Torchwood: Exodus Code

her partner’s.
    ‘A great many things, I’m sure, but none of them with drinks served on time.’
    ‘Whisky, Captain?’
    Jack nodded.
    Leaning forward, keeping her ankles crossed, she uncorked the decanter. ‘Win’s family own a distillery in the highlands. This is one of their best single malts.’
    Jack relaxed into the chair. ‘Dr Steele, I want to apologise for getting off on the wrong foot with you.’
    ‘Olivia, I insist.’
    ‘Then it’s Jack.’
    ‘And there’s no need to apologise. It’s forgotten.’
    ‘Friends?’ asked Jack.
    ‘Friends,’ said Olivia pouring him a healthy dram.
    He tilted the glass before lifting it to his nose. He inhaled its smoky peaty warmth, and as soon as he did he heard a distinctive chime of music that sent a jolt of pleasure through him. He gasped. Recovering from the sensation quickly, he answered, ‘Wonderful. Truly.’
    ‘It is, isn’t it,’ said Olivia, sitting back on the couch. She took a sip from her glass. ‘Of course, I realised when I got in the lift what you were doing, that you incited my rant so I’d unwittingly reveal patient information. I should probably have had you removed from Ms Cooper’s visiting list.’ She smiled. ‘Although that’s moot now, isn’t it. An unforgivable error on security’s part.’ She sipped a little more. ‘Have you heard anything about where she might be?’
    Jack shook his head. ‘Not yet. Her husband is worried she may hurt herself again. Or, worse, someone else.’
    ‘Yes,’ said Olivia, ‘that’s seems to be the worst symptom of this strange illness, doesn’t it? But Ms Cooper was given her anti-psychotic medication before she escaped, so I hope she’ll be less inclined to hurt anyone and will be back in custody before she needs another dose.’
    Putting the glass to his lips, Jack took a sip, this time prepared for his body’s startling response. He held the whiskey in his mouth for a beat, then another, letting the warmth of it caress his tongue, the sweet flavours electrifying his entire mouth, every taste bud alive and tingling and then he swallowed, the liquid like velvet on his throat. He shivered.
    ‘You do look like you’re enjoying the whiskey,’ smiled Olivia. ‘Win will be pleased.’
    Not as pleased as I feel, thought Jack, shifting slightly in his seat. The intense sexual feelings were wonderful, but not entirely welcomed. Jack was aware that his body was reacting to stimuli in heightened ways recently, and given what had happened during the earthquake, the sighting of the puma, and his emotional breakdown, he was beginning to worry. He tried to focus.
    Olivia balanced her glass on the arm of the couch. ‘I believe you said you had a theory you’d like to share with me about why all these women around the world are falling prey to this so-called masochistic madness.’
    ‘We know a number of things already,’ said Jack, reluctantly setting his glass on a mahogany table next to his chair. ‘Obviously, it’s happening only to women and each one is self-mutilating in some way during her psychotic incidents. From the reports I’ve studied, the most common thing they’re doing is damaging their eyes, ears or tongues.’
    Except Gwen, he thought, who’s carved a strange symbol on her forearm.
    ‘Suggesting,’ added Olivia, ‘that their neurosis is tied to their senses in some way. Yes. I think that’s a reasonable assumption.’
    ‘Exactly,’ said Jack, reaching to sip more whiskey but thinking better of it, for now anyway. What he had to say was too important. ‘I think all of these women are synaesthetes, Olivia, and whatever is affecting them has made their synaesthesia acute and extreme, overwhelming their senses.’
    And mine, too, thought Jack. He glanced at the whiskey glass, catching a whiff of its palate and experiencing another kick of desire that went right to the growing ache of pleasure in his groin.
    ‘Fascinating, Jack!’ Olivia finished her whiskey and refilled her glass. She held the decanter up to Jack who shook his head, more aggressively than he intended. ‘I wrote a paper on synaesthesia in my third year at Cambridge. My professor at the time was one of the first neuroscientists to study the phenomenon seriously, and he made some quite startling discoveries about it.’
    ‘I know,’ said Jack. ‘I read your work and his earlier this evening.’
    Olivia looked into her glass for a few beats. ‘You know, you may be on to something, Jack.