Chapter 18

Christian's POV

The past few weeks have proven to be very interesting to me. When I first heard about his son Charles from my great uncle Erik, I set out to make sure that I was truly his heir. I did not want to be displaced by some long lost relative who would appear out of the blue from France. Given the fact that the widow of Charles had only met the old man one time, and they clearly despised one another, I could not accept that her letter to him had been completely truthful without a visit to Boscherville. Shortly before his death I ventured to Boscherville to find out the truth. What I found was truly shocking. Charles had a son, but he had died before the boy was born. The baby was born live to Madeleine, his young widow, but had been cursed with a severe deformity which caused his mother and the entire town to treat the mother as a pariah and the son as a demon.

I came to the village determined to dislike any potential heir that I might uncover. But the more that I heard about the child, the sorrier that I felt for him and his sad existence. It would seem that, despite his terrible disfigurement, the boy had been both a musical and architectural genius. His mother showed me many of his accomplishments which remained in her possession. The boy had run away at the age of eight and therefore the works that she displayed were the product of a prodigy. Being a family historian, I immediately recognized that Erik had been blessed, with what our family legend referred to as 'Apollo's mark'. The deformity did not appear in our family very often, only once in every four to five generations. None who possessed it had ever met another, but all possessed the same talent and genius. Each possessor of the mark had without exception increased the family fortunes by manifold amounts. There had not been a von Mulheim with the mark in more than 200 years but in our family the deformity was not looked upon as a mark of a demon but instead the mark of light. Apollo, the legendary giver, was the god of light.

His wretched mother never found her runaway son, not even after placing ads in the local newspapers. For her, he had vanished from the face of the earth. I was more inquisitive and resourceful. I used my great uncle's wealth to search for traces of the lost child. Finally, as luck would have it, I found someone who had remembered a gypsy caravan who had displayed a child who was called at times both 'the Devil's Child" and the Living Corpse. The descriptions of the act matched his mother's own description of the child. The boy was displayed for several years and then disappeared. It was said that he turned on his gypsy master and killed him after being displayed in Paris near the fairgrounds. As luck would have it, I found a poster of the child and brought it back to the old woman in Boscherville. She confirmed that it was her son.

After his escape from the gypsies, his trail ran cold. I had all but given up on my quest to find my cousin but as luck would have it, I read about a Palace that had been constructed in Persia in a place called Mazenderan. According to the reports the palace was designed by a very young and previously unknown French architect who wore a white half mask on his face, who was rumored to be severely deformed. It was said that he had been brought to the Persian court by on the orders of the Shah in Shah and had risen to high office despite his foreign birth and relative youth. Apparently the Shah had employed the same fellow as an assassin as well, and that the palace contained many devices that the Shah used to torture his enemies.

I made inquiries and found that the man was definitely a Frenchman and that he had been ordered to be executed after completing the palace. He had a falling out with the Shah but he escaped with the aid of the man who had brought him to Persia one Nadir Khan. Both Mr. Khan and this Frenchman had disappeared from Persia. Again I reached a dead end. As luck would have it, the man showed up in Boscherville, and was given the information that I had left there. To my surprise, he showed little interest in his inheritance and wrote to tell me that I could take care of it as if it were my own, and take whatever profit from taking care of it that I desired. I was disappointed by his letter. I was hoping that he would have the same curiosity about me and our family that I had about him.

I did stay on to take care of the Schloss. I was not a poor man in my own right. I had my own inheritance in Konigswinter; but I fled from that place originally because of a duel over a woman who I had fallen in love with. I had won the duel by killing the girl's husband but had lost everything, even the respect of my father who sent me away, because he was ashamed of me and my affair with a married woman. He also had other purposes in sending me to meet my great uncle, who he despised. His displeasure with me had a beneficial result. I fell in love with my ancestral home in Alsace and the vineyards and decided to remain and take care of it for my cousin. Years passed and he had still taken no interest in either me or his inheritance and yet I hoped that someday I would get the chance to meet him. I had tied my cousin to the Phantom of the Opera through the Persian Nadir Khan. He was openly living in Paris with a servant brought from Persia on a government pension from Persia. He frequently attended the opera, the same place that had been terrorized by a masked man, and a man who was said to be a genius in both architecture and music, in short my mysterious cousin.

When I first beheld my cousin, Erik, he was even more imposing than I expected him to be, but he was also guardedly amiable and a gentleman. With his circus background and sinister time in Persia, I thought that I might encounter a murderous brute, more monster than man. Despite these expectations and his far from genteel background, Erik was a man of very refined and discerning tastes. I found that I could speak to him about many subjects and he would carefully listen, and even point out improvements, that I might never have thought of. The more time that I spent with him the greater my fascination, with this very complex man, grew. I could see that he had never had a regular male friend, other than his friend Nadir, but their relationship sounded complicated. I found also that he believed himself to be incapable of receiving love or warmth from any woman probably due to his rejection by both his mother and by the girl at the Opera House, whose name happened to be Christine Daae. I did not wonder how in the world that fate would serve to deliver the same girl to his household. I knew that her presence was by design. I liked my cousin, and hoped that Erik would find some happiness. As a soldier I knew that life was fleeting. One must seize opportunity when it is presented.

Meg's POV

The train ride from Hamburg to Strasbourg proved to be too long. Erik's mind worked in a serpentine manner and he insisted that we change trains at least two times to avoid anyone picking up our trail. I guess that I could not blame him if I were wanted for murder I might take the same precautions. But I wasn't, and neither was my mother, who in my opinion should have rightfully gone to the gendarmes to clear Erik's name. She regretted letting Erik take the blame but he had been so insistent on doing so. Perhaps if she had done so Erik would have been able to stay in Paris and none of what happened would have come to pass. Christine and Raoul might not have felt so desperate to kill or capture Erik, and the Opera would not be closed for repairs. Of course hindsight is always clearer than foresight. Erik wanted to send a threatening message, my maman wanted by reputation to remain unsullied, and of course it would have been most unpleasant to explain Buquet's death. It is strange how one action can change everything.

Nadir recovered completely from his injuries, and took command of us, and our journey. He and Maman argued constantly about one matter or another. Secretly I believed that both of them were developing a tendre for each other. I could see them both casting furtive glances in the other's direction. I found it amusing that they thought that they were hiding their feelings when it was so obvious. I had never seen my mother act in such a way with a man in the past. My father had died when I was a small child and I could barely remember him. I knew only that he was a very kind man and that my mother seemed softer in those memories. It was hard to picture my mother as a young woman. In my mind she had always been older and strict; perhaps it was because she was my teacher and she expected more from me than any other ballerina. Her praise of me was rare but when I received it, I felt as if it were praise from the angels themselves. I guess that Christine might have had Erik as her angel; my angel has always been my mother. The Persian was a very handsome olive skinned man with deep soulful jade colored eyes. I could see why maman admired him.

I would try to get him to tell us more about how he and Erik had become friends. As far as I had known Erik had lived in the opera house for many years. Nadir was silent about it for the most part. He told me that the past was too dark and painful for him to speak of it. He said that he and Erik had shared many memories that were best kept buried deep in the darkest recesses of his memory; but Erik and he shared a bond forged in blood and pain. I know that he felt regret over his recent betrayal of Erik, to the Vicomte, especially since he had learned that Erik did not kill Buquet. He had been convinced that Erik had slipped completely into insanity for the past six months, which was why he had accompanied the Vicomte down to the Phantom's lair.

We were all relieved when we pulled into the station in Strasbourg. Erik himself came to greet us. He looked better than he had when I had last seen him in Paris. At first I did not recognize him in his longer haired blond wig and slightly tanned skin. He looked healthy and less haunted which augmented the handsomeness of the exposed portion of his face. Maman did not miss the opportunity to point out his improvement to him. He gave us one of his rare smiles and told us that his ancestral home had proven good for him. I blushed as he took my hand and helped me into his carriage. It was a very handsome coach embossed with his family crest. A driver was dressed in livery and the pair of horses were perfectly matched and nice looking.

Erik could see our reaction and smiled. "I just picked this carriage up this morning. It was my cousin Christian's feeling that I act the part of one born to the purple so to speak. He has convinced me that it will help disassociate me from my past as the Phantom of the Opera."

Nadir laughed "I can see that you have taken on the role with gusto Erik. This is a new persona that I have never seen in any of your previous incarnations of yourself that I have witnessed. There was the mysterious court magician of Russia, the masked Angel of Doom in Persia, the Phantom of Paris and now the proud German nobleman of Alsace. You should do well in this new part Erik, you were born to be arrogant." He teased.

I was agape at how easily Nadir would tease the Phantom. Maman and I would never have dared to do so. He is so remote most of the time, except at the end, in Paris, when he was sad and heartbroken. I agreed with Maman and Nadir that Alsace had been good for him. Perhaps he would find happiness here in Germany.

Erik told us "You will meet my cousin later. He remained at the Chateau to take care of the, Comtesse de la Bois and her new companion who arrived from Paris only yesterday. "

Nadir told him "A Comtesse? Have you found someone here already doostam?"

Erik snickered "Hardly Nadir, the woman is more than eighty years old and can barely walk without help. I found her alone in her carriage on the side of the road near my estate. She was on her way to Strasbourg to pick up her new companion from the station. One of the wheels of her coach had broken and her servant went off to bring someone to repair it. The fool did not know the area and wandered for hours. My man found him on the side of the road not far from where I found the Comtesse. Apparently he had been going in circles all afternoon. She was lucky that it was I that found her. She might have been robbed or worse. She did accost me with a pistol before I persuaded her of my good intentions."

Nadir laughed "She must have been fearful of you; most masked men do not have good intentions."

"I convinced her that my mask was to hide my hideous face to protect her eyes from seeing something so horrifying. She lowered her pistol when I told her who I was; apparently she was in love with my grandfather at one time, as well as half of the eligible men in Alsace." Erik explained.

"According to Christian she was quite beautiful in her youth. She caused my grandfather and his brother to quarrel, and then married my grandfather's closest friend. My grandfather and de la Bois never spoke to one another again." He added.

"Your cousin has imparted much to you Erik. He seems to be an unending pillar of support for you, almost too supportive for such a short acquaintance. Do you trust him?" Nadir asked.

"Of course not Nadir, I trust no one except the present company. You of all people should know that." He admonished. "But he is a very open and gregarious person; he is trying to bring me out of my shell."

"Does he realize the implausibility of his attempt? You do not like to expose yourself to the public very often." Nadir asked pointedly.

"No Daroga, I do not, but I will try to do so. The Phantom used threats and superstition to achieve his ends; Baron von Mulheim will use money, power and position to achieve his. I saw how the blasted Vicomte could receive servility with the same." Erik added.

He looked at us "Have you been in contact with anyone in Paris?"

I told him "No, of course not. Nadir made sure that we did not make contact with Paris he did not want anyone to connect our disappearances.

"Good, it is of importance that no one knows where we are particularly the boy." He looked at me especially, as if he thought that I might be tempted to contact anyone. I knew better than that.

He looked at Nadir and then all of us "I have even more reason to be careful, I have something that I have to confess. I fear that it may come back to haunt me someday."

We all snapped to attention at his words Nadir asked "What have you done now Erik? Killed Raoul? Burned down more of the Opera House?"

Erik smiled sheepishly "No, nothing like that. I um…broke into his house and branded his face with my seal."

Nadir looked at Erik as if he were insane "You did what Erik?"

"I needed to teach the boy a lesson." He pointed to his mask "When he looked at me, he saw nothing but a monster with a mask. If he had viewed me as a man and not a 'thing' he would not have sneaked behind me like a woman and stabbed me in the back. He would have called me out to end our conflict with a duel."

Nadir admitted "That is a common solution among the gentry Erik but you were not exactly conventional with your methods murder, extortion and kidnapping. Only moments before you had him hanging like salami. Did you really think that he would slap you in the face and call for seconds?"

Erik challenged "Would you have preferred that I had taken my more instinctive approach?"

Nadir stuttered "No, it is a more measured response than your usual approach, but I still don't understand why you considered branding his face with your seal to be advisable in this situation. It only served to inflame the situation."

Erik replied hotly "I could not let the fop attempt to kill me and not let him walk away without consequences. I let him win. I gave him Christine when I could have killed him." He paused and looked at Nadir and told him "'The Angel of Death' would have killed him without a thought. I did not break my promise to you."

Nadir admitted reluctantly "No you didn't Erik but all the same was it really wise to antagonize him. He might have let matters lay where they were. Now you have given him incentive to come after you."

Erik sighed finally admitting "Perhaps you are right which is why I did not discuss the matter with you in the first place, before doing it. At the time I felt a strong urge to simply dispose of the boy once and for all, but then Christine would have seen me to be the murdering beast once more. I could not tolerate that notion, so I restrained myself but I still had a strong urge to teach him a lesson. I felt that if he could share some of the pain that I have endured, that perhaps he would understand me better and see me as a man not a monster."

Nadir replied "Why was that so important to you if you were leaving France? You were not likely to see him or Christine ever again. It is your own self perception that you are a monster that you must change, not his or even Christines'."

Erik replied "You are right, doostam. I should not have bothered, but my temper seldom leads me to make rational decisions, especially when Christine is involved. I hope that I can do better in the future now that it is so much brighter."

Nadir replied "At least it is only his face that you marked and nothing else? What is done is done. I am glad that you feel so optimistic."

"As tempting as it was, I only marked his face; and it is a small imperfection, no larger than a centime. I even gave him balm to soothe the pain. In the end it will look like a flesh colored birthmark nothing more, though I did show him my own face and told him that I would make him look even more like me if he came after me." He told Nadir.

Nadir looked at him and then laughed "I am surprised that your remark alone did not kill the boy. He is very squeamish. He was shaking like a leaf when we walked down the labyrinth to find you. I think that he expected you to materialize out of a wall and decapitate him."

"He was not so far off, I could have materialized out of a wall and decapitated him if I had chosen to do so; but then I would have been violating my oath to you." Erik said.

I listened to their repartee for much of the remaining part of the drive. My respect for this man who once terrified me grew. I did not expect him to be so witty or so careful with matters. I thought that his punishment for Raoul was brilliant to say the least, after all the man tried to kill him more than once. He would have been well within his rights to retaliate in self -defense by doing the same. I had been influenced by what I had heard not who he was in reality. I wondered what sort of life that he had led in the past that he called himself the 'Angel of Death'. Why did he swear an oath to Nadir? So many questions that I did not dare to ask him, and yet they burned in my mind.

When we approached his estate, I was flabbergasted at the size of it. It was very extensive, with turrets and crenellations. It sat on a high point overlooking the Rhine.

Erik told us "According to my cousin, this Chateau commanded the northern approaches to Strasbourg. My ancestors have lived in this area for as far back as can be remembered. Family legend claims that the first Mulheim was a Roman, who possessed my deformity. He calls it Apollo's mark, and claims that it is a gift not a curse." Erik spat "Can you think of anything more ridiculous than that?"

Nadir replied "Well it certainly is an improvement on your approach Erik. I have continuously told you that you need to stop hating yourself for something that you cannot control."

Maman cut in "We all have told you that Erik. You have let your face dictate to you how you must live. I think that I like this cousin of yours. I wish that you had met him sooner."

Erik reminded us "Well he is a German, a Prussian to boot. Have you forgotten already that you dislike the Germans?"

Maman replied "On the whole, perhaps but I met plenty of fine Germans during their occupation of Paris. Most of them were decent, even if I wanted them to leave. Our own Communards did almost as much damage to Paris as the Prussians did. She added contemptuously. "Besides since Alsace is now part of Germany I guess that we will have to learn to live here."

Erik replied "I am glad to hear it because if my disguise is to work, I need to stress my Germanic roots, not my French ones. Don't forget that I just moved here from Pomerania in eastern Prussia."

Maman snorted "You are as proudly French as I am Erik. You have a deep appreciation for our music and culture."

"Have you forgotten Madame that many of our Opera's that we performed were German and Austrian? What of Mozart and Beethoven. What about my love of Faust? I will adapt if I must. It would seem that I have no choice but to do so." He told us.

"Well you are certainly as imperious as they are?" Maman laughed "This estate of yours is very impressive. I had no idea that you were a man of such means."

Erik replied "To be honest, neither did I. Christian described my inheritance as a small estate. If this is his idea of a small estate I wonder what he deems to be a big one."

"Perhaps he was being modest." I told them.

Erik smiled "Perhaps. I will send for the servants to help you settle in. Once you are all done my servants will bring you to the solarium where I will be waiting for you. I have no doubt that you will find the many changes in my circumstances to be quite surprising."