Chapter 12

Honeymoon

Vincent woke slowly, languishing in the memory of the night, his wife curled up at his side. A smile creased his face when he saw her lying there so beautiful, so peaceful. He placed a light kiss on her head, enjoying the feel of her hair on his lips. His mind went back to the day before thinking that the exertions of their wedding day were nothing compared with the energy they had expended on their wedding night, and judging from the waves of satisfaction emanating from his bride he had done very well indeed.

She stirred, sleepily opening her eyes and turned in his embrace to look at his face.

"Good morning, husband." She smiled at him, his pleasure at the word vibrating through the bond. Yes, she definitely had a stronger sense of him since their bodies had joined.

"Good morning yourself, wife," he pushed aside a stray lock of her hair. "What would you like to do today?"

"You mean besides making love to you?"

She propped her elbows up on his chest holding her head in her hands. She tilted her head to one side and drummed her fingers on her cheeks in what he thought was a most adorable gesture. Her eyes took on a vacant look as she thought about his question.

Refocusing on his face she answered, "I think," she drawled, "we should try out the shower. It’s large enough to hold both of us and we can wash each other’s backs." She smiled at him with a devilish glint in her eyes.

He kissed her and his passion rose again, he couldn’t get enough of her.

After they had made love, she shifted her position to lie within the crook of his arm. They stayed that way until both their hearts had slowed down to a normal pace. When she rose up to look at him she asked accusingly, "Weren’t we going to take a shower?"

He laughed, "Woman, you’ve done me in. I don’t think I can walk, let alone shower."

She got up slowly, making sure she rubbed her body along his length in doing so and leaving the bed headed for the bathroom in a hip swaying stroll. As she entered the doorway she looked back at him over her shoulder, giving him a come hither look that took his breath away. By the time she had emptied her bladder, which her body was immensely grateful for, he was in the doorway. She moved to the shower, turning on the hot water tap and by the time the water was running hot Vincent had also finished his toiletry and joined her. She fiddled with the hot and cold taps until she was satisfied with the water temperature and turned on the water jets. The water hit them from all sides, at all levels; Nell had not stinted in the plumbing fixtures, she had installed the latest in multi-head showers. To Vincent it felt heavenly; in his life he either had a cold shower standing under the waterfalls or a warm bath in the bathing pools. Here in his home he could have whatever he wanted, a true luxury.

Catherine played with the control settings and they found that they could have a pulsing spray, a mist, a hard pelting stream, or a more traditional spray; she left it at that and they thoroughly soaked themselves. She shut the water off and got the bar of soap, lathering up her hands she began to slowly work it into Vincent’s pelt starting with his chest. He took the soap and did the same for her enjoying the feel of the lather on her smooth skin, it made her feel even silkier than she already was. She took the soap back from him and turned him around to scrub his back. He returned the favor and they were actually able to finish before the hot water ran out.

When they had rinsed the soap off, Catherine turned a knob and blasts of warm air filled the enclosure. She was dry in no time and stepped out to style her hair while Vincent remained behind a bit longer to give his fur an opportunity to dry completely. He felt bereft when she left; they hadn’t been apart since the ceremony, and showering would never be the same without her. He hurriedly rubbed his fur, exposing as much of it as possible to the warm jets of air and when he felt sufficiently dry stepped out to join her in the bedroom.

She had gotten them matching sweat suits and she was just tugging hers on, hiding her luscious body from his sight; ah but he knew what lay underneath. He brought his thoughts back to the task of getting dressed and decided not to put on his sneakers, the temperature of the house felt fine and his feet were enjoying the freedom.

As they stripped the bed of its soiled bedclothes the scent of their lovemaking permeated his sensitive nose and he again felt a stirring in his groin. Catherine glanced up, feeling his desire through the bond, and wagged a finger at him

"Man may not live by bread alone, but this female is starving,. I have to eat!" She declared firmly.

Truth be told his stomach was protesting as well, he quelled his lust for the moment in favor of his hunger and taking the soiled linens popped them into the laundry chute in the hallway.

Catherine ran down the stairs ahead of him going out to the front stoop to pick up the morning paper.

They went down to the kitchen and by unconscious unanimous vote, Vincent was elected to make breakfast, or rather lunch since it was after 12:00, and Catherine started the coffee. Neither one was a great cook, but Vincent seemed to be a better hand at it than she was. She set the table and popped a couple of slices of bread into the toaster while he scrambled some eggs and fried up a few slices of pork roll. She poured a couple of glasses of orange juice and set the kettle to boil for his tea.

They read the paper while they ate, pointing out interesting articles to each other. Catherine had the entertainment section and noticed a tiny blurb about Lisa Campbell, she showed it to Vincent, it read:

Back from a successful tour of Europe the Balin Ballet Company, featuring prima ballerina Lisa Campbell, will begin its American tour in San Francisco and is slated to perform here at Lincoln Center in the spring of next year.

Looking up he saw Catherine watching him closely.

"So she’ll be back in New York, do you think she’ll contact you?"

"I don’t see why," he replied. "It’s only when she needs something that she reaches out to us."

Seeing her worried expression he took her hand and added.

"Catherine, it doesn’t bother me anymore I know now it was just adolescent hormones that made me grab for her." He lowered his eyes, "Though I must confess that I still feel some remorse at the damage my claws inflicted on her."

"Well obviously it caused no permanent damage," Catherine retorted remembering the woman’s snobbery. "She seemed fine the last time she was here." She returned her attention back to her food and paper.

After lunch Catherine persuaded a reluctant Vincent to help her do some weeding in the garden, t. The daffodils were in bloom and the weeds would choke them if they didn’t do something about it soon. She had installed a camouflage net that went from the balcony outside their bedroom to the top of the tall brick walls that enclosed their entire back yard. Sunlight and rain were able to come through but nosy neighbors’ stares would not. He finally consented to come out, but took the precaution of putting up the hood of his sweatshirt. It was hard for him to ignore the habits of a lifetime.

They spent the afternoon that way, enjoying the outdoors together. Vincent got comfortable enough to the point where he even lowered his hood. Catherine marveled at the way the sunlight glinted off his mane, making him look as if he had a halo around his head. For him it was another first in a stunning cascade of firsts. He was outside during the day, in the sunshine, actually weeding his own garden. He felt the warmth of the sun on his face, heard the sound of the birds chirping in the trees, acknowledged the angry chatter of a squirrel as they must have accidentally disturbed its hidden cache of food. Playfully he growled at it. They laughed at the poor creature as it beat a hasty retreat, scampering up the wall and out of the yard.

They stayed outside for most of the afternoon until hunger once again found them into the kitchen. William had prepared some dinners for them, afraid that if left on their own they would surely starve to death. They pulled out some lasagna and meatballs, heating them up in the microwave, another luxury for Vincent. He felt a momentary twinge of guilt for his tunnel family who lived without all the modern conveniences he was now enjoying, but he let it pass knowing that if they were in need of anything he and Catherine would provide it.

After dinner they went up to the library to unpack still more books that she had gotten out of storage. The library shelves were rapidly filling up and Catherine decided to put all the law books into her office. It was just getting dark outside when the doorbell rang. Catherine threw a worried glance at Vincent; he shrugged, staying where he was while she went to answer the door. Opening it she was delighted to find Jenny standing there; she stepped out giving her friend a hug. Just as she was about to pull her inside she spotted Devin leaning on a limo parked at the curb. He sketched her a salute and opened the limos back door.

Looking from him to Jenny she asked, "What’s going on?"

Jenny’s face broke into a huge smile, "Don’t you know a honeymoon limo when you see one? Come on we’re taking you and your husband to Connecticut."

Vincent had come down the stairs when he heard Jenny’s voice.

"Jenny, you know I can’t go."

"Of course you can,. I borrowed the limo from work; all the windows are heavily tinted. Devin’s going to drive and I’m going to follow with my car just in case. We packed your clothes and groceries yesterday, so you’re all set." She was bouncing up and down, barely containing her excitement.

Devin had come in while Jenny was talking, he had Vincent’s cloak in his hand.

"Come on little brother, close your mouth and put your cloak on." He threw the garment around Vincent’s shoulders as he spoke.

Before either one of them could think of protesting they were hustled out the door and into the waiting limo. Jenny quickly went through the house, locking the doors and making sure everything was off that should be and shot out the door to her car.

Catherine and Vincent found themselves in the back seat of the limo, not quite sure how they got there. At first they were both very nervous, but a limo was familiar territory to Catherine and between her relaxed demeanor and Devin’s continuous monolog about his travels Vincent soon began to relax. This was another new experience for him, he’d never ridden in an automobile before and to have his first ride in a limo was quite a coup. He enjoyed gazing out the window as the scenery swept by, Catherine pointing out things of interest. When they approached a tollbooth Devin would raise the partition so no one would be able to peer into the back.

As they neared the lake Catherine directed Devin as to the route and when he came to the locked gate of the Chandler house she provided the pass code. As he proceeded up the drive and the lights of the car illuminated the house, he let out a low whistle. This is a summer house? he thought. He carefully maneuvered the limo around the circular drive, stopping under the portico. He noted that the so-called "summer house" looked more like a southern plantation house than anything else. The Chandlers must have been loaded.  And here she is hooked up with the most non-material guy in the universe, why a blade of grass would make him happy. As he got out of the car he saw that the portico covered a receiving porch that led to the double main doors. Jenny had parked right behind him and she bounded out of the car grabbing him by the shoulders as he moved to the trunk

"We did it, we did it," she squealed, "and nothing happened."

She moved around to the side of the limo opening the back door catching the newly weds in a passionate kiss.

"Come on kids, your honeymoon awaits."

Grinning sheepishly the couple climbed out of the car. Vincent went to the back to help Devin with the luggage and groceries while the girls opened the front door and started turning on the lights.

After the trunk was emptied and the groceries put away they all sat down around the kitchen table snacking on cheese and crackers.

"So little brother, how’d you like your first limo ride?" He Devin clapped Vincent on the shoulder, grinning from ear to ear.

"It was quite enjoyable," Vincent grinned back, looking at Catherine and squeezing her hand.

Looking around the kitchen Devin couldn’t help but notice how clean and kept up everything was. From what Jenny had told him Catherine almost never came up here.

"Hey Chandler what’s your secret? This place is spotless, how do you do it? Got pixies cleaning the place?"

"Nothing so exotic. My father set up a trust for the house with a local bank to take care of cleaning and maintenance, so every other week Iris comes in to clean and Raul does the grounds. They’ve been doing it for years and this happens to be their off week, so we should have no unexpected interruptions."

Jenny stood and took her dish and glass to the sink.

"We’ll come back in a week to get you, I’ll leave my car here in case you need it for some reason." Turing to Devin she added, "And now, my dear partner in crime, I think we should leave these two love birds and head on backy. You still have to face Father, you know."

Devin held his head in his hands. "Oh, don’t remind me!" He stood resolutely, and looked grim at the prospect, "Ok Jen, let’s go get it over with."

He gave Vincent a hug and whispered, "Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do – and that’s not a whole heck of a lot!" Together they laughed.

"Devin, thank you. This means a great deal to Catherine…. and to me."

"No problem, enjoy yourselves." Turning to Jenny he growled, "Let’s make tracks, woman."

Jenny stepped over to Vincent and gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Then going over to Catherine, taking her hand she gave it a squeeze.

"I’ll see you next week; your mobile phone is in one of the suitcases just in case."

Catherine hugged her tightly. "I don’t know how to thank you," she whispered.

"Just have a good time."

After Jenny and Devin left Vincent took their luggage upstairs to what used to be Catherine’s parents’ room. While he got a fire going Catherine unpacked, putting her and her husband’s things in the drawers that use to hold her parents’ things. She paused in her unpacking to reflect on them, on the love they had had for each other and for her. Vincent felt her melancholy and moved to embrace her. As she smiled up at him with tear bright eyes he lowered his face and covered her lips with his, producing a tingle that ran up and down her spine. She finally broke away to breathe

"Let’s get ready for bed," she whispered huskily.

***

The next morning, while Vincent was dressing, Catherine went down to the kitchen to pack a picnic basket. She was planning on taking him to the secret glen of her childhood, a place she couldn’t wait to share with him. When he came down he was dressed in sweat pants with a hooded zip jacket; from a distance with the hood up he would look like any other man in a sweat suit. He eyed the basket warily.

"Are we going out?" He asked

"Yes." She replied, "I’m going to take you on a tour of the grounds and we’ll have lunch in my glen." She happily beamed up at him.

"It sounds like a perfect way to spend the day, shall we?" He offered his arm while picking up the basket.

Once outside he luxuriated in the warm sun beating down on his face. As they walked the grounds he noted the black, wrought iron fencing with wicked looking points that completely enclosed the property, at least the part that he could currently see. He asked Catherine about it and she confirmed that the forty acres was completely fenced in, even to the lake. She told him that during prohibition her family made illegal alcohol here in the basement of the house and that her forbears took every precaution to secure their safety and anonymity from the law. He thought it ironic that both she and her father practiced law in the light of their family’s illegal history.

Catherine showed him the tennis court, the built in swimming pool and the well-manicured gardens. The daffodils here were in full bloom just as they were at home, lending sparks of color to the greens and browns of the rest of the lawn. They strolled leisurely along hand in hand till Catherine indicated they had reached her secret spot

"Well this is it. W what do you think?" She asked anxiously.

"It’s beautiful, Catherine. I can see why it holds such a special place in your heart."

She took the blanket out of the basket, spreading it out on the ground; then she gracefully lowered herself, patting the place next to her. Vincent sat beside her, pulling the basket closer to take out lunch, t. They had walked for hours and had built up quite an appetite.

Suddenly he straightened.

"Vincent what is it?"

"Something’s coming," he whispered

She made to stand up but he stopped her.

"It’s not human." He sniffed the air. "I don’t know what it is." He cocked his head to one side. "Actually there’s more than one."

"Deer, Vincent, they must be deer. W we must sit very still," she instructed, "and they may come close to us."

It took a few minutes, but soon they could see a twelve point buck and behind him a bevy of does and fawns. The buck caught sight of them and froze, big brown eyes locked onto china blue. Catherine could feel waves of calm assurance coming from Vincent directed toward the buck. Slowly, ever so slowly the buck walked over to Vincent. Catherine held her breath as Vincent held out his hand. The buck sniffed it then allowed his neck to be stroked. Vincent looked with wonder at the beautiful creature, delicate yet powerful at the same time. He marveled at the thinness of its legs compared to its body, the width of the deadly looking antlers. He took in its scent so that he would know it again in the future. The buck tilted his head as if in salute then turned and went back to the waiting herd, leading them down the path to the lake. Catherine was elated, she felt like a moment from her childhood had come back to her to be shared with the man she loved. He looked at her, happy that Devin and Jenny had made it possible for him to be here to share this with her.

After they finished eating the couple moved the blanket close to a large tree and sat leaning against its rough bark. He had found a book of poetry in the library and after getting his wife settled at his side he began to read until it became too dark for even his eyes to see. The darkness brought with it the most magnificent night sky he’d ever seen; here there were no city lights to diffuse the brilliance of the heavenly bodies. The moon was just a sliver of white against the blackest black; the stars looked like diamonds sprinkled on black velvet

"Look Catherine," he pointed, "there’s Orion and the Big Dipper."

"Yes and the Little Dipper," Catherine added. "Dad and I use to star gaze when I was little, we had a telescope we used to set out on the balcony. You know," she sat up turning to face him, "I’ll bet it’s up in the attic; we should look for it."

"I think right now we should go back to the house, it’s getting chilly." He stood, grabbing the blanket.

"Are you cold?" She asked

"No this is actually warmer than the tunnels, I was worried about you."

"I’m fine, but I am getting hungry." She took the blanket from him and stuffed it into the basket. Vincent picked the basket up in one hand and took one of hers in the other.

***

The following morning they woke to the sound of rain pounding on the windows. Catherine turned in his arms, pouting, "I wanted to go boating on the lake today." After giving it some thought she brightened, "I know! W we can go up in the attic and look for the telescope Besides, I love the sound of rain on the roof." As she threw the covers back her stomach growled loudly, she rubbed it, embarrassed. "I guess I need to fuel up, all our nightly exercise gives me an appetite." Something about the way she rubbed her stomach brought Vincent up short.

"Catherine," he began a bit shyly, "we’ve been pretty active…sexually I mean, but I hadn’t really given any thought to….I mean I haven’t been…." He couldn’t seem to get it out.

"What Vincent, what are you trying to say?"

"What I mean is I haven’t used any …..protection, what if you ….you know."

"Become pregnant, what’s wrong with that? Look Vincent if I became pregnant with your child I would be the happiest woman on the face of the Earth, but Emily said that Betazeds are only fertile during the mating fever and as far as I know you haven’t had a fever, have you?"

"No, but Catherine I’m half human, what if I’m fertile all the time?"

"Then I may become pregnant, a. Again, what’s wrong with that?"

"Well there’s a very good chance that a child of mine may look like me."

"I can’t think of anyone else I would want my child to look like, I think you’re beautiful."

"Catherine I wouldn’t want to condemn a child to…….."

"To what Vincent,? Restrictions? E everybody has restrictions of one type or another. As to the life you’ve led, it hasn’t been all that bad has it? And as to living in the tunnels, you’re not living there now and besides people like Pascal and Olivia have lived in the tunnels all their lives and have never had any desire to even go Above to visit. Vincent, if we were to have a child it would have both its parents, it wouldn’t have to wonder what or who it was. It wouldn’t miss the love of a mother or father, it would have both and the love of an entire community Below and Above. So if I were lucky enough to become pregnant I would welcome it and rejoice in it and so," she grabbed his chin in her fingers looking deep into his eyes, "should you."

They considered the subject closed, leaving it in God’s hands. They got dressed and fed and made their way up to the attic. It was large, running the entire length of the house, high enough in the center for Vincent to be able to stand upright. Dust motes floated through the air every time Catherine moved a box, giving the place a fairy like atmosphere. They came across a box containing photo albums of Catherine’s childhood, which they set by the stairs to take down with them. Other items joined it, things that Catherine wanted to bring to their new home. Finally they found the telescope in a box tucked under an eve. They bought it down with everything else and cleaned it up, setting it up in the bedroom waiting for the rain to end. They were both covered with dust and dirt; another shower was definitely in order. They stripped their dirty clothes off in the bathroom. Catherine noticed her robe wasn’t hanging on the back of the door and she went out to the bedroom to look for it. Suddenly she saw the bedroom door open, Vincent felt her fear and was ready to come to her aid when he heard her say,

"Iris! W what are you doing here? I thought this was your off week?"

"Miss Chandler," exclaimed the ruddy faced, middle-aged woman. "I didn’t expect to see you." She smiled at Catherine.

Realizing she was in the buff Catherine grabbed the comforter off the bed and wrapped it around her. Iris continued further into the room.

"I figured I’d come to do the vacuuming and dusting as I’m going away next week. I didn’t think you’d mind if I came this week instead. You’re almost never here." She had a big stack of towels in her hands. "I freshened the towels, they were starting to smell a little musty, I’ll just put them in the bathroom for you."

As Catherine moved to intercept her she got tangled in the comforter and fell on the bed. Vincent meanwhile was frantically looking for a place to hide, seeing nothing he threw a towel lengthwise over the shower door and stepped into it turning on the water. He had a sudden inspiration and in the sexiest voice he could muster he called out.

"Catherine are you coming? You promised to scrub my back."

Iris stopped dead in her tracks just short of the door, her eyes went wide and her mouth formed an O, she spun on her heel, dumped the towels on the dresser and make made a beeline for the bedroom door, squeaking out a barely audible "excuse me."

The couple didn’t move until they heard the front door slam. Vincent poked his head around the bathroom door.

"Have I sullied your reputation?"

Catherine looked at her husband,  His wet mane was plastered to his head and he was puddling all over the floor. She broke out with the giggles, which escalated into whooping laughter. Vincent padded across to the bed, picked up his laughing wife and deposited her into the shower.

After the hot water heater and given its last drop of hot water they left the shower completely satiated.

They spent the evening going through the photo albums they had brought down from the attic. Vincent enjoyed seeing Catherine in the various stages of growing up, listening to the stories that went with each picture. It gave him more of a feel of what her life had been like. She had everything she wanted in a material sense, but losing her mother at the age of 10 had greatly affected her and though her father tried to be both mother and father to her she still missed the feminine influence of growing up with a mother. In this regard they were the same, being raised by only fathers; but at least, Vincent mused, he had Mary in his life who loved him as if he were one of her own. Thinking back to the conversation of the morning he had to concede that Catherine was right, a child of theirs would have what neither of them had, the loving influence of both parents.

***

The sun greeted them the next morning so after brunch they went to the garage, which could hold three cars, but currently only housed Jenny’s. Pulling out the canoe and paddles, they carried it down to the lake. Vincent held it steady while Catherine clambered into the front. Giving it a mighty shove, Vincent leaped in and taking up a paddle propelled it with powerful strokes. Catherine watched him with her paddle idle in her lap; he really didn’t need any help.

"Where did you learn how to handle a paddle?" She asked.

"Devin and I use to make rafts to float down the nameless river." He chuckled at the memories,. "we were Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn going down the Mississippi."

Catherine smiled, picturing a young Vincent following his idolized big brother everywhere. She turned to face front again, scanning the lake and shoreline with the binoculars she had brought with her. She didn’t think anyone would be around this time of the year, but there was no sense in taking chances. Her family owned the land around this end of the lake going all the way back to the road. The iron fencing which actually entered the water marked the end of her property. If someone wanted to trespass they would have to go into the water and around the end of the fence or over the top and risk getting skewered by the sharp points. They paddled around all afternoon enjoying the sunshine and watching the various birds and animals share the lake with them.

On the way back Vincent broke into her reverie. "Catherine how would you like fresh fish for dinner?"

"I’d love it, but we didn’t take the fishing rods with us……"

She was cut short by a fish flopping around the bottom of the canoe. Vincent’s hand flashed back into the water and a second fish joined the first, had she blinked she would have missed it, he was that fast. She shook her head in awe, marveling at his abilities, it seemed she was learning new ones every day. They got back to shore and pulled the canoe up onto the land.

As they cleaned the fish, preparing them for cooking, Catherine thought back to all the times she had done this very same thing with her father. A sadness passed over her at the memory. She shook it off, smiling; now the memories would be of Vincent.

After dinner they took the telescope out onto the bedroom balcony and stood gazing at the stars for the rest of the evening.

***

Friday night arrived way to quickly and soon they saw the limos headlights coming up the driveway. They had packed every thing earlier and stowed it all in Jenny’s car. Jenny leaped out as the limo came to a halt. She hugged them both enthusiastically, pushing Catherine through the front doors

"So how was it, how’d everything go?"

"Jen it was the best, I’ll remember this week for as long as I live; I’ll never be able to thank you and Devin enough."

"Just seeing you so relaxed and happy is thanks enough for me."

The brothers came in and the group went into the library. Devin was chiding Vincent on his sun-streaked mane.

"He looks like one of those surfer boys you see in California, amazing what a little sun can do for you." He was kidding around, but the way Vincent looked tugged at his heart. He had wanted this for his little brother when they were young and couldn’t give it to him. He felt the guilt for leaving him ease just a bit. Vincent was happy, happier than he’d ever seen him; it let his spirit soar for the first time in a very long time.

Vincent’s voice broke in on his thoughts. "Devin how is Father? How’d he react when you told him where we were?"

"About like what you’d expect, he ranted and raved about how irresponsible I was putting you in harms way….blah, blah, blah; same tune different day. You need to call him as soon as we get back or he’ll have apoplexy."

They sat and talked for a while catching the couple up on what had been going on Above and Below, then piled into the cars and left.

They drove back in the wee hours of the morning, but as they entered the city a patrol car with lights flashing pulled in behind them.

"Don’t look now kids," Devin groaned, "but we’ve got company."

Looking out the back window fear shot through Catherine and she took Vincent’s hand.

"What are we going to do?"

As Devin pulled the limo over to the curb, he looked back at them.

"Don’t worry. I’ve got a plan, sit tight and follow my lead." He raised the partition, cutting off the back seat from the front. Catherine leaned forward to hear what was being said. Vincent’s mind was going over his options, there weren’t many. He would have to rely on Devin’s ability to squirm out of the most impossible situations. His superior hearing picked up everything that was being said. Devin lowered the driver’s window as the officer approached.

"Is there a problem, officer?"

The policeman grunted, "registration and license."

Devin handed them over.

"Jeff Radler huh, do you know you’ve got a busted tail light?"

"No I didn’t," he answered truthfully. "The limos on loan, I’ll let them know when I get it back."

"Who’ve got back there?" The officer asked curiously, limos in New York usually held celebrities.

"Nobody important," Devin answered.

"You want to ask them to step out."

Catherine tensed, here it comes. S she’d have to think of something. Vincent was poised to bolt out the side door when he heard Devin whisper loudly.

"Do you know John Moreno?"

The cops’ eyes went wide. "The District Attorney? Sure I know him. Is that who you’ve got back there?"

"Yeah," Devin whispered in a confidential tone, "and he’s sort of the worse for the drink if you know what I mean, he’s sleeping it off."

"His wife lets him get drunk?" The cop seemed surprised. "She always seemed so straight laced, you know."

"Well he’s not with his wife." Devin winked.

"No way!" This was juicy. "Who’s he with?"

"You’ve got to keep this to yourself."

"Sure, sure," the cop promised.

"Do you know Cathy Chandler?"

"Yeah she’s an assistant DA. You don’t mean to tell me she’s with him?" He was shocked. "She never goes out with anybody, rumor has it that she’s an ice princess."

Devin popped back into the car, lowered the partition and asked Catherine for her id badge. He handed it to the cop who studied it intently.

"So that’s why she never goes out, she’s Moreno’s little bit on the side." He handed the id back to Devin.

"Officer, we’d appreciate your discretion."

"Oh sure, sure, no problem, you bet…….you can go now."

Catherine let out a huge sigh of relief and looking heavenward sent up a silent prayer of thanks. Vincent also added his thanks and was mystified as always with Devin’s ability to get out of tight spots.

Devin got back into the car and as he pulled away from the curb he lowered the partition handing Catherine back her badge. She punched him in the arm.

"This will be all over the office Monday, my reputation is really taking a beating," she winked at Vincent remembering the Iris incident, but it was a small price to pay.

They got back to the house without further incident. Jenny parked behind them and caught up with them as they went through the front doors.

"Oh my God! I thought I was going to die when that cop pulled you over. I didn’t know what to do."

When they told her what Devin had done she began to giggled.

"Oh Cath, the looks you’re going to get, everyone’s going to think you’re one hot tamale."

The girls helped Devin unload Jenny’s car while Vincent used the intercom to call Father.

"Vincent you’re back." The relief was evident in the tone of his voice. "Is everything all right?"

"Everything is fine." Vincent reassured him. "We’ll come Below tomorrow and tell you all about it."

"It’ll be good to see you son, till tomorrow then."

Father broke the connection, heaving a sigh of relief "Thank God he’s all right" he closed his eyes and let the worry that had been his constant companion flow out of him. He went back to bed, falling into the first restful sleep he’d had all week. His children were home safe and sound and that’s all a parent could ever wish for.

Fini