Rebecca

A special thank you to all my reviewers for reviewing. Thanks. This is the final chapter. It may seem a little rushed, so please forgive me. I hope you like it…

Chapter 20: Farewell

"Father, that 'boy' upstairs will never ever come between you and I," said Rebecca, taking his hand. "I love him, but I also love you and always will no matter what."

"I love you too Rebecca, you mean everything to me."

They embraced, but were interrupted when Alistair came into the basement. He dropped a large bag on the floor next to him, and said, "The police are here," he said, out of breath.

"What?" asked Erik, standing up. "Why are they here?"

"Someone must have seen us leave, and they are about to search the house. Come, I know of an old coal shaft down here that we can get through." He picked up the bag, and began heading to a dark corner of the room.

"We?" asked Rebecca, following closely, still holding her father's hand.

"Yes, I'm coming with you," he said, and for the briefest of seconds, turned and smiled at her. They shortly arrived at the shaft which Alistair then opened. Erik and Rebecca crawled through with Alistair in the rear. They closed it behind them, and then made it out to fresh air. They checked around to be sure they wouldn't be seen, and made a run for the woods near the mansion.

The three of them weaved their way through the dense trees until they came out into a meadow. The full moon shone brightly on them, and illuminated a waiting coach. Alistair led the way and opened the door, which they then scrambled into. As soon as the door shut behind them, the coach took off at full speed down a deserted road.

Once they had caught their breaths, Erik inquired, "Where are we going?"

"Well, I had to pick somewhere obscure where no one would ever find us," he replied, not really answering the question.

"Where is it?" asked Rebecca.

"Canada."

"Canada?" asked Erik, "why Canada?"

"I chose Canada because when I ran out to purchase tickets, they were the cheapest, and easiest to come by for some reason." He then pulled the said tickets out of his breast pocket and handed them to Erik.

"Whoa, that is a good price," he said, reading the writing on the tickets. A few moments passed before anyone said anything. All three simply gazed out the windows at the passing scenery, knowing that it would perhaps be the last time they ever saw any of it. Rebecca thought about how she would never see her stepparents again. A tear slipped down her cheek at the memory of them, and she leaned her head on Alistair's shoulder. As she sat, listening to the rhythm of his steady heart, something cool touched her finger. She looked down and saw a diamond glistening atop a solid gold band. She looked up into Alistair's face and saw that he was smiling at her.

"Will you marry me?" he asked, slipping the ring the rest of the way on her finger.

"Yes," she whispered, and then kissed him. It didn't even bother her that her father was sitting directly across from them; she was in love. Erik didn't mind either; at least someone in family would be getting married, for it certainly wouldn't be him.

x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.Xx.

"Congratulations!"

"Good Luck!"

Shouts of celebration and a shower of rice rained upon the newlywed couple as they ran from the church to the waiting carriage. The couple kissed for the crowd, and then drove off to catch their train for their honeymoon. As they went down the boulevard, a single red rose fell into the bride's lap. She lifted her head, alert and looked around frantically to see who had thrown it. Just barely, she caught a glimpse of white flickering at the neck of a long black cape. She clung tightly to her new husband's sleeve, and tossed the rose upon the ground where it was trampled by a horse. Never again would the Phantom haunt her mind.

"I love you Christine."

"I love you too Raoul."

x.X.x.X.x.X.x.X.x.

"You look beautiful Rebecca," said Erik, as he and his daughter shared in the father-daughter dance.

"Thank you," she said. He dipped her low and the crowd sighed at how happy they both looked. Rebecca was glowing, Erik was smiling, and no one questioned the mask. "I never asked, but how was Paris?"

"It was fine, I saw a few old friends, and that was about it," he replied, purposely leaving out the fact that he had attended Christine's wedding. It had been one year since all of the goings on at the Opera Populaire, and Rebecca had done her best to forget about the woman that drove her father nearly mad. He smiled at his daughter and twirled around, allowing the long train of her dress to sweep the marble floor. She let go of his leather clad hand, and spun out to meet her husband's. They kissed, and the dance continued with Alistair instead of Erik.

Erik blew a small kiss to his little girl, and then slunk away into the shadows. Sneakily, he left the ballroom and headed out into the courtyard. This estate was truly magnificent; located in the Rocky Mountains, it was always covered with lush grass and wildflowers. The winters were cold, but the mansion was always cosy, and well cared for. He walked slowly to his favourite tree where he had a stone bench built and rose bushes planted. Even in the winter they bloomed, for there was something special about this beautiful land. He sat down on the bench and straightened his mask. What will I do now? He asked himself. Rebecca and Ally (as he had now come to call the boy) would want privacy and so would take ownership of the estate.

As he looked on at the snow capped mountains, a small bird landed on the bench next to him. It whistled out a pure, sweet song and cocked it head at him. He put out his finger, which the small creature then perched upon. For five minutes man and bird stared in one another's eyes without movement. Finally, it came to him what he must do. He took Christine's ring off of his pinkie finger and threw it as far as he could. Farewell Christine, he whispered. He was turning to rest on the bench again, when he heard a bloodcurdling scream. The little bird flew away as fast as it could, and Erik turned sharply to face the house. Everything appeared normal and calm, but then again, he was quite a distance away. He threw his cape off and made a frantic dash for the mansion. As he drew nearer, he could see through the massive windows that something was amiss.

"Somebody go for help!" he heard a woman shout from within. He ran to the door, flung it open, and searched for his daughter. When he found her, she was laying on the floor, her white dressed stained crimson, and her husband weeping.

"What happened?" he demanded, lifting Rebecca's head into his lap.

"She wasn't dead! Said Alistair between sobs.

"Who?"

"Penelope…"

"Penelope? But she would never do this to Rebecca," insisted Erik.

"Apparently she would," said Alistair. "She came in and started ranting about how Rebecca was a demon child and should have died years ago. Michelle was telling the truth; the diary was a set up!"

"But I thought…"

"Hello Erik," hissed a familiar female voice.

Should I write a sequel? That's up to you my friends. Ah yes, and what did you think? twisted? i love it, though i have to admit that if i was you i'd be ready to punjab me right about now. anyhoo, i may or may not end up posting a sequel. i'll strongly condider it though. i hope you enjoyed my story, because i certainly enjoyed writing it. peace out.

You Obediant Servant,
Bex aka Rebecca