Chapter 4
Vincent turned to his Father, his brow furrowed in thought. "Father, will you answer me something about Catherine?"
"Of course." He replied.
"How long have we known each other?" Vincent asked.
"Oh, let me think. Why it's been almost... four years now. My goodness, time has flown." Father remarked.
"That long." Vincent frowned. Father could see something was troubling his son.
"What is it, Vincent?" he asked.
"I'm not sure. When Catherine woke up with me this morning..." Vincent began.
Father couldn't stop his mouth from dropping open. Quickly, he recovered himself, but not rapidly enough to escape Vincent's notice.
"What?" Vincent asked moving forward in his seat as he peered at Father intently.
"Hmm?" Father murmured, trying vainly to appear nonchalant.
"Come now, Father; first Catherine and now you. What is it about the two of us being physically close that seems to unnerve everyone? How can I understand if I can't remember and no one will tell me? Please, I must know." Vincent pleaded.
Seeing Vincent's agitation, Father relented, but chose his words carefully. "I'll tell you what I know. While I've always thought that you and I have a better relationship than most fathers and sons, I am not privy to all the things that have happened between you and Catherine. What I do know is that there has always been a reticence between you both in pursuing your relationship beyond a certain point. Your relationship with Catherine has been quite difficult at times and the two of you have faced major obstacles." Father decided not to mention that he was a major contributor to those difficulties and obstacles. Silently, he vowed that was all in the past.
Vincent digested the information for a time. Then, his body stiffened and his face took on a rather dark look.
"There someone else." he said softly, his voice almost a growl.
"What?" Father cried, truly shocked Vincent could have drawn such an erroneous conclusion. "Absolutely not! Catherine is devoted to you, Vincent. How could you even think such a thing? The obstacles I was referring to are because of Catherine's position. She's an Assistant District Attorney and she's very dedicated. Unfortunately, that means she works very hard at what she does. In her own way, Catherine protects those Above as much as you have protected us."
The irony that he was now adamantly defending Catherine was not lost on Father; still, he couldn't help feeling a touch of outrage on her behalf. Wisely, Father decided not to elaborate on the danger Catherine's job put her in. He wasn't sure his son was quite ready or healthy enough to hear all the details of his past just yet.
The tension in Vincent eased as a weight seemed to be lifted off of him. He could tolerate Catherine being dedicated to her job; given the care and concern she'd shown for him, he had no doubt she would feel the same about her work. A rival, however, was another matter entirely. Frankly, that notion didn't sit well with Vincent at all.
Out in the tunnel, Catherine dragged in a breath of much needed air. The unusual way Vincent had been acting all morning had both thrilled and unnerved her. It was as if her most secret dreams had been granted; but Catherine couldn't help fearing that she might pay hefty toll for them later. Who knew how long Vincent's new attitude would last and how he might feel once his memory truly returned? She vowed to herself not to let anything happen that could later give Vincent an excuse to push her away. The irony of her situation wasn't lost on Catherine either. It seemed now she was the one who would have to proceed with caution. Feeling a bit surer of herself, she headed to the kitchen to give William his tray and her warm thanks his good food during the crisis.
After visiting with William, Catherine slowly made her way back to Vincent's chamber. On the way, she encountered the ever helpful Mary.
"Oh, Catherine, I'm glad I found you, dear. I took the liberty of washing your regular clothes for you and have got them right here. I know you'll need them when you start back Above." she informed Catherine with her usual smile.
Catherine tried to smile in response, but just couldn't seem to manage it. The sight of her 'normal' clothes brought Catherine crashing back to reality with a monumental thud. After nearly a week in the tunnels, Catherine realized she wasn't very anxious to rush back to that hectic life.