Chapter 6

"Erik?" Christine called. Her voice echoed through his home, but only cryptic silence followed. "Erik?"

She stepped over the shattered glass and scattered papers. All of his candles had burned to nothing, the only light source came from her small torch. The shadows seemed to dance around her, taunting her with were devilish moves and silent ridicule. "Angel, where are you?" She called to the darkness.

"Christine?" She heard a soft whisper come from one of the rooms.

"Oh, Erik!" She hurried to the door, but the moment she placed her hand on the knob, she suddenly stopped. The room before her was Erik's bedroom. He never let her in there. It was his tree of knowledge in his home. It was the only place he forbid her to ever go in. She always wondered why she wasn't allows in there, but she never considered going in there.

"Christine!" The voice called again, but more frantic this time. She hesitated, then opened the door. The room was dark, and smelled deeply of decay. In the middle of room, a large, red oak coffin laid closed, it casted an eerie shadow that crept up her body, and caused her to shiver. As she approached it, her eye caught a glimpse of the items on top of the lid. A single red rose, with black ribbon tied around the stem, the oval onyx ring, and the shattered remains of his usual white mask.

"Angel?" She called out again, but there was no answer. She approached the coffin, and picked the rose up in her hands. A thorn of the rose caught on her palm, causing it to bleed. She dropped the rose, as it hit the floor, a haunting laugh filled her head. She knew that laugh, and had heard it once before. It was when she was still preforming in the opera. She had just proclaimed her love to Raoul, on the roof, and had returned to the stage. She knew Erik had been watching them, but she didn't care. Erik's voice filled the opera house, his haunting laugh filling every nook and cranny, just as the chandelier fell.

"Erik? Oh Erik were are you!" She called out. Just as she did, The room began to spin around her, everything sank into the darkness.

"Christine?" She heard a voice, but it wasn't Erik's. She opened her eyes to find her husband sitting on the edge of their bed, leaning over her. "My dear, you need to wake, don't you remember what your doing today?" He gentle kissed her cheek, then left the room, allowing her to get ready. She sat up, and looked at her refection in the full sized mirror that sat opposite the bed.

It had been fourteen years since she went down to Erik, just to find that he wasn't there. After her second daughter, Sasha, was born, Raoul forced the family to move to London. That way, if for some small chance Christine had lied to him about Erik's death, she still would be separated from him. It wasn't up until a few weeks ago, did she ever think about returning to Paris. Her best friend growing up, Meg Giry, sent her a letter, telling her that she was going to be married, and she wanted Christine to attend. It took endless begging on Christine's part, but Raoul agreed to visit Paris, so she could attend the wedding. Their daughters were positively thrilled with the thought of leaving their boring home and wondering around the streets of Paris.

Christine changed into an emerald green dress, that emphasized her chest. Despite her married stature, she always wanted to turn heads. She then examined her face in the mirror. The brilliant glow her skin had during her youth had left her, and some age lines had appeared on her face over the years, but all and all, her beauty was just as apparent as when she lived in the opera house.

"Mother!" Two high pitched girl's voices called from behind the door. Before she could answer, the two girls entered. She turned and embraced each of her daughters. She step backed, and looked at the two of them.

Sometimes it astonished her how different they were, like night and day, and yet how close they are. Kathrine had her curly blond hair pulled back elegantly, her bright Aqua blue eyes matched her dress perfectly, and her dark brown freckles contrasted well against the blush she wore over her tan skin. She carried her usual bright smile, that revealed almost every one of her shinning white teeth. Her younger sister, looked quite the opposite. She was about a head taller than her older sister. Sasha let her straight shimming black hair tumble over her shoulders, and over one of her golden eyes. She wore a velvet red dress that made her look much older than her mere thirteen years. The colour of the dress almost matched the intensity of her lips. She didn't were any makeup, like her sister, instead, she let her flawless pale complexion show it's true beauty. Christine could almost laugh at how each girl was almost a spitting image of their father, with the exception of Sasha's facial features, those belong to her mother.

"You two look absolutely breathtaking!" They twirled around, letting there skirts flow around them, making them look like dancing flowers.

"Well they say this city is filled with handsome young men!" Sasha said with a small giggle. Christine's eyes widened with the statement.

"A beau? At your ages?" She said with astonishment.

"Mother, I am fourteen." Kathrine protested.

"And I'm far more mature than Kat." Sasha retaliated.

"Why don't you take that up with your father?"

"Mother that's not fair! You know how he is, he thinks we are still children!" Kathrine protested again.

"You are children, end of discussion, just-" She kissed the tops of their heads, "Make sure they are handsome. I don't want ugly grandchildren." The girls giggled, and embraced their mother, than chased each other down the hall.

"My girls." Christine shook her head and sighed.