Beauty and the Beast Read online

  “Gregory finally committed suicide by jumping off the Serpentine Stairwell into The Abyss. Diana got there just as Gregory jumped, and she tried to save him by grabbing his hand and was nearly pulled in herself. Fortunately, I arrived on that terrible scene just in time to pull her back to safety, but she lost her grip on Gregory and he fell to his death.”

  Joe was shaking his head again as he looked at Diana. “No wonder you were so sure Gregory would never kill again.”

  Vincent continued, “You might also want to know that your Subway Slasher, the vigilante Jason Walker, fell to

  his death down here. I tried to capture him after he threatened Catherine’s life when she figured out his identity. I had him cornered on the Catwalk Bridge, but he grabbed a tree root and tried to swing around me. It broke, and he fell into the Whispering Gallery. Both of those areas in our world are too deep for us to plumb, so there wasn’t any way to retrieve their bodies.”

  Joe responded. “I’m happy to know that Jason Walker won’t be shredding any more teenage trouble-makers or hapless security guards that get in his way. He left a legacy of fear behind, though, among those young criminals. We haven’t had as many instances of attacks by them on the subways since Jase’s vigilante activity ended.”

  Brooke spoke up at that point. “William sent us to get you for the lunch he has prepared. Let me take Little Jacob, and all of you go eat. He’s already fed me, so take your time.” Brooke got up and went to Joe, who stood up and reluctantly handed the baby over to her after kissing him. She smiled at Joe and took his place in the rocker.

  Vincent got up and went to a drawer in his desk and opened it. He took out a small notebook and the journal Diana had discovered, and he put them into his pocket. Vincent looked at Brooke and smiled. “Are you sure you won’t starve to death on me before I come back?”

  Brooke laughed. “Oh, get out of here, you big tease! Olivia is bringing some more breast milk from Peter for Little Jacob in a few minutes. We will be just fine, thank

  you very much!” Vincent laughed and they left his chamber.

  When they arrived in William’s kitchen, Joe looked around in continuing amazement. He turned to Father. “I can’t begin to tell you how impressed I am with this world of yours. You have built something truly wonderful here, and everyone looks so happy and relaxed. I know where I want to spend my next vacation!”

  Father chuckled. “Come anytime! We’ll have a guest chamber waiting for you.”

  William walked up to them with a big smile. “Come and fill your plates. We already asked for a blessing on the food, so Brooke could eat and go take care of Little Jacob for you.”

  Joe smiled. “That’s really nice. Everyone can always use more blessings!”

  William had all of the food, plates, and utensils set up like a buffet on top of the counters along one of the walls. They went over and filled their plates, picked up the glasses of a pretty red beverage, and went to one of the long tables together.

  Joe was the last to gather his food and was taking his time choosing between the delicious selections William had prepared. When he picked up his glass of the beverage, he tasted it. Looking at William, he asked,

  “What is this? It is really good!”

  William answered him. “That is an herbal tea blend of

  hibiscus flowers, rose hips, and honey leaf from Dr.

  Wong’s herbal shop in Chinatown.”

  Joe suddenly burst into laughter, and everyone looked at Diana quizzically. She giggled and said, “I think Joe just realized that he really is down the white rabbit’s hole attending a tea party in Wonderland!” Vincent laughed, and Father looked confused. “Never mind, Father, you had to be there.”

  Joe joined them at the table and looked at Diana. He was still grinning as he said, “Now I see what you and Chuck were so tickled about this morning.”

  Diana smiled. “I’m glad to see that you are finally enjoying the joke!”

  Vincent chuckled as he said, “Your joke reminds me of something my brother, Father’s natural son, Devin, said to me when he returned here after traveling around the world for many years. He said, ‘I’ve been everywhere south of Oz and north of Shangri-La, but what I dream about is an hole-in-the-ground—weird, huh?’ I told him that wasn’t so weird, when that hole-in-the-ground is home.”

  As they ate, Diana was glad to see Joe’s enthusiastic consumption of his meal and how much pleasure it was giving William to watch him eat it. When they were finished, some of the older children came and took their dishes away and cleaned up the table. The members of the Council had been coming in throughout the meal, and all of them were seated at the table now.

  Pascal spoke up before any other discussion started.

  “I just received a message from our Helpers who have been keeping an eye on Polly’s and Curtis’ bed-and-breakfast for us. There is a rotation of suspicious cars keeping surveillance on it. I’m sure they are watching to see if Diana is really there.”

  Vincent looked at Diana. “Ill take you back to the Walkers’ place, through the tunnels, when we get done here.” Then he looked at Pascal. “Thank you, Pascal.”

  Chuck came in the door at that point, and he sat down at the table with them. William got up and went to the counter. He brought back a plate of food and a drink for Chuck.

  Chuck looked at William with gratitude. “Thanks, William. I’m starved!” Then he looked at Joe. “I’ve got your weekend plans all set! You went to an antique car show.”

  Joe chuckled. “Did I now?”

  Chuck pulled a folded up flyer for the show and a brochure for an antique Rolls Royce out of his pocket and gave them to Joe. He explained, “The flyer got you to the show, and then you picked up the brochure on the car you liked while you were there. This show is actually going to be going on all afternoon and most of the night. It would be best if someone took you through the tunnels to the access point we have there. It is under a maintenance shed on the edge of the lot where this show is taking place.”

  Joe smiled as he looked at the Rolls Royce brochure.

  “I have really good taste in cars, don’t I?”

  Jamie was sitting beside Joe and looked at the flyer as he unfolded it. “I can take him through the tunnels. I know right where that is.”

  Chuck continued. “That’s great, Jamie. Joe, 111 pick you up to take you back to your apartment building from the show then.”

  Joe was shaking his head again. “I wish our world was this well organized. Now that we have plans in place for confusing the bad guys, I think it is time you explained to me who the bad guys are and why they are a threat to your world. I know that it must have been something serious that made you decide to take a chance bringing me down here. What exactly has happened?”

  Vincent pulled the small notebook out of his pocket. “Before we begin telling you about the new problem, I have something here that you will probably need.” Vincent handed the notebook to Joe, and Joe was visibly shaken as he recognized it.

  Joe’s voice was heavy with emotion as he said, “This notebook of Gabriel’s is what started this whole mess. It nearly got me killed, and it did get Cathy killed. I wish I had never told Cathy about this, and she might still be alive.” Father and Diana looked at one another but stayed silent.

  Vincent tried to console Joe. “The only one responsible for Catherine’s death was Gabriel, Joe.”

  Joe spoke with a bitter tone, “And our dirty District Attorney, John Moreno!” John Moreno’s autopsy report came to Joe’s mind, and he asked Vincent, “You were the one who killed Moreno and the hired gun that was with him at the carousel in Central Park, weren’t you?”

  Vincent replied. “Yes, Moreno was with one of Gabriel’s men, and they had come there to murder Elliott.

  I had to kill them to save him.”

  Father added, “Vincent took two bullets that night saving Elliott.”

  Vincent went on. “It was after that incident that Elliott and I began meeting on t
he Compass Rose docked on the East River. Elliott was trying to help me find where Gabriel was keeping my son.”

  Joe commented with disgust, “It makes me sick to think that Gabriel ever had his filthy hands on Cathy’s and your baby!”

  Vincent went on with his explanation. “It was following the explosion of the Compass Rose that Diana found me on Catherine’s grave severely injured. She took care of me at her loft for three days.”

  Joe nodded in understanding, and looked at Diana. “And that was when you stopped talking to me, with good reason. I’m sorry for what I put you through, Diana. I wish I had known.” Then, he looked back at Vincent. “I told Cathy about this notebook when I was being treated in the burn unit at the hospital, after Gabriel’s lawyer, Patrick Hanlin, was blown up in his car for giving it to me.

  I was only a few feet from his car when it exploded, and I was badly injured. Patrick had come to me, because we went to law school together. He told me that he had never really believed there was an hell, until he became a lawyer for this criminal organization. He promised to tell me who he was working for, and to give me the key to the code in this notebook, as soon as he and his family were safely out of the country. Then he died in the explosion when he tried to start his car. Cathy retrieved this notebook from my jacket pocket at the hospital to investigate it. I wondered what finally happened to this. I had just assumed that Moreno destroyed it.”

  Vincent explained what happened. “No, Catherine gave it to Elliott Burch, so he could have his cryptographers try to break the code. They weren’t able to accomplish that, though, before Gabriel bankrupted Elliott. Elliott gave the notebook to me as he was dying, after Gabriel blew up the Compass Rose with both of us on it.”

  Joe looked at Father as he remembered when Chuck had nabbed him on Father’s behalf. “No wonder you turned white as a sheet and ran off when I told you the Compass Rose had exploded and burned to the waterline!”

  Father looked grim. “Yes, that was a very frightening time for our community. We were afraid we had lost Vincent.”

  Then Joe addressed the current problem. “Diana told me that Gabriel has an older brother. It looks like I need

  to play catch-up here. Tell me about him.”

  Vincent pulled Dr. Vlas’ small journal out of his pocket, and then he began, “Diana went back into Gabriel’s mansion through a secret door to the tunnels in the basement, and she found an hidden room in an office in that basement. Before she tells you about what she heard the older brother, Adrian, say, I need to explain to you that in the end, Gabriel was no longer interested in what Catherine knew about his criminal organization. He was only interested in stealing our son after he was born. In fact, Gabriel was completely obsessed with that idea because of an history between my people and Gabriel’s brother, Adrian. In order for that to make any sense, I need to read you the contents of this journal.”

  Joe had great concern in his voice as he said, “Please do!”

  Vincent proceeded to read Dr. Vlas’journal entries to Joe, and then he told him about the dream he had and his conversation with Narcissa. When he was finished, Diana went on to explain everything she had heard Adrian say in his conversation with Jonathan Pope, and she told Joe about the dirty cop, Steve Palmer. Once again, she left out the threat Adrian had made against her own life.

  Vincent commented afterwards. “Before Diana found this journal, and I had that dream, we never knew where I came from, or how I even came to be born. I was very blessed that Father adopted me.”

  Joe looked very thoughtful. “Vincent, I would love to

  tell you that our civilization has evolved since your people were being hunted in Romania two-hundred years ago.

  The truth is, though, I know the Tandins wouldn’t be any safer up top now than they were then in Romania. We are still a society of ignorant frightened people. Well, the first thing we need to do is retrieve the rest of Dr. Vlas’journals Diana found. We sure don’t want Adrian to get his hands on those. Diana, I guess you and I had better make a date to do some more ‘spelunking’ under Gabriel’s mansion next Saturday. Since Adrian was dragging Gabriel along on his evil escapades thirty-five years ago, I’m sure he is the actual head of the entire criminal organization, not Gabriel, as we had thought. If we could just break the code in that notebook, we would have plenty to charge Adrian with that wouldn’t involve your world, Father.

  That crime syndicate is involved in extortion, money laundering, drugs, racketeering, illegal gambling, and almost every other type of organized crime imaginable. We know it. We just can’t prove it yet.”

  Vincent spoke up. “I should go with you to Gabriel’s mansion.”

  Diana and Joe exclaimed simultaneously. “No!” Then Joe went on, “Vincent, you have your little son to think about. He doesn’t need for both of his parents to end up dead, like yours did. Let Diana and I take care of this problem in our world. When we get the journals, we will bring them here to you. Meanwhile, this notebook would be safer here in your hands.” Joe handed it back to

  Vincent, who pocketed it again. “I don’t want Adrian to know that it still exists. I assume, Chuck, that you can help us come up with away to get into the tunnels under Gabriel’s mansion without Adrian’s thugs catching on?” Chuck smiled. “Sure, Joe, 111 come up with a plan before next Saturday. I’m going to go ahead and take off now and head over to that antique car show. Ill take you back to your apartment as soon as you get there with Jamie.”

  Joe shook Chuck’s hand and chuckled. “Thank you for all of your help, Chuck. It really has been interesting!” They all got up from the table, and Joe said to Diana, “I guess we had better rely on old-fashioned note-passing, because as powerful as Adrian is, he probably has an illegal tap on our phone lines. I’m going to see what I can do about running covert surveillance on Steve Palmer. Maybe he can lead us to some of Adrian’s other corrupt agents in the legal force.”

  Diana nodded her head. “I’m quite sure he does have our phone lines tapped. Ill be sure you receive a message with the details of next Saturday’s adventure.”

  As Diana with Vincent and Joe with Jamie started to leave, everyone in the kitchen chamber gathered around Joe with expressions of gratitude. The men shook his hand, and the women hugged him. Little blond five-year-old Darla with her big blue eyes tugged on his pant leg. Joe looked down, smiled, and picked her up. Darla gave him a kiss on the cheek, and he hugged her. Angela

  smiled at Joe as she took the child from him. Joe was visibly moved by this show of affection for him. He almost didn’t want to leave this peaceful place.

  Jamie finally interceded, though, and took Joe’s hand to lead him to the car show. Vincent also left with Diana to take her back to the bed-and-breakfast. The others either stayed behind in the kitchen chamber to help William start preparing the evening meal or went out to their other responsibilities. They all felt a profound sense of relief that they now had Joe as an ally in facing the threat from Adrian. Everyone was confident that he and Diana could handle that threat and help keep their world safe.

  As Joe followed Jamie down the tunnel, he heard something and paused. Jamie turned around and looked at him. “What is it?” She asked.

  There was beautiful orchestral music echoing through the tunnel along with the sweet sound of children singing. Joe whispered, “That is heavenly! What is it?”

  Jamie smiled at him. “That is our children’s choir and orchestra practicing for an upcoming recital.”

  As they continued down the tunnel, Joe thought to himself, “This world is worth any price to preserve it! I must help Diana protect it, even if it costs me my career.

  If it does, at least I have someplace to go. I wouldn’t mind camping out in William’s kitchen!”

  Chapter VI Assembling the Troops

  On Wednesday, Bennie delivered a plate lunch from William to Joe in his office. When Joe took the plate out, he found a note in the bottom of the bag from Diana. It read, “Figure out away to leave work earl
y tomorrow. Chuck will pick you up at 3:00 in the afternoon outside your apartment building. Wear blue jeans, dark tennis shoes, a large coat, and a baseball cap. Diana.”

  The next afternoon, when he climbed into Chuck’s cab, Joe said, “This isn’t Saturday yet. Am I in for some additional enlightening, or is there some more sinister reason I’m dressed like this?”

  Chuck replied, “Nothing sinister, but we are going to be playing a little shell game with the bad guys. Diana

  will have to fill you in on the enlightening part, though.” Joe smiled, “That’s OK, Chuck. I’m getting used to it. What do I need to know to play this shell game?”

  Chuck filled Joe in. “I’m going to drop you off at Catherine’s old apartment building. Just as we figured, the usual tail is following us right now. When you get out, just step up on the curb, and then project your voice loudly to tell me to wait for you. Go into Catherine’s building, and take the elevator on the right. Cullen will be there waiting for you.”

  Joe queried, “Cullen?”

  Chuck asked, “Did you see the rocking chair in Vincent’s room?”

  Joe smiled. “How could I miss it? That is some work of art!”

  Chuck continued, “Well, Cullen is the artist who created it. He’s about your height. He’s going to trade coats with you, and he will need to wear your baseball cap, because he doesn’t have one. He’s not quite as muscular as you are, but Diana figured that the large coat would cover up that difference. Then, he and I are going to make several stops around the city, dragging our tail behind us. At the last one, hell take the cap off, so that Adrian’s goon squad in the tailing car can see that they’ve been following the wrong man, and they won’t have a clue where they lost you.”