Beauty and the Beast Read online

  Then tears started streaming unchecked down his face. Diana put her hand on Joe’s arm, but he didn’t even notice. He walked to the bed, picked up Catherine’s hand, and sat down in the rocking chair beside her.

  Joe finally looked up at Father and Diana. “Dr. Marx realized that she was alive, while the rest of us idiots were looking around her for clues, didn’t he? This is another really good reason for his odd behavior!”

  Diana took Father’s coat off him, and Joe slipped his off and handed it to her as Father explained, “Yes, David sent me a note, and I helped him to stabilize her and bring her here. We have been hiding her here ever since. Joe, don’t feel badly. Vincent carried her all the way from Gabriel’s building to her apartment, and he didn’t even realize she was alive. Her heartbeat and respiration were so slow that it was a miracle David noticed.”

  Joe looked at Father with extreme worry on his face. “So, she has been like this for almost four months. Is there any hope that she will wake up?”

  Father smiled at Joe. “Actually, she is much better than she was when we brought her here. Her life is no longer in danger, because she is out of her coma. She is just deeply asleep.”

  Joe knitted his eyebrows together as another thought occurred to him. “Vincent doesn’t know she is still alive, does he?” Diana had laid their coats on the table and was back by the bed. She and Father shook their heads. Joe exclaimed, “Why on earth haven’t you told him? He is devastated over losing her!”

  Father then explained at length to Joe their reasons for not telling Vincent. Father emphasized that it was imperative that Vincent be protected from that knowledge until his link with Catherine was reestablished naturally, and he found her on his own. Joe nodded as he fully comprehended the wisdom in what Father’s community was doing for Vincent and Catherine.

  Father added to his explanation. “Catherine seems to be trapped in some sort of nightmare, which Vincent is just beginning to pick up on, judging from the dreams he has been having. Right now, Vincent thinks she is reaching out to him from beyond the grave. We are hoping that when Vincent’s link with her is completely restored, that perhaps he will be able to help her to wake up. We have been pumping Catherine’s breast milk and sending it down every couple of hours to Vincent for Little Jacob. Handling her milk is causing him to have dreams and visions about her. Hopefully, it won’t be too much longer before Vincent is reconnected to Catherine.”

  Joe was finally fully composed again, and he said, “It is such a good thing that she is hidden here, so Adrian doesn’t know that Gabriel’s attempt to kill her failed. According to what Diana heard, he would want to grab Cathy again as a lure to capture Vincent.”

  Father added, “Exactly, when David rescued her from her apartment, part of our reason for hiding her then, was because no one even knew who had attempted to kill her. No one knew about Gabriel. Besides hiding her from Vincent for the moment, so his link can be healed, it is also still imperative to protect her from Adrian. To that end, Diana advised us that we should only visit her through the tunnels. That way, only people who belong here are seen entering or leaving by the street entrance.” Joe nodded his head. “That is a very wise precaution. By the way, who does belong here?”

  As Joe asked the question, Peter stepped into the room with Sarah, and they both smiled at Joe. Joe stood up and went to Peter with his hand outstretched, and Peter grabbed it. Joe exclaimed, “Dr. Wellington! I remember when you helped us with an insurance fraud case a couple of years ago. So, you know about Vincent and Father’s world too?”

  Peter answered, “Yes, Joe, I’ve known about it from the beginning, because Father and I went to medical school together. I can’t tell you how relieved I was to find out that they had brought you in to help us with our girl and Vincent.”

  Joe spoke with joy in his tone. “Seeing Cathy alive has sure made my world a brighter place! I am so thankful that they decided to trust me, and brought me into this secret.” Joe suddenly stopped talking for a moment and looked at them. “Wait a minute! What in the world did we

  bury in that cemetery? I was one of the pall bearers, and it sure didn’t feel like an empty casket!”

  Father laughed as he replied. “It was a one-hundred-five pound sack of sand.”

  Joe chuckled, “Better sand than Cathy!” Then he looked at Peter again. “Remember when you came to my office for that deposition and found Cathy working there with us?” Peter nodded, and Joe continued, looking at the others. “He told me that the first time he met Cathy, she was stark naked!” Diana’s eyes widened and she giggled. Joe was smiling as he finished. “What he failed to mention was that Cathy was also upside-down and screaming at the top of her lungs in the delivery room.

  Poor Cathy turned red as a beet!”

  Father chuckled and then looked at Peter. “I was telling Joe on the way here about Mouse’s ‘toilet fever.’ Do you remember that?”

  Peter laughed, “How can I forget! I thought that I was going to have to write that toilet off.”

  Joe was chuckling. “So, you were the one brave enough to let a little boy obsessed with toilets take yours apart to see how it worked?”

  Peter laughed again. “I was, and I’ve never regretted it. That old toilet still works perfectly!”

  While everyone was still chuckling, a tall, dark-haired man entered the room. He was just shy of Vincent’s height, but not as big boned, with blue eyes and very handsome features, marred only by three long deep scars

  on his left cheek.

  When Joe caught sight of the man behind everyone, he grinned and shook his head. Then he walked around the others and went to the man. “Jeffrey Radler! You were one of my deputy district attorneys for a very brief period of time. So, you know about Father’s world too?”

  Everyone turned around, and Father gave the man a look of combined joy and surprise. Father stayed silent, though, to give the man a chance to answer Joe’s question.

  The man spoke to Joe. “Hi, Joe, it is really good to see you again. Actually, I’m not exactly who you think I am.” Joe raised his eyebrows. “Oh? Who exactly are you, then?”

  The man explained. “I’m Father’s son, Devin Wells. The truth is I never really had a law degree.”

  Joe shook his head slowly. “Let me guess. Cathy knew who you really were.”

  Devin replied, “Not at first. In fact, when she did find out my true identity, and the fact that I had never even attended any law school, she hit the roof. She did give me the option of handing you my resignation rather than turning me in, though.”

  Joe responded, “That was generous of her.”

  Devin added, “She didn’t do it for me, because I didn’t deserve it. She did it for Father and my brother, Vincent. She knew how much it would hurt them if I landed in serious trouble.”

  Joe nodded his head. “Well, law degree or not, I have to tell you that the legal brief you left for us when you resigned, kept that animal, Eringer, in prison where he belonged. Thanks to your brief, his case was not overturned, and he will never be able to molest little girls again. You left so quickly, I never got a chance to thank you for that.”

  Devin smiled at Joe. “Thank you, Joe. Cathy did tell me that, and it made me really happy to know that something good came out of it.”

  Then Father stepped up to Devin and threw his arms around him. Devin hugged him back, and Father said, “Devin, I am so happy to see you! When did you get in?

  We didn’t even know you were here.”

  Devin explained, “Peter’s letter finally caught up to me in Europe, telling me about this tragedy with Cathy. I had been at a special hospital in Sweden with Charles, because I found out that they were doing experimental surgeries on test subjects with neurofibromatosis. I discussed the risks with Charles, and he wanted to let them try to help him. You wouldn’t believe the miraculous results they had with him! Between the surgeries and the work I’ve been doing with him, he’s a completely different man. They were even able to reset
his jaw and straighten his teeth. We just arrived last night.”

  Father smiled at Devin. “Then Charles is here with you?”

  Devin replied, “Yes, he’s sleeping right now. I told

  Peter, and he agreed with me, that we had better stay here and not come below to the tunnels. That way, Vincent won’t be wondering why I’ve stopped wandering around, and I won’t have to make up some story about why I’m back home. Also, it seems that having bodyguards in Peter’s home is probably in order right now anyway.”

  Joe spoke up as he put his hand on his own left cheek. “It just occurred to me how you probably ended up with those unique scars on your cheek. You got into a tussle with your brother, Vincent, at some point, didn’t you?” Devin chuckled. “You are absolutely right! When I was fourteen, and Vincent was twelve, I accused him of something he didn’t do. I started the fight.” Devin then pointed at his scars. “And Vincent finished it!”

  Joe smiled at Devin. “Well, judging by the pride with which he spoke about you the other day, he forgave you a long time ago for whatever it was that caused that fight.

  I’m glad that you brought up the subject of bodyguards, Devin, because that has been on my mind ever since Father and Diana brought me here. We need to set up better security for Catherine, now that we know what Adrian’s true agenda is. Dr. Wellington, can you accommodate enough guests, so that there are around-the-clock shifts of bodyguards to protect both Cathy and your family?”

  Peter was very serious as he answered. “Joe, please just call me Peter. I have plenty of guest rooms and bathrooms for as many people as you think are necessary

  to protect Cathy.”

  Joe nodded, “That’s good, Peter. Father, we need at least one person here who is licensed to carry a gun. I am, and I really wish I could be that one, but I need to keep up appearances at my office, and a leave-of-absence right now wouldn’t be very smart. I’ve been circulating that fake report of Diana’s, so Adrian doesn’t know that we are onto him, but I need to keep an eye on Steve Palmer and anyone else we uncover. Are there any of your Helpers, besides Diana and I, who are licensed to carry a gun?”

  Father nodded, “Actually, there is one, and I’m sure that you know him. Do you remember the deaf young woman, Laura Williams, who helped you to put away that group of police officers, who murdered one of their own a few years ago, over drugs they were stealing from the evidence room?”

  Joe shook his head in wonder. “Don’t tell me that she is also one of your Helpers!”

  Father quickly corrected him. “No, actually she was one of our children. Vincent helped to raise her after she was found abandoned as a child in Central Park by an Helper. Vincent was also the one who taught her sign language. She married one of your former detectives,

  Jerry Bookman, and he is now one of our Helpers. Since he resigned from the police force, he runs his own private detective agency. No one would think twice about him taking on a private security job, and they wouldn’t wonder

  about where he is. He is also still licensed to carry a gun.”

  Joe chuckled, “I’ve known them from the time they met during that deaf-gang case Cathy and I were working on. Jerry broke more than a few rules getting involved with Laura when he infiltrated that deaf-gang under cover, but they are such an happy couple! I had no idea they were part of your world. That is absolutely perfect. Now, if we just had one more formidable person trained to act as a bodyguard, we would be covered for three eight-hour shifts.”

  Just then, an enormous man bent under the doorway and stepped into the room. He had amber eyes and thin sandy-blond hair. When he caught sight of Devin, his slightly irregular-featured face lit up with a very happy smile. “There you are, Dev! I wondered where you had run off to.”

  Devin smiled at him. “I just didn’t want to wake you up, Charles. You were so tired when we got in last night. Do you feel better now?”

  Charles beamed, “I feel wonderful, Dev!” Then he saw Catherine, and his expression became one filled with compassion. “You warned me about what to expect, but it is still heartbreaking to see Catherine like this.” He walked over to her bedside and patted her hand.

  Charles Mason was completely transformed under Devin’s tutelage. The once deformed and frightened man, who had been kept in a cage his entire life by his brother as a side-show freak, billed as “The Hideous Dragon Man,”

  was now very refined with a quiet confidence. Devin had taught him not only how to socialize with others, but also how to safely control his powerful physical strength.

  Devin introduced Charles to everyone, and he shook their hands very carefully, so he wouldn’t hurt anyone. He remembered having broken Father’s wrist accidentally when Devin had first taken him below after rescuing him from his abusive brother.

  Joe looked up at him and smiled. “I don’t think anyone will mess with Cathy as long as you’re around, Charles!” The compliment made Charles glow.

  Diana then spoke up. “Father, does Isaac Stubbs know about your world? I found entries about him in Cathy’s journals. He was her self-defense instructor, and she wrote about an incident when he helped her to find Vincent after he had been injured in an explosion. It was unclear, though, whether Isaac was part of your world or not.”

  Father winced as he remembered that frightening event. “No, he isn’t part of our world, but he has never betrayed us. I know that we can trust him, and I know that he would be thrilled to know that Cathy is actually alive. She was like a daughter or a little sister to him.

  The incident that Cathy wrote about occurred when Vincent had stayed close to Cathy to protect her when she went into a rough neighborhood to interview a witness. A gang called The Silks shot guns into the building where she was meeting this witness and injured the man.

  Vincent got Catherine out of the building, and then he went back in to try to save her witness. The Silks threw a pipe bomb into the building. Vincent was badly injured and temporarily blinded, and The Silks captured him. Catherine called Isaac Stubbs to help her to find Vincent. Vincent escaped from The Silks, but he couldn’t see. Catherine and Isaac finally found Vincent, and Isaac sent them into the tunnels to me. He has kept that secret safe ever since.”

  Joe spoke up then. “Well, Isaac Stubbs sounds like our best option for additional protection here. Peter, can you go hire Jerry Bookman?”

  Peter answered, “111 go see him tomorrow morning.” Diana looked at Father. “Do you want to go with me to see Isaac Stubbs in the morning? At least he has some idea who you are.”

  Father smiled at her. “We didn’t actually meet, but he did see me in the tunnel. He knows that I am connected to Cathy and Vincent. Have Chuck pick me up at the Central Park tunnel entrance.”

  Diana nodded, “I will, Father.” Then she looked at Joe. “Well, it looks like you are doing a bang-up job of assembling the troops! Are you ready for me to take you back to your new tunnel-access-door in the basement of your apartment building?”

  Cullen came into the room with an happy grin on his face, and everyone turned their attention to him. “That was fun!” He exclaimed. “We left those morons chasing

  their tails trying to figure out what happened. I do believe Adrian has some very unhappy campers, because they know he isn’t going to want to hear this report!” Everyone laughed.

  Joe shook Cullen’s hand, and said, “Thanks Cullen. I guess we can chalk another one up for our side!” Cullen and Joe exchanged coats again, and Cullen gave Joe his cap back. Then everyone said their good-byes, and Diana grabbed her coat and took Joe back through the tunnels to his apartment building.

  Chuck picked Diana up from the alley behind Catherine’s old apartment building the next morning. Earlier in the week, Kanin and Mouse had completed her new tunnel-access in the basement of her apartment building, before they had started on Joe’s access. Diana’s loft was closer to Catherine’s building, and Father’s chamber was closer to the Central Park tunnel entrance. When she traveled underground to Cat
herine’s building to meet Chuck, she left her “watchers” thinking that she was working at home. If they wanted to check on her, she had her usual message on the answering machine. “I’m working. If you still want to talk to me, leave a message, and 111 think about calling you back.”

  Diana found Father waiting at the tunnel entrance when Chuck drove into the Park. She helped Father into the cab, and then Chuck took them to Isaac’s self-defense instruction school. He waited outside to take them back to the park with Isaac. When Father and Diana walked into the building, they found Isaac working out alone on his equipment. Isaac Stubbs was a very handsome, muscular African-American man, in his mid forties, a little over six feet tall, with a neatly trimmed mustache. He grabbed a towel and came to meet them as he was drying the sweat from his face.

  Isaac recognized Father from when he saw him in the tunnel, where Father had come to meet Catherine to help her take Vincent home, after his injury in an explosion in a seedy section of town. “Well, I really never expected to see you again!” Isaac said to Father as he shook his hand.

  Father smiled at him. “My name is Dr. Jacob Wells, Isaac, but everyone in my world calls me Father. Cathy spoke very fondly of you when she explained who you were to me, after you helped her to rescue Vincent.”

  Isaac continued, “Well, Father, I want you to know that I never asked Cathy for any explanation about that incident, and I have never told anyone about what I saw.”

  Father nodded his head. “I know you never did, Isaac. That is actually why we are here now.” Father turned to Diana, who shook Isaac’s hand. “This is Diana Bennett. She is the special crimes investigator, from your world, who was assigned to investigate Cathy’s case. You and she have something in common. She also rescued Vincent once. That is how she too knows about our world, and she has kept our secret safe like you have. We need your help, Isaac, and we know that we can trust you.”

  Isaac asked, “How can I help you?”