A/N: Bluebeauty, Megumisakura, Opinionated Hussie, irhmj.... You guys are the best. I thank you for each and every review. You are the reason I enjoy writing so much : )
XX
Chapter 6 - Decisions
The clock on her mantle proclaimed that it was 7:26 in large red letters. Even after a quick bath and a change of clothes, the morning still felt jarringly surreal. Nothing about last night seemed real to her anymore. Only the small brass key she clutched in her hand was substantial enough to prove that last night really happened. Erik existed.
Lana gave up on the idea of sleeping. She was much too excited to even consider making an attempt. Instead, she grabbed her keys and headed out the door. There were some things she had to find out, questions left unanswered. Bella was the only person Lana knew who could come close to answering. Even with her friend, however, she would have to keep last night's adventure a secret.
Reaching the street, she began the two mile trek to Bella's townhouse on the Rue St. Marie. Lana considered flagging down one of the brightly colored taxis, but she welcomed the walk. Maybe a little exercise in the fresh air would help clear her mind. It was a clear Saturday morning, still too early for most Parisians who had spent the night carousing. There were a few others here and there sharing the sun filled sidewalks with her.
Taking in a deep breath of air, Lana realized she felt better already. More in control. More like herself. Slowly, methodically she replayed the events of last night. When she remembered how Erik's hands encircled her waist, lifting her carefully to cradle her in his arms, Lana smiled, a flush growing in her cheeks.
She passed by the small cafe where met Bella for breakfast before practice during the week. Two elderly women sat together sipping tea, watching the pedestrians stroll by.
"Look Eloise," the lady whispered to her companion, slyly pointing at Lana when she passed by.
"Ah," the other lady sighed. "To be in love in Paris, Marie. If only we were young again."
Lana didn't notice their stares. Her mind was focused solely on Erik. She still couldn't understand why he fluctuated from tenderness to anger, one minute drawing her closer, the next shoving her away. The thing that bothered her the most, though, was how he somehow knew her first name. The mother she never knew had given her the name Christine because it was a family tradition. For generations, the first born daughter was given that name just as they were taught voice from an early age. Her father always said music was in the blood. Considering her family tree, he wasn't joking. Call it a need for originality, rebellion, a refusal to be bound by traditions - call it what you will, Lana refused to use the name. Even as a child, she insisted on using Alana - or Lana, if you will. When her mother found an early grave, her father was only too happy to use something other than his dead wife's name to call his daughter.
Could it possibly be coincidence that Erik said her name last night? Nothing concerning Erik seemed to be coincidence, Lana thought. She wasn't certain, but she intended to find out. Bella might just be the key to finding out.
Her legs began to ache, disgruntled at being forced to walk after spending a night exploring the theater's catacombs. She was relieve to see the high stone gate that led into Lana's town house. No one in the Deloitte powerful family had the faintest idea about poverty or even going without for that matter. Bella referred to the enormous house she shared with herself and three servants as her in town apartment. To the rest of the known world, this place was a palace.
Lana leapt up the front steps to ring the bell. The sound echoed with a hollow, resounding gong through the hallway. After only a few moments, the dour faced butler, an elderly servant named Remier, answered. He looked down his hawk beak nose at her, disdain clearly written on his wrinkled face. He moved to let her inside with obvious reluctance. She had been here several times before, so it's not like Remier didn't recognize her as Bella's friend. He simply didn't approve of his mistress mingling with such obvious commoners. "I believe my mistress is expecting you, I believe. Follow me, please."
Oh is she,
Lana thought in surprise. She almost said something, but thought better of it. Remier wouldnt' hesitate to toss her back out the door if he thought she didn't belong. She silently followed the elderly butler through the house. He led her into the back garden, Bella's favorite place to sunbathe. The garden terrace felt secluded, cut off completely from the outside world by it's high walls. As she suspected, Bella lay comfortably sprawled out on a low settee dressed in only a skimpy bathing suit. A slice of cucumber covered each eye. Renier slithered back inside, his duty - for the moment - completed.As soon as Bella heard Lana's approaching footsteps, she yanked off the cukes. "I was hoping you'd get my message and come see me this morning," she said with a carefree smile. She stood up so she could stretch. Yanking on a fluffy white terry cloth robe, she rushed forward to wrap her arms around Lana in a warm embrace.
"Umm, message?" Lana asked.
Bella rolled her eyes. "You didn't get my message? Lana, what's the point of having an answering machine if you're never going to bother listening to your messages? I could have been dying in a hospital bed, and you would have never known."
"Of course not. Your butler hates me, so he would never tell me which hospital to go to. Now are you going to tell me what the message was, or have you decided to punish me with suspense?"
Bella grinned, lighting her entire face with amusement. "I should punish you for that, but I'm too impatient to carry out the sentence. By the way, have you eaten?" She gestured towards a tempting buffet spread out on a nearby table laden with chilled fruits, dilled eggs, freshly baked pastries - enough food to feed a small army. The Deloitte family obviously spared no expense even when it came to breakfast. Lana tried to keep the idea of all that food going to waste from hurting her sensibilities.
"I ate before I came," Lana lied. She was much to out of sorts to try and eat and had no desire to let Bella mother her all morning. "Now are you going to talk to me or not."
Bella sat back down, gesturing for Lana to join her on one of the settees. Lana managed to keep from rolling her eyes in impatience and had to swallow back a sigh. She politely moved to sit across from Bella. Excitement was clearly written on the frenchie's face. It was easy to get swept up into her energy.
"After last night's little fiasco of ours, everyone at Mizerretti's was talking about you."
Fiasco...
Lana wondered.For a minute, she thought that Bella somehow knew about her meeting with the Opera ghost. Then it hit her. With all her worry over Erik, she had completely forgotten about her embarrassing on-stage clash with Marguerite. Lana gave a little inward groan."Everyone I talked to just knew you were going to get canned. I mean, Marguerite's such a stuck up bitch, she once asked for a stagehand's dismissal because he fetched her a cold bottle of water instead of a room temperature one." Bella spoke in a strange french-person-mocking-a-spaniard voice "Ze water ees too cold. 'ow can I drink zee water eef it freezes my precious vocal chords???"
Lana laughed appreciatively. "So everyone knew I was sunk then? I'm hoping we're speaking in the past tense, my dear?"
Bella nodded, her voice lowering theatrically. "I feared for a moment that all hope was lost. Then Louis stopped by."
Lana groaned. "This better not be another attempt at playing matchmaker, Bella."
Bella stiffened, the smile leaving her face. "I thought you might want to know whether or not you still have a job tonight, but I can see that I was wrong. It's obvious you would prefer finding out yourself tonight."
"I'm sorry, Bella," Lana tried to keep her quick temper in check. Her friend's theatrics seemed more than she could bear this morning. "I was only joking with you."
"I can't understand why you hate Louis so much, Lana. Especially considering everything he's done for you."
Lana sighed. Apparently her job was still secure, but now she wondered just how far in his debt she would be. "I don't hate him, I just don't know him. It takes time for me to warm up to some people." She thought of the way she had instantly trusted Erik, and again marveled. For her, trust almost never came easy.
"But you made friends just fine with me."
"Yes, but you're not a guy."
Bella nodded, point taken. "Well anyways - when Louis met me at La Mizeretti's, he told me everything. By the time he made it to the manager's office, Marguirette was already there. She was huffing and puffing about you, demanding that they dump you immediately. Louis walked right in and told them you were his personal friend. Robedoux and Chirac had already promised to give you the ax, but when they heard that they suddenly changed their minds. Marguerite was furious. You've made an enemy in that one, I'm sure of it. Not only did you thwart her will, she's been after Louis since she arrived in Paris."
"Why did he do that?" Lana wondered aloud. She would owe him alright. The thought of being in his debt was uncomfortable.
"Oh Lana, we're not going to have this conversation again are we? Anyways, the message that I left on your poor, unloved machine told you to get your butt over here, and that's all. I just wanted to get the chance to tell you all about Louis' heroics before he finds you."
"Before who finds me?" Lana asked suspiciously.
"Louis, darling," Bella shrieked, rising up from the settee, arms outstretched. She walked past Lana, wrapping her newest guest up in a welcoming hug. "Lana and I were just talking about you."
Lana stood up, every muscle in her body tense. She turned to face him, a small polite smile on her lips. Louis was as devastatingly handsome in the morning as he was at night, she was shocked to see. His hair was still tied back, but renegade locks had escaped, falling around his face. He wore a slim black coat that reached mid calf. Underneath, his light blue dress shirt was left haphazardly unbuttoned at his neck revealing just a peek of his sculpted chest. Although the clothes were plain, she could tell by the way they were expertly cut that they must be expensive. Somewhere along the line she managed to aquire some rather wealthy friends.
"Mademoiselle Lana," he whispered. Her name sounded so exotic coming from his lips. "I had hoped to find you here. You're not an easy woman to find." He gazed at her with his smoky gray eyes. Lana couldn't tear her eyes away from his. A sick, panicky feeling fluttered in her chest. Why the hell did she have to find this guy so attractive?
"Oh bullshit, Louis." Bella fluently threw in her favorite cussword. "She's either at her flat, the theater, or with me. I don't think you are looking hard enough"
"Hush Bella," Louis said with a smile, his eyes never leaving Lana. "She's not a recluse, are you my dear?"
"I guess that's up to interpretation. Compared to Bella, I'm practically a hermit." That particular comment earned a cry of protest from the frenchie.
"I like hermits." Louis took a step towards her. "But how about we both prove Bella wrong. Come out of your little shell and go to dinner with me after tomorrow night's performance."
Lana's heart sank. It was a bizarre world she lived in when you get bent out of shape because a rich, powerful, sex god asks you to dinner. "I appreciate the offer, but..."
Louis took another step forward. "I'm not asking you to one of Bella's obnoxious parties. Simply a private dinner alone with me. There's this place nearby that plays live jazz - good food, great music. It's only a little supper, Lana. No strings attached."
"Really, I can't..."
He folded his hands into a steeple, bringing them to his lips. "Can't or won't? Give me one good reason for you to not join me tomorrow, and I'll leave you alone. Otherwise, say yes." He wasn't going to let her off the hook, and she knew it.
Lana bit her lip. She had a thousand good reasons why not to go with this guy tonight. Damn her clumsiness. If it wasn't for her own screw up she wouldn't have needed Louis to come to the rescue in the first place.
He was still looking at her, watching intently. "Is the idea of spending an evening with me so unpleasant for you, Lana?" he murmured.
In the corner, Bella held her breath, watching the exchange. They were standing close enough to touch if either wished to. She could feel the tension building, unsure of why her friend so adamantly refused his company. Could she be so conceited? Ah well, she decided, the girl is an American after all. God only know what goes on in their heads.
"No, it isn't," Lana sighed softly. "It isn't unpleasant at all. I've been rude to you again, haven't I?"
"Just say yes and all is forgotten."
She looked into his eyes and saw those of another. Lana remembered the way the light had picked up the golden flecks in Erik's amber eyes. How it felt when he first touched her hand. To say yes felt like a betrayal, but how could she say no? The feeling of an actress without a script came back. All of her life, Lana had been a loner. She never needed much more than her father, a select few friends, and of course, her music. She had only known these strange men for a matter of days. It was scary how strong her emotions towards them had become.
Betrayal was crazy. How could she betray a man who pushed her so far away? He had never once shown her any interest in being something other than teacher. Besides, it was just dinner after all.
"Alright," she whispered without realizing she had spoken.
Louis' smile lit up his whole face making him even more handsome, if that was possible. The look of triumph in his eyes unmistakable. Only then did he look away from Lana. Turning, he took Bella's hands into her own, kissing her open palms. "Bella my lovely chit, I have to be off now."
"Oh Louis," Bella whined, "you only just arrived."
"Yes, but we children of the night have to sleep sometimes." He released her hands. Next to him, the diminutive ballerina looked like a small child. Louis turned again to face Lana. "I'll meet you at your dressing room tomorrow night. Be ready for me?"
It was too late to pull out now. She nodded in agreement. Without another word, Louis turned and left.
Bella moved to stand beside Lana, placing a friendly hand on her shoulder. "Oh Lovely, for a moment there I thought you were going to tell him no."
"I did say no," she muttered.
"Yeah, but you didn't mean it, did you? Otherwise, you wouldn't have said yes."
Lana bit back the angry words that crept into her mouth. She was furious, yes - but not entirely at Bella. Getting backed into a corner was too hard for her temper to bear. She fought back, though. No matter how mad she was, Lana couldn't forget the real reason she came here today.
"Is your offer of breakfast still open?"
Bella nodded. "Gosh yes. I'm starving. I didn't think you had really eaten either. You said yes much to quickly for that." A sly grin crept across her angelic features.
"Liar liar pants on fire, right? Can I be forgiven enough to get a croissant?"
"Yes, but only one." Grinning, Bella handed her a plate.
The last thing Lana wanted to do was eat right now. She just didn't see any way around it. There were questions she wanted to ask. The only way to change the current mood right now was to add some diversion. From the tantalizing table of food, she selected a couple of generous, ripe strawberries and what looked like a blueberry muffin. Bella helped herself to the eggs. Once their plates were full, the girls sat back down at a small table nearby.
Lana loved Bella's sense of style. The chairs were iron wrought with intricate designs. At first glance, they looked as if they would be much more elegant than comfortable. Anyone sitting in them would disagree. The thick cushions padded comfortably, while the gentle curving iron cradled the back. Lana didn't want to think about what a little custom creation like this must cost.
While they ate, Bella chatted about the other girls in the corps d'ballet - gossip was Bella's number one favorite topic of conversation. Lana nodded her head, murmuring appreciatively now and then, but her mind was else where. As soon as she felt that it was safe to steer the conversation, she spoke.
"I had a dream last night. It was pretty strange. Remember the story you told me the other day about the ghost?"
"Lana, please tell me you're not still obsessed with that."
"I'm not," she said honestly. Since there was no g host to be obsessed about, that was true. "I was actually dreaming about the girl - the opera singer who tricked the ghost."
"Hmm..." Bella murmured, her brow still knitted together in disapproval.
"It's kinda funny, but I've forgotten her name. What did you say her name was?"
"I didn't because I don't know. No one knows who the girl was, Lana. It's been over a hundred years, now."
"But you said she disappeared. Surely even back then there would have been some sort of investigation."
"Hmm," Bella sighed. For the moment, that look of irritation was replaced by honest curiosity. "Even if there was an investigation, they never made their finding public. No one knows who the girl was anymore."
"Surely it has to be somewhere."
Bella's eyes suddenly lit up. "I've got an idea. We could check the archives of Societe"
"Is that some kind of newspaper?"
"Well, not really," Bella looked almost embarrassed. "It's a gossip column."
"Bella," Lana groaned, disappointed. For a moment there, she thought she might be on to something. The last place she planned on looking was the french version of the National Enquirer.
"Look, she was an opera singer, right? An on again/off again prima donna. If she would have made headlines, it would show up in Societe. Plus, they've been in print for over one hundred and fifty years. They used to keep their old issues on microfiche, but they've recently gone high tech and put an archive up on the web."
Lana shook her head in disbelief. "We're talking about a gossip column here. Why one God's green earth would anyone care about what a gossip column had to say in the 1850's?"
Bella shrugged. "American's have their Wall Street Journal. In Paris, we have our gossip."
"Do you know how I can get my hands on a computer?"
"Of course. We can use one of mine. After breakfast of course."
XX
As ditzy as Bella could sometimes be, she was still fairly computer literate. Or perhaps she was just on good terms with the gossip column's website. Whatever the reason, it didn't take too long to find what they were looking for.
...Have Firmin and Andre tricked all of Paris in a new scheme for advertisement? This very night, in front of my very eyes, Christine Daae disappeared from the stage. She gave the performance of a lifetime - her very voice a triumph for musicians everywhere. Rumors are flying as to who actually caused the disappearance. Perhaps her lover, the Viscount de Chagny, has finally decided to elope, stealing her away from the eyes of his brother, the Count.
There was more, but Lana had already seen enough.
...Christine Daae...
"No wonder," she whispered to herself.
"What did you say," Bella asked good naturedly.
Lana shook her head, her face growing ashen. "Nothing. Nothing at all."
She stood, moving away from the computer. They were in Bella's library - a comfortable room full of book cases reaching from floor to ceiling. Comfortable leather furniture was arranged in front of the fireplace.
"Lana, are you alright?"
"Yes, I'm fine." She tried to smile. "I'm just tired. It's been a long morning already."
"Would you like to lay down? I can call for Remier..."
"No, really Bella. I'm alright. I just need to head home and catch a nap."
Bella shrugged. "If you say so... Can I at least give you a lift?"
Lana smiled for real this time. "I think the walk will do me good." After a quick hug and a promise to meet for a late breakfast tomorrow, Lana headed for the street.
XX
A/N: Bad news, guys. I've had a death in my family, so the next chappie might be a few days. Please don't give up on the story : )
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