Immortal Darkness (Phantom Diaries #3) (5 page)

“I also like the idea of remaining friends. I don’t see why we can’t work together, enjoy each other’s company, and have fun.”

“Speaking of fun…” He turned around, a streak of boyish excitement in his every movement, and reached for the binder on the table.  “This is what I wanted to show you.”

I gave the binder an unimpressed glance.  “And what is that?”

“The next runaway hit. The next marvel of the Opera House.”  He held the binder up.  “This is to be my next project… our next project.”

His enthusiasm was contagious. Without even seeing a word or a note, I was excited at the prospect of starting something new.

“Come take a look.” He led the way to the sofa, cleared the vases of roses from the coffee table and opened the binder.

Right away I was faced with sketches for new costumes. “What are these?” I picked up a sheet, grinning as I looked at the elegant gowns and impoverished rags.

“Just a few ideas I had for what you should wear.”

I glanced at him with a small smile tickling my lips.  “You draw?”

“The flight here was long and getting you off my mind wasn’t easy. I needed something to occupy my time. I’ve already faxed a few of these along to the costume department and, if we’re lucky, we’ll have something for you to try on tomorrow.”

“And this is the music?” I said as I reached for the sheet of music.

He nodded. “One of the most hauntingly beautiful melodies I’ve ever heard. The notes alone are heart wrenching… and when you add the woeful lyrics… The crowds will love it. I dare any patron to leave the hall with a dry eye. I’ve been envisioning this opera on my stage since I’ve found it.”

“Find it. Where did you find this?”

“In Paris. My search… for so much truth led me to rummage through a lot of old documents. I found letters and journals and too many other uninteresting papers, but this… This was a completely unexpected surprise. A complete and well written opera. And it’s perfect for you.”

“
The Traitor
,” I said as I read the cover sheet.  “Interesting title.” Flipping through the pages I sought the author and composer, and finally saw Rupert Aragon’s name on the last page. “Rupert wrote this?”

“So it seems.”

“But why didn’t he produce it.  Why did he hide it?”

“A man of his standing, in his time… writing and composing simply wasn’t something one was supposed to do.  From what little I read of his notes and entries in his journal, he could sing as well.  He even imagined himself in this opera.  I guess for him the Aragon name was a curse in more ways than one. It kept him from his dream. And look here…”  Reaching for the sheets in my hand, he turned to the second page and pointed to a scribbling in the margin. “He’d intended to have Kristine play this part. He intentionally wrote it in a way that would showcase, in every way possible, Kristine’s talent.  I mean, look at these notes.  Look at the range needed to sing such notes.”

I cocked a brow at the impressive range.  “Have you read it through?  Do you know what it’s about?  And what kind of role would I have?”  I rattled off the questions with increased enthusiasm and he was obviously pleased by my reaction.

“The very role intended for Kristine; that of a murderess.”

I guffawed and took a seat back as though physically attached by the notion. “Aaron, I can’t play a murderess. I can’t take on such a role.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s so far removed from who I am.  I’d never be able to deliver even a note with any conviction.”

He pulled me into his arms. “First off, I think you’re underestimating yourself. You have the ability to dig deep and pull out the most magnificent performance, regardless of the character’s immoral ways. And you’ve lived as Kristine before when she possessed you. You know how she felt, know how she walk, talk, thought… the role is based on her. Secondly, I think New York would go wild to see the sweet and innocent Annette sink her teeth into such a rich and interesting role.”

“I don’t know, Aaron. I don’t want to sound ungrateful, but I really don’t think I have it in me.”

“Look, I know this isn’t at all who you are. I know it’s not you. You’re not Kristine. You’re just playing her in this opera.” Aaron looked around. “Kristine is no longer, although to many whom she had come across…she still haunts them in memory. Perhaps this is a way to deal with that memory, to put it in a way that we can handle…to finally put closure to her.”

“This isn’t just about producing a long lost opera, is it? She’s haunted you. Kristine is still around and she’s getting to you.” I bought my hand to his cheek and gazed into his eyes. “She has, hasn’t she?”

He looked lost and didn’t answer.

“But why would she come after you? What does she want now?” I stood and paced amidst the forest of red roses. “I’m so sorry, Aaron. There’s no reason you should get caught up in all this.  None of this is your fault. I can’t believe it’s come to this. I can’t believe she’s bringing you into all this. You're innocent and don’t deserve this.”

Consumed with rage and growing frustration, I pounded my heel to the floor and clenched my fingers around the pages of music. How far would Kristine go?  Would she drive him insane?

Aaron hurried to my side and stopped my frantic pacing with a firm grip of my elbows. “Annette, I can take care of myself. Don’t let this upset you.”

“No, you don’t understand. You don’t know what she can do. But I know what she’s doing, what she’s trying to do, and I won’t let her, Aaron.  I swear I won’t let her play with your head the way she did with mine and Eric’s. She’s going too far.”

Feeling so protective of him, I pulled him close and wrapped my arms around his neck. “I don’t want her to do anything that could hurt you.” Without thinking, I leaned in and kissed him, a kiss filled with fear and guilt.

He responded with warm reassurance and when he pulled away, he seemed confident and invincible, but the strange little smile on his lips left me wondering how he truly felt.

Chap
t
er 4

T
he sun splintered in through the heavy drapes and pierced through my sleep. For a few moments I was lost and disoriented as I tried to figure out where I was. Nothing was familiar. Then I saw the glare of rosy red and knew I’d fallen asleep on Aaron’s couch.

“Hi, sleepy head.”  Chipper and more wide awake than anyone should be at this time of morning, Aaron set a massive mug of coffee on the table beside me.  “It’s time you get ready to go to the Opera House.”

I sat up, but hugged the thick and warm comforter around me.  “What time is it?”

“Later than you think.  Jet lag doesn’t affect everyone in the same way. I seem to thrive on it, whereas you…”

“Yeah, I get it,” I groaned through a yawn as I reached for the coffee and took an invigorating gulp.  “Jet lag doesn’t sit well with me.  Then again, you did keep me up pretty late.”

He chuckled and sat beside me, his gaze on the music, notes and journals on the table. “As I recall, you're the one who absolutely had to read through everything.  I believe when I headed off to go to bed, you were humming the opening.”

“Okay, I admit it. You hooked me with this melody, this melody you call so haunting.”  I took another big gulp of coffee.  “And the lyrics… Rupert had a rare talent. It’s really too bad he wasn’t permitted to explore it further. Who knows what masterpieces he could have produced.”

Aaron nodded.  “I’m happy to see you're as enamored with this production as I am. The costume department has worked through the night and they have two gowns for you to try… corset and all.”

“I’m looking forward to seeing what they’ve already come up with.  Let’s go.”  I downed the rest of my coffee and stood. Giving myself a quick once over, I was pleased to see the clothes I’d slept in didn’t give away that fact.

“Don’t worry,” Aaron said with a knowing grin.  “You look great… as always.”

We headed out to his waiting car and were at the Opera House within minutes.

“It feels so great to be back.  I know we weren’t gone long, but I was already beginning to miss this place.”

“It pleases me greatly to hear you say that.”  He led me to my dressing room. At the door, he stopped and turned to me. “I’ll go see the music director with these notes and come back to see how you're doing later.”

“Sounds good.”

He leaned in to kiss me.  “Bye, sweetie.”

My body instantly tensed and stiffened.

“Sorry,” he said with a boyish grin. “It’s a pleasant habit that’s going to be hard to break. I’ll do my best to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”

With a wink and a noble bow, he left me to rediscover my dressing room.

Three dresses in various states of completion were laid out on the sofa.  Atop them all was a rather tiny corset.  Anxious to see how these new costumes would fit, I slipped out of my day-old clothes and pulled the corset on. With a notion I found rather industrious, I put it on backwards, laced it up as far as I could then swung it around to the back.  Feeling clumsy and awkward I did my best to pull the laces up tight, but only managed a barely adequate fit.

When I heard a knock at the door, I instantly thought of Mrs. Henley and was relieved. She’d be able to help me into this corset and these new costumes. 

“Come in,” I called out over my shoulder, as I eyed myself in the mirror.  “Your timing couldn’t be better.”

The creak of the door announced her entry, but the subsequent silence, left me turning to her.

“Chace,” I shouted out, immediately aware of my semi-dressed state.

“Sorry,” he stammered.  “You said to come in.”  He turned away but not before blushing profusely.

Amused and charmed by his reaction, I chuckled softly and reached for the plush robe that lay draped on the back of my chair. I quickly shrugged it on.  “Okay, I’m decent now.”

He glanced tentatively back at me before daring to turn directly to me. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t think I’d find you naked.”

“Chace, I was hardly naked.  I’m trying on my new costumes.”

“Annette, you have on a corset that isn’t even laced up and you're wearing a tiny string of a thong.”

Surprised by his observation, I frowned.

“I might not have stopped and stared for too long, but I had plenty of time to see you.”  Even as he spoke, his cheeks became crimson.

“I thought you were Mrs. Henley.  I know they still have a lot of work to do on these costumes and I fully expect to see her come around here any minute now.”

“Look, I just wanted to check in on you… make sure you're okay.  You left so suddenly and…”

 “I’m doing great.” I went to him and gave him a big hug. “I’m sorry if our reunion is so awkward.”  When I pulled away I saw the tug of emotion on his lips.

“Annette…I missed you,” he said softly. “I didn’t know if I’d see you again when you left with Aaron Aragon.” He gave me a slow shy smile. “I’m glad you made it back before New Year’s.  These past days, I’ve wondered if you’d come back at all… and if you did return, who you’d be.”

“I’m back, Chace, and I’m one hundred percent me.”

His eyes burned with passion as he gazed at me. Licking his lips, he inhaled deeply and let his breath seep out painfully slow. “Damn, Annette.  When did you become so alluring? So irresistible?”  He brought his fingers to my cheek and ran them down the side of my neck.