Chapter 10

The rest of the evening had been very jovial. Even Father had joined in, telling a few tales of Devin and Vincent's childhood antics. It had been a very pleasant evening. Yet, Emily still couldn't help feeling a little unsettled, especially when she caught Father looking at her twice with a strange expression on his face. Finally, Devin had walked her back to the guest chamber. Maybe it was her imagination, but Devin seemed almost reluctant to leave her.

"You were great tonight, Emily. I just wanted you to know how much I appreciate you going through all this. I know it can't be easy for you."

If you only knew. She thought, but merely smiled and said. "It's no problem. I'm just glad everything is working out. I guess this is good night."

"Well, good night." He replied before slowly departing.

After he had gone, Emily sat down on the bed, finally alone at last. She was exhausted, but the events of the day left her entirely too keyed up to sleep. Though it seemed a lifetime, she realized, much to her surprise, that she had only been in the tunnels for barely a day. Maybe it was her passion for the program or her familiarity with the people themselves, but Emily realized that somehow in the past few hours she had stopped thinking of all this as merely a TV show. This place and these people had become real to her and she found herself caring what happened to them more than she wanted to admit. Whatever happened, she knew now she would do whatever she could to prevent the tragedy of Season 3 from repeating itself.

A short distance away, someone else was having trouble getting to sleep as well. Devin was in bed trying to get a hold on his wayward emotions and runaway thoughts. It had taken all his willpower not to sweep Emily up and plant a kiss on her diminutive mouth right there in the guest chamber. Though their engagement was a ruse, he couldn't help almost wishing it weren't. In spite of only knowing her for less than a day, she was making Devin feel things he never had before. Always with other women, Devin had kept up a front, never allowing them to see his true self and unable to speak of his past. The only time he had ever gotten close enough to a woman to even contemplate telling her the truth about himself, it had ended badly when she found he wasn't the person he pretended to be. Since then, he'd never allowed anyone except Charles to ever get close to him emotionally again. But Emily was different. She knew all his secrets, yet she still trusted him, even going along with his schemes when he himself wasn't sure how they'd turn out. Her faith in him made him want to do things the right way instead of taking the easy road as he always had before. It was a daunting notion. But, it certainly promised to be very interesting to say the least.

The next week passed with amazing swiftness for Emily, but her days were happy ones. She was quickly welcomed into the community with an enthusiasm and hospitality she had rarely ever known. Though Emily wasn't very domestic, she still managed to make herself useful and found ways to contribute to the community as best as she could, always offering an extra pair of hands when needed.

She particularly enjoyed spending time with Devin. He was forever hanging around under the guise of being her attentive 'fiancé'. It wasn't long before Emily found herself falling quite hard for his brash manner and suave good looks in spite of her resolve not to. Devin didn't strike her as the type for a serious relationship and heaven only knew how things were going to turn out for her.

Perhaps the most rewarding thing for Emily was watching the relationship between Vincent and Catherine develop as it was obviously meant to. Anyone could easily see that the two of them were very much in love. Since her escape from John Moreno's trap, Catherine spent every night in Vincent's chamber. The lovers were always in each other's company, holding hands and sharing tender touches. Vincent overcame his earlier reticence and now embraced Catherine openly, heedless of whether anyone was watching.

Catherine blossomed under Vincent gentle care and constant attention. The lines of strain on her face quickly vanished and her skin now had a healthy glow. Predictably, the other tunnel residents quietly took notice, remarking to each other how they had never seen Vincent look happier or more at peace. It was obvious to everyone how having Catherine Below benefitted their beloved Vincent and Catherine as well. Even the normally taciturn William spoke of it, boasting how he'd 'finally managed to put some meat on Catherine's skinny bones.'