Chapter Twenty

"Thank God that's over." Jack said settling into the captain's chair beside Rose. "I think I've seen more than enough spider women for awhile. Geez and I though weevils were bad."

He looked at the Doctor who was imputing coordinates into the computer.

"Where to next, Doctor?" he asked.

The Doctor said nothing. Rose and Jack glanced at each other.

"Doctor?"

"Yes, Rose?"

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Rose. I'm just finding a spot where we can cremate the Widow's body in safety." He said softly, keeping his eyes on the monitor.

He finished imputing the coordinates and without another word turned and walked out of the room.

Jack glanced at Rose.

"What's gotten into him?" he asked.

"I don't know, but I'm gonna find out." Rose said rising to her feet.

She quickly ran out of the room after the Doctor. She found him in the spare room where they had taken the Widow's body. She stuck her head into the room and saw him staring silently at the Widow's body.

"Doctor?" she said hesitantly.

The Doctor jerked his head up.

"Oh! I need your help. We need to wrap the body up and get it ready for cremation. Could you give me a hand?" He said.

Rose nodded. She came into the room and shut the door behind her.

"Doctor, what's wrong?" she asked.

The Doctor picked up a white canvas tarp from the floor.

"We'll wrap her in this and then use this rope to bind the body." He said ignoring her. "I just need you to help me lift her up and then---"

Rose put a hand on his shoulder.

"Doctor, what's wrong?" she said emphatically. "And don't tell me nothing, because I know you well enough to know when something's troubling you. What is it?"

The Doctor sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"I just hate what they did to her." He said indicating the Widow's body. "It just burns me up that once again Torchwood ignored the rights of others for their own gain. The Widow's people were my people's greatest enemies, but that doesn't give Torchwood the right to warp her body and turn her into a freak! Mind you, I'm not condoning her actions in any way. The Widow was a threat and she had to be stopped and I'm glad that she's somewhere now where she can't hurt anyone, but on the other hand she was just following a basic primal instinct to survive and multiply her species any way that she could. Most of the murders happened as a result of her needing to feed. That's what it comes down to in the end, Rose, survival for her and her kind."

He slammed his hand down on the metal table holding the Widow's body.

"Nothing would have happened if they had just left her and her siblings alone." He said angrily. "If they hadn't drilled that hole and disturbed that nest, all those people she killed would still be alive. Torchwood is evil, Rose, they have to be stopped!"

"But what about Jack's team?" Rose asked. "I don't think they're evil."

The Doctor paused in thought.

"No, I do believe that Jack wouldn't let his team sink to the level of these other Torchwoods." He admitted. "He knows the consequences if that should happen."

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"Excepting him and his people, the other Torchwoods need to be put out of commission once and for all. This is the second time we've had to deal with the result of their irresponsible blundering and I'm sick of it. I'm sick of wasting my time and energy and putting our lives in jeopardy to fix their messes. As long as they exist, you and I will always be in danger whether it's from their botched experiments or just because of the fact that I'm public enemy number one in their eyes. They have to be stopped! We have to find all these renegade Torchwood facilities and put them out of commission before they latch onto another crazy scheme and end up hurting more innocent people. I've been running from them for far too long, Rose, it's time for us to stand and fight before they destroy the planet!"

Rose smiled and put her hand on his arm.

"Whatever you do, my Doctor, wherever you go, I will follow." She said.

He smiled and kissed her on the lips.

"I know you will." He said tenderly.

"But…if we are going to find all these other Torchwoods and put them out of commission, I think it would be helpful to have someone with us who knows a lot about them." She said.

"Rose…"

"Doctor, Jack and his team can help us do it. I'm sure after what Jack saw, he'd be more than willing to help put the others out of commission and his team could come in handy. We need them, Doctor, especially since we're not even sure how many branches there are. If they're building secret underground laboratories, who's to say they don't have secret labs scattered all over the planet by now?"

She squeezed his arm.

"And once they figure out what you're doing, they'll be after you, Doctor. After us. They won't allow us to destroy their labs without a fight. Especially since Torchwood was originally created to fight against you. We're gonna need all the help we can get."

The Doctor thought that over and nodded.

"Yeah, you're right, plus I wanna see this team of his for myself. See how good they really are." He said.

He glanced at the Widow's body.

"First though, I want you to help me prepare the body, we'll be arriving on Zaton 5 any moment now." He said.

Rose nodded. She squeezed his hand as the Doctor leaned in and kissed the top of her head. He nuzzled her head and smiled at her as she let go of his hand and grabbed the canvas.

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"That should do it." The Doctor said as he and Jack moved the last log into place.

He nodded to him and they grabbed the wrapped and bound body of the Widow and placed her on top of the pyre. Grabbing the petrol can, he poured out some of the petrol onto the logs. He motioned for Jack and Rose to grab the petrol can and step back as he grabbed the flaming torch. He touched it to the wood and flames sprung up instantly. He walked around the pyre setting the wood alight in several places before throwing the torch on the top of the logs. He stepped back and he and the others watched as the blaze consumed the Widow's body.

"So, when do you want to get started on this Torchwood hunt?" Jack asked him.

"As soon as possible. I want to move quickly before the other labs have realized what has happened." The Doctor replied.

"Provided there are other secret labs around."

"Oh, I have no doubt there are, Jack, no doubts in my mind at all." The Doctor said.

He looked at Jack.

"First, we go pick up your team and explain what's going on." He said.

"You got it. My team will do whatever I ask them to." Jack replied.

"You sure?"

"Yup, not to mention we haven't had much activity lately so I'm pretty sure they're itching for something to do."

The Doctor nodded.

"Then let's not waste anymore time." He said. "Come on."

He took Rose's hand and the three of them turned and walked back to the TARDIS.

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Owen, Tosh and Gwen looked up when they heard a strange wheezing sound. Their eyes widened in shock as a blue box materialized in the hub.

"What the bloody hell?" Owen muttered.

They looked at each other when the TARDIS door opened and Jack stepped out.

"Hey, guys, I'm back. Anything happen while I was out?" he asked.

"Um…no, Jack, it's been pretty quiet." Tosh said slowly.

"Great, because I have an assignment for all of you. I need you to round up Ianto and meet me in here."

"In the police box?" Gwen said in disbelief.

"Yes, Trust me, I'll explain everything. But first, I want you to meet a couple of friends of mine. Afterwards we'll round up any equipment we may need and then we'll head out."

He grinned.

"Pack your things, guys. We got a mission and it's a biggie!"

THE END.

A/N: This is the first in a series of stories called The Hunt For Torchwood. I just started the next one The Hunt For Torchwood: Antartica which picks up where this leaves off.