Love Never Dies

Chapter XX

It felt like a knife had been driven into my heart. My knees hit the pier and I watched as Christine fell with me. I saw Meg running to me and Aunt Giry pulling her away, but there was no sound... it was like everything was moving through water. Christine caught my head and Papa fell next to me, catching the rest of my body.

"Go get help!" Papa screamed at Aunt Giry. "Go!" Both Meg and Aunt Giry went running.

"Darling." Papa pulls my focus. My breath hitches as I look at him. "Look at me, darling." Christine shrieks and I see her hand come away from my body with blood. I look down at my side. The gunshot. Meg shot me. The thought plays again and again in my head. Meg shot me. It makes me giggle. I can't stop laughing, no matter the pain.

"Elizabeth!" Christine shouts, stopping my laughter with a slap to the face. "Yes?" I answer calmly, turning my head back to her. It's almost a little eerie how calm I am, but a numbness has started spreading from my side to the rest of my body.

"Elizabeth?" Papa looks at her in confusion. "It's a long story. She wouldn't tell me her name, she had me call her Elizabeth." They look down at me. "Are you ashamed of your name?" Papa asks. "No." I shake my head. Pain shoots through my side. I flinch and suck in a sharp breath. "It's- it's just- once I found out- it's strange with her here." Papa nods and brushes some hair off my shoulder. "Is there a lot of blood?" I ask. Christine and Papa look at each other. "Tell me the truth."

"Yes," Christine says softly, a tear slipping down her cheek. I brush it away, "It's okay, I'll be alright."

"What's happening?" Gustave says, reminding us he was still here. "Gustave!" I reach my hand to him. He takes it, slightly confused. "You're alright!"

"Yes, I'm okay. What is everyone talking about?" Christine takes a shaky breath. "Gustave..." She brushes some hair out of his face. "This is-" She can't finish, so I finish for her.

"I'm your sister." I tighten my grip on his hand. He stares at me, confused for a moment, "No. I'm an only child."

"No, dear." Christine wraps an arm around his shoulders. "Raoul is... he is not your father. Mr. Y is." Gustave looks over to my father. "You're my father?" Papa nods, almost ashamed. Gustave lets go of my hand and crushes Papa in a hug. "I was wrong before. I can see the beauty underneath." Papa looks down at him in shock before finally wrapping his arms around Gustave. Christine lets out a happy cry and I smile. My family was all here. I was slowly leaving the world, but my family was all here. "Papa..." I say, my voice faint. I can barely hear it. "I don't want to leave. I just got my family."

"You're not leaving, I promise." He places his hand on my side. "We're going to fix this."

"It's so white..." I can see heaven in front of me. "Do I go to it?"

"No." Christine sternly says. "Don't go to it, darling. Just listen to me." She begins to sing my aria, the sound washing over me like waves reaching the shoreline. Calming...

Suddenly, I hear a violin melding with Christine's singing. It overtakes her singing and I start humming along. Christine's eyes widen, and she shakes my shoulders, "Elizabeth!" Papa turns to her, concern etched on his face. "What is it?"

"She's humming my father's favorite violin solo, we're losing her!"

"We got help!" Meg screams, but her voice is so far away. Everything was so far away. Heaven was so close, the white engulfing me. I could feel my eyes closing. 

AN: Poor Elizabeth... oh well.