“Those innocent looking replicas hold great power. One is connected to that gunpowder, and, if turned, it’ll take this place down and everyone in it. So you see, my curious Christine, that’s why they’re under lock and key. And these keys,” I said as I patted my pocket, “were kept far from the boxes as a safety precaution. But now I see I have to find a better hiding place.”
“You can trust me now, Erik. I won’t touch them. But, if I may ask, that was during a war so I can understand your thinking—in a way. However, it’s been many years since that war, so why don’t you disconnect the gunpowder so there won’t be a threat?”
“Good question, my dear,” I replied as I looked at the boxes. “Good question indeed, and I don’t know if I can answer it. I believe I was nearly mad when I designed that scheme, and perhaps I still am for not dismantling it. But I’ve learned over the years that my life can have unexpected and instant twists and turns. You even commented on that aspect of my life.
“As an example—you heading for those boxes with those keys in your hand. If I’d taken just one more minute to get home, I may not have had a home any longer or a living wife. Get my point?” Her eyes were wide and she nodded slowly. “I still might need that mad scheme at some point, but I hope not. We never know what tomorrow will bring. I can assure you though, if I ever leave this place, I’ll disconnect their power and take those replicas with me.”
Her curiosity was finally appeased and we started on supper. Time passed and I still hadn’t had the opportunity to sneak her surprises in, so I made up an excuse about checking something in my boat before we left. Therefore, I was shortly in my docking room and hiding that bag of keys and getting her presents. When I walked in the door she was on the divan with a book and her chocolates. I stood in the doorway with my arms loaded down with the large boxes until she looked up at me. She frowned as she got up and began walking toward me.
“What have you done this time, Erik?”
I set the boxes on the coffee table and replied, “Open them. They’re for you.”
As she started to take the lid off the top box, she shook her head. “You must stop this, Erik. You’re spoiling me.”
“Then I’m doing my job properly. That’s exactly what I want to do, spoil my love.”
“Oh, Erik! It’s beautiful! Thank you!” she exclaimed as she picked up the dress made from a teal, lavender, and rose print fabric, the one I was hoping they still had.
I loved buying things for her, and I cherished the expression on her face each time she opened a package.
“And this one will help you in many ways,” I said as I gestured toward the second box. When she picked up the black satin cloak and matching gloves, I explained. “These will go with any of your dresses, and they can double as a hiding place. With them on, you’ll be harder to spot if you stay in the shadows. Then you won’t have to talk to Meg or Raoul unless you want to.”
She looked at me, nodded, and smiled. “Spoken by the Phantom?”
I sheepishly grinned. “Perhaps.”
We talked about what she should say to Meg or Raoul when she met them again, and then we prepared for another carriage ride. I changed into a nice suit and she put on the new dress I’d just given her.
“Once again, my sweet, you look stunning.”
She twirled. “This one is so gorgeous. I wish we could go out to a nice restaurant. I’d like to show it off—and you,” she responded while placing her palm on my chest.
“That’s one of my fantasies, my dear. I dream of taking you shopping and letting you buy whatever your heart desires, and then spending an evening at a fine restaurant and listening to soft violin music.” I took her hand in mine. “That’s what I hope for in the not too distant future.”
I could tell she was struggling to find words, so I abruptly turned around, shut off the alarm, opened the door, and held out my arm for her. “Shall we go, my lady?”
I’d decided to do something different that evening, so I had the driver of our coach take us to the livery. Once there, I had Christine wait in the brougham out of sight while I rented a covered carriage for the evening, thinking it would be more private. But I had to prepare the horse and carriage myself since the owner was busy with the veterinarian and a sick horse.
No problem, I thought. I’ve done this a thousand times. I hurried through the process and then headed back to the brougham and Christine. But before I got out of the stable, I was caught off guard by a figure who’d stepped out of the shadows right in front of me, and I gasped.
“Christine, you startled me!”
“Good,” she replied. “Your black cloak idea works. You didn’t see me.”
“Oh, my sweet Christine. I don’t know why you’re always so surprised when something I tell you is true.”
“Because sometimes I like to experience things for myself, that’s why.”
“In other words—you were curious.” I shook my head at her. “There was a reason for you staying in the coach. I didn’t want you to be seen.”
“Well, you didn’t see me, so I doubt anyone else did.”
“Touché, my dear.”
Soon we were on a back street and heading south.
“Erik, I was surprised to see you hitch the horse so easily. You really can do everything.”
“I don’t know why that surprises you.”
She was quiet for a bit before she offered an explanation. “I guess I’m always comparing you to Raoul. He can’t do nearly the things you can. I know he can’t hitch a buggy or cook, and he certainly doesn’t know how to build anything.”
I shook my head before I spoke my mind. “I can’t believe what I’m going to say, but I have to. In his defense, you can’t fault him for his lack of skills. He’s still young, and he’s been trained by aristocrats to have everything done for him, so why should he learn how to do anything? I was forced to learn. I was alone for most of my life, so if I was hungry or needed to travel, I had to learn how to cook or work with horses. If I didn’t do it, no one would do it for me.”
“Yes, I guess you’re right. Oh! I keep forgetting to ask if I can take the book Jacob to Mummy for her to read. I think she’d really enjoy it.”
I told her certainly, and then we talked about the beauty of the moon and stars and other safe subjects until we pulled up in front of Lapierre’s home. Then, nervously, and with Christine on my arm, I knocked on their door.
Geanne answered the knock. “Erik! What a nice surprise. Come in, please. Lapierre, look who’s here.”
Lapierre was at the table carving and immediately dropped what he was doing and rolled toward us.
“I wanted you both to meet Christine. She’s a promising student. Christine, this is Lapierre and Geanne—the most remarkable parents you’ll ever meet.”
They greeted each other cordially, and Geanne headed for the kitchen to get us tea.
“Erik told me you made a horse bust for him. You’re extremely talented, and that was such a nice gesture to do for him. When he looks at it, I can tell how much it means to him.”
“Well, making that for him was a drop in the ocean compared to what he made for us. It was the least I could do.” I tried to change the subject, but he wouldn’t let me. “Oh, by the looks on your faces, I suspect you didn’t tell her about why I made that statue for you, did you, Erik?”
“That’s not important. Now tell . . .”
“Not important!” he exclaimed, cutting me off.
About then, Geanne came back into the room. “Lapierre, where are your manners? Erik, Christine, won’t you please have a seat?”
As she was pouring the tea, Lapierre told her, “Erik doesn’t think what he did for us is important.”
“My husband, don’t embarrass Erik.”
“I’m not embarrassed, it’s just that . . . let me put it this way,” I tried to explain. “I brought Christine here to meet all of you, not to talk about me. So tell me, do you think we could get everyone to come here?”
> “I’m sure we could,” Geanne replied, and then she went to the back door and called Alphonse. “He still takes care of the chickens for me,” she offered as she came back to the table.
Shortly, he came in with a happy smile, and I introduced him to my student. Geanne told him what we wanted and he left right away. While we were waiting, I tried to keep the conversation directed away from me. Lapierre was right. Talking about me was embarrassing, and surely not needed. Christine already knew about me, and I wanted her to know about them. It wasn’t too difficult to do once the children started to arrive with their spouses and their children. Brie even brought a freshly baked chocolate cake.
“Oh, Christine, look! Chocolate—your favorite,” I teased.
We all laughed and had a great time either telling stories, or listening to them. Christine learned that night and understood why I felt they were so exceptional.
She was by the shelf where Lapierre kept his work and running her fingers over a sleek black leopard in a crouching position. I could tell she wanted it, so I picked it up and put it in her hands.
“Here, it’s yours,” I said softly.
“I would love to get this for Mummy. How much do you think he wants for it?”
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll take care of it.”
“No, Erik. I have my own money. I just don’t have much with me.”
“But I want to buy it for you and Madame Valerius. Tell her it’s a small token of your angel’s appreciation for taking such good care of you all these years.”
She smiled and agreed, and I took out what I thought Lapierre would want for it plus a bit more. When we returned to the table, I slid it in his shirt pocket and told him about Christine wanting it. He immediately took the money out of his pocket.
“No, Erik, I won’t take your money. You take this back.”
At first I argued with him, but then I let him win. After all, I knew I could slip it on their bookshelf before we left. I might have been able to work out that problem easily enough, but it quickly triggered the conversation that I’d managed to avoid all evening.
It was Lapierre who started it again when he asked, “Dominick, can you believe that Erik thinks what he did for us was nothing?”
“Certainly, I believe that, but it’s not true, and we all know it.”
From there, anything I tried to say to maintain control of the conversation was for naught. There were about 20 of us in that room and they all agreed with Lapierre. One after the other they began telling stories about the things I’d done. From the very beginning when I was teaching Dominick at the opera house to the renovation of the neighborhood. Everything I’d done or inspired was brought to the surface, and, while Christine looked at me and smiled a lot, I lowered my head and shook it in defeat.
Eventually, when everyone had had their say, I was able to slip in a question to move the conversation in another direction.
“Speaking of renovations, how are they coming? Are all the homes now finished?”
“Nearly,” Dominick offered. “We have only one more home that we’ll be starting in a few weeks, and then we’re finished with the building part of the renovations. The next project in place is a program to save the money to have the streets paved. We even have the contractor lined up to help us. We were hoping to get it finished before winter set in again, but it looks like it might take us another year or maybe two before we can do it. It will be nice to be rid of those muddy potholes.”
“That’s quite a large project, but I’m sure you’ll do it. After all, look what you’ve accomplished so far,” I replied encouragingly.
By then, the hour was getting late, and many had already left to get their little ones in bed, so I whispered to Christine, “Do you want to leave or do you want to stay longer?”
“We should probably leave. I don’t want to overstay my welcome,” she whispered back.
I got up. “We should also be leaving, and thank you for welcoming us into your home.”
“Yes,” Christine added. “Now I understand why Erik spoke so highly of you. Thank you, Lapierre, for the statue. My guardian is going to cherish it. And thank you, Brie, for the chocolate cake. Erik was correct in saying it was my favorite. You could even say I have an addiction to chocolate.”
“As do I,” Brie replied.
While they were talking and the attention was on Christine, I stepped closer to the bookshelves and left the money for the statue there. Then I put my cloak on and placed Christine’s over her shoulders.
“Won’t you please come back soon?” Geanne asked. “It’s been such a nice visit.”
“We’ll try. I’m not certain about Christine’s future plans, but I’ll try.”
I opened the door and let Christine leave first, then, while I was positioning my hat, Lapierre rolled up to me.
“Erik, she’s lovely, but I get the distinct feeling she’s more than just your student.”
I looked at Christine who’d turned back to look at me. “Yes, she is, but only time will tell how much more.”
Thirty-Five
As soon as we pulled away from their home, Christine turned toward me. “I now understand why you said they were special people. They made me feel at home. Thank you for taking me there.” She paused a moment and I looked at her. “I’m proud to be in your company, Erik, and now whenever I look at Molly I’ll be reminded about how special you are also.”
“I’m not special, my dear, but thank you anyway. Remember, I was given gifts—I didn’t have to work for them, so what I did for Dominick and his family was nothing special.”
“I beg to differ. Everything you did had to cost a lot of money and time. Are you going to tell me that those are also gifts?”
“No, I won’t say that exactly. I did have to work for every franc I have, but the work came easily for me because of my gifts, so, in a way, it was also a gift. And, as far as time goes, I enjoyed myself immensely while I was working there. It was a wonderful experience for me. So, again, it was nothing special.”
“Erik, you’re impossible. Why don’t you take credit for what you do?”
I didn’t answer that question, but I did ask one of my own. “I’d like to make just one more stop while we’re here. Do you mind? It won’t take long.”
“That’s fine with me, but you didn’t answer my question.”
“I’ll give you an answer just as soon as I find one,” I replied with a smile and a wink.
I pulled up in front of Joubert’s place, tied the traces, and set the break. “Christine, I need to talk with this man in private, so, when we get in there, please don’t be offended when I take him into the kitchen alone.”
“Secrets, Erik?”
“Not really.”
“Then what do you call it if it’s not a secret?”
“Christine, there are just some things that . . .”
“Yes. Some things that what, Erik?”
“Some things that are hard for me to . . .”
I closed my eyes, lowered my head, and ground my teeth, while she waited patiently for me to complete my sentence. I didn’t want her to know what I was about to do, so it was a secret, but we’d agreed there wouldn’t be any. How was I going to get around this one? Finally, she sighed deeply and deliberately.
“Very well. No secrets,” I said as I got out and helped her down.
While walking up to the door, she looked up and saw what type of building it was, causing her to stop short, press her hand against her chest, and look up at me.
“Erik, this is a church! What are you doing?”
“No, no, no, my dear. We’re not here for that, although I have to admit I wish we were. I only want to talk to this man—that’s all. He’s a man of God who answered some of my long-time questions about why there’s so much suffering in the world. I know him to be kind and honest, and that’s why I chose him for this project.”
Joubert greeted us just as warmly as Geanne had. I introduced him to Christine, and he asked w
hat brought us to that neighborhood.
“I have a request, and I need you to keep this a secret for me. Dominick just explained to me the town’s desire to have their road paved and their hope to have it completed in a year or two. Well, I’d like to help so they won’t have to wait that long, but I don’t what anyone to know. If you could find out how much they need, I’ll come back and give you the money and you can give it to them. Just tell them it was from an anonymous traveler passing through their quaint community.”
“I’d be glad to help you, but they’re going to know who that anonymous traveler is anyway.”
“Hmm, you’re probably right, but it’s worth a shot. I’ll be back in two days. Will that give you enough time to find out how much they need?”
He agreed and we left. I expected more questions from Christine, but she was unusually quiet the entire ride back. She even stood silently in the shadows as I unhitched the horse. Without being reminded, she stayed in the shadows while I called out for a brougham, and then she remained quiet on the ride back to the opera house. It wasn’t until we were standing in my parlor that she spoke.
“Thank you for this evening, Erik. I enjoyed it and learned so much.”
“You’re welcome, my lady,” I said as I took her cloak.
She then stepped closer to me and laid her left hand on my chest, gazing at it in total silence. I believe she was looking at my ring on her finger. Then she closed her eyes and moved closer, and with her next move she took my breath away. She wrapped both her arms around me and laid her cheek on my chest. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and returned her embrace.
“They’re so wrong,” she whispered, with a slight shake of her head. “They have no idea about what they speak. All the rumors are so wrong. They talk about a frightening monster who wantonly murders. They gossip about a ghost’s extortion and his lurking in the cellars. The only rumor they have right is that the Phantom is a genius in every respect, but they still have no idea about who lives down here. But now I do.
Through Phantom Eyes: Volume Five - Christine Page 49
