bureaucracy for this time in the morning.' He took a deep breath and planted his hands on his hips.
Behind them, Ianto flicked a switch and the sound of telephones abruptly ceased. The Hub fell mercifully silent.
Jack finally smiled. 'Thank you.' He leaned against a workstation and let out a long sigh, his shoulders slumping slightly as they released some tension.
'Have you been working all night?' Gwen asked. Over by the coffee machine, Ianto set the water burbling.
'In the words of the great Lionel Richie, I have indeed been working all night long.' Jack looked up. 'But it was worth it.'
Both Ianto and Gwen stared.
'This isn't the time for a dramatic pause,' Gwen said finally. Her heart was thumping hard. 'What have you found?'
'I think I know who our alien is. Or at least where he comes from.'
Gwen looked over at Ianto and saw her own excitement reflected there. Five people were dead, and they hadn't been able to do anything about it. This was the first time they'd had anything that even resembled a lead.
Jack leaned over the large computer screen next to the Rift monitor. 'Come take a look.'
Ianto and Gwen leaned in on either side of him, and Gwen wondered if Ianto felt the same slight electric charge when his arm brushed against Jack's that she did. Probably. And probably a lot more. After all, their relationship was somewhat more intimate. For a moment her mind drifted, wondering not for the first time, how differently Jack would touch her from how he touched Ianto. Heat crept into her face and, frowning, she forced herself to focus on the screen. This
'What are we looking at?' she asked.
'This, my friends, is what the furthest corner of the known universe looks like.' Jack hesitated. 'Known to Earth, anyway.'
Beneath the gridlines marking out coordinates, the screen was filled with swirls of coloured gases and dark spots of various shapes that Gwen could only imagine were planets. Dotted more sporadically were brighter orbs. Suns.
