And so Catherine sat at the table, sipping her tea, and with Noodles at her feet, she felt a bit relieved to have time alone, with her pensive thoughts of Vincent. And she thought of how ironic it was, that her heartache seemed to have intensified, the further she was from Vincent.
Just then, Little Noodles caught her attention, as he pranced to the door, and after a yap or two, he was letting her know, he needed to go outside. And so with Wordsworth held close to her heart, Catherine walked out onto the porch too, and looking up into the night sky, she knew the moon shining down upon her in Florida, was the very same moon shining down in New York. And then she wondered if Vincent was looking up at the moon now too?
Then Catherine realized if Vincent was moon gazing, Brigit was most likely at his side, and suddenly, an overwhelming sorrow overcame Catherine, and the tears returned to her once again.
Meantime, Jacob had who was lying in his bed, heard little Noodles yelp, and so he decided to get up and see what was going on.
As Jacob ventured out into the kitchen, he quizzically looked about, wondering where Catherine was. And then it was, that he saw the screen door was open, so as he stepped to the threshold, he could hear her crying.
So upon clearing his throat, to let himself be known, he kindly asked, "Cathy, is everything all right?"
Drying her tears, before turning around, Catherine tried to sound cheerful as she said, "Why yes Jacob, just enjoying the night air."
And so Jacob gave Catherine a knowing look, as he approached, and cautioned her, "Ah Cathy, you Dear girl, I see the tears in your eyes."
Succumbing, Catherine gave Jacob a resigning smile, and humbly said, "I forgot, you can see through my bad acting..."
Stepping up to her side, Jacob too looked up at the moon, and commented, "Just remember...this too shall pass my Dear."
And then wondering what all Jacob knew, Catherine tipped her head, and asked, "Did Dad say something to you?"
To which Jacob apologetically said, "Yes...I hope you don't mind..."
With a downheartedness, Catherine replied, "No...I don't mind if you know..."
Then with a sageness to his voice, Jacob vowed, "All this heartache and sorrow, I promise you, it will fade with time."
And though Catherine wanted to believe him, she mournfully shared, "It doesn't seem to be fading..."
With a voice of experience, Jacob assured her, "In time you will feel whole again, I know it may seem impossible right now, but you will. Who knows, perhaps someone else will come along, and capture your heart."
Looking downward at her Wordsworth, Catherine woefully told him, "Funny you should use the term capture my heart...I have used that same phrase myself to describe how I feel...and well now, because he has, it is no longer mine to give."
Not knowing really what to say, Jacob with an irate tone said, "It is inconceivable for me to know this cad would shun you for another! Suiters these days...so fickle and foolish! I will never understand their ways or motives!"
With a humbled smile, Catherine thanked Jacob, and then added "The ironic thing is, I do understand...afterall, they have known one another for a long time, with a strong friendship to base a relationship on. I, had only met him a month ago...and we only shared one magical night..."
Catherine then with heartfelt conviction, continued, "...but our connection was so meaningful on that night...I don't see how I could have been wrong..."
To which Jacob with an understanding tone, inserted, "However, you now know he was being deceptive..."
Realizing Jacob was trying to be helpful, Catherine looked up at him and said, "I don't believe he was being deceptive...I think I just expected too much..."
And because of the fact Catherine DID expect much, Jacob guessed this fellow must have lead Catherine on! So with a low ebb ire, Jacob voiced his observation, saying, "So he must have perhaps...promised you things...so in a sense...constitutes itself as a deceptive deed!"
To which Catherine thoughtfully responded, "He did promise me one thing...he said he would never forget me...but deceptive? No, not at all Jacob, in fact he was very kind. And I believe it is because of his kind heart...that he simply didn't know how to end it...
And then Catherine thoughtfully continued, "...I now understand, even a cruel goodbye, can be kinder, than nothing at all. At least then you know...instead of the wondering...it's terrible wondering and waiting....I waited to hear something from him...he never came or sent word...I waited...but there was nothing."
Looking over at sweet Catherine, Jacob saw her beauty contorted into an anguish that seemed so inconsolable. Jacob then thought to himself, that Cathy's situation seemed to mirror Vincent's. The pain they were in, so tragically intense and seemingly a hopeless situation.
So softly Jacob shared, "Ah Cathy, your sorrow is as great as my son's. He too is suffering a broken heart, and for very much the same reason! No closure! Ah, I am at a loss at what to say, or how to help..."
To which Catherine replied, "I am sure you are helpful to your son, just Like my Dad is to me, always wise, always kind, and always there..."
Thoughtfully, Jacob sarcastically noted, "Yes...always there indeed...and here I am in Florida. Ahem, needless to say I hated to leave him right now...but my son assured me he would be fine, and felt my place was here with Peter."
Jacob then continued, "And on top of my son's personal crisis, he was counting on me to help entertain a friend of his who came to our home for an uplifting visit...she is grieving the loss of her Father...and well, perhaps this is off topic, but if you will permit me to name drop, I should mention this friend of my son's is quite a renowned author, perhaps you have heard of her, her name is Br....."
Just then Catherine sneezed, and then said, "Pardon me Jacob...hopefully my sneezing isn't anything contagious...I think I just caught a little chill earlier this evening, while I was in the park back home."
To which Jacob pondered what Catherine had said, and so he with concern responded, "You say you were in the park alone this evening? Is that safe my Dear?"
To which Catherine explained, "Well, Central Park is always so festive this time of year, and because of all the people around, it feels safe...but I am cautious. However if truth be known, I don't normally go by myself, but tonight I had no choice. You see I had to deliver a message to...well it's kind of complicated, but needless to say, it was a favor I couldn't say no to."
And then upon realizing she mustn't say too much more, as she might accidentally reveal her friend's (aka Peter) secret alliance with an underground society! And so Catherine ventured off this topic, and said, "But anyway, you were about to tell me about this famous author."
And because Catherine sneezed again, well her health took precedence over their line of conversation, so Jacob decided to take action. And so as the doctor in him took over, he commandingly said, "First things first, come let's fix some hot tea Dear, and if we are lucky, I might find some honey, and whiskey to make you a Hot Toddy!"
Warmly Catherine said, "That just might do the trick. I believe I know where Mother Alcott kept her secret stash."
With a look of surprise, Jacob did a mock drinking motion with his hand, as he questioned, "Really, Peter's Mother liked to..."
And because Catherine didn't want to give the wrong impression, she quickly inserted, "Maybe a night cap once in a while, but I think she liked to have it on hand to offer her guests."
So after finding all the provisions, Catherine sat at the table still holding her book, watching Jacob as he did some mixing. And because Noodles was Catherine's little shadow, he came in too, and found his spot, right at her feet.
And as Jacob set the hot drink in front of her, he nearly stepped on Noodles, and exclaimed, "Lands sakes Noodles, I thought you were a rug!"
Catherine couldn't help but to laugh a bit at Jacob's joking, and this diversion caused them to forget what they were talking about before Catherine's sneezing.
So Jacob instead, continued to philosophize, saying, "You know Cathy, love is a double edged sword. It can make us happier than we could ever imagine, or when things go badly it can nearly destroy us. You must find a balance Dear Child."
Fighting back another surge of tears, Catherine nodded in agreement, as she tearfully said, "Yes, and because of the connection we shared on the night we met, I do know there is joy in loving someone, because that night, I was the happiest I had ever been."
And because Catherine didn't want to sound foolish, she hesitated before sharing, "And even though things have ended badly, I don't regret meeting him...I can say my life has been forever enriched and altered, by the brief extraordinary time, I shared with Vincent."
Upon hearing Vincent's name, Jacob was rocked to his soul!
Did Cathy just say, Vincent? As he now noticed the book in her arms, he saw it was Wordsworth, and it suddenly dawned on him that Cathy could be short for...Catherine!
And thus he wondered, "Could this be Vincent's Catherine?"
As Jacob sat, putting all the clues together, he hesitantly asked, "Cathy, are you also known as Catherine?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile below in the tunnels, Mary and Rebecca chatted with Vincent for a moment, as they passed him on his way to the Hot Springs chamber.
And after they told him they would see him at the Common Meeting later on, they then wished him a nice soaking. With that said, onward they continued toward the Candle-making chamber.
Well due to Mary's keen eye, she spotted Brigit, hiding behind a burrow brace! Well it was clear to Mary, that Brigit must have been following Vincent! And so Mary told Rebecca, "Oh Deary me, look over there! I think Vincent has a stalker!"
As Rebecca looked over, and saw Brigit hiding, she whispered, "I suppose we thwarted her mission uh Mary?"
To which Mary responded, "Albeit unknowingly so, I believe we have!"
Well, because these Two Tunnel Sleuths were taking their vow to protect Vincent's Virtue seriously, they knew they had to come up with a plan, and come up with one immediately!
And so as they stealthily stepped before Brigit, they questioned, "Brigit?"
To which Brigit, after realizing she had been spotted, stepped out and said, "Mary, Rebecca."
With feigned delight, Mary said, "Lucky for us we saw you! We were just coming to get you. We want to show you the tunnel's candle making process!"
So in an attempt to sound interested, Brigit responded, "I be thinkin' I'm the lucky one! Let's go!"
And so, dazed and confused, Brigit found herself being whisked away to the Candle Making Chamber!
And so instead of catching up with Vincent for a wee bit of fun, Brigit was kept quite busy slaving over a vat of hot wax with Mary and Rebecca!
And so after the candles were finished, Mary and Rebecca walked Brigit directly back to the guest chamber, and told her to sleep well.
To which Brigit said, "I have no doubt I will...g'night!"
As Mary and Rebecca began their trek toward Vincent's chamber for the Common Meeting, they discussed their success of keeping a brazen Brigit away from a vulnerable Vincent!
Meanwhile, an exasperated Brigit plunged onto her bed, where she laid exhausted! As she examined her well manicured hands, she noted a blister! And thought it was no wonder after all the chores the two Barbaric Burrow Broads gave her! Here she was, stirring hot wax, mixing dyes, cutting wicks and dipping candles!
Feeling totally frustrated, Brigit spewed aloud, "There are jist too many tunnel people, hinderin' me efforts to seduce Vincent! N' a visit to the candle makin' chamber, to dip some wicks, was NOT on me bucket list!"
Yes, Brigit was literally exhausted, and as she reached into her pocket, she felt the letter Catherine had intended for Vincent, and Vincent alone to read.
And though Brigit felt a twinge of guilt keeping the letter from him, she felt this visit was her one shot to win him over, and she was willing to use all of her resources to do it!
Meantime, Vincent was now back in his chamber, and although his heartache was all consuming, he knew he had to put his feelings aside. Yes, Vincent knew he had to step up during his Father's absence, to execute the task of overseeing the tunnels.
And it was then the committee began to arrive, one by one they filtered in, and as Vincent welcome them, he presided over the meeting of immense import, which was their tunnel security!
So at the conclusion of the meeting, everyone, including Mack, seemed to get it! Yes, their safety depended on them getting it.
But before Vincent concluded the meeting, he asked, "Has anyone anything else to add?"
To which Pascal offered, "If I may Vincent, I do..."
To which Vincent presented the floor to Pascal, as he said, "Of course, be my guest."
And as Vincent stepped aside, Pascal stepped up, and said, "Men, I can sum your job up in 3 words! Attentiveness, Swiftness, And Security! So just remember the acronym, A.S.S., and you'll be good!"
Everyone began to chuckle, because Pascal hadn't realized what his slogan's initials spelled out!
And because Pascal seemed clueless to the chuckles, Vincent took back over the meeting, and thanked Pascal, as well as the others for coming.
So sitting alone now at his desk, Vincent's thoughts soon drifted to Catherine. How was she? Sweet, sweet Catherine. Why all the sadness? Because of her trusting nature, he wondered if she had once again fallen in with someone like Tom, who was treating her unkindly?
Tomorrow, he decided when night fell, he would check on her again. Vincent also wondered how Father was doing posing as a Top-Sider, and of how Peter was coping. It was times like these, when Vincent cursed his fate, as he could not be there for his good friend like he wished to be.
Going to his bed, he stretched out and sleep came quickly to his troubled mind.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, below in Florida, Catherine matter-of-factly answered Jacob's question, "Yes, Catherine is my full name, why do you ask?"
And as noted before, Jacob noticed Catherine had been holding a book by Wordsworth, and knowing Vincent had given her a copy, he then motioned to the book, and asked if he may see it.
As Catherine passed the book to him, she couldn't help but wonder why the sudden subject change.
And so with his eyes still on Catherine, Jacob opened the cover, and as he shifted his eyes downward, he saw Vincent's signature! So in a stunned, gingerly manner, he informed her, "Cathy I need to tell you who I am....I am Vincent's Father."
In disbelief, Catherine clarified, "Vincent's Father? You are Vincent's Father?"
Nodding, Jacob also in disbelief said, "Yes Dear Girl. And the telegram you delivered for Peter...was not only for Vincent, but for me as well, you see it included my travel plans."
But then as the realization set in with Jacob, that he was sitting with the woman who hurt his son, he then with an edge to his voice continued, "And you are Catherine...the one who has broken my son's heart."
Catherine who was still in a bit of shock, that she has unknowingly been with Vincent's Father, incredulously asked, "What do you mean, I broke Vincent's heart?"
To which Jacob informatively replied, "Since the day after you two met, Vincent has been devastated, and broken hearted!"
Still stunned, Catherine needing clarification, tearfully asked, "How can that be? It was he who ended it Jacob, he never contacted me like he said he would."
Adamantly Jacob said, "But he did, he left you this very book you have here, and also a letter! A letter which requested a reply. However, alas, since you failed to do so, Vincent felt that meant you did not want to see him again."
Tearfully Catherine answered, "Yes...there was this book, but nothing more. I never saw a letter."
Upon realizing there must have been a misunderstanding, Jacob kindly explained, "There was a letter, Cathy, truly there was..."
To which Catherine hopelessly responded, "I didn't see it...I never saw a letter...I would have replied to it if I had..."
In response, Jacob sighed as he said, "Oh dear me...it appears as if something has gone terribly wrong...Vincent had been awaiting a reply to a letter of which you had apparently never received..."
With a tragic tone, Catherine lowered her eyes, as she resignedly said, "And now it's too late...Vincent is now with Brigit..."
To which Jacob, in a surprised voice, scoffed, "Brigit and Vincent? No my Dear, they are mere friends!"
And because Catherine saw them together for herself, she replied, "Brigit made no secret of how things are now, and of how she felt about Vincent..."
In wanting to right this ship, Jacob insisted, "It is you he cares for Cathy, err Catherine...yes, it's true! Vincent told me so before I left. He said seeing you tonight, hurt him deeply and he realized he will always be connected to you, even though he knows you have someone else in your life now."
To which Catherine in a questionable tone, responded, "There is no one else in my life. Why would Vincent say that?"
With a nod, Jacob verified, "Well, when he came to see you last night, he saw for himself...well, dare I say..."
And then Jacob delicately continued, "...you were within the embrace of another."
Thinking back, Catherine knew Paul was the only visitor she had yesterday, which was right after she saw Vincent in the park.
And then Catherine thought if Vincent visited her then, well it was very bad timing indeed!
And so tragically Catherine said, "If Vincent came when my dear friend Paul was there, well all I can say is, he would have seen me in his arms, but not in the way he thought. You see, I was emotional and Paul was comforting me."
Bringing his hand to his chin, Jacob reasoned, "Oh my! I suppose Vincent misinterpreted what he saw!"
As they both sat there quietly, absorbing all they just learned, Catherine then searchingly asked, "Jacob, what should I do?"
Taking in a deep breath, Jacob schemed, "Well, upon our return to New York, leave everything to me. It appears there is much to sort out, but I believe I can help. All is not lost my Dear."
With new optimism in her heart, Catherine cautiously asked, "You really think so?"
Taking Catherine's hand, in his, Jacob honestly offered, "This road you and Vincent long to journey on, will not be an easy one. I believe there is hope, but only if you can be totally honest with yourself and with Vincent. You must be willing to give up another way of life for him...you do know that?"
Searching her heart, Catherine solemnly answered, "Yes, I know..."
Jacob soberly looked back at Catherine, and asked, "Have you told your Father about Vincent? About his differences I mean?"
Surprised by Jacob's question, Catherine answered, "No I haven't...I understood what Vincent told me, had to be a secret...but I will be truthful with you Jacob, it has been difficult. My Dad and I have no secrets..."
With trepidation, Jacob looked downward, as he asked, "How do you think your Father will take this revelation?"
As Catherine contemplated Jacob's question, she considered how her Dad had always fought hard against prejudices of any kind, and he passed these beliefs onto Catherine.
Yes, all through out his life, Charles always exemplified, the importance of acceptance, and taught his daughter to bear her opinions solely on a man's character, not on his appearance.
Yes her Dad was an exceptional man, and Catherine honestly believed Charles would not judge Vincent on his differences alone.
So after much soul searching, Catherine truthfully replied, "My Dad is a fair man, that's how he lives his life, and that is what he expects from others as well."