Down The River
By Thomas Mc

Chapter 5 : Change in Plans

As Adam fell backwards over the sofa, Brigit called out to him. "Adam!" She actually leaped over the coffee table in her rush to get to him. "Adam, are you OK?" Brigit asked as she knelt down beside him, concern plainly showing in her face.

Adam's tumble broke Justin out of his stunned trance and he turned toward Adam. "Are you OK, cousin?"

Adam shook his head and looked up at Brigit then glanced uncertainly over at the apparition that Brigit had called Daddy. His eyes went from the furry leonine face and mane to the fur covered clawed hands and back to the face. "Umm." He shook his head again and looked at Brigit. "Ahh." He blinked as his attention was drawn back again to Brigit's father. "I ah, I guess I only injured my pride." He dragged his attention back to Brigit as she helped him back to his feet. He kept a firm hold on Brigit's hand because his knees felt like they would buckle under him at any moment as he again looked at Brigit's father. Vincent and Catherine had advanced to the sofa group by the time Adam was back on his feet.

Nancy had come around the coffee table at a slightly more sedate pace to stand beside Justin as her arm eased around his back. He glanced at Nancy as his arm went around her back in response. He was grateful of her support because his legs felt none-to-steady at that moment. "I ah . . ." His mind seemed to have gone blank and he found himself at a loss for words as his gaze was drawn back to Nancy's father.

Adam dragged his gaze away from Brigit's father and looked into her eyes for a moment and saw a tentative, half-fearful, smile cross her face, then he spoke. "I guess I can see now why you had so much difficulty describing your father to us." He shrugged. "I don't think I would have believed you if you had tried." He released her hand and his arm went around her waist almost without conscious thought. It was as much to reassure himself as anything else. Also he was still feeling none-to-stable at this point.

Justin shook himself. "Wow!" Was all he managed to say as he continued to stare at the apparition before him. He tightened his arm around Nancy and felt her relax into his embrace.

Adam looked back at the impossible apparition standing before him and swallowed convulsively. "Aahh, it's a pleasure to finally meet you sir." Though feeling very intimidated Adam tightened his arm around Brigit very slightly and stretched his free hand out towards Brigit's father. He only flinched a little when her father's clawed, fur covered, hand reached out and closed over his.

"It is a pleasure meeting you too young man. Brigit has told me a lot about you and I'm glad to finely meet you in person." Both boys felt the controlled power that resonated in his slightly raspy voice. "I see that her high opinion of you is justified."

With the slightest, friendly, squeeze from each of them, they broke the clasp and their hands dropped to their sides.

Adam was at a loss what to say next. He gave Brigit a reassuring squeeze just to try to let her know that everything was still OK. Adam shrugged as he desperately tried to think of something more to say, to somehow fill the awkward silence. His mind was still trying to cope with the image before him and all he could come up with was, "Umm. I, ah. I guess Jacob and Charles must both look a lot like you?"

His query was answered by a chuckle from Vincent as a new voice came from the direction of the grand spiral stairs off to the boy's right. "Close enough." Everyone's attention shifted to the direction of the new voice. There at the base of the spiral stairs stood two younger copies of Vincent, looking back at them.

Still uncertain what to say and never one to act precipitously, Justin continued to silently take in and process the situation.

Adam opened his mouth then found he didn't quite know what to say. His second attempt was slightly more successful. "Jacob and Charles I presume." He was trying desperately to keep his tone light and hoping they wouldn't be able to tell how nervous and uncertain he felt.

"That is correct." One of the two leonine males responded with a nod. "I am Jacob and this is my brother Charles."

Justin finally managed to regain his voice. "Ahh, Nice to meet both of you." He was feeling very nervous and uncertain at this point and continued to hold onto Nancy for moral, as well as physical, support.

"Same here." Replied Jacob. "Why don't we all have a seat and we can talk?"

They all took seats on the sofa group that dominated the parlor. Adam, Brigit, Justin and Nancy all sat together on the largest, eight-foot long, sofa. Adam kept his arm firmly wrapped around Brigit's shoulders, as he tried to emphasize that his feelings toward her had not changed. Justin maintained a firm grip on Nancy's hand, also as a message of reassurance; and as an anchor for his own turbulent emotions.

Catherine and Vincent sat together on the love seat. They too were holding hands. Jacob and Charles sat down at either end of the shorter sofa. There was no denying their relationship to Vincent. One of the things that surprised Adam was that, despite the strong leonine features, he could see elements of their mother in both their faces. With the exception of slightly different coloring, they looked like a pair of perfectly matched bookends.

After a few moments of silence, Adam spoke up first. "I guess the first question that occurs to me is where do you come from?"

"Nobody ever told you about the birds and the bees?" Jacob shot back with a grin that gave both Adam and Justin their first peek at Jacob's canines / fangs.

"Jake!" Brigit admonished her older brother.

"Actually we originated from the laboratory of an evil mad scientist." Jacob continued grinning, totally unrepentant under the glare of both his sisters.

Catherine was shaking her head at her son's comments. He was obviously trying to break the tension that permeated the room with his idea of humor. Unfortunately the two nervous young men were not quite sure how to take Jacobs humor and the awkward atmosphere persisted.

Catherine looked at Vincent then stepped in. "Actually, Vincent was the first of his kind. To some extent, Jacob was telling the truth." She reached up and gently caressed Vincent's cheek then continued. "Vincent was born as the result of some kind of genetics experiment. We know who the person was but we do not know the how it was done or why. The rather unpleasant person that did it, died long before we ever learned of his existence and as far as we know all of his records were destroyed. Vincent was found as a newborn infant abandoned in the trash behind St. Vincent Hospital. That is where his name comes from. The people that found him took him in and raised him in secret."

She indicated herself and Vincent. "We first met twenty seven years ago. I was mugged and left for dead. Vincent found me and saved my life. Three years later we married."

~ o ~

Vincent was expounding on what they knew about the family genetics. "... we think that most of the genes that make me and my sons what we are, are located in the Y chromosome. If that is true, then Brigit and Nancy don't carry those genes." He shrugged. "But we don't really know that for sure. Brigit and Nancy are my natural daughters and you know about the strength and speed that the girls inherited. We just can't be absolutely sure what other of my unique genetics might be lurking in their genes, ready to pop up unexpectedly."

Adam and Justin, both, had a kind of faraway look in their eyes as they sat there absorbing the implications of what was being said. Justin had a picture in his mind of a delivery room thrown into total chaos as the doctor and nurses got their first look at an infant version of Vincent and his sons. Adam was picturing his parents getting their first look at a grandchild that looked like something halfway between a lion cub and a baby girl.

Nancy and Brigit could practically see the wheels turning in the furrowed brows of contemplation on Adam and Justin as they processed the implications of that final big bombshell that had been dropped by their father. Both girls were thinking the same thing. These guys had just been informed that their girlfriends were likely to produce some very unusual offspring. What guy would want to have that kind of baggage thrust on them out of left field like this?

Brigit began mentally withdrawing from Adam, building up her shields as she prepared for the inevitable breakup she could see looming ahead. The hell of it was that she had really fallen for Adam hard and she was already feeling the loss. Nancy in her own quiet way was also preparing for the expected let down. She too had fallen hard for Justin and now she was wondering how fast it was all going to fall apart.

As the silence stretched out Vincent was inundated with a maelstrom of swirling emotions. The two doctors, that he had trusted all his life, were fairly sure that the girls didn't carry the genes that produced the leonine features but it was not certain. It would have been wrong to deny the possibility. Both of these boys had been hit with some pretty deep and unsettling concepts and their emotions were in complete turmoil. His daughters' emotions were also in turmoil with despair being predominant. The thing that he also noticed, and was heartened by, was that the boys' emotions were nowhere near as negative as his daughters apparently feared they were. Maybe all was not yet lost.

Justin glanced at Nancy. He could see the barely perceptible distance she was already putting between them. "Could make things a bit interesting in the delivery room." He continued studying Nancy's face then his gaze locked onto her emerald green eyes as he expanded on his thoughts. "Sounds to me like natural child birth at home is our best option, just to be on the safe side."

Nancy opened her mouth to comment and paused, and then it snapped shut as it hit her just exactly what Justin had said. He had said 'our' best option. Was he aware of his own words? She could see from his eyes that he was almost as surprised as she felt. Then after a second she saw a smile spread slowly across his face, indicating that he knew exactly what he had said and apparently was OK with it.

Justin was as caught by surprise over what he had just said as Nancy was. He had never seriously thought that far into the future, yet now it was suddenly the only thing he was thinking about. He squeezed her hand as he continued. "We do have to think about such things if you decide that you will marry me." His eyes glittered with suppressed emotion. He couldn't believe he had just said that and now he waited anxiously, and hopefully, for her response.

The parlor was engulfed in stunned silence as the meaning of Justin's words registered with everyone else.

Adam found himself looking at his cousin in surprise then he was just as surprised when the silence was broken by his own voice. "Now hold on there cousin. You don't think I'm going to let you have all the fun, do you?" Adam could not believe he was actually saying this as he turned his attention on Brigit. He just could not stop the words that came tumbling from his mouth as he gazed hopefully into her sapphire blue eyes. "What do you think, Brigit? We could make it a double, if you're willing." It wasn't something he had been thinking about but at this moment the words felt so right. He held his breath, waiting for her reaction.

After several stunned seconds of listening for that proverbial pin to drop, both girls squealed and embraced their perspective future mates.

Adam and Justin glanced at each other and grinned then they were both fully involved with the response of their newly acquired fiancés.

Adam finally spoke. "I guess that's a yes, then?"

Brigit responded by planting a very passionate kiss on him. Nancy had a similar response for Justin.

Catherine glanced at Vincent with a bemused look on her face. "Well, I guess that went rather well; don't you think?"

Vincent just shrugged and started chuckling. The emotions he felt swirling around the four people in question left no room for doubt. This was definitely the real thing. Both boys had surprised themselves as much as they had surprised his daughters, but they both had meant what they had said once it was out.

Linda, Jennifer and Naomi came pelting down the stairs to see what the commotion was about. They paused at the bottom of the stairs taking in the scene before them. Jennifer spoke first. "I heard squealing. What happened?" Her gaze had come to rest on the two couples embracing on the long sofa.

Jacob responded to his twin sister's query. "I'm not quite sure I can explain it but, it seems that Brigit and Nancy just got themselves engaged." He shrugged.

Three jaws tried to hit the floor as the three girls reacted to the news. Linda recovered first and came over to sit down next to Jacob, nudging him in the ribs. "I told you they wouldn't let genetics come between them." She grinned. "In this family love always conquers all."

Jacob hugged his bride of four years. "It must be love." His grin widened as he felt the stirrings of his one year old son up in the nursery. "I think Devin is getting hungry."

Jacob started to get up and Linda stopped him as she stood up. "I'll get him." She ran upstairs to fetch her son.

Then the room was filled with voices as everyone started talking at once.

A few minutes later, she brought him down to meet Justin and Adam. Adam and Justin were both fascinated by the baby Devin. They both agreed that though it might pose a few problems, they would not mind if any of their children turned out like him.

~ o ~

What had been planned as a dinner built around a very uncertain introduction of the two boys to the rest of the family, turned into a major celebration of the totally unexpected double engagement.

Justin and Adam insisted that a double wedding was the only way to go. Brigit and Nancy were thrilled with the idea. Then the subject moved on to possible dates and locations.

Nancy looked a bit shyly at Justin. "Charles and Elizabeth have already claimed April. I say early spring."

Brigit jumped in as she grinned at Adam. "The earlier the better before Adam and Justin figure out what they're getting themselves into." She suggested getting a snicker from Jacob and Adam. "Maybe the first day of spring."

"Sounds like a good idea to me." Remarked Adam as he returned Brigit's gaze, a huge smile on his face. "And for the record I have already figured out what I'm getting myself into. That's why I'm so anxious to get into it."

Brigit blushed furiously as the double meaning of his words sunk in.

"Elizabeth and I are planning to get married in our rooftop garden." Charles threw out. "It's very convenient and it's private so Dad and Jacob can attend."

Catherine looked at Vincent as it hit her. "Good lord, that means we will have three of our kids all getting married this spring." She looked at her children. "I don't know if I can survive that much excitement in one season."

"We could also do it in the garden if you girls like the idea." Justin suggested.

Nancy and Brigit looked at each other a moment then broke out in huge grins. "That sounds perfect." Brigit replied.

"That way Daddy can be there to give us both away." Nancy added with delight.

Justin nodded his head. "That makes a lot of sense to me."

"Daddy . . . Oh my god!" Adam looked around in surprise. "Mom and Dad!"

Justin looked at Adam as the same thought occurred to him. "How do we tell them? Your mom and dad will want to be there."

Adam looked at Justin. "And they will also want to be there for the grandchildren." He then looked at Vincent. "That could be a problem." He paused. "If we can figure out a way, would it be alright to tell mom and dad about you?"

Vincent glanced around at his family. "They are going to have to find out sooner or later, especially if the girls are carrying more of my genetics than we currently believe. If that happens it will be a bit difficult to keep it from them when you have children. If you think they can handle . . ." Vincent indicated himself and his sons. ". . .us, then I think it will be necessary." He looked at Adam. "It will be up to you to decide if they can deal with who . . . and what, we are and all the implications that go with that."

Catherine spoke up at this point. "I think it would be a good idea for us to meet as soon as it can be arranged. I personally would like to meet your parents. From what the girls tell me, they seem to be very nice people."

Vincent concluded. "It's set then. You will judge how much they can handle and, when you feel they are ready, let us know then we will arrange to have them over for dinner so that we can all get to know each other."

Continued in Part 6

'Beauty and the Beast' and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.