"Scratch a piece of folklore hard enough, and you'll find facts down there somewhere," Una mused. "Well, Victoria had her virtues, but a sense of humour wasn't one of them. At least not beyond her closest intimates."

The name Torchwood rang the faintest of bells; it had come up at least once before ... in the story (http://community.livejournal.com/dizzy_land/277273.html?thread=16298009#t16298009) about what happened to Rose? The details were elusive; there had been so many names and things to take in at the time. She wondered if the association with those unhappy events accounted for the sharpness in his tone. "You've mentioned it before. Torchwood, I mean. What is it?"