Chapter Eleven
An Angel Once More
Excitement was the order of the day as they watched the shore come closer. Raoul and his family had a slip they used whenever they traveled to England on their yacht. Everyone lined up at the railing to watch as their new home came into view. The men on the dock began to scurry about readying the dockside to tie off the yacht. Carriages lined the boulevard as well as shops open for business to catch the newcomers as they disembarked. Some of the carriages were for hire while others were privately owned.
The boadwalk was teeming with people out for a stroll or waiting for passengers to come ashore. Erik felt the old fear rising within him. Crowds had always meant some sort of pain. Either physical or mental. Meg coming to stand by his side giving him a reassuring smile calmed him somewhat. Meg wanted to see everything at once. Meg hung over the side nearly falling into the water trying to watch the sailors toss the ropes in a seemingly confusing manner. They jumped and called orders and instructions to one another.
Meg had borrowed a dress from Christine. It was a dark blue that coincidentally matched her eyes Erik noticed. It had white Italian lace at the neck and cuffs. She wore a hat to match with small feathers waving cheerily in the wind. Meg had hoisted hereself onto the railing. Erik had finally decided his nerves could not stand watching as Meg hung precariously over the rail with half her body hidden as she leaned over with her feet dangling quite inappropriately as her skirts were far above her ankles.
Erik glowered at the men on deck who he thought looked at Meg too long. He would dearly have loved to Punjab the ones on shore who whistled and made rude comments to Meg. Meg merely waved energetically toward them. She could not understand half of what they said. She thought it must be something complimentary as they smiled quite broadly at her. A few very bold ones actually winked at her.
Erik moved in closer to Meg just in case she began to topple over. "Oh Erik isn't it exciting? Those men down there remind me of the stagehands at the opera on opening night, choreographed chaos. They seem so friendly too. Do you suppose all Englishmen are this friendly?"
Erik could have told her that those men were not being friendly at all, at least not the way she meant it. They were gaping at her while bandying about bets on who could bed her first and other various insulting things. If Erik had not made a promise to try to curb his murderous side those men would have paid for those insults to Meg with their lives when night fell. Since Erik wanted to begin fresh he must ignore the true content of those shouted words to Meg. Erik simply replied that men were the same everywhere, some were good and some were not. He left it to Meg's imagination which he considered those men below. The look in his eyes would have given away his judgment of these men had she bothered to look at him.
The others came to stand at the rail beside Meg and Erik. For a time this would be their new home. For Erik it would be the beginning of a new life. Erik Devereaux would become a man like any other. He would walk in the light of day, attend the theatre through normal means, and live in a real house. Erik wondered if the Phantom in him would stay buried long enough for him to learn the ways of civilized beings. Erik knew the basics of what society expected as he had listened and learned over time in the opera house.
Christine glanced from Meg to Erik. Something had shifted in their relationship. Raoul knew something but no amount of wheedling would loosen his lips on the matter. It must be terribly important for Raoul to keep it from her. Usually she could pry anything out of him with little effort.
Meg at first glance seemed like her old self but Christine knew her sister well and something seemed to be off about her. Nothing discernable by the casual acquaintance but Christine knew something was not quite right. Maman had confirmed Christine's suspicions with her continued furrow browed studies of Meg when Maman thought no one was looking. Christine knew their mother worried about Meg just as she had worried when Erik had been pursuing her. Christine could not help but speculate if Erik had come to care for Meg. Meg seemed to draw people to her wherever she went. No one could stay in their shell once Meg got to work on them. Meg was just what Erik needed Christine could not help thinking.
Christine could have simply asked her sister if anything was wrong but she did not wish to pry. If Meg felt she needed a sympathetic ear Christine knew Meg would come to her just as Christine had often gone to Meg. Meg had been the first person she had told about the Angel of Music. Maman had known but at the time Christine had not known that until long after she had been under Erik's spell.
Everyone seemed quite happy to depart from the vessel that had been home for over two months. For the time being everyone would stay at the de Chagny estate. Erik wanted to pull his hair out as it was arranged without his consent for everyone to move in temporarily with Raoul and Christine.
Antoinette had not decided whether it would be acceptable to live with Erik or not. Society may frown upon a bachelor having two women in his home that were not related to him. Of course they could lie and say they were distant cousins or some such fabricated story. Who would there be to dispute such a claim?
The alternative would be to stay with Raoul a while longer until a residence could be found for Antoinette and Meg. Raoul had already made the offer for them to stay with him and Christine permanently as Christine's mother and sister would always be welcome in his home.
In the end Antoinette found Erik a large townhouse. The garden had a wall of stone around it for privacy. It even had a dark dank basement if Erik got nostalgic for his former home. Antoinette had added the last in an attempt to lighten the mood as Erik had not been pleased to learn that Antoinette had accepted Raoul's invitation to live with him and Christine. Erik considered it a slap in the face. He had made a generous offer to Antoinette and she had thrown it back at him as if it was so much rubbish.
Antoinette had told him it would not be proper for them to live with a man who shared no relationship to either of them. Did he wish for Meg's reputation to be dragged through the mud even before she entered society?
When Erik continued to brood during the move into his new abode Antoinette took him aside chastising him for his boorish behavior. She assured him that she and Meg would continue to visit him. He would also be welcome in Raoul's home so long as he behaved himself.
He had to be content with that. If Erik felt as if he were being given the scraps from Raoul's table he kept that thought to himself. No sense in alienating Antoinette. Erik thought he might need Antoinette's assistance in the future.
Erik set about setting up his business. He hired people he felt would be loyal once under his employ. Some of those he hired were a little on the rough side. Sometimes shady characters were needed for special errands, errands where persuasion would be needed to convince anyone who opposed Erik that it would be better to align themselves with him rather than try to go against him.
It did not take Erik long to find the theatre he felt would be perfect for Meg's debut. The owner's were not of a mind to sell at the moment as business had been very profitable of late. Erik planned to change that situation.
The theatre began to suffer losses in scenery and costumes. One night after everyone had left a fire started from a lantern that had been left burning too close to a stack of papers. When everyone had been questioned they all swore all lanterns had been doused and hung on their proper hangers. That had always been a nightly ritual.
Rumors of a disgruntled ghost began to circulate. Some late night employees even claimed to have seen a dark apparition with a black cape haunting the dark corridors and floating in the flies. They claimed to see a flash of white then the apparition would disappear.
With all the problems ticket sales dropped dramatically. What had once been a profitable enterprise now suffered near bankruptcy. The owners claimed Mr. Devereaux had a hand in their recent troubles but could prove nothing.
Erik felt no guilt for having taken such drastic measures. He did not technically break any promise he made to Antoinette. He did not carry out any of the nefarious deeds himself. His only active participation had been to make sure a number of people saw him in quick glimpses. He himself had not committed any act of destruction.
Antoinette and Raoul both had their suspicions but kept their own council on the matter. They would make no accusations as long as no one had been hurt since they had no proof.
Erik acquired The Palace Theatre for much less than he had first offered the owners. Plans had been quickly implemented to refurbish the whole of the building modernizing it from top to bottom. By the time Erik had finished he had nearly rebuilt the whole building.
This renovating devoured much of Erik's ready cash. He had his jewels still but had planned to use those later for other things than mere survival. He had hoped to be able to live on what funds he had extorted from the managers all those years. He still had a sufficient amount to live comfortably but Erik wished to live lavishly. He wanted to live as if he were born of royalty.
Erik fell back on his old habits once more. He continued to threaten and extort business owners so that they were forced to sell him their property for less than market value. He never made any threats openly so that anyone could identify him. Everyone knew he had to be behind the threats as he benefited from each business folding under pressure.
Money could buy justice in most cases. Erik used his remaining funds wisely. No one dare point a finger in his direction in fear of reprisals.
While Erik lurked in the back allies and dealt in underhanded deals, he also courted the elite of society. His lavish spending as well as his most recent acquisitions had the eye of all of London's upper echelon. He may not have the papers to prove breeding but for the most part titles had given way to those who had wealth. Titles opened doors but money kept them from slamming in your face once more.
Soon Erik's name could be found on all of high society's quest lists. His face of course garnered interest and the less tactful asked questions. Erik had rehearsed his story until he could almost believe his lies himself. His story about being injured in a factory fire explained the need for a mask. He told everyone one of the steam boilers had built up too much pressure then exploded.
Erik looked very convincing when he showed his regrets for those who lost their lives. Of course he compensated all those poor families that lost a loved one in the resulting fire. Considering Erik had burned down L'Opéra Populaire then compensated his victims he felt he had not told a total fabrication.
To keep Antoinette off his back with her constant nagging Erik gave generously to several charities. He secretly felt charity should begin at home but one must occasionally do something that pleased others even if you disagreed with what you had to do.
In a relatively short time Erik had replenished his funds. Having all he needed for the moment Erik began to lead a more honest life in the business arena. People tend to forget misdeeds when lucrative associations are formed. Erik did not feel averse to letting others prosper from his skills. He opened his doors to all who wished to invest in his ability to make things happen in the financial world.
As Erik became known in the social community the invitations began to filter in. Meg and Antoinette as friends and guests of Raoul's were invited to many of the same functions.
These social functions gave Erik an excuse to observe Meg without seeming to have any other interest in her other than as the daughter of his dear friend Antoinette.
Erik did not care for all the young men who circled around Meg like sharks circling a defenseless fish they were considering as dinner.
It did not escape Erik's notice that even older men gave Meg an inordinate amount of attention. He could not curtail Meg's limitless dancing partners. If others would not have gossiped about the two of them Erik would have made certain that he and Meg spent all those evenings either dancing together or walking and talking in the gardens. He would not acknowledge that to do so would ultimately be a direct contradiction of what he had originally planned for Meg.
All he could see when Meg took the dance floor with some young, handsome and wealthy man was a man who had the potential to win Meg's heart. He wanted her to be happy and in his moments of complete honesty he admitted he wanted Meg to find happiness with him. His feelings for her grew stronger with every meeting.
Christine and Raoul held little interest for Erik these days. It puzzled Erik how he could have been so enamored of Christine as to commit such horrible acts yet mere months later he could look at her with a cool head. He admired her beauty and would always appreciate her voice for had he not had a hand in creating such a perfect singing voice?
It worried Erik that he might simply have replaced one woman who now was unavailable to him with one who had given herself to him one time freely. It still shamed him that he had taken Meg the second time in what could only be labeled as an act of rape. Even though her body had responded to him she had told him no and he should have left her on that deck when she had voiced her first protest. Having far too much to drink Erik considered a very feeble excuse for such behavior.
Erik's resolve to only be Meg's friend would be tested over time. A new threat would enter their lives that would draw them all together in one cause.