I hope that you enjoyed the last chapter. Thank you for reading this so far. I would especially like to thank TMara, MarilynKC , Brambled13, Lovewillstillremain(, Brintravlr, Kit Kat, MsFleck, Rupert Bear and of course my beta judybear236. I would love to add to this list. You have all been very helpful and supportive so far. This story is not yet finished as you will see below…..

Chapter 21

Christian's POV

5 hours before the events in Chapter 18.

I watched as the object of my cousin's affections left the breakfast room. I could see by the look in her eyes when she spoke of Erik that she did indeed have feelings for him. She was a beautiful woman. I could see why he would have fallen for her. I might have done the same but I would never take the risk of incurring the infamous Phantom's wrath. Our family history had enough issues stemming from rivalry over a woman's heart. We had a prearranged understanding that I would send her out to meet him if what she told us provided some sort of promise for him. Erik would have turned his back on her forever if her answers had not been sufficient. We enlisted the Comtesse in this endeavor, as well. My heart was full of joy that my cousin might finally win his soprano's love, at least for a short time, I thought to myself, sadly. I did not want him to die having never known that emotion directed towards him. He is my cousin, and my blood, and despite everything I was growing to care about him.

Unfortunately, unbeknownst to him, our pasts up until now, had forced us to be sworn enemies. I might have varied from my sworn agenda but the terrifying old woman sitting across from me, thought differently. When Christine left the room, the old Grafin(Countess in German) saw my happy gaze and reminded me that no matter what my personal feelings were, that I had a duty to carry out. I did not want to do it, to bring more harm to my family. What I told Erik was the truth. The bearers of Apollo's mark were all, without exception, great men who brought good fortune to our family. I did not tell him everything especially about the more than half century old feud that raged between our branches of the family that began with the fight between my grandfather and his over the Grafin, August Marie.

As a very young man I swore to uphold the sacred duty to my part of family, to rain vengeance upon his. The war between the brothers did not end when my grandfather was exiled to Germany. On the contrary, it had just begun. The accident that killed my grandparents was no accident at all, but was said to have begun in a cold blooded murder by his brother Erik. The tale that the Grafin related both to Christine and to Erik, who we knew to be listening; left out several crucial points that were the foundation of the dispute. The two brothers were uncommonly close. It was said that one would not go anywhere without the other. They were very free spirited and known to be a little wild at times. Their friend Graf Jules de la Bois was almost as close but he was a little more serious than the others. All three men met the visiting girl from Auvergne, and they all were bewitched by her. She was said to be quite beautiful and charming many of the eligible men flocked around her to bid her to dance, or to bring her punch. The brothers were no exception; they were considered to be the most handsome pair of men in the area. They vied with one another to determine who would approach her; they did not want to fight over the same girl. They were too close to one another to let such a thing lie between them. They decided that only one of them could talk to her, so they played a game of cards to determine who it would be. Erik's grandfather and namesake, Erik, won and asked her to dance. My grandfather, Georges, was very upset about it because he was attracted to the girl at first sight, but he gave in. She was Erik's prize to pursue.

Erik called upon her several times but when she ran into Georges, she wanted his attentions as well as Erik's'. She continued to go out solely with Erik, who grew increasingly attached to her, but she also wanted my grandfather. The two brothers were uncommonly handsome and she could not stand the fact that she might lose the affections of one of them. I am not sure that she started out to be so calculating but she would flirt with Georges even while she was with Erik. Georges tried to ignore it, and mentioned it to Erik, but he did not believe him. I believe that if it had been Georges who had won the card game it would have been Erik that she flirted with. I think that she was young and had been fatherless and not under anyone's control, but I was not there so I can only speculate. My knowledge was obtained second hand through the recollections of my father and Erik's' grandfather and even the Grafin. I was no detective, but I could piece the story together from everyone that I spoke to. All were very bitter about it, even years later.

One night, the de la Bois' held a party at their estate. Due to the distance from the Schloss both brothers stayed on after the party ended. Jule's family and the von Mulheim's had been close for centuries despite their ethnic and religious differences. The future Grafin, Auguste, managed to secure an invitation to stay over as well. When everyone went to sleep she slipped into the room where my grandfather was staying and climbed into bed with him. Georges had much to drink and accepted her caresses not even knowing who had approached him in the dark. She seduced him and they made passionate love. When they were finished Erik saw Auguste slip from Georges' room clearly disheveled. Erik immediately stormed into Georges' room demanding to know what had happened. Georges was confused and did not understand why his brother was so angry at him. He tried to mollify him but he failed. Erik spotted the blood on Georges' sheets from where her 'virginal' blood had been spilled. He accused him of rape which he blatantly denied explaining what had happened. He begged Erik to believe him but he would not. He accused Georges of doing it on purpose to steal the girl away. No matter how much my grandfather denied it he was not believed. I think that Erik would have killed him right away had their father not heard the melee and stepped in and intervened.

Due to the conflict between the brothers, Georges was forced to move out and found his own accommodations in Strassburg. He had already studied some archeology and quickly found a job as an assistant to a prominent professor. Erik was the eldest and the heir to the estate so there was no question as to who would go. At first their father supported Georges monetarily, but when he fell in love with a German girl, the daughter of the professor, he disowned him. They married and moved to Germany. When their child, my father, was five they were both killed in what was thought to be a carriage accident. It was later found that the brakes had been disabled and that the culprit claimed that he was hired by a French Baron to sabotage it. Once my father learned the truth, many years later, he wanted his uncle to suffer as he had. He arranged for a similar accident to befall his first cousin, Charles Mulheim. He had learned that Charles was his uncle's favorite son, and thought that it would cause Erik the maximum amount of grief to do so. It was not hard to arrange an 'accident' on the worksite. Erik never discovered my father's culpability for the murder. After the death of his eldest and last son, he brought me to Strassburg as his closest living heir. Before I left, my father reminded me of what had happened in the past and urged me to kill the old Baron at the first opportunity. 'Make it look like he simply expired he told me.' He made me swear to uphold the family honor.

In the meantime, after the incident, the Grafin found herself to be pregnant with my grandfather's child. Since Georges had already married the German girl, she tried to deceive Erik into believing in her innocence, and to marry her, but he would not do so. He had begun to have misgivings about her. Instead Jules, the Graf de la Bois stepped in and married her. She did not love him, but he was infatuated with her and was willing to serve as father of her child. As it turned out she had a miscarriage and after that, she could never have children. The Graf was disturbed at that turn of events. He had been willing to help her, but as the last scion of a long line he was hoping to have an heir. That hope died and though he lived to be an old man, he never had a legitimate heir. He died an embittered man. He had long since realized that he would never know the blessings of true love, his wife married him only for convenience, not love, and she never bothered to hide it. She was known to have had numerous affairs. His family had a strong Catholic heritage and did not believe in divorce. She inherited his property simply because he had no other living relatives to inherit.

I was in my late twenties when I went to live with the old Baron, Erik. Despite what I expected, he was a very kind man. It seemed to be out of character that he would kill his own brother, especially since the deaths took place years after the incident between them. Perhaps he had changed and mellowed over the years. I started to like the old man, but it was not my place to question our family's history. I was trained to be a soldier and soldiers obey. I felt that I had little choice but to do as my father bid me to do. Shortly after my return from Boscherville, I smothered him in his sleep. His death has haunted me to this day. I had borne the old man no ill will, instead I found him to be more kindly than my own father, who had grown bitter in his hatred towards the old man. He blamed him for making him an orphan at such a young age. Now his grandson and namesake were in my grasp, and I found that it was difficult to do the same to him especially given all of the pain that he had been through in his life. I felt that he at least deserved some happiness for a time, before I executed my father's orders, but I was becoming conflicted. It had been years since I had made my oath to destroy the last direct heir of the old man's line. Wasn't the death of my cousin's father and grandfather enough to satisfy the blood feud between us? This cousin Erik had no part in what had happened in the past and was not even aware of it. I already had the blood of his grandfather on my hands, why did he have to die?

The answer was found in the eyes of the old lady who I was sitting with. She would not let Erik live no matter what I decided. She had already upbraided me about my liking for my cousin and told me that I had grown weak. She told me that she had already set an alternative plan in motion but would not give me the details. I know that she had, by a stroke of good fortune, brought Christine here most likely as part of her plan. She was too mistrustful for that. She was allied with my part of the family, but we did not trust one another. Her part in the origin of the feud was contemptible, but she knew all of our secrets, even mine. She wanted revenge for Erik's rejection of her all of those years ago. My grandfather had rejected her as well, but originally, she needed our help to get close to my great-uncle Erik, so we had an alliance of convenience. I wondered if she would turn on us eventually but did not dare to find out, she was very sly, and seemed to be ahead of everyone at all times. More than once I entertained the notion of switching sides and warning Erik about her, but I had his grandfather's blood on my hands. I knew Erik's black reputation from Persia and France and I did not want to face his wrath if he found out about what I had done in my youth. How I wished that I was born to another family where they did not murder one another with impunity.

Erik's POV

I sensed strongly Christine's presence while I was in the garden. She never could conceal her presence from me for long. I was too attuned to her. Our alienation from one another had not severed that ability within me. I left before she could see me and watched her closely. I ran into Christian and told him nothing of what I had seen. It would have required an explanation that I was not yet ready to do. Instead I watched him talk to Christine and was intrigued by what she had told him. Was she really sorry for what had happened? After they parted I decided to speak to Christian enlist his help in finding out more about Christine. He was eager to help and talked the Comtesse into helping as well. That morning I did what I always did and listened in on what she told them. She claimed to be innocent and to care about me. I decided that it was time for us to clear the air. I had prearranged with Christian that when he got what I needed he would dismiss her from the room so that I could confront her.

I was still a little wary of her. It was not only the incident in the lair that troubled me but all of her betrayals. I still harbored some anger towards her for turning against me, who had been her guide, guardian and teacher for so long. I had done nothing but protect her and shower her with love for many years. It took little effort for the handsome Vicomte to sweep her off her feet into his waiting arms, while I had to suffer her fear and loathing because of my monstrous face. But much of my anger was gone after our confrontation. Where I expected her fear and loathing, I received none. Her surrender to me was so sweet and wondrous. She finally looked and found the man behind the monster and offered me her love. I had despaired of ever having her love. After she appealed to me, I could not stay angry at her. I even had to acknowledge to myself my own culpability in creating the rift between us. At first I still could not believe that she had finally conquered her disgust for my face; but she showered my distortion with caresses and kisses until I could have no more doubts in my mind. Should I live for a hundred years I will never forget that moment.

Because I had waited for so long to taste the joys of the flesh, I wanted to take her into my arms and make passionate love to her; but I did not forget that I was first and foremost a gentleman. My identification as such, was the only part of me that set me apart from the beast that I appeared to be to the rest of the world. If she were truly in love with me, then I would marry her first, as propriety dictated. I did not want to deprive myself of the very thing that I had searched for my entire life, a woman to love me. I would go to Strasbourg to find a pastor to marry us. I knew that as a Swede she was a Lutheran despite the fact that she had attended Catholic mass for many years. I was raised as a Catholic, but my family had been strong Lutherans. I would honor that tradition. I still did not believe in any religion over the other so it mattered little to me, but Christine was a religious person and I wanted her to feel that our bond was sanctioned by God. To think that I would have the bride of my deepest desire marry me for love was the greatest gift that I had ever received. Perhaps Christian was right about Apollo's mark after all, I needed to discover my patrimony to receive its blessings and lift the curse which had blighted my life for so long. For the first time ever I did not pray for death to claim me. I had something to live for. I had love.

I could barely contain myself when I picked everyone up from the train station. I did not want Christine to come because I did not want a confrontation in a public place. Also since I was picking up the new carriage I had to go by horseback with my carriage driver and footman. I was reluctant to leave Christine; a part of me expected her to flee from me, despite all that she claimed. Still, I decided to surprise everyone. We all needed to sort out and express our feelings for one another. It would be a new beginning for all of us and hopefully our lives would be better here. I hoped that there would not be too much bitterness from the recent past. I allowed myself to dream again. I looked forward to settling in with my new bride and living many long years in happiness.

When we arrived at the Chateau I allowed each of my guests to settle in. When they were finished, I would have each one of them escorted to the solarium, one of the few rooms in the Chateau that was not dark and medieval. While I appreciated the age of the décor I vowed to change the Chateau into a lighter happier place. I did not need the darkness any longer. I had enough of it to last a lifetime. I would retain the dining room but wanted to banish some of the more gothic décor even if it was very stylish at the moment. My own appearance was sinister enough without the added atmosphere. A part of me expected Christine to be gone when I returned. I expected them to meet us in the solarium before dinner.

In the meantime I wanted to spend more time with Christine. I sent her a note asking her to meet me in the old music room. I was glad to find that she had not fled. I sat in the seat of an ancient harpsichord and struck a note or two. It was the first time that I had touched an instrument since that night. This time I made sure that the room was well lit. She walked in looking as nervous as she did on the night of her premiere. That night seemed a distant memory. Then, I had to soothe her from my hiding place behind the mirror, now I could give her physical comfort. I used my most gentle voice to relax her, the same voice that I used to relax Caesar when he had a scare. I could see her timid smile disappear and her eyes lose that hunted look. I motioned for her to sit on a divan that was in the corner near a dusty harp.

"You look absolutely beautiful, Christine." I told her softly. "I promise you that I will not rage at you as I did before. I wanted to use the time that my guests are settling in to talk a little more and settle any further matters between us before we face everyone else. I want you to feel that I will be your ally in the room when we face them. I feel that if we can be in accord that it will go easier for you. I wish that we had a day or so before we had to do this but this will have to happen all at once."

"Thank you angel, I hope so." She replied solemnly, still a little nervous.

"I know that the Girys have missed you. We all have." I emphasized. "I hope that we will never be at odds again, and that we might learn to confide in one another as friends, like we used to." I added.

"I would like that as well Erik. I used to confide in you more than anyone else, even when you were just a voice, and you always listened to me and gave me good advice. I have missed that." She told me.

"We must also learn to trust one another and not jump to hasty conclusions again. I apologize for doing so back there in Paris. I should have had more faith in you." I admitted.

"Thank you Erik. I appreciate that. May I ask you something? You won't be angry if I bring up what is bothering me? We have discussed your issues with me but not the reverse." she pleaded softly.

"Of course" I told her "I knew that you would. Our misunderstandings stem from my behavior as much as from yours." I braced myself for whatever would come, and vowed to be patient.

"Why didn't you tell me that you didn't kill Buquet? Didn't you trust me?" I could hear the hurt and anger in her voice.

"No." I admitted "I did not trust you. After that night when you removed my mask and then screamed and cowered in fear of me, I was hurt. I felt that you could never love me because of my face. I was trying to wash my hands of you and let you go but I couldn't do it. I loved you too much, and that boy of yours made me too jealous. I knew that you would choose him over me, no matter what. He had everything that I did not." I told her and continued "After that there seemed to be no point in trusting you, especially since I heard everything that you told him on the roof after Buquet was found. I thought then that you hated me."

She gasped "You heard that? We thought that we were safe from you."

"You were safe from me Christine. Despite all that has happened and all that I thought that you did, I never would have harmed you. You could have asked me to kill myself and I would have gladly died for you. I have always been yours to command." I told her.

"I didn't mean it that way Erik. I knew that you would not harm me at least not physically, but you overwhelmed me."

I could feel the pain from that night acutely. "You wounded me greatly that night Christine every word every gesture cut through me like a knife. My wounds from that night went deeper and more deadly than the physical one from the lair. I could not hope that you would ever love me because of my face, but I at least comforted myself with the knowledge that you cared about me as a friend and teacher. That night you destroyed that illusion. My sanity suffered greatly from that blow, leading to many of my more hurtful actions."

I saw the tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry angel. I did not know. I was hurt, confused and very scared. I thought that you had killed just to strike fear in everyone's heart. I never should have doubted you. You were always there for me."

"I apologize for my actions as well. It was both of our faults that we had so many misunderstandings. If I had behaved more rationally and did not scare you, perhaps we would not become so estranged from one another. The past several months I have done nothing but think about what happened between us and concluded that ultimately most of the blame lies with me. If I had not deceived you for all of these years and had not overreacted to your curiosity about my mask then your later actions might never have occurred. Both Nadir and Antoinette often tried to reason with me but I did not listen. I was sure that you would despise me if you saw my face."

"You were not wrong Erik, to my shame I was repulsed by your face as you feared." She admitted quietly. "Given that reaction, I can see why you were afraid to reveal yourself to me for so long. I was only a child and I expected my angel to be perfect, just like I expected Raoul to be the same. The truth was that I was not yet mature enough to see beyond the surface. It took our recent estrangement to make me open my eyes."

"Yet, I still cannot understand how you could have overcome your aversion to my face." I admitted. "You kissed me and touched it even after I tore off my mask and wig. It is still the same repulsive face as before."

Christine smiled "You have changed your appearance, you are not as pale. The sun has given you a healthy glow, and your distortion blends in better with your skin tone. When you were so pale it made the contrast seem very stark, gave your face and head more skeletal look. Much of it is gone, and you have changed your hair color. You are a blonde now. It is not only your face but your whole demeanor. You seem to be more as more at peace with yourself."

I laughed "I am glad that you approve of my new hair color. Strasbourg is still too close to France and do not want to give anyone the idea that the masked Baron is the madman from Paris. The Phantom had his time and place, but I had to retire him. I am still going to involve myself with the Opera here, but as the Baron von Mulheim, esteemed architect, and not as a murderous ghost. I have already spoken to the director of the Staatsopern von Strassburg and he has agreed to hire Meg and her mother. I could ask that they employ you as well. I am sure that their current prima donna does not hold a candle compared to you."

Christine gave me a nervous look. She gazed over at the harpsichord "I cannot sing anymore Erik, my music has fled. You need not use your old techniques to my advantage. "

I laughed "I was a bit over persuasive, I guess, but you must acknowledge that La Carlotta was a horror to listen to. I was doing my managers a favor by requesting that they replace her with you; and my ears as well. She would give me a headache all the way down in the fifth cellar."

She laughed as well "Carlotta has a horrid voice but you might have eased her way into retirement in a less draconian fashion. How is the opera here?

"I wouldn't know." I admitted "I have had nothing to do with music since that night. What did you mean when you told me that you cannot sing anymore? Did something happen to your vocal cords? I asked in concern.

"I tried to sing but I cannot do so without you. When you left, you took my voice with you. When I could no longer hear you in my head, my voice was flat and lifeless. Why have you given up music? It is your passion."

"You were my music, my voice to a world that would not listen to or accept me. It was pointless to compose more music without you to sing for me." I told her.

She looked at me with understanding. I was surprised that, she felt the same thing that I had. We truly were of one mind and soul as I once had told her. "And I cannot sing without you."

"Perhaps now that we are together our song will return." I told her gently.

She nodded her head in agreement "I hope so. I have missed my music as well as you. I thought that I wanted to be free of both of you but if I were I would be dead inside. "

I kissed her forehead like a father. "It will come back to us and if you want to sing here, I am sure that we will find a way to prepare your voice once again. I have a decent music room here that has been unused. Apparently my ancestors were musically gifted, at least according to Christian."

"Then by all means we must use it." She told me. "I want to hear your voice and your song in my head once again. I want our souls to merge as they once did."

I looked at her tearfully; she finally acknowledged what I had always understood. I placed a finger on the harpsichord and a single note came out and then another, and then a song. Then we both started to sing as we used to and the music started to flow gloriously just as it used to.