Beauty and the Beast (29 page)

seen it before now. It was a delicate white gown beaded with natural pearls, trimmed at the neckline and at the ends of the long elegant sleeves, with intricate white lace. Her light brown hair was swept up and practically glowed in the light of the candles. The rosebush on her balcony had gasped out two final roses before going dormant for the winter, one white and one red. They adorned her hair now.

Catherine was a vision of beauty, and Vincent couldn’t take his eyes off her. He had to, though, when he felt a little tug on his pant leg. Vincent looked down, and Darla was looking upward at him with her arms extended. Vincent chuckled, and he picked the little girl up along with her now empty basket.

Vincent kissed Darla on the cheek and said, “You did that perfectly, Darla.” She giggled as Vincent gave her back to Tony.

Catherine was now beside Vincent in front of the altar, and the music stopped. Vincent and Catherine turned to face each other, and Vincent held out his hands.

Catherine put her hands in his, and then they became so lost in each other’s eyes that they didn’t hear a word of Kevin’s ceremony.

Kevin finally tapped on both of their shoulders gently and whispered, “Hey you two, wake up! It’s time for the big question and the rings.”

Everyone in the entire chamber was giggling happily. Catherine giggled too, and Vincent smiled.

They both looked at Kevin, and he asked, “Vincent Wells, do you take Catherine Chandler to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, forsaking all others, for richer or poorer, for better or worse, in sickness and in health, now and always?”

Vincent replied as he looked back into Catherine’s eyes, “Yes, I do.”

Kevin looked at Catherine. “Catherine Chandler, do you take Vincent Wells to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, forsaking all others, for richer or poorer, for better or worse, in sickness and in health, now and always?”

Catherine smiled as she looked into Vincent’s eyes.

“Oh yes, I do.”

Vincent looked at Mouse, and he emptied the velvet pouch of rings into Vincent’s outstretched hand. Vincent gave Catherine his ring, and then he took her left hand.

As he slid the rings onto her ring finger he said, “With this ring, I thee wed, and entrust my heart to thee, with all of my love, for all of my life and forever.”

Catherine took Vincent’s left hand, and as she slid his ring onto his ring finger she said the same, “With this ring, I thee wed, and entrust my heart to thee, with all of my love, for all of my life and forever.”

They looked at Kevin, and he whispered, “I trust you are going to hear this!” Then he projected his voice so everyone could hear. “By the power vested in me by the state of New York, I now pronounce you man and wife!

Vincent, you may now kiss your bride, Catherine!”

They both smiled at Kevin, and then Vincent enveloped Catherine in his arms and kissed his bride passionately. Kevin then announced, “I now present to all of you, Mr. and Mrs. Vincent Wells!”

Vincent kept his arm around Catherine as they turned and faced their ecstatic community. The orchestra began playing Felix Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March.” Everyone crowded around the happy couple with their well-wishing, and nearly everyone was teary-eyed.

Father had climbed the circular staircase to observe from above after he left Catherine at the altar with Vincent. Now, he practically had to shout to get everyone’s attention, and he said, “We are having a reception now in the Great Hall for Vincent and Catherine. Everyone is invited to attend. William has prepared a feast for the occasion.”

With that, everyone began heading out the door to go to the Great Hall. Vincent and Catherine knew that they had to make an appearance at the reception, but they had already arranged with William to just save plates of food and some of their cake for them. Since Catherine had cases in the District Attorney’s office that she had to finish working on for a few months yet, she was holding onto her resignation for the moment. There would be no honeymoon right now, and so their time together was limited and precious.

The community had caught onto their desire to excuse

themselves early, so the moment the couple stepped into the Great Hall, the orchestra began playing a lovely waltz. Everyone looked at Vincent and Catherine expectantly. Vincent looked down at his little bride and held out his hand to her. She took it, and he swept her away across the floor waltzing. The whole community watched with joy at their happiness, and then other couples joined them on the floor. Vincent waltzed Catherine over to the staircase, and they climbed it and escaped.

When Vincent and Catherine finally arrived outside of Vincent’s chamber, he stopped and looked down at her. “Catherine, I could ask Kanin to put us on the list for a new set of chambers.”

Catherine looked up at Vincent and shook her head. “Vincent, this is the first place you brought me after my attack. You gave me back my life and helped me face the world again in this chamber. I can’t imagine being anywhere but here with you. I don’t want another set of chambers.”

Vincent smiled and swept her up in his arms, carrying her across the threshold to the center of his chamber.

“My chamber is your chamber then and always has been.” He set her down and then took his vest off and hung it in his wardrobe. Next, he pulled a room divider over in front of his doorway, and he hung his cloak over it. The community had been informed that this meant “do not disturb.” They weren’t planning on coming anywhere near

Vincent’s chamber this weekend anyway.

When Vincent was satisfied that he had secured their privacy, he turned around. Catherine was still standing in the middle of his chamber watching him. Vincent strode over to her, and then his acute senses suddenly became aware of changes in her body. Catherine’s heart rate had quickened, and her breathing was rapid. Her pupils were dilated, and her cheeks and lips were flushed. Catherine’s body was producing clouds of pheromones which blended with her perfume, and Vincent was overwhelmed by all of these clear indications of her arousal.

For a moment Vincent thought he would go mad with the desire that was sweeping through him like a tidal wave. However, when he looked deeply into Catherine’s eyes, so full of trusting love, he finally realized that his fear of losing control was unwarranted. Catherine’s gentle hand was holding the Beast’s leash, and that was all he needed. For the first time, Vincent allowed himself to savor the anticipation of expressing their passionate love for each other by becoming one, both body and soul, with his beautiful Catherine.

Catherine whispered breathlessly, “Make love to me, Vincent.”

Whenever Vincent spoke her name it was like a gentle caress, and he breathed it now. “Catherine!” He took her in his arms, covered her lips with his, picked her up, and carried her to his bed.

Hours later, as Vincent held Catherine curled up against him, he basked in the warm afterglow of their love-making. The realization of their dream of being with one another in marriage was more heavenly than he had ever imagined it would be. Life was so sweet!

Catherine propped herself up on her elbow, looked into Vincent’s eyes, and sighed happily as she picked up one of his hands. “See? I told you that these hands of yours are beautiful! Your gentle caresses take my breath away. I am so happy, Vincent! How do you feel now?”

Vincent smiled tenderly at her. “There truly are no words.”

Catherine giggled softly at him. “Try one!”

Vincent looked at her for a long moment, and then he said, “Complete—ours is a wondrous completed symphony now, composed by love, and beyond mortal description.” Vincent paused and then asked, “How can anyone treat such a beautiful expression of love casually or sell it?

They can’t have any idea what they are cheating themselves out of by doing that!”

Catherine nodded, “You are right, they can’t. I’m just thankful that I waited for you and that you found me!”

She laid her head on Vincent’s fur-covered muscular chest and heard a low, soothing rumble. She lifted her head again and giggled with delight. “Vincent, you’re purring!” Vincent smiled at her. “It seemed appropriate. Do you want me to stop?”

Catherine’s eyes were twinkling, “No! I love that

sound. It is so wonderfully comforting. I could go to sleep to that.”

Vincent stroked her cheek. “Then by all means sleep, Catherine Love.” She laid her head back on his chest, cradled in the safety of his arm, and soon he felt her relax as she drifted off to sleep.

For a few all-too-short weeks they were blissfully happy and had settled into what was supposed to be a temporary routine. Catherine lived her life above in her apartment during the week as she continued to work on cases she couldn’t abandon, and Vincent lived below. On the weekends, she would come below with the little velvet bag of wedding rings, and they would enjoy living together as man and wife in Vincent’s world. Those precious moments spent with one another were always like a dream to both of them.

Then their world came crashing down and shattered. Paracelsus had been monitoring the pipe communication in Father’s world, and he had been made aware of Vincent’s happy union with Catherine. He decided that it was time to bring Father’s world to its knees by destroying Vincent.

Paracelsus was determined to bring Vincent’s Beast to the surface and keep him there. In his twisted mind, that would make Vincent his own son and not Father’s. Paracelsus had a follower who was highly skilled at creating vinyl face masks of those Paracelsus wished to impersonate. Paracelsus could also reproduce the voices of others by altering his own. He used this talent to carry out his evil plan.

By impersonating Elliott Burch, Paracelsus convinced an ambitious newspaper reporter by the name of Bernie Spirko to be conveniently on hand to snap pictures of Vincent rescuing Catherine from vicious attacks by murderous assailants whom Paracelsus had hired. Paracelsus knew full well that he was sending those men to their deaths, and that was part of his plan. Paracelsus had hoped that Vincent would be unable to control the Beast awakened by the danger Catherine was in, and he would go on to kill Bernie Spirko when he realized that the reporter was taking pictures of the events.

Paracelsus’ agenda included provoking Vincent into killing an innocent person in the wake of killing Catherine’s assailants. That plan failed when Vincent was able to stop himself, and so Paracelsus killed Bernie Spirko himself. Paracelsus didn’t want Father’s world exposed to the public by the reporter. He just wanted to be able to take control of it himself.

Vincent and Catherine were unaware that Paracelsus was behind the attacks, and they didn’t know that Bernie Spirko had been murdered. So, the entire community held its breath in horror as it waited for the reporter’s pictures to be published. That incident marked the beginning of the devastating illness which destroyed

Vincent’s connection to Catherine.

Vincent and Catherine both began experiencing each other’s nightmares, and Vincent even started sleepwalking. Vincent sent Catherine above permanently, because he feared that his deteriorating mental condition was a danger to her. Because they were sure the pictures would soon be published, Vincent made plans to leave Father’s world, and go deeper into the tunnels, to keep those he loved safe from the hunters who might come after him. When Vincent held Catherine in his arms for what he feared would be the last time, she was shaking with terror over what might happen to him, and with pain over the prospect of being separated from him forever.

Now that Paracelsus had managed to isolate Vincent from those he loved, he carried out the next phase of his cruel attack on Vincent. He allowed Bernie Spirko’s body to be discovered by the police. That brought Vincent back to the community, but great psychological damage had already been done. Vincent was severely stressed and in a fragile state-of-mind.

Paracelsus then carried out the last step of his plan to destroy Vincent. He sent Father copies of the pictures Bernie Spirko had taken along with a note to come to a penthouse at 1900 4
^th
Avenue, which Paracelsus had rented, or Father would see the pictures published.

Father, of course, burned the pictures and then went to the penthouse. Paracelsus knocked Father out and then tied him up, gagged him, and hid him in a secret room behind a wall panel. He didn’t want Father dead, because he wanted Father to see the destruction of his world. Paracelsus then showed up in the tunnels disguised as Father.

He proceeded to tell Vincent cruel lies about where he came from. Paracelsus, disguised as Father, told Vincent that Paracelsus’ wife, Anna, had been Vincent’s biological mother. Vincent was then told that Paracelsus had experimented on his own wife because she was barren, and that Vincent had been the result. Vincent was in a state of shock over the news that Paracelsus was his actual father, but the next lie that Paracelsus told him sent Vincent careening over the edge of sanity. He told Vincent that he had been born in blood, that after only three months of gestation, Vincent had ripped his way out of Anna’s body with his claws, killing Anna.

The Beast had emerged at that point in uncontrollable anguish and anger, and Vincent just barely managed to keep the Beast in check. Paracelsus then goaded Vincent further by asking, “Why do you resist your own nature?” Once more, the Beast emerged. When it looked like Vincent might be able to get his Beast under control again, Paracelsus went on to add horrific details to the lie about Vincent’s birth. He described how Anna had screamed in painful agony for hours as Vincent clawed his way out of her body. Vincent could take no more, and he delivered a fatal blow to Paracelsus. As he was dying on Father’s Council table, Paracelsus removed his mask,

revealing his true identity, and he said to Vincent, “It’s all right. Don’t be afraid! At last, you are my son!”