I have received less commentary lately. I hope that people are still reading. Only a few chapters left to go. I hope that you all like this one.

Chapter 45

Raoul's POV

When I first awoke in the Phantom's cellar tied to a chair, I expected that my enemy would remove half of my face and scalp me to make me look as horrible as he did. He did promise me that result should I cross him again. I shuddered to think of him doing such a thing to me but I was determined not to show him my fear. I was therefore very surprised when he both saved my life, which had been threatened by a German maniac, and turned out to be reasonable. His actions put him in a remarkably different light than how I had seen him before. Gone was the murderous beast of Paris. As it turns out he wasn't so murderous after all. Christine had been right when she spoke of his innocence. Was he really as bad as I believed him to be? Perhaps I had been a tiny bit mistaken. Hideous, no doubt about that still; his appearance made the bile rise in my throat. The uh, man, was the ugliest creature that I had ever seen; but despite his past actions and repulsive appearance the Phantom did appear to have some claim to humanity. He also seemed to have overcome his previous flirtation with insanity. To my surprise, despite my own questionable actions from his point of view, he did not flay me alive and render me a monster. Instead he cut my bonds and proceeded to treat me as an invited guest. I suppose that I had Christine to thank for his new found civility. Her seeming affection for her 'Angel of Music' had truly transformed him. Did I now need to adjust my view and learn to coexist with him?

We all followed him up, out of the cellar, into a very Gothic room which looked sorely in need of modernization. Once we were made comfortable, he had his friend explain to me what he had discovered. At first I thought that it was another one of the Phantom's tricks. As much as I despised the man, I had always conceded that he was very clever. I was sure that he was attempting to get me to relax my guard; but admittedly I could see no rationale for this tactic since he retained the power of life or death over me. His Persian friend explained about the many deaths and other crimes which could be laid at my grandmother's door. To be honest with myself I realized that I had always had misgivings about the woman. The terrible things that she had done made me sick. I grew very angry at her for her callous employment of me to do her bidding. It was humiliating to think that all these months that I had been her unwitting tool to lure out and kill the Phantom.

I wanted to deny all of her crimes but I knew that the Persian man had spoken the truth. The Phantom clearly believed it to be so as well. In my heart I knew that he would never have stayed his vengeance against me even at Christine's behest, if he still believed that my actions were not guided, at least in part, by her machinations. I could recall every malignant thought and impulse that she had whispered in my ear, urging me to kill the Phantom. She emasculated me any time that I expressed reservations and was willing to leave the business to the authorities. I felt like a mindless puppet that had been manipulated by an unscrupulous puppeteer. It was disturbing to think that she thought so little of me that she would do so.

I realized that it was difficult to know where the truth ended and the lies had begun. I no longer understood what emotions that I possessed were clearly my own and not a twisted representation of hers. I believed that I still loved Christine with all of my heart but would have to cede my remaining claim on her love to my enemy, if I were to break my grandmother's grip on my emotions. I could no longer trust in them and separate the pure and noble aspects of that love from the evil and malicious facets imposed on me. I wished that the part about her being my grandmother was also a lie; unfortunately her evil blood courses through my veins. I could still content myself with the knowledge that she had some Royal blood. More than one medieval king of France were purported to be insane, one of the many Henri's or Louis, I believed that she must have inherited her insanity from her Valois forebears. So I was at least in good company. I was not sure that, if I was also truly a descendent of the Mulheim family, I was any better off. The Phantom might prove to be one of the saner members of the family, if that debauched old cousin from Germany was a true representation of the gene pool. He already killed Erik's father and wanted to kill me, not exactly the sort of person that you want to celebrate Christmas with.

In the future, when this ordeal was finally over, perhaps I should steer clear of Alsace altogether. I never much cared for the Germans. I was thirteen during their brief occupation and they were very crude with their beer drinking songs and dueling scars. I am almost glad that they took Alsace from us. An international border seems to be a good buffer to discourage any of the Mulheims' from settling on the French side of the frontier. Of course the Phantom is still a French citizen by birth, and is no longer a wanted man, so I may yet be forced to endure him. The only benefit to that would be that I would get to see Christine as well. She seems to truly adore the Phantom. I am not sure how she could stomach looking at his ghastly face, but a woman's heart has always been a mystery to me. I am sure that I will find some woman of my own class to marry me and carry on the de Chagny line. It does not look like Philippe is going to be the one to do it. He is too busy wasting his time pursuing La Sorrelli but he will never marry her. Love has always meant little to my ancestors. Marriage has always been about improving wealth and position. My inheritance from my grandmother should at least insure my wealth, so I would marry for position. She is good for one thing at least. I would never be under anyone's thumb once she passed it on to me. She was eighty years old and would not live forever.

In the meantime, it was decided that I would return to the Comtesse for a night while the others made arrangements to find a good asylum for her to spend her last days. Apparently Christian had already known of such places and hopefully would be alert enough to make a suggestion. The Phantom offered to foot the bill for her stay. I was grateful for that gesture. There would be no dilution of my inheritance to look after the lunatic. I think that he wanted to maintain control over her situation. I cannot say that I blame him for it; after all it was his father and grandfather who were some of my grandmother's victims. She had also been very avid to kill him. In the meantime, while they were making arrangements for her imminent departure, I was to babysit for the old witch. I was a little worried that she would find out that we were on to her, and that she might preemptively take care of me. She had told me that she had a spy in the Mulheim Chateau and I was afraid that my very public shooting and subsequent interrogation might attract the spy's attention and be reported to her.

When I pointed out my fear to the Phantom, he only laughed and taunted me by saying "Please tell me my young would- be Sir Galahad, that you are not afraid of a little old lady, your own grandmother. Certainly you can keep the old lady out of trouble for one night. Use your foppish charms on her and perhaps she will be disarmed by your good looks and 'nobility of bearing'."

When he put it that way, it would unman me to object. Truth be told, I would have preferred that they bring her to his Chateau and detain her there. But I could not voice that preference without seeming as if I were afraid, even if I would prefer not to keep an eye on a homicidal maniac for one night. They would be more equipped in the Mulheim Chateau since it already was home to several homicidal maniacs. Of course I did not dare point that out for fear that Otto would again slip a pistol out from a new hiding place, or the Phantom would not choke me with his damned lasso, so I kept silent. I would sleep with one eye open and a gun in my hand just to make certain that she did not try anything. She clearly did not value my life since she sent me after the Phantom to begin with. Despite his apparent innocence of the crimes committed in France, he was clearly no stranger to the art of killing as he pointed out to me in the most uncertain terms in his cellar.

When we were finished planning, I hurried back so that I could return before dark. I was hoping that she did not hold dinner for me, as it was nearly eight in the evening when I returned. When I arrived back at Grandmere's Chateau she was anxious to know what had happened. I had to lie and tell her that Erik and Christine never took their walk. I told her that I would need several more days to scout out the area before executing her plot. She seemed to accept the lie. Perhaps some of her lies and manipulations had rubbed off on me. I hoped that I would not have to use my new found skill for too long. Hopefully Erik and Nadir would find a good asylum in which to keep her by morning, so I would not have to spend any more time with her. As it was, I was scared that she would know me to be lying. Even if I could sustain my efforts, it was a race against time and her informant. I did know that her informant had been coerced and therefore might keep our secret if he did come. To my surprise and utter horror, the man did show up only a few minutes after me, and I spotted him. It was Volker, Christian's valet. He saw me too and our eyes met. We could sense one another's terror thus we exchanged reassuring glances. It was silently decided that I would keep his secret if he would keep mine. He reported to her that everyone stayed inside due to the rain, and that his master had been ailing. No mention was made about the events of that day.

As he was leaving, I was able to sneak out of the Chateau and find Volker before he left.

"Thank you for not betraying me." I told him. "The Ph—I mean Baron von Mulheim and his Persian friend will detain my grandmother tomorrow, or at least I hope so. I will keep your secret if you will continue to keep mine"

The old servant seemed to be both relieved and grateful for my discretion. "I will retire after this is over. He confided. She has paid me a handsome amount of money along with blackmailing me. I have put away enough money to slip away to America where no one will find me ever again. I do not like the fact that I have been betraying my master for so long. I will never forgive myself for going along with her. "

"Tell me about it." I confided in return. "I am mortified at the fact that she is my grandmother. At least I do not have to claim the relationship publically, but she is a horror."

"That she is, I have prayed for her death for many years but she seems to live on and destroy everyone's lives around her. I could tell you about many people who she has used for her own gain for as long as I have known her. I have often fantasized about killing her, and then myself, but am too much of a coward to do so. She seems to know what everyone is going to do before they know it themselves and uses it to advance her agenda. I swear that she must be a witch."

I thought about his words and could not disagree. The woman was a monster.

"Is there anything more that you can tell me before you go, about my grandmother or anything else?" I asked him.

He sighed "Only that you are the spitting image of the old master Erik's younger brother Georges. He was Otto's father. I grew up in the household and although Georges left when I was only seven years old I can remember him. Baron Otto was too young to remember his father but I do. He was a kindly man of good nature. He used to give me candy and carrots so that I could feed the horses with them. He never had an evil word to say about anyone. Not even your grandmother. The man was a saint, unlike his son, Otto. He was a lot like the new Baron Erik's father Charles, another very sweet boy. My former master, the old Baron Erik, was heartbroken both times first when his brother died, and then when his favorite son died. Misfortune seemed to prey upon him. His last son and heir died in the war against Germany."

"What do you think of the new Baron? Erik?" I asked him. I could not resist using him as my own spy at least for the moment."

"He is uglier than sin on the outside, at least on half of his face, but he seems like a good and fair man. You know that his deformity is a family trait in the Mulheim's that shows up every so often. My family has served his for hundreds of years and they are almost all good people. Each of the Barons who have borne the deformity has been of superior temperament and intelligence. The Mulheim's called it 'Apollo's mark' or touch and it is true the bearers of the mark have always been strong, fair, generous and kindly gentlemen. They make the fiercest enemies but the most loyal friends because they are deeply passionate about everyone that they care about. For that reason the older families of the area are not afraid of the Barons who are born with the mark. No matter what country we belong to they have always watched over us. In return they are treated with reverence. I am not surprised that the Baron had such a hard life outside of here because he was meant to live among us. We are his people. Now that he is here we will all prosper including him." The old manservant smiled at me. "I hope that I have answered all of your questions young sir?"

I replied with a smile "You have for sure. You have been very helpful. I pulled out my wallet and handed him a few German Marks. He seemed like he was going to reject my offer but I insisted. "For your journey away from here Monsieur."

He took my offering and smiled at me. "God bless you Monsieur le Vicomte. I hope that you make it back to Paris safely as well. The two Baron's might seem a little eccentric but you would be proud to claim them if you got to know them. I heard it said that you and Baron Erik got off on the wrong track, but now that it is settled you might want to give him a chance."

"I will take it under advisement good Monsieur." I told him. In reality I did not think that the Phantom would want me anywhere near either him or Christine. My presence had given them both nothing but grief. Frankly I did not want to be near him either. Despite our 'truce' I still wanted little to do with him. Each past encounter that we had was a near death experience for me. I had little motive to place myself in his path once again and tempt fate, once the old woman was dealt with.

"I was going to confess everything if I had to, I did not want to see another one of them die. It wasn't right." Volker admitted to me confidentially.

"What did my grandmother have on you? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." I asked.

"I like men, not women. It is against the law here in Germany. It has been since the unification in 1871. She threatened to have me arrested. She promised me that I would only have to tell her what was going on there, nothing more, nothing to betray my masters. It wasn't long before she forced me into becoming her spy. I never liked spying but I did not want to go to jail either. She is a witch the devil incarnate and she deserves to die." He told me.

Once more, grandmere's actions shook me to the core. She really did try to destroy everyone that she could touch. I walked back into the Chateau, still angry at her actions and manipulation of me, and was seized by a thought. If my cousin Christian could kill his great uncle by smothering him in the dead of the night why couldn't I do the same? I would be doing everyone a favor and Maman and I would inherit her fortune right away. No one would complain, in fact who would be the wiser? None of her servants liked her. They would probably thank me. We could use her money to be free of Philippe and assume our proper role in society. The first thing that I would do would be to level this Chateau and put something of beauty in its place. Or maybe I would sell it and buy a Chateau in France; although I definitely wanted that German title of Graf de la Bois. I wanted to be of equal rank to Philippe and higher than the Phantom. If he were to have Christine as his bride, at least I could beat him in that way.

That night Grandmere and I dined together for what seemed an eternity. She regaled me with stories, tales of her youth in Auvergne and other such things. She told me about how her father and grandfather marched off to war and she never saw them again. I pretended to listen in sympathy but in reality I couldn't wait for her to go to sleep. I had been surprised that she had even held off dinner to await my arrival, as I was very late. It was the first time ever. Towards the end of the meal she got a little bit tipsy and told me about how much I looked like Georges. I smiled at her and was as charming as I could be. I feigned exhaustion and then we both went to bed. I stayed awake for several hours until I knew that everyone was asleep, and then I crept into her room and stealthily snatched her pillow out from under her head. Her eyes opened and she tried to cry out but I silenced her.

I smiled at her and spoke to her rather gently, almost like a father would speak to a child "Do not fight me Grandmere, I am sending you back to be with your father. He has come to me, and told me to tell you that it is time to go home to him. I am going to help you on your journey. He promised me that he would meet you on the other side."

She smiled at me for a moment and tears of joy started rolling down her time ravaged face. I could see an almost sweet smile on her face. I caught a glimpse of what had once been her beauty; the ghost of the innocent little girl that she must have been at one time, before her soul grew dark and bloody.

She looked beyond me her eyes were transfixed on something that only she could identify "Papa? Is that you? Have you really come back to me? I have missed you so much." she asked in a sing song voice, the voice of a child.

"Shh daughter." I replied "It is late; you do not want to wake anyone." I whispered conspiratorially. "Close your eyes tightly. I have brought you a surprise."

I did not know where I found the notion of what to say to her but the words flowed from my lips freely as if spoken by someone else. I could only vaguely feel the words as they left my mouth. She did not deserve the peace that my words granted her, but I eased her troubled mind nonetheless. That way she would not fight me and no one would hear us. I placed the pillow over her face and I started to suffocate her. I felt her relax and then she was gone and her evil was purged from the world. I removed the pillow and replaced it behind her head. Her eyes were still wide open but lifeless, a slight look of awe still marked her face. I cannot honestly say that I was proud of the fact that I was now a murderer; but I felt like I had done what she had taught me to do; which was to purge the world of a monster.