Disclaimer: Oh you know Rosie!

A/N: *cackles* oh I am soooo evil!!! Sorry guys, but I had to do it! I've had that cliffhanger planned since the day I started writing this story! Now before you all explode, you better read what happens!

And thank you to all of my enthusiastic reviewers! I was absolutely thrilled when I saw all of the reviews! Thank you so much. They really helped get this chapter up a lot faster! Thank you Trinity for your advice, hint hint, I like to be told what I've done wrong so I can attempt to not do it again. Not that I'm sure I'm talented enough to control my writing…lol, I just kind of sit down and write as things come to me, of course, that's not a very professional way to approach things…lol

Ok, I'll stop blabbing now! I know you're all waiting!

The house was completely engulfed in silence for several minutes.

Then there was the sound of a match being lit and a large orb of light appeared as a lantern was held high overhead.

The light shifted slowly around the room, inspecting the bodies, which lay lifeless on the hardwood floor. Two were in his immediate sight. One dead by bullet wound, the other had been strangled.

He searched the room frantically for Christine. He almost missed her, but spotted her at last. She was curled into the farthest corner of the room. Her face was buried in her knees and she seemed to tremble uncontrollably.

He quietly made his way across the room toward her. His foot brushed against something. A body.

It was Raoul.

Erik abandoned Christine for a moment and bent down over Raoul's body. He felt no pulse. He was dead.

Erik bit his lip and looked up at Christine who hadn't moved from her position. He stood up and continued his way toward her.

"Christine?" he said gently.

She didn't move more than an inch. Her face buried a little deeper into her skirts and she hugged her knees a little tighter. But she didn't look up.

Erik wasn't sure what to do. He did not know how to comfort her. He reached his hand out and let his fingertips hover just above her shoulder. He wouldn't touch her. He wanted to, so badly. She seemed so in need of some human contact. But his touch could hardly be considered human…

She must have felt his fingers there because suddenly her hand shot out and knocked Erik's away roughly.

Erik's face pained at what she had done, but he had no time to dwell because just then there was the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Erik extinguished the lantern quickly.

"What happened down here?"

"You heard the shots! You know what happened!"

"Ouch! I just tripped over something, light a match or something will you?"

Erik watched a small glow appear on the opposite side of the room.

"My God!"

"What? What is it?"

"It's Claude! He's dead!"

"Dead? But…Claude can't be…dead!"

"Look for yourself!"

"We better get the rest of the boys out of that damned pub! Come on!"

The door opened and closed again, and once again there was silence.

They were going to return with more men.

Erik knew he had to get Christine out of there immediately.

"Christine," he said urgently. "Please, please get up, we must get out of here."

Christine slowly raised her head and stared up at Erik. He could not read the expression on her face. Erik held out his hand to help her up, but she ignored it. Using the wall for support, she got to her feet on her own.

Erik once again held out her hand to help her through the darkness. She looked at his hand for a moment and then took it.

Erik pulled her gently through the house, careful to avoid the bodies…

He found the nearest exit and hurried to where they had left the carriage earlier. It was still there. Well, at least something had gone right that night. Erik hurried Christine toward it. He practically had to drag her, she didn't seem like she wanted to move.

He helped her quickly inside and was about to climb in himself, but stopped. He spotted a man sitting on the curb. He grabbed the man by his coat and pulled him to his feet.

"Do you know of the mansion down this street?" Erik demanded.

The man nodded, bewildered by the man who had disturbed them.

"Summon the police, get them there this instant." He dropped one hundred francs into the man's hand. "Run!" Erik told him.

The man stared at the money in his hand and took off running.

Then Erik swung into the carriage and instructed their return to Paris.

Christine was huddled as far over as the seat would allow. Her head leaned against the glass as she gazed blankly out the window.

Erik didn't speak. He could see her grief and he allowed her to have this time to think. She didn't need conversation.

Not that he was ready to engage in one. He knew that it was his fault that Raoul was dead. He could have easily rescued Christine without him. He didn't know what he was thinking when he sent that note…

And now Raoul was dead and Christine…he had hurt Christine. The last thing Erik had ever wanted to do was cause Christine pain, and now he had.

He took to gazing out the window as well. Looking, but not really seeing, his mind was elsewhere. What would become of Christine?

The natural thing to do seemed to be to take her to his home. He couldn't very well leave her alone in this state…

It seemed like a relatively short time when they reached Paris. The carriage stopped in the Rue Scribe as had been previously arranged.

Erik looked at Christine questioningly. But she said nothing; she didn't even look at him. She moved as if to prepare to leave the carriage so he took this as consent to where he was planning to take her.

He stepped out of the carriage and handed the driver a leather purse that contained more money than the driver had probably ever seen in his life.

Erik then went back to the door and helped Christine out. She did not let go of his hand as they walked towards the entrance.

Erik removed the key from his pocket and opened the gate. He made to go through, but Christine was stopped. She was gazing off into the sky where the first rays of sunlight were starting to emerge.

Erik pulled her gently and she followed him to his home.

Once inside the house, Christine went to her room and quietly closed the door.

Erik gazed helplessly at the closed door. He wished there was something he could do for her. But he wasn't exactly an expert on women. He did not know what he could do, so he decided to just let her be. She would come out when she was ready to.

Erik awoke very stiff the next morning. He had fallen asleep in front of the fire in the sitting room. He got up and stretched his aching muscles and as he twisted, the door to Christine's room came into view.

He stared at it a moment. It was an odd feeling that Christine was in this house, in her room at that very moment. Even if the circumstances weren't exactly ideal.

He glanced at the clock and was shocked at the time. It was a little after noon. But, he realized, they hadn't arrived back at the house until dawn.

Erik went to his room and changed into fresh clothes, the ones he was wearing being quite wrinkled. He thought about lunch, but wasn't even remotely hungry. But Christine might be.

He approached her room slowly with a small tray in hand. He knocked softly at the door, but received no response. He decided she was not ready to come out and left the tray at the door. He wandered into the music room and began to play lightly at the piano.

He was so distracted by his thoughts that he failed to notice Christine slip quietly into the room. She walked tentatively toward him, she reached out to touch his shoulder, but stopped herself. It would startle him too much she decided.

"Erik?" she whispered.

Erik was startled to hear her behind him, but didn't show it.

He stood up. "Good afternoon."

Christine's eyes were red from crying, but she was relatively composed.

Erik could almost feel her grief and it hurt him so much to see such sadness in her eyes.

There was an awkward silence and Erik struggled to find something to say.

"Are…are you alright Christine?"

At this Christine shook her head and completely without warning flung herself into Erik's arms.

Erik stared down at her in shock.

She felt his body tense, but she only held on to him tighter.

"Please Erik, I know this frightens you, but…I need someone right now," she whispered.

After several very tense moments, his body relaxed. One of his hands raised and smoothed her dark curls. Gradually he brought his arms around her and she clung to him, desperately seeking comfort.

It seemed to Erik they stood like that for hours, while in reality it was a matter of minutes.

Reluctantly it seemed, Christine pulled away from him at last.

"It will be alright Christine," Erik said.

"No Erik, it won't," Christine stated resignedly. Then she turned and left the room.

Erik sighed and sunk into a chair. He could still feel the warmth from Christine's body. Her body, which had just been pressed up against his… And that's when he realized that there was a small part of him that was almost…glad that Raoul was gone. Maybe…now…

Erik covered his face with his hand in shame. How dare he have such thoughts when Christine was filled with such grief! How dare he! He clenched his teeth. He would not be happy that the vicomte was dead, he wouldn't. He would mourn with Christine.

Erik walked back into the sitting room and was surprised to find Christine curled up on the couch. He had expected her to go back behind the closed door of her room.

She didn't look up as he entered and lowered himself into the large armchair.

They sat there in silence. Christine gazed into the fire blankly, while Erik gazed at her. He felt her sadness as a physical pain. He wanted desperately for her to stop hurting. But knew that only time could heal this pain.

Both Erik and Christine remained locked in their own thoughts for a long time. When the clock on the mantle struck six, Christine stood up and went back to her room. Erik watched her back retreating away from him.

As the door closed, Erik's sadness was replaced by anger. Even in death the Vicomte de Chagny managed to ruin them.

Christine did not come out of her room the next day. Erik took this opportunity to find out what had happened in Cernay after he and Christine departed.

Erik went in search of Madame Giry. He found her in one of the dance studios, drilling her ballet rats. Erik circled back out of the room and went to the door. He knocked on it sharply before ducking back into the passage.

Madame Giry opened the door angrily, obviously wondering who would dare to interrupt one of her dance rehearsals. She was abruptly pulled into the passage.

Madame Giry pulled away from his grasp, "Oh God, is she safe Erik? Is she all right? she demanded, forgetting to address him formally in her anxiety.

 "She is quite safe," Erik assured her.

Madame Giry gasped then, "You've brought her underground, haven't you?"

"Well I couldn't just leave her by herself! You heard what happened I trust…"

"Of course I did! It's all over the newspapers. Is she all right Erik?" she said with concern.

"No," Erik said simply. "What happened? Did it give any details?"

"Few, but some. The police arrived at the house…"

Erik smiled inwardly at this. Thank goodness he had found someone trustworthy in his haste to summon the police and hurry Christine to safety.

"…they found the bodies and several other men attempting to drag them away. Most of them were arrested, a few may have escaped, they aren't sure. Luckily, the Vicomte de Chagny's body was recognized. I believe they said it was claimed by his sisters. I have the article if you wish to have it."

"Yes, that would be most appreciated," Erik said.

"Very well, now if you will excuse me Monsieur, I must be getting back to the ballet rats before they become wild. I will leave the newspaper in Box five."

"Thank you Madame," Erik said.

Erik retrieved the article later that day and now sat in the sitting room pouring over it. The details were just as Madame Giry said. There wasn't much else to the article. There was some information on Claude; apparently he had been running quite the crime spree… Then Erik spotted something that caught his attention. At the very end of the article, the date of Raoul's funeral.

Erik glanced up at Christine's perpetually closed door. She had to know. She had the right to go to the funeral and mourn in a proper way with other people who loved him.

He carefully tore off the last sentence and knocked on Christine's door. Surprisingly, she opened it. Erik handed her the piece of paper and she read quickly, her hand trembling slightly.

"Thank you," she managed to say and then disappeared back behind that door.

Erik had half a mind to tear it down.

A/N: That damn door!! It's starting to piss me off now! Ok, next chapter Christine's definitely coming out of there, lol. Yes, I have always been a big believer in a strong Erik/Madame Giry relationship, I love that.

Please review!!! All comments are extremely welcome! :)