I stuck a foot out to test the air. It was warm. I didn't have an excuse not to get up, so I reluctantly rolled out of bed, and fixed myself up a bit. I didn't have time to take a shower as I had five minutes before I had to meet Erik. So I changed into a pair of jeans and tank top, brushed my teeth, then sat on the chair to wait for Erik.
" Guess what? You are going to play your viola tonight, downtown at the biggest church there."
" Good morning to you to," I said. Why was he so obsessed with me playing my viola?
" Good morning. No one is going to be expecting
you though. I have decided that if you played around town every night,
to remind people that you are still here, then I will let you roam around
by yourself for a couple of
hours. Is that a deal?"
" I guess so." I said. This sounded suspicious. I suspected that he wanted to scare people. I was beginning to wonder if all he wanted was the attention. I wanted my freedom though, so I had to agree.
" I knew that you would agree to it. We need to practice today. You will be playing ' Fur Elise' which is a perfect haunting melody. I have the perfect costume for you to wear, a white dress that will billow around you, creating the perfect shadow."
" Why do you like scaring people so much? I am beginning to think that you kidnapped me just to get attention."
" Alice! You know that is not the reason.
I can't tell you the reason right now though, it is too complicated.
You are going to be famous. This is what I want for you. I
know that has been your wish for years now, to be
famous, not the mouse in the background. I won't let you get
hurt. Just trust me."
The oddest thing was that I almost trusted him. That was the moment where I began to be under his total influence.
" I trust you."
The rest of the day was spent getting me prepared to go to church.
I played like I have never played before. I could do vibrato, which
I had struggled many times before. The dress was a masterpiece, so
light, yet revealed
nothing underneath, shoes that were made of silk, with a small heel,
a pair of diamond clip on earrings, leaving my hair down, and I was ready
to go.
" Make me proud," Erik said softly in my ear when I was set up to go
on the roof of the biggest church I had ever been in. Normally, I
hated heights, but I didn't feel any fear as I tuned my instrument.
The notes sounded eerie
as they drifted around me. Erik had set a microphone in the instrument,
so that everyone in town could hear it.
When I was ready, I gave Erik the thumbs up sign, and he turned the mike on. Soft and eerie, I played a haunting love song. I could see some lights being turned on, and mutters of curiosity. I played for at least a half-hour, and then ended with " Fur Elise". Suddenly, I heard footsteps behind me. I spun around and found myself face to face with Erik.
" You were excellent! Now, to let them see your shadow. Follow me."
He took my hand and forced me through a series of curtains and thin walls. After ten minutes of confusing people, we were finally back outside. A large crowd of people had gathered at the base of the church.
" Who are you? You do you have that mask on?" a man shouted with a slight slurred note.
Erik ignored him and pushed through the crowd.
" We want to see who you are. Take off the mask! Take off the mask!" the drunken fellow started shaking his fist, getting the crowd riled up.
" Turn away! Put your back against mine." Erik whispered fiercely.
I did as I was told. I heard several gasps of shock, horror, and screams of pain from the drunkard. What was he doing to that poor man?
" Look at his eyes! They are bright red!" a woman shirked.
" Look at what he did to that man!" someone else cried.
I tried to turn around, but Erik had pulled me along and was talking fiercely.
" You will be alright. I promise that as long as I live, no harm will ever come to you."
I remained silent, not wanted to provoke him.
We reached a park and Erik led me to a bench where we both sat down. " Now it is time for your night of freedom. Here is the key to get into my house. I trust that you will be smart enough not to take anyone back with you."
He handed me a yellow key on a long silver chain.
" Put this around your neck so that you won't lose it. I want you back home by midnight. If you are late, you will pay the consequences."
I placed the chain around my neck, made sure that it was safely hidden from sight.
" Think of yourself as Cinderella. ' At the stroke of twelve, all the magic will cease to exist.' I really don't want to go after you tonight. I want to trust you."
I gazed into my lap, nervously, wanting to get away from
him, but he held my hand in such a fierce grip that I forced myself to
look him in the eyes and promise him that I would be back. He finally
gave me a hug, then left.
I knew where I wanted to go first, Mary's.
I had no trouble getting a ride there. I was still sitting down when Erik's carriage pulled up next to me. I got in, told the driver where to go, then sat back and waited. It took about twenty minutes to get there. Time was running out. I had only one hour before I had to be back.
" Mary?" I said softly at her window.
The front door opened and her mother let me in.
" Alice? You look so different! Mary told me what was going on. How did you get here? Did you escape? Is he looking for you? Did he let you go?"
I hugged her and said, " I have until midnight tonight to do whatever I wish. He let me go of his own accord, I have to be back by midnight exactly, or I won't be able to do this again. Can I see Mary?"
" Of course! She is still up. Go on into her room."
I walked down the small hallway, knocked on her door, and let myself in. " Alice? What are you doing here?"
" I have until midnight to do whatever I want. This is the first time he let me do this without spying on me. I don't have much time. I don't want to be late, otherwise he will never let me do this again. But, you will never guess what happened!"
" I was just thinking about you. I have a strange story I want you to have," she interrupted. I was shocked. It was a code of honor between us that we never interrupt the other unless it is deadly serious.
She handed me a slip of paper with the following story in red: One bright morning, in the middle of the night, two dead boys got up to fight. Back to back they faced each other, drew their swords and shot each other. A deaf policeman heard the noise, came in and killed the two dead boys. If you don't believe this story is true, ask the blind man, he saw it too.
" This makes absolutely no sense!" I said, absentmindedly, " Mary, he killed a man!"
" I know, doesn't it fit your situation? It doesn't make any sense either. Well, it is eleven thirty. You need to get going. I think that the first couple of nights, you should be early." She had ignored what I said!
I looked into her eyes and realized that they were glassy, Erik was responsible for this! She roughly shoved me through the door, into the carriage, which immediately took off down the road. I was fuming by the time I got back. How dare he!
I got back to my house by 11:45. I let myself down the trap door, and raced down the tunnel. I met Erik in the music room at 11:55. He seemed pleased that I got back early.
" Did you enjoy yourself?" He asked pleasantly.
"What did you do to Mary?" I demanded coldly.
" I felt the need to," he
explained shortly, " I bet the angels were singing with you tonight.
I am very proud of you. You will have to continue your education
somehow though. I have found someone willingly to take the
job. What do you say to this?"
I glared at him, refusing to agree with him on anything until he gave me a better explanation
" I expect you to work hard," he continued, returning my glare, " I will not have a stupid wife" Those words chilled me, but I made sure Erik did not notice my inward reaction. We stood in a tense silence, broken by Erik's question,
" Are you tired?"
" A little bit," I said gruffly while forcing myself to yawn.
" I want you to get some rest. Tomorrow will
be another big day. I want you to write letters to Scott and Mary.
Tell them everything that has happened so far. They will be of use
in the near future. I also want you to
keep in touch with your parents. Believe it or not, they are
very special to me."
"Whatever," I said as I went to my room, locking
the door, and fell down on the bed, very close to tears. How much
more of this could I take? He has killed one man already, no doubt
he will not hesitate in killing those who
interfered with him. After pondering about what I was going to
do for a couple of hours, I managed to fall asleep.
The next morning, I awoke to the sound of Music of the Night being sung softly by Michael Crawford.
Let the dream begin,
Let your darker side give in
To the power of the music that I write-
The power of the music of the night
You alone can make my song take flight-
Help me make the music of the night
As it died out, I realized that this was the first time that I had heard
anything from the Phantom of the Opera. Why did it seem so strange
to me? I continued to sit there listening to the soft music, then
was jarred out of
bed when the next scene came on. It was the Phantom practicing
Point of No Return. Then before Christine started singing, there
was a long pause, and the Labyrinth scene came on. I tried to ignore
the irony of it, telling
myself that Erik probably really liked that song, like I used to.
My head was beginning to hurt from all this thinking, so I decided to get
up. When I met Erik in the kitchen, another man was seated
at his left side. He looked like he was in his early forties.
Age lines wrinkled his forehead, with salt and pepper hair, nothing really
interesting, nor fascinating about him, just the fact that he was the only
other human being that I had seen
down here.
"Alice! We didn't hear you come in. Come over here and introduce yourself to Mr. Quient."
"Hello, Mr. Quient. How are you doing today?" I asked politely while shaking his hand.
"I'm doing fine, Miss. You seem to be fine
for your present state." He threw a glare towards Erik, who ignored it
with a shrug of his shoulders. I sensed that Mr. Quient knew what
was going on, and he obviously didn't like
it.
"Mr. Quient has agreed to give you lessons. I expect that you have no objections?"
I shook my head. Whatever Erik says, goes.
I knew I would have no problem in persuading Mr. Quient to help me escape.
I knew that I would have to act like I was happy, in a weird sense I was,
but I also knew what would
happen if I didn't escape.
"Very well then, as soon as breakfast is over, you will begin with geometry!" Erik left us alone in the kitchen to pointlessly discuss what I already knew.
Well, you seem to know a lot more than I thought. Which is good, that gives me more time for other topics."
I knew what he was getting at. I kept silent though, knowing fully well that Erik was listening. My goodness! How much longer would this go on? I couldn't pretend any more.
"I cannot take this anymore! I shall surely go mad if this keeps going on!" I shouted, breaking down completely.
Mr. Quient looked at me in alarm.
"Calm yourself, child! He might have heard!"
I was shaking with dry sobs racking my throat. I tried desperately to calm myself, but it was already too late. Erik had indeed been listening very closely and had heard my outburst. I immediately felt his presence behind me, yet he didn't say anything, nor did he touch me. I could feel the deadly stare against my head and I noticed that Mr. Quient looked very nervous. I started crying silently at first, but it began to grow louder and louder, each sob rattling my entire body.
"Why me? Why? Why me??" I asked through my sobs.
Still no response from Erik, yet I just knew that he was behind me. His presence overpowered the room, making my head spin within it's overwhelming pressure. The tension grew and grew. I couldn't stand his silence any longer.
"Is he there?" I asked Mr. Quient. As if on cue, Erik's hand fell upon my shoulder in an authoritative grip.
"I have to ask you to leave, Mr. Quient. Thank you for your time. Forgive Alice's behavior. I will call you again when I need your services. Now leave before I have to escort you myself!"
"Mr. Quient! Please leave, save your skin and
do not worry about me. Please leave right now!" I screamed
while sobbing helplessly as Erik's grip started to loosen, like he was
about to personally escort Mr. Quient. Mr.
Quient gave me one last look before raising out f his chair and hurrying
through the door.
Once he had left, Erik's grip was back again, but more tightly and on both shoulders now. I closed my eyes tightly, preparing myself for the worst.
"Are you quite finished? Anything else you want to ruin for yourself before I lock you in your room?" Erik asked me furiously.
"What is left to be ruined??? My life is already ruined! I am down here forever!" I wailed hysterically.
Erik dragged me down to my room, opened the door, and threw me in so hard that I hit my head against the wall and saw stars.
"YOU STAY IN HERE UNTIL I AM READY TO SEE YOU AGAIN! Think about your choices. I suggest you prepare yourself to apologize, or lose your privileges to go outside at night, alone!"
With that, he slammed the door, leaving me in pitch-blackness,
and my own demented thoughts. I knew that I had to control myself,
play his game. I must act like I still want to stay with him.
Now, what can I use for an
excuse for my behavior? Yes! Bad dream about him.
So terrible that it upset me greatly, and I wasn't fully awake yet.
Would it work? It has to! I was losing control again.
Gotta think, gotta think.
" Are you ready to apologize?"
"Oh yes I am, Erik! I am so sorry!" I
poured out as much sympathy through the door as I could, adding tears to
make the effect even better. I sobbed over and over how wrong I was,
that I hoped he could find the heart to
forgive me. I implored him to let me prove how sorry I was.
I paused for a second to see if I was getting a response, but there was
nothing but silence. I grew desperate and started sobbing, saying over
and over again how sorry I was. The door stayed shut and silent.
Finally I grew so desperate that I said:
"If you will not forgive me, then I will just die! I will hang myself if I do not get your response that you forgive me! Erik, answer me please!"
I started throwing things around the room while sobbing
loudly. Finally, Erik opened the door. He didn't come in right
away; he just stood in the hallway, his shadow smothering most of the light
that came in, making him
look very frightening because I couldn't see his expression.
After he had observed the room, the mess I had made of it, and my sobbing
figure in the corner, he came in slowly. I could hear his footsteps echoing
hollowly
throughout the silent room. As he approached me, I hid my blotchy
face from his sight. I was trying to look as humble as possible.
When he reached me, he stood there for a moment before
kneeling down so that I could feel his gaze on my cheek. This time,
there wasn't any hostility. Only gentleness rained down from his
gaze. I still sobbed, only
quietly. I was beginning to wonder if I had been putting on an
act earlier. I was feeling all these emotions, terrible grief and
humiliation for the way I had acted. Why was I constantly changing
my mind? What did I really want?
I didn't have time to sort out my confused emotions because
Erik's hand was on my shoulder, gently rubbing the sore spot where earlier
he had gripped so fiercely. My sobs grew softer and softer until
they became merely sniffles. Still, Erik rubbed my back and shoulders
until the sniffles had also stopped. He took his hands, and gently turned
my head to look at him. I kept my eyes lowered because I really
could not look at him. Even though he had kidnapped me and practically
ruined my life, his love for me showed so much. I knew that I should
be freaked out about this, but it was more than I could bear. I started
crying again when Erik put his gloved hand to my cheek, brushing all the
tears away. His touch felt so soft. I finally lifted my head
up and look him in his eyes and saw that they were filled the brim with
affection.
"I forgive you," he said softly.
My resolve broke down. I threw my arms around him and hugged him fiercely. I started to cry again, this time into his muscular chest. I felt his arms go around me, and as they did, I realized that this was all familiar somehow. Then it finally hit me.
"Oh my!" I said in shock.
Erik looked at me in confusion.
"I know you," I whispered.
As I said it, the vision came to me. A playground
at nursery school. I had fallen from the monkey bars and was crying.
A boy had come up to me and comforted me with a hug. He had the same
blue eyes Erik had. Now that I
thought about it, I could see all the similarities that those two had.
That is why everyone was talking about estiny! I never found out
the boy's name, or where he had come from.
"What are you talking about, Alice?" Erik asked, bringing me back to reality.
"It is you! The boy from the playground! You knew me all these years! Everyone knew! I finally get it!" I least I thought I did. I was so happy.
"You remember," Erik said softly, while running his fingers through my hair. There were some things that still didn't make sense. Like why he had me going out at night to haunt people. To torture someone out there, like Scott!
"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked him.
"You wouldn't have been able to remember it. Everything was confusing enough. I knew that sometime you would remember. I didn't think it would be like this."
Something didn't make sense though. I was remembering other things but before I could but a finger on it, a buzzing noise rang through the air.
Erik jerked back in alarm.
"What is it Erik?"
"Someone has found the entrance to my domain," he said gruffly while reaching into his pocket and withdrawing a long, thin rope that looked suspiciously like a Punjab Lasso. Just then we heard Mr. Quient calling, "Forgive me Erik, I seemed to have forgotten my car keys."
Suddenly, before either of us could react, there was a loud bang and Erik was lying on his back, blood streaming out of his right arm.
"Quick! Come with me!"
Mr. Quient was standing in the doorway, holding a smoking pistol at Erik. I started to go towards him when Erik cried, "Don't leave me! Remember the boy, Alice! Remember the boy and what he did for you."
Singing softly, he slowly got up, wincing and holding his arm, but flawlessly
singing that haunting tune,
Sweet Angel, don't leave me
I have so much to offer
Power, fame, riches
You'll be happy for the rest of your life
If you stay with me
Take the final plunge
Or be prepared to face my wrath
I was slowly entering that trance that he always put me in when he sang.
If Mr. Quient hadn't grabbed me, I probably would have been lost to Erik
forever. "Snap out of it Alice! He's trying to trick
you! If you go to him,
you'll never return! Remember the drunkard! He killed him!"
I could remember all too well. The taunts,
the screams, and the endless stream of blood pouring out of the man's body,
dirtying the streets. Taking my final plunge, I followed Mr. Quient
out of that haunted house, while
listening to Erik's curses.
"Come back! You'll regret this! I will find you no matter what! You can't hide from me as long as you have that ring on!"
I continued to run, hitting my head on the low tunnel ceiling while trying to rip that wretched ring from my fingers. I realized that the heart had started blinking furiously.
"Mr. Quient! My ring's blinking! What does that mean?"
He looked back at me with such pity in his eyes. "It means, my poor child, that he is coming."
I started crying helplessly, still frantically trying to get the ring off. Unfortunately, I was so preoccupied, that I didn't notice the root until I tripped over it, pulled Mr. Quient down with me as I hit my head on the hard floor and blacked out.
When I awoke, I was back in the room where this had
all began. Instead of being chained to the wall, I was handcuffed
to Erik's wrist. Mr. Quient, I noticed, was chained, blood trickling
down his neck. I didn't want to
think about what Erik had done to him.
"So, the fair princess finally awakes."
I slowly turn to face Erik, shaking uncontrollably, but found enough courage to say, "Evil man, you've won. What are you going to do with me now?"
He wore an expression of extreme delight. I noticed that his arm was wrapped up in several bloody cloths. The mirror behind him gleamed and shone, casting red shadows against the walls.
"You choose the hard way unfortunately. I didn't want to have to stoop this low, but you willingly tried to escape, and failed miserably."
I turned away, I knew that I had been foolish to think that I could get away, but what could I have done?
"If you'll observe the mirror, you'll see your dear boyfriend."
Shocked, I sprang up, jerking Erik with me, and ran towards the mirror. Chuckling darkly at my expression, he placed his cold hands on my neck.
" He doesn't look too comfortable, does he? You can make him a lot more comfortable, if you consent to be my wife."
I remained silent. Scott's body was suspended in the hair, with a Punjab Lasso around his neck. If I didn't agree, Erik would kill him. If I agreed, I would be eternally bound to a monster forever. I wouldn't be worthy enough to wear my grandmother's cross!
"Why are you doing this to me? What do you want from me?" I asked numbly.
Lowering his head so that it rested against my neck, he murmered, "Just your soul my dear" I began to feel weak as he started kissing my neck with his repulsive lips.
"Either you choose me, or he dies."
I pushed him away, feeling lightheaded and sick. Turning away from his gaze, I looked helplessly at Scott, suspended, looking at me with a pleading gaze. How he was staying upright in the air is beyond me, but I couldn't break eye contact with him. Pleading, I looked at him for an answer. He opened his mouth and began shouting something, but I couldn't hear him through the walls. I pounded my fists against the wall, cried out his name, adding to both of our distress. Erik, who turned me to face him, tilting my chin up so I couldn't avoid his gaze, pulled me away from the mirror.
"I haven't got all day!" he growled, "I have important
things to do, which all depends on what you choose. I will give you
two minutes to decide, and if you haven't come to a decision, I will make
it for you, by pushing
this lever."
With a sweep of his bloody arm, he pointed to a black, discreet looking lever on the wall.
"What will it do, exactly," I asked coldly, furious at his deception and his forcing me to make a choice from two horribly unfair consequences. He looked at me, startled, "Why does it matter what it does?"
"Will it do anything else except kill Scott, and how will he die, if that's what I choose?" I asked, meeting his gaze firmly for the first time.
Thoroughly bewildered by my change in behavior, he brushed back his hair, looked at his watch, stepped over to me and grabbed my hand.
"You see that thin net under your beau? Once
I pull the lever, that will drop, his body will drop, but his neck will
snap when the Punjab Lasso prevents his head from following the rest of
his body. Ahhh, but that's not
all! I forgot to mention that it will also trigger off a bomb,
underneath us as we speak. We will be blown to bits, the government
will blame Iraq, they will send bombs, they'll send more over, thus, ending
the world with destruction of the masses. You have thirty seconds."
I dropped to my knees at his feet, said another prayer for courage to help me through my decision.
"Erik, despicable as you are, I can't stoop to your level. I will not agree for anyone to be killed, so I give myself to you."
He smiled, took a step towards me.
"It is traditional for the man to kiss the bride, thus sealing the agreement."
I took several deep breaths; scrounged up the remaining bits of courage
I had left, and tilted my face towards his. I felt his hot breath
against my cheek, trembling; I hoped that it would be over with quickly.
Unexpectedly,
he gave a petrified wail. I opened my eyes and was astonished
to find him hovering by a thick, purple light coming from my cross.
He writhed, twisted and turned, but couldn't free himself.
"Alice! Help me down from here!"
I couldn't move. He started wailing pitifully, as the light grew brighter and thicker. Gradually, I could see dark shadows moving from my cross and into Erik's body.
"Alice! Come over here quickly!"
It was the lady from my dreams! She held a silver sword and a huge cross.
"Stand back! Whatever happens, don't try to interfere! Everything will be explained later."
I crouched behind the chair as she approached him.
"Devil! Get out of this poor wretch's body! Free yourself, vampire of the soul, or I'll drag you out!"
Erik had started to moan softly, the dark shadows
now increasing in number, traveling from the cross and into his heart,
his hands, whatever part they could reach. Swiftly, the lady drew
up the sword and thrust it into
Erik's heart. To my horrified amazement, Erik did not cry out,
nor did a single drop of blood leave his body. Instead, a thick,
black, shape slowly oozed out of his body. The lady took the cross
and thrust it into the black
shape, crying,
"Be gone, hell-demon! Never enter this man's
body again!"
The black shape burst into golden flames, fluttering to the floor, extinguished at first contact. The purple light dissolved, bringing Erik's body to rest on the floor.
"Are you alright, Alice," Mr. Quient asked as he came to, wincing as he felt the blood on his neck.
"I think so," I muttered shakily.
"It is time that you know what really happened to this man, before you pass judgement upon him," the lady said gently. I nodded and sat down on a chair.
"I'm sure that you know the story of the Phantom
quite well," Mr. Quient said, "But there's more to it than the Phantom
falling in love with Christine Daae, and falling dead with grief after
releasing her to Raoul. Indeed,
everything occurred as it's been told, except Erik never died.
The night that Christine left him, he fell into one of his fits again.
Totally unfocused with reality, the devil came to him and offered immortality,
in return for his soul. He agreed, numb with pain. Once he
came to, he was horrified at his decision, but from lack of church and
knowledge of the Bible, he continued life, a miserable man. The devil
revisited him, promising him greatness, if he could get the soul of another
to him. This is where you come in. He had many qualities that
he had to look for. He couldn't just bring any soul to the devil,
it had to be one that he cared about. Working under Lucifer's spell,
he found you. That ring you have, used to be Christine's. The
devil put a spell on it so that he could find
you without difficulty. What you saw tonight was the work of
the devil, not his."
I looked at Erik's slowly decaying body. Though hard to believe the story, I felt a twinge of pity for this man who had been trapped in the devil's clutches for so long.
"What's going to happen to him?"
"We're going to take his soul up to heaven and repair the damage. You know that the Lord forgives those who ask for forgiveness, which Erik did," the lady said.
Abruptly, I heard a loud thunk! The ring had slipped off, after many weeks of butter, soap, and oil, it finally was off. I picked it off the floor, went to his body, and slipped it on his pinky. I knew that he would have wanted it back. As I stepped back, his body started to glow a faint golden color. As his body began to disappear, he opened his eyes, looked at me and said,
"You have to admit, Alice, that it was the Phantom time of your life!"
Closing his eyes again, but with a peaceful expression, he was gone.
"Come with me, your parents are waiting to see you,"
Mr. Quient said as he steered me out of the room. Scott met us on
the way out of the tunnel. I was so happy to see him that I couldn't
bear to tear myself away from him.
So, with my arms tightly linked around his waist, we awkwardly walked
into my house, and straight into my parent's embrace.