For weeks,all Paris talked about that night at the opera.Everybody asked questions,but nobody knew the answers.Where was Christine Daaé? Where was the Vi comte de Chagny? Were they alive,or dead?
And the Phantom of the Opera…?
Some weeks after that famous night Madame Giry went out one afternoon to a small house near the Rivoli Gardens.She went in and up the stairs to some rooms at the top of the house.The Persian opened the door.
Madame Giry looked at him.'My friend, you know the an swers.Please tell me.Are they alive or dead?'
'Come in,'the Persian said quietly.
They sat down on some chairs by the window,and looked out across the Rivoli Gardens.
'Yes,'the Persian said slowly,'The Phantom is dead now.He did not want to live any longer.I saw his body three days ago,and because of that, I can talk to you about him.He can not kill me now.'
'So the Phantom was really a man?' Madame Giry asked.
'Yes,his name was Erik.That was not his real name,of course.He wasborn in France,but I knew him in Persia.He was a famous builder and I worked with him there.For a time I was his friend,but not for long.When he came to Paris, I came after him-I wanted to watch him. He was a very clever,very dangerous man.He could be in two,or three,places at the same time. He could be in one place,and his voice could come from another place.He could do many clever things with ropes,and mirrors,andsecret doors.You see,he helped to build the Opera House.He built secretpassages underground,and his secret house on the lake.He could not live in the outside world, because of his terrible, ugly face. Unhappy Erik! We can feel sorry for him, Madame Giry.He was so clever…and so ugly.People screamed when they saw his face.And so he lived this strange life half-man,half-phantom.But he was a man,in the end.He wanted a woman's love…'
He stopped,and Madame Giry asked quietly,'And Christine Daaé and Vicomte Raoul?What happened to them?'
The Persian smiled.'Ah yes!What happened to young Raoul and the beautiful Christine…?Who knows?'
Nobody in Paris ever saw Raoul and Christine again.Perhaps they took a train to the north,and lived a quiet,happy life to gether there.Perhaps Christine's wonderful voice is still singing,somewhere in the cold and beautiful mountains of Norway.Who knows?
10.吉麗夫人拜訪波斯人
幾個(gè)星期以來(lái),整個(gè)巴黎都在談?wù)摳鑴≡旱哪莻€(gè)夜晚。每個(gè)人都問(wèn)這問(wèn)那,但是沒(méi)有人知道問(wèn)題的答案??他愃雇?middot;達(dá)埃哪兒去了?沙尼家族的子爵哪兒去了?他們是活著,還是死了?
還有那歌劇院的幽靈……?
在那個(gè)出名的夜晚過(guò)去幾個(gè)星期以后的一天下午,吉麗夫人出門(mén)去了里沃利花園附近的一座小房子。她進(jìn)門(mén)上了樓梯來(lái)到房子頂層的幾個(gè)房間前,波斯人打開(kāi)了房門(mén)。
吉麗夫人看著他。“我的朋友,你知道結(jié)果。請(qǐng)告訴我,他們是活著還是死了?”
“進(jìn)來(lái)。”波斯人輕聲說(shuō)。
他們?cè)诳拷翱诘囊巫由献?,看著窗外的里沃利花園。
“是的,”波斯人緩緩地說(shuō),“那個(gè)幽靈現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)死了。他不想再活下去了。我三天前見(jiàn)到了他的尸體,正因?yàn)槿绱?,我才可以告訴你他的事。他現(xiàn)在不能殺我了。”
“那么那個(gè)幽靈真的是一個(gè)男人嗎?”吉麗夫人問(wèn)。
“對(duì),他的名字叫埃里克。當(dāng)然,那不是他的真名。他出生在法國(guó),不過(guò)我是在波斯認(rèn)識(shí)他的。他是一位著名的建筑師,我在那兒跟他工作。我一度是他的朋友,但是并不長(zhǎng)久。當(dāng)他來(lái)巴黎時(shí),我跟隨他來(lái)了——我想監(jiān)視他。他是一個(gè)非常聰明、非常危險(xiǎn)的人物。他能夠同時(shí)在兩個(gè)或三個(gè)地方出現(xiàn)。他能夠做到身在一個(gè)地方,而他的聲音來(lái)自另一個(gè)地力。他能利用繩子、鏡子和秘密的門(mén)做許多巧妙的事情。你看,他幫助建造了歌劇院。他建造了地下秘密通道和他的湖上秘密居所。他不能生活在外面的世界,因?yàn)樗目膳?、丑陋的臉。不幸的埃里?我們?yōu)樗械诫y過(guò),吉麗夫人。他是如此聰明……而又如此丑陋。人們看到他的臉就尖叫起來(lái)。所以他過(guò)著這種怪異的生活——半人半鬼。但是他終究是個(gè)男人。他需要女人的愛(ài)……”
他話一停,吉麗夫人輕聲問(wèn):“那克麗斯廷·達(dá)埃和拉烏爾子爵呢?他們?cè)趺礃恿?”
波斯人微笑著。“啊,對(duì)了!年輕的拉烏爾和美麗的克麗斯廷怎么樣了……?誰(shuí)知道呢?”
巴黎沒(méi)有人再見(jiàn)過(guò)拉烏爾和克麗斯廷。也許他們坐上了北去的火車(chē),在那里一起過(guò)著平靜、快樂(lè)的生活。也許克麗斯廷那美妙的歌喉依然在歌唱,在挪威寒冷而美麗的山里的某一個(gè)地方。誰(shuí)知道呢?