Meanwhile inside, the woman who had accompanied Monsieur Cholet was making her way down a back staircase and as she was going down, she looked over the bannister to see a short middle-aged man in a dark suit with dark hair and moustache.
"What are you waiting for?" she said.
"Madame, Madame one of the stagehands said I shouldn't go down there" the man replied in a nervous tone.
The 'Madame' then snatched a metal key the man was holding in his right hand.
"You're listening to a stagehand? Maybe you don't want to work for me any more at all" she said in an almost threatening tone as she walked around him and stopped at a door under the stairs.
"No, no I-I do" said the man almost begging as he followed her.
"So, you want an inventory of what?" the man stuttered.
"Of everything you can find down there. All costumes, all sets. I want to know exactly what it is we are inheriting" said the 'Madame' as she opened the door and gestured for the man to go in.
Once the door was closed behind him, the man looked to his left and saw a staircase leading down to the Cellars of the Opera House. He could not see the bottom for it was pitched black and there was a slight cold breeze. He took slow nervous steps down and when he finally reached the bottom, he began his task.
XXX
After taking some time to rest Christine and Catherine decided it was time to move on and head back home. But before they could leave the premises, they heard knocking on glass and when they turned, they saw the man in the red uniform standing inside a small office.
"Maybe the new manager will help you, but I can't promise you anything" he said then he led the sisters inside.
XXX
The man had walked so far down the cellars that he soon lost his way and had come across an area with ropes and gears everywhere he looked. As he maneuverer his way through the gears suddenly began to move which gave him a shock and he desperately wanted to leave but everywhere he looked he could not find a way out. He caught a glimpse of movement above him and when he looked up he saw a dark figure standing on the upper level and when the figure turned to face him it had the head of a skull and in reaction the man screamed and fell backwards down an opening in the floor, disappearing down into the darkness.
XXX
In the auditorium of the Opera House all the employees had gathered for a meeting and standing on the stage was Monsieur Carriere, Monsieur Cholet with his lady companion, the Maestro, and the stage manager.
"That's him, the new director" the man in the red uniform whispered to the Daae sisters motioning towards Monsieur Cholet.
Catherine was sitting on his right while Christine was on his left.
"The truth is my friends; it was time for me to leave" said Monsieur Carriere and in response everyone whispered amongst themselves their disapproval.
"I've been around far too long. All Paris must know by now the Opera is under new management and of course that means a new managing director. And I would like to present him to you" he continued.
Everyone gave Monsieur Cholet an appraised look and some whispered amongst each other on what they thought of him.
"He bought his way in" whispered a middle-aged woman in a dark brown dress with her hair tied in a bun.
"How else?" whispered a young man with dark hair, a moustache and wore white dress shirt and black trousers.
"Monsieur Alan Cholet" said Monsieur Carriere then gave a polite applause. A few employees followed suit while others were reluctant until Monsieur Carriere gestured with his eyes and they complied.
"And..." Monsieur Carriere went to introduce Monsieur Cholet's lady companion but could not remember her name and looked to Cholet for help.
"Carlotta" said Cholet.
"And his charming and talented wife Carlotta" said Carriere and again gave a polite applause and like her husband Carlotta received the same response and Carriere, once again, gestured for them to follow suit and reluctantly they complied.
As they applauded Cholet helped his wife from her chair and presented her like a rare jewel for a few moments and then she sat back down again. Cholet then stood centre stage to give his own speech.
"This is a moment we will never forget..." he said but before he could continue a loud bang was heard from the rafters above.
"It's the Phantom!" said a male employee as a piece of paper floated down from the rafters which was soon caught by Monsieur Carriere and quickly read it.
Everyone whispered to each other asking if anyone had seen the 'phantom', but no one did.
"Phantom?" asked Cholet feeling confused, he then approached Monsieur Carriere for answers.
"What is going on?" he demanded.
"I'll explain it to you in my office" he said
"You mean my office" Cholet corrected him.
" Of course, forgive me" Carriere apologised before leading Cholet from the room.
The stage manager dismissed everyone and as everyone left the man in the red uniform instructed the Daae sisters to wait for him near his office while he seeks an audience with the new manager when his business with Cholet was done.
XXX
Meanwhile in the cellar the 'phantom' stood above the opening where the poor man had fallen through and quietly slipped away into the darkness.
XXX
"Who is Joseph Bouquet?" asked Carriere as he and Cholet walked into the lobby.
"My wife's costume man, she sent him to see what's down below" said Cholet.
Unknown to the two men the statue of an Egyptian woman in the middle of the lobby was spinning without any explanation.
"He may have found something he wasn't looking for" said Carriere handing him the note.
"Joseph Bouquet broke the rules" he read aloud.
He heard a faint squeak coming from behind Carriere and when he looked up, he thought for a moment he saw the statue spin slightly to the right, but he brushed it off as his eyes playing tricks on him.
"What rules?" Cholet asked.
"Well you see there's a ghost in this Opera House. And he has certain rules which must be obeyed, do so and everything is fine. Clearly your Joseph Bouquet did not know the rules" Carriere explained.
"What!?"asked Cholet in a surprised tone.
"All you need to know; is don't go down below" Carriere emphasised.
"If this is a joke it isn't funny!" Cholet said in a defensive way.
"I assure you it is not a joke" said Carriere as he turned around and walked a few steps away from Cholet.
Suddenly Cholet heard the squeaking sound again and when he turned in the direction it was coming from, he thought he saw the statue turn again. He felt for sure now he was not seeing things and was becoming slightly paranoid. He looked all around the room for a moment before following behind Carriere.
"The ghost has been here as long as I have. He moves everywhere. He moves through doors; he moves through walls. Sometimes he can be quite frightening, but we obeyed his rules, and all went well"
And just as Carriere said this the two gentlemen heard a loud bang nearby and when they turned a painting fell from the wall and the frame broke as it hit the floor. Cholet was spooked by this occurrence but Carriere did not pay it much attention and carried on with his tale.
"Rumour has it he lives far below the Opera House, on the edge of a lagoon. During the days of the Paris Commune there were torture chambers down there. That is his territory, that is his domain, that is where he lives and whoever goes down there does not return. He calls himself The Phantom of the Opera" he said.
Cholet did not take his words too seriously and became very defensive.
"Carriere I don't believe a word of this" he said as he started walking away.
"Or this ha, ha, ha, ha!" he laughed and then imitated how he saw the statue move only a few moments ago.
"These are tricks! Designed by you to get back and me and my wife for having you fired. I do not believe in ghosts" he exclaimed as he faced Carriere and started walking backwards away from him. He then turned to walk away but then turned back around to give his final word and the second after he spoke a marble bust behind him fell from its pedestal and smashed on the floor. Cholet jumped with shock then quickly made his exit leaving Carriere on his own.
Carriere watched Cholet and just as he left his line of sight, he heard a deep disembodied voice.
"What is going on here?" asked the voice.
Carriere looked all around the room, trying to find the source of the voice.
"Is he dead?" he whispered.
"Answer my question!" the voice demanded.
"Erik!?" said Carriere in a demanding tone.
"Yes, yes he's dead" the voice answered in a solemn tone.
Carriere's face dropped in despair.
Behind him the wall began to open, revealing a secret door and without any hesitation Carriere made his way through the doorway and quickly it closed behind him.