by KT Webb
Patrick came up behind her and held her close, “You know, I’m paying them to make sure they do their jobs, you’re off-duty now.”
“Sadly, Mr. Director, sir, I’m not off-duty until every last bit of this stuff is cleaned up and packed away.”
Patrick turned her in his arms, “That may be true, but for tonight, you’re done.”
She laughed and stood on her toes to kiss him. Christine was looking forward to more free time with Patrick; they were definitely into one another, but they had a lot left to learn. Christine couldn’t wait to take her time getting to know everything about him.
People began to trickle onto the stage, and soon the party was in full swing. Aria arrived just before Drew whisked her off to the side of the stage.
“We need to talk,” he whispered.
“Yes, we do. I have a few things that I’m trying to figure out, and I think you’re the only one who can help me right now,” Aria explained.
“I’m listening.”
Aria told him about the dream she had, she explained how certain she was that it was actually a memory returning to her. Drew listened to every word, growing more concerned by the second.
“Do you think D'Angelo could be Erik?” Aria finally asked.
“No. Erik is dead,” Drew insisted even though he already believed she was right.
“I know that’s what we’ve all been told. The police found DNA evidence at the scene that conclusively told them your parents, my father, and Erik were all killed in the blast. But I know I remember him being outside of the house at the time of the explosion,” Aria said, “Do you think he might have had something to do with it?”
Drew furrowed his brow; she was making his plan easier by the second. If she had already been having second thoughts about the man claiming to be D’Angelo, it wouldn’t be hard to convince her to leave New York behind.
“Okay, let’s pretend for a moment that the man you were tricked into trusting is Erik. I’m telling you there is no way he is D’Angelo.”
“Why do you keep insisting that he isn’t who he says he is? Couldn’t D’Angelo be a fake name he created, so no one knew he survived?” Aria demanded.
“No, the reason I’m certain he isn’t D’Angelo is because I know who D’Angelo is; it’s me.”
Aria took a step back, “You’re D’Angelo? How is that even possible?”
“It’s not a coincidence that no one ever saw D’Angelo in New York. I’ve been living in London, having my work delivered by messenger was easy enough. No one even thought to look for me in London,” Drew explained.
“I don’t understand. Why would someone tell me they were D’Angelo if they weren’t?” Aria was frustrated. She knew she wasn’t stupid, but everything in her life was making her feel as though she was under the influence of a heavy sedative.
“I think you’re onto something with your theory that Erik survived. Let’s say he survived and pulled you from the fire. My brother had taken a liking to you even when you were a small child, it was disturbing. I think his obsession with you has probably grown over the years. Now he’s willing to do anything to claim you as his,” everything was falling together perfectly for Drew.
Aria thought about everything that had happened. D’Angelo wasn’t who she thought he was if what Drew said was true. If Erik was alive and obsessed with her, he was probably the person killing to isolate her. He killed Karen to get her the part when he realized she could handle it. He killed Lena to keep her from telling Aria who he really was. Her stomach turned, thinking about the baby she hadn’t told anyone about. She was carrying the child of a murderous genius.
“Christine? Christine! Quick, someone call an ambulance.”
Aria heard the panicked shouts of Patrick coming from the stage. Without even glancing at Drew, she rushed toward the commotion to find Christine lying on the ground. Her face was swollen, her lips were purple; she seemed to be struggling to breathe.
“What’s going on?” Aria demanded, “Do something!”
Patrick got up and ran off stage; he knew what he was looking for, he just wasn’t sure he knew where to find it. Thankfully, Christine was a creature of habit. He found her purse hanging on a hook backstage. Without pausing, Patrick rushed back to her side. She looked even worse than she had when he ran off. Aria held Christine’s hand as she desperately tried to get air into her lungs. Patrick emptied the contents of her purse onto the floor. He lunged at the epi-pen and plunged it into her thigh, pressing the top of the syringe to release the epinephrine into her system. There was nothing else they could do until the ambulance arrived.
“What the hell happened, Patrick?” Aria practically screamed.
“It was the sushi. She had one roll, and I knew something was wrong. There wasn’t supposed to be any shellfish. I called and told them to specifically avoid shellfish. I swear I did,” Patrick was shaken.
One of the caterers stood nearby and was totally blindsided by Patrick as he lunged at the quivering young man.
“Where is the order form? I told you not to bring anything with shellfish. Those sushi rolls have shrimp and lobster. Who the hell approved that?” Patrick demanded.
Another member of the catering staff came up with the original order sheet. Patrick grabbed the paper from her hands and held it up so he could read it. Aria waited from her place next to Christine. At that moment, Patrick was a menacing combination of terrified and pissed off.
“Who crossed this out?” He held up the paper to show where the “no” had been crossed out in front of shellfish.
“I. . .I did, sir,” the first young man shook as he spoke.
“What the hell gave you the notion to change an order? She could die!”
“You called back to check the order and insisted you’d told us you wanted shellfish. We changed the entire menu, so everything has shellfish.”
Aria felt her heart sink. This had to be the work of Erik. He wanted Christine out of the picture so he could have Aria to himself. She looked around to find Drew, but he was gone. Aria knew he would have gone to search for his brother alone.
By the time the ambulance arrived at the hospital, Christine’s breathing had vastly improved. The paramedics had her hooked up to an IV to flush fluids into her body. She was going to have to stay in the hospital overnight for observation. Once she was checked into her room, and the nurses left them alone, Aria shut the door.
“Listen, I need to talk to you guys. There’s a lot I need to tell you, so please bear with me for a few minutes,” Aria explained.
Patrick sat next to Christine on her bed and held her hand. He patted the other side of the bed for Aria. She sank into it and took a deep breath. With them in the hospital, it seemed unlikely that anything more would happen to either of them before she confronted the monster who was ruining her life. It was safe to tell them everything she knew and suspected.
“You know I’ve been seeing D’Angelo, right? Well, I found out tonight that he isn’t D’Angelo. I think he could be someone I thought was long-dead. I also think he is the person responsible for the deaths of both Karen and Lena,” Aria paused, “I also think he was the one to call the caterers and change the order with the intent to kill Christine tonight.”
“Why do you think that? I thought this man loved you,” Patrick asked.
“I did too, but now I recognize the fine line between love and obsession. It’s a bit too late. The other thing you guys don’t know is that I’m pregnant,” Aria blurted it out.
“Wha?” Christine’s face was still puffy, so it was difficult for her to form words without sounding as though her mouth was full.
“I found out the day you guys went to Coney Island. I’m about eleven weeks along. This baby belongs to me, but he or she is the product of one night with the man I thought was D’Angelo.”
Her friends were terrible actors, it was one of the many reasons they worked in the positions they did. Aria narrowed her eyes at Christine, “You already knew.”
Aria found it impossible to be mad at them. There were far more important things for them to worry about.
“I’m not mad. It’s actually kind of a relief. Thank you for not treating me differently. I hope you’ll keep that in mind when you hear the rest of the story.”
She took their lack of comment as an indication that she should continue with her story. Saying it all out loud not only made it more real, but it was helping her see just how manipulated she had allowed herself to become.
“Last night, I remembered something about the night of the explosion. I remembered waking up because of the sound, I looked out my window and saw someone standing in the driveway. It was Erik Overland. He wasn’t in the house when it blew up,” Aria knew everything was about to get even weirder for her friends, “Erik saved me from the fire, but he was badly burned. Drew thinks Erik was obsessed with me even when I was a little girl. He told me that tonight. We think it’s likely that Erik is the man claiming to be D’Angelo.”
“Why do you think he’s lying about being D’Angelo? That seems unnecessary,” Patrick suggested.
“I think he’s jealous of Drew. He was looking for a way to connect with me. He thought spinning the story about being an old friend of my father's who became a composer in his honor would work, and it did. I’ve been so stupid. This whole time I’ve been thinking Drew was the one I should stay away from, but it was Erik all along,” Aria had no tears left to shed.
“Wait, how are the two things related? I’m sorry to say, but Christine and I agree that Drew isn’t a good guy.”
“Drew told me the truth tonight. He is D’Angelo.”
Patrick and Christine shared a bewildered look. Christine gestured for her purse wildly. Aria handed it to her while Patrick jumped up and went to his coat pocket. After a few moments, each produced a letter like the ones she’d received. They were on the exact paper she’d found in the sub-basement apartment where the man she now believed to be Erik lived. It hadn’t occurred to her that anyone else would have received notes from D’Angelo. She took each one and read their contents. The words written the pages poked significant holes in her theory and the confession Andrew made.
“Why would Drew write me a letter insisting that I recast him for your safety?” Patrick asked.
“And why would Drew write Christine a note begging her to help keep me away from himself?” Aria mused.
Her head was spinning, and nothing made sense. She was losing her mind. There were times when she was sure Drew was hiding something sinister. But her heart told her she could trust D’Angelo. When Aria thought the two were one and the same, she was convinced Drew only seemed like he was up to something because he was trying to figure out who was claiming to be him. She thought about every moment that led her to believe Erik was the one killing people.
Everything was completely circumstantial. But with Drew, things snapped into focus. From the very beginning, he told Aria he would get Karen out of the way, she thought Drew was just making a joke because he wanted Aria to be the leading lady. Drew grew irrationally angry when she admitted that she loved D’Angelo. And Aria was stupid enough to make the phone call to Lena just outside of Drew’s dressing room door. Another thought occurred to her that brought another piece into place; the masquerade was the first time she learned Christine was allergic to shellfish. At the time, she’d thought D’Angelo was the one standing behind her; she now knew it had been Drew that overheard that bit of information.
“Why didn’t you guys tell me about these letters?” Aria asked.
“To be honest, I ignored mine completely. We were way too close to opening day to replace Drew. Not to mention that I thought the two of you were dynamite on stage,” Patrick explained.
Christine had been given additional steroids when they checked her into the hospital. Thankfully, the drugs were starting to work because she was able to speak clearly for the first time since she took a bite of shrimp.
“I didn’t tell you because I wanted to see what happened. I didn’t like being told by some guy to protect you from some other guy. I made the decision that I would protect you from both in any way I could,” she explained.
Aria put her head in her hands. Down in Erik’s room, she remembered the violin, the sheet music, the vault. There had to be something down there that proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was indeed the young man she remembered. Had he hidden because he was ashamed of his scars? Aria knew she would have preferred to have him in her life with those scars than believe he was dead as she had for eleven years. The music. She remembered the piece of music she took from his apartment. For Alfonse. In her memory, she clearly saw Erik standing on the driveway holding his leather-bound music notebook and violin. She knew with absolute certainty that both items were in D’Angelo’s home.
“Aria, there’s more you should know. Drew was in the theater the other day. I was looking for you. I almost went to the basement, but he grabbed me from behind. He wasn’t very nice. I told him to get out, but he tried to intimidate me. That was the real reason I called Patrick to come over. I was terrified he would come back,” Christine explained.
As if on cue, Aria felt her phone vibrate in the pocket of her sweatshirt. She pulled it out to look at the caller ID. D’Angelo. Aria felt a lump form in her throat as she held a finger up to indicate that her friends should wait a moment for her. She went into the bathroom so she could hear him over the beep of the machines monitoring Christine.
“Hello?”
“Aria! What happened to Christine, is she okay?”
“I’m at the hospital with her. Someone made sure she got shellfish, and she could have died,” Aria explained.
“I need you to go home. I’ve already contacted the security company to change the codes. We need to be able to talk without any interruptions. There are things you need to know that I can’t have anyone overhear,” D’Angelo sounded panicked.
“We do have a lot to talk about, why don’t you meet me in your apartment this time?” Aria asked.
She was greeted with silence on the other end of the line.
“Okay, I’ll see you soon,” his voice was laced with pain.
“Yes, you will,” Aria replied as she disconnected the call.
She exited the bathroom and filled Patrick and Christine in on the plan. They were worried about her enough that Christine insisted that Patrick accompany her to the door. D’Angelo planned to let her in since he didn’t feel comfortable telling her the code over the phone. Part of Aria wondered if Drew had found his brother and was laying a trap to catch both of them to end things once and for all. She pushed the thought from her mind and focused on what she would say to D’Angelo when they were face to face for the first time.
D’Angelo already knew Aria had been in his apartment before she suggested they meet there. It was the last place he wanted to tell her all he’d discovered about Drew. There was nothing she could have found that would tell her anything D’Angelo didn’t want her to know. He was more careful than that, he had to be.
When he learned of Madame Rossi’s murder, he knew he no longer had the luxury of time. Killing Karen Moreau had been one thing, but killing the one person who linked D’Angelo to his old life was another thing entirely. Aria was in more danger than he cared to admit. He knew it was time to tell Aria everything. If they were going to bring Drew down, they would have to do it together.
As they approached the alley door at Durant Theater, Patrick pulled Aria back. There were a lot of uncertainties in the drama that had begun to unfold, and he wasn’t convinced he trusted the man she was supposed to meet.
“Aria, are you sure you want to do this?”
“I’m certain. I don’t think this man will hurt me. I have to
get to the bottom of all this if I’m going to keep my friends safe,” Aria explained.
“You said he changed the codes, how are you going to get in?” Patrick pointed out.
Aria looked at the door, “He doesn’t have the authority to change my code. No one would do that for him. All he did was ensure that no one else could access the building but the two of us.”
“Aria, please be careful. Call me if you need anything, and I’ll be here,” Patrick gave her a quick hug.
Aria returned her attention to the door. She entered her own access code and opened the door when the light turned green. It was time to expose the truth.
Once she was inside the building, Aria began to feel uneasy about the conversation that was to come. She had to confront him, she had to get him to admit who he really was. The longer her mind ruminated the bits of memories, recent events, and the tiny hints she picked up from D’Angelo, the more certain Aria became of his true identity.