As Vincent returned to his darkened chamber, he lit some candles, and then sat down to make an entry into his journal, not wanting to let this joyous day go forth undocumented.
As he looked ardently downward at his pen on the unmarked page, he let his heart direct its flow.
Dearest Catherine,
My walk through the city was a lonely journey,
as you were not at my side.
However the glory of this day,
re-affirming our bond with one another,
resonates in my heart...over-powering the lonely ache.
Tonight, being with you again,
made me realize, a different kind of life
is a possibility for me.
For so many years, I have forbidden those thoughts,
never believing I would know that side of love...
The new day dawning can not unfold fast enough
so it may deliver its night to me,
when I may be with you again.
Sincerely
Vincent
Before Vincent closed his leather bound journal, he leafed back through, and stopped to read one of his previous scripts from just a few days ago.
The sentiments he had transcribed from his aching heart, contained such despair that as he closed the cover to his journal, he bent his head in beholden prayer.
Vincent felt so thankful he had not lost sight of his dream of Catherine, and his faith in dreams, was to be rewarded by the knowledge and reality Catherine missed him too.
It was then he was struck by the regretful thought, he had forgotten Catherine's gift to him. Hoping it had not hurt her feelings, he would apologize, and ask her pardon when next he saw her.
Vincent then walked over to his books, and just as he was about to pick up his old book of Shakespeare's Sonnets, he instead picked up the new, the loving gift from his Father. And as the page fell open to Sonnet CXLII, Vincent read:
CXLII
Love is my sin and thy dear virtue hate,
Hate of my sin, grounded on sinful loving:
O, but with mine compare thou thine own state,
And thou shalt find it merits not reproving;
Or, if it do, not from those lips of thine,
That have profaned their scarlet ornaments
And seal'd false bonds of love as oft as mine,
Robb'd others' beds' revenues of their rents.
Be it lawful I love thee, as thou lovest those
Whom thine eyes woo as mine importune thee:
Root pity in thy heart, that when it grows
Thy pity may deserve to pitied be.
If thou dost seek to have what thou dost hide,
By self-example mayst thou be denied!
As Vincent re-read the last two lines over again, he knew Shakespeare understood the power of dreams too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Catherine blew out the last of the candles on the mantle above her fireplace, and as she looked downward, she noticed Vincent had not taken his copy of Wordsworth she had given him. She smiled and once more placed it side by side with her copy, thinking she will have the joy of giving it to him again.
As Catherine went to her bed, Noodles pranced over to her to nuzzle, and as she petted him, she felt a happiness within her heart, greater then she had ever known.
Vincent was back in her life now, and she knew their hearts shared an unspoken vow, which shall endure the span of time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, the morning came too soon, and as Catherine turned off her alarm clock, she wished for few more minutes to dream of her Vincent, and to replay all they had said to each other.
But knowing she was out of time, she took care of Noodles, and then hurriedly showered, blew her hair dry, and ripped the dry cleaners wrapping from her deep green suit, she had planned to wear in court that day.
So after letting Noodles outside for the last time, Catherine made sure he had water, food, and also put some newspapers on the floor for him, just in case!
Just as Catherine slipped on her coat, the ringing phone was one interruption Catherine did not need this morning, but in case it was her Dad, Catherine stopped to answer, saying, "Hello."
In reply, Catherine heard Jennifer pout, "Weren't you going to call me?"
To which Catherine hastily answered, "Of course I was Jen, I am running a bit late, so I was going to call once I was at work."
As Jennifer said she would let her go, she first anxiously asked, "Tell me one thing before we hang up, are things cool with you and Two-Timing Vincent?"
With a smile in her voice, Catherine replied, "Yes, everything is good, but you can drop the two-timing adjective. Look Jen, I promise to tell you everything later on, but for now I have gotta go. Talk to you this afternoon."
And so with one last check on Noodles, Catherine locked up, and headed down the sidewalk, toward the office.
Yes, Catherine thoroughly enjoyed her walk into work this morning. The snow was falling softly, everyone around her seemed to own the spirit of the approaching Holidays, and she had Vincent back in her life.
Upon her arrival, Bruno held the door open, and gave her a warm welcome home, saying, "You're back Catie? I didn't think I would see you today."
As Catherine warmly smiled back, she explained, "Dad stayed on with Peter, to help straighten out matters of the estate, but we decided I should fly back. We have the Benjamin court case today."
Informatively, Bruno nodded, and then said, "Well I don't know if you have to worry about that Benjamin case. I heard on my Police Scanner, the cops were dispatched to his apartment at about one a.m. last night! He was apparently shot and killed by a burglar!"
With hearing this news, Catherine gasped, saying, "Oh no Bruno, I hadn't heard! I better see what Harvey knows."
As the elevator doors opened, the whole office was abuzz! And as Catherine saw Harvey talking to Marilyn, she asked, "What's going on, did they catch who shot Mr. Benjamin?"
Upon seeing Catherine was there, Harvey heaved a relieved sigh, and said, "Thank Heaven you are back Cathy! The police told us, who ever shot him, had to be someone he knew and trusted, because it looks as if he let them in. They tried to make it look like a robbery, but I heard it looked staged."
As Catherine looked at both Marilyn and Harvey, she sadly said, "Someone got to him, even with the round the clock protection I ordered."
To which Marilyn expressed, "That poor man!"
It was then Harvey clarified, "So without him, we don't have a case right? I mean everything hinged on his testimony."
Nodding Catherine replied, "You're right Harvey, without him, we have nothing. It makes you realize how covert the mob is, to coax even a close friend to do Mr. Benjamin in."
Harvey nodded, and in agreement said, "Yeah, covert is the word. I mean to think all those years, the poor sap didn't realize he was doing books for a man with mob ties."
Catherine vehemently stated, "And now, a good and honest man is dead, because he knew too much! There should be more done to wage this fight against underworld crime!"
Catherine then asked both Harvey and Marilyn, "Does Dad know about any of this yet?"
To which, Rita who walked into the frey, said, "He does now Cathy! He just called, and he wants you to call him ASAP! And oh yes, I just put a note on your desk, to call A Joe Maxwell back? I guess he's from the D.A. and it's concerning the Benjamin case."
Rita hustled around her desk to pick up the ringing phone, but before she answered, she smiled at Catherine and said, "It's good to have you back."
To which Catherine expounded, "But I was only gone for the week-end Rita!"
With a smile, Rita nodded knowingly, and said, "I mean really back...you look like your old happy self again despite all of this Benjamin news."
As Catherine took a deep breath, she smiled as she admitted, "Yes Rita, I am."
As Catherine turned back to Harvey, she informatively stated, "Well I better give Dad, and this Joe Maxwell a call back."
Upon closing the door to her office, Catherine first placed the call to her dad, and sadly said, "Hi Dad, so you heard about Mr. Benjamin."
To which Charles disappointedly answered, "Yes I did Cathy. What a shock, he was such a good man. And was murdered, even with all the surveillance assigned to him...makes you wonder..."
Then Charles acknowledged, "It must be a disappointment for you too on a professional level. You and Harvey really threw yourselves into this one."
In reply, Catherine said, "Yes we did, and we got to know him, and his family pretty well in the process. I sure liked him."
Catherine then vehemently added, "It seems like there should be more we could do to fight against this kind of injustice Dad."
To which Charles hopelessly, replied, "Same old story Cathy, corruption and red tape!"
As Catherine sighed, she knew what her Dad said was true, and so she added, "Speaking of red tape, I better run the paperwork on the case, and tie it up."
To which Charles suggested, "Why not let Harvey do it Cath, he needs the experience."
Decisively, Catherine solemnly, said, "I'll have him help me with it, but I want to be certain all the I's are dotted, and T's are crossed on this one Dad. In honor of Mr. Benjamin, and his family, I want to be certain he gets all of the credit he deserves for his bravery. He was so scared, but still he was willing to testify."
In reply, Charles proudly noted, "See it through to the end. That's my girl."
On a lighter note, Charles then suggested, "Just an idea here, why don't you take the next two days off after you finish up today. Relax a little and get a head start on your Christmas shopping or just maybe goof off! I think you need a break. There's been so much going on."
As Catherine honestly thought about it, she thoughtfully said, "I'll see how the day goes, and if it looks like I wouldn't be missed around here, maybe I will Dad."
It was then Charles cautiously asked, "How...how are things with...ah, with you and Vincent?"
In reply, Catherine softly said, "I was just going to tell you, everything is straightened out now. Thanks to Jacob."
To which Charles thankfully shared, "You know honey, Peter and I have had a lot of time to talk about Vincent, and well, we will have to see, but I promise to keep an open mind."
With a bit of emotion, Catherine thankfully told her Dad, "I understand."
Turning the subject off of herself, Catherine with care, asked, "How is Peter and Aunt Pauline holding up?"
In reply, Charles answered, "Well, they are doing all right, but things are moving slowly on the point of tying up the estate. Unfortunately, all of the city offices will be closed over the Thanksgiving Holiday, and a few things are still stuck in probate. So I will need to fly back down here after I have Thanksgiving with you."
Upon hearing her Dad say, just he would be flying, Catherine asked, "I thought Peter was coming too."
To which Charles explained, "Well it turns out, because Petey is doing so well, all of Pauline's family is flying down, to spend Thanksgiving with her, and of course they want Uncle Peter to stay on too, so all you are getting is little Ole me! Oh, which reminds me, I will give you my flight schedule, unfortunately all I could get were RED EYES!"
Thinking about her Dad dealing with the Holiday travelers, and such, Catherine worriedly said, "I hate for you to fly back and forth like that alone, and in the middle of all the Holiday confusion. Why don't you just stay put, and spend Thanksgiving there with Peter, safe and sound."
Upon which, Charles admitted, "Well, they do want me to stay, but I am not crazy about you and Jenny driving by yourselves up to the cabin."
In reply, Catherine suggested, "Well, maybe Jen and I will stay in the city, and we could have our Thanksgiving Dinner at Denny's."
With a vision of his daughter and Jennifer sitting in a Denny's restaurant on Thanksgiving, Charles resignedly said, "Now that's not funny!"
As Catherine giggled a bit, she declared, "I thought it was!"
But turning melancholy, Charles then expressed, "I was thinking if I don't fly home, this will be the first Thanksgiving we haven't spent together Daughter."
As her emotions got the best of her, Catherine replied, "I know Dad, I was thinking the same thing."
And then Catherine asked, "Are you thinking if I do take Tuesday and Wednesday off, I should fly back down to Florida?"
To which Charles said, "Selfishly I would say yes, but for all the reasons you told me to stay put, I will say the same reasons apply to you."
Upon thinking she would secretly check for a flight anyway, despite all the practicalities. And so under the pretence she was needed, Catherine said, "Oh Dad, I have to go, uh, mmm, uh, Rita needs me!"
In reply, Charles said call back when she could. And so stealthily, Catherine checked all the airlines for a flight, and unfortunately, they were all booked up! And so upon realizing a flight to Florida was not a possibility, she called her Dad back and said, "Well Dad, I thought I would surprise you, but the airlines are all booked up. Looks like I will definitely be staying put. I suppose on the practical side, it is the sane thing to do."
To which Charles agreed, saying, "Well thanks for trying, and honestly, you make a great case honey, I'll stay put, and you'll stay put and we will celebrate when I come home. Hey, may I say you are becoming quite the attorney!"
With a giggle, Catherine replied, "What can I say? I learned from the best!"
Upon thinking about his brother, Charles chuckled as he added, "I guess I better call Uncle Douglas...again, and tell him about our ever fluctuating Thanksgiving plans!"
It was then Charles thought to ask, "Oh honey, in case you do take the upcoming days off, why don't you pass out the Holiday bonus checks this afternoon? I have them all ready in my top desk drawer."
Knowing how much her Dad enjoyed passing out the bonuses, Catherine asked, "Are you sure you want me to pass them out? You will miss all the fun, and you know how everyone loves the little Santa act you do, with the Hat thing and all."
In reply, Charles regretfully, replied, "You are right, I sure do love playing Santa, but the tradition is to give them out before Thanksgiving, so everyone has some extra spending money for their Black Friday shopping. So under the circumstances, you will have to do it in my place. Oh and by the way, you will find the Hat in the drawer too."
To which Catherine hesitantly expounded, "Wait a minute, I will pass out the bonuses, but NO SANTA HAT!"
As Charles laughed, he insistently, said, "You have to keep up the Chandler Holiday tradition!"
Reluctantly, Catherine promised, "All right, I will wear the hat! But I DO draw the line on any HO HO HOING."
With a chuckle, Charles teased, "Oh Dear Daughter, I believe that your scrooginess is showing!"
Catherine laughed, and admitted it was true, and then thought about the other call she had to make, and so she quizzically asked, "Oh by the way, do you know Joe Maxwell at the D.A.'s office? I am supposed to return his call, Rita said it is in relation to the Benjamin case."
To which Charles thoughtfully answered, "Yes, I have met him a few times, he's the young buck Deputy District Attorney. Maxwell seems like a straight shooter, and from my interaction with him, he seems like a nice enough fella. My guess is he wants your files on what Mr. Benjamin's testimony was going to be."
With an appreciative reply, Catherine said, "Thanks Dad, I'll give him a call then."
Lovingly, Charles and Catherine said their good-byes to one another, and after they hung up, Catherine realized she still had to call Jennifer too! And so she called her friend, asking, if she was free for lunch at noon.
In reply, Jennifer said, "Of course! I am starving, and dying to get the scoop, where should we meet?"
To which Catherine suggested, "How about The Sunset Café, we haven't been there for a while."
Upon which, Jennifer agreed, saying, "Sounds great see you at 12:30!"
As Catherine corrected her friend, she clarified saying, "12:30? I said noon!"
With a bit of an attitude, Jennifer replied, "I know you did, that's why I said see you at 12:30!"
As Catherine laughed, she said, "All right, all right Jen, see you then."
And after they hung up, Catherine thought of how she couldn't wait to tell Jennifer not only about her reconciliation with Vincent, but about Noodles too!
Next, Catherine called the D.A. And so she asked the male operator, "Joe Maxwell please?"
To which in reply, the guy on the other end, curtly said, "Speaking."
As Catherine realized she WAS speaking to Joe Maxwell, she politely introduced herself, and said, "Hello Mr. Maxwell, I am Catherine Chandler, from The Chandler & Coolidge law firm, and I am returning your call."
To which Joe got right to the point, and replied, "Yeah, well listen, I need all ya got on Benjamin, hoping to get some leads on this burglary/murder case."
Catherine couldn't believe this Joe Maxwell actually thought Mr. Benjamin's murder was a robbery which had gone bad!
And so she curtly asked, "You do know who Mr. Benjamin was, AND who he worked for?"
To which Joe declared, "Of course I know!"
And so Catherine inquired, "And you still think he was killed by a burglar?"
Although Joe knew more, he was being careful not to say too much, and so he coyly replied, "That's what the Police report says..."
Upon hearing his reply, Catherine began to fear there will be no justice for Mr. Benjamin with this Mickey Mouse Brigade, and so she angrily said, "Talk about gullible..."
In his gruff manner, Joe interrupted, and said, "Hey slow down would ya Radcliffe…who are you calling gullible?"
And because Joe called her Radcliffe, Catherine assumed he heard her name wrong, and so she corrected him, saying, "Excuse me, my last name is Chandler, not Radcliffe!"
To which Joe in a scoffing demeanor replied, "Yeah, well I'm referring to your attitude! Judging from my experience, all you rich girls go to Radcliffe."
As Catherine was totally taken aback by Joe's rudeness, she astonishingly noted, "Judging? You are Judging? And here I thought you wore a suit, not a Robe!"
But because Joe was up to his neck with paperwork, he irritatingly replied, "Hey look I don't have time for this! What's it gonna be? Am I gonna get the depo, or do I have to get a subpoeni?"
And so as Catherine was getting pretty steamed at this hotshot, she calmed herself, and professionally offered, "I will bring it by myself, at Noon!"
With a matter-of-fact tone, Joe answered, "If I'm not here just leave it with my secretary, and hey thanks."
To which Catherine curtly replied, "No no, either you be there to receive his confidential file, or I'm not leaving it. I'm not taking any chances that Mr. Benjamin's information could fall into the wrong hands."
Though he was kinda impressed by this Miss Chandler's protocol, he thought he would chide her a bit more, by asking, "Fair enough, fair enough, but how will ya know it's really me when ya meet me? Uh?"
With firm indignation, Catherine replied, "Good point! Have your I.D. ready!"
And as she hung up the phone, Catherine thought back on her Dad's opinion of Joe Maxwell, and thought, "How could Dad think he was a nice fella?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, Vincent had just finished preparing the children's lesson before he met up with Jacob, to walk together to the Dining Hall.
As Vincent slipped his arm through Jacob's, they silently walked, until it was Jacob who firstly spoke of Catherine, asking, "Will Catherine be visiting us soon?"
To which Vincent pensively answered, "I don't know Father, I was about to ask her, when she told me of her plans to travel to Connecticut for Thanksgiving. So perhaps after she returns."
To which Jacob nodded, and said, "Well, well I see, I do believe I heard a conversation betwixt she and Charles about this very subject."
Upon which Jacob added, "So after she returns then."
Vincent then informatively but sadly shared, "Catherine assumed they would be returning Saturday, perhaps Sunday."
To which Jacob scoffed, "Oh my Vincent, you make it sound like it's an eternity! My diagnosis is that you will live."
Vincent looked to his Father, and said, "I suppose it's not a very long span of time in everyday terms, however since we have reconciled, it DOES sound like an eternity Father."
To be continued
Chapter Five
As he looked ardently downward at his pen on the unmarked page, he let his heart direct its flow.
Dearest Catherine,
My walk through the city was a lonely journey,
as you were not at my side.
However the glory of this day,
re-affirming our bond with one another,
resonates in my heart...over-powering the lonely ache.
Tonight, being with you again,
made me realize, a different kind of life
is a possibility for me.
For so many years, I have forbidden those thoughts,
never believing I would know that side of love...
The new day dawning can not unfold fast enough
so it may deliver its night to me,
when I may be with you again.
Sincerely
Vincent
Before Vincent closed his leather bound journal, he leafed back through, and stopped to read one of his previous scripts from just a few days ago.
The sentiments he had transcribed from his aching heart, contained such despair that as he closed the cover to his journal, he bent his head in beholden prayer.
Vincent felt so thankful he had not lost sight of his dream of Catherine, and his faith in dreams, was to be rewarded by the knowledge and reality Catherine missed him too.
It was then he was struck by the regretful thought, he had forgotten Catherine's gift to him. Hoping it had not hurt her feelings, he would apologize, and ask her pardon when next he saw her.
Vincent then walked over to his books, and just as he was about to pick up his old book of Shakespeare's Sonnets, he instead picked up the new, the loving gift from his Father. And as the page fell open to Sonnet CXLII, Vincent read:
CXLII
Love is my sin and thy dear virtue hate,
Hate of my sin, grounded on sinful loving:
O, but with mine compare thou thine own state,
And thou shalt find it merits not reproving;
Or, if it do, not from those lips of thine,
That have profaned their scarlet ornaments
And seal'd false bonds of love as oft as mine,
Robb'd others' beds' revenues of their rents.
Be it lawful I love thee, as thou lovest those
Whom thine eyes woo as mine importune thee:
Root pity in thy heart, that when it grows
Thy pity may deserve to pitied be.
If thou dost seek to have what thou dost hide,
By self-example mayst thou be denied!
As Vincent re-read the last two lines over again, he knew Shakespeare understood the power of dreams too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Catherine blew out the last of the candles on the mantle above her fireplace, and as she looked downward, she noticed Vincent had not taken his copy of Wordsworth she had given him. She smiled and once more placed it side by side with her copy, thinking she will have the joy of giving it to him again.
As Catherine went to her bed, Noodles pranced over to her to nuzzle, and as she petted him, she felt a happiness within her heart, greater then she had ever known.
Vincent was back in her life now, and she knew their hearts shared an unspoken vow, which shall endure the span of time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, the morning came too soon, and as Catherine turned off her alarm clock, she wished for few more minutes to dream of her Vincent, and to replay all they had said to each other.
But knowing she was out of time, she took care of Noodles, and then hurriedly showered, blew her hair dry, and ripped the dry cleaners wrapping from her deep green suit, she had planned to wear in court that day.
So after letting Noodles outside for the last time, Catherine made sure he had water, food, and also put some newspapers on the floor for him, just in case!
Just as Catherine slipped on her coat, the ringing phone was one interruption Catherine did not need this morning, but in case it was her Dad, Catherine stopped to answer, saying, "Hello."
In reply, Catherine heard Jennifer pout, "Weren't you going to call me?"
To which Catherine hastily answered, "Of course I was Jen, I am running a bit late, so I was going to call once I was at work."
As Jennifer said she would let her go, she first anxiously asked, "Tell me one thing before we hang up, are things cool with you and Two-Timing Vincent?"
With a smile in her voice, Catherine replied, "Yes, everything is good, but you can drop the two-timing adjective. Look Jen, I promise to tell you everything later on, but for now I have gotta go. Talk to you this afternoon."
And so with one last check on Noodles, Catherine locked up, and headed down the sidewalk, toward the office.
Yes, Catherine thoroughly enjoyed her walk into work this morning. The snow was falling softly, everyone around her seemed to own the spirit of the approaching Holidays, and she had Vincent back in her life.
Upon her arrival, Bruno held the door open, and gave her a warm welcome home, saying, "You're back Catie? I didn't think I would see you today."
As Catherine warmly smiled back, she explained, "Dad stayed on with Peter, to help straighten out matters of the estate, but we decided I should fly back. We have the Benjamin court case today."
Informatively, Bruno nodded, and then said, "Well I don't know if you have to worry about that Benjamin case. I heard on my Police Scanner, the cops were dispatched to his apartment at about one a.m. last night! He was apparently shot and killed by a burglar!"
With hearing this news, Catherine gasped, saying, "Oh no Bruno, I hadn't heard! I better see what Harvey knows."
As the elevator doors opened, the whole office was abuzz! And as Catherine saw Harvey talking to Marilyn, she asked, "What's going on, did they catch who shot Mr. Benjamin?"
Upon seeing Catherine was there, Harvey heaved a relieved sigh, and said, "Thank Heaven you are back Cathy! The police told us, who ever shot him, had to be someone he knew and trusted, because it looks as if he let them in. They tried to make it look like a robbery, but I heard it looked staged."
As Catherine looked at both Marilyn and Harvey, she sadly said, "Someone got to him, even with the round the clock protection I ordered."
To which Marilyn expressed, "That poor man!"
It was then Harvey clarified, "So without him, we don't have a case right? I mean everything hinged on his testimony."
Nodding Catherine replied, "You're right Harvey, without him, we have nothing. It makes you realize how covert the mob is, to coax even a close friend to do Mr. Benjamin in."
Harvey nodded, and in agreement said, "Yeah, covert is the word. I mean to think all those years, the poor sap didn't realize he was doing books for a man with mob ties."
Catherine vehemently stated, "And now, a good and honest man is dead, because he knew too much! There should be more done to wage this fight against underworld crime!"
Catherine then asked both Harvey and Marilyn, "Does Dad know about any of this yet?"
To which, Rita who walked into the frey, said, "He does now Cathy! He just called, and he wants you to call him ASAP! And oh yes, I just put a note on your desk, to call A Joe Maxwell back? I guess he's from the D.A. and it's concerning the Benjamin case."
Rita hustled around her desk to pick up the ringing phone, but before she answered, she smiled at Catherine and said, "It's good to have you back."
To which Catherine expounded, "But I was only gone for the week-end Rita!"
With a smile, Rita nodded knowingly, and said, "I mean really back...you look like your old happy self again despite all of this Benjamin news."
As Catherine took a deep breath, she smiled as she admitted, "Yes Rita, I am."
As Catherine turned back to Harvey, she informatively stated, "Well I better give Dad, and this Joe Maxwell a call back."
Upon closing the door to her office, Catherine first placed the call to her dad, and sadly said, "Hi Dad, so you heard about Mr. Benjamin."
To which Charles disappointedly answered, "Yes I did Cathy. What a shock, he was such a good man. And was murdered, even with all the surveillance assigned to him...makes you wonder..."
Then Charles acknowledged, "It must be a disappointment for you too on a professional level. You and Harvey really threw yourselves into this one."
In reply, Catherine said, "Yes we did, and we got to know him, and his family pretty well in the process. I sure liked him."
Catherine then vehemently added, "It seems like there should be more we could do to fight against this kind of injustice Dad."
To which Charles hopelessly, replied, "Same old story Cathy, corruption and red tape!"
As Catherine sighed, she knew what her Dad said was true, and so she added, "Speaking of red tape, I better run the paperwork on the case, and tie it up."
To which Charles suggested, "Why not let Harvey do it Cath, he needs the experience."
Decisively, Catherine solemnly, said, "I'll have him help me with it, but I want to be certain all the I's are dotted, and T's are crossed on this one Dad. In honor of Mr. Benjamin, and his family, I want to be certain he gets all of the credit he deserves for his bravery. He was so scared, but still he was willing to testify."
In reply, Charles proudly noted, "See it through to the end. That's my girl."
On a lighter note, Charles then suggested, "Just an idea here, why don't you take the next two days off after you finish up today. Relax a little and get a head start on your Christmas shopping or just maybe goof off! I think you need a break. There's been so much going on."
As Catherine honestly thought about it, she thoughtfully said, "I'll see how the day goes, and if it looks like I wouldn't be missed around here, maybe I will Dad."
It was then Charles cautiously asked, "How...how are things with...ah, with you and Vincent?"
In reply, Catherine softly said, "I was just going to tell you, everything is straightened out now. Thanks to Jacob."
To which Charles thankfully shared, "You know honey, Peter and I have had a lot of time to talk about Vincent, and well, we will have to see, but I promise to keep an open mind."
With a bit of emotion, Catherine thankfully told her Dad, "I understand."
Turning the subject off of herself, Catherine with care, asked, "How is Peter and Aunt Pauline holding up?"
In reply, Charles answered, "Well, they are doing all right, but things are moving slowly on the point of tying up the estate. Unfortunately, all of the city offices will be closed over the Thanksgiving Holiday, and a few things are still stuck in probate. So I will need to fly back down here after I have Thanksgiving with you."
Upon hearing her Dad say, just he would be flying, Catherine asked, "I thought Peter was coming too."
To which Charles explained, "Well it turns out, because Petey is doing so well, all of Pauline's family is flying down, to spend Thanksgiving with her, and of course they want Uncle Peter to stay on too, so all you are getting is little Ole me! Oh, which reminds me, I will give you my flight schedule, unfortunately all I could get were RED EYES!"
Thinking about her Dad dealing with the Holiday travelers, and such, Catherine worriedly said, "I hate for you to fly back and forth like that alone, and in the middle of all the Holiday confusion. Why don't you just stay put, and spend Thanksgiving there with Peter, safe and sound."
Upon which, Charles admitted, "Well, they do want me to stay, but I am not crazy about you and Jenny driving by yourselves up to the cabin."
In reply, Catherine suggested, "Well, maybe Jen and I will stay in the city, and we could have our Thanksgiving Dinner at Denny's."
With a vision of his daughter and Jennifer sitting in a Denny's restaurant on Thanksgiving, Charles resignedly said, "Now that's not funny!"
As Catherine giggled a bit, she declared, "I thought it was!"
But turning melancholy, Charles then expressed, "I was thinking if I don't fly home, this will be the first Thanksgiving we haven't spent together Daughter."
As her emotions got the best of her, Catherine replied, "I know Dad, I was thinking the same thing."
And then Catherine asked, "Are you thinking if I do take Tuesday and Wednesday off, I should fly back down to Florida?"
To which Charles said, "Selfishly I would say yes, but for all the reasons you told me to stay put, I will say the same reasons apply to you."
Upon thinking she would secretly check for a flight anyway, despite all the practicalities. And so under the pretence she was needed, Catherine said, "Oh Dad, I have to go, uh, mmm, uh, Rita needs me!"
In reply, Charles said call back when she could. And so stealthily, Catherine checked all the airlines for a flight, and unfortunately, they were all booked up! And so upon realizing a flight to Florida was not a possibility, she called her Dad back and said, "Well Dad, I thought I would surprise you, but the airlines are all booked up. Looks like I will definitely be staying put. I suppose on the practical side, it is the sane thing to do."
To which Charles agreed, saying, "Well thanks for trying, and honestly, you make a great case honey, I'll stay put, and you'll stay put and we will celebrate when I come home. Hey, may I say you are becoming quite the attorney!"
With a giggle, Catherine replied, "What can I say? I learned from the best!"
Upon thinking about his brother, Charles chuckled as he added, "I guess I better call Uncle Douglas...again, and tell him about our ever fluctuating Thanksgiving plans!"
It was then Charles thought to ask, "Oh honey, in case you do take the upcoming days off, why don't you pass out the Holiday bonus checks this afternoon? I have them all ready in my top desk drawer."
Knowing how much her Dad enjoyed passing out the bonuses, Catherine asked, "Are you sure you want me to pass them out? You will miss all the fun, and you know how everyone loves the little Santa act you do, with the Hat thing and all."
In reply, Charles regretfully, replied, "You are right, I sure do love playing Santa, but the tradition is to give them out before Thanksgiving, so everyone has some extra spending money for their Black Friday shopping. So under the circumstances, you will have to do it in my place. Oh and by the way, you will find the Hat in the drawer too."
To which Catherine hesitantly expounded, "Wait a minute, I will pass out the bonuses, but NO SANTA HAT!"
As Charles laughed, he insistently, said, "You have to keep up the Chandler Holiday tradition!"
Reluctantly, Catherine promised, "All right, I will wear the hat! But I DO draw the line on any HO HO HOING."
With a chuckle, Charles teased, "Oh Dear Daughter, I believe that your scrooginess is showing!"
Catherine laughed, and admitted it was true, and then thought about the other call she had to make, and so she quizzically asked, "Oh by the way, do you know Joe Maxwell at the D.A.'s office? I am supposed to return his call, Rita said it is in relation to the Benjamin case."
To which Charles thoughtfully answered, "Yes, I have met him a few times, he's the young buck Deputy District Attorney. Maxwell seems like a straight shooter, and from my interaction with him, he seems like a nice enough fella. My guess is he wants your files on what Mr. Benjamin's testimony was going to be."
With an appreciative reply, Catherine said, "Thanks Dad, I'll give him a call then."
Lovingly, Charles and Catherine said their good-byes to one another, and after they hung up, Catherine realized she still had to call Jennifer too! And so she called her friend, asking, if she was free for lunch at noon.
In reply, Jennifer said, "Of course! I am starving, and dying to get the scoop, where should we meet?"
To which Catherine suggested, "How about The Sunset Café, we haven't been there for a while."
Upon which, Jennifer agreed, saying, "Sounds great see you at 12:30!"
As Catherine corrected her friend, she clarified saying, "12:30? I said noon!"
With a bit of an attitude, Jennifer replied, "I know you did, that's why I said see you at 12:30!"
As Catherine laughed, she said, "All right, all right Jen, see you then."
And after they hung up, Catherine thought of how she couldn't wait to tell Jennifer not only about her reconciliation with Vincent, but about Noodles too!
Next, Catherine called the D.A. And so she asked the male operator, "Joe Maxwell please?"
To which in reply, the guy on the other end, curtly said, "Speaking."
As Catherine realized she WAS speaking to Joe Maxwell, she politely introduced herself, and said, "Hello Mr. Maxwell, I am Catherine Chandler, from The Chandler & Coolidge law firm, and I am returning your call."
To which Joe got right to the point, and replied, "Yeah, well listen, I need all ya got on Benjamin, hoping to get some leads on this burglary/murder case."
Catherine couldn't believe this Joe Maxwell actually thought Mr. Benjamin's murder was a robbery which had gone bad!
And so she curtly asked, "You do know who Mr. Benjamin was, AND who he worked for?"
To which Joe declared, "Of course I know!"
And so Catherine inquired, "And you still think he was killed by a burglar?"
Although Joe knew more, he was being careful not to say too much, and so he coyly replied, "That's what the Police report says..."
Upon hearing his reply, Catherine began to fear there will be no justice for Mr. Benjamin with this Mickey Mouse Brigade, and so she angrily said, "Talk about gullible..."
In his gruff manner, Joe interrupted, and said, "Hey slow down would ya Radcliffe…who are you calling gullible?"
And because Joe called her Radcliffe, Catherine assumed he heard her name wrong, and so she corrected him, saying, "Excuse me, my last name is Chandler, not Radcliffe!"
To which Joe in a scoffing demeanor replied, "Yeah, well I'm referring to your attitude! Judging from my experience, all you rich girls go to Radcliffe."
As Catherine was totally taken aback by Joe's rudeness, she astonishingly noted, "Judging? You are Judging? And here I thought you wore a suit, not a Robe!"
But because Joe was up to his neck with paperwork, he irritatingly replied, "Hey look I don't have time for this! What's it gonna be? Am I gonna get the depo, or do I have to get a subpoeni?"
And so as Catherine was getting pretty steamed at this hotshot, she calmed herself, and professionally offered, "I will bring it by myself, at Noon!"
With a matter-of-fact tone, Joe answered, "If I'm not here just leave it with my secretary, and hey thanks."
To which Catherine curtly replied, "No no, either you be there to receive his confidential file, or I'm not leaving it. I'm not taking any chances that Mr. Benjamin's information could fall into the wrong hands."
Though he was kinda impressed by this Miss Chandler's protocol, he thought he would chide her a bit more, by asking, "Fair enough, fair enough, but how will ya know it's really me when ya meet me? Uh?"
With firm indignation, Catherine replied, "Good point! Have your I.D. ready!"
And as she hung up the phone, Catherine thought back on her Dad's opinion of Joe Maxwell, and thought, "How could Dad think he was a nice fella?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, Vincent had just finished preparing the children's lesson before he met up with Jacob, to walk together to the Dining Hall.
As Vincent slipped his arm through Jacob's, they silently walked, until it was Jacob who firstly spoke of Catherine, asking, "Will Catherine be visiting us soon?"
To which Vincent pensively answered, "I don't know Father, I was about to ask her, when she told me of her plans to travel to Connecticut for Thanksgiving. So perhaps after she returns."
To which Jacob nodded, and said, "Well, well I see, I do believe I heard a conversation betwixt she and Charles about this very subject."
Upon which Jacob added, "So after she returns then."
Vincent then informatively but sadly shared, "Catherine assumed they would be returning Saturday, perhaps Sunday."
To which Jacob scoffed, "Oh my Vincent, you make it sound like it's an eternity! My diagnosis is that you will live."
Vincent looked to his Father, and said, "I suppose it's not a very long span of time in everyday terms, however since we have reconciled, it DOES sound like an eternity Father."
To be continued
Chapter Five
| Keeper of my Heart! Chapter Four By Sharon Holtz _______________________________________ |
Dearest Catherine,
My walk through the city was a lonely journey,
as you were not at my side.
However the glory of this day,
re-affirming our bond with one another,
resonates in my heart...over-powering the lonely ache.
Tonight, being with you again,
made me realize, a different kind of life
is a possibility for me.
For so many years, I have forbidden those thoughts,
never believing I would know that side of love...
My walk through the city was a lonely journey,
as you were not at my side.
However the glory of this day,
re-affirming our bond with one another,
resonates in my heart...over-powering the lonely ache.
Tonight, being with you again,
made me realize, a different kind of life
is a possibility for me.
For so many years, I have forbidden those thoughts,
never believing I would know that side of love...
The new day dawning can not unfold fast enough
so it may deliver its night to me,
when I may be with you again.
Sincerely
Vincent
so it may deliver its night to me,
when I may be with you again.
Sincerely
Vincent