Ava walked into her dressing room backstage. She quickly got changed. She looked in her mirror. Harold stood.

"Harold. Hello."
"Darling, the Count and I would like to see you."

"The Count?" Ava said, nervous.

"Come to my office."
Ava followed Zidler to his office. Zidler never spoke. What had the Count told Zidler? She was nervous.

Zidler opened the door. The Count stood and smiled at Ava sweetly. Ava slowly and cautiously walked in. The Count kissed her hand with his slimy lips. Ugh. What was this meeting for?

"Good morning, Ava." The Count said.

They sat in front of Harold's desk.

"What would you like to speak about?" Ava asked.

"The Count has informed me that some people have been misled."
"Misled? In what way?"

Harold looked deep into Ava's eyes. Ava knew that Harold knew what the Count was like.

"That the Count has been harming you in some way."

Ava looked over at the Count. He smiled sweetly, almost urging her to go along with it.

"Yes, they have been misled." Ava lied, staring blankly.

"Wonderful. We just wanted to see if the contract was still viable. You will come to me on Opening Night." The Count said.

"Yes." Ava said softly, staring out the window.

"How about we have a little supper tonight?"
"And, Ava would like to clear up some other misleadings about the writer."
Ava stared at Harold. Christian? What about him? Harold looked at her angrily. She caught his drift. Using her acting talents, Ava turned to the Count.

"There is nothing going on between us" Ava lied.

The lie hurt.

Nighttime fell. Christian sat in his garret. Too many thoughts. All he could do was write them. He looked out the window. He regretted what he had done with Ava, and he knew now that there was only one, Satine. He tried to forget about what he had done with Ava.

At the Gothic Tower the Count and Ava stood on the balcony. The Count was kissing her shoulders. He saw Ava sing or say something to herself, and almost meet his eyes. The Count spoke again, and looked at Ava. He began to yell, and threw Ava inside.

Christian had to do something! This time, he would not let the Count get away. He immedietaly got up and ran out his door.

The Count threw Ava on the ground.

"I knew you were sleeping with him!" He yelled.

Ava sobbed. There was no use denying anything. She closed her eyes and waited for what she knew would come. She closed her eyes. The Count threw her on the bed.

She heard a door bang open. She opened her eyes and gasped. It was Christian, holding a gun.