I should've realized something was off when Madame Giry wasn't where I chose to meet her. I should've gone back into hiding and chosen another day to steal away and get things done. But no, I had to be a fool who believed himself impossible to catch. I stepped completely out of the tunnel, closing up the false wall behind myself as I scurried down the hall. Perhaps I've misjudged where I was to be met, I thought.
Before I could open my mouth to call for Madame Giry, I heard heavy footfalls surrounding me on all sides, followed by a thick, heavy rope being looped over my head. I couldn't breathe!
"Keep your hand at the level of your eyes, monsieur," a too-familiar voice laughed as I was pulled backward, as my arms were bound painfully behind me and I was dropped to my knees. It was Christine's precious fop. I growled at the man who stepped forward from the shadows, grinning down at me as though I were some great trophy he'd won.
"So, it takes a dozen or so odd men to take down a phantom. Here I would've thought it would be something you'd want to do yourself, monsieur le viscomte," I hissed, just before one of the man's boots made contact with the side of my face. It was not a particularly painful kick, though it did cause me to rock backwards because I wasn't expecting it. Considering the men who held me back, the ropes that already bound me, I would've thought the Viscomte de Chagny too afraid of getting his hands- or in this case, his boots- dirty to do anything on his own.
"Get him up," he ordered, "He will take us to Christine, now."
"Oh I will, will I?" I said with a laugh, "You're certainly confident in your abilities to force me to do what you want."
"You will take us to Christine, or I will kill you where you stand."
"You will? Or your legions of servants here to see a pitiful wretch of a man executed for fun? Remember, monsieur, I am the one who knows how to navigate the sewers, I am the only one who knows where your precious Christine is. You kill me, you'll never see her again," I said, working to keep the creeping anger from making an appearance anywhere but in my eyes.
"Move, Phantom." The noose that kept tightening around my neck was pulled taut, causing my vision to go completely white as I was pushed forward. I was led stumbling out of the opera house, into the blinding streets of Paris in the daytime. I was very nearly thrown into a carriage, stumbling and winding up sitting in a most uncomfortable fashion on the floor near where the viscomte's feet were soon enough. I was shocked that the man was such a fool as to allow himself to be alone in a carriage with me. Sure, my hands were bound and he held the end of a rope that had my neck, but even he knew what I was capable of.
"If you will not tell me where Christine is, I shall see that your life is made to be hell," the viscomte said as we began to move. He punctuated his declaration by jabbing me in the ribs with his foot.
"Because it is a wise decision to leave her in the catacombs, alone," I replied with a wince. It seemed he could kick harder while seated, though perhaps he hadn't kicked me as hard before because he didn't want to break my neck the first thing he did.
"She will not be alone for long. My men will find their way into the tunnels you've been using. Christine will be found and recovered for me. And you will never see her again, mark my words."
"Without my help, nor will you," I said. This little outburst was paid for with a great amount of pain as he pulled the rope ever tighter around my neck. I gasped and struggled against him as he pulled me closer than I wanted to be to any part of him. He let go of the rope, grabbing me now by my throat with his bare hand. Had I the breath, I would've made a clever barb about him being unafraid to touch me. As it stood, I gasped and coughed in his face.
"If you ever even cared a little for Christine you will tell me where she is," he growled, anger in his eyes flaring along with his nostrils. It was hard not to laugh in his face. He truly thought he had the ability to frighten me.
"If you ever cared even a little for Christine," I replied, fighting to catch a breath against his steadily tightening grip, "You would not cause any harm to me. She waits patiently for my return as we speak. Imagine the terror and loneliness she must feel, left alone down in the deep dark of my own personal hell."
"A situation she wouldn't be in if not for your little stunt at the masquerade. You just couldn't stand to see her happy, could you?" the viscomte growled, "You just had to make her your own. It didn't matter who else you hurt in the process, just as long as you've got what you want."
"Yes, good, take your anger out on my throat. The sooner you kill me, the sooner Christine can die, alone," I egged him on. His only reply was to throw me back and away from him, my head bouncing against the box in which we rode. The pain that radiated through my head was horrible, but at least I could breathe again.
It wasn't long before we stopped, and I found myself being dragged out of the carriage by the noose round my neck. I was sure that there was some irony to the situation I found myself in, but all I wanted at the time was to catch my footing for long enough that I could breathe properly.
Even when there was finally some slack in the rope, I found myself horribly disoriented. It was horribly bright out, the sun high in the cloudless sky. I had to keep my eyes clenched shut, and even then the light filtering though my eyelids was blinding.
The only thing that could've forced me to open my eyes was precisely what the viscomte did next.