Chapter Fifty-One: Exposed

A/N: Hello everyone! Here is your next update! Your reviews would be very much appreciated! I know I am supposed to update Dark Prince today but school has been crazy so I will try and update tomorrow, until then, here is this chapter! I would have updated yesterday but fanfiction was having problems! Sorry!

Anthony groaned when the harsh morning light greeted his eyes. He yawned rather loudly and stretched his arms over his head. His actions caused the sleeping form beside him to stir before settling once more at his side. He turned his head to look closely at Sienna's face, which was resting on his shoulder. Her thick black lashes rested on her dark skin and there was a slight smile on her lips even in sleep. He wondered what she was dreaming about. Was it him? Was he what had caused that smile? He would like to think so. The night before was one he would never forget and yet he felt far too guilty about it for his peace of mind. He had kissed her in the garden and things had just gotten out of control from there. Anthony had picked her up in his arms and together they had made it to his room, without anyone seeing them. Although neither of them would have cared if they had.

He had undressed her slowly, giving her all the time in the world to say no, but she did not. Sienna allowed his hands to roam over her and she in turn, did some roaming of her own. Anthony had been with only a few women in his life, and they had been impractical and they had all been gone before morning. It was not something he had ever been proud of but like any man he had had needs and had had them fulfilled. But Sienna had been the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and once he had seen her in the pale moonlight any doubts or hesitations flew out of the window. Anthony had told her that he had thought it was not right, seeing as they were not married, but both of them had desperately needed to come together like this.

It had been incredible, so he could not complain. Sienna was a willing and very enthusiastic learner. Now that he had made love to her no one would touch her and live. He had almost been asleep when he had heard her whisper I love you, thinking he had already been asleep. But he had not been sleeping, and he had heard her. Anthony had almost wept with joy. He had wanted to hear her say those words to him for quite some time and now that she had it was only a matter of time before he confessed them to her.

Sienna stirred beside him and slowly opened her eyes, her gaze immediately finding his own. She smiled and Anthony realized he could wake up every morning next to her and always be happy to see her. He ran his hand through her hair and watched as she slowly woke up, yawning and stretching against him, causing his body to react delightfully to the feeling. She felt the effect her stretching had on him and she smiled wickedly. Anthony realized it was going to be a blissfully delightful morning.

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Christine sat on the balcony, looking out onto Rome as she quietly thought about the night before. She had not fallen asleep after Erik had left and although she could use the rest sleep was the last thing on her mind. Her body was still alive with the aftershocks of a night of passion, and her heart felt near to bursting. Seeing Erik alive, knowing that he was alright, had almost been too much. She would forever thank God for giving him back to her. Christine now knew how it felt to love someone so much she would willingly die for him.

To think that when they had first met she could not stand the sight of him and they always got into arguments. She missed his temper and she missed the arguments she had with him. But now her son would know his father. He would know the genius behind the man in the mask. She could no longer ask for anything, she had everything she wanted now that she knew he was alive. She only wished that he did not have to take his revenge on Michael. That revenge could still kill him and she prayed that he knew what it was he was doing. Because now that she had him back she would never be able to lose him.

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Nadir was silent when Erik returned early that morning. The masked man did not have to say anything because Nadir knew all to well where he had been and what he had done. It was written all over the visible side of his face. The Persian just hoped that Erik knew what he was doing. Revealing himself to Christine could ruin everything and no one might realize it. But Erik looked truly happy for the first time in a long time and he seemed far more content, despite the fact that he still needed to seek his revenge on Delauney.

"I hope you know what you are doing," Nadir said quietly. Erik said nothing as he removed his shirt and lay down. Nadir sighed. Erik had always been very stubborn. If he wanted to see Christine he would, Nadir had been foolish to believe otherwise. Erik had always had a way of getting what it was he wanted. And there was no doubt in the Persian's mind that the masked man would do anything to be with his wife. At one time he had believed that Erik had hardened his heart to any sort of love and that had been after he had ruined his face, but Christine had changed him, and it was truly a change that should go down in history.

She had taken a stubborn, angry masked man and turned him into a man any woman would be proud to call a husband. Christine reminded Nadir of Emma in that sense, she had always had a way of making everyone around her better, and Christine had inherited that quality from her mother, and he was sure Erik would always be thankful to her for that.

"What made last night different that you had to go to her?" Nadir wondered. Erik finally decided to speak and told his friend about watching Christine faint and how he had carried her into their room. Her waking up had been a surprise to him, he admitted that, but he told the Persian that he would never forget that night. He spoke softly of Christine's reaction to seeing him.

"I know now how you must have felt when Emma died...I do not know how you could stand it," Erik whispered, a new respect for the Persian washing over him. If he were to lose Christine he would surely go insane. And Nadir had believed that Emma had no longer wished to see him. Nadir would never be able to explain how he had felt when he had been told Emma was gone. He knew just by looking at Erik that he would never be able to stand it if Christine were to suddenly die. He would not wish that feeling on anyone.

"You are lucky to have someone like Christine," the Persian murmured. Erik did not need to be told that, he already knew that far to well, and that was why tonight he would be going to Delauney to seek his revenge and then he would spend the night in his wife's arms.

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Christine noticed immediately that something was different with Sienna the moment she walked into the room. She seemed to glow and Christine wondered what had caused this change. She looked stunning as she came down to break her fast and even Gustave and Raoul seemed to notice. Raoul glanced at Christine, as if she would have the answers and Christine could only shrug. She was trying her best not to smile or do anything that might give away the fact that she had been in her husband's arms the night before. Sienna sat down at the table after saying good morning to everyone and she began to eat, with a very healthy appetite. Christine's answer came almost immediately when Anthony entered the room.

He had the same glow Sienna had and he was whistling to himself. Sienna glanced at him and smiled but made no other move that would suggest anything. But Christine knew immediately what had happened. The two had made love for the first time. She knew because she had had that same glow when Erik had touched her for the first time. To say she was not surprised would be a lie. Her brother was a gentleman and he would not touch a lady like Sienna unless they were married. Christine did not hold it against them, she knew they loved each other and she liked seeing them happy.

Raoul seemed to figure it out as well and he glanced at Christine who smiled and shrugged. It took Gustave a lot longer and when he figured it out he only chuckled to himself. He thought Sienna was a wonderful girl and he would be happy to see his son with her.

"How are you feeling this morning, Christine?" Gustave wondered. Christine had to keep from choking on her food. Her father, however simply waited. Christine took a deep breath. He was only talking about how she felt being pregnant, he had no idea about Erik. It was not good that she was already paranoid when she had only found out about Erik the night before.

"I feel fine," Christine said, when it truth she was in heaven. Erik was alive!

"My grandchild not giving you any trouble?" he said warmly. Christine smiled and shook her head. Raoul seemed to become sad quite suddenly from the mention of Christine and Erik's baby but he said nothing. Christine wished that he would move on. He was a handsome man who could have any woman he wanted; she would just never be that woman. It seemed everyone was finding love except for him and if she could change that she would, she thought of him as a brother.

"Sienna, would you like to join me for a walk?" Anthony wondered. Christine watched closely the way Sienna's eyes lit up and she smiled, nodding.

"I would love to," she said standing. Anthony stood up as well.

"If you would all excuse us," he said, taking the Italian girls arm and leading her out of the room. Christine had a feeling that walking was the last thing that they planned on doing that morning and she shook her head with a small smile. It seemed life always went on.

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Erik silently slipped inside the Delauney manor. He was anxious to see Christine again that night but he needed to take care of what was going on at the moment. He would see Christine later and he would make love to her with the knowledge that she was pregnant with his baby. But his plan was slowly working when it came to Michael. He was becoming more frightened every night and believing that he really was hearing things only in his mind. The man had not even posted guards at his door or balcony, he really was foolish. Erik had to wait for over an hour before Delauney's lights went out and he slipped into the room. He was going to make him realize that revenge was all too sweet and he was going to pay for what he had done over the years.

Erik heard Michael's breathing slowly even out and he went to the mans bedside, seeing him quite clearly in the pale moonlight. He knew that if Michael opened his eyes he would not see Erik because he blended completely into the darkness. He had chosen a black mask that covered the upper half of his face and it was not as noticeable as his white half mask, all the better. Skillful hands shot out and latched around Delauney's throat, squeezing with all the force Erik could muster. He was not going to kill him, but he was going to make him wish he was dead. He had decided to do this after spending the night in Christine's arms.

The fact that it had been so long since he had seen her, touched her, bothered him greatly and he was going to make the man pay for it. Michael gasped and began to struggle, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head as he tried to free himself from the strangers grasp. Like hell he was going to die from this person who had been haunting him for days. He struggled and fought but the man-and he was sure it was a man-was much stronger than he and effortlessly held him down. The air was slowly becoming more and more difficult to get into his lungs and Michael panicked, swinging out at his attacker and hitting him in the face, hard.

The grip on his neck suddenly loosened and then was completely gone. He shuddered and gasped for air, having never really been that close to death before in his life. He heard the window on his balcony open and then close as his attacker silently left. Michael stumbled from the bed, one hand holding his throat and he lit the fire in his fireplace, closing his eyes and taking several deep breaths.

He turned and sat down on one of his chairs, putting his face in his hands. That had been to close for comfort. Something in front of him caught his eye and he slowly raised his gaze. There, in front of him, was a black mask, and he had no doubt in his mind who it belonged to.

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A noise woke Christine from her sound sleep and she opened her eyes to see Erik coming from the balcony. She sat up in absolute bliss until she saw the look on his face. Something was wrong. He was not wearing his mask and she knew that he would not go outside exposed like that, even if it were dark.

"Erik...?"

"Get up, Christine, and pack, you must be quick!" he said, not giving her time to speak. He went to her wardrobe and began grabbing some of her clothes, stuffing them into a satchel he found at the bottom of the wardrobe.

"Pack? Erik, what is going on?" she demanded, standing and rushing to him. The look on his face scared her but she needed to know what was going on.

"Michael and his men will be here soon, we must get you and your family out of here," he said. Christine gasped and put a hand to her mouth, looking at her husband in horror.

"What? How? I thought you said everything would be alright?" she demanded. She could see the tears that were beginning to form in Erik's eyes.

"I ruined everything, my love, everything...I am so sorry," he whispered, completely broken. Christine shook her head and took his hand for a moment, squeezing it reassuringly. She knew that he was doing his best given the present circumstances.

"It is alright, Erik, really," she whispered, not really knowing what he had done to ruin everything but knowing that she would never blame him because she loved him far too much.

"You must go and wake everyone up, tell them that they need to leave Rome immediately. Tell them they must stay hidden, for their safety," he said, his voice rushed, needing to get Christine out of danger but also feeling obligated to her family. Christine immediately nodded and rushed toward the door.

"What about me?" she asked, turning before she left the room.

"You are coming with me; I refuse to let you leave my side."