Lord of Wolves (Phantom of the Opera)

Chapter 5 - Cave-in

Crystal's POV:

I heard him running down the passageways and I wanted to follow but knew I shouldn't. He needed time alone. It was then that I heard the ice give way.

“A cave-in.” I whispered to myself. I didn't care that he needed time to think about what I had done. He could be in danger. I raced down the halls until I saw the problem. The ceiling had given way and I could only imagine what had happened. I didn't know what to do if he was dead. I refused to think about it. I started to dig but found it impractical.

“Cromwell!” I hollered and soon the wolves came running down the path. I pointed at the ice and said, “Dig!” They sniffed and, growling, start to dig. It was five minutes before they dug Erik out. I gasped as I realized he had been at the bottom of the deepest part of the cave-in. I couldn't drag him to the living cave by myself. But I had to get him warm. I checked for broken bones but to my relief found none. I rolled him over and looked at his masked face. I then touched his lips and his mask. I then preformed CPR on him. It was creepy having to touch a man's lips who I didn't love. I hadn't ever been kissed so I wasn't sure about the tingling that went through me when I did it. Even CPR didn't bring him back from unconsciousness. Then with the help of Cromwell and the other wolves dragged him back to the living cave. As I looked at the injured occupants of the living cave I laughed. I was the only human who wasn't injured. As I looked at his bloody body I knew what I had to do. I wasn't too keen on it but I started to take off his shirt. I pulled it off and gasped. I had felt the scars but now I could see them. Some where white and others were red. Once I had looked at them for a moment I could looked with some form of calm. I carefully washed the wounds no his back and chest. I refused under any circumstances to go lower. As long as there were no broken bones all I had to worry about was the deep cuts. I then looked at his face and whispered,

“Forgive me.” And pulled the mask off. I was shocked. I hadn't been sure what to expect but what I found wasn't what I was expecting. It looked like his back and chest, covered his scars but this time there were burns. I could only imagine what had happened. I didn't want to imagine. I ran my hand over his face and could have cried. The bone structure and facial features without the scars would have been beautiful. On his head was a lush mass of black curls. He would have been perfect. The only thing about him that anyone might not like was his golden eyes. They were different.

“Oh, Erik, what did they do to you?” The mask was in one piece so I was sure he would be happy about that. I put my hand to the back of his head and brought it back wet with blood. Oh no, I thought. I carefully turned him and examined the gash. Thank goodness it wasn't deep. I managed to clean it and bandage his head. I couldn't put him on the bed so I wrapped him up as well as I could and left him by the fire. I stoked the fire and started to cook supper. As I was working on that I heard the wind start to howl. I knew what was coming. The storm that Norbert had been worried about was here.

Erik's POV:

The first thing I realized as I began to regain consciousness was that my shirt was gone. I could feel the blankets. I couldn't comprehend why but then I dawned on me. Crystal must have dug me out and seen to the cuts. The next thing I realized was that my mask was gone. Now I haven't taken the mask off in nearly a month so I wasn't happy about it. And I wasn't happy about Crystal seeing me without it. I struggled to open my eyes and saw Crystal was bending over a fire, stirring something. She heard me try to move and turned quickly. Her face was unreadable. I couldn't determine whether or not she was frightened.

“You better not move. Just lay there.” She walked over and touched my cheek. I flinched. My bare cheek hadn't ever been gently touched. Never!

“Erik, you will be fine. Don't worry. The only major injury is a gash on the back of your head. It would best if you didn't wear your mask for a while.” My mouth fell open.

Crystal's POV:

I heard him wake up and after we had talked and I told him not to wear the mask his jaw nearly fell off. I could tell he was shocked. I moved away to get him something to eat. I had to admit after looking at his face for the past twelve hours I had grown to like it. He was beautiful in his own way. If he hadn't been scarred and burned then I could only imagine the flirt he might have been. Maybe it was for the better. I would have to know his story to know the truth though.

“You don't mind?” I could hear the disbelief in his voice. I turned back to him.

“I don't mind. You are beautiful in your own way.” I could see the tears forming but I saw he swallow them back. He was strong enough not to cry now but I wondered how many tears he had shed when he had been younger. I filled up a bowl of the soup I had made and carefully gave it to him.

“Here. Eat. You have go to be hungry.” He smiled at me and those scars almost vanished. All I could see was those glowing golden eyes and the bright smile. I was slightly taken aback. He was handsome. I couldn't believe that this handsome man was living alone. How come no one had seen that side of him? I couldn't ignore it. You are perfect. If I had met a man like you when I was in collage I wouldn't have ever let him go. I wish I didn't have to leave here. I like you. I thought in my mind.

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Author's Note:

Dear Reader,

I hope this book isn't going to fast. It just formed like this. Enjoy.

sarahlet2999