Chapter Thirty Six: The Light Bulb Goes Off

"We found Raoul de Chagny lying in the entrance of the sacristy, the lower half of his body was pinned against the ground by a large granite slab. The upper half of his body was covered by decaying skulls.

'I swore the guy was dead, but Holmes assured me that he was alive and we pulled him out from beneath the rubble. Holmes checked him out, to ensure no bones were broken and then we brought him back here," I concluded.

"Fascinating," Watson said at length. "I am surprised that he did not sustain any serious injuries. You were hurt worse in your accident."

I nodded. "I guess someone somewhere was looking out for him. Personally, I'm not as lucky. Things just sorta happen to me and I can't understand why.

'I mean even tonight. Tonight my entire belief system was shaken. When the Phantom spoke, his words were menacing and meant to frighten, but his voice…I swear there was something celestial in that tone. How can someone as terrifying as the Phantom, have the voice of an angel?"

Dr. Watson smiled and opened his hands as if to say 'I don't have the answer for you.' "Mackenzie, although it has been some time since my school years, I do remember the story of Lucifer, the fallen angel."

"Lucifer, fallen angel…" I said leaping to my feet. An idea was very slowly forming in my mind. "Doc, if you haven't come up with a solution!"

"What?"

"You said Lucifer was a fallen angel right?" I asked, hurrying to the side of my bed. I reached into my carpet bag and pulled out my jeans .

"Yes, but you don't seem to…"

"Why did Lucifer fall?" I asked not allowing him to finish his statement. "He fell because of sin. God banished him to hell because he was sinful, isn't that right?"

The doctor nodded and continued to stare at me as I hopped up and down the small room, struggling to get my jeans on. (I had to continue moving because otherwise I might have lost my train of thought). "I see you know your Old Testament, but what does it have to do with the current problem?"

I smiled and finally managed to pull on my sweat pants. I grabbed my sneakers from the carpet bag and pushed my feet into them. My hands were shaking with excitement, making it difficult to tie the laces. "Love is something holy right? Don't people say that when you love another, you see the face of God?"

Watson nodded but kept his silence. The guy must've thought I lost all of my senses!

"Well," I continued, my tongue tripping over itself to get the words out of my mouth, "love is one thing, but lust is another. To lust after someone is considered a sin by the Catholic Church. I'm sure it's the same with the Protestant Church, but that doesn't concern me right now. It is a sin to dream about someone and to fantasize about them," I felt my face blush when I realized I was guilty of committing the sinful acts I just mentioned. "If you love someone, and they belong to someone else, through marriage or courtship, it is wrong to want them sexually. 'Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife' is one of the Ten Commandments…"

"I'm not sure I follow what you are talking about," Watson admitted.

To be honest, I wasn't sure if what I was saying made any sense. I just spoke as the ideas entered my mind; I didn't stop and worry about their coherency. "It'll all be clear in a minute," I assured him. I successfully tied one of my sneakers and attempted to repeat the action on the other, "Raoul de Chagny loves Christine Daaé and I think it is safe to assume that Christine Daaé loves him. Since they both love each other, in a sense Christine belongs to Raoul and Raoul to her.

'Now, what if we add another potential lover to this pretty little equation? The Phantom! What if he also loves Christine? They might have been lovers at one time, and perhaps he fell from her favor. If that is true, I think it is also safe to assume that this Phantom is still in love or at least lust with her. That being said," I finally finished tying my other cleat, 'we have two very systematic equations. Raoul de Chagny, current boyfriend, plus Christine Daaé equals a happy couple. The Phantom plus an argument with Christine equals the end of a relationship, and a fallen angel. Or rather in this case, a fallen Phantom. Make sense so far Doc?"

"Let me see if I understand you. You think that the Phantom and Christine might have been in love at one time. The Phantom, whoever he is, fell from her favor and their relationship ended. Mademoiselle Daaé fell in love with her childhood friend, but the Phantom is still in love with her. Am I correct?"

I nodded; happy I was making some sense. I was really on a role! "Now, to take this whole Heaven and Hell, fallen angel analogy one step further! God banished Lucifer to hell, a dark gloomy place, located beneath the Earth. The Phantom's lair is said to be in the cellars of the Opera House, another dark place away from people. Perhaps this Phantom knows the story of Lucifer and considers himself to personify the mythological character. He might even view Christine as God and loves her but does not know how to win her back."

"I must admit," Watson said with a small smile, "your theory does hold together but it does seem…"

"Great!" My hand was already on the doorknob. "I'm gonna go tell Holmes!" I was out the door before Watson could even utter a sound of protest.

Holmes

What are possible motives for men to commit crimes? Wealth, fear, desperation, property, jealously and love.

What are the facts so far? One: Raoul de Chagny loves or thinks he loves Christine Daaé. Two: Christine Daaé was de Chagny's childhood friend. Three: Christine Daaé is being visited by whom she thinks is the 'Angel of Music' but is, in reality, the Phantom of the Opera. Four: The Phantom is extremely strict and forbids Christine from seeing Raoul de Chagny. Five: The Phantom tries to kill Raoul de Chagny.

What thread runs through these circumstances? What link can connect these seemingly unconnected events? What could motivate all of the players in this drama? Wealth, jealously and love.

Wealth does not seem to be much of a factor, for there has only been one attempt on young de Chagny's life and no kidnapping attempts thus far. If obtaining wealth was the Phantom's motivating factor, he would not concern himself with Raoul de Chagny. He would instead concern himself with the elder de Chagny. There is also the fact that the management pays the Phantom a decent amount of francs every month. No, obtaining wealth is certainly not the driving force behind these crimes.

Jealously, I've seen enough crimes where that is the driving force behind them. The Phantom could be jealous of young de Chagny, hence the attempt on his life. That would be fine if Mademoiselle Daaé was not involved. Could the Phantom, whomever he may be, have an interest in Mademoiselle Daaé? If so, then why pursue her in such a queer fashion?

The other alternative is love. One of the worst emotions humans have ever been made to feel. Love, ha! Turns logical men into blubbering idiots and honest men into thieves and murderers. Nothing good ever comes from that emotion. If that is indeed the driving force behind these crimes, then I pity everyone who is involved. I would not be the least bit surprised if love is the motive.

But I am theorizing before I have data. A capital mistake for one begins to twist facts to suit theories instead of theories to suit facts. No, I must wait and see how things progress, collect evidence and clues and then put the chain of events together, logically, link by link.

Now where the deuce did I put my tobacco…