Vincent found reliving his dream of Catherine, only made him feel more miserable about his lost love, and haunted him in such a way, he knew no good would come of it.
And so he exited the water, went back to his chamber to find rest.
As Vincent reposed in his bed, he sensed a deep sadness, and it was then he recognized the sadness was not only his own, but realized it was mixed with another! Yes it mirrored Catherine's sadness he felt earlier in the park, and so because of this incident he had to gauge against, he knew, this was not only his own heartache, but it was also Catherine's!
And it was on this night for the first time Vincent realized this connection, he and Catherine had formed, transcended space. He realized he didn't have to be near her to feel her essence or sense her pain.
And as Vincent tuned in to these feelings with a new perspective, now knowing they were Catherine's, the sorrow overwhelmed him!
So though he wondered, if he should he go to her, he realized he could not, for she may still be with the other man. Perhaps she is sad over a lovers spat they were having...or have had.
No, Vincent decided he would have to stay away. He had to let go of her. As he tried to cut off this powerful bond, he now was beginning to understand...he realized he couldn't, because this flow of emotions from Catherine...were coming to him wide open.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As Catherine always would after reliving the night they met, the sadness would wash over her, and she would always feel all the more lonely, and desperate to have Vincent near her...and she would long for him even more.
However because she now had even more questions, with such lonely despair, the tears came once again, and her thoughts were haunted, wondering why hadn't Vincent stayed to speak to her in the park? As her heart tried to reach out to his, needing and wanting him to come to her, she began to give up hope.
As she brought her comforter up over to warm herself, Catherine struggled to quiet and clear her thoughts, so she could at least find some solace with sleep.
And so Catherine, alone in her world, her cries went unanswered, and as the sadness eventually subsided, mercifully sleep came to her...so with all the voices now stilled...sleep would come to Vincent in his world as well.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next day...both Vincent and Catherine awoke with the intense sadness they fell asleep with....and as they faced the new dawning day, Vincent wondered how to rally himself for Brigit's visit, and Catherine wondered how she would deliver her best in order to work on Mr. Benjamin's depo.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And so for Catherine, she did as her Dad suggested, she simply put one foot in front of the other, and got ready for work. As Catherine arrived at the office, she brought forth her best for the people in her life, and so she happily greeted Bruno, and then upon seeing Rita was back, she greeted her, saying, "Good Morning Rita! So glad you're back!"
To which Rita cheerfully replied, "Yeppers! Good as new, and good to see you my Dear!"
After giving Rita a welcome back hug, Catherine jokingly said, "Well now with you back at the helm, we can get back to "Abi-normal" around here."
In reply, Rita noted, "Oh you're cute, but I will tell you, the one good thing about this whole incident, is that thanks to QVC, I have all my Christmas shopping done!"
Catherine smiled as she said, "Well good for you Rita, that is more than I can say! Well I guess I better get busy, Harvey awaits! Talk to you later on."
Happily, Rita said, "Sure thing, we'll catch up later on sweetie...oh but you gotta try one of the pastries Marilyn brought in, they are by the coffee."
In polite reply, Catherine said she would check it out! And so after she poured her coffee, AND put a Danish on a plate, she passed by her Dad as he was closing his office door.
Lovingly, Catherine told Charles good morning, to which he smiled, and said, "Good morning kiddo."
As Catherine noticed his coat over his arm, and brief case in hand, she asked, "Going somewhere?"
Trying to play it down, Charles looked at his watch, and answered, "Ah yeah, I have to meet a client."
To which Catherine looking very surprised, asked, "A client? Since when do you do the leg work around here Dad?"
Hesitantly, Charles stalled a bit as he told her, "Well this is kind of a special case Cathy. I am doing this as a personal favor."
Thinking her Dad was being secretive, Catherine in a leading manner, inquired, "For????"
To which Charles reluctantly answered, "Well, I might as well just tell ya, it's for Brigit O'Donnell."
To which Catherine in a confused manner, asked, "A personal favor for Brigit?"
Realizing it sounded that way, Charles hurriedly clarified, "No, not for Brigit herself, but a favor for her Agent, Mr. Hamilton. Well now you should remember him! We've worked with in the past for some of his other big name clients, Springsteen, Lauper and Bon Jovi..."
To which Catherine nodded, saying, "Of course Mr. Hamilton..."
And so Charles then continued, "So well you see, it has come to light, the contract for her last book through the Smith's law firm, had many loop holes and was deemed lacking conclusion, and so she needs a new agreement drawn up pronto."
Understanding, Catherine softly said, "I see..."
So in an effort to sound matter-of-factly, Charles continued, "But so anywhoooo, he called me asking for my expertize, in fact I sincerely doubt I will be meeting with Brigit at all, but rather just with her agent Mr. Hamilton."
To which upon seeing Catherine's smile had faded with this news, Charles with concern, asked, "Should I have declined kiddo?"
With an ardent shake of her head, Catherine insistently replied, "No, of course not Dad...just hearing Brigit will be a client of the firm has taken me by surprise is all..."
Hesitantly, Catherine in a cautious tone, asked, "So, do you know if Brigit is actually here in New York too?"
Nodding at his beautiful daughter, Charles replied, "I believe so Cathy. How about if I try to get some information for you? Maybe then you will be able to put all this behind you, once and for all."
Catherine's heart sank with a deep sense of dread, asking herself if she really wanted confirmation on what she had already figured out? Was this her day of reckoning?
So as she took in a deep anguished breath Catherine, answered, "Yes Dad, please do."
Catherine then entered her office, and settled in behind her desk with the Danish, of which she knew, she could NOT possibly eat.
So as Catherine awaited her Dad's return, the hours seemed to go so slowly, as she was wondering what he would be finding out...
And then Catherine rationalized, if it hadn't been for her meeting with Harvey, and having the Benjamin case to delve into, she would have surely went stir crazy waiting.
It was then the ringing phone startled Catherine from her thoughts, and it was Mr. Smythe!
Keeping true to his word, he wanted to let Catherine know the order for Mr. Wells had been picked up. "Yes my Dear Catherine...only minutes ago. It was by the same woman who placed the order."
To which Catherine worriedly asked, "Did you say anything about the correspondence which you placed inside of the book for me Mr. Smythe?"
Confidentially, he answered, "No I didn't Dear. The book is wrapped in the usual brown paper, so no one should see your letter but Mr. Wells himself. It is our secret."
Gratefully, Catherine said, "Thank you so much Mr. Smythe."
As she hung up the phone, she resignedly sighed aloud, "Oh My, I guess I may find out something soon from Dad, and I hope placing that letter inside of Vincent's book order was a good idea..."
After a soft knocking on Catherine's door, Charles stepped gingerly into his daughter's office.
Softly he asked, "Catherine Ann, do you have a minute?"
With much trepidation, Catherine answered, "Sure Dad."
As Charles then sat next to her, he began, "I am afraid I did get word concerning Brigit. Her agent explained, that though, Brigit wanted to be at our meeting, she was going away to visit a friend, for some much needed R. & R."
Even though the look on her Dad's face said it all, she had to ask, "Did he mention the friends name?"
With care, he answered, "Yes, he did, her friends name is Vincent."
Calmly Catherine nodded and said, "Very well then...that is that. Thanks for finding out for me Dad."
Surprised by her calm reaction, Charles looked at his daughter and asked, "Are you OK?"
Nodding Catherine softly answered, "Yes, strangely I am."
Giving his daughter a kiss on the forehead, Charles then said, "Well if you need to talk, you know where to find me...I'll be writing the final draft of Brigit's contract..."
Looking back once more, Charles tenderly repeated, "...now, you will call me if you need to talk?"
Smiling weakly at her Dad, Catherine assured him, "Yes Dad, I will."
After Charles left, Catherine was surprised how this information had a numbing effect on her. She did not cry. She didn't feel sad, she didn't feel anything. It is now over.
She sat there silently, and calmly, and then it struck her. OH No! The note! Vincent will find the note she had tucked inside the book! How humiliating!
Yes, it was now officially too late to reverse this plan of Catherine's, for Fate was playing its wicked Worse Case Scenario Game, and it was now up to Catherine to deal with its outcome.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, the hour had finally come for Brigit's arrival, and so Jacob called on his son, and asked, "Vincent it is nearly time to greet Brigit...Lin should be arriving with her soon. You do know they are coming through the park...Lin thought she could point out some interesting land marks if they came that way..."
With a bit of a chuckle, Jacob added, "...and she feels the park's culvert entrance does present a more dramatic entry into our world."
With a smile in his eyes, Vincent nodded, and replied, "Ah yes...as is true for Lin's cuisine as well, she does believe the presentation is as important as the taste of the food itself...and yes Father, you are right, it is time to go and meet them..."
To which Jacob noted, "Well...I shall leave you then, and do bring Brigit by my chamber won't you? I dare say, I hadn't anticipated being this excited to meet THE renowned Brigit O'Conner, however I find I am...quite!"
With a slow resigned saunter, Vincent assured his Father he would bring Brigit by to meet him, and then he gently corrected his Father, saying, "And it's O'Donnell Father..."
To which Jacob responded, "Oh yes of course it is....why? What did I say?"
With a kind tone, Vincent replied, "O'Conner..."
With a shake of his head, Jacob responded, "I knew it was O'Donnell! Why did I say O'Conner?! Frightening when our brains begin to falter as we age..."
And then with an uplifted attitude, Jacob chuckled as he clapped his hands together, adding, "Well, now that we have Brigit's last name established, I shall go tidy up my chamber before you bring her by. And oh I dare say, Mary and Rebecca have outdone themselves with the Guest Chamber's preparation! I popped in there only a moment ago for an inspection of sorts, you know, just to be sure it was according to Hoyle, and it is! Just as cozy as can be!"
Of which Vincent noted, he would thank the two, Mary and Rebecca when he next saw them.
Jacob then confessed, "I did light a few candles to illuminate the place...and it aided in adding the Pièce de résistance! Looks quite charming indeed!"
Then as Jacob noticed Vincent picking up a wrapped gift of sorts, he inquired, "Oh nice, a welcome gift for Brigit?"
To which Vincent replied, "No Father, a Thank you gift for Lin...it is one of the specially tinted soy candles Rebecca had made."
Feeling verklempt by his son's thoughtfulness, Jacob kindly said, "Splendid gesture Vincent...I am ashamed I had not thought of that myself..."
In reply, Vincent humbly said, "T'was so kind of her to be our liaison in this endeavor...I merely thought it was a small way to show our gratitude."
Feeling a bit anxious, Jacob then animatedly said, "Oh my, I am keeping you! Run along now Vincent! You don't want to keep them waiting!"
So, a very solemn Vincent, travelled through the tunnels to greet Lin and Brigit, and all the way, he privately tended to his pain of losing Catherine. And yes he realized his wallowing was coming to an end, because he would have to rise above his own hurt, to be there for Brigit who would be grieving her recently departed Father.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meantime, Lin was more than thrilled to have been asked to escort Brigit below.
And as it turned out, these two women had a lot in common. Both of them have a strong family lineage, and this gave them so much to discuss. And as they entered the park, Lin had fun being a tour guide, and excitedly pointed out certain land marks and activities, such as Wollman Rink, The Central Park Zoo, the Delacorte Clock, the Carousel, The Carriage Rides and other sites too.
And Brigit enjoyed the mini sight seeing tour as well! So as they walked along a trail, Lin informatively said, "We are getting close, not much further..."
And because Brigit didn't see any building or house or anything, she with confusion, noted, "We are? I dinny see any structure of any kind!"
To which Lin with glee, replied, "You will see..."
And then finally, they arrived at the huge culvert, and as they stood in front of it, Lin declared, "We are here!"
Feeling totally bewildered, Brigit exclaimed, "We are where? All I see is a huge sewage pipe!"
To which Lin giggled, as she said, "Exactly! This is one of the ways to enter Vincent's world...follow me."
With a tip of her head, Brigit with caution said, "If ye say so!"
So Brigit followed, and as they entered the huge pipe, Brigit exclaimed, "I feel as if I am enterin' another dimension! How intriguing."
Nodding in agreement, Lin said, "Yes, I am sure this will be an intriguing adventure for you, and a most enlightening one as well!"
As Lin looked at her watch, she realized she was short on time, and so she asked Brigit, "Before I knock on the door, may I ask you to give Father something?"
And as Lin presented the brown paper wrapped package, she continued, "It is a book Father err Jacob ordered as a surprise for Vincent, and since I need to catch the subway, I haven't the time to discreetly pass the book onto him without Vincent seeing! So if you would be so kind..."
Happy to help, Brigit emphatically answered, "Aye, I'd be happy to give it to...to...did ye say Father?"
Smiling, Lin explained, "Yes to Father, Vincent's Father...err well Jacob. You see, we all call Jacob "Father" as well, because of his standing among the tunnel community. However, perhaps he will prefer you to call him Jacob. He will let you know."
And so Brigit placed the book Lin gave her, inside her huge purse, and said, "Ye may count on me Lin...now ye do say Jacob is in fact Vincent's Father though?"
While standing in front of the iron grating, Lin explained, "Yes he is, not biologically, but in every other way..."
To which Brigit recalled, "Ah yes...Vincent did tell me 'bout a man who raised him after he'd been found...so tis Jacob aka Father! Got it!"
With a nod in confirmation, Lin then smiled and excitedly asked, "Well ready for me to knock? Vincent should be waiting for us on the other side of this door."
With a tip of her head, Brigit replied, "Aye! As ready as I'll ever be!"
So as Lin knocked, the huge iron door slid open, and there Vincent stood, with all his majestic attire, and he was quite a captivating sight to behold, causing Brigit to gasp, "Vincent..."
Vincent then stepped outward to welcome them, and said, "Hello Lin, and Brigit...welcome."
After the greetings were exchanged, Lin then politely said she had to rush on, and explained her itinerary to Vincent. And with an understanding nod, he thanked her, and as he handed her the gift, she with surprise asked, "What's this?"
To which Vincent replied, "Consider it a token of our gratitude for helping Brigit find her way to us..."
Joyfully, Lin excitedly opened the little box, saying, "You didn't have to do this! It was my pleasure...oh my! I love it Vincent...you know how I love candles burning...is this one of Rebecca's?"
With a slight tip of his head, Vincent replied, "Indeed it is."
And so Lin hugged Vincent, and after another peak at her watch, she then apologetically said she really DID have to run!
To which Brigit in reply, said, "Thank ye Lin. I hope I'll be seein' ye agin soon."
With warmth, Lin replied, "Oh me too Brigit! Bye for now!"
So after Lin left them, Vincent held out his arm, and asked Brigit, "Shall we?"
As Brigit took his offer, they crossed over the threshold, and as they walked but a little ways, the iron door loudly slammed shut behind them, causing Brigit to jump, and she fearfully yelled out, "Land sakes Alive! So glad I haven't any tail!"
Worriedly, Vincent inquired, "Are you all right?"
Smiling up at him she managed to slip in a compliment as she told him, "Aye Vincent, the earsplittin' slammin' startled me...that's all! But I'll be hangin' on to ye massive arm just the same!"
To which Vincent replied, "Of course, since we have a bit of a walk to reach the Guest Chamber, I will give you a tour of the tunnels as we go."
With much excitement, Brigit conveyed her joy by saying, "Oh Vincent, I never could have imagined this place if I tried. Please lead the way, and don't ye dare leave out a thing!"
Once the initial meeting was behind them, it wasn't long until they chatted like long lost friends. Most of the talk was of Brigit's Father, and his funeral, and how politics managed to surface at her Father's Wake.
Then, as they continued onward, Vincent spoke of the tunnels' history, and as he did so, Brigit looked at Vincent like a moony-eyed teen-age girl. Her infatuation had deepened for Vincent and she had hopes of perhaps winning him over on this visit.
But first, she had to know about Catherine. So carefully, she probed, "Vincent how is yer lady? Is the romance still burnin' strong between ye?"
Deciding to keep Brigit's visit on the light-hearted side for the moment, Vincent attempted to change the subject. Which thankfully, was easy since Mouse came upon them, pulling a wagon with his newest invention.
And so Vincent stopped Mouse so he could introduce him, and after Brigit said she was pleased to meet him, Vincent explained that Mouse, is a mechanical wizard, and invents many projects in their tunnel world.
Feeling bolstered by the compliment, Mouse humbly shifted his feet, and said, he had to go, because Jamie was waiting for him.
Mouse smiled widely as he left them, which caused Brigit to note, "He's enchantin'ly cute Vincent...seems sort of elfin I'd say."
With a nod, Vincent affectionately said, "Yes...Mouse is a font of so much entertainment for us, albeit, most of which is unintentional."
And so as they arrived at the Guest Chamber, Vincent informatively told her, "This will be your chamber where you may call home during your stay with us."
Brigit looked around excitedly, and exclaimed, "How lovely. Oh me! Jist look at the beautiful quilt that lays upon the bed."
So with the enthusiasm of a child, Brigit plopped atop the bed, and as she bounced, she said, "I can assure ye I will sleep good here."