The Man Clad in Black: Book Two

Last Minute - Chapter 24

Christine paused the moment that she saw you.

She hardly looked any different, that porcelain skin and head of hair just the same as it had always been, and her rosy lips were parted. All she could do was stare.

However, once a woman tugged on her arm to grab her attention, she was snapped out of her trance and shot into your direction. Without another word, she pushed through the crowd of people, grabbed onto your arm, and pulled you into the one of the biggest hugs you had ever received.

"[Y/N]!" she said as she let out a sigh of relief. You could definitely smell her perfume, which was sort hard to decipher as a good or a bad thing. She seemed more relieved to see her than you were. "Thank God... we need to talk."

Before you realized it, she held onto your arm before dragging you with her, leaving the gossiping ballerinas to continue on with it.

She hugged again you the moment you were out of sight with everyone.

"Oh, thank heavens you're alright," she said, pulling away just to get a good look at your face. "I've been worried sick since I sent you that letter. Madame Giry has kept me updated on everything, and..."

Her eyes darted around, just to see if anyone was eavesdropping, and she leaned in just in case people were (even though she didn't spot anyone).

"Did Erik really turn himself in for you?"

You felt your cheeks grow pink.

"He did," you nodded. "Peter hasn't done anything else about it yet, although—"

"Madame Giry said that he plans to perform an arrest on Erik during tomorrow's evening performance."

Your heart stopped.

"What?" you blinked. "Tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Christine whispered. That was the final performance for the one of the more minor productions, but it was probably because Peter longed to see Erik behind bars. "I'm only here because Madame Giry wanted me to help with your wedding."

You blinked.

"What? Erik and I have a wedding tonight?" you said, lowering your voice as the hook-nosed ballerina sauntered past you. You got a whiff of her perfume, which was three times as powerful as Christine's, and the both of you resisted the urge to gag. "Why didn't I—"

"The ghost didn't know about it either," Christine whispered. You flinched a bit, just because you were still so unused to hearing him get called "the ghost," although you brushed it off. She wasn't trying to be disrespectful.

"How are we getting married if—"

"Madame Giry sorted it all out," Christine nodded. "You two are going to get married in secret, and if— we'll help you plan a real wedding when he gets out."

You easily picked up on the quiver in her voice. She was trying to be sensitive and pretend that he would be getting out of jail— for certain, that is— but you already knew that it was unlikely.

"Alright," you said with furrowed eyebrows. You were definitely worried... So, a subject change was at hand. "Where's the Vicomte, by the way?"

"He's here," she said with a small smile. "He just needed to unpack the carriage."

"How long are you staying?" you asked. Of course, because they had packed, you knew that they had to be staying for longer than just one evening, and you wanted to know if there was anything you could do to help.