I do not own any of the characters from The Phantom of the Opera, although I do rather enjoy borrowing them from time to time.
ToryD
Broken Sparrow
Chapter 14
Erik inhaled sharply as he felt Christine's pain fill his being. He silently cursed Buquet for all of the torments he had rained upon Christine. He silently cursed Agent Marchino for doing his duty, which brought anew the devastating events of three weeks ago. Finally, he cursed himself. He cursed himself for failing to prevent her pain. He cursed himself for failing to spare her the anguish that she was forced to relive. He cursed himself for all that he could do for her, was to sit at her side and simply hold her hand.
Erik cleared his throat, breaking the silence that had held the room in its oppressive grip. "Meg, would you please take Christine to her suite?" he asked the petite young woman whose eyes held a sorrow that relayed her concerned feelings for the shattered woman seated at Erik's side.
Meg looked into Erik's eyes and saw his silent plea to call upon the courage and strength that he knew she possessed within her soul. Meg squared her shoulders and stood to cross to Christine's side. "Christine," she called softly. "Let's go upstairs." She said simply as she took Christine's free hand in hers and gently pulled her to her feet.
Christine emerged from her tortured thoughts to find herself seeking Erik. Erik, who was her strength. Erik, who was her courage. Erik, who was her angel. As her eyes connected with his concerned-filled blue green eyes, she felt his strength transfer into her soul, giving her the courage to offer him a sad smile.
Erik felt his heart swell with pride at the courage she demonstrated. He marveled at the astonishing beauty she possessed, in not only the esthetic sense, but also radiating from within her very soul.
The last words that Christine's father spoke came sharply into his thoughts. I am so proud of the beautiful and caring woman you have become, never change my Chrissie never change. Erik made a solemn vow to the man who so eloquently described the beautiful woman who stood before him. If it takes the rest of my lifetime. If it costs me all that I own. If it takes fighting the all of the demons from Hell. I will promise you this Mr. Daae. I will ensure that your beautiful Chrissie will not change from the caring woman you were so privileged to know, this I swear to you, this I swear on my very life.
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Daniel sat quietly as he watched the two women exit the room. His eyes reflecting his inner turmoil at the unforgivable pain he had inflicted upon the young woman who had suffered so much. He could not meet the eyes of the other men within the room, so was his self-loathing that he denied himself that right.
Erik crossed to the bar and poured four tumblers of his 27-year-old scotch, turning to hand each man a drink. He ignored the softly spoken refusal of the Agent and pushed the glass into his hand. Erik seeing that the Agent Marchino was deep in the throes of self-incrimination, he had not the heart to heap his anger at the man who had caused the renewal of Christine's pain. Sinking into his seat once again, he began the discussion of Joseph Buquet.
"Agent Marchino, I take it that now that you have confirmation from Christine that you are now certain that Buquet is still trying to connect with her." Erik said as more of a statement of fact rather than in the form of a question.
Daniel rubbed his tired eyes, sighing deeply he said, "Please call me Daniel, and yes I am afraid that the preliminary profile that we have compiled on Buquet as of yet, is that he is obsessed with Ms. Daae. He is the classic example of a sociopath. He will never stop stalking her every move, even when we catch him and put him away, the single motivation of his existence is the uniting of his soul to Ms. Daae." Agent Marchino leaned back in his chair as he continued with his professional assessment. "He cares little for the welfare of others, he only sees them as a means to an end. Either they will help him get closer to his goal, or they will offer the threat of hindrance, as to which he will dispose of them as if they were yesterdays garbage. He will never stop, for failure is not an option in his demented mind."
Erik felt a chill pass over him as Daniel related his opinion on the complexities of the man they were all fighting against. "Daniel, the one and only concern that I have is for Christine's welfare. She has endured enough without having to face the possibility of Buquet reentering her life." Erik said in a quiet tone. "I will cooperate fully with the FBI as long as we are all working towards the only goal that is to be considered, the goal to keep Christine safe." Erik finished his statement with a slight steely edge to his voice, communicating his unmovable position in the protection of Christine.
"I understand Mr. Destler, but as I am sure you are aware, the sooner we catch Buquet the sooner Ms. Daae can live her life without the constant fear." Daniel informed the strange man seated across from him. "I have a copy of the email that Joseph sent to the National News dot com website." Reaching into his briefcase, he passed a copy of the email to each of the men. "They will be publishing it tomorrow." He said as each man looked down and began to read.
My Dearest Christine,
Please forgive my lack of attention to you over these last few weeks. I want to assure you that the email that was previously posted on this very site was that of an imposter. As I am aware, you may be a little leery of believing that this email is from your Joseph, so I have included only something that we two would share the knowledge of. My beautiful Christine, I have included the words your father spoke that night when he tried to keep us apart.
I'm so proud of you, Chrissie. Know this sweetheart that no matter what happens, we all love you, and we will always be with you. I am so proud of the beautiful and caring woman you have become, never change my Chrissie never change.
So my love, you now know that it is your Joseph who is writing to you. Please be patient darling, as I promise you that we will be together soon. I have all of our future plans mapped out. Just a little longer sweetheart, just a little longer.
Love your Joseph
Erik tensed as he read the vows of twisted love to his very own Christine. An overwhelming fear invading his body, creating the unbearable panic that was like a vise, taking an unyielding hold upon his heart. "Brad I want the security team to be doubled. I want you to find some type of personal alarm device that Christine will have on her person at all times. I want to know of her whereabouts at all times." He barked his orders sharply at the younger man.
Nadir watched his friend with sympathy. For all of the years that he and Erik had been in each other's lives, he had never seen his friend in such a state of terror. Terror not for himself, but terror for the beautiful woman who was for now, safely housed upstairs.
Brad was shocked to see his employer in such an uncharacteristic condition, "Yes sir I will see to it." He said as he looked into the tense face of his employer.
Daniel realized that in view of the recent statement from Mr. Destler that the conversation regarding the trapping of Buquet would best be made at a later date. It would appear to be in everyone's best interest to end today's meeting. Rising to his feet, Daniel signaled an end to the meeting.
"Gentlemen, I want to thank you for your cooperation. I will be in touch with you tomorrow Mr. Kahn. Daniel said to the group of men within the room.
Brad rose as well and said, "I'll see you out."
Nadir looked to his friend noting the distressed look that had taken up residence on his face. "Erik, we are doing everything possible to ensure Christine's safety. There is no way that Buquet can get her here. You need to relax. You can't let Christine pick up on your fear for her safety. You are her lifeline right now, she needs you to be strong for her." Nadir informed his friend with sincerity.
Erik looked up into the concerned eyes of his long time friend. Smiling Erik said, "Thank you Nadir, of course as always you are the voice of reason." He paused as he rose from his leather chair. "I am going to go check on Christine. Can you assist Brad in the updates to the security that I mentioned?" He questioned.
Nadir simply nodded.
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A/N Sorry for such a short chapter, I know I promised E/C and Evil Carla, and Meg's chase of poor Daniel, but it will definitely be in the next extra long chapter. Hey, a great big thank you for pushing me past the 100-review mark! How cool is that! Everyone please, please, please review. Thanks!