Love Never Dies

Chapter XIV

The next day, I immediately ran to Christine's room. I'm running frantically, practically in my pajamas, no shoes, just running. I couldn't hold back my questions any longer and I knew Papa wasn't any help. He didn't even know Gustave was his until last night. I hid from my father and snuck in, pretended to be asleep as quick as possible and woke up very early this morning.

As I am running, I notice Christine's husband. Raoul. He wasn't nice to Christine at all. At least I know now why she stayed with him. I can't imagine what he'd do if she left. He was grumpily sitting at a bar; I stop to maybe talk to him or just watch him, I wasn't entirely sure. Meg beats me to the door first, however, and begins talking to him.

"Morning Bernie! I'll just have my black coffee..." She notices Raoul sitting at the bar. I quietly slip in the door and sit at a table nearby. "Vicomte. Mother said I'd find you here."

"Miss Giry." He lazily raises his glass, probably with whiskey or brandy in it, and proceeds to finish the drink.

"Do you know where you are?" Meg asks, gently taking her coffee from Bernie. Raoul sighs and slaps on the bar for another glass. "Hell, I imagine." Meg gives out a small laugh. "Close. Around here, they call it 'suicide hall'. It's where people end up when they don't know where else to go." Raoul downs the glass before laughing. "The hopeless, the desperate. It's a good place to step off the side of the pier and quietly..." She searches for the right word. "Vanish."

"Then what are you doing here, Miss Giry?" Meg pauses before taking a sip of her drink. "Me? I come here to swim." She sips her coffee before giving Raoul a full answer.

"This town is cold and mean. With a job like mine, it's hard to be a good person. You're faceless unless you're on stage, and once you're up there, anything's allowed.

"So, I come at dawn and swim. Forget about whatever I did last night. I start this day clean. The ocean is quite peaceful, you know..." Raoul chuckles. Meg snaps back to the present. "You never should have come to America. It's not a place for people like you and Christine."

I steal a glance over at Meg and Raoul. She's talking very softly, and I can't understand what she's saying. Slowly, she hands something to Raoul.

"Tickets?" He looks down at them. "To France?"

"You have to leave. Tonight. Take Christine and your son and leave." Raoul scoffs, "I can't just leave. What about the concert, the money?"

"None of that matters anymore! Don't you understand? This is him you're dealing with. You barely made out alive last time!" With that, she grabs her things and races past me, out the door.

"Miss Giry! I'm not afraid of him!" Raoul stands and follows her to the door. "I've bested him before, and if he ever had the courage to meet me face to face, man to man-!"

I flinch as my father appears from behind the bar. "No," I whisper at the same time as Raoul.

"Not afraid of me, you say?" My father's voice- he was ready to manipulate this man. "Stay back! Or I'll kill you, I promise you!" I jolt at those words. Raoul wouldn't actually kill Papa, would he?

"Of course," My father slides the cloth along the bar and slowly glances up. "As you say, you've beaten me before! But that was a long time ago, Vicomte. And we were playing a different game." A different game? Was he talking about Maman?

"You're deep in debt, you're an absolute drunk, and I know what you do to her."

"No..." Raoul. "You did that to her!" He throws his glass to the grown, shattering it. Pieces slide all the way to my feet and I can feel one graze my foot.

"You have made her afraid of everything!" Raoul moves closer to my father. "You have made her afraid of... you." Raoul stumbles backward at those words.

"I'll make you a deal, Vicomte. I know you love to gamble." Raoul rises to his full height. "I'm listening."

"Christine will choose. Tonight. Is she yours or mine?"

"She's mine. She loves me, and we have a son." My father chuckles. "Yes... the boy. Are you sure?"

"What?"

"Are you sure he is yours?" Raoul spins to face him, fire in his eyes. "Of course, he is."

"He's very talented, your son." He spits out the last word. "Very musical. Perhaps he gets that from his mother, but..." Raoul finally understands what he's saying. "You lie! You liar! She loves me! She left with me that night. She married me. I won, you devil. I can do it again." My father's anger gets the best of him and he lunges at Raoul, grabbing his collar and checking him. "I may not have a lasso anymore, but that doesn't mean I can't still kill you." Raoul barely manages a breath before Papa begins talking again.

"She walks, you leave together. Pockets full, debts paid. She sings..." He finally lets Raoul go. "You leave alone. Devil take the hindmost." He disappears out the door, leaving Raoul gasping for breath and slumped against the bar.

"My god. What have I done? Look at me. The concert's only hours away..." The concert. I'd completely forgotten. I let a small gasp escape my mouth. Raoul's head snaps to attention. "Who's there?" He growls. He looks around the bar for the noise before his eyes find me. "You. Who are you?" I run for the door, only to have my arm get caught in his grip. I cry out and turn to face him.

"Ah, the little girl my wife is teaching is a sneak!" He grips my arm harder. "What are you playing at, girl?!" I can feel a tear make its way down my cheek. "Answer me!"

"Nothing! I'm not playing at anything!" I cry out, "Papa doesn't know what he's doing! He just loves her so much! He means no harm-!"

"Papa...?" I sense my mistake immediately. "So. You're the devil's child. You seem to be free of his disfigurement." He raises a hand and slaps me across the face. "We can fix that if needed." He backhands across my face, even harder this time. I fall to the ground and scramble to get away. "Not so fast." He brings his foot down in the middle of my back. "You may be useful to me." He grabs my hair and yanks me up to meet his burning gaze. "You go to your father," he spits the word in my face, "and you tell him to leave my wife alone. I will win this bet and she will leave with me."

"No..." I mumble. "She's not going anywhere with you." His eyes narrow. "Very well." He drops my hair and my face slams into the floor. "Have it your way." I see him pick up a knife from behind the bar and I try running away again. He's too fast. I look up; Then his boot comes down on my face. 

AN: I'm sorry this is so long!! I really didn't want to break it up :( but enjoy! Love you guys!