Finally a new chapter! I tried to put in a little bit for everybody this time: some story development as well as some fluff. I hope you will like it. Please continue with your reviews, I love all your comments!
Of course I still do not own anything or anybody, just to make sure.
Chapter 13 – De Chagny Family
As soon as the funeral was over, Christine, flanked by Mme. Giry and Meg on either side, turned to make her way back to the carriage driven by Nadir, when suddenly the old Comte addressed her. "Madame," his voice was as cold as ice and dripping with contempt, "are you not coming home with us?" Christine stiffened, her hand reaching for Mme. Giry's for support. The former ballet mistress smiled at her encouragingly and pressed her hand to reassure her.
Christine took a deep breath and faced her father-in-law. "Monsieur le Comte," she looked the old man straight in the eyes. "As I have mentioned before, my carriage was attacked by people who knew it was me. This was no random attack, it was directed at me personally. I was the targeted victim. The only explanation I have for this is that somebody wishes me dead. Me and my child," she added. "Therefore I can trust no one. The people responsible for this attack have not been found and brought to justice yet. My baby and I are still at risk. If I am to return to the de Chagny mansion with you, you must therefore allow that I bring Mme. Giry and her daughter with me. I need people around me that I can trust. Servants that may do whatever the highest bidder tells them to do, do not fit that bill. My surrogate mother and sister, however, do. If I can have them around me instead of maids, I will come with you."
The old Comte was seething with fury. He would have loved telling this insolent comedian to get lost, but of course he could not do so in front of all the onlookers. He could not allow her to go with these blasted commoner-women either, because in doing so he would expose his own family to gossip. It was bad enough that she had insinuated that somebody had tried to get rid of her and the child she was carrying. There really was only one thing he could do, give in and allow her to bring the old wench and her hussy of a daughter with her. He had to publicly demonstrate that he was treating his pitiful excuse of a daughter-in-law well, paying attention to her concerns, if he wanted to steer suspicion away from his family. The suspicion that it had been them trying to get rid of her.
The Comte de Chagny gave his son's widow a brief, arrogant nod. "As you wish, Madame," he hissed at her through clenched teeth. "The two ladies may accompany you and wait on you, you will not have to deal with our servants that you deem so untrustworthy." Christine smiled at him warmly. That had gone better than expected and she really was grateful that she could bring Mme. Giry and Meg with her. One of her biggest fears over the past few days had been that she would be pretty helpless during childbirth and a few days after that, and that Erik and his two friends would not really be able to protect her well enough during that time. After all, none of the men could be in the room with her at these times, when she, and the newborn baby would be at their most vulnerable. Mme. Giry, on the other hand, could. An older woman might even be allowed to stay with her during the actual birth process, thus making sure she would not be at the mercy of a doctor or midwife whom she did not trust.
"Thank you, Monsieur le Comte," Christine uttered politely. "I am much obliged. We will follow your carriage and return to the de Chagny mansion with you." With these words, the three women headed towards the carriage they had arrived in and let Nadir help them into it, while the Comte steered his wife and Théophile-Auguste to the other vehicle.
Xxxx
Once they arrived at the de Chagny mansion, Christine headed for her old room, the Girys in tow. The Comte had given orders that the bedrooms next to his daughter-in-law's should be prepared for her two companions and Nadir was asked to return to the Girys' home and bring a few bags that they had already packed in the hope that they would be allowed to stay with Christine.
Christine was exhausted after the double emotional strain the funeral and the confrontation with the old Comte had put on her, and Mme. Giry insisted that she go to bed immediately and rest some more. Christine was not sure she would be able to sleep. Being back in the room where she had lived with Raoul, lying in the very bed in which her baby had been conceived, brought back lots of memories, not all of them good. She was nervous and subject to anxiety attacks, knowing that Théophile-Auguste was staying under the same roof.
Mme. Giry tried her best to calm her down, reminding her that he baby needed her to remain strong and to relax. Christine finally promised she would try to get some sleep, but only if Mme. Giry stayed with her. The older woman pulled up a chair next to Christine's bed and sat down. Christine sighed contentedly and obediently closed her eyes to try and rest. Mme. Giry looked at her and smiled inwardly. She knew exactly what Christine needed and she had made sure the remedy would be near-by. After all, Christine had told her that one of her favorite places at the de Chagny mansion was the large rosarium. She would take Christine there in the afternoon, or better yet, early evening, when it was about to get dark. And she knew who would be there waiting for them. She congratulated herself on the ingenious idea of slipping a small note to Nadir when she had openly handed him the keys for her house so that he could go and fetch her and Meg's bags for them. She knew that Nadir would pass the note to Erik immediately, probably even before going to her house. The note read:
"Meet me and Christine at the rosarium at the de Chagny mansion this afternoon. She needs you."
Xxxx
The moment he had seen to it that his daughter-in-law, who had returned at the most inconvenient time, was shown to her quarters and her two theater friends were taken care of as well, the Comte ordered Théophile-Auguste into his study. The younger man was a bit uncomfortable, especially when he noticed his uncle's mood. He had an inkling he would not enjoy this conversation.
"Is it true?" the old Comte roared at the unsuspecting relative the moment the doors had closed behind them. "Is it true that she was attacked? I thought it was an accident! How come she can go around and say things like this in public?" Théophile-Auguste's face turned a deep purple. He was just as furious as the Comte. "Would you ask me this if the attack had been successful?" he asked, his voice trembling with barely suppressed fury. "Would you really have minded never seeing that wench again?"
The elder man looked at him, speechless. "So she was right," he hissed at his potential successor. "You were trying to get her and the child out of the way. What on earth were you thinking? We de Chagnys are no murderers!" He looked at the younger man with contempt.
"Don't play the virtuous card with me, cher oncle," Théophile-Auguste retorted. "We both know that she has to go. Even Raoul was beginning to regret having married one such as her. And we don't need her bastard either, " he added. "Or do you really think the child she is carrying is his?"
The old Comte faced his nephew. "You are right that there is no room for her here. We do not need a lose woman in our family. But we do not need a murderer either. By trying to have her killed you have dishonored our name just as much as Raoul did when he married her against my will." Théophile-Auguste shivered when he noticed the hidden threat in the old man's voice. The Comte continued, "There are other ways to get rid of her. Ways that will not further dishonor our family. We could for instance marry her off and pay her to leave the country with her new husband. I am sure there are men who will not mind marrying one of her doubtful morals if she has some dowry."
Théophile-Auguste nodded. It probably would not even take a big dowry to find her a new husband, his cousin's widow was certainly beautiful enough to appeal to a man's senses. He once again wondered how it might feel to drag her into his own bed, to rip her clothes off her and force himself onto her, to let her feel his power over her. Would she be scared and fight him or would she enjoy it and put up a fight only for show, to give him the feeling that he had won an important battle? After all, he remembered the rumors about her first lover, the murderous beast who had terrorized the managers of the Opera Populaire and caused the fire that had destroyed the Opera. With a lover like that, she must be used to rough treatment, probably had learned to enjoy more violent sexual practices. A lecherous grin spread across his face. If he had met her under different circumstances, he certainly would not have thought of killing her. A woman with her looks and a past that seemed to indicate she might be able to fulfill the most sadistic man's sexual desires would make a great mistress, indeed.
The old Comte's voice brought Théophile-Auguste back from his voluptuous dreams of what he would like to do with his cousin's widow. "Do you understand?" the old Comte rasped. "Am I making this clear?" Théophile-Auguste had no idea what his uncle was talking about. He realized he had not been listening for several minutes. "Excuse me, mon oncle," he mumbled contritely. "My mind has been wandering. What was it you just said to me? Would you kindly repeat it?"
The Comte de Chagny gave his young relative a furious look. "I said no more attacks on her. After the sensation she caused on the cemetery this morning with her accusations, we cannot afford any more scandal involving this woman. You will leave her alone, or I will myself see to it that the authorities learn more about a certain attack on my son's widow. As I said, I do not need a murderer in my house any more than I need that whore. Is that clear?"
Théophile-Auguste nodded. "Of course, mon oncle. I would not dream of attacking her. In fact, I did not do so." The old man scrutinized his nephew's face. "So you paid murderers to do the dirty work for you. That's even worse, because it shows your lack of courage," his voice was dripping with contempt. "Anyway," he continued, "you will leave the wench alone. Should she give birth to a girl you will be the new Vicomte anyway, no matter whether her child is legitimate or not. In that case I will give her a dowry for her and one for her daughter under the condition that they leave Paris at once so that we may never see either one of them again. Should her child be a boy, it depends. If it is clear the child is a bastard, we can throw her out as a proven adulteress and she will get no money from us at all. But in the unlikely case that she has a son who bears the de Chagny features, I swear to you, that in this unlikely case my grandson will be the new Vicomte and I will find a way to protect my progeny. As to the woman… I will still give her a dowry and marry her off as quickly as possible, making sure she leaves Paris at once, without the child."
Théophile-Auguste gritted his teeth. He knew he had lost. He had to give in and do as asked by his uncle. After all, he needed to remain in the old man's good graces, since he once again needed money and his other sources had all run dry long ago.
Xxxx
It was late afternoon, when Christine woke up. She felt a bit better, though the thought of going down and meeting her in-laws and that terrible Théophile-Auguste at dinner made her feel queasy. Mme. Giry nodded in understanding. No, a stiff dinner in a hostile atmosphere, where several courses of rich food were served, was not right for a woman eight months pregnant. "You do need to eat, though," she told Christine, "the baby needs nourishment. But we can ask for a light meal to be brought to your room. And in order for you to gain some appetite," she added slyly, "why don't we go out in the garden for a while? The fresh air will do you a lot of good."
Christine was not sure she wanted to go out, but Meg, who was dying to see a bit of the beautiful garden, joined her mother's pleas and finally convinced Christine that it was a good thing to go for a short walk.
Once in the garden the three ladies wandered around aimlessly for a few minutes, before Mme. Giry pretended to remember the rosarium. "Oh Christine," she suddenly exclaimed. "Isn't there a beautiful rosarium somewhere? I think you once told me it was your favorite place here at the de Chagny estate?" Christine blushed. She had indeed mentioned to her surrogate mother how much she loved the beauty of this particular part of the garden. Yes, she preferred the rosarium to the rest of the garden, because she loved roses. All of them, the white ones, the yellow ones, the light pink colored ones, but her favorite ones were the deep red ones – the kind of roses her Angel used to send her to her dressing room. She realized only now that she had loved the de Chagny roses for that very reason. Even though she had blocked every memory of her Angel from her mind when she had lived here with Raoul, deep down, in her subconscious, these roses had reminded her of her Angel and had made her feel at home.
Christine pointed to their right. "The roses are over there," she explained. "At this time of the year they should be in full bloom." Mme. Giry seemed enthusiastic. "How wonderful, let's have a look!" she suggested, urging Christine and Meg in the direction of the rosarium. She had noticed Christine's blush and was fairly certain she knew what the young woman was thinking. "You do like roses very much, don't you?" she probed a bit further, once they approached the rosebushes. Christine sighed. There was no point in denying it. "Yes, I have always loved them, which is why my Angel… Erik… used to send me roses at the Opera Populaire." Tears were suddenly streaming down her face. She missed Erik terribly. She had not seen him since he had brought her to the Girys, except for a brief glimpse at the cemetery this morning. Mme. Giry put her arms around the sobbing young woman. She knew Christine would be smiling soon, since she had spotted a cloaked shadow between the bushes. "Now, now, Christine," she tried to calm her surrogate daughter. "You miss Erik, don't you?" Christine nodded, still sobbing. "Ssh," Mme. Giry whispered. "Promise me not to scream, just remain silent, will you?" Christine nodded again. "Then turn around," Mme. Giry advised, "he is waiting for you."
Christine turned around and saw Erik step out of the shadow. A big smile spread across her face and her eyes sparkled. "Angel," she whispered, "I missed you so much!" Erik just opened his arms and pulled her close. "Don't cry, Christine," he murmured. "I am here. I promised we would see each other again soon, and I am keeping my promise."
Mme. Giry was satisfied with her work. Her two protégés obviously needed nothing and nobody except each other. "I will leave the two of you alone for a few minutes," she explained. "After all, good friends like the two of you are, don't need a chaperon. I realize that you need to talk, but make it short. We do not want anybody to come looking for us here, Christine, or do we?" Christine shook her head. "I know that Erik should not be seen here. We will be careful," she promised.
Mme. Giry dragged Meg a few steps away to give the young couple some privacy. Once they were alone, Erik's long fingers gingerly reached for Christine's cheeks, drying her tears. "Do not cry," he repeated. "I am here with you, and in my thoughts I am always with you, even when we do not see each other. Remember that and draw strength from this knowledge, when the de Chagnys treat you poorly." Christine smiled at him. He had not forgotten his promise, he was here with her. He was not just her protector, her bodyguard, he was also her friend. He knew that she needed his presence, that she needed the physical contact after having been alone and abandoned for so long, and he had come to give her just that. "I saw you this morning at the cemetery," Erik continued. "You were fabulous when you confronted the old Comte. I was proud of you." Christine beamed. Her Angel was proud of her. What more could she wish for?
"Will you come here every evening?" she asked him. "Can we meet here regularly?" Erik shook his head. "While I will be standing watch here regularly, mostly at night, it will not be possible for us to meet every day. And most importantly, we cannot always meet in the same place. If we did, we would draw somebody's attention. We have to come up with different times and different meeting places, sometimes I will not be able to see you for a few days, but you must always know that I am near and that my friends and I are watching over you and protecting you. Even when you cannot see us." Erik's voice trembled. He had put all his love into these words to reassure the shaking woman in his arms. As much as he loved her and as much as he desired her and longed for her love in return, when she was lying in his arms so trustingly and when he could sense all her insecurity and fear because of her current situation, he always managed to put her needs first. He knew that his own problems, his longing for her, his physical desire for her, could wait. He had to help her out of her dilemma first, and then… he would have to accept that all she felt for him was friendship, but he would be dealing with that blow when it was time. Right now, all that mattered was Christine's safety and well-being. He pulled her close once more, then he whispered into her ear, "I have to go now. Till next time. Remember, I am always near, I am always with you, even when you do not see me."
His arms released her and he disappeared into the shadow. Christine turned around and faced Mme. Giry. "Did you know..?" The older woman smiled. "Of course. I have to make sure you are relaxed and feeling well, for the sake of your baby. And I know that Erik is one of your best friends and important to you. So I let him know where he could find us this evening." Christine hugged her. "Thank you so much. He really is my very best friend in the world. I hurt him so badly, and despite all he is still loyal to me." Mme. Giry nodded. "I know, child, I know. You mean a lot to him as well, but you know that anyway. I realize you are in some trouble here and it will take a while till all the problems with your in-laws will have been sorted out, but with Erik by your side, I have no fear. All will end well." Christine smiled at her. She hoped so much that Mme. Giry was right and that all would end well. Little did she know that Mme. Giry was not exclusively thinking about her troubles with the de Chagny family, but about the relationship between her and her Angel...