Christine sat straight up in bed gasping "something is wrong…something is terribly wrong!" She looked over at Erik, reaching out she touched him. His chest rising and sinking predictably for a man who was fast asleep. Christine's face was wet with sweat, she'd been having a terrible dream. It was so real. A woman was screaming, an angry man in a cape was looming over her, he had a rope in his hand….more screaming….and everything went black. For all the terror of it…it was the blackness that frightened her the most.
She slipped her feet to the side of the bed, and slowly crept from beneath the covers so as not to disturb Erik. No doubt the medicine that the doctor instructed that she give him each night before retiring contained some sort of sleeping agent, as Erik was always sound asleep long before she.
Christine stood looking out the window. The breeze was not as strong tonight as it had been, but the gentle wind quickly cooled and dried the sweat. She was wide-awake now, but something deep inside of her sensed danger, tragedy, terror. It was a deep dread that she'd felt only once before and that was before her father died. She closed her eyes. She could see ripping fabric, thrashing limbs, muffled screams through a mouth gagged with cloth. She shook her head. It had been a long while since she'd had a nightmare, and she hoped it would be a long time again.
She stood several minutes just staring out into the night sky. The waves of the sea lapped along the shoreline rhythmically almost as a soft lullaby putting her in the mood for sleep. She climbed back on the bed, and beneath the sheets. She nuzzled in by Erik's side, softly caressing his back. In the moonlit room she could make out the outline of his face. The one that was facing her was the one that had been masked. In the darkness, she could see none of the stitches or changes the surgeon had made, only the strong jaw, closed eyelid, and perfectly shaped lips that seemed to curve up ever so slightly whenever she touched him. He was alright, she was alright, yet something inside of her would not be silenced.
She closed her eyes once more, fighting for sleep. As she slipped back into the netherworlds of her dreams, the thrashing came back to her, the face, she could almost make out the outline of the woman's face, limbs and fabric blocked her view. A sudden shriek, and the man withdrew just enough for Christine to see the blonde curls…..and the look of sheer horror on a face that she knew well…."MEG!"
Christine sat straight up again, rising from her bed without thought. She ran from her room, down the hall to Madame Giry's. Perhaps it was nothing more than a nightmare…indeed Meg would be safe at the Inn in Paris….but the feeling was too strong to ignore.
"Madame Giry…" she shook the poor woman awake, "whatever is it child…is Erik alright?" She stood, quickly fastening her robe around her. "No" Christine said, nearly panting now, "it's Meg, I think something terrible has happened to Meg!" Madame Giry's hands flew to her face, all color draining from it as surely as if a thousand leeches had been wrapped round her ankles. "Meg? No…." Christine helped her to the side of her bed. "Mother, I know it seems most improbable, but I've never had a dream, nay, a vision as strong as this one. It was Meg, she was in a house, a man was over her, there was blood, thrashing limbs." Christine collapsed into Madame Giry's arms.
"Now my dear, we must be rational." Madame Giry said, trying to calm herself and Christine. "Meg is due to stay in Paris for another four days, she should be most safe staying at the Inn, she's stayed there before without incident, and…" Christine interrupted. "No, no….this wasn't the inn, at least not the way Meg described it. There were many pieces of canvas, covering lumps, perhaps furniture, a piano…I am not certain, but there was little light, and I had a sense it was the two of them alone."
Christine's eyes were wild with grief, "I know in my heart that something is wrong, it woke me out of the dead of sleep." Madame Giry placed a reassuring hand on Christine's shoulder. "Child, try to calm down….if not for your own sake, for that of your child!" Christine tried to shallow her breathing, she was far too distraught, and she knew Madame Giry was right.
"Mother, please. Let us send a messenger to Meg. Perhaps it was a premonition, she should not travel home alone. Perhaps we could send someone to be waiting for her at the Inn to accompany her on her return journey. Something, anything."
There was a knock at the door. "Is everything alright?" It was Nadir. "I heard raised voices, it isn't Erik is it?" Madame Giry reached over, handing Christine a blanket to cover herself. She walked over to the door and let Nadir in. Christine looked at him wide-eyed. She was sorry that she'd woken him, and felt a bit foolish, but the feeling would not subside.
"Tell Nadir what you have told me, perhaps he can offer you some advice. I'll go to make us some tea." Madame Giry walked out of the room closing the door behind her.
"Now my dear, what is all of this? A woman in your condition should be most careful, you need your rest!" "Nadir, let me tell you of my dream…" Christine carefully explained each detail. Nadir sat rubbing his chin. "My dear, I am a believer in dreams, they often visit us to warn us of things that are to come, or guide us in some way. A dream this strong should not be ignored. In the morning I will fetch a messenger to go to Paris, and I'll explain…." Nadir went silent. That unnerved Christine again. "What….what is it?" Nadir swallowed, looking down at the floor and back up at Christine.
"Did you say that the objects in your dream were covered in large pieces of canvas?" "Yes" Christine replied. "Did you say that the room was dark, but you could see a piano, and it too was covered in canvas? Pictures of you on the wall? A bust of Beethoven on the mantel?" "Yes, yes, but why do you ask?" "And the room, it was as dark as it is now?" "Yes, Yes, Nadir, tell me what you are thinking, I implore you!"
Nadir stood, moving quickly to the door. "My dear, you are describing the winter house." "The winter house?" "Yes, the winter house, the one where this household is moved when it becomes too stormy and cold to stay here. It is the one where we deposit Meg for the carriages from Paris to retrieve her. It is several hours from here." Nadir was fastening up the laces on his shirt, and tightening the buttons on his jacket.
"Nadir, what are you saying?" "My dear Christine, have you ever been to the winter house?" He looked at her fully knowing the answer. "No, of course not, you've been with me ever since we left your sister's Inn!" "Then do explain how you perfectly described to me the contents of the parlor of the winter house….if it were not a premonition, or a vision…you couldn't have possibly known those things. I'll leave at once. If it is a false alarm, I'll have had a moonlit ride, and be none the worse for it. Something this powerful, this specific cannot be ignored!"
Nadir stood moving toward the door. He passed Madame Giry as she was coming back in. His rushed demeanor startling her. "I'll be back at first light, Christine will explain everything to you." He reached out placing a passing kiss on Madame Giry's cheek, and rushed down the stairs.
Madame Giry stood in the doorway, confused, frightened, and flustered by his actions. She came in and sat on the bed across from Christine. "What has happened Christine?" a flash of fear crossing her face.
"He's gone to the winter house….he thinks I've had a premonition…." Madame Giry raised her hand to her face to cover her mouth. She gasped, and then relaxed her shoulders. She breathed slowly before she spoke. "I'm certain that it was a bad dream Christine. Meg is probably sound asleep in her bed at the Inn. Though I will feel better when Nadir returns. We no doubt will have a story to tell later about this!"
Madame Giry drew Christine to her, resting her head on her chest. "It is alright my dear, it will be alright." Christine was not comforted, but somehow felt better knowing Nadir was on his way.
Nadir was in the saddle of Erik's horse. Yes, truly he was not as familiar with the beast, but knew of its speed and strength, precisely why Erik had chosen it. The stable boy fastened provisions for the horse in the saddlebags, and Nadir was off. He'd left instructions that if he did not return by dawn, to send the stable master and several of the gardeners to retrieve him.
Nadir knew the path well, for it was he that brought Meg back and forth, feeling much safer that he could both protect and coach her along the way. The night was cold, but not strikingly so, making the trip much less a strain. Nadir knew he was pushing the beast for all it was worth, but every minute that passed, the deeper the dread sunk into him. "How could Christine have known? She had described the paintings, the situation of the room, the piano, the canvas coverings, the staircase, even the color of the walls!" Something was dreadfully wrong, Nadir could feel it in his gut.
He'd met several others in his travels that had the ability to predict the future, or to see into the past…it was both a gift and a curse, for it haunted the possessor. He hoped that Christine's was of foreboding, rather than visions of the past….or it may already be too late to intervene. A chill ran up Nadir's spine, as he pushed on through the woods. He hoped that the wolves had not moved from their usual hunting grounds, for another encounter would be most unwelcome. He drew his cloak in tightly around him, head down, giving the horse two swift jabs. He'd push through as quickly as the beast would carry him.
Author's Notes:
Captain Oblivious: Yes, my reference was not lost! ' War of the Worlds', I agree was good, but I didn't care for the ending myself. I felt a bit cheated. Too bad they didn't take some creative liberties to dress up the ending of the original. Haaa…that's kind of ironic, since here we are altering the ending to Gaston Leroux's work! Anyway, I agree.
Oh, I've seen 'Batman Begins'…..three times! Of course, then I promptly had to hop on Amazon and purchase 'Reign of Fire', because both Bale and Butler are in that movie! It was odd really to see them on screen together as best friends…it would be rather interesting to parlay that into a story…Bale becomes Batman….and through the fire Butler becomes disfigured and becomes the Phantom…although some serious time travel would be necessary to accomplish this. Yikes, my mind is spinning out of control! If you haven't seen it yet, rent it. I didn't like Matthew MCConnahey (spelling?) in it. He was rather yucky. Can't wait to see Depp in Wonka, he is such a dark performer too…I think I have a thing for the dark brooding type. Oh well, somebody's gotta love em! Haven't seen Cinderella Man yet, but I just might have to get there to see that this weekend!
O.k., Back to the story. Yes, it is sweet that he found that statute for her. He is a true obsessive, so I thought this very in-character for him. He loved her so deeply that if he couldn't have HER, he would embody her, surrounding himself with all the things that she loved. That is why his triumph of her returning his love is so very sweet. He was like the plant in the dessert that is near it's end, that had been dreaming, hoping, pleading for a drink, when a sudden unexpected cloud passes over, dropping a relieving rain on it, and a bolt of lightening that unearths a small natural spring to ensure it will be fed for years to come. Darn, now I've gone and made myself cry, and made myself thirsty…off to get some tea! Hope you enjoy the next chapters! I was scared the whole time I was writing them!
Waytoointoerik: Thank you for your compliment. I love the twist too! Sometimes I just shudder when they come to me and I can hardly wait to get them typed up and into the story. So much is happening, it makes my skin tingle! Hope you don't want to shoot me because of this cliffe….hope you enjoy the chapters!