Chapter Thirty-Seven: Marcella Merrick

Three Months, One Week, Five Days, Mireval

"And did you hear? The Populaire has a new patron!"

Camillé nodded, barely paying attention and not listening to the woman, really. She was never fond of these social gatherings, but her mother had insisted that it would be good for her image if she and Daniel attended balls together and she went out to tea with other girls. Camillé knew some of these people from their childhoods, but she was unable to name more than a fourth of them. There were so many people she had to please here and it was, to her at least, absolutely ridiculous. She was sure that somewhere in her brain, La Chatte was just as bored as she was. At least she knew that there was no danger of her coming out. Camillé could not call upon her at will and unless someone said the code-phrase accidentally, there was no chance that La Chatte would return. She was lost in thought when she picked a single phrase out of the conversation around her.

"And they say La Carlotta has left the Populaire!"

Her full attention turned to the woman. "What do you mean, La Carlotta left?"

"I know, it's absolutely shocking! She was the prima donna, and she just walked out!"

'Oh, Erik, what have you done now?' she thought as she leaned forward, "Did they say why?"

The lady leaned toward her also, and Camillé was almost tempted to lean away again. "That's the strangest part. They say she walked out blaming the Opera Ghost!"

"Th-the Opera Ghost?" Camillé stuttered for the first time in her life.

That confirmed it – Erik was up to something.

The lady leaned back again. "Yes, and now the papers are all over saying that the Populaire is haunted! Absolutely ridiculous, isn't it?"

Camillé swallowed another sip of her tea – that was cold by now, but still mostly full – as she sat back. "Yes," she agreed, her mind elsewhere, "Absolutely ridiculous."

"Apparently they've got this new prodigy though – Christine Daaé! She came out of nowhere, and they say she has the voice of an angel!"

Her eyes became wide. "The voice… of an angel."

"Yes! She's quite brilliant!"

Camillé's mind froze. "Erik, what have you done?" she whispered, forgetting she was with others.

"What was that, dear?"

"Oh, nothing," she saved, blinking the momentary trance from her eyes and smiling falsely at the woman, "Tell me everything you know about what's going on in Paris."

The woman was more than happy to oblige.

Later that same day, the Study, Mireval

Camillé sat down and let out a very exasperated sound. Daniel looked up from his work and walked over to her, sitting down beside her and beginning to rub her neck gently. When she looked up and leaned against him, he held her and kissed her hair.

"What's wrong, mon trésor?" he asked, and she groaned.

"I have no idea what Erik is doing or why he is doing this."

He frowned. "What do you mean? What has he done?"

Camillé sat up and looked at Daniel's face. "Apparently, on the opening night of Hannibal he dropped a backdrop on top of La Carlotta while they were rehearsing and –"

"He what?"

"Let me finish," she warned, and he became quiet, "Anyway, he dropped a backdrop on top of her and she stormed out. They would have cancelled the show, but they ended up getting someone else to be their Prima Donna for that night."

"Who?"

"Guess."

Daniel took in a breath of realization. "Raoul's Little Lottie."

"Precisely," she said, and then sighed. "What you do not yet know is that for the past year or two, Christine has been Erik's pupil. He's been teaching her to sing."

"Where? I though he didn't want anyone to –"

"—see his face?" she supplied, and he nodded, "He doesn't. He has been teaching her from behind the wall in the Chapel downstairs, claiming to be her Angel of Music."

"Angel of Music?"

She groaned. "When she was little, her father used to tell her stories that everyone who was talented was visited by the Angel of Music or something along those lines, and when he died he told her that he would send the Angel to her. As for Erik… well, he took that and ran with it."

"So he's been pretending to be her Angel of Music," Daniel said in a monotone voice, obviously not pleased.

Camillé held up her hands at his stare. "Don't look at me that way, I do not like it either. But unfortunately, I would bet anything that Erik dropped the backdrop on La Carlotta purposefully to make room on the stage for his prodigy."

"Why do I feel like this is not the end of the story?"

"Because it is not," she sighed deeply before continuing, "She went missing the night after her big, successful debut."

Daniel gaped. "And you think that he…"

"Yes, I think he took her. Why, I do not know. It makes no sense to me. Why would he take her now and risk her finding out that he is merely a man?"

"Do not ask me. Do you think Raoul knows she is there, now that she has taken the stage?"

Camillé scoffed. "Undoubtedly. He is Patron, after all. And," she said, nodding as an epiphany came to her, "that likely has something to do with Erik taking Christine. He may only be her teacher, but this is his triumph, and if Raoul tried to step on his toes… well, let us merely say that he is possessive."

"You think you are telling me something I don't already know," Daniel chuckled as he kissed her cheek, "But he does not love his pupil, does he?"

Camillé looked down at her ring and sighed. "Non. Well, I hope not."

Three Months, Two Weeks, and Two Days, Mireval

Daniel came whistling into the study that morning, seeming quite pleased with his life. Camillé looked up at him and cocked her head to the side. He simply grinned at her and came around her chair beside the fire, taking her book from her and placing it on the side table on her left. Then he lifted her chin and kissed her soundly on the mouth. She let him for a moment before pushing him away. The grin on his face did not falter and he simply pulled her up from her seat and spun her around.

"What has you in such a happy mood, Daniel?" she asked, truly confused.

He chuckled. "My sister has written back to me and indeed, I was correct!"

She paused for a moment before raising an eyebrow. "Correct about what?"

"She wishes to see you again and has missed you, so I arranged for her to be brought here in two weeks' time."

Camillé's eyes widened. "You mean that Marcella is to come here?"

"Yes, mon trésor, is that not wonderful?"

"It is, it is," she assured him and returned his smile, "How is she to come?"

"By ship, of course."

"Does that mean that…" she trailed off, wondering if he were leaving.

"Yes, I am to leave, but only for a short time," he told her, leading her out into the foyer, "Then she and I will be here and everything will be back to normal."

Daniel leaned down and kissed her again, before kissing her hand and turning to leave. She watched him go, noticing that this large home seemed both larger and less friendly without him in it. Camillé wrapped her arms around herself as she walked back into her study, feeling very alone suddenly. She had thought she was lonely when Erik had been away from her, but now that she was so far away from him and Daniel had also left… she felt more alone than ever. The seat sank as she sat down, picking back up her book and looking at it, but her mind was far from her reading.

Marcella… it had been years since she had seen Daniel's little sister, about the same amount of time as when she had last set foot in London. Given that, it had been a little less than three years since she had seen the girl. When she had been chased from England, Marcella had been only fourteen. Now, she would be nearing seventeen years old, a woman by all standards. The only thing she had not become yet was a wife, something Camillé hoped she would avoid until she fell in love. The girl deserved that.

Her mind wandered to the first time she had met the child, and, consequently, her older brother. The two had been visiting the Globe for a play. After the show, they had been accosted by lowly burglars on the street. Camillé had been nearby, letting La Chatte run wild, when she saw the two. The first thing that had entered her mind was that the men needed to be killed for their crimes, but the second had frozen her for only a moment. Marcella… looked like Aletté. She was young and beautiful, only ten at the time. It had been enough to pull her from her trance-like state for only a moment before she was back in full force, only knocking the men out – trying to prevent scarring the child.

Daniel had thanked her profusely and had practically dragged the woman back to their temporary flat in London, where he had insisted that she sup with them. When she left, he had managed to distract her with his charm to the point that she had promised him she would return the following night. Despite having reprimanded herself for such a promise and thinking she would never go through with it, she found herself at their flat the following night anyway.

Thus began her relationship with Daniel Merrick. They began to fall for each other slowly – as she was stubborn to open up to anyone, yet could not stay away from him – over the course of two years. There was something refreshing in his kind demeanor and selfless attitude. She found herself unable to resist his charm. He began to court her and within a year had discovered that she did not really have a home. That was the end of that. The two took her back to their manor north of London, insisting that she stay with them. Though Camillé had tried to refuse, Daniel had insisted and begged until she gave in. Truly, she had loved it there. The two siblings made for wonderful company and even their eccentric aunt Winifred was pleasant to be around. Merrick Estate quickly became her home. Marcella was like her little sister. She adored the young girl and had quickly fallen in love with Daniel, the two making plans to marry.

That was, in essence, why she left. When Wolfe had ordered her to kill Daniel and later learned that she had defied him, he had come after her. Now that she was his target and not the innocent man that she had fallen in love with, she left the country. Wolfe had followed her. Daniel and Marcella were safe from him. She had told Daniel why she was leaving, who she was running from and why. Everything had come out, she had trusted him with it all. He had tried to beg her to let him come with her, still foolishly thinking that he could save her and that they would be fine and could be together. As she could not convince him otherwise, she had left in the middle of the night, leaving only a note saying that she was sorry and begging for his forgiveness.

She hadn't thought she'd ever see either of them again. Yet now here she was, back with Daniel and waiting for his sister's arrival… while being deeply in love with another man. How had this all happened? It seemed as if it hadn't been very long at all, yet she knew it had been two years, nearly three. Her mind reeled at the complexity of it all. Was nothing about her life ever destined to be simple?

And, next chapter, we meet Marcella Merrick! So... I have to know... Does everyone still hate Daniel?

Any questions, comments, concerns? Want to reprimand me for not mentioning her earlier (I think I did, but I don't remember)? Review or drop me a line!

- Emmy