Missing Pages

Raoul, of course, had no way to know that Erik had seen his approach to the house. The habit born of years of setting booby traps had not simply disappeared with a new location. He had known the moment the unexpected carriage had turned onto his property.

Erik had thought at first it might be his employer, Mister Crawford, as he had a habit of dropping by for visits. Glancing out the window of his office, he caught sight of the man exiting the coach and had at once recognized the figure he had hoped to never see again.

The familiar murderous rage had crept over him, right and wrong fading into red as his focus sharpened on protecting what was his. His quick calculations told him that there was no one around to see except the driver of the cab, and he could easily be disposed of. Meg and Christine were out for a brief walk in the orchard. Antoinette was upstairs resting, and Katie had gone to the market. Erik slid open the drawer of his desk and his fingers touched the rope within.

He had been expecting the interfering boy. The bastard had likely been playing on Meg and Antoinette's sympathies, all the while watching over them closely until they would lead him to Christine. Erik's eyes darted down the driveway.

No police.

Was the fop really foolish enough to come here alone?

Erik grinned evilly. Of course he was. Just as before.

You will not take her away from me now, Vicomte.

Erik lopped to the door just as the bell chimed. With all the cold grace of his former life, he swung the door in and with one fluid motion, Raoul was dragged into the house and the noose was around his neck. Erik slammed the door behind him as he roughly shoved the boy face first into the wall.

Raoul gasped for breath, barely having registered who it was that had stood before him, but the feel of a rope tightening around his neck was enough to tell him he'd walked blindly into the phantom's trap once again. He struggled vainly against the demon's weight pressing him to the wall as the familiar voice hissed in his ear. "Give me one reason, Vicomte, why I should not kill you for invading my home?"

Light was dimming at the edges of Raoul's vision. All he could think was that he was going to die. One pleading word slipped from his tongue.

"Meg…"

Erik's brow shot up, completely taken off guard. He had been expecting the boy to beg for Christine. Curiosity got the better of him, and he slowly let the rope loosen as Raoul slipped to his knees, gasping for breath.

There was an impatient ring of the front bell, then a knock. Erik turned away from his victim and jerked the door open to reveal the cab driver. The boy's eyes fell to the vicomte on the ground, then lifted back to Erik. His bored expression barely changed. "He stayin' or goin', gov'ner?"

Erik glanced back to Raoul, who was regaining his color. "Staying. You may leave." He shut the door in the boy's face, and turned to see Raoul reaching for his fallen cane. Erik grinned and placed one boot over it. "Ah ah, le Vicomte. If you need help standing, you may ask me." In a deft move, Erik tucked the toe of his boot under the cane and kicked it up into his own waiting hand.

Raoul glared at the fiend, pushing himself weakly back to his feet. His voice was hoarse and painful. "You bastard! You tried to kill me."

"As I would any uninvited pest in my home." Erik pulled the blade free from its sheathe and his eyes turned deadly again. "Now tell me quickly why you are here, boy, or I will finish the job."

Raoul stood seething, his own blade turned on him by the phantom. He would tell the monster nothing. He glared in contempt. "You took her after all. Stole her away."

Erik pressed the tip of the blade against Raoul's throat, his eyes growing even colder. "I have stolen nothing! Only claimed what was mine. What has always been mine."

"Erik!"

Both men turned at the sound of Christine's horrified voice. Caught in their rivalry, neither had heard her enter the house. Now she stood wide eyed and fearful with Meg just behind her wearing a matching expression.

"What are you doing? Let him go, please."

Christine's plea drained away his anger and Erik sighed, dropping the sword from Raoul's throat. "She saves you once again, Vicomte."

Raoul barely registered the words, his eyes were wholly fastened on Christine. It had been six months since he had seen her, and nothing could have prepared him for the sight of her heavily swollen with child.

"Christine?" He moved towards her as if in a trance, his eyes never leaving her. Christine stood trembling slightly with both hands resting protectively over her belly.

Meg watched Raoul's expression through tears of pain. Every question she'd had about his feelings plainly answered by the tortured look in his eyes; his very presence here.

Suddenly, the dazed look in Raoul's eyes seemed to clear, and his brows dropped in confused anger. "God, what has he done to you?"

Christine's spine stiffened at his tone, her reply laced with her own anger at his implication. "Nothing I have not asked him to, Raoul." Erik chuckled at his wife's biting retort, until she glared at him. "Do you think you are forgiven for attempting to spill blood in my hallway?"

Erik sobered immediately. "It is le Vicomte's own blade, mon ange."

"I do not care." Her eyes filled with tears, voice trembling. "You promised me, Erik." Christine's eyes whipped back to Raoul. "Why did you come here? Why couldn't you just let us be?" She spun rather awkwardly and rushed into Meg's arms, who was battling her own tears and still staring at Raoul.

Raoul's eyes followed Christine's movement, finally looking to Meg, and his stomach dropped to the floor. He had never seen her look at him in such a way; so full of anger and pain.

What have I done?, he thought.

"Meg…?"

"You've done enough." Meg's eyes turned fierce and she glared at Erik. "Both of you." Then her voice softened and she stroked Christine's hair. "Come now, Christine. You mustn't let them upset you. No harm was done." Meg's eyes jerked back up to Raoul, suddenly frightened. "Tell me you came alone, Raoul."

"I…?"

This brought Christine's head up again, and she turned her own frightened eyes toward Erik. "God, no, please…! Erik…?"

Erik was at her side in a heartbeat, and she fell into his embrace. Raoul watched the scene helplessly, thinking how strangely tender it seemed to see them together. "Sh, mon ange. It will be alright." He glared again at Raoul with murder in his eyes, but whatever he might have said or done was stopped by Meg's quiet demand.

"Raoul…answer me."

He looked at Meg again, stepping towards her only to have her take a step back. He frowned. "Of course I came alone. How can you ask me such a thing, Meg?"

"How? Raoul, you had me followed! I trusted you."

Raoul's frown deepened; his frustration finally loosening his tongue. "You call this trust? You lied to me, Meg! All you told me of this trip was so perfectly calculated to keep me in the dark! And I believed every word…because I believed in you. Just as I believed you when you told me Ranier meant nothing to you!"

Her brows furrowed in angry confusion. "What has Jean to do with any of this?"

"Exactly what I wish to know! Where is he, Meg?"

"I…assume he is in Paris."

"He is not, and you well know it. Or will you deny to me that he traveled with you to Calais?"

Meg gasped. "How…?"

"He made no secret of the fact, Meg! Do you have any idea what it did to me to hear that you had eloped with him?"

This time the gasp came from Christine, who still stood wrapped in Erik's arms. They were both intently watching and listening to the other couple's argument; Christine's distress and Erik's anger both rapidly fading into blatant interest.

Meg only stared at Raoul dumbfounded, neither seeming to notice or care that they had an audience. "E-eloped? Where did you ever get an idea like that?"

Raoul growled. "The entire cast at le Soliel is gossiping about it! And the cad's assistant confirmed he had booked passage on your train."

Meg's gaped at him as she attempted to process what he was saying. "Jean…did travel with us, Raoul. But he was certainly not invited! And we parted company in Calais."

Raoul closed his eyes and took a breath. "Then you are not…his wife?"

"God, no!"

Raoul smiled for the first time since arriving in Dover. "Thank God. Meg…I thought…"

"You came after Meg, then?" Raoul and Meg both looked to Christine, who still stood in Erik's arms with a strange expression on her face.

"I…yes. It wasn't until I arrived in Dover that I began to realize…" He turned back to Meg with a frown. "You did lie to me."

Meg drew an unsteady breath, thinking again of the way he had looked at Christine. She whispered, "So did you."

Christine looked from her friend to her former fiancée, an emotion strangely akin to jealousy assaulting her. "Erik…" She looked to her husband. "I am suddenly feeling… very tired. Could we sit awhile?"

Erik tensed, but he was careful to push his own anger aside for Christine's sake. "Of course."

With a warning glare directed towards Raoul, he placed a comforting hand at his wife's back and guided her to the parlor. To Meg, he muttered in passing. "Come along, then."

Erik looked up as he passed the stairs and saw Madame Giry standing four steps from the bottom, obviously having heard most, if not all, of the conversation. She nodded to him and continued down, meeting Meg who was following with her eyes cast down.

Raoul was close behind her daughter's shoulder, still trying to regain her attention. "Meg, please…"

"Monsieur le Vicomte." Antoinette raised a brow at him, effectively stopping his progress as Meg slipped away. "So…good…of you to come."

"Madame. I…forgive me."

She moved past him in the direction of the parlor.

"It is not my forgiveness you will need, Monsieur."

A/N: Probably not precisely the confrontation you were expecting, but then Erik is trying to be a good phantom for Christine's sake...and Raoul did come all the way to England chasing after Meg. But he still managed to muck it up, didn't he?

Also--to Raven, welcome to the story. Thank you so much for your kind words. I'm glad you are enjoying it. Since you asked, there seem to be very few Meg/Raoul fics out there, off the top of my head, there is one called You Are Not Alone by Soofija, good story though it ends rather abrubtly. Two very good ones can be found in the C2 Community, Project Ballet Rat both by Alaura Fairfield. La Petite Ingenue (a one-off and a bit darker) and Warmth Beyond Winter, which is sadly unfinished and hasn't been updated in awhile.