Thank you for the reviews!

PLEASE keep them coming! X3

~BATB~

This was an idea that popped into my head once so I decided to write about it.

Disclaimer:

I DO NOT OWN THE WONDERFUL CW SERIES, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST!

Though, I do have it on iTunes!

:^]

Keep Me Safe

Keiko Fujiwara

NOTE:

IN CASE YOU DID NOT SEE THE RE-UPDATE OF LAST CHAPTER, I CHANGED OBAMA'S NAME TO WILCOX BECAUSE OF ALL OF THE THINGS THIS CHARACTER WILL BE INVOLVED WITH. I REALIZED THAT THEY NEVER USE THE ACTUAL PRESIDENT'S NAME IN TV SHOWS SO WHY SHOULD I? SO, AGAIN, OBAMA IS NOW WILCOX!

SORRY FOR ANY CONFUSION!

~JT's POV~

"They've just landed!" I exclaimed. "It looks like Catherine is now at the DC General Hospital."

"The hospital?" Tess replied.

"Yeah…"

"Why on Earth is she at a hospital?" Joe asked.

"I'm just the messenger." I stated. "I'm gonna try calling Vincent."

I pulled out my phone and dialed his number, hoping he still had it on him. The rings echoed through my ears as no one answered. Damn! Well, there blows that theory.

"Any luck?" Tess asked.

"No. He must have either lost his phone or turned it off. In either case, I can't reach him." I replied. Something tells me Vincent is with Catherine though. I don't know why, I just have that gut-wrenching feeling.

"Okay, troops, change of plans. Vargas and team will be lowered onto the roof of the DC general hospital. Vargas, you'll find out why Chandler is over there while the rest of the team and I will go and meet the FBI. We will wait for your call. I don't want to start a war unless we have to. Got that?"

All troops nodded.

"Good, we'll be landing in approx. fifteen minutes." Joe stated.

This is going to get interesting.

~BEAUTY AND THE BEAST~

Vincent's POV~

I dressed into scrubs and was about to follow Doctor Sheldon to the room Catherine was in but something told me to call JT.

"You go on ahead, I'll catch up." I stated, gesturing for him to continue forward. I've been to this hospital once so I know my way around. I found my way to the nearest payphone and chucked a few coins in before dialing JT's number.

"Hello?"

"JT, it's me."

"Dude, what the hell is going on?! Cat's entire precinct is about to land on top of the DC General Hospital!"

"JT, I can't explain but you cannot bring Catherine's precinct here."

"Why the hell not?!"

"Because…let's just say I made a deal with the devil." I replied. "It appears Catherine and I will be in DC for a few weeks."

"Why is that?!"

"Well, Catherine received terrible wounds. She'll need at least two weeks to recover and then…the President wants to me to cooperate with something."

"P-president? As in THE USA?"

"Yes, JT."

"What the hell were you thinking?!"

"It was the only way I could get Catherine to a hospital in time, JT! She was in terrible condition and there was no way I could exactly refuse the president when he's accompanied by several men with guns. Not to mention the fact that he basically gave me no choice. Listen, JT. No one is supposed to know that Catherine and I are at this hospital so you need to tell everyone to stand down."

"I think you're going insane but whatever dude. I'll do whatever I can." JT replied.

"Thanks, man. I owe you one."

"Damn straight!" JT laughed before he ended the call. I hung up the phone and made my way to Catherine.

~BEAUTY AND THE BEAST~

~JT's POV~

"Was that Vincent?" Tess asked as I ended the call.

"Yeah and I hate to say this but he told me to tell you guys to stand down."

"He told you what?!" Joe exclaimed. "Are you saying that this Vincent guy wants you to tell me that I have to one) call the FBI and tell them to save this shit for a rainy day; two) tell all of these men and women that they came with us for nothing; three) ask the pilot to turn this plane around? No way José. Not happening!"

"Ummmm…I was told that my friend, Vincent, as well as Catherine, were asked (more like demanded) by the President of the US to stay in DC until Cat recovers from her intensive injuries." I said.

"Well, the last time I checked, the President was on vacation."

"Maybe he just got back." I replied.

"Tess, get the White House on the phone." Joe ordered.

Tess pulled out her phone and dialed the White House's number. She handed the phone to Joe and he waited for the line to go through.

I didn't know what the other line was saying only that Joe asked for the president, explained the situation and muttered a lot of "mhmms" and "I understands"."

He ended the call and said, "Tess, call the FBI. Tell them False Alarm."

"Why do I gotta do it?" Tess complained as she gave her boss a disgusted look.

"Because, I've gotta take it up to the pilot. We might have to land at an airport and then take another plane. I'll be back." Joe stated as he disappeared into the plane's cockpit.

"Hi…Listen…this is Detective Tess Vargas and my boss, Joe Bishop, received notification that this entire thing was a false alarm….Yes, that would be correct….No, this isn't a joke...You wanna know who gave us orders to stand down?...The President, that's who….I don't like this either but hey, it isn't like we can do anything about it….You know what?! Just call the damn White House yourself and ask for the President!"

"Tough crowd?" I asked.

"No kidding. I swear, Joe always seems to give me the worst tasks." Tess said as she rubbed her temples. "This is gonna be one hell of a long night."

"No arguments here." I replied. This better be worth it, Vincent.

~BEAUTY AND THE BEAST~

~Vincent's POV~

It has been three hours since Catherine was brought to the hospital. Unfortunately, one of the places on her chest where she was stabbed ruptured her spleen. We had to remove it as well as suture up both arteries in her legs. I'm surprised she didn't die from internal bleeding. We also had to sew up every stab wound and lashing along her body. Unfortunately, her legs, left hand and back were completely burned from Hydrochloric Acid. Because of the intensity of the burns and that they weren't immediately covered afterwards, she'll have permanent scarring. The worst part was, because the rest of her body was in terrible condition, we couldn't perform a skin graph procedure. All we could do was carefully clean her burns before wrapping them up. It is possible she may never use her legs properly again but all we could do now was hope for the best. She also received three broken ribs, a broken right femur, a broken left humerus and three fractured fingers. How she managed to survive everything is beyond me but I'm glad she did. As of right now, she's in recovery as the doctors asked me a few questions.

"How did this happen?" Doctor Sheldon asked.

"I d-don't know. I wasn't with her when it happened. I only saw the aftermath." I replied.

"Where did this happen?"

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me. I wish I could tell you but, the President asked me to keep silent." I lied. I can't just tell them we were kidnapped by this governmental group under the leadership of the President.

"Fine. We won't ask any more questions. You can go in to see her if you'd like." Dr. Sheldon stated and I shook his hand in gratitude.

"Thanks." I stated before going to Catherine's recovery room.

When I went in, I didn't expect her to be awake, yet there she was.

"Hey." I smiled as I walked to her. I knelt down and kissed her forehead before sitting in the seat next to her medical bed.

"Where am I?" she asked.

"You're at DC General Hospital." I replied while stroking her arm.

"How did I get here?"

"That's a story for another day, Catherine. It's too late in the night for me to tell you right now. Besides, you need your rest."

"I don't want to sleep, Vincent." She replied.

"I'll be right here, Catherine. I promise I won't be going anywhere."

"I'm not tired, Vincent. Honestly, I just woke up from whatever drugs the doctors gave me." She stated.

I rolled my eyes. "What am I ever going to do with you?"

We sat in silence before she muttered, "I…I bet you're wondering what happened…"

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, Catherine." I whispered before giving her a small kiss.

"I feel like if I talk about it now, I won't suffer from it like I did with the first time." She replied.

"It's up to you."

As she told me every single thing that happened to her, a few times I could feel my anger swarming around in my body but I wouldn't allow myself to submit to the Beast. Catherine needed me here, not out there killing of Muirfield agents.

"I don't know what I would have done if I'd lost you, Catherine." I whispered.

"Just don't think about it, Vincent." She replied.

"About the President…He showed up as I came out of the tunnels." I stated.

"What happened?"

"I had to make a deal with him in order for me to bring you here. Trust me, I don't like the sound of it either but he literally gave me no choice."

"What does he want?"

"He wants me to cooperate with him…Answer questions…possibly provide a blood sample." I replied. "I honestly don't know what he has planned but whatever it is, it doesn't look pretty."

Suddenly, Doctor Sheldon walked in and said, "You have a call on hold, Mr. Zalanski."

"I'll be there in a minute." I replied.

"Alright. It is waiting for you at the desk at the end of the hall."

"Thanks."

As Dr. Sheldon left, Catherine said, "Zalanski?"

"JT thought it would have been cute if he made me fake IDs that had my name as Vincent Zalanski." I replied.

"Oh. Right." She softly smiled and added, "I'll be right here when you get back."

I kissed her forehead before making my way to the phone.

~BEAUTY AND THE BEAST~

"Hello?"

"I hope Miss Chandler is starting to make a full recovery?" the voice at the end of the line asked.

"She'll be recovering for at least two weeks if not more. Her injuries were critical no thanks to your men." I nearly spat.

"And I apologize for their brutality. If I had known Odin would have taken measures this extreme, I would have come sooner to stop it myself. I merely wanted Odin to scare her. He wasn't supposed to torture her like that."

"Somehow I don't believe you." I replied.

"Believe what you will, Vincent Keller. Let me get this straight, as long as you and Catherine do as I say and when I say it, no one will be harmed. You play your game well, you will not lose."

"And if I don't?"

"Let's just say Muirfield will be paying a visit to New York City sometime soon."

"Alright. What is it you want?"

"After Miss Chandler's recovery, I want you to tell me where Catherine's mother's research is."

"How do you know I know where it is?"

"Because, you're the only person Miss Chandler trusts more than anyone in the world. She wouldn't have kept her mother's research at her father's house and she definitely wouldn't keep it at her apartment. So, something tells me she asked you to hide them. If you tell me where they're hidden, you won't hear from Muirfield again."

"Do I look that dumb to you? Muirfield will always be after me! With me alive, Muirfield has a chance of being destroyed. I don't think they'd just willingly stop chasing me down. Plus, I know what your plans are, Mr. President. Whatever the hell you make me do, I won't let you get away with another Super Soldier project!"

"We'll see about that."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Catherine Chandler is currently in room 450 B. Correct?"

I said nothing.

"I am a man of power, Vincent Keller. Remember that."

I mentally cursed and said, "If you promise to leave Catherine Chandler out of Muirfield's business forever, I'll tell you want you want to know."

"Wise decision, Vincent Keller. Wise decision, indeed."

"Will you promise?!"

"I am a man of my word. I'll give you that much." President Wilcox replied.

Which means that if I don't do what he says, he will involve her. Damn. Just damn.

"Why did you join this project anyways?" I asked, hoping he would explain his motives.

"Because, Vincent, I am the President of the United States—the strongest nation in the world. With a little extra help, we will be unstoppable! We will finally be able to rule the world and other countries will know their place!"

"So that's what Bryan was trying to tell me…you want America to change from democracy to a dictatorship."

Very good, Keller, very good."

"You said I have until Catherine's recovery is complete, is that right?" I asked, wanting him to reiterate his words.

"That would be correct."

"Then I have a request."

"What?"

"Don't bother me until then." Before I could get any angrier, I ended the call and slammed the phone back down onto its base.

I hurried back to Catherine's room as quickly as I could in hopes that I would blow off some steam.

"Is everything alright?" Catherine asked as I sat down next to her.

"Not really."

"What happened?" she asked with her voice cracking.

"President Wilcox has ordered me to tell him where your mother's research is. I have until the end of your recovery to tell him or, let's just say, things will get uglier than if I just comply with his terms."

"Vincent, we can't allow him to create another group of super soldiers much less the entire military!" she exclaimed but winced from pain arising in her stomach.

"You need some sleep, Catherine. We can talk about this later."

"There might not be a later." She replied.

"Catherine, please, just sleep. Okay? Can you sleep for me?" I asked, hoping she would.

She gave me a disappointed look but slowly nodded before saying, "Fine. Just promise you won't leave me during the night."

I smiled and kissed her softly on the lips before she closed her eyes. Apparently she was more tired than she originally thought because the moment her eyes closed, she easily drifted into a pleasant sleep. If only it were pleasant times right now.

I walked over to the telephone in the corner of the room and checked to see if there was a dial-tone. There was. I dialed JT's cell, hoping he'd answer.

"Hello?"

"Hey JT. Look, you and I need to talk."

"When and where?"

"When: ASAP and Where: At DC General Hospital." I replied.

"Alright. Well, I just got back to NYC but I'll leave in the morning by car and drive up there. You alright, man?"

"Not at all. Something's happened and you are not going to like it."

"Is Catherine okay?"

"Yeah…she's fine. There are much bigger problems right now and I'm talking about cataclysmic-sized."

"Oh jeez. Don't give me a heart attack before I leave."

"Oh, and remember that goofy tie I bought you for Christmas before I enlisted?"

"You mean the one that has a stupid microphone as a tie clip?"

"Yeah, that one. You still have it?" I asked.

"Yup…and the batteries have already been replaced." I could tell he smirked as he said that; indicating that he just recently played a prank on someone at work.

"Okay…bring it...and bring me a nice suit—one that matches the tie. I have a feeling I'm going to have to wear one soon."

"You're planning something, aren't you." JT stated with a sly tone in his voice.

"You know me well, JT."

"Okay…On it. Expect me there in about a day. You're lucky it's winter break, man or else I'd probably lose my tenure from all of these trips I've been taking." JT replied.

"Thanks, man. Get here as fast as you can without hurting yourself." I stated. "I've gotta go. Catherine is sleeping."

"Okay…I'll go now. I need to go to the store and buy me a bottle of Tums. I'm sure I'll need it when I get to DC."

"That would be a good idea." I smirked. "Have a safe trip."

"Thanks. Bye." JT said before ending the call. I hung up the phone and sat back down on the chair next to Catherine's bed. I leaned my head against the bed's cot, hoping I'd get at least some portion of sleep before tomorrow.

Things are going to get very interesting from this point forth.

Keiko Fujiwara:

Like I said, this one was going to be a longer one! How do you think of it now?!

I'm not liking this President dude myself. What about you?!