Chapter Thirty-Five: Battle, Part Two
As Christine rode through the castle's gate, she was certain that she was too late.
She heard people shouting and saw villagers running.
But she suddenly realized that they were running out of the castle.
Hope flared in her chest, and when she finally made it through the front door, she was thrilled to see that the castle staff had won.
They stood around the foyer, cheering and congratulating each other, as the villagers fled, proverbial tails tucked between their legs.
Then she realized something was missing.
Erik was nowhere to be seen, and she hadn't spotted Raoul anywhere outside, either...
That bad feeling in the pit of her stomach returned with a vengeance.
She practically flew up the grand staircase, her heart pounding with terror.
All she could think about was getting to Raoul and stopping him before he could do something awful to Erik!
What-if's flooded through her mind.
What if I had never left? What if I had just kept the mirror hidden? What if I'm too late? What if I never get to see him again?
Her eyes filled with tears and she stumbled on the top step.
The redhead knew that if Erik were gone, she would have no one to blame but herself.
She had seen where Erik was when she'd flashed the mirror in front of the villagers.
She had recognized the balcony outside his bedroom in the West Wing.
Since he hadn't been downstairs, Christine had a pretty strong feeling that she would find both Raoul and Erik on that balcony.
Picking up her pace, she plunged down the long hallway and burst into Erik's room.
Looking around frantically, she heard voices and crept closer, making sure to stay hidden.
Glancing cautiously around the corner, the redhead stifled a gasp.
She had been right.
Erik and Raoul were on that balcony.
Their backs were to her, so they didn't see her arrive.
"Hello, Freak, I'm the Vicomte de Chagny," Raoul said smugly, and Christine rolled her eyes in disgust.
Honestly, could that man possibly get anymore conceited?
"Christine sent me."
The redhead's mouth dropped in outrage.
She most certainly had not!
"Were you in love with her, Freak?" Raoul taunted, his lip curling in a sneer.
Christine felt her temper rising, her nails were digging into her palms.
"Did you honestly think she'd want you, when she could have someone like me?"
The redhead wanted to slap him, but resisted - barely.
Erik said nothing, and then with sick horror, Christine saw the gun and darted out of her hiding place.
Just as Raoul pulled the trigger, the redhead jumped onto his back, causing the shot to miss its target, instead hitting a nearby gargoyle, which broke apart and one of the pieces hit Erik on the head, knocking him out.
"What have you done?" Christine tried to reach over him and grab the gun, but he held it out of her reach.
The large man swung her off his back and grabbed her arm.
She struggled to free herself, but his grip was too strong.
Staring down at her, he asked, his voice full of disbelief, "You prefer that misshapen thing over me...when I offered you everything?"
His fingers dug into her skin, turning it red and Christine cringed.
Gone was the noble Vicomte.
The man standing in front of her had finally revealed himself as the monster he truly was.
"When we get back to the village, you will marry me..." he snarled furiously.
"And that creature will be placed on display in Les Cirque du Freaks!
"Never!" the redhead shouted furiously.
Perhaps Raoul's hand slackened for just one moment.
Or perhaps shock made him temporarily weaker.
Or perhaps it was something more magical than any of that.
But whatever the reason, the redhead was able to yank her arm free.
Pivoting on her heel, she grabbed the barrel of the gun.
Then she kicked him in the shin and yanked the weapon from him - hard.
But Raoul wasn't about to let go of his gun - even if the person on the other end was his supposed future wife.
He hung onto it as Christine swung it closer to the balcony's edge.
His feet slipped and slid as he struggled to find his footing on the cold surface.
But the stones were slick from the snow that usually blanketed the castle, and some where even loose.
Raoul cried out as his foot landed on one loose stone.
Releasing the gun, his hands flew into the air as he stumbled backward over the edge of the balcony.
Christine gasped, convinced that she had just sent him plummeting to his death.
But, fortunately - or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it - he managed to swing himself to safety through a window below just in time.
With a grunt, he landed on a spiral staircase that led up to a nearby turret.
His rifle, in the meantime, continued to fall, and finally came to rest on a crumbling stone footbridge a few stories down.
Instantly, Raoul was on his feet and raced down the steps to where his gun lay.
Looking upward, he could see that that creature had regained consciousness, and was being helped to his feet by Christine.
Reloading the gun, he took aim...
Christine crouched anxiously near Erik's head, her fingers combing through his thin locks as she waited for him to regain consciousness.
Finally, he let out a weak groan and the redhead let out a sob of relief and hugged him tightly.
She felt him tense slightly, and pulled back a little so she could look at his face - albeit masked.
His eyes looked dazed and bewildered.
"C-Christine?" he rasped out hoarsely.
The redhead nodded and his golden eyes filled with tears.
"You're really here?" he asked unsurely, his voice small and childlike.
"Erik's not dreaming?"
The redhead just smiled and shook her head.
Almost immediately, she felt his arms squeezing her as tightly as he could.
Finally extracting herself from the embrace, she helped him to his feet.
They were just about to go back inside when there was a loud bang and Christine felt a searing pain.
As Raoul fired, the stones beneath his feet gave way.
In an instant, there was only empty air - and a long drop into nothingness - underneath him.
A/N: Please review to unlock Chapter Thirty-Six...