Merry Christmas! I cot a new computer this week so I lost this chapter and I had to switch everything to Google Doc's, so sorry if my lay out is different.

Persia

Eric stepped cautiously into the bedroom; Rajja stirred but didn't wake up. Eric moved nervously to the opposite side of the bed and sat carefully his weight shifting the bed slightly.

Eric lay down stiffly, uneasy of the situation. He expected Rajja to move as far as possible from him but she didn't! Rajja rolled over and to his surprise wrapped her thin arm around him placing her hand on his chest. Eric couldn't breathe and tensed up. Rajja pulled herself closer to him he felt her hot breath on his neck, he wanted to turn his head and look at her sleeping form but he couldn't.

Eric lay awake till dawn she never stirred keeping her arm around him. Eric lay in the bed a little longer till she started groaning warning him that she was about to wake up. "Good morning Eric." She rubbed his chest warmly.

Eric leapt up quickly. "I'd better go."

Rajja sat up "Eric, please." She called before the door slammed.

Eric slowly walked towards the construction site thinking about all that had happened these last few nights. He was afraid of this new life, although he was free from the shah's cage he still felt like a slave.

Eric paused before he was in the courts. Reaching into his pocket he found a small pill, Eric stayed outside the castle grounds till he felt the drug kick in.

"Master Mason, The shah requests to see you immediately." Eric coked his head towards the voice, and glared at him.

"Why?" Eric growled bitterly. "He has a new job for you now come." Eric followed the man towards the golden castle door.

"Well Master Mason, it's a pleasure to see you." Eric bit his lip and gave a slight bow, "And I you." A smirk came to his face but quickly vanished.

The shah gave a quick motion in his hand. Eric turned his head to a bloody and bruised man, Eric felt sick whatever this man had planned he knew was no good.

"Mason kill this man." Eric's mask flashed up in fear. "What! No I will not!" another quick flash for the shahs hand came and before Eric could duck he felt A fist crashed towards his jaw knocking him to the ground.

Eric cursed at the man in French and rose up to his feet.

"You must have misunderstood me Monster, I said you WILL kill him, or you and your beautiful wife will have to pay."

Eric shook his head nervously. "I am no killer." The shah laughed "Your face would say otherwise." Two of the guards grabbed Eric pulling off his mask. "There now you look like a killer. Now choose your weapon."

Eric hesitated a crack stung his back, "Please don't make me," he cried. The shah screamed commanding another slash across his back.

Eric regained his senses, and moved slowly to the table with different torture devices. A thin rope caught his eye quick and painless. "Ah the Punjab Lasso, what a unique choice."

Silently Eric walked to the man, throwing the lasso towards the man with a quick crack of his wrist the man lay on the ground dead with a broken neck.

Eric looked down at his shaking hands, "I killed him."

"Yes you did Mason, bring in the others!" Eric ran over the shah and collapsed at his feet, "Please don't make me."

The shah motioned again as two guards grabbed Eric's white shirt and threw him away. "Give him a little fix." A thin needle was inserted into Eric arm as the unfamiliar drugs were pushed in.

Eric felt his entire body jolt "Now kill these men."

Eric didn't know why but within a moments time the necks of the new men the shah brought in were snapped.

"Now eric" The shah cooed at the unmasked man standing over the dead bodies. "Some people, the only thing there ever going to be good for is killing that's you." After the shah instructed Eric to come and be his personal killer every day Eric left.

Eric's home

"Eric tell me what is wrong" Rajja cried. Eric pulled his hands out of her grip, cursing in French. "What did he do to you?" Eric glared at the girl tears streaming down her cheeks, "please eric you can trust me." He shook his head, "Nothing happened, there were just a few men the shah wanted me to take care of." Rajja looked up in horror "You killed them?"

Eric moved over to a drawer in the kitchen and pulled out a bag of pills. "Please don't take those." She cried as he popped a few into his mouth. "I'm going out" Eric grumbled as he slammed the door.

Rajja looked around to make sure her husband was gone, grabbing the pills she walked out the back door and dumped them into the river.

Rajja darted back into the house, and sat down on the divan. "What is this man doing to you Eric?" She whispered to herself.

Rajja was asleep in the front room when she heard a fist pounding on the wooden door. "Eric!" she cried while she opened the door. Nadir stood in the doorway his lip bruised and bloody he was carrying Eric in his arms.

"What happened?"

Nadir shook his head "he had a little too much to drink and got a little rowdy he started picking on some of the men, Eric was too wasted even to stand so let's say the fight didn't go so well."

Rajja looked at eric who was lying passed out on the bed. "You can stay here tonight if you would like." Nadir nodded, "thank you, I wouldn't trust him when he wakes up."

Nadir looked worried, "What happened today?" nadir looked down, "he killed four men." Rajja nodded assuring Nadir that she had already known, "They drugged him the drug allows them to be easily brainwashed, the Shah convinced eric that he was a man only good for killing." Rajja gasped, "Get Eric out of Persia! He is going to lose himself here."

"I'm afraid he already has, the child I brought here would not have dared end like this." Rajja wiped a tear from her eye "I wish I knew that boy."

Nadir guided her out of the bedroom, "He needs to be loved and nurtured, Eric pretends he is a strong powerful man but he is not he has survived too much."

Rajja sat down, "does he love me?"

Nadir's jaw dropped, "I think he would if he actually knew you. Do you love him?"

"I want to." Nadir smiled and sat down next to her, "then show him that."

Paris Opera House

"Christine are you ok?" Meg asked Christine as she sat on her bed crying. Christine shook her head. "I cant do this." she cried. "You can't do what?"

"Everything! Everyone is expecting me to just keep going on with my life like my entire family has not just died."

Meg sat down and wrapped her arms around the fragile girl.

A man stumbled into the girls dressing room. "Joseph Buquet" Meg screamed at the drunken man, "get out of here." The dirty stagehand laughed at the girl, the smell of alcohol was on his breth.

He grabbed Meg and Christine who screamed and kicked. "Leave us you nasty dog!" Meg spat.

A harsh thump sounded throughout the room. "Buquet go now!"

Meg and Christine sighed, Madam Giry stood in the doorway her white hands gripping her cane.

"Thank you the two girls cried." Running over to the woman.

Persia

"Good morning Eric." Eric moned clutching his stomich looking quite pale. "Are you a little hung over?"

Eric glared "I'm fine daroga." eric spit at the man. Nadir laughed "I think he will be ok." Nadir told Rajja.

Nadir got up and left. "What was he doing here?" eric hissed. Rajja stood up, "He was helping me, I'm sorry but I don't fully trust you." Eric grabbed a cup of tea and sat down next to the table on the floor.

"And why is it that you don't trust me?" Rajja stood up and walked towards him "Because yesterday you killed four people, came home drugged and then left; your friend had to bring you home."

"You look cute when you are mad." Rajja gasped a flat palm came to his unmasked face.

Eric stood up, and grasped his wife. Don't ever touch me!

Please follow and review.