A Beastly Rescue, Beauty and the Beast 2012

by BATulip

written during the time between S1 & S2. Catherine, JT and Tess work together to find and rescue Vincent

A Beastly Rescue

Prologue (based on the TV Show Beauty and the Beast Season One airing on The CW Network):

Nine Years ago, that's when Catherine Chandler's life changed, she had been saved by a beast when her mother was gunned down in front of her. Everyone told her that what she saw was the result of an injury she sustained from falling and hitting her head on a rock while running away from the mysterious gunmen.

Vincent Keller, after having his firefighter brothers killed in the Twin Towers tragedy joins the military to avenge his brother's death. While serving in Afghanistan, he is tapped for a special project. A secret organization called Muirfield, injected him and other soldiers with cross species DNA telling them it was vitamins, steroids to make them stronger but something went terribly wrong. When their adrenaline kicks in the soldiers change, transforming them into horrid beasts that were uncontrollable. The Muirfield was told to eliminate the soldiers as well as the experiments and Vincent was the only one to have escaped. To the world Vincent was legally dead and in order to avoid being detected by Muirfield, he had to rely on his best friend JT Forbes for survival. Muirfield was always on the lookout for anyone who may have escaped their elimination process and when Catherine was saved by Vincent during her mother`s murder it hinted to Muirfield that at least one may have survived.

Over the years Vincent kept tabs on Catherine, making sure she remained safe and that the group that hunted him never hunted her. Fast forward to present day, Catherine is now a police officer with the Special Crimes Unit along with her partner and best friend, Tess Vargas. A few months ago a case brought Catherine face to face with the beast who had saved her life the night her mother was murdered. Once again Vincent saves Catherine from Muirfield`s clutches and they realize their lives would never be the same.

Early in their friendship, Vincent began suffering blackouts, having no knowledge of what he was doing or where he was going. During a drug induced semi-conscious state that brought forward repressed memories, Vincent discovers that Catherine's mother Vanessa was involved with Muirfield when he was in Afghanistan and that she had developed a serum for these blackouts. Devastated at the involvement of her mother with Vincent`s corrupted DNA Catherine finds the formula in her mother`s research that her father had kept hidden in the back storage room of her childhood home. Giving the formula to JT, who is also a bio-chemist, he develops the serum in hopes of curing Vincent of his blackouts. With serum in hand JT returns to their hideout to discover Vincent had escaped the cage they built to contain him in such circumstances and that he had transformed and was no longer aware of his surroundings, Vincent had become destructive and dangerous. Catherine is able to break through the fugue and calm Vincent back to his human form. Frustrated, Vincent grabs an untested syringe of the serum and injects himself with it, determining that he'd rather die than inflict any more harm to his friends. Thankfully, the serum works and Vincent in the course of a couple weeks discovers that the blackouts were the result of his DNA mutating and that he now had a new ability. Adding to his super human strength, speed and long distance hearing was the ability to see in the dark – Vincent had night vision.

Eventually Vincent and Catherine declared their love for each other. Having every reason to stay apart they risked everything to be together. Muirfield will never stop hunting him and now a special task force is brought in by the new ADA to find Vincent known by the task force as The Vigilante. Vincent in his nocturnal wanderings had saved 6 victims from being harmed in violent crimes killing the perpetrators in the process, thus leaving his cross species DNA at the crime scenes. Head of the special task force commissioned to hunt down Vincent is the new ADA Gabe Lowen. His agenda in finding The Vigilante (aka Vincent), are more nefarious than he is letting on. Eventually, Gabe realises that Catherine is aware of the secret organization known as Muirfield he confesses to her that he was once an experiment of Muirfield`s when he was a very young, he tells her that he wants to hunt down Muirfield and destroy them for what they did. Cat also discovers that her mother was involved in Gabe`s young life and the experiments. Vanessa had rescued him from Muirfield when he was still a boy and gave him to a couple to care for along with medication needed to control the beast DNA injected into his young body. Over time Gabe's mutating DNA started taking over his system and the pills he takes are only a temporarily fix helping to hold his beast under control. Gabe knew there was another Beast by the DNA found at crime scenes and when he discovers that Catherine actually knows of him convinces her that he just wants to meet him. Gabe is hoping to get a sample of his blood in order to build some kind of cure for his out of control DNA structure. Believing they had a new ally, Vincent gives Gabe a sample of his blood for him to test and Gabe gives Vincent some of his pills to try to see if they would help him. Aside from discovering that if Vincent takes too many of these pills and that they would eventually kill him, JT also discovers that the pills Vincent had taken were starting to attack the cross species DNA putting him in a transitional stage. Vincent was being cured.

Gabe and his scientist girlfriend Tyler sadly discover that they need a lot more than Vincent`s blood to cure Gabe, they need all of him and that Vincent would have to sacrifice his life in order to save Gabe. This is one of the many marked differences between these two men and the cross species DNA that infects them. Gabe in full beast mode has no awareness of what he does or who he harms and when he is in his beast state his strength is greater spurned on by rabid rage. Gabe, once transformed is not able to return to human state without the aid of tranquilizers or some other immobilizer. To make matters worse, Gabe's DNA is rapidly killing him, he now has less than 24 hours to capture Vincent, kill him and get what he needs from his body for a cure. Vincent on the other hand has full awareness in his beast state, he is better able to control his rage and has only ever used his beast side to save or rescue victims around the city. Vincent is also able to calm himself down when he is in his beast state enabling himself to return to his human form. Vincent's DNA is mutating but at a more evolutionary level, gaining new skills and abilities. JT forever the vigilant best friend, not entirely trusting Gabe's motives, breaks into his home and discovers Gabe and Tyler`s plot to kill Vincent. He calls Vincent to warn him and then destroys all the research, equipment and evidence once again protecting his complicated best friend from eminent harm. Tyler returning a few hours later, discovers what JT has done calls Gabe to let him know what happened and that she doubts Vincent was willing to die that night. Gabe in frustration says he knows Vincent`s weakness and that he will get him to show up. Earlier that same day, Catherine`s father had contacted her saying he needed to see her, that he had vital information that he had to share with her. Just as she was about to cross the street to meet her father, a car comes speeding out of nowhere and someone pushes him into the street in front of the speeding car. Thankfully, the car mostly clips her father and although he sustains a head injury and other damages to his body, the accident does not kill him. In the hospital, Catherine offers her blood to be tested in case her father needed a transfusion. Believing that her father was nearly killed by Muirfield, Catherine finds a damaged iPad in her father`s possessions and brings it to the precinct to have I.T. try and salvage any information off it. Tess sees Catherine and tells her that she will get I.T. to fix the iPad but that Cat needed to get back to the hospital to be with her father and sister even though the site of her father laying wounded in the street brought back the painful memories of her mother`s death. Catherine returns to her car with the intent of going to the hospital only to find Gabe hiding in the backseat. Gabe pulls a gun on her and tells her they are going for a drive. Gabe brings Catherine to his mansion where she discovers Gabe`s plan to kill Vincent and the elaborate lengths he has gone to make it happen. Gabe calls Vincent on Catherine`s phone to let him know that she has been captured and that Gabe will not hesitate to kill her if Vincent does not come to the mansion and give up his life. Gabe then locks Catherine in a room, designed by his adoptive parents to keep him contained when he was out of control. The room, re-enforced with metal sheeting over the window and a thick wood door, held claw marks and gouges that were tells of how maniacal Gabe's beast nature really was. Taking Gabe's threat seriously, Vincent and JT devise a plan and kidnap Tyler in order to force Gabe into letting Catherine free by offering Tyler in trade. Once captured, Vincent calls Gabe telling him that he will kill Tyler if he doesn't agree to swap the women. Unfortunately the ruse does not work as Gabe calmly tells Vincent to "go ahead" and hangs up on him. Gabe knows Vincent would never harm an innocent person and that Tyler was never in any real danger but Gabe is also desperate to survive and is more willing to save his own life than in saving Tyler`s. Feeling betrayed, Tyler reveals to Vincent and JT that Vincent transitional stage can be reversed with an injection of any vaccine. A vaccine would boost his immune system thus fighting off the cure currently attacking his animal DNA. Vincent believes that his skills as a soldier will be enough to fight Gabe and decides against the vaccine and he leaves to rescue Catherine. Tyler in true femme fatale distracts JT enough to get the upper hand, knocking him out and escaping into the night. She returns to her home and is met outside by an unknown man wielding a gun with a silencer, he shoots her killing her instantly.

When I.T. got the damaged iPad working, Tess noted an open email from The Department of Homeland Security, the email contains a picture of a man with a warning that he has recently entered the country, apparently a wanted man and very dangerous (the picture is of the unknown man who kills Tyler). Not entirely sure what it all meant, thinking it might have something to do with Muirfield and that this was obviously what Cat's father was coming to talk to her about Tess leaves to go find Cat. Tess discovers that Cat never showed up to the hospital. Believing Cat had gone to Vincent's, Tess arrives to find JT handcuffed to the radiator, freeing him, JT tells Tess what had transpired, that Gabe had kidnapped Catherine and that Vincent had gone to save her without his beastly abilities. Tess tells him that she thinks they have bigger problems and shows him the iPad.

Vincent having arrived at Gabe's mansion climbs the tower wall to an upper room where he believes Gabe is holding Catherine. Inside the room, Gabe has brought Catherine some food and after having a conversation with her about his troubled childhood begins to realize that he is starting to transform. He leaves the room, taking the food tray with him but not before Catherine secretly confiscates a butter knife. Gabe locks the door behind him and shoving the keys under the door growls that it is for her own protection. Gabe then transforms into full beast mode, his awareness gone, taken over by the animal DNA he then begins attacking the door with the intent of breaking through to Catherine to kill her. Cat takes the butter knife and starts tackling the metal barrier covering the window, once removed she sees bars on the window and starts to feel panic set in believing she is trapped. Vincent having heard Catherine arrives outside the window, taking a loose stone from the wall he tackles one of the looser bars knocking it out enabling Catherine to crawl through just as Beast-Gabe tears a large portion of wood out of the door to the room. Seeing that Catherine had escaped, Beast-Gabe heads down the corridor giving chase to our escaped couple.

Arriving in the courtyard, Vincent confesses that he wished he had his strength back, Catherine asks "Be honest, did you take those pills because you thought I wanted a normal future or because you did" "I thought we both did" he replied. Catherine then tells him that "beast or no beast" she sees a future with him. That's when he tells her that a vaccine would cancel out what was currently happening to his DNA and that he would return to his previous cross DNA state. Gabe suddenly rushes out of the mansion at them, Vincent tries to shot him but Gabe quickly dodges the bullets, grabs him and tosses him across the courtyard. Catherine taking the opportunity while Gabe is distracted with Vincent rushes back into the mansion knowing she will find what she needs in Gabe's in-home doctor's office. One of Gabe's guards comes at Catherine and in her anger and desperation to get what she needs to bring back Vincent's beast she levels the guard with a sharp kick to the head and takes his gun. Continuing, she arrives at the office and pointing the gun at the doctor demands a vaccination. The doctor hands her a vaccine and she promptly fills a syringe and runs back to where Vincent and Gabe are battling hoping that Vincent has been able to evade Gabe in her absence. She arrives just as Gabe throws a large stone boulder at Vincent. She shouts "I can't let you die for me" and plunges the syringe into Vincent's chest muscle releasing the vaccine into his system. Grabbing her gun in both hands she aims at Gabe who is rushing at them only to have him grab her and toss her through the air, landing hard Catherine is knocked unconscious. Gabe then grabs Vincent and throws him, knocking the wind out of him as he lands on the ground. The vaccine kicks in and Vincent transforms into a beast. Gabe and Vincent lock in battle but Gabe proves to be a bit more powerful and gains the upper hand. Grabbing a spike from the fence behind him and raising over his head to plunge it into Vincent's prostrate form Gabe is suddenly gunned down by a gunman in an arriving helicopter. Blinded by the light from the helicopter, Vincent still in full beast mode is caught in a net that was tossed from the helicopter and raised into the air. Catherine regaining consciousness sees the helicopter with Vincent dangling in a net underneath. She grabs her gun and rushes to try and save Vincent. Grabbing his hand she struggles to hold on but moister in the air makes their hands slippery and she loses her grip. Wanting to shoot at the helicopter but is blinded by the strong light that was trained on her she hesitates fearing accidentally shooting Vincent. Watching in horror, the helicopter flies off with Vincent firmly trapped in a net. Never in her life had Catherine felt as helpless as she did in that moment.

Chapter 1.

Tess having just arrived at Gabe's mansion with JT sees a helicopter flying off in the distance, and is unsure what to make of it. Glancing around she sees the still form of Gabe face down on the pavement. JT points out Catherine standing off near the edge of the courtyard staring off into space.

"JT, I'll go check on Gabe. You go get Catherine and Vincent should be around here somewhere." Tess says to him.

"But why is she just standing there? Do you think Gabe is dead? He better not have killed Vincent or I'll…." JT mutters to himself as he stalks off to Catherine.

Tess, shakes her head and runs over to Gabe's body. Crouching down she checks for a pulse, not finding one, she rolls Gabe over onto his back. Tess counts at least a dozen bullet holes in Gabe's torso, three right in the heart. He's not getting up from this one, she thinks to herself, I wonder what happened. Tess stands up and glances around, trying to figure out what may have occurred here moments before she arrived. Tess could hear Catherine speaking to JT but could not make out the words. Suddenly she sees Catherine fall to her knees with her face to the ground. JT is standing near her looking down, his face twisted in anguish. Alarmed Tess runs over to them calling Catherine's name.

When JT got to Catherine's side he was shocked to see tears streaming down her cheeks. She looked nearly catatonic, her breathing was shallow and she looked about to faint. JT takes her by the arm and turning her to face him asks, "Catherine, what happened here? And where is Vincent?"

"JT, Vincent is gone" she says in a voice choked with tears

"What do you mean gone?"

"Gabe…they were fighting…I gave Vincent a vvvaccine…" stuttering she tries to continue, "Gabe threw me, I, I saw a helicopter, a net, they TOOK VINCENT". No longer able to stand, Catherine falls to the ground on her knees, resting her head on the ground as sobs wrack her body. "This is all my fault", she speaks into the ground, "all my fault". The words fade as her tears soak into the ground.

JT just stares down at Catherine, her words echoing around his brain.

Tess having just witnessed Catherine falling to the ground runs up to them.

"What happened?" Tess asks JT. She crouches down in front of Catherine and helps her up off the ground. "Cat, look at me, what's going on? What happened to Gabe? Where's Vincent?" Catherine stares at her and says in a voice choked by sobs "Tess, he's gone, a helicopter, net, I tried, I couldn't save him". Catherine's sobs make it hard for her to continue, her heart shattering into a million pieces. Tess gathers Catherine close letting her cry out her anguish. Tess glances at JT.

"Do you know what happened?" She asks him.

"It appears Muirfield has captured Vincent and carted him off in a helicopter." JT says. Tess can hear the fear in his voice.

"They must have been the ones that killed Gabe." Tess says indicating Gabe's lifeless form.

"Gabe, was already dying. He wasn't going to live past this night without Vincent's DNA. That's why he kidnapped Catherine to get to Vincent. I can't believe this is happening again". JT replied.

"JT? How are we going to find Vincent?" Catherine chokes out as she pulls away from Tess, "we have no idea where they are taking him". Catherine is shaking from her raging emotions at the gravity of the situation. Muirfield had Vincent and if she didn't find him soon they would cut him open and experiment on him and maybe even kill him. A sudden thought struck her.

"JT, can you track Vincent`s phone?"

"What, you mean this one?" Tess interjects, holding out her hand, "I found it near Gabe's body". In it were the remains of Vincent's burner phone. It was shattered.

"It must have fallen and broke when he was fighting with Gabe", Catherine said staring at the broken phone as panic tried to steal her breath. Clenching her teeth, she steels her resolve knowing that panic was not going to help her find Vincent. Still feeling afraid, she allows her anger to replace the feelings of helplessness and despair. There was no way she was going to allow Muirfield to harm Vincent and she would use every skill she had to find him or die trying.

Catherine wipes the tears from her eyes, "we need a place to start, some way to figure out how to track down that helicopter and where it went."

"Yes, well I think first we need to high tail it out of here before Muirfield sends in the goons and starts shooting at us." Getting into Tess's car, JT in the back and Catherine riding shotgun, they manage to drive off undetected. Once they were far enough away, Tess handed the damaged iPad from Catherine's father to her.

"I think we can start looking here" Tess informs her.

"What is this? Is this my dad's iPad? You got it working?" Catherine asked.

"Yes, but you may want to brace yourself it's not good" Tess replied. Taking a deep breath, Catherine takes the iPad from Tess and touching the screen brings it to life. On the screen was an open email, it's from The Department of Homeland Security. The email contains a picture of a man who looks strangely familiar to Catherine but she can't quite place him. The subject was a warning that this man was once again in the country. Who was he and why was this on her father's iPad? Was this what her dad was coming to talk to her about? Is this man a Muirfield agent and what did her dad know about him.

"Do you know anything about him?" Catherine asks Tess.

"He came to see Joe the other day, he was wearing an FBI badge. He claimed the Bustamente body". (*note: verify detail)

"FBI? Just like last time when they claimed the bodies from the subway. He must be Muirfield as well and now he has Vincent. This is all my fault," she says turning to JT "I should have made you guys leave for Canada".

"Cat, you can't go blaming yourself every time Muirfield comes knocking", Tess tells her.

"She's right Catherine" JT interjects, "Vincent deserves a life just as much as you do, and Muirfield would have found him eventually. A person can only hide for so long".

"I appreciate the gesture guys, but I'm not buying it. I forced him into this thing with Gabe and with those pills. Why? Cause I wanted some kind of normal life? Now we may never have any kind of life". Catherine sucks in a breath trying hard not to cry again, the effort causes her to feel sharp hot pain around her heart. "I have to go to the hospital and see my dad, see if he is awake. This is obviously what he was coming to talk to me about."

"Well, not to add fuel to the fire but there is something else you should know", Tess replied. "I went by the hospital to find you once I got the iPad working. Your sister was very upset, she wanted to know where you were"

"Heather, she must be so worried" Cat looked up at Tess concern etched on her features.

"There's more, it appears you are not actually related to your dad" Tess told her.

The car became very quiet as Catherine absorbed what she had just heard. The silence amplified by the sound of the tires on the pavement.

"I'm sorry. What did you just say?" Catherine said to her in disbelief.

"Well, it appears the blood you gave had no familial markers to your dad. You're not his kid".

"I can't believe this, this is crazy," Catherine said shaking her head. "Not my dad? Why would they keep such a thing from me? Has my life been nothing but one great big fat lie?" she asks bitterly. Still reeling from this new revelation Catherine stares down at the picture on the iPad. Suddenly a memory started surfacing, and Catherine's eyes grew big as the blood drain from her face.

Concerned Tess asked, "What? Cat, tell me"

"Tess", she says in a shaky voice, "I think this man is my real father"

"WHAT?" Tess and JT said at the same time.

"I have this memory that I had forgotten or repressed or something. I'm not sure where I am, I must be 2 or 3. I'm running down this long white corridor towards a man yelling 'daddy, daddy wait for me'. I can see his face and it's HIM" she stated pointing to the picture. "Maybe I'm just imagining it. It can't be a real memory".

"Well, if he is, then your whole family is connected to Muirfield. This is insane. No wonder you and Vincent had such a strong connection and why Muirfield was able to find him after all these years". JT says from the back seat a hint of accusation in his voice.

"I'm sorry JT, I'm just as devastated by all this as you are. Our best chance is getting to the hospital and seeing what my…" Catherine pauses, "what do I call him?"

"Cat, he's still your dad. He raised you and loved you. I would go with that", Tess says to her.

"But I can't help feeling betrayed you know. I can't believe how many secrets were kept from me about my mom and now about this? Vincent is the one who has paid the price for all the stuff they did to him. It's wrong and it's not fair. It's not fair to him and it's not fair to me", Cat said the anger evident in her voice as she wipes the tears from her eyes. In silence they ride the rest of the way to the hospital, each contemplating the night's events. Catherine, her heart hurting tries vainly to hold back her tears. It was hard not to feel furious with her parents for all the lies and it was hard not to feel scared and worried about Vincent's fate. She prayed silently in her heart that he would be safe and not harmed and that she would find him quickly.

Chapter 2:

Vincent glanced up at the helicopter, he had tried to tear the net but it appeared to be made of a very strong fabric and wasn't showing signs of giving. His heart had frozen in fear when it looked like the gunman was going to shoot Catherine and kill her but he heard another man tell the gunman not to shoot, that she was his daughter. Vincent now knew who had captured him, Catherine's biological father and he was head of Muirfield. This time it was going to be a lot harder for Catherine to find him even with JT and Tess helping her. He heard a sound like a pop and felt the sting in his leg, they had tranquilized him and he wondered if that meant this was the end. Thoughts of Catherine filled his mind until the blackness started to fill his vision and the tranquilizer started to take effect. The last thing he heard before succumbing to the drugs was the man telling the others to reel him in.

Awareness started to creep back into his brain as the effects of the tranquilizer started to wear off. Vincent opened his eyes to see that he was in what appeared to be in some kind of cell. The cell was probably about 8 x 12 feet. He was laying on a mattress on the floor with a pillow and blanket, there were no other furnishings. There was a small open door way in the wall opposite where he lay that appeared to be a working lavatory it afforded a small amount of privacy but not much. Thick titanium bars made up one wall facing what appeared to be a corridor, there was a metal door dead center that had a huge bolt lock to keep him inside. Vincent also detected a slight hum coming from the direction of the door indicating that it might also be electrified. Guess the door option is out for now, he thought to himself. On the opposite wall a small window looked out to a courtyard. The window was barred and was fitted with thick wired glass. So, it appears I am a prisoner of Muirfield yet again, he thought to himself. Vincent careful not to touch the bars looks to see what was out in the corridor. Glancing toward the left he could see other cells but couldn't tell if there were occupants, he couldn't hear anyone else, couldn't hear breathing or any other signs of life and suspected that he was the lone occupant at this time. A door at the far end closed off this side of the corridor. Turning to the right he could see more cells, they too appeared empty. Further down it appeared that the corridor had a left turn and Vincent tuned his hearing to see if he could detect any movement or signs of life but heard nothing. Sighing he turned to inspect his cell to see if there were any weaknesses in the structure that might help him escape. It appeared to be solidly made. The walls were concrete and Vincent wondered if he would be able to smash through the concrete.

Hearing the door that was on the left of the corridor open Vincent turns toward the bars waiting for the owner of the footsteps to appear at his cell. He didn't have long to wait. The man who appeared at his cell was not familiar to Vincent but he suspected he knew who he was. The man was 6 feet tall and huskily built, he looked to be in his mid to late 50's with steel grey hair cut military style. He was dressed casually like he was about to go out for a Sunday stroll in the park. He stared at Vincent, studying him silently as though assessing him. When he did speak Vincent instantly recognizes his voice as the same voice that spoke in the helicopter. This man said Catherine was his daughter, Vincent knew exactly who this man is and what that meant and none of it was good.

"So, Vincent Keller. Imagine my surprise to have caught you in my net. Explain to me how you managed to survive our extinction process in Afghanistan and how were you able to remain hidden for the past 10 years?" The man enquired.

Vincent, standing at attention in the middle of his cell said not a word.

"I could kill you right where you stand, you do realize that don't you? Things would go so much smoother if you cooperated." Still nothing but silence from Vincent who stood as still as a statue. He was an enigma for sure. He might have to tranquilize him, chain him and use less orthodox methods to get the information out of him.

"Well, it appears you're not going to answer me and that's really too bad. I would rather not resort to other tactics but desperate times," he said with a shrug, "no matter I will get my information. I want to know how you are able to control your transformations and I really want to know how you know Catherine."

At the mention of Catherine's name the man sees something flicker across Vincent's face, something he couldn't or rather refused to identify. He shuddered to think that they might have feelings for each other, knowing what Vincent was made the thought revolting.

Sneering at Vincent he said "This cell you are in you can't escape from. See these titanium bars? Well, they are also imbedded in the cement that make up your walls, the steel door is electrified with 12,000 volts. See I know what you are, I know you are a monster, I helped create you and I know how to break you. You will never see Catherine again, you will exist only for as long as I let you live." He watched as a minute transformation crossed Vincent's face, his eyes glowed yellow for a moment before he was able to regain control over his emotions. Vincent refused to allow this man to bait him. The situation may look hopeless today but that didn't mean it would remain that way. He was a trained special ops soldier, he had evaded Muirfield for 10 years. He had escaped from them before and he was determined to do it again. Everyone had a weakness and every situation had one as well. All he needed to do was remain patient and watch for opportunities. The man couldn't believe Vincent's control over his transformations. Remarkable he thought, absolutely remarkable. He wondered if Vincent was also able to control himself once he fully transformed.

"I will leave you to your thoughts since you are refusing to share them. I wasn't actually planning on taking one of you guys with me. Frankly, I was only aware of Gabe's existence so you are a complete surprise to me. I'm working on getting our facilities up to par, rebuilding the labs and start running tests again. We're going to have to do some experiments on you, find out what makes you tick. Something I'm really looking forward to". Chuckling, the man turned and walked away.

Vincent heard the door at the end of the corridor open and click shut and he breathed a sigh of relief allowing his body to relax. If what Catherine's biological father said was true, that they were going to start experimenting on him again? Vincent knew he had to get out of here and soon.

Walking over to the window, Vincent leans on the stone sill, looking out onto the courtyard. There was nothing remarkable about the view. The courtyard was probably about three acres, surrounded by an eight foot electrified chain link fence with another three feet of barbed wire on top. There was a guard tower on each of the two far corners. Men were in the towers with high powered rifles and spot lights. Outside of the fence was nothing but flat empty space, there were no mountains, no trees, only a few sparse bushes scattered about. Well that's going to make hiding a bit difficult, he thought. Grabbing hold of the metal bars he tests them for strength, not a budge. Resting his head against the bars he lets his thoughts wander to the night of his abduction and his last vision of Catherine reaching for his hand. Sadness filled him as he remembered his last sight of her as he was being whisked away into the darkness, her hands reaching for his, the last touch of her fingers as they slipped away from his grasp. His heart ached remembering the devastation on her features and he could feel her panic like it was his own. "Catherine" he whispers her name feeling the sound of it on his tongue, remembering the last time they kissed, the last time they touched and he wondered if he would ever kiss her or touch her again. He determined that if he did, if she found him again or if he was able to find a way to escape that he would never let her go. He would hold her tight and tell her how much he loved her and that he had no future if she wasn't in it.

Chapter 3:

JT, Tess and Catherine finally arrive at the hospital. Catherine was worn out but determined to get the answers she craved, answers she needed to find Vincent. Setting her jaw she looked at Tess and said "Let's go and get this over with. We need to get as much information out of my dad that we can". "What if he isn't awake yet?" Tess asks her.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there" Catherine stated.

Arriving at her father's room, Catherine opens the door to find the room empty except for Heather and her father's new wife, Brooke. Brooke was wiping tears from her eyes.

Fearing the worst, Catherine steps inside and speaking softly she says, "Heather? Brooke? Where's dad?"

"CAT" Heather cried as she jumped up and threw herself at her sister. Clasping Heather to her, Catherine repeated her question "Where's dad?"

"He's in surgery, his leg was shattered by the accident. I'm not sure how much longer they will be", Brooke informed her.

"Cat? Where have you been? You have no idea what I have to tell you". Heather says to her sister.

"Actually I think I do, Tess filled me in" she said turning to Tess standing in the door way. She waved JT and Tess into the room and introduced JT to Heather and Brooke as a good friend of hers, leaving out Vincent's connection to him since Heather was still unaware that Vincent was still in her life, or at least she hoped he was. A hitch in her breath caused Heather to look at her, Heather realized then that something bad had happened to her sister.

"Cat, what happened to you, you're all scratched up and stuff"

"It's nothing, work related." Catherine waves off Heathers inquiry.

At that moment the door to the room opened admitting the surgical doctor, "Thomas made it through the surgery" he said. "He's still in recovery and will probably be there for another hour to make sure everything is okay. The surgery was a long one as there was extensive damage to both his femur and his shin bone. We had to do a few bone grafts and pins everything together. We attached a brace to the leg and as long as he doesn't get an infection, it should heal up pretty well. He will probably need a cane for the rest of his life but he should be able to walk again."

"Is he awake?" Brooke asked

"Not at the moment", the doctor stated. "Thomas suffered a severe head injury in the accident. He had a lot of swelling when he first got here but we were able to get that under control with medications. We took out the breathing tube and he is managing well on his own. This is a good sign so we reduced the medications that induce a coma but he has not yet regained consciousness."

"Do you know how long it may take for him to wake up?" Catherine asked

"It's hard to say at this time. He could wake up in the next hour or it could take as long as a week or two. It really depends upon him. I would encourage you to keep talking to him, reading to him, stuff like that. It is believed that coma patients can hear their loved ones and that it may help them to want to wake up. Now I do have to caution you. Head injuries are not all alike. At this time we don't know the extent of the damage done to his brain. We don't yet know if there is any memory loss or if he will have any other impairments."

"What does that mean?" Brooke enquired.

"It means, that until he wakes up, we won't know if there is anything else wrong. He may not remember you, any of you or he will remember everything. He may suffer impairments to his hearing or eye sight, maybe even his speech again we just don't know. The best thing to do is to keep hopeful and to keep encouraging him to wake up. Express your love to him, share memories, share stories of your day, things like that. If he doesn't wake up in the next couple of days we will do more scans and tests to see if there is anything else going on that is keeping him in a coma." The doctor got up to leave, "if you have any questions, write them down and I will try to answer them as best as I can."

The doctor got a chorus of "thank you's" from Catherine, Heather and Brooke. JT and Tess having kept to the background and out of the family discussion joined them as the doctor left. Catherine looked at Tess, hopelessness reflected in her eyes. Catherine had no idea how she was supposed to wait out this time until her father woke up. A thick silence descended upon the room as each person sat in their own thoughts.

An hour later the door opened as a nurse wheeled Thomas back into his room. She hooked up the monitors, setting his IV and took his vital signs. Thomas looked pretty beaten up, he was as pale as the bandages that were wrapped around his head and his eyes had deep purple circles, he was still unconscious. A blanket covered him except for his left leg which was encircled in a brace and propped up on what looked like foam wedges. The metal brace was attached to his leg from hip to foot, pins were sticking into his flesh every five or six inches – two sets of four above the knee and two sets of four below, bandages were wrapped where the surgeon had cut into the flesh. The nurse told them that everything looked good so far and that he would most likely sleep the rest of the night.

"You should all go home and get some rest," she said "we will call you if there are any changes." "Thank you" Brooke said to the nurse.

"Just press that button there if you need anything" the nurse said as she turned and left the room closing the door behind her. Catherine stared at the man she had known most of her life as her dad. Shocked at how awful he looked Catherine thought things just couldn't get any worse than they were in that moment. Tess took her hand and led her from the room, JT followed close behind.

"There's nothing else we can do here Cat" Tess told her "the best thing we can do is go home, get some sleep and come back tomorrow. Hopefully he will be awake by then."

"How am I supposed to sleep? Vincent's life is in danger, I have to find him", Catherine said.

JT interjected "If Muirfield was going to kill him, they would have done it at the same time they killed Gabe. Since they took him alive we have to believe that they won't kill him, at least not yet. I'm also going to see if I can find out more information about your Muirfield father. Maybe I can also figure out where that helicopter went. Helicopters can only travel so far on a tank of fuel. If I study some satellite images maybe I can figure out where Muirfield took Vincent based upon distance and fuel consumption. It's a shot in the dark I know but I won't be able to rest either until we find him".

"Besides what good will you be to him if you make yourself sick from fatigue. You need your strength to fight Muirfield in order to save Vincent." Tess knew she had to try and convince Catherine to rest or she would get sick from exhaustion and she also worried Catherine would develop PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) if she didn't rest.

Catherine studied JT and Tess, weighing what they had both just said. Feeling banged up, sore and exhausted she knew they both had a point.

"Fine, I'll go home and try to sleep, it will probably be a good time to talk to Heather as well about this not my daddy thing we just discovered. I'll also pack bag in case we have to leave first thing."

With that Tess and JT left the hospital and Catherine went back into her father's room to get Heather. Brooke stated that she was going to stay and sleep in the hospital room with Thomas. Saying goodnight, Heather and Catherine left for home. Once back inside the apartment, Heather went into her room to change into her PJ's and Catherine went to take a quick shower to wash off the dirt and grime from the fight with Gabe. She was curious to know how Gabe's death would be explained. Maybe Muirfield already had agents there to clean up the mess and cart Gabe's lifeless body away. Chances are Gabe would be relegated to being missing or re-assigned depending upon how elaborate a cover-up Muirfield was willing concoct.

Showered and in the PJ's Vincent got her for her birthday, Catherine returned to the living room to find Heather sitting there staring at a black TV screen, tears rolling down her cheeks. Cat sat beside her and putting her arms around her drew her close to her side.

"Hey, dad's going to be okay you know" Catherine soothed.

"I know but it was just so awful seeing him like that. Was that how it was for you with mom?" Taking a deep breath at the memory Heather's comment evoked Catherine told her it was. Heather leaned on her sister afraid to ask the burning questions that ran through her mind. Knowing they had to talk about the father thing, Catherine decided to start the conversation.

"So, Heather it appears I am actually your half-sister"

Heather sat up and stared at Catherine with wide eyes. "Did you know?" she asked.

"How could I? The news shocked me, I was obviously quite young because our age difference is less than 5 years. Thomas was the only father I knew". Well that was only partially true as a memory of her real father had only just surfaced early that evening but Catherine wasn't about to share that with Heather for her own protection.

Curious, Heather asked "Don't you wonder who your real dad is and why mom never told you about him?"

"Yes," Catherine answered "but it appears I may not ever find out unless dad knows something about him."

Actually Catherine was sure Thomas knew something about her father but if her real father was involved with Muirfield there was no way she was going to let Heather know anything about him. Heather's ignorance of Cat's real father may be the only thing that will save her from him and Muirfield. In this case ignorance really is bliss. Not knowing what else to say and with exhausting starting to set in the girls said their good nights and headed off to their bedrooms.

Catherine closed the door to her room, her eyes fell on the window to the fire escape. Her breath caught as she imagined Vincent waiting there for her in his usual spot and knowing he wouldn't be there brought hot tears to her eyes. How am I supposed to sleep? She thought as she brushed the tears off her face. Taking a deep breath, she opened the window and went and sat outside on the fire escape. She let memories of all the times they had sat out here talking and sharing, just enjoying each other's company. Vainly she tried to keep thoughts of this being her fault at bay. Could she have stopped any of this from happening? She feared that it was because of her that Muirfield kept finding Vincent. She put her trust in Gabe and convinced Vincent to do the same. Why? So they could have a normal life? Now they may not have any kind of life not if she can't find him or if Muirfield kills him. How was she supposed to go on without him? The thought broke her heart all over again and she rested her head on her knees and just let the tears fall.

After her crying abated some she lifted her head and gazed up at the moon riding high in the night sky. The air was cool and the gentle wind dried the tears that still fell down her cheeks. She had no idea how long she had sat there, letting the silence of the night calm her heart. When she went back inside she was surprised to see that it was almost 3AM. She quickly packed a bag with clothes in case she needed to leave in a hurry and went to bed. She prayed silently in her heart for Vincent to be safe and to stay alive. She wished there was some way she could send him her thoughts so he would know she was thinking about him. Her last thought before exhaustion took over was how much she loved him and wished he was laying there beside her.

Chapter 4:

Dreams of Vincent being flown away woke Catherine with a start, it was just past 7:30AM and the sun was shining in her room warming the air. She remembered the morning she awoke to find Vincent sitting in her bedroom window watching her sleep it was the morning of the anniversary of her mother's death. Vincent had convinced her to bring flowers to her mother's grave site when all she wanted to do was stay in bed with him. Catherine looked toward the window, sighed and decided that she had better get up, there were just too many memories of Vincent here and it was making her sad and anxious again. Catherine left her bedroom and walked into the kitchen smelling fresh brewed coffee in the air. Good, Heather was awake and that meant they would be able to leave for the hospital early. Catherine hoped her father was awake and that he had the information she needed to help her find Vincent or at least the man whose face she saw as just as anxious to see her father as Cat was. She was fully clothed and ready to leave, she was just as anxious to see her father as Catherine was. Grabbing a cup of coffee to help wake her up Catherine told Heather that she would change immediately so that they could leave for the hospital. Catherine dressed quickly and as she glanced at herself in the mirror she was shocked at her haggard features. Sadness was deeply etched around her eyes and the glassiness spoke of unshed tears. Splashing cold water onto her face helped a bit but was no remedy for the pain she carried in her heart. Catherine finished getting ready, left the bag she'd packed the night before just inside her bedroom door ready to grab if needed and left the apartment with Heather to go to the hospital.

Walking into the hospital room they found Brooke reading the newspaper to a still unconscious Thomas. Looking up at the girls she gave a tight smile that spoke of her restless night keeping vigil over her husband's sleeping form. Brooke got up and hugged the girls, to the casual observer it would appear that Brooke was probably a good friend of Catherine's and not her step-mom since she was closer in age to her than to Thomas. It had been a thorn in Catherine's side for the longest time but it was her complicated relationship with Vincent that showed her that things like age difference or any other difference for that matter, was no difference if you really loved someone. Relationships are just that, they are a risk. No one knows what the future holds, it's accepting that there are no guarantees and going for it any way. Catherine's speech at their wedding reflected her changed heart towards Brooke creating a special bond between them.

"Has he woken up at all?" Catherine asked.

"No, he didn't stir the entire night" Brooke replied, exhaustion etching tired lines around her eyes and mouth.

"Why don't you go home, get a bit of sleep and come back later this afternoon. Heather and I will stay with him. If he wakes up I will call you."

Taking a deep breath, Brooke agreed. Kissing her husband gently on the cheek, she gave one last hug to the girls and left for home.

It was going to be a very long day for Catherine, sitting here watching her father sleep, willing him to wake up. She sent a text to Tess letting her know that there were no changes with her father. A text from JT showed up later that morning asking her to call him when she could. Telling Heather she was going to go for coffee, Catherine left the room to call JT.

"Hey JT, what's up?"

"How's your dad?"

"The same as yesterday, he hasn't woken up yet or moved"

"I'm sorry."

"Thanks. That isn't why you wanted me to call you was it?"

"No, when I got home yesterday I tried to see if there was some way to find out if there was a flight plan for that helicopter you saw last night or some kind of radar information. I have a friend who is an air traffic controller so I called him to see if he could help."

"You have your finger in a lot of pies, don't you?"

"With Vincent for a friend, I kind of have to."

"Of course, so did you find anything?"

"I'm not sure. He told me there was some noise regarding a private aircraft being in unregulated space but that it had disappeared just as quickly."

"Where did it show up?"

"The blip appeared over the Midwest. After everything that happened with the Twin Towers things like this can create quite a stir and there was a lot of activity to try and locate this aircraft but they came up empty."

"So there was something, we don't know if it was the helicopter that grabbed Vincent, we don't know where it went but some 'aircraft' appeared over the Midwest."

"I know, it sounds strange but it also sounded way too coincidental to be a coincidence."

"Okay, "Catherine rested her head in her other hand thinking. "It's still not enough information though. We can't go gallivanting all over the states trying to find this elusive aircraft. We need something more, some place to turn towards. Were you able to find any information on my dad's iPad?"

"Not yet, I am in the process of copying all the files from his iPad to my computer. Some files were corrupted from the accident so I may have to spend time trying to see if I can extract any information from them. I would love to try and hack into Homeland Security to find out more information about 'daddy dearest' but I am sure they would be here faster than I can say 'Taliban'. "

"Ya might not be such a good idea but Tess might be able to get more information on him through the precinct. When you are done with the iPad bring it by the station and give it to Tess to see if she can get any information on him from Homeland Security."

"Will do. I will contact you if I find any information."

"Good, I'm going to go and grab coffee and get back to Heather, she must be wondering what's taking so long."

Hanging up the phone Catherine goes to the cafeteria, gets two coffee's and goes back to her father's room to sit with Heather. Entering the room, she finds Heather has dozed off in the lounge chair. Taking the only other chair in the room, she brings it closer to her father and sits beside him. Taking his hand, she softly speaks to him "Hey dad, you know it's kind of strange talking to you like this, so I hope you can hear me and maybe you could wake up and talk to me?" She looks at him, wondering if she should say what's on her heart. She glances at Heather, she'd have to be careful what she says. Catherine leans closer to him and speaks in a barely audible voice "dad, I have your iPad, there was a picture of a man on it, I know who he is" She takes a sudden quick breath, did he just move his fingers? "Dad, can you hear me? If you can hear me squeeze my hand." She waits, staring at their hands willing his to move. Must have been her imagination, then suddenly, there again, yes she was sure! It wasn't much but he definitely squeezed her hand. Should she tell the nurse? The doctor? She lets go of Thomas's hand, it wasn't much of a squeeze and maybe she really did imagine it. She looks at Heather who is now awake staring at her "What just happened? Heather asks her, "you look like you saw a ghost."

"I think I felt him squeeze my fingers but I'm not sure".

Excited, Heather moves closer to the bed and takes Thomas's other hand. "Dad, it's me Heather. Can you hear me? Please, dad if you can hear me squeeze my fingers." Suddenly Heather squealed "HE SQUEEZED MY FINGERS."

A nurse, who was walking by hears the commotion and enters the room. The girls explain what happened, how they were each able to feel him squeeze their fingers.

"Mr. Chandler, my name is Lisa and I'm a nurse at New York General. You've been in a car accident but you're going to be okay. I need you to squeeze my fingers if you understand." The nurse stood in silence with her head bowed waiting. "Thomas, I'm going to shine a light in your eyes now." She takes out a pen light, lifting his right eye lid she shines the light on his eyes checking for pupil reaction, she then does the same to the left. The nurse then charts Thomas's vitals and turns to the girls who've been patiently waiting for the nurse's assessment.

"Well, it appears your father is starting to come out of his coma. I want to caution you as it may not be an instantaneous thing, it could take a couple days for him to fully wake up and still a few more days after that before he tries talking, there just is no way to predict how this will go. You just have to take it one day at a time but I am encourage by what I see so far. I will let the doctor know, he will probably be in in the morning to check on your father. It would be a good time to get any questions answered too." She smiles at the girls and leaves the room closing the door behind her. Catherine and Heather hug in relief.

"I should call Brooke to let her know," Catherine says "and I should also let Tess know". She takes out her phone and first calls Brooke, leaving a message she then calls Tess.

"Hey, it looks like dad's starting to come out of his coma." After a brief conversation, Catherine tells Tess that JT will be stopping by to give her back the iPad.

"Maybe you can find some information from Homeland Security? It's a long shot, they may not be forthcoming and they may also confiscate the iPad". Catherine says to her thnking out loud.

"They may but maybe if I turn on the charm to Mr. I.T. guy – did I tell you he tried to hit on me? What a doofus. Anyway where was I? Oh ya, if I turn on the charm maybe I can convince him to hack into the data base and find the information for me?"

"Oh Tess, your terrible" Catherine chuckles at her.

"Ya well it made you laugh and that's a good thing"

"What would I do without you? Thank you"

"Hey that's what partners are for. Go back to your dad. I'll wait for JT and let you know what we find out".

For the rest of the day everything remains quiet. Brooke shows up later that afternoon after waking up and hearing the message Catherine left on the answering machine but Thomas did not move or open his eyes again for the rest of the night.

Thomas was mostly aware of things around him but at other times everything felt like veiled dreams far away and disjointed, vague and surreal. He saw shadows and heard voices but couldn't put the words together. He recognized some voices as belonging to his daughters and his young wife and he wanted to talk to them but he couldn't seem to make his mouth work. He also tried to open his eyes but he felt so tired that the effort of opening his eyes was more than he could take. Feeling the darkness creeping in again Thomas drifted off into a sea of nothingness. Maybe tomorrow he would be able to wake up.

Catherine and Heather decide to make it an early night. They hug Brooke and kiss Thomas on the cheek and left for home. Even though it was still early evening Heather decides that she is going to go to bed since she had not slept well the night before and was feeling quite worn out. Catherine decides that she was going to grab a blanket and just watch some TV for a while, maybe some police procedurals will help her brain sort out what her next move will be. Watching TV procedurals though proves to be more than her brain can take. It was long day at the hospital and she'd had very little sleep so it was no surprise when exhaustion began to blur her vision. Closing her eyes she lets the quiet sound of the program's narrator lull her to sleep.

Chapter 5:

The next morning Catherine is woken up by the sun warming her face through the living room window. She turns off the TV and sits up stretching her tired and sore limbs, her back aching from sleeping on the couch. Hearing Heather in the kitchen she rises and walks to the center counter that divides the kitchen from the living room.

"Good morning" she says to Heather. Heather turns and looks at her sister

"You slept on the couch? Why?"

"Um, I just fell asleep watching some show is all"

"ahuh, and tell me, why were you calling for Vincent? I thought you guys broke up?"

"Um, I was calling for Vincent?" oh boy, she thinks to herself grabbing a cup from the cupboard and pouring a cup of coffee purposely avoiding Heathers gaze. Now how to get out of this one. Heather after a disastrous family meet that went over basically like a load of bricks, was adamant that Vincent was dangerous and forced Catherine to choose between her and Vincent. In a mock breakup, more to protect Heather from Muirfield than anything else, Catherine and Vincent were able to convince Heather that they were no longer together. Now Catherine has to try and re-convince Heather that that was still the case.

"I don't know why I said Vincent's name in my sleep, I mean he's gone, you know" Way to avoid the truth by using the truth, she thinks to herself.

"You're still hung up on him aren't you?"

"I don't know, maybe," she walks towards the living room window, looking out at the street below. She doesn't want to cry, not in front of Heather but if she keeps up this line of questioning that might prove to be very difficult.

"But you're not with him any more right?" Heather walks up behind her.

Gritting her teeth, Catherine has no choice but to lie to her but then again maybe it's not such a lie after all.

"No Heather, I am not with him. I'm going to go and shower and then we can leave for the hospital and see dad. Maybe there will be good news and he will have woken up." Closing her bedroom door behind her, Catherine takes a deep breath. It feels like ever since Vincent was abducted that it was all she could do was take deep breathes like her body craved air. What she really craved was Vincent. Guess she won't be sleeping on the couch any more. She looks towards the window and the fire escape. Maybe it's not such a bad idea to see these reminders of Vincent, it will keep her focused on wanting to find him and quickly. It is way too easy to let depression and hopelessness take over when you don't have something to direct your energies towards, and finding Vincent is her top priority right now regardless of what anyone else thinks, even Heather. If she has to let Heather know that Vincent is still very much in her life, then so be it but for now, for her own protection the less she knows the better.

Arriving at the hospital they were both happy to see that Thomas was awake. He was propped up on pillows and Brooke was holding his hand and talking softly to him. Thomas looked very beaten up and fatigued from his ordeal and Catherine wondered how much he remembered and if she would get any information from him today.

The girls approached the bed each taking a hand, Heather with tears streaming down her face cried out "Dad, I'm so glad you're awake."

"Me too" he said to her with a tired smile. Thomas then looked at Catherine, miraculously he did remember his need to speak with her and he knew he had to speak with her quickly before too much time passed. Thomas could tell that she too had been in some kind of battle by the scratches on her face and the pain that she couldn't quite hide out of her eyes. He feared he knew the cause of it and hoped he had the strength to tell her what she needed to know.

"Hey dad" Catherine says as she kisses his cheek "You gave me quite a scare. I'm so glad you're still here with us."

Catherine looked at Brooke and asked if she had gotten herself anything to eat since her father's accident. Indicating that she had not, Catherine asked Heather if she would mind going with Brooke to the cafeteria to get some breakfast and if they could bring something back for her as well. They both agreed willingly, thinking Catherine had some cop questions to ask him about the accident.

After they left, Thomas wasted no time and spoke first, "so, I gather you know some things now"

"Yes, Tess got your iPad to work again and I saw the picture, he's my real father isn't he" Catherine asked.

"Yes, yes he is" he replied

"I'm trying to grasp why you have an email from Homeland Security about him? Is he with Muirfield? And how come I was never told that you weren't my real father? I don't understand."

Surprised that Catherine knew about Muirfield, Thomas replied "So you know about Muirfield." Sighing he continued, "First off I want you to know that I love you just as much as though you were my own flesh and blood and I loved your mother very much."

Catherine nodded wiping sudden tears from her eyes.

Thomas continued, explaining how they met after Vanessa had divorced her father, they had married shortly after and had Heather. "Your real father had been chased out of the country by the military because of the experiments Muirfield was performing on orphans and vagrants. That is why the experiments were moved to Afghanistan as there are no such laws and restrictions there. Your mom was forced to continue the experiments when Muirfield threatened to harm you and your sister if she did not comply". Thomas noted that Catherine didn't seem all that surprised by these revelations regarding her mother's involvement with Muirfield, she knew more than she was letting on.

Thomas continued, "Michael, that's your father name, was one of three men who started Muirfield. He took your mother's research on DNA splicing and turned it into cross species experiments on human test subjects. He grew fanatical with wanting to make super soldiers to help win wars and bring peace to the world. I guess your mom got sick of the whole thing and decided that she couldn't handle working with Muirfield anymore. She hated what the experiments were doing to their test subjects so she set about to destroy all their work. She burned down the facilities and destroyed all traces of the experiments. She couldn't quite let go of everything though, that's why all her research is hidden in the back storage room".

Catherine figured that was probably around the time her mother has saved Gabe's life when he was a child.

"Catherine, I need you to stay away from Michael, he's a very dangerous man".

Catherine wasn't sure what to say about all this. Her real father was head of Muirfield, had actually started this crazy organization, could her life get any more complicated? Good heavens, here Vincent had been hiding from Muirfield and she's their spawn. The irony of it all left her speechless. She wondered if her father was behind her mother's murder and that thought filled her heart with something she was not familiar with nor could she name at that time. Fear like ice coursed through her veins knowing that this man, her real father held Vincent prisoner and she shivered against her will.

"What?" Thomas asked her.

"Do you know how I can find him?" Catherine asked.

"Catherine, I just told you I want you to stay far away from him."

"I know but he has someone I love ad I have to save him before something worse happens", she said as fresh tears flowed from her eyes. Thomas knew Catherine had someone in her life, he had a picture of her dancing with a guy at Brookes and his wedding from a month ago.

"That wouldn't happen to be Vincent now would it?" Thomas asked her as that was the last name she had mentioned to him.

"Yes, it's Vincent" Catherine confirmed.

"But why would Muirfield have…." Thomas paused staring at Catherine "He's one of them, isn't he? He's one of those experiments?" Alarmed Thomas tries to raise himself off the bed.

"Dad, lay back its okay, Vincent is not like those other experiments, I love him and he loves me. He has saved my life so many times and others too, he is a good man"

"But he is no longer human Catherine"

"That is NOT TRUE" she said forcefully "He is more human than anyone I know even if he has cross species DNA and I will find him with or without your help. I'm just hoping that you will help me, please" taking a shaky breath she repeats her plea, "dad, please help me".

Thomas heard the desperation and pain in her voice, it tugged at his heart and he knew there would be no stopping her, she was so like her mother that way.

"How can I help?" he asked, "I've told you everything I know."

"Would mom have anything in her research boxes at the house? Maybe I can search through them?" She pleads

Thomas, shakes his head, "get the house keys from Brooke. You know where the storage room key is. I can't guarantee you will find anything. I really wish you wouldn't do this though, I fear for your safety".

"I know and I'm sorry, this whole thing is just such a mess".

Just then there was a soft knock at the door as Brooke and Heather return from the cafeteria. "How's it going in here?" Brooke asks. Catherine smiles at them taking the coffee and sandwich they brought back with them. Catherine ate her breakfast and watched as Heather and Brooke chatted quietly with Thomas. Catherine felt her phone vibrate in her pocket and taking it out noticed that it was Tess calling. She answers the call as she steps out into the hallway keeping the conversation private. Finding a quiet corner she begins to tell Tess about the talk she had just had with her father.

"I'm going to go through my mother's research to see if there are any clues that might help me find my real father and Vincent

"What time are you planning on being there?"

"Within the hour, I don't want to waste any more time and I don't think I can sit here for another day."

"You know, I could probably go there and search with you" Tess suggested.

"That may not be such a bad idea," she arranges to meet Tess at her dad's in an hour.

An hour later Catherine arrives at her dad's to see Tess waiting for her. Using the spare key Catherine opens the door and turns on the lights. Going to the kitchen, she opens the drawer where the key to the storage room is kept. With key in hand she unlocks the door to the storage room and leads Tess to where the boxes are stored. With fierce determination, the two of them begin searching through the boxes for any clue that will aid them in their search for Vincent. A sudden yelp from the corner catches Tess's attention and turning she finds Catherine holding up the blueprints, a folded map and aerial photographs of the compound, these would come in handy for sure. Relieved to know they were one step closer, they leave the storage room and lock up the house. Let's get to JT's place and see if we can figure out what all this stuff means.

Chapter 6:

****VINCENT – MUIRFIELD*** NEW STORY LINE*******

Chapter 7:

Catherine arrived at JT's, she got out of her car and closed the door behind her the automated locks clicking as she pressed her key fob.

"This place is Huge" JT exclaims as the three of them hunch over the blueprints scanning them for ways to get in.

"Yes but we can break it down into parts to make it easier to search. What we need to decipher is what room is what and where they may be holding Vincent" Tess advises them.

Catherine was relieved to hear Tess say what needed to be done and spurred on by the need to find her love she entered into the conversation. Catherine's determination that there was nothing and no one who could hold her back and God help them if they so much as harmed a hair on Vincent's head. If they thought he was a beast they have not seen anything like a woman fighting for her man, she would make them pay dearly she swore to herself. With this resolve the three of them set about marking out the territory, using the photographs alongside the blueprints they determined where the sleeping quarters were, where the labs and general living quarters were and that's when something caught Catherine's eye. These blueprints looked like some kind of prison or holding facility. She stabbed at the blueprints, "That's where Vincent will be held. These look like cells".

"There doesn't appear to be many ways in or out of that area" Tess exclaimed "How will we be able to get in there without anyone noticing, and look how many there are, we could spend all night searching these rooms."

JT had a pensive look on his face. "I think I have a solution but we will have to go to the University" "Why do we have to go there "Catherine asked.

"Because the paranormal science department have Thermal Imaging cameras for their investigations"

"You have a paranormal sciences department? You mean ghost hunters? Seriously? What kind of University is this?" Tess mocked.

JT answered "They have thermal imaging cameras, let's not go knocking a gift horse at this time k?" Catherine shook her head at the banter between these two and knew that if nothing else it was not going to be a boring trip.

"Can we not argue at this time guys? Let's just go and get these cameras and start heading out. I'm already packed and ready to go are you guys?" Both JT and Tess nodded their affirmative, gathering up the blueprints, map and pictures they headed out. Catherine stopped Tess, she had to ask her if she was sure that she wanted to go on this quest with her. Tess replied 'What and leave you with the Geek Squad as back up?" JT glanced back at Tess and shook his head. Cat chuckled at Tess's often used quip regarding JT.

"Listen, I may have had a hard time at first with Vincent and his manimal side but he has kind of grown on me. He makes you happy and nothing hurts me more right now than seeing the devastation on your face because Muirfield has kidnapped him. I want to find him for you as much as you want to find him. I'm in this with you and you can't talk me out if it."

"But what about Joe? What are you going to say to him?"

"Well" Tess paused for thought, "maybe we should just say that we both need a vacation and are taking off for some much needed girl time now that we know your dad is going to be okay"

"Another lie Tess? I can't believe how many lies this whole situation is causing for the both of us. It's just not fair."

"Listen life isn't fair and sometimes the lesser evil is lying to protect someone from greater harm. You and I both know that if Joe knew where we were going and why he'd have us both locked up and then where would Vincent be."

"I know, I just feel so guilty about it." JT overhearing this part interjected, "you shouldn't feel guilty Cat. None of this is your fault. All of this falls at the feet of Muirfield. They are the evil ones that caused all of this and maybe today they are still wreaking havoc but one day they will meet with their demise." "That's quite a speech JT" Cat said giving him a crooked smile "you do realize that one of those Muirfield people is my real father?"

"Well he will have to answer for himself and you will have to determine what to do about him when the time comes." Sighing heavily the trio loaded Catherine's car with all the gear they thought they would need for the trip. Thankfully the map had the route to the facilities clearly marked so it shouldn't be hard to find. The difficulty wasn't in finding the place it was getting there undetected and getting out with Vincent also without being detected or getting themselves killed in the process. Catherine's heart pounded in anticipation and fear.

Cat turned to JT "Did you bring some things for Vincent? I'm pretty sure he will need some clean clothes once we rescue him"

JT nodded "ya, I thought that too while I was packing, I have clothes and stuff for him." JT was glad to hear the optimism in Cat's voice, it wasn't if we rescue him or if we find him it was when. Her surety gave him hope that they would find his best friend and bring him home safely.

Chapter 8:

It was close to noon when they started their trip. Cat took the first turn driving with Tess sitting shotgun and JT taking the backseat. She headed towards the Holland Tunnel and eventually found her way to I-80 W some 22 miles later, she had to pay a toll and continued on her way passing through Pennsylvania and entering Ohio, apparently there would be a few tolls along this route. Catherine figured with no stops they should make it to Colorado in about 26 hrs. Tess was staring out the window and JT had fallen asleep in the back seat. Cat could hear JT softly snoring and wondered if he too had only gotten a miniscule amount of sleep the night before due to the worry that showed in the creases along his forehead. Tess took out a thermos and handed Cat a cup of hot coffee. She smiled at her friend, grateful for her company and support on this quest to save the man she loved from torture and possible death. Shaking her head at the thought, Cat and Tess made small talk as the miles slipped by. The next toll happened as they were entering Indiana and after having driven for 9 hrs. fatigue was starting to overtake Cat. JT was just waking and she asked if he could take over as Tess had just fallen asleep herself a couple hours earlier. Dusk was just starting to set in and there were still two more tolls to go through, one just before and the other just outside Chicago. JT drove the next nine hour stretch before having Tess take over. JT was relieved to have someone awake with when him and Tess traded places. He motioned to the back and said that Cat had finally cried herself to sleep a few hours ago. Tess noted the sad look on JT's face and was glad that Vincent and Catherine had such a loyal friend in JT. Tess asked JT if there was any coffee left in the thermos stating it was empty they started looking for some kind of coffee shop off the highway were they could get food and some fresh hot coffee. Noting a highway sign for a restaurant, Tess took the next exit and pulled into the 24 hour truck stop that was located just off the exit. Locking the doors and leaving Cat sleeping in the car, JT and Tess went inside to order food to go. They also grabbed pop, chips and sunflower seeds. They still had another 12 hours' drive until they reached Colorado and JT had heard that sunflower seeds helps to keep you awake if you are feeling fatigued. When they reached the car they noticed that Catherine was stirring awake due to the cars lack of motion. They all decided that they needed bathroom breaks and freshening up. So taking a few minutes to stretch, use the bathrooms and fill the car with gas they were finally ready to return to their travels. Tess got back in the driver's side and JT gave Catherine the front seat. Munching on a sandwich and drinking coffee helped revive them and as the miles slipped by, each of them when not filling the space with small talk sat in contemplation of what will transpire once they reached their destination in just under 12 hrs. Daylight was just a couple hours away, and the trio should be arriving at the Colorado border by mid-afternoon.

The dim light of the sun slowly roused Vincent from his restless slumber. His dreams were filled with both horror and whimsy. He dreamed of Catherine, about the nightmare he'd inflicted on that lone woman years ago and the paring of the two into one. He feared Muirfield changing his DNA so much that his beast nature would take over and he'd be incapable of preventing himself from harming Catherine. He groaned and sat up, thinking such thoughts would be no help to him. He had to make sure that Muirfield didn't drug him again although dodging tranq darts in this small space could prove to be tricky. He heard a scraping at the door and saw that someone had slipped a breakfast tray under his door. There was coffee in a plastic cup, toast and a boiled egg as well as an orange. Well at least it was mostly healthy. The coffee was great but he sure could use some water, all those drugs they forced into his system had left him feeling dehydrated. Once he finished his meager breakfast and using the chamber pot with a grimace of disgust, Vincent set about roaming the small square room he was locked into. He studied the rocks and grooves, tried to climb to the window but unless he transformed he couldn't find anything to grab onto. He studied the door trying to find a weakness but found nothing. How was he supposed to spend hours and days locked in this cell with nothing to do and with only his thoughts to keep him company? He wondered how long it would take for his mind to snap. Deciding that exercise might help he set about doing push ups, sit ups and any other thing he could think of to try and keep his muscle strength. After a few reps and many laps of pacing Vincent lay on the cot and just stared at the ceiling. He let his mind wandered to Catherine, he relived the moment they met, the arguments they had, the laughter they shared and he smiled at the memories. He remembered the night she told him she loved him, that he was her normal it was the night they shared their first kiss, he'd give anything to go back to that night. Memories of Catherine helped pass the time. Vincent's growling stomach reminded him that a meal had been missed and the long shadows told him it was near dinner time. Just then a food tray was slipped under the door. He guessed there were only two meals served here, breakfast and dinner and dinner was once again some kind of soup and bun with a bottle of water. Vincent grabbed the water and downed it in one gulp and then drank the soup as well, it was a bit salty which didn't help his thirst but it was wet none the less. His hunger nowhere near satisfied Vincent set about pacing his cell again. He was far from tired and seriously bored. He wondered what JT, Cat and even Tess were doing at this moment. Had he known that they were at that moment less than 12 hours from finding him his anticipation levels would be on the rise but since he had no knowledge of his impending rescue he just continued to pace his cell like a caged tiger. Apparently they were going to leave him alone today as no one came to the cell except the servant whose duty it was to feed him. Would tomorrow bring the onslaught of experiments that would alter his DNA even more than it already was? It was no use thinking along those lines as he was helpless to do anything about it. He thought about sleep since dusk has fallen and his cell was near pitch black with only a sliver of light from the full moon, at that moment he was glad he had night vision or he would be stumbling around. Sometimes it was hard to see the good in what was done to him but tonight he could actually be grateful for the night vision brought on by his DNA mutation. He paced for a few more hours before laying down, he wanted to sleep but found sleep eluding him. Probably all the drug induced sleep from the day before had left his body not feeling tired now. Vincent had no concept of the passage of time, he had no idea how long he had been here since a lot of that time he'd been drugged, for all he knew he could have been there for at least a week, he knew it couldn't be longer than that as he would be a lot more hungry then he already was. Vincent lay on his cot in the silence that surrounded his cell, during the day he could hear people walking around and talking at night everything went silent as those who roamed the world above him quit work for the day. While Vincent lay silently in the dark, he heard a sound that caught his attention, it was the distant sound of tires on gravel. During the day Vincent had heard the occasional vehicle come and go but this was different. This vehicle stopped far away from the compound, probably just inside of 2 miles and inside Vincent's range of hearing. He held his breath listening intently for the sound that carried to him on the night wind. It was amazing how sound travelled so much better at night than during the day because he wasn't sure he would have heard it have the car arrived a few hours earlier. Vincent felt his heart start to beat faster, he was certain he recognized the sound of the car, the distinctive soft squeal of brakes that separated Cat's car from all the others. 'It's not possible' he thought, 'she had no idea where he was and couldn't possibly have found him so quickly.' He remained quiet for some time listening for anything that might indicate that Catherine had indeed found him. When he heard nothing more he decided it must have been his imagination brought on by his need to see her lovely face and to mold her soft form to his. Sighing heavily, Vincent shut his eyes and willed sleep to come and take him away.

After stopping for lunch, the trio headed back out onto the highway for the last leg of their journey. Cat was once again at the wheel determined to be the one to drive up to the facility where she believed Vincent was being held. Darkness should be falling by the time they arrived and she could feel the anxiety flutter in her stomach. Cat worrying that she would not be able to keep her meager lunch down if she continued with this line of thing turned to Tess and said "So, what's going to be our first task once we get there?" Tess knew that Cat needed to keep her mind occupied and planning strategies was a good start. Tess thought for a bit "If we park the car far enough from the facilities, no more than 2 miles, less if we can but just so it won't be spotted, we should be able to hike up to the compound without being spotted. JT can you hand me the blueprints?" "Ya, right here" JT said as he passed them to Tess. Grabbed the blueprints Tess turned on the interior light to see. "Ok, so tell me where the doors and windows are supposed to be" Tess looked over the blueprints and JT leaning over the back seat points to a couple areas on the East side and one on the West side. On the North side away from the road it appeared there may be some kind of service entrance. Cat contemplated these and glancing quickly at Tess they both said at the same time "Service Entrance". "That may be our best chance of getting in undetected." Cat said "what about alarms, are there any indications of alarms or security lights anything like that?" Both Tess and JT looked over the blue prints, strangely it appeared this place didn't have a lot of security. Maybe they relied on guards and dogs due to the remoteness of the facility. JT grabbed the photographs to see if there was anything thing on them that might help navigate the area. The pictures were helpful as they showed both aerial and ground details not covered on the blueprints. There didn't appear to be a fence but the aerial photo did show guards and dogs stationed around the compound. They would just have to tackle that once they got there, thankfully both Tess and Catherine had the foresight to bring their guns and spare ammunition just in case it was needed for defense. They then hashed over what would be the best tactic for getting in and for finding and getting Vincent free. Do they all go in at once or should one person go in or two, should someone stand watch? Vincent was the one with military training, they sure could use his skills right about now, the irony wasn't lost on any of them. Still discussing options Cat was startled to realize that they had actually arrived at the turn off to their destination. Dusk was just beginning to fall and a spectacular sunset was topping off the mountains to the west. Taking a deep breath, Cat made the turn that would lead them up into the mountains of Colorado and to whatever fate awaited irony that her father's 'hide-out' was located in Colorado, the very place she thought Vincent and her could escape to and be hidden from Muirfield, caused her to wonder if somewhere in her memory she had already been here. The place she thought they would be safe would have landed them right under the noses of Muirfield and they wouldn't have even known about it. Darkness was complete now with the mountains shutting out the light from the still setting sun. Cat's headlights lit up the road in front of her and she knew she had find a place to park her car before they got too close. They didn't need her cars headlights announcing their arrival. They were still a couple hours away from the compound and Cat set her cars trip meter to zero to help her gauge when she was close enough to the compound to park her car without being detected. Hopefully no sentries were situated along the way to warn others of their approach. Cat glanced at her trip meter and realized that they had reached the 2 mile marker to the facilities and she set about looking for a place to park. Cat slowed the car to a near crawl searching the darkness for a safe place to park her car when Tess noticed a bit of a side road just to the right, it was slightly covered in gravel, surrounded by a thick covering of trees and it looked large enough for Cat's car to fit. Thinking it best to back in in case they needed to make a quick getaway, Cat slowly backed her car onto the side road as far in as she dared. The road actually ended a few yards in and with the lights of her car off anyone driving past would probably miss seeing them as long as they didn't glance off to the side, the trees providing just enough cover to prevent possible detection. Turning off her car the trio sat in silence, listening for any sound that might indicate they had been spotted. After a few minutes of dead silence the three breathed a collective sigh of relief and quietly chuckled relieving some of the pent up stress. JT had earlier grabbed the Thermo Imaging cameras from the trunk of the car and set about getting them up and running. He would have to get out of the car to scan the trees and road way to see if the camera picked up any heat signatures that would alert them to anyone approaching. As quietly as he knew how, JT slowly opened the door startling them all when the interior light came on suddenly. With a gasp, Catherine hit the dimmer switch and hissed at JT that he should have warned her first before opening the door. Muttering an apology, JT got out of the car and began scanning the trees and surrounding area with the Thermo camera. Vincent's eyes snapped open and he jumped off his cot. There was no mistaking that sound, he had heard a car door open and after a near lifetime spent with his best friend, Vincent KNEW the sound of JT's footsteps. How was this possible? They had found him but how? How did they even know where to look? Vincent's adrenaline kicked in and he transformed enough to jump up and grab hold of the bars in his small window. Now that he was closer to the outside, he was able to pick up the outside sounds, it was definitely JT which meant that Cat was with him and more than likely Tess as well. He tried listening for voices but if they were talking they were whispering too softly for him to hear. He let go of the window bars pushing himself slightly back and landed on the stone floor like a cat. He shook of the transformation, returning to his human form. He sat on the edge of his cot and amazed that these three were going to attempt to rescue him. He remembered the last time Catherine rescued him from Muirfield and it resulted in the death of Catherine's friend and colleague Evan Marks. Evan had fallen for Catherine and in a misguided attempt to capture Vincent to keep her safe, Evan had joined up with Muirfield only to realize too late that he had made a serious error in judgement and in order to save both Catherine and Vincent Evan had offered himself up like a sacrificial lamb enabling the two of them to escape. The memory of that was still painful to both Catherine and Vincent and he seriously hoped there would not be a repeat of that with this rescue mission. The thought of either Tess or JT losing their life to save him filled him with dread but none so severe than if Catherine lost her life to save him. He wasn't sure he could go on living is something happened to her she was like the air he breathed, vital and necessary.