She knocked on the wooden door lightly and patiently waited in the hallway. Not a sound could be heard from inside. Glancing around, she opened the door an inch and looked inside. Adam sat at his desk, piles of papers in front of him, frustration visible on his young face. She rapped again on the door, and he looked up, setting down his pen and leaning back in his leather chair.

"Emily. I'm sorry, come in. What do you need?"

She stepped inside and sat in a chair opposite him. She gestured towards the pile of papers waiting in front of him.

"Are those concerning the play?"

Adam sighed. "Yes. Contracts, bills, copies of payments..." his eyes shifted to the calendar where a date was circled in red ink. "The play opens in two weeks. I've been up until dawn for the past three nights, going over these papers and trying to figure out a solution. I've come to a decision." He looked at her sadly. "I'm canceling the production."

Emily's eyes widened. "But we've been working on this show for months, Adam." She protested, "it opens in just two weeks."

But the young man shook his head. "I know that you all have worked hard, but there's no other solution. There's no way we can fix the chandelier and still have enough in our budget. That chandelier alone cost thousands of dollars, and the work on it would put us right into debt."

"What about the sponsors?" Emily suggested, "or the money from ticket sales?"

"Sales from the tickets wouldn't cover half of it. It took four weeks to build that prop and it would set us back a month. If we can't make these payments by the thirtieth, the sponsors are pulling out."

Emily's eyes widened at this. "They can't pull out yet; they have a contract."

"They amended it. They've had doubts about us opening here from the beginning and since the problem of the chandelier..." Adam's voice trailed off and he sighed heavily, his eyes dropping in sadness. "I'm sorry, Emily."

Six expectant faces looked up at her as she walked in the door to her apartment. She avoided their eyes and set her purse down on the little table inside her door. Sighing, she finally turned to them.

"He's closing."

The tiny girl in the corner of the room gasped. "He can't close, we're opening in two weeks!"

Dropping into a chair, Emily explained. "There's not enough money to repair the chandelier and cover all of the payments - or our salaries. And even if there were, the opening would have to be set back to restore it."

"But the sponsors, they're supposed to help cover this." Ethan protested. "They have to know that things will pick up once we open."

Emily shook her head. "I tried to talk to Adam about that, but he told me that they've been doubting any success for us here in Paris. They're looking for a chance to pull out and if the payments aren't ready by the thirtieth, then there's no hope."

Three somber faces stared back at her.

"That's it then." Simon thought aloud. "With payments on the House and the work on the chandelier..."

"What's left for us now?" Ethan interrupted. "We've worked for months on this production. Where do we go now?"

Emily sighed and muttered. "Back to New York, I guess."

Simon thought for a moment. "I'll probably go up to Boston for awhile to be with my sister. And then it's back to good ol' Broadway."

Emily looked past Simon towards the teenager in the corner.

"What about you, Lynn?"

The girl shrugged sadly. "I'll have to start going to school again - hold off on dancing."

As the others began to talk about their future plans, Emily watched the petite dancer. Lynn was so much like herself at that age, the woman mused, so many dreams that had to be deterred.

"What time is the meeting?" Someone asked, cutting Emily away from her thoughts.

The woman glanced at the clock. "He said we should all meet at the house at seven." She stood with the others and glanced at Lynn. "Do you need a ride over there, or are you going with your parents?"

She shook her head. "Mom has a class at the studio, and dad is already at the house speaking with Adam and the others. I have to run over to the studio, though, to drop some things off for her."

Ethan walked up behind Lynn and tousled her blonde hair. "I'll drop you off, Kid. It's on the way."

They gathered their coats and headed towards the door. As Lynn and Ethan left, Simon turned towards Emily.

"There will still be New York." He said.

Emily nodded and forced a smile, though her eyes showed her disappointment and sadness.

"You can't believe that the end of a show would stop me from seeing you."

He squeezed her hand affectionately and as their eyes met, Emily saw a fondness that filled her heart and made her smile.

"I'll see you there." He assured her, and with a wave to her New York friends, he left.

She closed the door behind him and rejoined her friends on the sofa.

"We're sorry, Em." Elizabeth began. "We know how much this production meant to you."

"Well, at least I'll be coming home." She said quietly. "I just wish there was something that we could do for Adam. Those sponsors..." her voice trailed off.

Lucky cleared his throat.

"What about ELQ?" he suggested.

But Emily stubbornly shook her head. "I'm not going to them for money. All of the money I have has been earned. I can't go to them." She glanced at her friends, her gaze resting on Nikolas' face. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she caught the thoughtful expression on his face, and all at once she understood what it was he was thinking.

"Oh, no." She immediately straightened. "Nikolas, you will not use your money to pay for anything concerning this, understand?"

His eyes widened in mock surprise. "I would never."

This brought a smile to Emily's face. "You would never..." she repeated doubtfully. "Who paid for the airfare and the hotel to visit me here? And who, when I first moved to New York, bought me furniture for my apartment?"

Nikolas stood and picked up his sports jacket.

"You needed it, didn't you? Now come on. You don't want to be late, do you?"

Emily smiled as they all gathered their things.

"Someday I plan on paying you back, you know, and you won't ever pay for another thing. But not now." She added. "I like my furniture."

The man sighed as he walked through the corridors of the elaborate building. The performance would have been successful. He was certain that it would be a hit here in Paris; everyone had agreed. If only...

He knew that closing the show would be the most regretful choice he has ever had to make. There was no alternative, no possible way that they could remain in the city. The sponsors had spoken with him that afternoon, right after Emily had left. Upon hearing that there was no solution, they set up a meeting for the following day to make the necessary arrangements. He dreaded going to his own meeting tonight, where he would tell the hundreds of people involved that after months of hard work they would have to close.

He had seen the shock and sadness in Emily's eyes earlier and knew that hundreds of pairs of eyes would have the same expression. Turning a corner, he sighed. This cast was among the most talented he had ever met, and the crew the most enjoyable to work with. Yes, he knew that they would go far, and he wished them well.

The man opened the door to his office and set down a stack of papers next to some letters that had yet to be recognized. Sitting down in his chair, he turned on the computer and looked through the phone messages that had been laid out on his desk. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, noticing the mail on his left. He quickly leafed through the letters until he came to one whose writing was unfamiliar. Setting the others down, he tore open the envelope and pulled out a single sheet of fine stationary.

Leaning back in his chair, he read the elegant handwriting aloud:

"Monsieur Vancquet, I wish to express my most sincere apologies to you and the members of your cast and crew. It was not my intention, you must understand, for anyone to get hurt or for your production to close down. It was merely a warning that I hope you will not take lightly. I have some requests to be made of you and I hope, dear sir, that you will honor these. Box five shall always be kept empty for me to come and go as I please. It is true that I may roam about as I wish, but I find that the production is most enjoyable from these seats.

"My second request is that all of the doors leading from outside be kept locked. During performances I wish for only the front doors open. I needn't explain to you, nor will I. I only presume that you will honor this request. And finally: Do assure the little dancer that no harm will come to her. I have heard her fears and have detected these troubles in her dancing. I understand that you recognize her talents and am assured that you will speak with her about this matter."

Adam looked up from the letter, trying to comprehend what he had just read. Confusion formed a blanket around his thoughts and curiosity prevented him from sorting what he had read out. He looked down at the formal letter and continued:

"As I am aware of your difficult situation, the chandelier has been fully restored by a wonderful group of workers and shall arrive by three o'clock one week from today. Furthermore, enclosed you will find two hundred and fifty thousand francs - equivalent to fifty thousand dollars. Every two months you will receive the same amount. There will be nothing more, and nothing less. I expect that you put this money to good use. As for your sponsors - there is no need for them now. A production without sponsors is equally good as with, and I am assured that both you and the little dancer's father will manage things quite successfully.

"Let me remind you that you cannot contact me. When needed, it is I who will first communicate with you. I hope that the check will satisfy you for the moment. With my highest regards - P."

Picking up the envelope once more, Adam looked inside and pulled out the money. He counted the francs, not believing what he was seeing. Just as promised, all the money was there. The letter on his desk was forgotten, all confusion and curiosity was immediately pushed to the back of his mind. As the clock chimed seven times, the director stood and hurried out of his office.

In the seats of the audience, the cast and crew sat talking amongst themselves. As Adam and the manager walked out on stage, hundreds of voices immediately silenced.

Adam cleared his voice and addressed them,

"I know that many of you have heard the reason why I have called you here tonight. The rumor that this production would be closing immediately was true," he paused as murmurs came from the crowd, "until now." He smiled broadly as his eyes met with a pair of chocolate browns gazing up at him from the first row. "The sponsors have pulled out, but the show will remain open. An unknown benefactor has generously extended his welfare to keep this production running. And so," he concluded as he looked at all of the smiling and relieved faces, "your break is over. I expect all of you to be at rehearsal first thing tomorrow morning..."