Carriere did not return to the surface right away. Just as he originally planned, he approached the stairs leading up the room Catherine was in.
"Mademoiselle" he called out softly from the bottom of the stairs.
He quickly turned back to make sure Erik didn't hear him from wherever he was. There was no sign of him so Carriere called out again.
"Mademoiselle" he said, making his way up the stairs.
He heard faint footsteps coming from within the room.
"Maestro!?" Catherine called out as she appeared at the window.
"Listen to me. Listen to me carefully. You are in great danger and you must get out of here" said Carriere before looking behind again.
"Monsieur Carriere! What?" asked Catherine, confused as to why the older gentlemen was there.
"That's right. We met at the Bistro" said Carriere as he turned back around to look at her.
"Yes, I remember. You said my voice reminded you of a certain singer" said Catherine, remembering their first meeting.
"That's right. Unfortunately, it reminded someone else of her as well" said Carriere, looking behind again feeling more anxious by the minute.
"That is why you are in great danger. Come, we must get out of here. I will show you the way" said Carriere, turning back around to face Catherine again.
He then made his way further up the stairs and through the threshold of the room.
XXX
Meanwhile, Erik was leaving a trail of gunpower, from out of one of the small barrels, starting at the entrance to the lair all the way down to the bottom of the stairs.
He had discarded his black cloak and waist coat and now wore his white puffed shirt, black trouser and black boots.
XXX
Carriere entered the room.
"No, no, wait, please!" said Catherine, stopping him in his tracks.
"Where am I?" she asked.
"In the catacombs, down under the Opera House. It's where your Maestro lives" Carriere explained to her.
Catherine was in disbeliefs.
"No, no, this is all a dream" she said.
"Believe me, for your life depends on it. You are not dreaming. Erik brought you down" said Carriere, reassuring her.
"Erik?" asked Catherine, confused at first about whom he was speaking of.
"Your Maestro. People know him as the Phantom of the Opera" Carriere explained.
Catherine felt frozen with shock.
"I don't believe this" she said.
"You'd better because he plans to keep you down here forever. You see he's in love with you, he's always been in love" explained Carriere.
Catherine looked at him with a wide-eyed expression.
"The woman whose voice I said yours remind me of, she was his mother. She died when he was very young. This is her portrait" Carriere explained more, as he walked towards the portrait of the woman in the white dress. He stopped a few feet away from it and turned around to face Catherine again.
"He doesn't understand your world. You must get out, now" Carriere said with a tone of urgency.
"No, no! Not until you tell me why he lives down here" said Catherine, in a demanding tone.
XXX
After finishing leaving the trail of gun powder, Erik dragged along a huge contraption, that appeared to be a giant crossbow, through his lair.
XXX
"He was born down here. He's lived here all of his life" Carriere gave a brief explanation.
"Why?" asked Catherine, still wanting to know more.
Carriere opened his arms, shrugged his shoulders then brought his arms in again and clasping his hands together in front of him.
"Why does he wear a mask?" he asked, wanting to know what Catherine knew about Erik before telling her more.
"He won't say. Only that I'll never see him with it off" she said.
"Be grateful. If you saw you'd know why he's lived down here" said Carriere, hinting of what is hidden under Erik's mask.
"I don't care what his face looks like. I've seen his eyes" said Catherine in a defensive tone.
"Erik can't be helped by anyone" said Carriere in an insistent manner
"But obviously he was helped. When his mother died who took care of him?" exclaimed Catherine, defending Erik.
Carriere said nothing for a moment. His body language indicated he was reluctant to tell her what he knew but he gave in.
"I did. I'm his father" he confessed.
Catherine was shocked by this.
"You're his..." she said softly.
Before she could finish speaking Carriere interrupted her.
"His mother was the most perfectly exquisite woman I'd ever seen" he stated before turning around to look at the portrait of Erik's mother again.
XXX
30 Years Ago
The Opera House had not long ago opened its doors for the very first time. Carriere, who was 30 years old at the time, was an apprentice to the current manager. Belladova, Erik's mother, was a young woman in her mid-twenties and was a dancer in the Corps de Ballet. Carriere had always admired Belladova from afar, not only for her beauty but also her graceful, swan like movements when she danced. Every time he saw her, he would stop for a moment to admire her, which did interfere with his work occasionally. And unbeknown to him, she admired him too.
XXX
"To everyone's astonishment, first of all mine, we soon became lovers. Why me? I mean, she could have had anyone. Why was it me?" Carriere asked rhetorically as he sat down at the end of the bed
XXX
The two lovers spent as much time together whenever they could. On one occasion the two left the city for a day trip in the country and when they found a secluded spot they engaged in the ravishment of each other's bodies and then rested in each other's arms afterwards.
Belladova was the first to awaken, she pushed herself up, so her arms were supporting her upper body, and looked at Carriere as he slept. She smiled at him lovingly then leaned forward to give him a gentle kiss on the lips. She then pulled herself away and gathered up her clothes.
XXX
"Then something extraordinary occurred" said Carriere.
XXX
Once Belladova picked up her clothes she began to get dressed. She had already put her under skirt back and was now making on to her corset. While she was doing so, she was singing to herself, her voice was beautiful and angelic. Her singing had awakened Carriere, he looked up at her with astonishment as he rose to his feet, quickly put on his trousers, then came and stood an inch away in front of her. Belladova smiled at him as she sang and clasped up the catches on her corset.
XXX
"It was like nothing I had ever heard. It was a voice of absolute transparency and perfection. I never had any idea that she could sing at all" sighed Carriere.
XXX
Belladova finished pinning her corset and her song came to an end. She leaned forward, towards Carriere, and kissed him of the lips.
"It's for you. But it's our secret. Singing is very private for me. It's like making love. I don't want to share it except with someone that I love" she said in a sweet voice.
She then threw her arms around Carriere and pulled him in for another kiss and they held each other close.
XXX
"Does that make any sense to you" asked Carriere.
"Yes" said Catherine with a smile.
Catherine went to sit down on a chair that was across from the bed.
"I told her she was being selfish. I thought a gift like that should be shared with everyone. She agreed to an audition. I told her she'd be fine"
XXX
Belladova was auditioning in the Opera House's music room, the manager was there along with the stage manager, a pianist and Carriere was also there, assisting the pianist by turning the pages of sheet music over for him. She wore her hair is a half up, half down style and wore a blue dress with black bows going down the top and stopping at the waistline. She was very nervous but still sang as beautifully as she did when Carriere first heard her and at the end of her audition she received a round of applause by everyone present.
XXX
"She became the toast of Paris, but the acclaim didn't interest her. She thought only of me" said Carriere.
XXX
A few weeks past and life was blissful for the two lovers, until one day Carriere went fishing along the banks of the Sienne and Belladova soon joined him. She was wearing a white dress and a white scarf over her head.
"Gerard!" she called out as she came running down the steps to join him.
Carriere turned when he heard her voice, smiled, and waved at her.
Belladova stopped for a moment to blow him a kiss before continuing her way down the stairs. When she came up to him, she ran her fingers of her left hand through his hair then sat down right beside him.
"I saw the doctor this morning. I didn't want to say anything until I was absolutely sure. Gerard let's get married" she said excitedly
Gerard's face dropped, he turned away from her and his expression indicated he was ashamed of something, something he hasn't told her about since the beginning of their courtship.
Belladova was confused by his behaviour.
"What's wrong?" she asked, feeling concerned.
Carriere reluctantly explained what he was keeping from her.
XXX
"What I hadn't told her was that I had come to Paris a married man" her explained to Catherine.
"Married?" said Catherine in shock.
"It was the main reason I came. I'd been married less than a month. The details don't really matter except there was a child on the way. And the girl claimed that I was responsible. She might have said that about five or six others, but it could have been mine. Whatever, I didn't love the girl. She felt the same toward me. So, with her blessings I left. For a Catholic, end of story, end of marriage. I hadn't told any of this to Belladova because frankly I was afraid it would ruin things. I said to myself, this is too sweet a dream to end" Carriere explained further.
XXX
Belladova was now stone faced after hearing Carriere's story. She felt so betrayed and without another word she got up and started walking away.
Carriere watched her walk away for a moment feeling overwhelmed with guilt, then he turned and focused on his fishing line.
Belladova did not go back up the stairs, the way she came, she just kept walking further down the banks until she came to the top of some stairs that led down into the water. Without a second thought she started walking down them and into the water.
Carriere turned back around to see if Belladova had gone but to his shock he saw her walking into the water and soon her head disappeared underneath it. Quickly, he got up and ran down the banks. He jumped into the water and started pulling her out. Belladova struggled trying to get free from Carriere's grip but it was only until he had managed to drag her to the stairs that she got away from him, pushed him back into the water, stormed up the stairs and went back up to the streets, without ever looking back.
XXX
"She disappeared for months. I had no idea where. The thought of bearing a bastard was too much for her. I searched everywhere. And one day I found her" explained Carriere.
XXX
Carriere was walking along the banks of the Sienne, searching once again for Belladova. Then he saw her, she was wearing a ragged brown dress, her hair was dishevelled, her face was smudged with dirt and her pregnant belly was more notable since she had been missing for 8 months. She was walking down a slope that led to the water where a gypsy man and woman had parked their wagon, watering the horses. She approached the gypsy woman. Carriere couldn't make out their discussion but Belladova looked desperate for help. The gypsy woman led her to her caravan, reached inside and pulled out a vile filled with a strange yellow liquid. She held it out to Belladova, who took it without hesitating, then the woman held her hand out to be paid. Belladova gave her the last few coins she had and started walking away, slowly, with the bottle in hand. After walking a few steps, she opened the bottle and started drinking its content. That was when Carriere intervened, he ran up to her, grabbed the bottle from her hand and threw it to the ground, breaking it. Belladova felt funny all of a sudden and shuffled over to the wall to balance herself. Meanwhile, Carriere approached the gypsy woman and demanded that she and her husband leave the area and in retaliation she spat at him. Belladova became frightened when she stated feel pains in her belly.
"Gerard!?" she cried out as the pain grew stronger and more unbearable.
Carriere ran to her side, he put his left arm around her to support her and held her right hand in his as he lead her away from the area.
XXX
"We had nowhere to go. I brought her back to the Opera House, where we could hide in the stall used for the animals" said Carriere.
XXX
Carriere led Belladova through the stalls until they came upon a pile of hay, he laid her down and Belladova breathed more heavily and started pushing. Carriere held her hand through it all.
After long hours of labour, Erik was born. Belladova had since cleaned up, brushed her hair and was wearing a new dress. She sat in the corner of the stall, holding her new-born son close to her chest, and hummed him a lullaby.
Carriere left a little while ago to get something for the new mother to eat. He soon returned with an apple in hand. He sat down beside Belladova and handed her the apple, she took it from him gratefully, gave him a kiss and took a bite from the apple. She looked down at little Erik with a loving smile before kissing him on the forehead. She adjusted her hold on him so Carriere could see his son. He looked at Erik with a stoned expression.
XXX
"She'd sing to him for hours. His face was like nothing I'd ever seen. As beautiful as she had been, that's how monstrous Erik looked. The hardest part for me was realising she saw nothing ugly in this child at all. To her he was beauty itself. And to him, so was she" Carriere remembered fondly.
Catherine did not speak throughout the rest of Carriere's story, she was enthralled by it all especially hearing about how kind and loving Erik's mother was and smiled picturing them playing together happily.
Carriere rose from the bed, made his way over to the windows and looked out onto Erik's lair.
"And his little eyes would open up with wonder and delight. To him it was the voice of an angel. Maybe it was. Then , one night she died fever of some sort. It's not exactly a healthy place to live in. Erik was three, and I thought now he would die. And that would be a mercy to all of us. But she begged me to take care of him. So, I watched over him thinking if he dies, he dies" explained Carriere.
XXX
Three-year-old Erik, dressed in a little white shirt, a dark brown jacket, brown trousers and boots, and his hair was sticking up in all directions and not yet wearing a mask, was playing in the catacombs beneath the Opera House one day. Suddenly he tripped and fell over, hurting his left knee when he hit the ground, the shock from the fall made him cry. Carriere ran to his aid, picked him up and sat him down on a nearby rock. He gave his knee a gentle rub to ease the pain.
XXX
"With his mother gone, he began to cry. Those cries echoed up through the shafts and cracks. At night when the Opera House was empty, you could hear them up above" said Carriere as he turned to face Catherine.
"And the legend of the Opera Ghost was born. By that time, I had become manager. To make sure no one will discover him I allowed this ghost story to grow" Carriere continued speaking.
He walked towards Catherine.
"Did he know you were his father then?" asked Catherine.
"He still doesn't know. He thinks I am some kind of an uncle" answered Carriere as he stood beside her.
"Why didn't you tell him?" asked Catherine.
"Cowardice, I suppose. I've always known that one day I'd have to abandon him. I couldn't bear the thought of leaving him and him thinking his father had left and not taken him along" said Carriere as he shrugged his shoulders, walked a few steps away from Catherine and turned to face her again.
"Erik has been more than a son to me. My friend and my guide. For the last thirty years the truth is he has been the real director of this Opera House, not I" Carriere continued to speak, he turned away from Catherine as he spoke.
"If we were a great company, and we were, it was because of him. Every decision, from the repertoire to the smallest prop, was his. My own small talent, as such at it was, was keeping him alive" he continued on, he turned around to face Catherine again and approached her.
"Now I must leave, and he cannot. But you can. And you must, for your own sake as well as his. If you love him as much as you say you do please don't give him any false hope. You will crush him utterly. And in the process, you will destroy yourself. Come with me" he begged Catherine and held out his hand to her.
"No. You want me to leave him without so much as a word? No, he deserves better than that from me" said Catherine as she stood up from her seat.
"If you wait, he will not let you go at all" said Carriere, trying to persuade her to change her mind.
"I don't believe that especially after everything you've just said. I will go when I am ready to, after I've talked with him" said Catherine as she took a hold of Carriere's left hand to reassure him she would be fine.
"You're making a horrible mistake" said Carriere, determined to change her mind.
"Please, you would hurt him far too much" said Catherine, still determined to stay.
"Not if you leave now" said Carriere, begging her to reconsider.
"I'm not afraid. Now I know his heart" said Catherine with a smile.
"So do I. Unfortunately, there is more to him than that" chuckled Carriere.
XXX
Erik dragged the giant crossbow to the bottom of the stairs, leading to the entrance to his lair, and pointed straight up at the threshold. When he was satisfied it was put in place correctly, he walked away.
XXX
Carriere realized there was no persuading Catherine to leave so, reluctantly, he turned and walked towards the threshold, before he walked out, he turned to look at Catherine one last time.
"Get out while you can" he warned her, then he left without ever looking back.
XXX
Gerard returned to the surface within an hour. On his way up the grand staircase, Inspector Ledoux appeared from around a corner with a police officer following behind him.
"Bonjour! Where have you been?" he called out to Carriere.
Carriere stopped in his track, which allowed the Inspector to catch up with him, turned to look at Ledoux for a second before continuing on his way up.
"We need to talk. Like old friends. Man, to man. You help me, I help you" said Ledoux as he put his arm around Carriere as they walked up the stairs.