Christine's POV
The next room I entered wasn't the door to lead me outside, but a door that led me to a chapel of some sort. There were candles all around and there were even tiny pictures of people sitting up on a small table… Perhaps these were family members of the ballerinas that had died…
"Christine…"
When I heard Nadir's voice, I spun around to find him entering the chapel.
"Nadir, I can't stay here… That man you have me working for is a monster."
"I…I should have told him about you. That outburst was my fault, Christine. He's never had a maid before, and frankly, he's going to be quite upset about it."
"I'm going to leave… I don't belong here. And I don't want to work for that monster."
"Christine, he's truly not that bad once you get to know him. He has a temper, but deep down, his heart is in the right place. He built this very chapel so the staff has somewhere to pray for their loved ones. It's one of the many wonderful places in this opera house."
"It is beautiful," I said, taking a seat against one of the beautiful stained glass windows. "I…I guess I will stay, but only if he doesn't mind me working. I don't want to have another outburst like just now."
"Why don't you take off for the day and wander around the opera house? I'll go talk to the master…"
And with that, I nodded, knowing that I needed this job in order to survive, monster or not.
Erik's POV
I hated the world and its cruelty. When I was a child, I was abused beyond ones imagination. Many times by my own mother and then, even more by the gypsies, whose clutches I helplessly fell into. By the time I was able escape, my body had been damaged beyond anyone's wildest imagination. The world hated me because of my face, and I hated them right back… I found myself as the Shah's master mason in Persia, and sadly, the abuse didn't stop there. If it wasn't for Nadir saving my life, I would have died at the Shah's hands. So, to Paris I came, and now, I run an opera house. I wasn't quite sure at first about what I was going to do with the remainder of my pathetic life, but Nadir suggested that I design and build and opera house… I thought he was mad, but everything worked out. At first, I didn't think it was possible, but when it was finished, Nadir took over as the face of the Paris opera house. The man didn't know a damn thing about music and how to run an opera house, but with me standing behind him…now that was something. He had the handsome face and I had the brains. Whenever I needed something to be done, Nadir made sure that it happened. We actually made a pretty good team. I've run this opera house for ten years now…ten years and not a problem. That was until this morning. I had been working all night on my music and went to bed extremely late. Though, I woke to the sound of something breaking, only to find a whore in my room! How did she even get in?
I was just kneeling down to clean up the mess, when I heard Nadir's voice.
"Erik, we need to talk…"
"And so do we," I growled. "One of your ballerina whores have gotten into my room. I don't know if she wanted to steal from me or see my face, but either way, it's extremely unacceptable. You are supposed to be the one keeping those prying snakes under control down there! They are like mice, if you have one, you have an infestation! I don't need these animals coming up my stairs and prying in here to see my face!"
"Erik, that was not a ballerina. I hired that girl to be your new house maid."
"House maid? Have you gone mad?"
Nadir crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. "Your room is worse than the girl's quarter's downstairs. You need a housekeeper, Erik."
"I do not need a housekeeper, Persian! What I need is a piece of mind, and it's barely possible with you always prying in my life. I am the one who is supposed to be giving you orders. Now, enough with this foolishness. I don't want a housekeeper and that is final. I can clean myself."
"And that's the problem, Erik, you haven't cleaned in ten years. You bury yourself up here in your music and forget about life. If you can't stand to be away from that piano of yours, at least let me hire you a housekeeper. Besides, she has no place else to go."
"And you need to stop visiting that whorehouse so many times a month."
"Perhaps you should come with me every once in a while. A little relaxation would ease your mind from business."
Oh, Nadir knew how to get me riled up! He knew that no whore would take me, and yet, here he was badgering me in my own home about it.
"Fine! Hire the snake if you must, but she will not be my responsibility. Warn her that if I find anything missing, it shall be her head. And tell her to stay out of my bedroom until after eight."
"Do you wish to know her name?"
"No, I don't see why that would truly matter… I don't even want to know that she's here, and it better stay that way. Invisible and out of the way."
And with that being said, I hurried back into my bedroom to change in peace. Today was a busy day, for it was the season's opening night. There was much to be done, and I didn't have time to worry about a housekeeper or any other girl who wished to clean up my mess. I had bigger things to worry about, and one of those things was my leading lady…
Nadir's POV
"Again, Madame…"
I was standing near the orchestra pit of the stage, attempting to run through the entire opera before tonight. Though, with Carlotta being the leading lady, things weren't as easy as they sounded. She was not only very selfish and self centered, but also rude and cruel at the same time. Right now, she was going on about how much she hated her costume. Oh, it was a headache and a half…
"Khan, I hate my hat, and to top it all off, someone didn't make my dress the right size! It's too big!"
"Madame, I'm doing the best that I can to accommodate you with everything, but right now, we're on a tight schedule and need to finish running through this opera. Opening night is in a few hours and we really need to get this finished."
Oh, Erik didn't pay me enough to deal with the likes of her. I ran my fingers through my hair to stop the headache that was coming on.
"You expect me to sing when my costume does not fit, and my hat is horrible!"
"Madame…Please," I begged. "If you sing for me, I will talk to the costume designers about altering your dress before the show. Now please, sing the aria from act two."
"That is better…"
Finally… The woman finally took center stage and cleared her throat. When the music began, her voice filled the auditorium. I wasn't sure why the world loved this woman, for her voice wasn't anywhere near perfect, but as long as the patrons loved her, that was all that mattered. Though, the music suddenly came to an abrupt halt, when the backdrop came crashing down, and nearly landed on top of her.
"He's here, the Phantom of the Opera!"
The ballerinas quickly ran about screaming that nonsense! I looked up from where the backdrop had come down and saw a pair of familiar feet running away. Oh, what was I going to do with him?
"Madame, please…"
"Please? For the past five years this madness has been happening! But do you try to stop this from happening? No! I refuse to sing under these circumstances!"
"Madame, please, we need you! Who else but you will the patrons come to see? I will take care of this madness, I promise you."
"Just like you promised to fix my costume!"
"I promise, Madame… Just go and rest. Tonight is going to be a big night for you. Paris will be at your feet once again."
The diva seemed satisfied, and with that being said, I dismissed the crew. I had something that needed to be done, I needed to talk to this so called "Phantom of the Opera."
"Erik," I stood outside his bedroom door and knocked. Yes, the man didn't appreciate me walking into his home unannounced, but I didn't care. I was tired of this… Every week, something happens on stage and everyone blames it on the Phantom of the Opera. I wasn't sure what his motive was, but I was about to find out.
"Erik, you either open this door or I am coming in."
"Don't be so pushy, Khan!" I heard him growl from behind the door. "Can't a man get his trousers on?"
The man pulled his bedroom door open as he was adjusting the buttons of his trousers.
"Didn't you change this morning?" I snapped.
"Well, when I was writing, my container of ink spilled into my lap. Embarrassing, right?"
"Oh, extremely," I mocked. "Are you sure it wasn't something else that spilled on you? Perhaps some oil from the backdrop that you cut down? You nearly killed my diva?"
"Diva?" the man mocked. "That vial creature is no diva. She is merely a mirage of something that clearly isn't there. A diva? Don't make me laugh, Khan."
"You know, Erik, for the past five years this Phantom of the Opera has been terrorizing my staff, and I'm tired of it."
"Your staff? I believe you're wrong, Khan. They are my staff! I can do whatever I wish to my staff, including that vial creature that I didn't even want to hire."
"What was I to do, Erik? We needed a leading lady and she was the only one with somewhat of a voice. After our first diva retired, we had no replacement."
"And there hasn't been a voice good enough since," Erik growled. "No one was as good as Rose Whitmar. She was sweet and had a good heart. What happened, Khan? You went and hired Carlotta against my consent."
"Well, you're the boss, Erik. If you wish to fire her, then I'll do it. Just say the word."
"No, you couldn't fire her. That would make you look bad. It would put a bad taste in Paris's mouth. No, I'm hoping that this legend of the Phantom frightens her enough to leave."
"So, that's why you created this monster?" I replied. "To frighten Carlotta and the staff…"
"It keeps them in line, doesn't it? When they won't do something you want them to do, I frighten them. It changes their minds pretty fast."
"You're going to be discovered one day, Erik." I warned. "Eventually, someone is going to become curious and come snooping around."
"And you better not let that happen, Khan. Keep the staff in line, it's your job. Keep making them believe in the Phantom and warn them about what happens to those who come into contact with him. You know what I'm capable of."
I knew it all too well, and I feared for my staff.
"Good luck tonight, Erik," I said as I made my way to the door. "And tomorrow, try to be a little nicer to your housekeeper. She really is a sweet girl once you get to know her."
But Erik didn't answer me. There were very little times that he did… He was a man of solitude and mystery.
Ok, I decided to update right away... Next update will be in a few days. I'm glad that you're liking this story. Hope to keep my readers reading...
