Well, I have nothing to say, really. It's kind of self-explanatory. So, here's Chapter Seventeen. After this, three more chapters. Almost done! Hang in there. I own none of the characters except Serenity, Luke, Megan, Jaques, Angelique, and David. The end.

Abduction

The sun had long set, sending shadows creeping through even the outer, windowed halls before Serenity said good bye to her mother and headed for her own room. She was longing to speak with Luke again. Perhaps, now that they were engaged, she could find her way into his chamber during the night without fear of being caught and scorned. The thought made her smile, and she changed course, heading for her fianc's room in place of her own. Fate boded ill for her, however, as she happened to encounter Jaques in one of the corridors.

"Well, well, Princess," he drawled, "imagine us meeting here. Running off to little Luke, are we?"

"Jaques, I really don't have the patience for dealing with you," she spat, attempting to brush past him. He reached out and grabbed her left hand, inspecting the new ring in the candle light.

"So it's true. You are engaged to that... peasant! When you could have had me!"

"God, Jaques, you will never understand. Not everything can be bought with gold; my love least of all."

"I may not be able to buy your love, Princess," he sneered, pulling a drenched cloth from his pocket and smothering her mouth and nose, "but I can take it!"

Serenity screamed, the sound muffled by the rag, and struggled to break away from his grasp, to escape the stinging vapors that burned her throat and eyes. As hard as she fought, she could not get free, and her last sight before vision swam and darkened, was of Jaques pulling the ring off her unresisting finger and throwing it on the ground in the cold darkness.

Several hours later, Luke had noticed Serenity's absence. She had never disappeared without telling him, in all the years he had known her, and recently they had always met for dinner late in the evening. It was now approaching midnight, and he had not heard from her. He felt something was wrong; grabbing a lantern, he searched the opera house for his fiancé;.

Two hours later, Luke walked down the same hallway from which Serenity had been abducted. He almost passed the fateful scene, until the light glinted off something in the shadows. When he found the ring, discarded carelessly in the dark, Luke knew he needed help; he was now sure someone had taken Serenity, and he had a good idea of who it was. Without hesitation, he woke her father, and explained the situation hurriedly.

"Serenity's been taken," he said abruptly.

"What?" Erik exclaimed. "By whom?"

"I have every reason to believe it was Jaques." Fire lit in Erik's eyes as he thought about the son of the man he had come to hate.

"How dare he take my daughter!" Christine heard Erik's muffled curses and walked into the room, dazed by sleep.

"What's happened?" she asked.

"Jaques de Chagny has our child!" Erik yelled.

"God, no!" Christine was instantly awake, thinking of how her own life had been shattered by a de Chagny.

"Christine, what is it?" Erik said more calmly, seeing the pained, haunted look in her eyes. She said nothing, but glanced at Luke, her eyes filled with tears.

"Luke, could you please -"

"I'm already gone," he replied and walked quietly out the door.

"Christine, if this involves Serenity in any way, you have to tell me. Is she in danger? Do you believe Jaques will harm her?"

"I don't know," she sobbed, "but his father..." She trailed off, looking helpless.

"What?" Erik pressed.

"That night, before I left. The night I chose to love you," she began softly, finally telling the story she had kept secret for almost twenty years, "Raoul found out. I don't know how, but I had hardly stepped back into my room when he cornered me. He was furious, that I had chosen you over he. He - he forced me. I couldn't do anything. Had I fought, he could have killed me. He raped me, and he left." She began sobbing, and Erik held her tightly in his arms. "I didn't know what to do. I ran," she mumbled into his chest. "Meg caught me, and decided to come with me. We left. For nine years. I could not find the courage to return. When Megan died, I finally realized that my children deserved a better life than what I had given them. So, I brought Serenity here, and we found you. But Erik, I never stopped loving you."

"Merciful God," he whispered. He kissed the top of her head, dazed by the implications of what she had just told him. He pulled her up, to look fiercely into her eyes. "I'll kill him. I swear this to you. And if Jaques has done anything to my daughter, I'll kill him as well."

"Erik, no. You - you can't. You'll be caught, you'll be taken from me. Erik, I couldn't live without you now. Don't make me go through that again."

"Don't worry over me," he said, voice and eyes hard. "I'm going to fetch our daughter." He stalked out of the room, and was joined by Luke in the corridor. Neither man spoke, seeing the anger burning in the other's gaze, and they walked quickly, silently into the darkness, hungry for revenge.