(Chapter 6)

Vincent made his way over to Catherine's to check on her and to make sure she was doing okay. Since what happened two days ago, she was lucky she didn't get more injured after Connor manhandled her. He was reluctant to leave her like that the night before, but she wanted to be by herself, especially after witnessing the kiss Alex gave him. Before greeting her, he watched her trying to lift the dumbbell, it reminded him of the time he was shot and had to do some physical therapy to get his side back into working order too.

"Hey." Catherine greeted with hesitation, stopping for a second. She was surprised by Vincent's sudden appearance, figuring that he would be spending some time with his fiancee, especially after the kiss they shared. So to ease some tension between them, she decided to be humorous about it. "Remind me never to get shot again."

"Never get shot again," Vincent responded with a smile. He was a little unsure about coming inside since the way things ended the night before between them. He didn't want to repeat what happened to her at her father's wedding ever again if he could help it. Catherine greeted him by gesturing to him with her hand and entered her living room; making his way over to where she was. He didn't like seeing her uncomfortable or in pain and instructed her. "Now put the dumbbell down."

"Why do I get the feeling that this is going to hurt even worse?"

"Give me your hands, come on." Vincent ordered while holding out his hands to her, watching Catherine hesitate a bit before grabbing hold of his. He figured being the doctor he was, he could help her. Besides, she needed to work on her elasticity, so he commenting "You need to work on your flexibility."

"I don't remember asking you to be my 'personal' physical therapist too." Catherine joked, but still felt a little uneasy around him.

"Okay, slightly back, that's it." Vincent watched her lean back and started to do the same. Then he saw an uncomfortable expression on her face. "Careful."

"You know, the first time I got shot in Afghanistan, I couldn't sleep for months." He mentioned remembering when he was trying to save a civilian but got caught in the crossfire. By shielding him with his body simultaneously, the bullet hit the side of his stomach, causing some internal bleeding.

"Where did you...?"

"On the left side of my stomach," Vincent explained while bringing her to him, remembering the other ugly scar that he had that ran down the right side of his abs. "It took a while to, uh, heal. That was before the injections started, you know."

"Right. Yeah, it's like I'm sleepwalking. I can't do anything, and they've got me on restrictive duty until I am physically and emotionally up to par." Catherine muttered while shaking her head.

"And, again," Vincent leaned back a little while she did the same. He ignored the phone as the ringing was going off and took a mental sigh. What the hell did his ex want now? He regretted giving Alex his number, but after what happened with Connor. He needed to make sure she was okay.

"You want to answer that?"

"Uh, no. I'll call her back later." Vincent replied, he could hear the unhappiness in her voice. He wished he had put the damn phone on silent to begin with.

"Ah, Alex," Catherine commended with resentment. She tried to let go of his hands but felt his large hands squeeze them tighter like he didn't want to let go. "Really, Vincent, it's okay. I don't mind."

"Uh, but I do…" Vincent hesitated as he slowly brought Catherine towards him again. By that time, he had missed Alex's call. He wanted to explain where he was with Alex in their relationship but was cut off by her. "Look, uh Catherine, the thing is…"

"You...You don't have to explain," Catherine started to pull away again. "She's your fiancée. You were planning a life together for years."

"Yeah, Alex was my fiancée, and we have been planning," Vincent thought a lot about the conversation they had a couple of days ago and let go of one of her hands. "but you and me…."

"You and I are; you know, I don't know what were are." Catherine shook her head a little, trying to think of what to say. She didn't really want to discuss his relationship with Alex; it wasn't a good option right now. Why the hell was here in the first place? She wondered. "Vincent, what are you even doing here?"

"I wanted to; I don't know. I-I thought that maybe we could...?" Vincent stammered while still holding one of her hands and came closer to her. he tried to figure out what to say.

"We could, what?" Catherine asked, tilting her head a little and pressing her lips together, a bit confused by Vincent's comment.

"Uh, you remember the camping trip we planned before the blackouts, yeah?" Vincent mentioned and began to caress her hand. He didn't know how else to ask her, he remembered planning a nice camping trip together before, so maybe this time it could happen. He continued. "I uh, I wanted to spend time together."

"You are serious, aren't you?" Catherine remarked, feeling her heart start palpitating quickly. She didn't think he still seriously considered that camping trip.

"Yeah," He pulled her close and place his hand on her hips. "You know, maybe we get to know each other more."

Catherine was still a little hesitant even after the incident with Alex the night before. She had to asked. "What about Alex...she still loves you, Vincent?"

"No." Vincent shook his head while continuing. "She's in love with a dead guy; I will never be that Vince Keller again. Okay." he continued, with seriousness in his voice, and looked at her intensity. "I did wanted to marry her once, but a lot has uh, changed, you know."

"Yeah, I know, but..."

"What?" Vincent interrupted, he could hear the concerned hesitation in her voice and the uncertain expression on her face.

"I'm just starting to get back to work." Catherine protested, slipping her hand from Vincent, walked over to the fridge; to take out a bottle of water.

Vincent sensed an uncomfortable feeling from Catherine, and he followed her into the kitchen and suggested. "So, take medical leave. You still need to recover from getting, uh, shot at."

"You're right." Catherine saw the sincerity in Vincent's eyes, and she knew he was serious. She just wasn't sure how to proceed with it. He was right; she still needed to recover, and what better way of doing than in a relaxing setting, with a 'doctor' on hand. "I'm going to see the therapist that Joe assigned me to later. Maybe I could request some time off."


"Alex, uh, what's going on? Everything okay" Vincent asked with concern, thinking that something had seriously happened again to her. After leaving Catherine's, he arrived there to do one thing: to tell his ex, besides moving on and that they can't reconnect anymore. Especially with the way things were between Catherine and him as of this morning. He could sense the uncertainty around her when he mentioned the trip.

"Yeah, I just have something to ask you."

"Okay," He followed her into the hallway, spotting a mantle lined with memorabilia photos of them. One of them was with her parents; it made him smile a bit, remembering that moment in time. A time that was so long ago, a time that he could never get back. "There's, um, there's something that I wanted to talk to you about, too."

"When I thought you were dead, I used to fantasize about leaving New York and never coming back." Alex walked up to him and grabbed hold of his jacket before she looked into his eyes. Telling him. "I read about this mobile medical team that works in remote Nigeria. They travel from village to village, helping whoever needs medical care. We could do it, Vince. We could go together."

"No." Vincent looked away and shook his head. He didn't want to leave Catherine just to be with Alex, not after having those strong feelings for her. Leaving J.T. behind was even out of the question.

"Are you worried I'm gonna reveal your identity? Because someone could try to beat it out of me. I wouldn't say a word."

"Alex, it's about your safety." Vincent pulled away from her; Muirfield will do more than just beat the truth out of her; they will make sure she won't speak about them again.

"I know people are after you. I mean, that's why I wanted to take you halfway around the world or to Mexico, to leave it all behind." Alex saw the doubtful expression on Vincent's face and continued. "Hey, I I know there are risks, but I'm an E.R. nurse in New York City. Nothing freaks me out."

"You don't know about the risk, but I do, okay." Vincent turned away from Alex, upset as he stood by the entrance of her living room.

"What are you, CIA?!" Alex questioned him while standing in front of him and put her hands on her hips. Before taking a step closer to him. "And who is Catherine to you? Really? She's more than a handler or a friend. It's-it's personal."

"Catherine has risked her life for me, okay, so has; people have risked everything for me, Alex." Vincent shook his head; the recent relationship with Catherine, it's more than just personal. Ever since that day, he saved her in the woods.

"How do you know that I won't risk everything?" Alex stated while reaching for his arm, trying to stop him from leaving. Then she stepped closer to him and focused her gaze on him again. "If you don't tell me the truth about who you are?"

"If I tell you the truth? Your life could be in danger." Vincent's voice was serious as the expression on his face hardened.

Knowing that he never acted so distanced around her as his attention has been somewhere else, she asked. "Is that's why you have been acting so differently lately?"

"It's because I am different, Alex." He turned to face her, repeating what he said before.

"You forgot I know you better than anybody,"

"No, you don't? You don't." Vincent countered as he pressed his lips; he looked away and shook his head again. He then started to leave; he needed to go before saying something he'd regret later. "Now I remember why I could never win an argument."

"I'm not arguing with you, Vince." Alex went and stood in front of him, trying to block him from leaving, still. "I'm fighting for you. Listen, I've done all the research for Nigeria. I've priced the tickets. We could go. Get away from whoever or whatever is still after you." She cupped Vincent's face in her hands again, forcing him to look at her, and then continued. "Just think about it."

"There's nothing to think about, Alex." Vincent pulled back from her and looked serious at her. He can never experience being a doctor again. He was truthful when he told her earlier that he made peace with the only dark corner place, the warehouse. If it weren't for J.T., he wouldn't know what would have happened to him, and he probably wouldn't have met Catherine either. He still wanted to get back to the warehouse and still pack for the trip.

"Does your handler not think it's a good idea?" Alex questioned him, figuring that's why he's not considering. Maybe she needed to get the okay from the detective first.

"I'm sorry, Alex, but I have to go," Vincent apologized, while leaving for the warehouse. He would never consider Catherine as a handler.


Catherine didn't feel any better visiting the therapist that Joe assigned her to. She knew how it would play out, the sooner she would spill her heart out to him, the better, and she could do without the self-reflective crap. She had enough therapy to last her a lifetime when her mom was killed and didn't need a shrink to figure out what her problems were. Right now, her situation was trying to compete with Vincent and his fiancee growing up with the six years together. Alex didn't know the darker side of him. Would she be a bitch for wanting Vincent to pick her and ignore the perfect, caring woman he planned to spend his life with?

"Second, what's mandatory, is for us to discuss the trauma that you went through during the shooting, not your boyfriend issues." Dr. Taylor took a pen and pad off his desk and was about to scribble down notes. He knew the situation of someone hiding their feelings, and sometimes it could take a turn for the worse if not taken care of right away. "If you're doing it to escape dealing with your true feelings..."

"Right." Catherine took a deep breath as she felt the knot in her stomach. She thought about the suggestion Vincent gave her earlier. The same camping trip he suggested before the blackouts, both of them needed much time together. "Um, I could do with some more time to recover."

"Oh," The therapist leaned forward and rested his elbows on his desk. He looked on with interest. "Something tells me that there's more?"

"Yeah, I was hoping maybe, I don't know, you could mention a leave of absence to my boss." Catherine took a seat across from the therapist, a bit hesitant. She wasn't sure what else to say, but..." It'll give me time to reflect on what happened with the shooting and all."

"Mm-hmm." The therapist commented as he continued to observe her before posting the next thoughtful question carefully and was about to scribble down the letter but hesitated. "And you'll be going alone? It could be a bit dangerous for you to go..."

"No, I-I have a friend that's an uh, doctor," Catherine told him while she nervously twisted the cap on a bottle of water she had in her hand.

"I see." The therapist nodded while acknowledging the answer; he only knew of one doctor that nearly saved her life on the road and also was her coworker, so he asked. "Dr. Marks? Is it?"

"Oh No, Doctor..."

"Oh, Dr. David Taylor, but you can call me David." He informed her.

"No um," Catherine nervously cleared her throat, thinking of Vincent and the fake last name she gave him for her dad's wedding. "Dr. Zalanski, he's an E.R Doctor from, um, Denver and been in town for a while. We have a lot to catch up on."

Dr. Taylor considered the thought for the moment. Her mental health was just as important as her physical health, and she must really trust this person to ask for some time off. "As long as you are in a doctor's care, take as much time you need." He continued while making notations on the notebook in front of him.

Catherine thanked the therapist with a big, settling breath that she held onto since coming into his office. She didn't want to be there in the first place, especially after getting a lifetime of therapy when her mom was killed. Them trying to get her to think it was just the result of her concussion or post-traumatic stress. That some wild animal did it, but in reality, it was Vincent, the beast that therapists kept theorizing, telling her it was a coyote or a bear. She thought about spending her upcoming weekend with Vincent. The excitement of being alone with him, since she found out about him and then the wedding. She was too busy thinking about packing to notice Alex walking up behind her.


"Catherine?" Alex was surprised to see her here at the hospital and not at home where she should be resting.

"Alex. Hey, hi." Catherine greeted her with a fake smile while approaching the elevator. Not wanting to deal with her right now, she still needed to get home and pack for her trip.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was just finished seeing the therapist get some time off." She was about to hit the down button on the elevator but stop as Alex came closer to her. "Um, so, what's up?"

"Oh, I wanted to ask it is would it be okay to take Vincent away for the weekend?" Alex stood smiling while nervously twisting her fingers like she did when seeing Vincent the first time after her accident.

"Um..."

"Because I know about his work in Special-Ops. And that people have it out for him." Alex blabbed on without letting Catherine interrupted and nodded her head knowingly.

"This weekend?" Catherine repeated what Alex just asked her. Had they already made plans together and Vincent forgot to tell her. What the hell was going on now?

"I hope that's okay. I mean, we were engaged once." Alex stated matter-of-factly while smiling again. She figured maybe if she had to check with Catherine before going further with any of her plans with Vincent.

"Um, so did he tell you anything else?" Catherine looked at Alex with her brows drew together.

"Uh, you mean that everyone is supposed to think he's dead?" Alex glanced away to think for a moment before looking back at Catherine. She wasn't sure what she meant by that, so she asked. "Is there more?"

"No…..." Catherine hesitated. She wasn't about to tell her about Vincent already making plans with her; she walked back over to the elevator and pressed the down button. She didn't like where this conversation was heading. Did Vincent forget to inform his former fiancee that he already made plans with her?

"I'm still not really clear what the rules are because you're his handler..." Alex mentioned while stepping closer to her again and brushed her hair aside.

"Uh, uh." Catherine hesitated, not sure how to proceed with the conversation. Obviously, Alex got the impression of asking for some kind of permission to take Vincent away. She still thought she was his handler.

"My family has a cabin upstate. It's totally isolated. It would just be the two of us." Alex stated, smiling excitedly again.

"Just the two of you?" Catherine thought about Vincent's letters and the pictures came flowing back in her mind and thinking if she should even consider the camping trip with Vincent now.

"It was our favorite place. You know, before..." Alex gave a smile again, remembering them moments with Vincent before he was enlisted and thinking about what kind of catching up she would like to do with him. "And we have a lot to catch up on."

"Yeah, I'll bet," Catherine muttered before giving Alex a fake smile while impatiently waiting for the elevator, which seemed to take forever.

"Yeah, It's just... strange. I've, uh, never had to share him before." Alex remarked with jealousy in her voice and the corner of her mouth quirked up. She was trying to see if she could get a response from Catherine on that.

"Uh, I'm sorry, Alex, I have to go." Catherine forced another pleasant smile and entered the waiting elevator. She waited for the doors to close before leaned against the wall and let out a slight moan. She wasn't in the mood to have her heart played with again after the last couple of boyfriends she had. Who turned out to be jerks. Like she told Vincent before, she didn't remember how to be close with somebody. Why was she even trying to compete with Alex? Maybe it's because she still hoped that Vincent was interested in her since he kept insisting he didn't have feelings for Alex anymore. She needed to let him know what his ex intentions were.


"How does a guy who's unemployed, never goes out and is officially dead, gets not one, but two smoking hot women fighting for his attention, again?" JT couldn't get over the fact Alex wanted Vincent to go away for the weekend with her. After he tried explaining to Alex that they couldn't be together.

"JT, I went over there to tell her that I can't see her anymore," Vincent remarked as he stood by the edge of his bed, folding up one of his long sleeve shirts and placing it in his green duffel bag.

"Because…" JT began while watching as his best friend turned to him and nodded his head knowingly. He already knew the answer, but acknowledged it anyway. "Because of Catherine."

"Yeah." Vincent paused what he was doing and smiled a bit while thinking about her. "Yeah. I mean, Catherine's life has never been the same since she found out about me. And my secret. Neither has yours. You and, Catherine, you risk so much to keep me safe." He admitted.

"And you know you can't take the same risks with Alex," JT stated while going back to his computer and scrolled through another set of cabin pictures.

"I know man, but I do have to tell Alex about Catherine and me?" Vincent went back to packing his duffel bag as he placed a set of his clothes inside.

"Vincent," JT warned him since they already talked about this before. Knowing how Alex will react if she finds out how close they become over the last couple of months. Even after watching Catherine over those 10 years, not to mention that Muirfield was still out there and will go after whoever knows about him.

Vincent stopped what he was doing and walked over to where JT was and placed his hands in the pocket of his jeans. "Look, I know what you're going to say, okay, but JT, to have Alex look at me, thinking as if there may still be a chance for us and not having the same feelings for her, you know."

"Like you do with Catherine?"

"Yeah, JT, I did love Alex. We spent our whole childhoods planning everything, and then uh...I don't, I don't know," Vincent paused smiling a bit thinking about the dance at the wedding, and the closeness of their bodies. The way Catherine felt against him as they danced. "I guess when Catherine came along it had changed and that's why I want to take her away this weekend."

JT continued to look through the cabins available for a night and found a nice secluded one in the woods. Somewhere in the Saranac Lake is surrounded by the forested regions of McKenzie Mountain and Adirondack State Park. He wanted to make sure if this place was something he was interest in before selecting another one. "How about this one?"

"Wow!" Vincent leading over his shoulder and a relaxing smile came across his face when he saw the picture of the cabin that JT picked out for them. A romantic, one-room log cabin located in Adirondack State Park in Northern New York that accommodates two guests. "Thanks, man, that will do just fine." Vincent laid his hand on his friend's shoulder as a grateful gesture

"So, did you tell Catherine how you feel yet? Maybe that's why she's backing off?" JT questioned him going back to the subject at hand, wondering if Catherine was feeling a little uneasy when Alex came into the picture.

"No man, but I'm going to tell her..." Vincent assured JT and was on his way back over to his duffle bag to finish packing. When he heard the beating of her heart before hearing Catherine's voice.

"Tell me what?"

"All you, my friend," JT said while getting up to leave, so he can give his best friend some privacy with her.


"Hey, What's going on?" Vincent greeted Catherine with a half-smile but then saw the concern look on her face. "What?"

"I ran into Alex at the hospital."

"Okay." He knew something else was wrong by the way she kept pressing her lips together and licked her lips.

"Vincent, she wanted to know if it was okay to take you away this weekend."

"I can't believe she did that." Vincent clenched his jaw while running his hand through his hair and glanced around. How could she just assume that? He didn't agree to going with her, it seems Alex was still stuck on Catherine being his handler even after the talk they had earlier.

"So, you're going?" Catherine assumed.

"No," Vincent answered while stepping closer to her and seeing the uncertainty on her face. That was the last thing he wanted to do to spend some time with someone he barely knew anymore.

"Obviously, Alex thinks you are."

"Catherine, Alex was part of my old life, okay. I'm sorry she came to you and asked for permission" Vincent looked down at her giving her a reassuring expression. "Besides, JT already picked out a cabin for us."

"A cabin?" Catherine raised an eyebrow, did she hear Vincent right? That JT went out of his way to book a cabin for both of them. So there's still hope that JT trusts her more than he did when he first met her.

"Yeah. it's in, uh, upstate New York." Vincent watched as the lines on her forehead wrinkled, he could tell she was still a little uncertain about the situation. "I am going to tell her, don't worry. okay." Vincent kisses her forehead before walking her to the door.

"Okay." Catherine looked up and gave a gentle smile.

"I could come by your place tomorrow and uh, pick you up." Vincent offered her since he knew where the location of the cabin was.

"No it's fine, I'll meet you back at the warehouse." Catherine insisted while putting her hand on the sleeve of the jacket. She wasn't going to have him risk being seen by her sister or by Muirfield for that matter not in broad daylight anyway.

"Okay," Vincent responded and gave a dimpled smile. He watched Catherine return the smile and watched her leave the warehouse; before going back to finish his packing. Pleased with the fact that he'll get much needed alone time with Catherine.


"I thought Connor was supposed to take care of the fiancee." The female-voiced said over the phone.

"I told him just to take care of her and leave Detective Chandler to us." Replied Agent Warren with attitude as he leaned over his desk and sorting through the report. Then he pulled out a picture from the folder.

"Well, now, Connor is dead because he didn't want to listen." She ranted over the phone before pausing for a moment as if to think of something, and then she continued. "What do we do now?"

"Maybe we need to go back to the wrong tactics with Ms. Chandler." Agent Warren stated as he sat back in his office and looked at the picture in front of him. He remembered when one of his fellow agents was killed by Vincent after trying to kidnap the detective. Maybe this time, they'll try another approach.

"What do you have in mind?"

"Well, what would have happened if his ex knew Keller was watching another woman all these years….." Warren answered while looking at a picture of a much younger Alex Salter.

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." The woman's voice sounded harsh over the phone.

"Exactly, Claire, make up whatever story you want, but you have to gain her trust first to get to Keller. Then get rid of her." Agent Warren ordered her while a sinister smile came across his face and then hung up the phone.

To be continued...

Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait again, but right now I'm working on another new story and my other one fic still 'Catch Me'. So I'm still in the process of continuing though, so please keep the reviews coming still and hanging in there good people. I hope you are still enjoying it as I am writing it.