A/N: Hi everyone! I won't keep you long for this one, but thank you everyone for reading and reviewing! Enjoy! Don't forget to review!

Chapter 26

Christine returned home, but not to stay. Meg's behavior was… off and something didn't sit right with her. It could have been nothing, but she wasn't going to take another chance if she could help it.

Moving with lightning speed, Christine packed a bag with a couple of outfits, her hairbrush, toothbrush, some toiletries, cat food, and treats. The last item to grab was Van Helsing.

While she was doing this, Christine was careful not to make eye contact with the other apartment. Even though the curtains were closed, she still couldn't get over the feeling she was being watched and chills crawled down her spine.

The sooner she left, the better she would feel.

xxXXxx

The sharp pounding woke Raoul.

Groaning, he rolled over to check the time and cursed. He had only been asleep for about five minutes. The knocking continued and Raoul rolled to his feet and reached for his gun on his nightstand. He checked the chamber to see if it was loaded and went out.

Of course, the last person he expected to be on the other side of his door was standing there.

"Christine!" he exclaimed, throwing open the door. "What the—?"

"I didn't know where else to go and…" Her voice trailed off as she settled her gaze on the gun in his hand.

Raoul saw where she was looking, and cheeks reddened, he put the pistol in the band of his pants. "Sorry about that. It's best to be careful and everything."

"Yeah," she said, agreeing.

He took a step back. "Come on in. Let me help you with that." Raoul took her bag from her shoulder as she was busy holding onto Van Helsing. Once they were inside, he checked the hall to see if the coast was clear before closing and locking the door.

Christine turned around and smiled gratefully at him. "Thank you Raoul. If you said no, I would have understood."

"Don't think that. Never," he told her. "You know you're always welcome. Have to admit, though, I am surprised to find you at my doorstep."

She laughed with a bit of an ironic edge to it. "Life is full of surprises it turns out to be."

He led her over to the couch as she sat down and let Van Helsing go. The cat leapt from her grasp and began to roam around the apartment. Raoul shook his head and took a seat across her in his chair and set her bag down next to his feet. He also took the gun and set it on the coffee table.

"You want to tell me what happened?"

Christine looked at him and he could see the exhaustion that was creeping up on her. "I'm sorry Raoul. I need to get some rest first. I will tell you everything tomorrow, I promise. I need… I need a break. Once I get some sleep, I'll be able to think clearly."

Raoul nodded understandingly. "Sure, of course. You can take my bed. I'll get the couch."

Christine arched her brow. "Raoul, no… I couldn't—"

"Don't argue." He held his hand up. "Take it. You looked like you've been to Hell and back. I'm good out here."

She gave him an appreciative smile. "Thank you again Raoul. This means a lot to me. It does. Night."

She went over and scooped up Van Helsing before exiting to the bedroom. Once the door was closed, Raoul noticed she forgot her bag. He lifted it and went over and softly tapped on the door. He couldn't hear a response, and chancing that she may not mind, he carefully opened the door to find Christine was already out cold.

I guess the trip to Hell and back was literally, he thought and set the bag down by his dresser. He gave her one last fleeting look before he left the room.

Walking back to the couch, Raoul made sure his weapon was in arm's length before he laid his head on the armrest and promptly fell asleep.

xxXXxx

The next morning Christine woke feeling wretched than ever. Even though she was out once her head touched the pillow, she had a hard time staying asleep the whole night. Several times she woke up in a furious sweat every time she heard a sound.

She was half-expecting to wake and find Erik standing in the corner of the room. She would then remember that Erik probably needed an invitation to come in, and Raoul was not offering one that much was obvious. And thinking of Raoul, she knew he was out in the living room with his gun and that made her feel safe. She didn't know if the bullets would harm Erik, but the idea gave her a peace enough mind to allow her to fall back asleep.

Until she heard another creak or groan.

Sighing, she laid back on the pillow as Van Helsing stretched and burrowed his head into her side as he slept. He was the lucky one who was not aware of the danger that was going on and she was jealous he could sleep peacefully.

Damn cat, she thought.

She stared up at the ceiling and knew she had been fortunate that Raoul allowed them to spend the night. She didn't want to assume he would, not after the arguments they had the past couple of weeks. But one thing that was for certain was Raoul was a gentleman. Whether it was honor or the right thing to do, Raoul did let her and Van Helsing stay and she wasn't sure how she could ever repay him for that act of kindness.

Christine knew Raoul would want to know the truth and she was dreading the moment it was coming. Not only because she knew he would not like what she had to say, but also she was fearful on what he might do as a result. Raoul had always been level-headed and rational; impulsive wouldn't be how she described him, but when it came to someone he cared about and this being not a normal situation, who knew how he would react?

The last thing she wanted was for Raoul to go out and confront Erik. She shuddered at the thought of how the victor would emerge. There would be no friendly diplomacy that was for certain. And the last thing she wanted was more bloodshed on her behalf.

But she knew she owed Raoul the truth. After all, he had tried warning her and she chose not to believe a single word. The least she could do was to tell him he had been right all along.

Why? Why was this happening? Why her? She wasn't anyone special, but the past events seemed to say otherwise and she couldn't believe how this was blown out of proportion. Couldn't they see she wasn't worth the trouble?

Yet, both did… And it made this all the more harder.

Images of Erik flashed in her mind and she began to weep. God helped her… She loved him. Despite what he did, her heart and soul yearned for him; her body desiring his touch.

She knew she should be disgusted and want to stay far away from him, but she wasn't and she wanted to be at his side.

She was messed up and confused.

Being with Erik meant she accepted his bloodlust, accepting the murders, and accepting future murders as well. Could she really have that knowledge on her conscience? Would that tarnish her soul to know innocents would meet their end just so Erik could live?

Christine wept for him and she wept at the irony of the situation. Throughout her life, she adored vampires and had dreamt of becoming one. Of course, that was because she was a teenager and she went through that phase that a vampire's life would be much more glamorous than her own. She sympathized with the supernatural beings and she rooted for them in her books and movies to get the girl or the guy.

Now…

Now, she was in the same predicament that her favorite characters were in and she was torn.

In the world of fantasy, everything worked itself out so well and everyone had their happy endings. But this was reality where rules existed and choices have severe consequences. So the bigger question remained:

Should she stay or should she leave?

And she had no idea what the right answer should be.

Van Helsing's body twitched and it wasn't long before he started to paw at her that he wanted food now. Getting up now meant she would have to have that talk with Raoul.

Time to face the music. There's no way to avoid it now.

Christine got up and found Raoul was already awake and making breakfast for them.

"Morning," he greeted. "I'm making pancakes. How many do you want?"

"Four because I really need the carbs."

He chuckled. "You bet. Chocolate chips?"

"Is there any better way to have them?" Christine grinned as he took out a bag of chocolate chips and mixed them in the batter. It was something she always loved on her pancakes and waffles, which Raoul had teased her about it, but she didn't care. And he always kept an extra bag of chips for her just in case.

She forgot how thoughtful he could be and it brought tears to her eyes knowing what she had to say would crush him.

Fighting it back, she busied herself in preparing Van Helsing his breakfast. Once the can was opened and the food was in a bowl, the cat went about eating happily as the former couple sat down to eat.

They passed the time with small talk being careful not to bring up what was really on their minds just yet. It was a delicate subject that needed to be eased into and rushing it was not a good idea. When they finished eating, Christine volunteered to do the dishes, but Raoul reached out and touched her hand to keep her from walking away.

The inevitable had arrived.

Christine sat back down and stared at her empty plate. Seeing that she was not going to be the first to speak, Raoul took the initiative.

"Christine, last night you came to me frightened. Something happened I can gather that much. And it's about Erik, right?"

Christine felt the tears prick behind her eyes again. "Yes," she whispered.

Raoul let out a shaky sigh. "Tell me. Even if I don't want to hear the details, tell me anyways."

Christine took a deep breath. She knew this was going to break his heart, but she went ahead and told him.

"I confronted Erik. He told me everything and you were right. He is a vampire and he killed those women. And… and he did this." She had been careful at night and this morning to hide her neck from Raoul, but the moment of truth came, and she moved her hair so he could see the marks.

She watched as the muscles in his jaw clenched and his knuckles turned white from gripping the table's edge. "Jesus fucking Christ."

"I met Nadir Khan too," she went on, gaining the strength she needed to finish this. "I will admit he has an unorthodox way of handling things, but he told me enough that it became harder for me to refute and ignore. He told me all there was about Erik and vampires that I'm so confused and scared and I don't know what to do."

Christine looked down and then back up at Raoul. "I can't believe my boyfriend is a vampire."

Raoul narrowed his eyes at the mention of "boyfriend" but he kept his mouth shut. He knew this might happen if Christine found out… that was if she even wanted to believe it. And clearly her mind was quickly changed, but she was lost and that pained him to see that.

"So Nadir told you, huh? Did he tell you about his family?"

"No." She frowned. "What happened?"

Raoul hesitated, thinking that Nadir would have told her the same thing he told him and Seward. That would have fallen under the topic of everything on Erik. "His family was murdered while he was on a hunt. He believes… no, he knows Erik was responsible for it. It was a message to leave him alone."

Christine gasped and covered her mouth. She couldn't believe Erik would do that. Then again, should she even be surprised? Right now, she had no idea what to think anymore as her world was turned upside down.

"You know… I still don't want to believe it. I keep thinking that this is a bad dream and I will wake up and find it was all nonsense. Silly isn't it?"

"No." Raoul got up and walked around the table and squatted by her, taking her hand in his. Looking up, he added, "I don't think it's silly to want that. I feel the same way too. I think I will find out that this was all more of an active over-imagination after working too many long hours."

"Yeah. I guess it's funny that we both want that, but it's never going to happen."

"Well, we have to hope it does get better. Who knows what could happen?"

"I know, but Raoul…" She bit her lower lip. "I want to believe there is some good in him. I have seen him being capable of doing good. His music—"

"Christine," he gently interrupted. "There isn't. It's a trick to make you believe he can be good. But the truth is… he's a killer."

"What if it's not?" she asked, half begging for it to be possible. "What if Erik can be good?"

"That's a big if. The fact remains, Christine, he murdered those women. And there will be more, and it could be you next."

Christine trembled at his words knowing Raoul was right. She could very well be next if Erik's demon decided to get rid of her. She knew that, yet she wanted to believe the Erik she knew long before this happened. He wouldn't let that happen, but the memory of seeing the demon exposed to her sent another wave of chills down her spine.

"I know."

Raoul stood up. "I'm going to call into work—don't argue—and I'm going to stay with you. Perhaps, Nadir will know what to do."

Christine gulped. "Raoul. Does… Do you have to kill him?"

He gave her a knowing look. "It's for the best. He's a monster Christine. If we want to protect the city and you… we have to do what we must. I know it's hard to stomach, but you will. Give it some time and you will see that this is the only option."

The only option… God! Why did I ever meet you Erik?

xxXXxx

Harker wasn't happy that Raoul called in during a crisis and gave him a few choice words for doing so. He waited until his Captain was done before Raoul said he had a very good reason for doing this as he had a strong lead on a possible suspect, but it needed to be handed delicately.

That seemed to calm Harker down and he ordered him that he wanted to be updated on the developments, which Raoul said he would. After he hung up with the Captain, he called Nadir to tell him about Christine. All he got was the Persian's voicemail and left a quick message to have him call him back.

Seeing there was nothing else for him to do until Nadir called back, Raoul went out to join Christine in the living room. He went over to his DVDs and turned to her with his brow raised.

"So what it would be… Three Amigos! or X-Men?"

xxXXxx

They spent the day taking turns watching comedies and action films. It felt good to laugh when everything was so serious and the thought of death wasn't far. However, Christine had very little to say to him, except for what she wanted to eat for lunch and what movie they should watch next.

Raoul knew she had to be upset when he told her they would have to kill Erik. Hell, not even his boss knew that was the plan to apprehend the suspect. Nadir had told him and Seward that they had to keep it hushed up or else someone who did not know the situation would be sticking their nose where it didn't belong and wind up dead. But Raoul couldn't keep the Captain in the dark forever.

He took a couple of breaks to call Harker to tell him what he knew so far, which he kept it basic and not too informative. All he told him was that he got a name—Erik—no last name, but he had been seen with Lucy Hale. It wasn't as much as Harker had hoped to hear, but he told Raoul to stay on it and get back to him when he had enough to nail the guy.

Little did he know, Raoul was going to keep this from his superiors. He hadn't thought of a story that was good enough to cover up Erik's demise. He wasn't sure if there would be a body to bring in and the cause of death would be suspicious if there was a body and people saw it riddled with silver bullets and wooden stakes. He didn't know what he would say, but when the time came, Raoul would think of something that would hopefully be plausible.

Once it started to get dusky out, Nadir called back. Raoul excused himself and took the call in his bedroom.

"Sorry I didn't get to you sooner. I was sleeping," Nadir said once Raoul was alone.

"Sleeping? The whole day?"

"Yes Mr. de Chagny," the man replied with annoyance. "As I hunt the beasts my clock needs to beat in their time. Now what is it?"

"It's Christine. She's here with me and… she believes us now."

The other man muttered a quick thanks to Allah. "I'm glad to hear that."

"Yes and she mentioned you had an unorthodox way of handling it too. What exactly happened between you two?" Raoul asked.

"If she didn't tell you, then it is no matter. The point is she now knows what Erik is."

Raoul sighed. "Fine, but there's more. She went to Erik and he confirmed it."

"I figured much," Nadir said. "The poor girl's lost. Torn by which loyalty to follow. As long as she stays away from him, then she will have a fighting chance to break his hold."

"Do you think she will be all right? This is taking its toll on her."

"I wish I knew, my young friend. Most victims end up losing their lives when it comes to the vampire. It is cunning and his attention to her is most unsettling in any case I ever stumbled upon. I fear to think of the plans he has in stored for her."

Me too, Raoul thought in agreement. "What should I do?"

"Keep her there with you. She's going to need someone to stay by her. But listen carefully. She will do whatever she can to return to him. She may know of the horrors and sins he committed, but she will feel bound to him and going back will seem like the right thing to do. You will fight her, but you cannot let her out of your sight. I will come over once I'm dressed and see if I can try to break the influence. Is that clear?"

Raoul said it was, and knew he should get back to her right away. She was alone now and he didn't want to think she would make a move out of there right away. He hung up and went back out into the room.

xxXXxx

While Raoul was in the bedroom, Christine knew she was being unreasonable and childish with her silent treatment, but the idea of killing Erik left a sour taste in her mouth.

She didn't want that for him. No one deserved that fate. And she couldn't shake the feeling that she was feeling homesick. She wanted to go home, she wanted to sing, and she wanted to see Erik…

No! she told herself. You don't want to go back. You can't! He's—

Christine.

She jumped, looking around in the room and seeing it was empty. The voice… it sounded so near as if it came from the room itself. But that wasn't possible. Raoul was in the bedroom and Van Helsing was curled up on the chair.

Get a hold of yourself, Christine, she thought. He's not here. He's not here.

As she thought this, she heard the voice again. And this time, it was coming from her mind.

Christine… come to me… Come to me my angel… My Angel of Music… come to me…

She stood and started to walk out the door.

TBC…