Christine stood in the wings, she waited for her cue. Before the opera started, she had been struggling to breath before the performance while in Carlotta's dressing room. Even now she felt nauseous, she kept reminding herself she knew the words to the songs. She had been practicing them for weeks in secret with her angel. In the rush of the afternoon, she barely had time to pray to her angel for strength tonight. One final breath and Christine went on singing.
The exhilaration of being on stage singing instead of dancing overwhelmed Christine. It was a high that she rode throughout her performance. She barely noticed the costume changes, the changes in sets, nor the dark man in the background. After the performance, Christine received a standing ovation. As the curtains closed some of the men began moving backstage. Madame Giry whisked Christine away to her dressing room. She left with strict instructions not to open the door to anyone. Christine nodded, she stood in Carlotta's dressing room, unsure of what to do. The heater was still burning, so there wasn't a chill in the room, but it still felt cold and distant. When Madame Giry returned she brought the managers with her as well as the new patron.
"I must insist sirs that Christine needs to rest for the next performance. She is not used to these performances like the other singers." Madame Giry said.
The managers waved away her concerns and handed Christine a bouquet of flowers. They sang her praises as she blushed.
"And this is our new patron, the Victome de Chagny," Monsieur Firmin introduced with a flourish.
Christine blushed even deeper, "I believe we met earlier Mademoiselle, it was a wonderful performance tonight. I believe it was your first as soprano?"
Christine nodded, "I was a ballerina before, Monsieur le Vicomte."
"Ah! I believe we met when we were children, you looked familiar and I never forget a face. In the chapel, I believe."
Christine gasped, "I... I don't recall Monsieur, there are an awful lot of people in the Opera."
"I am sure of it, come we must dine and you can tell me of your childhood, I'll call for my carriage."
He smiled at Christine and she shivered. Madame Giry began to shoo the men out of the room as the managers glanced between their new patron and their new soprano. Something had happened, they must find out more. They nodded as they went back to socialize backstage. Madame Giry shut the door and turned to Christine.
"You did very well, my dear," she smiled at Christine. She took the flowers from Christine and embraced her. "Come let us get you out of the costume."
Even as Madame Giry unlaced her corset, Christine still found it difficult to breathe. She complained to Madame Giry who recommended she lie down as she fetched another dress for Christine to wear back to the dormitory. Christine nodded as she stepped off the platform. As Madame Giry left the room to return the costume, Christine headed to the chaise longue to lie down. She had barely taken a step before she collapsed. Christine struggled to move, but she was able to turn her head when she heard wood scratching the floor. She wasn't sure what she was seeing, but a man appeared out of the wall! He quickly walked towards Christine, Christine tried to roll over as he bent down. Her mind was fuzzy, but she remembered what Madame Giry had told her, she must fight back. She heard a hiss as she made contact with the man, but he succeeded in picking her up. Then everything went black.