Meanwhile, since Peter had not yet heard from Catherine, he decided to place another call to her.
And so, as the nurse on duty, kindly transferred the call to Charles' room, Catherine answered the phone, and she filled Peter in on her Dad's progress.
With relief, Catherine informed Peter, her Dad was feeling so good, he was at this very moment...getting a shower, and would most likely be released, after the Doctor stopped back, with the last of his test results.
And then Catherine hopefully projected, she and her Dad would head back home together, toward the end of the week, explaining, she would stay on with her Dad, helping to finalize Peter's Mother's estate issues.
Of course Peter argued they both should just come back home, but Catherine insistently offered to stay, and would not have it any other way.
Appreciating their service, Peter finally gave in, realizing it was useless to argue.
It was then, Catherine asked about little Petey, and was so happy to hear Peter say, he believed his treatment was now on track, and Little Petey should be getting better very soon.
And also, thinking Peter may be wondering about Noodles, Catherine told him Mrs. Aranson was keeping him while she would be in Florida.
Saying that was nice of her, he then shifted the topic to Vincent! And so Peter cleared his throat, and then asked, "So you did receive my note last night right, the one which contained a message from Vincent?"
To which Catherine somberly replied, "Yes...I did..."
And because of her abbreviated answer, Peter then mentioned, "I kinda thought you would have called me right after you read it."
But because the erroneous content of the message broke her heart, with an air of thoughtfulness, Catherine replied, "It was late, and I considered you must be very exhausted with everything going on of late. So I just planned on calling you today, but you beat me to it."
And then Peter stated, "I guess I figured you would have been anxious to hear first hand what Vincent had said."
Wanting to put her Dad first right now, Catherine replied, "I suppose I didn't need to hear anything more...and at the time, I still hadn't seen Dad as yet."
Understanding Catherine's devotion, Peter replied, "Of course...of course, Cathy."
But then, Peter couldn't help but to hopefully ask, "So what about now, isn't there ANYTHING I could pass on to Vincent for you? SOMETHING? ANYTHING?"
But because Catherine felt emotionally drained by what she thought was Vincent's reaffirmed stance, she tried to figure out what Peter would want her to say! And so she suggested, "I suppose you could thank him for his "Get Well" wishes for my Dad."
Upon hearing Catherine's simple reply, Peter felt both confused, and surprised, that Catherine did not want to comment about Vincent's reversal!
And so Peter then went on, to compliantly say, "All right then kiddo, I guess I will just tell Vincent, that you expressed your gratitude."
Hesitantly though, Peter then added, "I, well, I don't want to interfere, but Vincent is very anxious, and worried about you, and he was hoping for an actual reply to his note! And I gotta say, you sound so distant when you talk about him."
It was then, Catherine broke down as she confided, "I don't want Dad to overhear me, if he knew Vincent and I have issues again, he will feel so guilty about my being here."
Upon understanding better now, Peter felt bad adding to Catherine's angst, by bringing up Vincent, and so he soothingly said, "OK Cathy I totally get it now. I understand...we will talk later when you get home."
Relieved there was no need to explain further, Catherine softly said, "Thank you Peter..."
And so Peter signed off, by kindly saying, "Take care kiddo, and give my best to your Dad. I will call back later, and check on the two of you."
So, after her Dad came out of the shower, Catherine told him she had talked to Peter, and he was quite relieved to hear he was doing so well. They then of course placed a call to Douglas, Charles brother, and filled him and his family in on his whole food poisoning ordeal.
And because of hospital bureaucracy, the morning hours ticked away, with still no orders to be released yet! But it was clear her Dad was well loved from those back home, as flowers were being delivered, with stuffed animals and whimsical balloons, along with telegrams, which wished him well. And Charles even received some flowers from Evelyn too.
The well wishes, served as a boost to Charles, and as it was now noon, the lunch trays came around, causing Charles to insist that Catherine, share his lunch!
And so in a pleading nurturing tone, Charles urged, "You cannot survive on just coffee! Here...have some of this soup. It looks good, let's see there's some chicken, some egg noodles, and even some carrots too."
As Catherine chuckled under her breath, she sat down at the foot of the bed, opposite her Dad, and compliantly picked up a spoon, saying, "I think Willie is rubbing off on you, I will try some."
They both laughed, and made a few hospital food jokes, saying that the Jell-O was rubbery, and wondered how they had the nerve to call this weak dark liquid, coffee!
And although the food was not the best, it was a topical diversion, elevating some of the tension, as they waited on the Doctor.
Finally, just as they finished eating...the Doctor entered Charles's Room. He sat down with them, and with an excellent bed-side manner, he went over all of the results of the tests.
They both felt relieved to hear nothing major showed up in the testing, and the tests did conclusively show food poisoning had caused Charles to fall ill.
The Doctor did raise a brow of concern at Charles's cholesterol level though, but told him if he did a little walking, and follow a low fat diet he would be giving him, that he could bring that number down without any trouble.
Catherine smiled at her Dad, as she listened to the Doctor's instructions for Charles's immediate discharge from the hospital, feeling so happy this alarming episode was now over.
They both shook the Doctor's hand, and thanked him for the wonderful care Charles had received there.
After the Doctor left, Catherine opened the door to the little closet within the hospital room, and took out her Dad's clothes.
She excitedly asked, "Are you ready to get out of that gown Dad?"
As Charles held the back of his Hospital gown shut, he said, "Absolutely! Hand those clothes over little lady!"
As Catherine handed her Dad his clothes, she happily said, "Great then after you get dressed, we can blow this joint!"
So upon leaving the hospital floor, the father-daughter duo, stopped at the nurses station, where Charles asked, that the flowers, balloons and stuffed animals, be passed onto the children's ward on his behalf.
Promising to do so, the nurse on duty said she would be glad to, as she was sure it would perk up their day!
And so, the next few days were filled with boring legal appointments, for Peter's Mother's estate during the day, but in the evening, Catherine and her Dad, were able to enjoy this slow paced time alone together.
They took reflective sunset walks along the beach, they watched Jeopardy, while Catherine prepared Charles' medically prescribed bland diet, they spent time lovingly reminiscing about Caroline...Catherine's Mom, and, they spoke about Catherine's impending departure at the firm, and starting her new job at the DA.
They also called back home to the office a few times, and Marilyn did her best to assure them not to worry! That at the moment...things were going smoothly in their absence, and they were all just so relieved, Charles was going to be all right!
Yes...they talked about anything, and everything, except the one issue that was uppermost on Catherine's heart and mind, her relationship with Vincent...which had so painfully crumbled apart.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile...below New York City, Vincent did not take the "non-message" message from Catherine very well.
Thoughtfully, Peter explained to a devastated Vincent, Catherine...being the devoted daughter she is, was putting her Dad first right now.
To which Peter then urged for Vincent to be patient, and not let his imagination get the better of him. He also informed him of Catherine's expectation that they should be returning home, by weeks end.
So in the days ahead, Vincent kept busy with his regularly scheduled classes with the children, and with the many Winterfest preparations that needed to be done.
And so, one day, as Vincent was working away repairing a chair, Mouse's voice echoed throughout the Great Hall, calling to him for help.
Urgently, Vincent put down the mallet, and as he took in Mouse's dilemma, he quickly lifted the heavy wooden beam, effortlessly from his struggling friend's hands, and placed the beam where Mouse intended to put it. To which Mouse said, "Thanks! Heavier than I thought!"
And so after he nodded a "you're welcome", Vincent silently turned to go back to the chair repair, of which he was working on.
And so upon seeing Vincent's sadness, Mouse worriedly asked, "Will Catherine come to Winterfest?"
With a furrowed brow, Vincent honestly answered, "I...I don't know Mouse. I am petitioning she will."
To which Mouse sweetly commiserated, by saying, "Then I will too Vincent."
Upon hearing his sweet friend's sentiments, Vincent finally raised his head to look at Mouse, and warmly said, "I thank you Mouse. You are a good friend."
Just then, with an effort to sound cheerful, Mary entered the Hall with refreshments saying, "Everyone, here is some Tea to warm yourselves, and I brought some of those Sweet Rice Muffins that were left over from Lunch."
As she poured the tea, she handed Vincent his cup, and without looking up, he sullenly said, "Thank you Mary."
Worriedly, Mary nodded as she continued to watch him, and it concerned her he had not yet heard from Catherine! Yes, this whole incident has caused Vincent to lose that spark he used to have in his eyes.
And so as Mary rubbed her arms, she tried to make conversation with him by saying, "My, it certainly is chilly in here! Why haven't you a fire in the kettle warmer to heat the Hall while you are working in here?"
To which Vincent thoughtfully looked up, and all around as he said, "We all agreed not to waste the wood."
To which Mary shakily smiled, and said, "I...I see, well then as long as you all agreed."
And then as a valid topic occurred to Mary, she excitedly reminded Vincent, "Oh yes Vincent...I do want someone to pound the dust from the tapestries before Winterfest."
To which Vincent softly said, "It has already been done Mary. Pascal assisted Mouse earlier on, when he was able to get away from the Pipe chamber for a time."
In reply, Mary smiled pleasingly and said, "It looks like everything is under control then Vincent."
Hesitantly, Mary then stepped closer to him, and lovingly said, "Before I go, I want to speak of Catherine. Well, I suppose I just want to tell you not to get discouraged."
Selflessly, Vincent favored Mary with a slight smile, and promised he would try not to lose sight of what he and Catherine had, and to believe they shall possess it again.
To which Mary smiled back, and said, "Good Vincent...we all have faith in the connection you two share, it gives us all such hope you know..."
In reply, Vincent then softly said, "Thank you Mary."
With a nod, Mary then with a trembling chin answered, "Well, I better let you two get back to work."
And as she left, Mary herself petitioned for a re-union of these two souls.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, after days of meetings, and going through important documents together, Catherine had a birds eye view of her Dad's recovery. And though he was bouncing back, she was concerned, he was not back up to his usual non-stop energy level yet, and so she rationalized, that maybe, being away from home, and his usual routine was a contributing factor. And so whether it was lack of routine, or the food poisoning, Catherine continued to keep a watchful eye on her dear Dad. wanting to be sure he was going to be all right.
And so after finalizing the last of the legal issues, Catherine and Charles made plans to fly back home.
But it wasn't until they were all settled into their seats on the plane, that Charles finally asked, "OK kiddo, when are you going to talk to me?"
Upon realizing the jig was up, Catherine still tried to hide her feelings by playfully saying, "Talk to you? I thought this communication thing we have been doing, WAS talking!"
To which Charles slyly looked at his daughter, and said, "Yes, well, technically you are right. However, what I am referring to is TALKING. The kind of "Talking" Dear Daughter, that comes from the heart, sharing what has been on your mind."
Somberly, Catherine looked downward, knowing she had been unsuccessful, and so she resignedly sighed, and asked, "What gave me away?"
To which Charles matter-of-factly replied, "Your avoidance, of any conversation about the person, you are supposed to care so much about! I mean other than you relaying his get well wishes to me, well you haven't brought his name up once! I had hoped you would bring Vincent up on your own, and tell me what is going on."
And so kindly Charles then asked, "Has something happened between you two?"
To which Catherine shakily answered, "Yes Dad."
With a sigh, Catherine gathered her thoughts, as she tried to explain, "Vincent on the surface seems so strong, and self assured, but underneath it all, he is really very self-doubting, which he says is actually being a realist."
Catherine then went on to relay the incident at Pai's restaurant, and with emotion, concluded, "Steven's proposal had caused a reverberation within Vincent's heart, one that I cannot change. And so he told me to forget him, so I may build a better life with a man who can provide security."
Upon hearing Vincent's reasoning, Charles raised his brow, and said, "Vincent is a very wise man Cathy. He is smart and realistic to worry about a secure future for you."
With a tremble to her voice, Catherine astonishingly asked, "Dad, you don't believe money, should take precedence in a relationship?"
As Charles tipped his head slightly, he asked, "Did I say that?"
To which Catherine replied, "No, but..."
With a rare stern tone, Charles interrupted his daughter as he clarified, "I said he was wise...not necessarily right. But the fact he is thinking about financial security on your behalf, and is willing to sacrifice his own happiness for your welfare, well, I must say speaks volumes, and makes me like and respect Vincent, even more than I did before."
Calmly and lovingly, Charles then patted her hand, and said, "I am sure you should be able to get through to him, when we get home Cathy."
As Catherine hugged her dad's arm, she laid her head on his shoulder, and with an emotion filled voice, she softly explained, "I did try, but though he is unassuming, he is as stubborn, as he is noble."
Catherine then sadly concluded, "And so I told him, it is now up to him to find the truth for himself within his heart, because I had already found it in mine."
Charles then leaned in to rest his head on Catherine's, and said, "Who knows, maybe he already has."
To which Catherine replied, "The message he sent through Peter..."
Catherine then solemnly continued, "...Vincent stated, that he hoped I have realized he was right. So...unless he did have a change of heart since he sent that message, it looks like things are over."
In a "Fatherly" tone, Charles warned, "Sometimes pride is like a one-way mirror Cathy, one who sees it as a detrimental trait in others, very often is excessively prideful themselves. Thus a stand-off, and no one wins."
To which Catherine with surprise asked, "Who said anything about pride?"
With a raised brow, Charles said, "I guess I did...am I wrong Cathy?"
Succumbing to her Daddy's interrogation, Catherine relented, explaining, "I just need Vincent to come to terms on his own, and only then can we start again."
Resignedly, Charles sighed, as he said, "All right then, no more advice. Just know I am here for you."
With a wistful smile, Catherine told her Father, "I know Dad...I do know, and even though I thought I knew it all before, I really don't, and I seem to need your advice more than I realized."
In reply, Charles closed his eyes, and in a very bad James Cagney accent, he sleepily said, "Stick with me Kid..."
And so once again, her Dad's joking, managed to make Catherine smile, and contentedly, she looked over at him, and as she watched him yawn, she realized how really tuckered out he was.
And so with concern Catherine told her Dad, "I think I will stay over for a few days, until I am sure you are eating right, and feeling 100% again."
To which Charles gratefully accepted his Daughter's loving offer, and admitted it would make him very happy to have her back at home, inhabiting her old room once again.
And as he squeezed her hand, he then soundly drifted off, and it was then, Catherine closed her eyes, to rest too.