This chapter may seem slightly confusing, as I change the point of view several times, but I think it keeps it kind of interesting. Bare through it...and the next chapter will have a reunion. Between E/C or R/C? You'll have to read to find out.
Blended into the crowds and the black of night, Erik quickly made his way into the icy outside air. Dozens of people flew past him, oblivious to the fact that the cause of all their fear walked amongst them. Looking around, he pondered what his first move would be in his search for Christine. Perhaps she had gone to an inn of some sorts or perhaps she had contacts within the city. The search would be endless, though, if he went about it that way. No matter where she had gone, she would have needed some sort of transportation.
The weather had been treacherous that afternoon. Only an idiot would have driven in conditions like that. Even now there were very few public carriages out, as most drivers had gone home for the day after the snow had hit. All of the wealthy aristocrats in attendance that night had their own drivers. There were, however, two drivers stationed near the side of the opera house, awaiting those who were unfortunate enough to need a lift out of the cold. Perhaps that was the best place to begin. Erik approached them slowly, fingering his lasso and pondering how to go about this. Force would be quicker, but civility would draw less attention, and many armed guards still lingered about...
As he noticed the darkly cloaked figure approaching him, the driver of the first carriage sat up straight and eyed him over several times with suspicion. There was something disconcerting about not seeing the looming man's face in the night. "Hey, Maurice," he whispered to the carriage near him. "Have a look at this guy."
Maurice looked back and gave a nervous grin. "Heh! Looks like he's coming your way, too, Jean. Hope he pays well."
The driver sighed and continued to follow the man with his eyes, hoping that he would simply pass by. To his dismay, the shadowed man was soon standing right next to him. "Where to, Monsieur?" choked out Jean, still trying to discern the man's face under the scarf and cloak. He shifted nervously in the brief silence until the man finally spoke.
"I wish you to tell me who was stationed or driving near the opera house late this afternoon," came a soft but strangely menacing voice from beneath the scarf.
Jean looked at him oddly. "This afternoon? In that weather? No one, Monsieur. They would of had to have been crazy." A tension hung in the air, and he glanced back to make sure that Maurice was still nearby.
"Are you sure of this, Monsieur? It would be very unwise to be wrong right now." The threat in the statement was blatant.
"Well, yes." Jean turned to Maurice, his voice shaking slightly. "Maurice! Anyone you know out driving this afternoon in that weather?"
"No, not that I know of!" Maurice craned his neck, trying to see what was going on behind him. Jean looked back down and was shocked but somewhat relieved to see that the figure had disappeared. He looked quickly around for verification that the man had left, shuddering and hoping that he would not be seeing any more of him that night. Turning back to face forward, though, Jean suddenly jumped in surprise as he noticed someone now standing on the opposite side of him. After he squinted and saw that it was two different men whose faces were quite visible, though, he calmed down. He did not notice that the shadow still lingered in the distance, silently glaring at the two intruders.
Jean briefly looked them over. One was a young blonde man, dressed impeccably in an expensive grey suit and starched white shirt, a look of concern plastered upon his otherwise attractive face. The other was obviously an officer of some sort, dressed in a blue uniform and fully armed with a rifle. Could this night get any odder? "Can I help you, Monsieur?" Jean asked, directing the question respectfully to the officer
"Yes, I am sorry to bother you tonight, Monsieur, but I was wondering if you could answer several questions for me?"
"Of course, officer."
"Late this afternoon, did you or anyone that you knew happen to see or give carriage service to a young brunette woman...probably within the vicinity of the opera house."
"This afternoon? No one was giving service this afternoon, Monsieur. The weather was abominable." He saw the blonde man's face twist in frustration.
"You are positive? No one was in service this afternoon?" Before Jean could answer "no" for the second time that day, all three men looked up to the soft trot of another carriage heading toward them in the distance. The horses slushed softly through the snow and the face of an elderly man could be seen approaching in the dim gaslights.
"Good Lord!" exclaimed Jean more to himself than the others. "That is Claude. I thought he had gone home for the day. What the hell is he doing out in this? The man is nearly seventy!" By the time he had looked down, though, his interrogator had once again disappeared. He looked up to see that the young man and the officer had rushed off to meet the oncoming carriage.
As the two men came nearer, they saw that the older man looked exhausted, the wrinkles in his eyes made more obvious by the dark shadows surrounding him. He looked up with surprise as they rushed toward him through the deep snow, hoping he would not witness another injury that night. "Can I help you gentlemen?"
"Yes, Monsieur." answered the officer, slightly out of breath from the dash through the cold air. "May I ask you where you have come from?"
"Just got back from taking a young woman to the hospital. Poor thing hurt her ankle pretty badly out here on the ice." He shook his head slightly with the unpleasant memory.
"What did she look like?" jumped in the blonde man anxiously, his blue eyes glinting with slight hope.
"She was a tiny thing. Brown curls. Dark eyes, I think. Looked about twenty or so. Why do you ask? Do you know her?" Both men breathed out long sighs of relief, and the younger man's shoulders relaxed.
"It must be Christine," said the boy, turning to the officer. "Good God! I hope she is not injured too badly. I do not know what she was thinking going out in that weather!" The officer nodded understandingly, obviously very glad that the job had turned out easier than he had thought it would. After that insane night in the opera house, he was quite happy to catch any breaks that he could. He turned to Claude, wishing to remove himself from the situation.
"Would you be so kind as to take Monsieur de Chagny to her tonight? I am afraid I have more pressing matters to attend to, and the girl seems to be in safe hands." Claude sighed tiredly but nodded. He had really wanted to get home that night to his wife, as the day had been quite trying. The officer then turned to the boy. "If you need any more help tonight, there are other armed policemen scattered throughout the area."
"Thank you, Monsieur," said the young man, climbing in to the warmth of the carriage with relief. "I am sorry tonight did not go as planned. We shall catch him eventually, though."
The officer shrugged and nodded, starting to wonder as many of his superiors were if this opera ghost was nothing more than a strange publicity stunt. No one had seen him that night, after all, and no one had been hurt by any of his so-called pranks. There was that one murder several months ago, but no one had ever proved that it had not been a suicide or a terrible accident. Nevertheless, he let the young man go find the girl without argument and waved goodnight.
Neither of the three men noticed the shadow that followed closely behind the carriage.
Even if he could not get to her first...at least he would get to her.
Raoul quickly opened the wooden door of the small hospital, relieved it was still unlocked in these late hours. He hoped strongly that the girl in question was indeed Christine, and that he could take her home that night and be done with the situation. He was slightly irritated, although he knew he should only feel concern for her health. What had she been thinking going out into the weather-putting the entire plan at risk without a moment's notice? He shook his head in exasperation and turned the corner of the corridor, looking for someone who could help him. Many of the lights had been turned off, making it difficult to see where he was even going and giving an eerie feeling to the building. For a brief moment, Raoul thought he heard footsteps behind him and whipped his head around the corner. Seeing no one, he sighed. The day was really starting to get to him.
Finally, he noticed a light out of the corner of his eye and realized he was standing near a young nurse. She was beginning to nod off at a small desk under a dimly lit lamp. "Excuse me, Mademoiselle," he said loudly to awaken her. She started and lifted her head up. At the sight of the handsome man in front of her, she tilted her blonde head and smiled flirtatiously.
"Can I help you, Monsieur?" she began, batting her green eyes a bit.
"Yes, Mademoiselle. I was wondering if you could tell me if my fiancée, a young woman named Christine Daae, was brought here today?"
At the word fiancée, the girl lowered her posture slightly, dignifying herself. "Let me look at my patient list, Monsieur." She scanned it quickly before looking up. "No one here by that name, I am afraid."
Raoul let out a sigh and rubbed his temples, trying to calm himself down "Are you quite sure, Mademoiselle? A brunette woman? I think she has hurt her leg."
"There is no one here by that name." Her tone became slightly indignant as the man looked upon her with the beginnings of a scowl. "If you would like, you can come back tomorrow and ask the doctor and head nurse. Visitors are usually not allowed this late."
Raoul clenched his fists and looked around for someone else to speak to but saw that the halls were completely vacant. Turning back to the girl, he tried again. "Can I see your list or look around the hospital, Mademoiselle? I am sure she is here! This is important!"
"I am sorry, Monsieur, but I cannot allow you to do that at this hour of the night. Please come back tomorrow when the doctor is here." She glared at him slightly now, perfectly ready to request the services of the guard that was stationed at the back should the man refuse to leave.
"Fine. I shall, Mademoiselle." He stalked out of the room and out the door. Tempted as he was to look around, he knew that it would be impossible to find Christine in the dark hallways. Should he try the police again? Looking up at the sky with aggravation, he marched back off into the snow on what he knew was likely going to be a pointless search.
As the young man flew back out, the young nurse shook her head in disdain, wondering why the most handsome men had to be so cocky and impatient. She scanned her lists again with satisfaction, verifying that no such woman existed in the hospital. Suddenly she heard a soft rustling noise behind her. Whipping around, she found herself face to face with Cecile, one of the head nurses and a close friend of hers. She was collecting up her items, preparing to go home for the night. "Cecile? Oh my! I thought you were gone for the day!"
The older woman sighed and shook her head. "We had several new patients come in today. Several cases of influenza, actually. I had to stay late sorting everything out as we were understaffed. If we have an epidemic this year, I do not know what we will do."
"Oh, I know. I hate how busy the winter season is." She paused, remembering what she had been doing moments ago. " Cecile-we had no one come in today with the name Christine Daae, did we?"
Cecile looked up. "No, that name does not sound familiar."
"I did not think so. A man thought she was here because she had hurt her leg today."
Cecile shrugged. "We did wrap a broken ankle, but I believe the young woman's name was Annette. We are still trying to locate someone who might know her. She's a rather odd girl, kind of has her head in the clouds."
"Strange. I—" She stopped talking suddenly and her eyes darted to the dark hallway.
"What is wrong?" asked Cecile, looking to where her gaze lay.
"I...I thought I saw something flash by, down the corridor." She shook her head. "My silly mind is always playing with me, especially when I get tired."
Cecile smiled sympathetically. "Well, I hope you have a quiet night, dear. I know that I need much sleep after today." The elderly nurse walked off, and the young woman had nodded off at the desk again within minutes.
