Subj: Kate Chapter 13
Date: 5/2/00 10:48:07 PM Central Daylight Time
From: Karen
Julia watched as Kate left the great house of Collinwood. As soon as she was out of sight, Julia turned and walked up the stairs to Kate’s room.
Julia didn’t like snooping, but she still felt that Kate was hiding something. The door, surprisingly, was ajar. Julia went in and surveyed the room. Under the canopy bed, she found only an empty suitcase. On the dressing table, a jar of face cream and a bottle of lotion sat neatly. There was a small box filled with the usual jewelry; necklaces, earrings and the like. The drawers held underwear, socks and nightdresses. Going through the armoire, Julia found nothing but colorful skirts, blouses and the extraordinary dress Kate wore the first night at Collinwood. Shoes were laid neatly on the bottom shelf. The desk yielded nothing but pen and paper. No letters, no bills, nothing.
Frustrated, Julia started to leave when she thought she heard something. It was faint sound coming from the armoire. As she approached, the sound got louder. It seemed to be coming from the back of the armoire. Julia felt behind it and touched a velvet bag. She pulled it out carefully and opened it. Inside was a screen, about the size of a 13-inch television set, only flat. There were buttons along the bottom and a circle about the size of a dime at the top. The sound she heard was coming from the screen. Curious, Julia pushed a button on the right and the screen lit up. She gasped in surprise. A man appeared on the screen. He had a puzzled look on his face.
"Who the hell are you?" he demanded, suddenly looking angry. Before Julia could reply, the screen went blank.
"What in the world is this?" wondered Julia. "What does it have to do with Kate
and the Collins family? I must find out!" She pushed the same button, but nothing
happened. When she pushed others, still nothing. ‘Whoever is on the other end
must be stopping me from getting through,’ she thought. ‘I must find out who it
was I saw. Should I confront Kate? I am going to have to think a bit about this
before I proceed.’ With a determined look on her face, Julia put the screen back
in the bag. Slipping it into its hiding place, she left Kate’s room.
Barnabas sat in a chair by the fire, while Kate sat on a low stool at his feet. Her head was on his knee, his hand stroking her hair gently. No words were spoken; there was no need. Just touching each other was enough for now. Willie looked in on them now and then. Both Kate and Barnabas had such contented looks on their faces, he didn’t dare disturb them. Willie didn’t think he had ever seen Barnabas look like that before. As he watched them, Kate looked up at Barnabas at one point and kissed the palm of his hand. Barnabas drew her up and kissed her gently on the mouth. The kiss began more passionate. Willie, embarrassed, left before the two lovers were aware of him.
As Willie went to the kitchen to fix a sandwich, he started feeling sorry for Julia. She loved Barnabas so much. What will she do when she finds out about Barnabas and Kate? Willie liked Julia; he didn’t want to see her get hurt. He knew, though, in his heart that she would be hurt terribly by this news. Willie was sure that Julia must know how Barnabas felt about Kate. Barnabas had been walking around with his heart on his sleeve for weeks. Julia would have to be blind not to see that. Did she know how Kate felt about Barnabas? Willie had never seen any hint from Kate that she had feelings for Barnabas. Julia probably didn’t either. Or did she? Willie decided not to worry about it just now. He finished his lunch and decided to work on one of the many projects he needed to do.
In the living room of the Old House, Barnabas got up from his chair. He stood by the fireplace, looking at the clock. Kate came and put her arms around him. He looked at her and said, his voice raw with emotion, "Kate, will you marry me?".
Tears came to Kate’s eyes. Her heart told her to say yes, but her mind told her no. She knew she couldn’t stay here, it was impossible. Ryan needed her. Kate dropped her eyes and said, softly, "Barnabas, you really don’t know anything about me. We just met a few weeks ago. I . . . ".
Barnabas lifted her head and said, "I know all I need to know. I love you and you love me. What else matters?" His dark sensual eyes looked into hers as if willing the answer from her.
Kate felt so confused. She knew where her loyalties must lie, but being near Barnabas was a powerful experience. All she wanted was to be by his side forever. Barnabas was watching her anxiously. Suddenly, she said, "I want to think about my answer carefully, first, Barnabas." Seeing the stricken look on his face, she tempered the remark by saying, "Please be patient with me. This is all happening so fast. I can hardly take it all in. Please, dearest, let me think on your proposal until tomorrow. Please," she pleaded, "I will give you an answer tomorrow, I promise." Kate hoped he would be satisfied with her answer. She kissed him gently.
Barnabas sighed. "It is difficult for me to be patient, Kate; for you I will be." he said. He kissed her back, not as gently. His desire for her was strong, but he would wait.
Kate thanked him and suggested they go to dinner in Bangor that evening. Barnabas agreed. They decided to meet at 5 at Collinwood and Kate would drive her van. As it was getting on 3:30, Kate thought she had better go and get ready.
Barnabas walked Kate back to the great house. They held hands as they walked, talking about, of all things, American history. Barnabas’ knowledge of the Revolutionary War was amazing to Kate. He knew more than anyone she knew. Of course, she did not know that Barnabas had lived through it as a child. He was careful not to give the fact away.
As they arrived at Collinwood, Barnabas took Kate in his arms and gave her a passionate kiss. "Until tonight", he said.
‘Until tonight," she replied, feeling a bit of deja vu from the night before. She reluctantly broke the embrace and walked in the house, closing the door behind her.
Barnabas stood there for a few minutes, lost in thought. As he turned to go, he almost ran into Julia. He looked at her guiltily. "How long have you been standing there, Julia?" he asked gruffly.
"Long enough," she said. "I see Kate hasn’t wasted any time getting you to fall for her!" Her tone was hurt, but sarcastic as well.
Barnabas looked down at her. "Julia, you are wrong about Kate. She did nothing to ‘make’ me fall for her. I am sorry if it hurts you to see she and I together. We love each other deeply." he hesitated. "I suppose you should hear this from me. I have asked Kate to marry me." he said.
Julia turned away from him so he would not see her tears. "I suppose she has said yes," she said resignedly. "But, Barnabas," she said wiping away the tears, "what do you really know about Kate? She appeared out of nowhere, says she is a Collins, worms her way into the family, and now she is in love with you! She could be a gold-digger or a spy or...." Julia stopped. The dangerous look Barnabas had in his eyes was one she didn’t want to arouse any further.
"Your imagination is getting away from you, Julia," he said with a warning tone. "I know what I want to know. Kate is a beautiful, caring, intelligent woman. I love her and she loves me. That is all I care about. Is that understood?" Barnabas leaned into Julia, daring her to object.
Julia stepped away from him. "You still haven’t answered my question, Barnabas. Did she say yes?" she asked hoarsely, her hand to her throat.
‘Not yet. She says she needs time, that it is too soon." Barnabas saw the look of triumph in Julia’s eyes. "Don’t mistake her hesitancy for reluctance. She will say yes, I know she will." With that, Barnabas walked away from Julia, heading for the Old House.
Julia watched him walk away. ‘I think it is time that Kate and I had a little
heart-to-heart talk.’ she thought. Julia walked into the house and headed up the
stairs, determined this time to find out what Kate was up to, once and for all.
Dark Shadows is a Dan Curtis Production.