The Angel's Shadow || The Phantom of the Opera || Book Two

8. Fading Light

This chapter is dedicated to the super talented KThierry for making this beyond awesome promo cover for the first book of The Angel's Shadow, The Shadow's Melody. This chapter is also dedicated to the awesome ifihadyoux ! xx

Chapter Eight || Fading Light

Erik

"Angel."

Every muscle in my body tensed. My grip on the back porch's railing tightened.

"Angel."

I heard her light footsteps come closer. I drew back when I felt her hand on my shoulder. Christine flinched and took a step away from me, "Angel. Angel, I-"

"What is it, Christine?" My voice came out harsh, my eyes still refusing to look at her.

Her eyes flickered to her knotted fingers and she stuttered, "Did-did you get my note?"

The image of the crumpled up piece of paper in my fireplace flashed through my mind, "Yes."

Her note had simply said:

Angel,

I need to see you.

-C.D.

She bit her lip and looked up at me from behind her mask, "Why didn't you answer me? At the opera house I...I called for you. Did you not hear me?"

My jaw clenched and I let out a heavy breath through my nose, "I heard you."

"O-oh." She fiddled with her gloved fingers, her wedding ring catching the moonlight, "I see."

When I received her note I thought about going to her, thinking it may be an emergency, but then reconsidered. I didn't want to see her. Not after all that's happened. I have a life now. Things are finally turning out right. I didn't want to be brought back to my dark past and that is exactly what Christine is doing, pulling me back to the shadows.

She caught sight of the wedding band on my finger. Her lips twitched into a fleeting smile, "Antoinette had said she was married. When she said her husband's name was Erik Destler I...I knew immediately..." She swallowed. "Congratulations on the baby."

There was a pause while I decided whether I should speak to her. I settled with a simple, "Thank you."

She looked up at me, tilting her head upwards slightly, "Are you excited?"

I looked at the marble railing and ran my hand over it, "Extremely. It is my first time being a father." Unable to hide my excitement my lips tugged upward into a small smile. "I'm rather nervous about it."

"Why did you leave?" She let out a ragged breath and I could hear the formation of tears in her voice.

I didn't have to ask her what she meant. I already knew.

Slowly I raised my gaze to meet hers. Her eyes were brown, their shade deeper than Mélodie's. They both had full red lips and flawless skin like porcelain. Christine had her curls pinned up into an elegant style, making her look older, more mature than the woman I saw all those years ago.

I felt something stir deep inside me, unwanted and forbidden, "You didn't want me to stay."

"Yes I did." Her tears spilled out over her eyes and disappeared beneath her mask, "How could you say that?"

I let out an exasperated sigh and averted my eyes to the people inside, "Because I know that you would have awoken and regretted everything we did. I knew that when you saw my face and realized it was me you spent the night with...you would have fled."