Anne:

I'd be glad to let Minna help with picking strawberries, but being none too bright, she eats all she picks. While I'd never stint anyone on what they eat, she don't know when to stop when she's eating fruit, and she'll gorge herself till she gets a stomachache—or the runs. So when we got in after picking the day's crop, I gave her a few and put the rest down in the refrigeration machine downstairs.

When I got back up, I said, "Erik, love, it's into the bath with you."

He goggled at me. "But Mam, it's not nighttime! It's not even lunchtime yet. Why do I got to take a bath now?"

"Because we're going off to see Father Anselm and M'sieu Roget after lunch. We're going to see about getting you some lessons, so's you can learn how to read music and play like what M'sieu Roget and M'sieu Makepeace do. I want you putting on your Sunday-best clothes after you're clean, too."

"But—but I don't need to take a bath and do that, cause M'sieu Makepeace is going to give me lessons here." he blurted.

"What? How do you know that? Nobody said nothing about that to me." I asked.

"I-uh-I don't know." He started turning red, and wouldn't meet my eyes.

"That isn't no answer. You only just played for him the once, last night. How do you know he's going want to teach you?" I can smell guilt. I'm a liar myself, much as I wish I weren't, and between that and being one of seventeen, I know something about both children and lies. "Tell me."

"I—heard him telling his friend?" he tried.

"And when would you have heard that, seeing as you've been at my elbow all morning?" I stuck my hands on my hips and gave him a searching look.

He shrank. "Maybe I dreamed it in my dreams last night?"

"Maybe, but I've doubts about that. How is it you know he's going to want to teach you? Out with it. You're looking at a week without bedtime stories if'n you don't."

"I—went and talked to him." he whispered it. "Outside of his window. Cause—cause he likes for folk to go and talk to him. I know I'm not supposed to, cause we could lose our place here, but—but… I didn't ask him if he would give me lessons. It was he what asked me if I wanted to learn to play like he does."

"You went and talked to a guest."

"Yes, Mam. Please don't be mad, Mam!"

"And he went and asked you if you wanted lessons, without asking me for my say-so. Was playing for him last night his idea?"

"Yes, Mam. Am I in trouble now?"

"Yes, you are." He started to cry. "Oh, Erik! Sophie, can you go in the bathroom and watch him while he takes his bath? I'm going to go talk to M'sieu Makepeace. You and I are still going to go to see Father Anselm and M'sieu Roget, cause I made an appointment, and they done me the favor of saying they'd see us. I'm not going to break that and give them offence. But there won't be no stopping at the book shop after."

"C'mon, lad." said Sophie, hauling herself out of her chair. "You're going to take your bath now. Can you have a look at that toe I cut, later, Anne? It's feeling a bit funny."

"Of course I will." I took off my apron, washed my hands, and checked my hair. I couldn't go off looking like a slattern. I wasn't pleased with M'sieu Makepeace, not one bit. He was making remarks about me to my niece the other day, his friend was around yesterday, asking funny questions again, and now this. A grown man should know better nor to go talking to a child so young and making plans and promises without clearing it by his mother first. And there are some men out there as can't be trusted around children…

I set off across the garden, went up to the cottage, and knocked on the door. M'sieu Khan's servant opened it. "Good day. How can I help you, Madame Touchet?" he asked.

"Good day to you. I'd like to talk a space to M'sieu Makepeace. It's important."

"M'sieu Makepeace—can't see anyone right now." said the man.

"Monsieur Makepeace will see me, or the lot of you can start packing your bags." I wasn't in a humor for that.

"M'sieu Make—One moment, Madame. I will fetch M'sieu Khan."

I waited outside. M'sieu Khan came to the door. "Madame Touchet! Good morning. Is there something wrong?"

"Yes. But it's M'sieu Makepeace I come to see." I crossed my arms, and gave him a look.

"M'sieu Makepeace is not available. Is there anything I can—?"

"If M'sieu Makepeace is in the bath or in the water closet, you can say so. I can wait." I brushed past him and entered the cottage.

"Madame! I thought no female employee of the inn was permitted to enter the cottage alone!"

"Them rules don't apply to me." I sat down on the bench in the little foyer. "Tell him I'm here to see him."

"I—see that I must be frank with you, Madame Touchet. He is not here." said the Mohammedan man.

"Not here? The man was almost too weak to sit up in a chair yesterday, and now he's not here? Pull the other one, it's got bells on it." I gave him a glare. "I'm going to see him."

"Pull the other what? No, Madame. I am as astounded as you are, that he should be up and around, but he is not here."

"Then I'll have to see for myself." I sprang up, and was halfway down the hall before he caught on.

"No—Madame! It would be unwise…"

I knocked first, in case he wasn't dressed, then opened the door and went in. His cat, the one my lad calls 'Her majesty', streaked out past me with a yowl.

The room was empty.

On the table by the bed, there was a mask.

And then it all made sense. The way M'sieu Khan had stared at my son the first day they were here, and said 'Your son's name is Erik.'—why nobody'd seen so much as a hair on M'sieu Makepeace's head—the music—talking to my boy on the sly—he was from Boscherville—what M'sieu Khan had said to me the day before. Realizing it near struck me down.

"Madame Touchet—are you well?" asked M'sieu Khan. "Do you need water? Please, sit down. Darius, a glass of water."

He led me to the chair by the window. I looked up at his dark, kind face. "It's him, isn't it? The father. The other Erik Touchet. What am I going to do?—What am I going to do?" My head felt strange, and everything seemed very far away. I couldn't get all of us away from here, and him, not fast, not easily.

"Madame! You mustn't get so upset. Yes, it's true. It was only by chance that we came here, last week, and he was so—unwell, that it was not until Monday that I pointed the boy out to him. He's not angry! He is bewildered, but he's not angry. Thank you, Darius." He pressed a glass of water into my hand. "Drink some."

"He's not angry—he don't want to kill anyone?" I asked.

"No, he's not angry at all. I think he loved his son from the moment he laid eyes on him. He is a little hurt, however. Tell me, are you the boy's real mother—or is she the Countess De Chagny, who was Christine Daaé?"

There was more secrets than my own at stake here. "Whoever it was what gave birth to him," I answered, "I'm the one what changed his diapers. I'm the one as walked the floor with him when he had colic. Whether it was me or Christine Daaé or the Empress of all the Russias who gave him life, I'm his mother. I'm his real mother. I'm the one as is raising him. I'm the one that loves him."

"I understand you. No one who ever saw the two of you together could ever doubt that you love him. In the truest sense of the word, you are his mother. But you will not tell me who carried him."

"No. I gave my word, and I'm not breaking it. What—what do you think he's going to do? Where is he?"

"He has gone to Lyons, seeking answers about you and the boy." said M'sieu Khan.

Lyons! If he found out what all I'd done—And here I thought I'd been clever. I'd been too damn clever. I'd counted on his never finding us.

"I trust you know what it is he may learn there."

"Yes. He might find out—I've gone and given him power over us. You said he loves my lad—if he was minded to take this into court—There can't be no doubt he's my boy's father, and judges almost always side with the father, unless he's known to be too wicked to have children in his care. Would he want to take my boy away?"

"You need not fear that! I'm sure he wouldn't want to separate the two of you. He saw how you love the boy. He knows what good care you take of him. He was your mysterious watcher outside the window a few nights ago."

"That was him?"

"Yes, and there is more. He already has a great tenderness toward you, you see. I am afraid I was too bold in what I said to you last night, but I did not anticipate this…"

"What—that you'd have me love him?" I asked. "That's—I've never met him! I don't know—I've got to get back to my kitchen. There's work to be done. I—do you know when he'll be back?"

"He says he will be back in time to hear the boy play again tonight. Don't think that you have to flee here—he won't force himself into your family. He's too shy—too afraid of hurting you, of scaring you. Whatever else may come in time…"

"I can't talk about that right now. I can't even think about it..." I put my hands over my ears, like a child, and fled from the cottage.

A/N: Well! As you can see, the plot is beginning to build up some speed! I will update soon.

Tiktok: Thank you! Although I do have an original book-length manuscript, I haven't been published yet. I'm using fanfiction as a way of learn how to tell a story really well before I do another draft of my novel.

Bella: I'm kicking this story up a notch, and I should be doing an 'Anne and Christine' flashback fairly soon—as in, in the next five chapters. There will be more small revelations salted around as I go. Thank you!

Lucia: Welcome back, my favorite librarian reviewer! I hope you enjoyed the Reading Conference. A chapter from little Erik's point of view—what a great idea! I'll see if I can work that in. It might have to be as a flashback, as if a grown-up Erik Jr. was reminiscing about the summer his father came home. The implications about the fraud will become clearer in future chapters. Anne has gotten herself into a very awkward situation, and knows it. As the demands the registrar made of Anne—Yes, it was sad, and it affected Anne a great deal. She still feels bad about it, but as she is a very practical person, and someone who is good-natured and happy most of the time, she has not let it traumatize her. Thanks so much!

MetalMyersJason: Well, since it is the central mystery of this fic, I intend to keep my readers guessing as to who actually gave birth to little Erik for some time to come. I'm sorry, but you'll have to stay in suspense along with everybody else. Anne, as she says in this chapter, is his real mother—that is the truth. Where his DNA came from—that's only a matter of biology.

Allegratree: As so often, we seem to be on the same page. As I was writing that chapter and got to that scene, I paused before I wrote about Erik slipping a Punjab lasso over Giscard's head, and asked myself if the noose business wasn't already done to death—so to speak. I hope this chapter finds you having a better day.

HDKingsbury: Perhaps Erik Sr. is moving a bit fast on the 'my wife' business, but Anne was at least partly responsible—you'll learn more in the next chapter…

Ellen: You sound like you had quite a time in Russia. I'm impressed. And your mistake was a perfectly natural one, I think. Welcome back.

And shout-outs to Josette, flamingices, and Erik for President!