Previously on The Pull

Catherine had an emotional break-up with Jason and fully committed to Vincent, but she wants to know what happened after he left NY

Author's note

Both Vincent and Catherine's storylines take place four years ago in this chapter. We will be back to present time in the following chapter.

Chapter 10: And those we left behind

FOUR YEARS AGO

Vincent looked across the rooftop where they were running surveillance. Tori was hunched over the ledge, looking at the building in front of them. It was 3 a.m. in the morning. They had been there for hours. He knew she was just doing this to please him. It wasn't her fight, but she was constantly trying to do what she thought he wanted. Worst part was that he could barely stand the sight of her lately.

He knew he was being unfair. She is just a girl with a crush. But he despised the person… no the beast, she made him become for a while. He hated everything that had happened during those few weeks when he actually believed he should "choose to be a beast" instead of dealing with the complications of being human. He hated the fact that he allowed Tori to mess with his head, reverted him back to a killer and above all, he hated the fact that because of Tori, Catherine had suffered.

Catherine… He could only remember bits and pieces of her, plus the few weeks they spent together. Yet, she was a constant in his mind. Every second of every day.

He left NY with Tori. Mostly because he didn't know what to do with her. She was ready to leave with him at a second's notice. No questions asked. He was too broken to argue. Tori embraced the chemical reaction they experienced when they were together. She found it exhilarating and didn't cease to act on it. Vincent, on the other hand, hated it. When he was around Tori, he felt… something. She had an effect on him, he couldn't deny that. It was completely primal, no emotions, no thinking involved. To his eternal shame, he acted on that "reaction" once after they left NY. It wasn't hard for her to get what she clearly wanted. He was confused, trying to forget. It was easy to let his guard down and become the animal.

He didn't even enjoy it… he actually didn't remember much. All he could remember was coming down from his "beast-high" state and feeling repulsive. He didn't want Tori. He didn't love her, she was too young and immature. He didn't even particularly liked her as a person. As a man, he would have never crossed that line and he hated the fact that his animal side didn't know any better. He vowed not to let it happen again. And it didn't. Even with all her advances, he managed to control his reaction. His rational, human side won. After a while Tori stopped having any effect on him. She was not happy about that.

He devoted his life to his mission. Even if his handler had betrayed him, he was going to hunt down the rest of the dangerous beasts. He wanted to protect the innocent, he wanted to protect Catherine from the things her family did but above all… he needed a mission. Something to feel up his empty days. Tori decide to stay and help him. Of course she did. He was hoping she would leave, but she could be useful. Two beasts were better than one.

They discovered the FBI's list was incomplete. There were more beasts out there. Where they came from? It was anyone's guess. They had been tracking a group of beasts all the way from LA. They were in a hunt for something or someone and leaving a trail of innocent victims. They finally caught up with them in the small town of Monterey, California. Vincent couldn't figure out why the beasts would go to a place that was known for nothing other than canned sardines and being the temporary residence of John Steinbeck. Whatever the case, he was determined to get some answers.

He glanced back at Tori. She was getting ready to jump and attack. He grabbed her arm to stop her.

"No" he said.

"What do you mean no? We can kill them. Right here, right now."

"They are after something. I want to know what"

Tori shrugged and went back to her spot on the roof. They waited until the beasts were gone and sneaked into the building they were occupying. There wasn't much there, some empty take-away containers, blankets and a lot of files.

Vincent started going through the papers. There was everything there. From newspaper clippings to coffee shop receipts. It didn't make much sense but it looked like they were tracking someone's movements.

"Who is she?" Tori said as she picked up a file. There was a picture of a redhead woman in her mid 30s wearing a lab coat.

"Mary Smith, she is a doctor" Vincent said.

"Yeah I know" Tori said "I can read. But why are the beasts after her?"

"She must know something or have something of value" he answered.

"Or maybe… they are just into redheads… like you" she flirtatiously said.

"If you are referring to my ex-fiance Alex… I literally can't remember. Either way, I am more of a brunette man nowadays" He added the last part just to piss her off. He knew it was petty, but he couldn't help it.

He snatched the file out of her hands and headed to the door.

"Let's go"

Catherine looked around their newly acquired café. There was a lot to be done before they could open to the public. Luckily Michelle was good friends with a contractor, Jason, who was going above and beyond for them.

"I wonder what is taking Michelle so long" Jason said as he poured Catherine another drink.

"No idea" she said, but she knew exactly what Michelle was up to.

They were having a celebratory drink and Michelle had suddenly volunteered to go get some snacks. Jason had shown an interest in Catherine and Michelle was probably already coming up with a plan to set them up.

Normally, Catherine would have been upset, but she was actually having fun with Jason. As it turned out, Jason was actually a really great guy and conversation was flowing without any awkward pauses. They laughed and talked about books, music, the town and its colourful dwelers.

"Why did you leave New York?"

"Tired of the city life" she said the first thing that came to her mind. That was an excuse people actually use, right?

"Big cities are great, but you can't beat life in a small town. The community, safety… it is the best place to have a family…"

"Yes, exactly" she lied. She loved New York. She missed everything about it. She missed the noise, the mess, the chaos, she missed… No, she couldn't go there. The conversation was getting uncomfortable and she hoped for a topic change. Luckily he did just that.

"Plus, small towns have quant little places like our vintage Rialto. They are screening Casablanca right now…"

"I love that movie" Catherine honestly said. He paused for a second. She knew he was going to ask her out and she was tempted to accept.

"You know…" Jason started "Maybe we could go see it together"

Catherine bit her bottom lip while she considered his offer. It sounded like fun… and it was only a movie.

"I promise to buy you some red vines" he said.

Her smile dropped and just like that, she knew she couldn't do it. She wasn't ready. Perhaps she never would be.

"You know… I am really busy with the café opening now… Perhaps some other time"

"Sure" he said disappointed.

She hated doing that to him… but couldn't really say It's not you, it's me. Although this time, it was actually true.

Michelle finally walked in bearing a bag of potato chips. Catherine quickly made an excuse and left Jason and Michelle at the café.

She started walking home. She needed some time to think. Vincent. The name just kept coming back to her mind. She couldn't do anything to stop it. Could she ever escape him… Perhaps not. He was like a piece of herself…

Catherine. Vincent silently called her name as he stared into the sky. Some days he felt her presence even stronger. He wondered if it was because she was thinking of him. That's ridiculous. Now I think we have a psychic bond. Yet… it didn't seem all that preposterous. He felt as if Catherine was a part of him… he felt her absence like a ghost limb… and the pain was almost unbearable.

"Come on"

Tori's voice brought him out of his reverie. They were in the middle of breaking into the lab where Dr. Mary Smith worked. The woman hunted by beasts for unknown reasons. As soon as they walked in, he could sense the other beasts were already there.

"We need to hurry" he said.

It was almost 5 PM. The lab was almost empty. Tori and Vincent heard a commotion at the end of the hallway and ran in that direction. Five beasts were fully transformed and had the doctor cornered. Tori and Vincent transformed as well. In the midst of his transformation Vincent noticed something odd. The doctor was scared, but she wasn't as terrified as you would expect in this situation.

The beasts attacked Tori and Vincent and each took on two. Meanwhile the doctor started running, but one of the beasts went after her. The doctor reached a containment room and tried to lock herself inside, but beast managed to get inside before the door closed. She was locked inside an airtight room with a beast.

Vincent finished off his beasts and ran towards the trapped doctor. He started banging on the glass but it was bullet proof. Tori came after him. They kept banging on the door and the windows. They slowly started to crack but they didn't have enough time. The beast was already charging towards the doctor. And then… the unexpected happened. The doctor transformed into a beast. It was an odd transformation… she was stuck somewhere between human and beast. In either case, the other beast was taken aback for a second which gave her enough time to strike him and rip his heart out.

She turned back to human and collapsed on the floor.

"Seriously, who is she?" Tori said again as Vincent finally got the door open.

"Dr. Mary Smith" was unconscious and chained to a chair in a deserted warehouse. She finally came back to it. She pulled up the chains trying to break free, but it was futile. The chains were too strong and she was too weak…

"Don't even try it" Tori said "Those chains could hold any beast on a good day… and just to make sure we sedated you"

"We?" The doctor asked and studied Tori "Which one are you?" she asked.

Tori was taken aback by her question.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I don't know you"

Tori blurred towards her and menacingly leaned over the chair.

"Who the hell are you? You are going to tell me everything you know about beasts or…"

"Or what?" The doctor asked without missing a beat.

"Tori!" Vincent's voice came from the door. He glared at Tori until she moved away.

Vincent walked towards the doctor.

"If we wanted you dead, you would be dead already. We are not going to hurt you" he said "The chains are just a precaution… I didn't know how you would react when you regained consciousness. I gave you a sedative, but made sure all your vitals were good… You are going to be OK"

She didn't answer. She looked at him for a second, then finally spoke.

"Keller" the doctor said "Vincent Keller"

Vincent froze for a second.

"You seem to know me… but I don't know anything about you, Dr… Smith"

"That's not my real name"

"I figured. Well… I meant what I said. I don't want to hurt you. But you clearly know a lot and right now… you are my prisoner. So I suggest you start talking" he said.

She laughed and shook her head.

"I'll tell you who I am… but not because of your threat… or because I am afraid of your ginger minion…"

"Why then?"

"She always liked you… You were her favorite, she said you were special"

"Who?" Vincent asked without a clue of what she was talking about.

"Vanessa, Vanessa Chandler. I was her lab assistant in Afghanistan. My name is Jodie"

End of episode 10

A/N OK, so I was a little hesitant to explore the Tori thing. However, I didn't want to go with the idealistic version of "nothing happened". Take into account this story begins after 2x07 where the 'chemical reaction' was introduced. I always thought that was badly handled and if used correctly it could have been a reason for Vincent to remember why letting his beast side loose without intervention of his human sense of right of wrong was a terrible idea. In any case, hope I didn't irk anyone. I know the Tori subject is delicate. But… that was the extent of it. No T/V on this story. No, no.