Gustave spurred his horse on to a gallop. As the French countryside flew past him, he couldn't help but let out a victorious cry. His eyes grew wide, thinking of the reward he would receive. The Vicomte would pay anything for the kind of information he had. They had been searching for so many months without any sign of the mysterious Phantom or his prisoner. As a scout, Gustave had gone ahead of the search party to see if he could find out anything about the missing diva. In a far off village he had heard rumors of a masked man who brought a young girl with him to town. The girl always followed the man silently, her face hidden under a hooded cloak. They would stay only long enough to buy food; they never really spoke to anyone. Gustave was certain that it was the Vicomte's fiancée and her captor.

Gustave wasn't exactly a wealthy man. Sure, the Vicomte was paying him well enough. Raoul had decided that the small amount of men given by the detective to help in the search wouldn't be enough to find Christine. That's why he approached Gustave and his companions. Raoul was just leaving the Opera house after Christine's disappearance. He was walking past an alley when he was grabbed from behind and pulled into the darkness. It was a homeless old man. He smiled a toothless grin, causing the wrinkles in his face to deepen.

"I recognize you. You are the Vicomte de Chagny, the patron of the Opera Populaire."

"Yes, monsieur," Raoul responded tentatively. He had no idea why this man had detained him.

"You have lost someone very important to you, no?" he said quietly, leaning his head closer to Raoul's.

"Do you have any information that could help me find her?" Raoul asked anxiously.

"Not I, monsieur. But I know of someone that could help. Continue down this alley to the bar Ciel Rouge. There is a man there, Gustave. For a price, he will help you find your beloved."

Raoul reached his hands into his pockets. He didn't have much money with him, but everything he had he gave to the old man. "Thank you for your help, monsieur," he called as he hurried off down the alley

"Thank you for your generosity, Vicomte," he replied, picking up his cane and heading down the street.

Raoul ran down to the end of the alley and entered the bar. He wandered from person to person, inquiring after Gustave. Finally one man was able to point him out. Raoul approached the bar and was finally able to see Gustave. He then remembered why he had recognized that name when the old man had told him to look for. Gustave and his men were well-known vigilantes. If anyone could find Christine, it was them. Of course their services came at a high price. The money Gustave received helped keep him well-dressed. His light hair was always perfectly groomed. He looked younger than his thirty years, which was the reason he always wore a beard and mustache.

As Gustave rode back towards the camp, he was suddenly struck with a thought; the most brilliant scheme he had ever had, in his opinion. Why wait for the Vicomte to offer him a reward? Why not charge him for every bit of information that he had? Le Vicomte de Chagny was going pay until there was nothing left.

Raoul had gathered the men together to discuss what they all had found. It was a very short meeting; they had all come back empty-handed. Raoul dropped his head in desperation. Every day that went by without any new information seemed to fly faster. He felt time slipping through his fingers. He was beginning to worry that he would spend the rest of his life searching for something that couldn't be found. Erik was extremely intelligent. He could have been planning this for months. He was probably having a laugh right now at Raoul's expense.

In the distance Raoul heard the pounding of a horse galloping towards the camp. He ran towards the approaching scout.

"Gustave! For the love of God, please tell me that you have found something," Raoul called out in resigned desperation.

Gustave jumped proudly off of his horse, "Indeed I have monsieur, indeed I have."

Raoul waited, hope rising up inside him. Had he finally found Christine? He watched Gustave in anticipation, but he just turned around to tend to his horse.

"Well? What is it?" Raoul asked anxiously.

"Monsieur, I think we had better go inside your tent to discuss this," Gustave answered seriously.

Raoul gave Gustave a puzzled look, but decided that he must have his reasons. Raoul led the way towards his tent at the back of camp. He felt like he was walking on air. Everything he had hoped and prayed for was finally coming true. He lifted the flap and entered. It was by no means obvious that this had been the home of an aristocrat for the past month. To the side there was a thin blanket, no pillow. Raoul spent his nights sleeping on the dirt. There was also a makeshift table where a map had been laid out. Raoul had spent countless hours studying it, looking for any place that Erik would be able to conceal Christine. This was where Raoul ate his meals. He subsisted on whatever the party could catch. The supplies they had bought at the last village were beginning to wear thin, and Raoul left them to his men.

He sat in the dirt and motioned for Gustave to sit on his blanket.

"Alright monsieur. Why was it necessary for us to speak in private?"

"Well, before I tell you what I know, there is the matter of payment to be cleared up," Gustave replied, taking a pear out of his bag and biting into it.

"I beg your pardon? I already advanced you the money. I… don't understand," Raoul said in confusion.

"You see, I figure you're getting more out of this deal than I am," Gustave began, wiping his mouth. "I know how wealthy your family is. You shell out a little cash and in return you receive an indefinite amount of my time. If this girl is really as important to you as you say she is, then you should be willing to spread the wealth around. So you wanna know what I know about your sweet little fiancée, you're gonna start handing over the money," he finished, a cruel smile on his face.

"I'll give you whatever you want, Gustave. Please, there is no time to waste."

"Very well then, monsieur. I'm glad we could make an arrangement. Now, I shall be requiring 100,000 francs for myself and 30,000 for each of my men."

"Whatever you want," Raoul answered quickly. "I will get you your money upon our return to Paris."

Gustave gave a little chuckle, "Oh no, no, monsieur. I require payment up front."

"I…I don't have that much money with me. I only have money for supplies when we arrive at the next town. Please, I'm begging you. You have my word that you will get your money," Raoul said earnestly.

"No, monsieur. I have broken my own word too many times to trust the promise of another."

"Surely there must be something that can be done." Raoul was desperate. How could someone be so heartless?

"I'm afraid not. If that is all, monsieur le Vicomte, I shall take my companions and we will be on our way." Gustave stood to leave.

Raoul, a man who was usually so calm and collected, was suddenly transformed into a vicious animal. How dare this man stand in his way of finding Christine? He stood up and punched Gustave squarely in the face. The entire camp was shocked to see Gustave tumble backwards out of the Vicomte's tent. Then Raoul came charging out, grabbing Gustave by the collar and pulling him to his feet.

"Listen to me, you bastard. I have been more than willing to give in to your demands. Now, tell me what you know!"

Gustave smiled, turning his head to the side to spit out the pool of blood forming in his mouth. "I'm surprised, Vicomte. Does your breed usually behave this way?"

"I am losing my patience with you. You will start talking, or I will tear you to pieces with my own two hands," Raoul growled threateningly.

Raoul heard the cocking of pistol behind him, and felt cold steel pressed against the back of his head.

"Now, now monsieur. There's no need to get violent here," a voice playfully chided him.

The camp suddenly erupted as Gustave's men and the detective's men pulled guns on each other and began to shout. It was chaos as the search party turned on one another.

"Silence!" Raoul called out. The camp slowly quieted down, but everyone kept their pistols raised. Raoul glared at Gustave as he roughly pushed him away.

"My companions and I will be leaving now, monsieur. I wish you the best of luck with your search. And if you ever get a hold of the money, my offer is still on the table."

Gustave tipped his hat to Raoul as he mounted his horse. He let out a loud laugh as he and his men rode off.

"Don't worry monsieur le Vicomte," Maurice said reassuringly, placing a hand on Raoul's shoulder. "We don't need them. I assure you that we will find your fiancée."

Raoul let out a deep sigh. "Tell the men to saddle up. We're leaving."

"But monsieur," Maurice protested, "We have just stopped for the night. The men need to rest."

"They will rest when we reach the next town. Hopefully I will be able to recruit some more men for the search there." Raoul looked out into the distance, "She's out there somewhere, Maurice. She's depending on me. I can't let her down."

Raoul retreated to his tent to pack up his belongings. Once everything had been collected and placed on the horses, Raoul mounted his own horse. He reached into his pocket and removed a small photograph. It was very worn around the edges, as if the owner had held it many, many times. It was a picture of Christine that Raoul had held every night before going to sleep. He would run his fingers along her beautiful face and speak to it, imagining that somehow Christine would be able to hear him. He placed the picture in his pocket and called out for the men to move on. At the time, he wasn't aware that he was drawing nearer to Christine and her captor every day.