A/N: This chapter is pretty intense. When I started to write this I didn't want the Phantom to be a bad guy, so I tried to make the killings he commits jutisfied. I hope you enjoy.
Chapter Eleven
Opening Nightmare
Joseph Buquet was watching. He knew that he should be paying attention to what was going on before the show, but he couldn't take his eyes off her. He watched her move about and take care of last minute changes to the costumes.
She was so beautiful with her long, curly hair and bright face. She had been different lately though. She had been ruder toward him and the others who worked backstage.
I'll teach her, Buquet thought gleefully. Tonight.
"Buquet!" A backstage manager yelled.
Buquet turned, irritated. Then his mood changed. He smiled broadly when he saw how close they were to opening curtain. He walked overand quickly finished his final touches in the scenery. Then he looked down and noticed Maria. He could fell the anxiety growing in him. It was almost too much to bear. She turned up to the rafters and spotted him. She smiled, a small fake smile that meant nothing to anyone.
Maria turned away from Buquet. She could see that there was something going on in that man's head, and she didn't like it. She also didn't like the eerie silence of the rafters. She hadn't heard or seen anything the whole time she had been working. She sighed and turned back to her work. Soon she could disappear to the chapel. She would be happy to get away from everyone.
Maria finally finished as the curtain went up. She was starting toward the chapel when she saw someone messing with Carlotta's singing 'medicine'. She watched as the black gloved hand took the medicine and replaced it with something else. She knew those gloves. She threw her things aside and started after the moving shadow. She didn't want anything to go wrong tonight, knowing she would most likely be blamed for it. She went to step on the stairs when she heard a horrible croak come from the stage.The sound was like that of a dying toad. She turned and started back. She heard the same noise again. The she noticed everyone backstage was laughing. She walked out a little farther and found Carlotta panicking. She was trying to yell for help, but all that came out was that horrible croak.
Maria couldn't help but smile at the spectacle that Erik had created. She now understood what she had seen him do. She watched a little longer and began to laugh heartily. Suddenly she saw the curtain fly close. She quickly stifled her laughter when the managers approached. She turned and started back for the upper level when someone grabbed her arm. She looked around and found Joseph Buquet.
"Where are you off to, Maria?" he asked.
Maria felt her skin crawl as he spoke her name. She tried to pull away, but he only came closer. Maria could feel his hot breath on the nape of her neck as he stepped behind her.
"I was just going to make sure that everything was fine upstairs. I thought I saw that Opera Ghost."
Her voice was shaking. The whole backstage area had gone into turmoil, so no one noticed them. She looked around for a place to run, but there was no real place.
"You should leave that Ghost to me," Buquet said with a sly smile.
"I would love to," Maria tried to push him aside, but he wouldn't budge. "Joseph Buquet, get out of my way!"
Maria was trying to stay calm, but she could see in his eyes what was about to happen. She shoved past him and ran up the stairs. Buquet smiled at the chance to chase her. He rushed after and caught her by the hair with a violent tug.
"OW!" Maria screamed.
He quickly muted her cries by putting his huge arm around her mouth. She fought hard to pull him off. Then suddenlyhefelt teeth sink into his fatty flesh. He pushed her away and yelled out.
"You little bitch," he said, slapping her.
The force of the blow knocked Maria off her feet and into a pile of wooden beams. She staggered to get up, but Buquet was already on top of her. She squirmed and tired to grab anything to help her. He pulled her close and slowly began to place disgustingkisses on her face and neck.
Maria screamed in agony and horror. She tried in vain to get him off. She mustered up the last defense she could think of. She carefully reached for her hair pen as he grabbed at her blouse. She thrust it into his hand. Blood splattered onto her as Buquet pulled the object out of his hand.
"I'm going to teach you a lesson," he growled.
Maria tried to crawl away, but it was useless. Buquet grabbed her and picked her up, slamming her into the wall. Maria fell to the floor, beaten. Pain was shooting through her entire, especially her ribs.
Buquet licked his lips as he stood over her. He couldn't decide where the best place to start was. He looked at her longer, noticing that her eyes were fluttering. He straddled her and began to beat her.
At first the pain in herface was unbearable. Then it went past feeling. She hoped and prayed in her head that she would die soon. She could feel his fist smashing her whole body, not just her face, and his repulsive hands pulling at her clothes. Death, her mind screamed. She tried to lift herself up to fight, andshefoundher strength gone. She tried to screaming, but her throat was being held shut.
Buquet slowly pulled her up to his face by the throat. "You think you are better than me?"
Maria moaned and coughed, trying to answer.
"Just because that little rich boy paid you some attention, it doesn't give you the right to act better than anyone. You're just the bloody costume mistress. And I'm about to make you worse than anyone here."
Maria felt her body dying. Her eyes started to glaze over, and she went limp in his grip. Buquet dropped her to the floor and went to finish what he started. He reached for the dark, blue skirt and stopped. He turned. He could have sworn that he had heard something. He looked around, finding the rafters empty. He then turned back to Maria's limp form with a renewed purpose.
He never even heard it until it was too late. Out of the shadows a noose landed around his neck. He felt a swift and forceful jerk, and then he felt himself being pulled. He turned to see a huge figure dressed in a black cloak, dragging him toward the walk ways.
Buquet fought against the man who held him, but it was futile. He looked at the man and saw it. He saw the white mask! The man holding him was the notorious Opera Ghost!
"Let me go!" Buquet yelled.
Erik smiled. He wasn't about to let this pig go. From the second he'd seen him touch Maria, he had wanted to kill him. Now he was going to. He pushed the whimpering maggot out on to the walk way and stood over him.
"I should make you suffer," Erik whispered mercilessly. "But I'm going to make it quick."
"Please," Buquet begged. "I will never touch her again."
Erik smiled a little at the empty promise. "You're right; you won't touch her or any other woman in this opera house."
With those words Erik pulled the noose tighter. He could feel the breath go out of the man as he panicked. He held on tightly, never allowing him one chance. Finally the man stopped moving. Erik stopped pulling the rope and threw the body down for all to see.
The still and entertainedOpera Populaire suddenly erupted into shrieks and gasps as they saw the condemned man hanging there. Erik watched as the corpse fell to the stage. Then with a flip of his cloak he was gone. He walked back to Maria and scooped her up in the cloak. He wasn't going to let these people help her again. He felt her move in his arms. He looked down and pulled her closer.
"You're safe, Maria," he whispered.
He quickly disappeared into the corridors of the opera house. He knew they would look for her, but he didn't care. He couldn't let them help her. They would most likely blame her for what happened. And he was her Angel. Even though he had almost let her down. He looked back at her broken form. She was barely breathing, and all he could see was blood.
