Fffc Bingo Card - In too deep

[m_findlow]

Title: In too deep
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Rhys 
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 1,000 words
Content notes: none 
Author notes: Written for Bingo Card Prompt 10 - Trouble at fffc
Summary: Rhys is taking matters into his own hands since Gwen keeps lying to him. 

Rhys slammed the heel of his palm into the steering wheel, even though it hurt like hell afterwards. ‘I knew it. I bloody well knew it,’ he muttered. 

He could scarcely believe he'd gotten up the courage to get in the car and follow Gwen from their apartment block. He sort of knew she worked somewhere in the bay precinct but he'd never bothered to ask for details and Gwen had never offered them up. It was all to do with it being special ops and all. They couldn't go flashing about their whereabouts. It wasn't like headquarters up at the end of Lloyd George Avenue, where everybody knew the local cop shop was. This was all a bit hush hush and Rhys hadn't minded it so much. He might have even gone so far as to boast about it a little with his mates after a few pints on a Friday night. He was bloody proud of Gwen being hand picked for the promotion. Or at least he had been. 

He should be gutted about Leighton’s death but all he can think about is seeing Gwen at the accident scene, trotting around with her co-workers like this was totally normal. She hadn't even reacted when he'd told her he knew Leighton and that she'd met him. It was like there was this other Gwen, sort of cold and distant, that pretended like nothing had happened and that Rhys wasn't involved and neither was she. It was his bloody lorry and here she was snooping around and taking custody of the goods. If they thought it was drugs or something that caused the crash, why not just day so? Why all the secrecy and the lies? 

Why? Now he knew why. The same bloke in the big coat who'd been strutting around at the crash site was now standing there out on the Plass, even as Gwen was walking up to him from where she'd left her car parked up on Bute Street. It was clear he must be her boss, but there was something more he couldn't put his finger on. At least not until he'd offered up his arm and Gwen and taken it, wrapping her around it and snuggling up close to him as they continued towards the Millennium Centre, all smiles and laughter. That was not the way you carried on with your boss unless there was more going on between the two of you. 

At one point they were so close Rhys had to duck down behind the wheel in case Gwen spotted him but she didn't. She was still chatting with her boss, the two of them looking like they were out on a date. Rhys got a good look at him only about twenty feet away. He was more than just a little good looking and it made him furious. Why Gwen? Why would you do this to us? Rhys knew he wasn't exactly picture perfect, a little bit of a beer belly on him the other side of thirty now, and the odd greying hair, but... He couldn't compete with that. Suddenly it all made sense why Gwen was always having to go into work at all odd hours and never come home when she said she would. He couldn't believe how blind he'd been not to see it. He was well more than just her boss. 

Rhys massaged his wrist which was still smarting from his earlier anger vented, feeling sorry for himself. They were off again somewhere and though a little part of him didn't want to know, the bigger part simply had to. They were probably taking off for his place or maybe some fancy hotel where they could continue things in private. He couldn't explain why, but he knew he had to follow them. He had no idea what he'd do when he got there. Would he confront them? Would he get out of the car and deck the bloke who was shagging his fiancé? Jesus, she was his fiancé! Not just his girlfriend or his date. Gwen had made a promise to marry him and here she was going off with her boss! 

He watched them get into a huge black SUV. Of course he'd have a fancy bloody car, wouldn’t he? Rhys followed carefully behind them, surprised when they took the turn-off for the motorway. He was even more confused when it looked like they were headed back the way they'd come this morning. They went past the original crash site and took a turn off for a large warehouse complex. That threw Rhys. If they weren't off for a bit of afternoon delight, then what? Was this where Leighton had been getting his deliveries from? 

Something nagged at Rhys and he knew he needed answers from Gwen, even if it meant copping a bollocking from her for having followed her here. It was only fair wasn't it, that as the manager of the company Leighton had worked for, to want to know what was going on. He had nothing to hide, but maybe someone else had. He didn't want Gwen or anyone she worked with thinking he was complicit in whatever was going on around here. If he'd known, he would have stopped it, or done something. 

He rang Gwen's phone but she refused to pick up. He got out of the car but no sooner had he done so than two blokes were walking toward him, and neither of them was one from Gwen's team this morning. They had walkie-talkies and they didn't look all that pleased to see him. They only occurred to him now that maybe he'd blundered into some criminal operation. Oh, bollocks, Rhys Williams. The trouble he might be in from Gwen was probably nothing compared to the trouble he was in right now. Now would be a really good time for Gwen and her boss to show themselves and arrest someone before Rhys ended up in really deep shit.