A/N: The end is near friends… thank you, as always, for the wonderful reviews! They make my day.
Amber: For goodness sake, add the next instalment!
Modesty: As always, thank you to you for boosting my ego :D – as for the French, if I were to have them answer in French is would insinuate that they did not know English and therefore I would have had to have Raoul ask the question in French … far too much French. I didn't want to over complicate it.
You are correct however, Je m'appelle and et vous/ tu would have fit here… 'my name is' and 'and you?'
I studied French for five years though my spelling is off my knowledge is generally still sound. If you would prefer that conversation in French I'm happy to change it ;)
Sbkar: I love you because you review every chapter and push my total up! Lol
Lost: Thankyou, as always!
'All that I'm praying for,
Is my voice finds her like a lullaby,
Finds her in the night,
Sings her to sleep.', – Lullaby Lemar.
Chapter 43- Tears for an Angel
It seemed like she had been unconscious for an eternity, though in reality she assumed that it was merely seconds. When her eyes forced themselves open no one had moved at all, not one step. Everything was exactly as it was when she had passed out. The only difference was now she felt groggy, her head her and she could feel vomit rising in her throat.
This couldn't be happening. Hadn't she been through enough? But it was happening, it had happened and it was all laid out in its ugly mess in front of her as she sat on the floor of the warehouse. She glanced at Raoul who was still standing there with the pistol hanging by his side, staring at Erik in front of him. Christine didn't think that Raoul had even blinked and she had to look hard at him to see if he had been breathing.
It was obvious to her, watching him, that he couldn't believe that he had done it, that he had actually pressed the trigger down. Christine could assure him that he had, she could see that he had, she heard that he had. Something about the blast must have jolted Raoul from his insane state and brought him crashing back down because Christine could see him register the horror of what lay in front of him.
It was minutes before she could bring herself to look over at Erik. Her heart thudding desperately in her chest as she averted her gaze from her shattered husband to Erik. Raoul still didn't move an inch but the gun dropped noisily to the floor and the sound echoed in the sickly silence of the warehouse.
Erik stared down at the body of Paul Sanders lying at his feet, blood pooling around him. Paul had run in front of Erik in the hope that it would dissuade Raoul from pulling the trigger and killing his rescuer. And it probably would have stopped him had Paul's timing been better. Just as Paul moved, Raoul pulled the trigger and the blur of information and the horror of it all had caused Christine to faint.
He had fallen backwards with a jolt and landed by Erik's feet and with his last gasp, his last bit of energy he had grabbed Erik's ankle and said, 'Tell Jennifer I loved her until the day I died.' It seemed surreal but he had said it, he had known. His braveness had not saved his own life but the life of, for want of a better term, a criminal. And with his final words he coughed, wretched, blood pouring out of his mouth and eyes drooping languidly. He slid away, from consciousness and from the world.
Erik dragged his eyes from the detective and fixed them onto Raoul.
'You idiot.' He said, spitting poison. Raoul said nothing, how could he? He just stared at the body. 'You were foolish.' Erik said, shaking his head. 'But you were never a murderer, Vicomte.' Erik's voice was calm but frightening and Christine closed her eyes, squeezing a tear out, not wanting to hear his voice so harsh, the tones so icey. 'You've killed a police officer.'
'Yes,' Raoul whispered, acknowledging the fact to Erik and to himself as he nearly choked on his own word.
'You'll hang.' Erik snarled and slowly turned to face Christine. 'Can you stand?' he asked her and she opened her eyes to look at him, she was weak but nodded slowly. As she did she struggled and strained and finally managed to heave herself up.
'Give me the pistol.' He said and she frowned at him but hobbled towards Raoul obediently. 'Quick as you can.' He said, stepping to the side of the body.
Christine limped over and when she reached Raoul he turned his head to look at her and she saw the tears streaming down his face. Slowly and carefully she lowered herself and retrieved the pistol and she began to walk towards Erik. To her surprise he stepped back and held his hand up to her indicating that she should stop.
'Throw it.' He said, it was an order, not a request.
She looked at the gun in her hand and then up at Erik, his blue eyes catching the last of the moonlight and shining over the distance between them. Gently she bent down and pushed the pistol along the floor, it stopped next to Paul's body. Erik leaned down and lifted it up, holding it tightly in his hand.
'Only we three know what happened here,' he said slowly. 'That is the way it will remain.' Christine's face was masked with confusion and Raoul gradually snapped back to reality. 'I killed him.'
'Erik…' said Christine in a near whisper as Raoul's mouth opened into a gape.
'Shush,' Erik ordered and Christine, again, obeyed him. 'I did it in my attempt to escape. You need him, Christine, he is forever indebted to you.'
Raoul said nothing as Christine tried to walk towards Erik nor did he say anything when Meg Giry appeared from the shadows, tears rushing violently down her cheeks as she looked at the body of Paul Sanders. She had seen everything from the shadows of the corridor.
'Mademoiselle Giry,' Erik said, clearing his throat. 'Say nothing of this, it's important. Do you hear?'
'I…' she began and Erik raised a finger to shush her.
'Say nothing.' He said slowly. 'It was me.'
She nodded and tears shook from her cheeks as she ran to her friend, throwing her arms around her, holding her tight. Meg sobbed, Christine cried and Raoul stood, dumb founded, to the spot.
'Paul!' came the scream Erik had been waiting for and he stepped away from the lifeless body towards the door, allowing Jennifer to collapse on her husband. 'No, no!'
Christine simply allowed the tears to mar her beautiful face as she watched Jennifer cling to Paul. Meg couldn't watch at all, she buried her face in Christine's neck wetting it with her own salty tears.
'No, no, no…' she cried. 'Paul, no… no…' her heart was breaking. 'Monster, murderer.' She cried looking up at Erik, who calmly stepped closer to the door. 'No, no… please, no… my love, no…' She hadn't seen a thing and as she lay on her husband, willing him to open his eyes Erik edged closer to the exit.
Thomas Fellows was the last person to arrive, darting from the darkness of the corridor into the poorly lit main hall. His pace was quick and he was out of breath when he stopped.
'I heard a sh…' he began but stopped when he noticed his partner and her wife on the floor, Jennifer weeping and Paul bleeding. He glanced at Erik and began to walk towards him, rush towards him, but Erik raised the pistol as if it were reloaded.
'Stop!' he said, firmly. 'No closer.' He skirted towards the exit. Thomas stopped in his tracks and glared at him.
'You're under arrest.' He said, choking on his own bile.
'I would be.' Said Erik, coolly. 'If you could get near me' Erik's own heart wretched. If only Thomas knew that Erik could never kill Paul Sanders, could never shoot a man who had done nothing to deserve it. Erik knew that Thomas would hate him until the end of his days and probably even longer.
Thomas stared disbelieving at the scene, at Raoul, Christine and Meg, beautiful Meg. Then over to Jennifer whose cries echoed harshly around the room, bouncing from the walls and crushing his heart with every whimper. She had her lips on his throat, calling his name. Then softly whispering ' no, God, no' over and over into Paul's pale neck. And then Thomas swallowed hard and took a good look at his partner's body whole in front, blood behind and around him. As he fought away the tears which clung to his eyes all Thomas could think of was Paul's two children, his two boys. They had no father, he had been cruelly taken from them and they would have to live the rest of their lives in the knowledge that his work killed him. Thomas coughed back a sob, trying to remain composed.
'I'm leaving now…' said Erik, he was talking to Raoul, he was looking at Raoul. 'There are conditions to this boy.' He said and Raoul rubbed his neck with his left hand. 'Tell her everything' He said firmly. 'You are to tell her about everything.' Raoul stood aghast and Erik fought the urge to grab his throat and kill him. 'I know you understand so try not to look so stupid.'
Christine frowned and Raoul nodded slowly, he understood.
'No one follows me.' He continued calmly. 'Anyone who does I will kill on the spot.' His eyes drifted to Christine. 'That includes you.'
She nodded but something in her willed her to move and she suppressed it hard, she knew that he meant it. She knew Erik well. Erik looked at her for the last time, allowing his eyes to follow the line of her body, taking her in fully, finally. He had to drag his eyes against their will from her and over to Thomas who met his eyes with a steely glare.
'There is a body upstairs.' He said. 'And a girl gagged and bound but perfectly well. Send her my love, won't you?' and with that he was out of the door.
Thomas looked at Christine and then Raoul before bounding off after Erik, out of the door and into the cold air. The sun was beginning to appear on the horizon and lighten the earth but there was no Erik. He looked around him, from side to side, he looked up, down to the roof and the floor but he was gone. Thomas looked to the sky and sighed a long sigh before finally collapsing to his knees and crying for his partner, crying for the children and for Jennifer, crying for his friend.