Chapter Three
Catherine carefully descended the narrow stairs to the sub-basement of Mrs Long's shop, while Jeff and the grocer's son went to get the rest of her luggage. It took her eyes some time to get accustomed to the dim light. Then walking to the wooden door in front of her, she tapped her name code on it. It opened instantly, and the small room quickly filled with people. She felt herself caught in a bear hug.
"Catherine! Nice to see you! It's been so long!"
She hugged back. "Nice to see you too, William!"
He held her at arms' length to examine her. "My God! Look at yourself!" he scolded. "I wonder how you still stand on your feet. But we'll take care of that!"
"I know you will." She answered with a smile.
"Hey William, give us a chance to say hello, too, will you?"
Catherine turned to see Jamie waiting, a wide smile on her face. Behind her stood Pascal and Rebecca, Mouse, Cullen and Kanin. Her family Below had come to welcome her! She exchanged a warm hug and a few words with every one of them. How she'd missed them all!
Suddenly her heart missed a beat as she discerned a tall, cloaked silhouette, half-hidden in the shadows behind the others.
"Catherine." The sound of the beloved voice pronouncing her name sent a shiver down her spine. The room fell silent, and Catherine felt the gentle, comforting pressure of Rebecca's hand on hers as the others unobtrusively moved out of the way, leaving them to face each other.
Catherine stepped toward Vincent, ready to throw herself in his arms. The joy of seeing him again almost caused her to forget he wasn't her Vincent any more, but something in his eyes stopped her. Something missing. The tender, passionate light wasn't there any more. His blue gaze only held a friendly but neutral interest, and it was almost more than she could bear. But that was the way things were, and she'd known what to expect, hadn't she? Forcing herself to stifle her disappointment, she smiled warmly at him. "Oh hello Vincent! I'm glad to see you're better! It's nice of you to have come!"
He looked at her for a moment, then lowered his eyes to the boxes, bags and suitcases neatly piled up in a corner of the room. "I thought my help might be needed."
Catherine did her best not to stare, yet she shamelessly filled her eyes with the sight of him, taking in the familiar features, now a little more deeply etched, she noticed. In spite of everything, it was good to see him! "You thought right!" she cheerfully answered. "That big box over there is full of books, and I'm afraid it's terribly heavy." That was the signal for everyone to pick up the luggage and boxes, Vincent effortlessly lifting the book-filled crate to his shoulder and taking the biggest suitcase with his other hand. Catherine tried to take a bag, but Cullen snatched it from her hand.
"Out of question! Father would throw us down the Abyss if he learned we've let you carry something."
Catherine surrendered with a smile. "I wouldn't want to be the cause of such a tragedy! Seems the price for disobeying Father's orders has come up, though! I won't dare do it anymore."
"Oh, come on, Catherine!" Jamie giggled, gesturing her through the door. "You know that you and Vincent are the only ones who can do just that, and get away with it!"
"Mouse get away too! Don't get caught!"
To her own surprise Catherine found herself laughing along with everyone, and it felt so good! It seemed to her she hadn't laughed for an eternity...
The little column set on its way and Vincent followed a few steps behind, listening distractedly to the happy chatter ahead. So this tiny slip of a woman was the famous Catherine, whose arrival was causing such an upheaval in his usually quiet world!
He smiled to himself. 'Upheaval' was almost too feeble a word, as he rather felt as if he'd been caught in a whirlwind! On the previous day he'd been required to help two very proud little boys to move their beds and few possessions to the boys' dormitory, then been shooed out of the chamber by Olivia and her friends armed with brooms and pails, only to find himself instantly enrolled by Mary. He'd spent most of the day roaming through various storage chambers under her exacting direction, in search of a suitable mattress and various pieces of furniture which all had to be cleaned, repaired if needed and polished to a beautiful shine. The older children, excused from class for the day by Father, had all volunteered to help with that, and they'd done beautifully. Rebecca had made a special batch of 'those red scented candles Catherine loves', and William hadn't left his kitchen all day, sending Geoffrey and Kipper on various, urgent errands. Even Father had searched the library for 'Catherine's favorite books'...
Early this morning the tunnels had again turned into a buzzing hive. He'd helped Cullen bring and assemble the beautiful bed, with it's honey-colored wood panels carved with roses, in the thoroughly scrubbed chamber, and then it seemed that every single tunnel dweller had wanted to participate by bringing in one thing or another... and offering advice! After a few heated discussions every piece of furniture had finally found its place, and had been completed with lots of other thoughtful and generally beautiful items. Brooke had taken the younger children to the park to pick the last wild flowers of the season, and Father had added the final touch by bringing an armful of books he'd set on the shelf. Vincent had inconspicuously stolen a glance at some titles. 'Great Expectations', 'Pride and Prejudice', Shakespeare's Sonnets, Shelley... The intriguing newcomer was apparently a woman of taste.
Catherine had brought books with her, too, and quite a large quantity of them, it would seem, Vincent thought, shifting the weight of the heavy box on his shoulder. He had to admit to himself that curiosity, more than the wish to help, had made him join the welcome party, and now he had seen her he was even more intrigued.
For one he hadn't expected her to be so beautiful. Despite her excessive thinness and her pallor, her natural beauty shone like a crystal. She was evidently facing difficult times, and there was pain in her green eyes, but her body language told of poise, and courage. She was strong, an inner strength which belied her frail, almost sickly appearance. And the warmth of her smile could illuminate the darkest tunnel!
Catherine obviously was very familiar with everyone Below, and it seemed that included himself. Vincent wasn't used to having unknown, beautiful women greet him so warmly. Yet she hadn't hugged him, as she had the others. Maybe she hadn't dared, probably with some reason, Vincent reflected, wondering how he would have reacted if she had. Had they been friends, before? Had they hugged?
Vincent shook his head to chase away the troubling image the thought evoked. Whatever might have existed before was irrelevant. To him, Catherine was a stranger, coming to live in their community, and he'd have to get acquainted with her, as he had done for other 'new' tunnel dwellers. He'd also have to investigate Jamie's puzzling statement. Catherine had disobeyed Father's orders in the past? And 'gotten away' with it? He'd always thought he was the only one who could do that!
As she walked beside Jamie, listening with a smile to the latest tunnel news, Catherine was also acutely aware of Vincent's silent presence behind the group. She wondered if he might feel somewhat left out by the warmth of the welcome his friends had offered her. Strange as it felt to her, Vincent had just seen her 'for the first time', shortly after learning that someone he couldn't remember having ever heard of was going to come and live in his world. It had to be a little difficult for him. She'd seen curiosity in his eyes as he greeted her. What did he think of her? Did he... like her?
Her musings were interrupted as the group stopped in front of a pile of debris blocking the tunnel.
"What happened here?" Catherine inquired. "Has there been a cave-in?"
"Yes and no..." Jamie answered with a mysterious grin. Pascal tapped a code on the pipes, and one of the walls opened, revealing a side tunnel which by-passed the blockage. Soon they found themselves on the other side, where a young sentry, in charge of the mechanism, greeted them.
"The first one of our new security barriers." Kanin explained. "It took some time to make, but it was worth it!"
"Mouse make!" the young tunnel inventor proudly broke in.
"You did that, Mouse? Wonderful job!" Catherine said. "It really looks like a cave in!"
"Hey!" Kanin protested. "Are you forgetting who did the digging, Mouse?"
"OK, fine!" Mouse good-naturedly admitted. "I make plans, you dig. Work together. Good work!"
Kanin couldn't help laughing. "Yes, you're right, Mouse, we did a great job together. That fake dead-end spares us at least three sentries!"
"Only this one finished, but make others, too!" Mouse smugly told Catherine.
She nodded, smiling to the proud young face. Father seemed at last to have taken in consideration some of Mouse's ideas for the defense of the tunnel world. Of course! With Vincent ill, the tunnels were vulnerable, and the Council had had to consider other ways. She felt glad about it. The less outsiders would find their way into the tunnels, the less Vincent would have to use violence in the future. And her job would cause no more of it, either, she thought with a pang of guilt. Instinctively, she looked at Vincent, and found that he was watching her. A bit embarrassed, she smiled at him, and he answered timidly, before averting his eyes, as the group resumed its progression toward the hub.
As they approached they passed the chamber Catherine had occupied after her father's death, and she was surprised when they did not stop. Maybe someone else had it, now? People were coming out of every tunnel to greet her, and she got a number of welcome hugs, until finally they stopped in a tunnel she knew well, as it led to Father's study... and to Vincent's chamber. There stood Father and Mary, warm smiles on their faces.
"Catherine! It's so good to see you again!"
Catherine warmly responded to Mary's motherly embrace, then greeted Father. Behind them, more people were waiting, eager to welcome her, too, but Mary only needed one look at Catherine to see the trip down had exhausted her, and she took command.
"Not now, please! Everyone will be able to welcome Catherine later, but first she needs to rest."
She looked at the baggage-laden group. "Shall they put it all in your chamber, dear?"
"Only the bags and suitcases." Catherine indicated. "The big box goes to the library, and the other ones are for the kitchen." She saw Father frown and smiled apologetically. "I couldn't arrive empty-handed, could I?"
Mary didn't leave Father time to answer, and took Catherine's arm. "I'm sure you've been very generous! Now come and see your chamber. You have the time for a good nap before dinner!"
Vincent was exiting the chamber as they came to the entrance. "I put your suitcase on the table so you don't have to lift it, Catherine."
"Thank you very much, Vincent."
"You're welcome. You should try and get some rest, now, the walk seems to have tired you."
She nodded with a smile and he left to carry the books to the library. She watched him go with longing eyes before following Mary into the chamber. The sight of it made her forget her wistful mood.
"Oh, Mary, it's lovely!" She looked around the chamber, admiring once more how the people Below could create beauty with the cast-offs from Above... and a lot of love and care. The simple, somewhat heteroclite furniture shone in the soft candlelight and a once precious and expensive carpet, now threadbare in places but meticulously clean, covered the stone floor. The big bed looked deliciously inviting with its beautiful quilt and thick cushions, and little touches everywhere gave the place a warm, homey feel. Flowers in a vase, books on the shelf, and a fluffy shawl waiting on the big armchair. "Everything is so beautiful!"
"I'm glad you like it!" the older woman replied with just a touch of smugness in her smile.
"You did that for me? But who used to live here?" Catherine inquired "I don't want to chase someone out!"
"It's your chamber! Don't worry, dear. The former occupants got a long-awaited promotion, and they were glad to leave!" Mary took a steaming cup waiting on the bedside table and handed it to her. "Now you drink this and get into bed!"
Catherine obediently took a sip. "Hmm, it's nice!"
"It's William's special herbal tea for future mothers. It does wonders for morning sickness, and it will help you rest".
A minute later Catherine was in bed and Mary gently tucked the quilt around her shoulders. "Now sleep, dear. I'll wake you up for dinner." Catherine closed her eyes with a grateful smile, and Mary silently put out most of the candles before exiting the chamber.
Catherine relaxed on the pillow, breathing in deeply the familiar scent of earth and candle smoke, listening to the muted hum of tunnel activity and the continuous tapping on the pipes. As drowsiness overcame her, she almost could hear Vincent's first words to her, so many months before. You're safe. You're safe, now. Just before she drifted into sleep her hand slipped down to her stomach, close to the tiny heartbeat which had both awed her and moved her to tears when she'd been able to see it on the ultrasound screen. You're safe, now, darling. We're home.