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The Phantom of the Opera Chapter X - Forget the Name of the Man's Voice · The Gaston Leroux Library

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  Speaker 1: Chapter ten of The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston LaRue,
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  Speaker 1: translated by Alexander t Zira Dematos. This LibriVox recording is
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  Speaker 1: in the public domain. Chapter ten, forget the name of
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  Speaker 1: the man's voice. The day after Christine had vanished before
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  Speaker 1: his eyes in a sort of dazzlement that still made
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  Speaker 1: him doubt the evidence of his senses, Monsieur le Vicomte
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  Speaker 1: de Chagni called to inquire at Mama Valerius's. He came
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  Speaker 1: upon a charming picture. Christine herself was seated by the
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  Speaker 1: bedside of the old lady, who was sitting up against
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  Speaker 1: the pillows knitting. The pink and white had returned to
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  Speaker 1: the young girl's cheeks, the dark rings round her eyes
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  Speaker 1: had disappeared. Raoul no longer recognized the tragic face of
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  Speaker 1: the day before. If the veil of melancholy over those
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  Speaker 1: adorable features had not still appeared to the young man
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  Speaker 1: as the last trace of the weird drama in whose
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  Speaker 1: toils that mysterious child was struggling, he could have believed
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  Speaker 1: that Christine was not its heroine at all. She rose,
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  Speaker 1: without showing any emotion, and offered him her hand. But
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  Speaker 1: Raoul's stupefaction was so great that he stood there, dumbfounded,
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  Speaker 1: without a gesture, without a word. Well, Monsieur de Chonnie, exclaimed,
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  Speaker 1: Mamma Valerius, don't you know are Christine? Her good genius
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  Speaker 1: has sent her back to us? Mamma? The girl broke
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  Speaker 1: in promptly, while a deep blush mantled to her eyes.
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  Speaker 1: I thought, mamma, that there was to be no more
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  Speaker 1: question of that. You know there is no such thing
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  Speaker 1: as the Angel of music. But child, he gave you
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  Speaker 1: lessons for three months. Mamma. I have promised to explain
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  Speaker 1: everything to you one of these days, and I hope
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  Speaker 1: to do so. But you have promised me until that
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  Speaker 1: day to be silent and to ask me no more
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  Speaker 1: questions whatever, provided that you promised never to leave me again.
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  Speaker 1: But have you promised that Christine? Mamma? All this cannot
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  Speaker 1: interest Monsieur de Chonnie. On the contrary, ma'amoiselle, said the
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  Speaker 1: young man, in a voice which he tried to make
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  Speaker 1: firm and brave, but which still trembled. Anything that concerns
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  Speaker 1: you interests me to an extent which perhaps you will
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  Speaker 1: one day understand. I do not deny that my surprise
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  Speaker 1: equals my pleasure at finding you with your adopted mother,
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  Speaker 1: And that, after what happened between us yesterday, after what
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  Speaker 1: you said and what I was able to guess, I
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  Speaker 1: hardly expected to see you here so soon. I should
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  Speaker 1: be the first to delight at your return, if you
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  Speaker 1: were not so bent on preserving a secrecy that may
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  Speaker 1: be fatal to you. And I have been your friend
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  Speaker 1: too long not to be alarmed with Madame Valerius at
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  Speaker 1: a disastrous adventure which will remain dangerous so long as
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  Speaker 1: we have not unraveled its threads, and of which you
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  Speaker 1: will certainly end by being the victim. Christine. At these words,
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  Speaker 1: Mamma Valarius tossed about in her bed. What does this mean?
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  Speaker 1: She cried? Is Christine in danger? Yes, Madame, said Raoul courageously,
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  Speaker 1: notwithstanding the signs which Christine made to him. Good heavens,
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  Speaker 1: exclaimed the good, simple old woman, gasping for breath. You
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  Speaker 1: must tell me everything, Christine. Why did you try to
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  Speaker 1: reassure me? And what danger is it? Monsieur de Chaignie.
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  Speaker 1: An impostor is abusing her good faith? Is the Angel
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  Speaker 1: of Music an impostor? She told you herself that there
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  Speaker 1: is no angel of music, But then what is it?
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  Speaker 1: In Heaven's name? You will be the death of me.
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  Speaker 1: There is a terrible mystery around us, Madame, around you,
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  Speaker 1: around Christine, a mystery much more to be feared than
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  Speaker 1: any number of ghosts or genie. Mamma Valarius turned a
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  Speaker 1: terrified face to Christine, who had already run to her
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  Speaker 1: adopted mother and was holding her in her arms. Don't
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  Speaker 1: believe him, Mammy, don't believe him, she repeated. Then tell
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  Speaker 1: me that you will never leave me again, implored the widow.
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  Speaker 1: Christine was silent, and Raoul resumed. That is what you
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  Speaker 1: must promised, Christine. It is the only thing that can
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  Speaker 1: reassure your mother and me. We will undertake not to
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  Speaker 1: ask you a single question about the past if you
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  Speaker 1: promise us to remain under our protection in future. That
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  Speaker 1: is an undertaking which I have not asked of you,
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  Speaker 1: and a promise which I refuse to make to you,
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  Speaker 1: said the young girl haughtily. I am mistress of my
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  Speaker 1: own actions, Monsieur de Chennie. You have no right to
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  Speaker 1: control them, and I will beg you to desist henceforth.
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  Speaker 1: As to what I have done during the last fortnight,
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  Speaker 1: there is only one man in the world who has
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  Speaker 1: the right to demand an account of me my husband. Well,
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  Speaker 1: I have no husband and I never mean to marry.
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  Speaker 1: She threw out her hands to emphasize her words, and
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  Speaker 1: Raoul turned pale, not only because of the words which
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  Speaker 1: he had heard, but because he had caught sight of
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  Speaker 1: a plain gold ring on Christine's finger. You have no husband,
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  Speaker 1: and yet you wear a wedding ring. He tried to
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  Speaker 1: seize her hand, but she swiftly drew it back. That's
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  Speaker 1: a present, she said, blushing once more and vainly striving
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  Speaker 1: to hide her embarrassment. Christine, As you have no husband,
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  Speaker 1: that ring can only have been given by one who
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  Speaker 1: hopes to make you his wife. Why deceive us further?
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  Speaker 1: Why torture me still more? That ring is a promise,
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  Speaker 1: and that promise has been accepted. That's what I've said,
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  Speaker 1: exclaimed the old lady. And what did she answer, Madame?
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  Speaker 1: What I choose, said Christine, driven to exasperation. Don't you think, monsieur,
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  Speaker 1: that this cross examination has lasted long enough? As far
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  Speaker 1: as I am concerned. Raoul was afraid to let her
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  Speaker 1: finish her speech. He interrupted her. I beg your pardon
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  Speaker 1: for speaking as I did, ma'amselle. You know the good
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  Speaker 1: intentions that make me meddle just now in matters which you,
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  Speaker 1: no doubt think have nothing to do with me. But
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  Speaker 1: allow me to tell you what I have seen. And
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  Speaker 1: I have seen more than you, suspect, Christine, or what
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  Speaker 1: I thought I saw, For to tell you the truth,
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  Speaker 1: I have sometimes been inclined to doubt the evidence of
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  Speaker 1: my eyes. Well, what did you see, sir, or think
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  Speaker 1: you saw? I saw your ecstasy at the sound of
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  Speaker 1: the voice, Christine, the voice that came from the wall
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  Speaker 1: or the next room to yours. Yes, your ecstasy, and
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  Speaker 1: that is what makes me alarmed on your behalf. You
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  Speaker 1: are under a very dangerous spell. And yet it seems
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  Speaker 1: that you are aware of the imposture, because you say
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  Speaker 1: to day that there is no angel of music in
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  Speaker 1: that case, Christine, Why did you follow him that time?
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  Speaker 1: Why did you stand up with radiant features as though
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  Speaker 1: you were really hearing angels? Ah, It is a very
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  Speaker 1: dangerous voice, Christine. For I myself, when I heard it,
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  Speaker 1: was so much fascinated by it that you vanished before
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  Speaker 1: my eyes without my seeing which way you passed, Christine,
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  Speaker 1: Christine in the name of heaven, in the name of
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  Speaker 1: your father, who is in heaven now, and who loved
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  Speaker 1: you so dearly, and who loved me too. Christine, tell
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  Speaker 1: us tell your benefactress and me to whom does that
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  Speaker 1: voice belong. If you do, we will save you in
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  Speaker 1: spite of yourself. Come, Christine, the name of the man,
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  Speaker 1: The name of the man who had the audacity to
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  Speaker 1: put a ring on your finger, Monsieur de Chaynee, the
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  Speaker 1: girl declared, coldly, you shall never know. Thereupon, seeing the
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  Speaker 1: hostility with which her ward had addressed, the Viscount, Mamma
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  Speaker 1: Valarius suddenly took Christine's part. And if she does love
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  Speaker 1: that man, Monsieur la vicomte, even then it is no
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  Speaker 1: business of yours. Alas, Madame. Raoul humbly replied, unable to
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  Speaker 1: restrain his tears. Alas, I believe that Christine really does
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  Speaker 1: love him. But it is not only that which drives
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  Speaker 1: me to despair. For what I am not certain of, Madame,
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  Speaker 1: is that the man whom Christine loves is worthy of
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  Speaker 1: her love. It is for me to be the judge
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  Speaker 1: of that, Monsieur, said Christine, looking at Raoul angrily in
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  Speaker 1: the face. When a man continued, Raoul adopts such romantic
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  Speaker 1: methods to entice a young girl's affections. The man must
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  Speaker 1: be either a villain or the girl a fool, Is
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  Speaker 1: that it? Christine? Raoul? Why do you condemn a man
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  Speaker 1: whom you have never seen, whom no one knows, and
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  Speaker 1: about whom you yourself know nothing. Yes, Christine, Yes, I
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  Speaker 1: at least know the name that you thought to keep
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  Speaker 1: from me forever. The name of your angel of music, ma'amoiselle,
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  Speaker 1: is Eric. Christine at once betrayed herself. She turned as
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  Speaker 1: white as a sheet and stammered, who told you? You yourself?
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  Speaker 1: How do you mean by pitying him? The other night,
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  Speaker 1: the knight of the Masked Ball, when you went to
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  Speaker 1: your dressing room, did you not say poor Eric? Well, Christine,
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  Speaker 1: there was a poor Raoul who overheard you. This is
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  Speaker 1: the second time that you have listened behind the door,
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  Speaker 1: Monsieur de Chaignie. I was not behind the door. I
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  Speaker 1: was in the dressing room, in the inner room, ma'amselle. Oh,
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  Speaker 1: unhappy man, moaned the girl, showing every sign of unspeakable terror.
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  Speaker 1: Unhappy man, do you want to be killed? Perhaps? Raoul
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  Speaker 1: uttered this, perhaps with so much love and despair in
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  Speaker 1: his voice that Christine could not keep back a sob.
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  Speaker 1: She took his hands and looked at him with all
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  Speaker 1: the pure affection of which she was capable. Raoul, she said,
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  Speaker 1: forget the man's voice, and do not even remember its name.
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  Speaker 1: You must never try to fathom the mystery of the
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  Speaker 1: man's voice. Is the mystery so very terrible. There is
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  Speaker 1: no more awful mystery on this earth. Swear to me
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  Speaker 1: that you will make no attempt to find out, she insisted.
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  Speaker 1: Swear to me that you will never come to my
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  Speaker 1: dressing room unless I send for you. Then you promise
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  Speaker 1: to send for me sometimes, Christine, I promise when tomorrow,
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  Speaker 1: then I swear to do as you ask. He kissed
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  Speaker 1: her hands and went away, cursing Eric and resolving to
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  Speaker 1: be patient. End of Chapter ten.