"That's the last of them!" Raoul said triumphantly as a large cardboard box thunked loudly onto the wooden floor. Raoul paused to take in the old room that he hadn't slept in since high school. Sorelli had turned it into a small, spare guest room in his absence. The rich, wood paneled walls were bare save for a simple silver framed mirror above a slightly worn oak dresser. A twin bed with crisp white linens sat in the corner next to the small set of French doors that led to a private balcony. Raoul couldn't wait to set up his old telescope again to get back into stargazing.

Maybe he could invite Christine over to look for constellations this weekend. An evening with her under the stars sounded like bliss. His thoughts turned to her again. If he was entirely honest with himself, he felt incredibly stupid letting her sleep alone in her apartment last night. He didn't sleep at all- he was planning to nap after moving in his boxes- and doubted he would be able to sleep peacefully ever again until the Phantom was caught. Even now, his mind was filled with worry for Christine, and his heart was filled with anger at the Phantom.

Raoul tried not to be filled with hate for others. He really did. The last thing he wanted was to be like his brother, who always seemed to carry a vicious vendetta against the world. In times like these, he remembered how his kind and compassionate nanny, Mama Valerius, would remind him to let go of the anger. 'Don't let it feed the monster growing inside of you.' she would say.

Raoul bent down to pull out some old pictures out of his box, and found hers immediately. It was a black and white photo of her holding his hand and Christine's standing by the lake when they were children. Raoul wondered if anyone had told Mama Valerius that her husband was dead yet. He knew that she probably already knew in her heart that he was gone because of how strong their connection was, but he didn't want her to find out by watching the news on the tv. It made Raoul upset just thinking about how she deserved better than that.

He looked at the photo of the woman who helped raise him. She was an amazing mentor to Raoul in the absence of his own mother, and a second mother to Christine as well. Raoul felt a surge of emotions run through him. His heart filled with the resolve to go and break the news about Mr Valerius to her. Even if she had already foreseen it in one of her visions, it was the right thing to do.

He placed the photo carefully on the dresser, along with the brown sock monkey wearing a fez and holding cymbals that Christine had made for Raoul for Christmas one year, and the gold pocket watch his father had bestowed upon him before he died. He took one last look at the objects before closing the door to his room.

As he rushed down the stairs, he could see Josephine smoothing down the backside of her short black skirt in front of the large, ornate grand hallway mirror. Oh how he despised that vile woman! Raoul tried to lighten his footsteps at this point to avoid being seen or heard, but it was too late. Raoul realized she had already spotted him in the corner of the mirror.

"Good morning, Raoul. Sleep well?" Josephine said in her sleezy, sultry tone that made Raoul's skin crawl. Her pouty red lips curved into a mischievous smile. "It's so good to see your handsome face around here again."

Raoul frowned at her. It made him so uncomfortable knowing that she was his brother's lover, and yet here she was unabashedly flirting with him. He could never understand why this shifty Buquet woman held such a stronghold over Phil when Sorelli was clearly an amazing wife.

"Good morning, Miss Buquet." he said through gritted teeth. She gave a smirk as she stepped a little closer to him. Raoul squared his shoulders, ready to edge away from her if she tried to touch him. He didn't trust her at all, and quite frankly couldn't understand why his brother did. In Raoul's eyes, she practically had the words 'Don't trust me!' written all over her from a mile away.

"Had a rough night out on the streets last night, officer?" she said in a fake concerned tone.

"If by rough you mean discovering the dead body of the Phantom Strangler's latest victim who was someone I personally cared about, then yes." He said dryly.

"You know, I could give you a rough night in the sheets if you ever need me to, monsieur." she chuckled slyly as her hand ghosted across his lower arm.

"No thanks." Raoul said flatly as he pulled his arm away.

"Come on, Raoul. We can go upstairs right now for a round or two. You're so much younger than Phil, I bet you could last a lot longer than him." she chided as she leaned in toward his ear. Her warm breath tickled Raoul's neck, and he shifted uncomfortably under her touch."I bet you wanna handcuff me to the bed and spank me hard like the naughty girl I am?"

Raoul drew in a sharp breath and quickly stepped back away from her. "Miss Buquet! Contrary to what you may fantasize about, I'm not interested in doing those things with you!"

"Ah yes," Josephine said bitterly as her pout turned into a sneer, "but I bet you would be interested in doing those things to that simple-minded Swedish peasant."

"No way, I'm not like that." Raoul said firmly to her, "And Christine is not a simple-minded peasant. How dare you!" Raoul growled as he curled his fingers into fists at his side and stared hard at Miss Buquet. "She's a kind and compassionate human being. Something you clearly know nothing about!"

"Oh I know about a lot of things, officer." Josephine hissed with a smug look on her face as she took a step forward into Raoul's personal space once again. "Things that would make you question everything you've ever known. I know all the secrets of this house, this city, this state even! And I know things about that Phantom that would make your blood run cold."

Raoul's eyes widened. "If you know something about the Phantom Strangler, then you need to file a report at the station." He said sternly. "Or I will bring you in for questioning."

"I'd like to see you try." Josephine smirked. "You know, you're being terribly naive about all this. If only you'd taken me up on my offer, then maybe I'd share some of my secrets with you."

"I don't believe in keeping secrets from other people." Raoul said plainly as he stared her down hard. "Especially not when they endanger the lives of others."

"Ah, there you two are!" Phil said loudly from the staircase, interrupting the exchange between Raoul and Josephine. Phil rushed over to Miss Buquet's side and put his arm around her waist and kissed her on the cheek.

"Oh, hello brother." He said dismissively to Raoul. "We'll be out shopping for skis today for my campaign fundraiser next week, followed by important meetings all day so I won't be back home until much later tonight. Be a good man and lock the door for us, would you? Bye!"

Raoul said nothing. He was still silently seething over his encounter with Miss Buquet.

As Miss Buquet turned to go out the door, she closed her eyes and blew a kiss at Raoul, who continued to glare harshly at her. "Goodbye officer. Catch me some other time, perhaps?" She laughed as she went out the door with Phil.

Raoul let out an irritated "Grrrrr!" as the door slammed shut. "Damn that woman." He muttered. He hated the way she always got under his skin, always had to have the last word, and always tried to make him look like a fool.

Raoul turned and walked away toward the kitchen. He didn't even bother locking the door. He was not his brother's butler, nor would he ever be. Raoul never forgave Phil for trying to separate him from Christine when they were teens. And he would never forgive Phil for choosing to mess around with his secretary, or whatever title Miss Buquet had at the office, instead of being a faithful husband to Sorelli.

He needed all the coffee he could drink right now. He needed something to drown the angry monster that was growing inside of him.

Raoul entered the large kitchen to find Sorelli sipping a cup of coffee, and reading the newspaper. He spied a box of assorted doughnuts on the counter. Raoul loved to eat sweets, and these looked especially tempting. It took every ounce of strength he had not to swipe one.

"Hey Sorelli." he said casually as he started opening up cabinets looking for his favorite ceramic mug he'd had since childhood. Where could it be?! He continued to open every cabinet, secretly panicking that someone had thrown it away or donated it in his absence.

"Hey there Raoul." Sorelli said, not looking up from her newspaper. "If you're looking for your Scooby Doo mug it's with all the other mugs in the upper right corner cabinet."

"Oh, thanks." Raoul said with a sigh of relief as he carefully pulled down the mug and patted it gently. "You guys must've moved everything around since I was gone, huh?" he commented trying to save face.

"Yes. Reorganizing rooms helps me retain my sanity." Sorelli half-joked.

"Well, just don't move the bathrooms around, okay?" Raoul kidded as he grabbed a handful of sugar packets for his coffee.

"Don't tempt me." Sorelli said with a wink. "Anyway, I know how much you love sweet stuff so I had Remy pick up the doughnuts while you were moving in your stuff. Dig in."

Raoul's eyes lit up as he rushed over to the table and stuffed one covered in rainbow sprinkles in his mouth. He then bent down and hugged Sorelli. At first she was surprised at the sheer goofiness of his actions, but Raoul's genuine shows of affection toward her always did warm her heart. To her, Raoul's hugs felt like some kind of comforting magic that kept you safe from everything.

"Thanks Sorelli. You're the best sister-in-law I could ever ask for." he said as he chomped down on his doughnut.

Sorelli teared up a little as she patted him on the back. "I'm just happy to have you around again. It's been awfully lonely in this place."

"Aw, no love for me?" Meg said as she walked in the kitchen with a grin on her face. "I'm hurt y'all. Real hurt."

"Thanks for ruining my family bonding moment, Meg." she joked as Raoul let go of the embrace to go pour his coffee.

"You ready to go?" Meg asked her impatiently.

"Almost." Sorelli answered as she neatly folded up her newspaper. "Oh, and Remy said he'd help today too so he wouldn't get stuck as Phil's third wheel today so he'll do the driving."

"But now he's our third wheel." Meg replied. "So how is that any better?"

Sorelli rolled her eyes as Meg continued to talk as Sorelli finished the last bit of her coffee. "I bet Christine is already there. Hopefully the mean old theater ghost doesn't get to her before we get to work!" she laughed.

Raoul's head perked up at the mention of his beloved's name but he stayed quiet.

Sorelli stood up out of her seat. "Well, if that ghost appears, I'll put him to work dusting cobwebs off the ceiling. Nobody is slacking off today!"

"Oh, uh- is it alright if I visit Mama Valerius today before I come by and help?" Raoul asked. "I want to be the one to tell her about Mr. Valerius. I mean, she probably already does know, but I didn't want Christine to have to relive all of that. She was very shaken last night."

"We all were after everything you told us." Meg said as she shivered a little.

"I'll let Christine know where you are." Sorelli said with a gentle smile. "I'm sure she'll appreciate it, Raoul."

"Thanks." Raoul said as he reached for his third doughnut. "I promise I'll come to the theater as soon as I can."

Raoul was looking forward to driving himself to the nursing home where Mama Valerius lived. The drive would help him clear his mind a little. But he felt awkward driving around in his dingy cruiser. Especially since he would be seeing Christine later on. He knew that she didn't care one bit about cars in general, so it would make no difference to Christine what Raoul showed up in. But in Raoul's heart, Christine deserved the best of everything.

Which is why when Raoul entered the garage, there was only one vehicle he wanted to drive that day. He walked over to the tarp-covered car in the corner and pulled it off gently. True, he hadn't driven it since he escorted Christine to and from Sorelli's wedding, but this car was special. It held so many memories full of adventures with the people he loved.

He ran his hand over the hood of his father's favorite car. His father had nicknamed the car after the Chagney family's winning racehorse. Raoul loved going for Sunday drives along the coast with his father in this car, and they always took Mama Valerius and Christine with them.

The all-black paint job shimmered under the lights, and Raoul took a deep breath and opened the doors to the '69 Mustang. It was spotless inside, just the way he had left it before he moved out. He gently sat down behind the wheel. He started the engine, and listened to it rumble and purr for a minute. The car sounded just the same as it did when Raoul was a child. He rested both hands on the steering wheel before backing out.

"Ready to roll, Cesar?" he asked with a grin.

It was a downpour by the time he pulled into the parking lot of the Restful Acre Woods. He ducked inside the old red brick Victorian style mansion that had been converted into a nursing home. He nodded to the check in desk worker, who waved him to go ahead. Most of the staff there recognized Raoul. He stopped by fairly often. Especially when Christine went off to college. He didn't want Mama Valerius to think she had been forgotten about.

She still had her "bouts of clarity" as Mr Valerius liked to joke, but for the most part, her memory and her body strength had failed her daily as she aged. No one wanted to see Christine give up going to college to care for maman all day. And no one wanted to send Maman to the hellish state asylum that Phil had tried to put her in when she started to speak even more cryptically after Mr. Daae and Raoul's father passed away.

So Raoul and Mr Valerius worked in secret to set up a private account to fund her stay here. At least here, her loved ones knew that she was safe from a world that would misjudge her as a crazy or dangerous person.

Mama Valerius had a large room at the top of the tower. It overlooked the edge of the nearby woods and lake. She always loved watching the ducks and geese at the de Chagney manor, so Christine was satisfied that she had a room with a similar view.

Raoul knocked on the door. "Bonjour maman!" he called out merrily.

He could hear her rocking chair squeak, and a shuffling sound as a warm voice bid him a "Salut mon fils!" She unlocked the door and hugged him tightly. "C'est bon de te revoir Raoul."

"J'aimerais que ce soit dans de meilleures circonstances." he replied solemnly.

Mama Valeius backed away from the embrace and looked at him for a moment with watery gray eyes. "I already know what you're going to tell me." she said. "I felt him leave this world late last night. Also, your French is rusty." she said with a slight smile as Raoul shut the door behind him.

"I know," Raoul said, "but in my defense I don't know anyone else who speaks fluent French."

"By the end of today you will." Mama Valrius said. "I suppose Christine hasn't been keeping up with hers. For some strange reason I lost my connection with her this morning. I haven't had that happen since… ah no matter. I'm sure it will come back. And I will write my next letter to her entirely in French." she said with a chuckle.

Raoul smiled at her, although he felt a little clammy. Mr. Valerius' death hadn't quite hit him fully just yet until he saw maman in person. He shifted uncomfortably, fidgeting with his hands a little.

Raoul looked around the room at all the various plants and cat figurine knick knacks that filled every table and shelf space she had. There were a colorful assortment of yarn balls scattered next to her rocking chair, and her chubby tabby cat Moncharmin was snoozing peacefully next to the old steam heater. Her small home radiated comfort from every angle. Raoul took a deep breath and let the surroundings calm his mind.

"Come, sit down and tell me everything that happened to you. I could only see the events from my husband's eyes." she said as she gestured to the small table by the window. Raoul spied the cookie jar on the table and focused on that as he sat down.

The rain had stopped and the sun was trying to shine through the windows. Raoul noted how much Maman had changed over the years. He could see the physical toll her cryptic visions had taken on her.

Her once neatly-pinned hair was now a messy silver braid that hung down her back, and her favorite blue shawl looked a little more tattered than usual draped over her favorite purple house dress. But the years worth of wrinkles on her face couldn't hide the kindness and compassion that she exuded, nor the warmth of her smile.

Raoul carefully relayed the events that had happened. He didn't want to upset her or frighten her with the story, but he also knew better than to try and sugar coat the truth to her. Then, as Raoul finished his side of the story, Maman closed her eyes and grew quiet.

And then she reached out for Raoul's hands to hold and gave him a warning. "The Phantom is dangerous and filled with rage, but he can be overpowered by someone who is pure of heart."

"I promise you, Maman… I'll catch that Phantom." Raoul said seriously. "And I won't let him hurt anyone else ever again."

"Hmm…" she said calmly as she opened her eyes. "It seems she'll give you the info you need before you leave."

"She?" Raoul asked curiously. "But Christine is busy at the-"

"Not Christine, silly." Mama Valerius cut him off. "Care for a cookie?"

"Sure." Raoul said as he graciously took one. "Thanks." He knew there was no sense in arguing with whatever she had seen in her vision. He got up and hugged her once more. She motioned for him to bend down so she could kiss the top of his head like she'd done since he was a small child.

"Je t'aime maman." He said softly as he let go and went out the door.

And as soon as the door closed behind him, he turned around and came face to face with a nervous looking young woman clutching a satchel as though her life depended upon it.

A/N: Thank you so much for continuing to read this story- please feel free to comment on the fic as I love feedback from people!