Hey! I updated! That wasn't too bad of a wait, was it? Well hope you all enjoy this chapter, it was really hard for me to write! I am running out of motivation and ideas, so if any of my wonderful reviewers can muster up any suggestions, then please do tell! Don't forget to review! Thanks!
Chapter 19
Erik awoke the next morning in his bed, finding it hard to remember all that had happened last night. He rubbed his hands over his face and managed to get out of bed. He remembered a woman coming but who it was… Evelyn! He remembered now, his old friend had now become the manager of his Opera House. A sneer spread across his face, for he knew that this was a superb turn of events. With someone he knew personally running this place, they could do everything that he wanted! They would show his Operas, and cast who he wanted.
Quickly he rose out of his bed and went to go tell Emma of this wonderful turn of events.
"Emma!" he called outside of her room. When he heard no reply, he stuck his head inside her doorway and called her name again.
Complete horror struck him as he saw that Emma was no longer in her bed. His eyes widened and his heart nearly stopped as he gazed upon the empty bed. Turning away from the sight, he went around his home calling her name, but still he heard no reply.
Behind him, he heard a woman's voice. "Erik? What is going on? Why are you yelling so much?"
"Emma… she is no longer in her bed and I can't find her anywhere," he replied as he felt his heart pounding in his chest.
"Well have you looked around the Opera House? Maybe she went exploring?" suggested Evelyn.
"No, no. She wouldn't do that. She learned not to wander in my domain many years ago. She would not be foolish enough to do so again." Erik paused. "Did you hear anything from your room last night? Anything at all?"
"No, I am sorry Erik. I did not hear a thing."
Erik strode over to a stand and grabbed his cloak, preparing to go out and look for Emma.
"You're going outside?" Evelyn asked, shocked. "But, you haven't been up there in, in… such a long time! Are you sure that this is the best decision?"
"I have to go find her. And I have been outside, just not around... people."
"Well then I am coming with you," Evelyn said firmly as she went to put on a coat.
"No," he replied just as firmly, if even more so. "I cannot permit you to go. I have a feeling that I know where she has gone, and you should not come."
"Fine," she gave in while going to put away her jacket. "I shall just stay here and go through all your things."
Erik gave a murderous glare towards Evelyn's direction and strode over to her in two quick steps.
"Alright, I shall bring you above ground. But you cannot go where I am going; it would be rude and impermissible to the people there. I shall only be your escort to your home, work, or wherever you would like to go."
A smile spread across the girls face as she excitedly got into the boat docked at the edge of Erik's lair. Dejectedly, Erik too got into the boat and took off towards the upper part of the Opera House. But just as soon as he had gotten one hundred feet, he stopped the boat and turned it around.
"What are you doing?" asked Evelyn.
"We cannot go that way, too many people. We shall take the route that Emma uses to come and go, and the place that you happened to come across my home."
"Oh yes," agreed Evelyn. "I remember now, and I completely agree with your decision."
Erik sighed. "No matter how much to warm up to me, my dear, while you are running the Opera House, you shall obey my commands."
She looked up at Erik with an innocent look on her face. "Why, Erik, I would ne…"
When Erik shot another glare, Evelyn shut her mouth and gave Erik a pleading look, but Erik was not paying her a thought, for he was focusing on Emma. If she was not where Erik thought she was, he did not know where else to look. He hurriedly got out of the boat, pulling Evelyn, and opened up the trapdoor revealing the tunnel that would lead them to the outside.
Right after they had gotten inside the dark tunnel, Erik once more began to pull Evelyn along, for he wanted her to go at his fast pace, and not one her dreadfully slow paces that she loved to do. Within moments, they were opening up the hatch that would take the Phantom of the Opera to the cruel outside world that he had grown to loathe. Once they were outside, Erik immediately draped his cloak over the right side of his face, so no one could see the mask that he was wearing underneath.
They set off on their quest once more, and walked for awhile, before Evelyn began to complain about her feet hurting. So to make her be quiet, Erik grumpily flagged down a carriage and ordered the driver to take them to the place where they wanted to go.
The drive down to Evelyn's home was completely silent. Erik was busy with his worried thoughts about how Emma was doing and why she had left, while Evelyn was contemplating how they had first met.
FLASHBACK
The last time when Evelyn had seen him was when she was in school, studying to become a performer, and he was the strange man that took refuge in her building. She was twenty at the time while he was thirty. Nobody knew much about him and everyone knew not to ask any questions about him, until the one fateful day when Evelyn had bumped into him in the hall. She quickly gave him a 'Pardon me, Monsieur,' and then she was going to go on her way, but he had stopped her.
"You are Evelyn, am I correct Mademoiselle?" The man said with his melodic voice.
"Y-Yes, I am she."
"Your dancing is becoming very… exquisite. And I congratulate you on that, but can you do anything else?"
"I am sorry, Monsieur, but I do not understand."
"Do you have any other talents?" Erik said to put it simply.
She shifted her gaze for a moment. "Well, my father taught me how do, err… sword fighting."
The man's eyes lit up when she said 'fighting.' "Oh really? Are you any good? Killed anybody?"
She stepped back form the man. "I am appalled Monsieur, that you would even dare to think that I would ever bring any bodily harm to anyone!"
"And why not? Haven't you ever had someone say or do something horrible to you, that you wanted to get some sort of revenge?"
"Well yes, but…"
"The world is a cruel place, Mademoiselle, filled with many cruel people. Will you not help to rid the world of such people and thus make it a better place?"
The man's voice was so melodic, so hypnotizing, that it was hard for Evelyn to say anything other than 'yes.' Without thinking, she took the man's outstretched hand, and went with him down into the darkness.
Hours later, they emerged once more from their hiding, clad in black. They snuck out of the building and out into the night air, which was crisp and cool. Slowly they made their way to the palace of Mazenderan. It was easy for Erik to get inside the palace without much of a big deal, because he was working under the Shah of Mazenderan. As they made their way deeper and deeper inside of the palace, they finally came upon the room of the Shah-in-Shah. Erik silently told Evelyn to wait outside, while he went into the room of the sleeping man. In a flash, Erik had pulled out his Punjab Lasso and had choked the Shah-in-Shah with little noise. Two soldiers did claim they heard a noise and came up to the room, but Evelyn was waiting for them and killed them quickly, as well.
When Erik came out of the room and saw the two soldiers lying dead on the floor, he shot a smile at Evelyn, who just gave a 'it was nothing' look. Then they left the palace like nothing had happened and went back to the school where they shared a couple of drinks.
END FLASHBACK
Evelyn smiled at their short time together, which she did enjoy, but her train of thoughts were interrupted by the halting of the carriage.
"We're here," Erik said quietly. In silence, they both got out of the carriage and Erik walked Evelyn to her door.
"It was nice seeing you again, my old friend," said Erik.
"Same to you," replied Evelyn. "But we shall be seeing each other again soon, for I am running your Opera House, after all."
Erik only nodded, and one could see that his mind was clouded with other things.
"Don't worry, she'll be there."
With that Evelyn went inside her house and Erik got back into the carriage, hoping that Emma would be with her parents.