Wanted

Chapter 13

Erik waited weeks for his mother to return, but she never did. He figured he had scared her enough to run away. Or maybe, he thought, she got ran over by a carriage. Or she caught the plague and died a slow, painful death. Yes, these things were great images in Erik's mind.

Christine was now two month pregnant. She had a small bump that showed through every dress she wore. They had announced the pregnancy to the performers at the Opera Populaire a few days before.

"Erik, can you come tie this?" Christine asked, Erik turned around and shook his head when he noticed that she was trying to put a corset on.

"No, you're not wearing a corset." Erik said as he finished tying his tie and putting his waistcoat on. Erik sleeked back his jet black hair and grabbed his white mask.

Christine gave up on the corset idea and put a blue, long sleeve, maternity dress on. Once she was finished she grabbed her cloak and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"I have a damn meeting today, don't I?" Erik asked Christine as they walked into the kitchen. Christine looked at the calender and nodded.

"At 10:30." She responded and Erik pulled his pocket watch out.

"I have about an hour. Let's go upstairs." He said and grasped her hand in his. They walked silently together through the catacombs, Christine's cloak wrapped tightly around her.

When they finally made it upstairs, Erik led Christine to his office but was stopped by a hand on his arm. "I'm here for the meeting." The Vicomte sneered.

"You were fired, monsieur. Adultery does not pass in this opera house. Have a fine day, Raoul. And please never return." Erik said calmly. Erik tried to walk away but Raoul seized his arm again.

"I'm not leaving until I have Christine." Raoul said and Erik laughed.

"What makes you think I'm just going to hand her over to you?" Erik asked and Raoul smiled.

"If you don't, then I'll just take her." Raoul said as Christine walked out of the office.

"Erik, what's going on?" Christine asked but Raoul grabbed her by the waist and lifted her roughly into his arms. He kicked Erik in the groin before running off with Christine. Erik hissed in pain but then realized what had happened.

"Stop him! He's got my wife!" Erik screamed but he was too late. Raoul was already out the doors of the Opera Populaire. Erik ran down the streets of Paris trying to find his enemy and his wife.

Eventually, the sky started to get dark and they were nowhere to be seen. Erik silently made his way back to the opera house, crying the whole way home.

When he entered the building, Madame Giry was standing there waiting for him. "We will search for them tomorrow, Erik. Right now, you need rest." Madame Giry said.

"I can't rest without her!" He yelled, his voice breaking slightly. Madame Giry laid a comforting hand on his shoulder and pushed him towards the door to the catacombs.

Once Erik arrived at his home on the lake he walked to their bedroom and laid on the bed. He didn't sleep at all, he just cried.

He was up at the crack of dawn, dressed in his normal attire as he made his way upstairs. He found that Madame Giry was already up along with his father.

"I'm going to check the outskirts of Paris." Erik said and then sighed, he let a tear slip down his exposed cheek.
"What if I can't find her. What if I never see her again. I've failed as a husband."

"We will find her, I promise you that." Madame Giry said and with that they split up to go look for Christine. Erik walked out of the Opera Populaire, ignoring all of the glances he got as he made his way through Paris. He didn't care about anything except finding his wife.

Once he reached the very outskirts of Paris, crowds got smaller and things became strangely familiar. As Erik was walking he noticed a traveling fair in the distance. But as he got closer he realized it was the fair he was in as a child. Erik attempted to cover his face with his cloak so no one would see him. But it was too late.

Erik cursed as a fairly large man with a graying beard, grabbed Erik by the arm and pulled his mask off. "The Devil's Child returns at last." The man chuckled darkly and handcuffed Erik. The man ripped Erik's shirt off and threw him into the nearest empty cage.

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By nightfall, James and Madame Giry returned to the opera house. They waited for an hour for Erik to return, but he never did. They saw Nadir walking and asked him if he had seen him.

"He was supposed to searching the outskirts of Paris." James said and Nadir sighed.

"I have a bad feeling that I know where he is." Nadir said and the two people in front of him asked him to continue. "If I recall correctly, the traveling fair he was in as a child was in the outskirts of Paris."

"Y-you think he got captured?" James asked and Nadir nodded. Now they had another problem. They now had to save not only Christine, but Erik too.

"It's a good possibility." Nadir shoved his hands in his pockets and rocked back and forth on his feet. "If he's not here by tomorrow morning then we'll know for sure."

"I say we find Christine first. Christine is smart with these kinds of things. She'll know how to get Erik out." Madame Giry suggested and everyone agreed.

"We'll meet here tomorrow morning to go find Christine."

Cast:

Erik Destler ~ Ramin Karimloo
Christine Destler ~ Sierra Boggess
Raoul De Changy ~ Hadley Fraser
Madame Giry ~ Liz Robertson
Meg Giry ~ Daisy Maywood
Nadir Kahn ~ Nadim Naaman
James Destler ~ Michael Crawford
Fair Owner ~ Colm Wilkinson
Madeline Destler ~ Helena Bonham Carter