Chapter 109: The Judge
Villefort buries himself in work, building the
case against Benedetto. On the day of the trial, he finally approaches
Madame Villefort and makes clear that he knows she is a murderer.
He tells his wife that he will not let her die on the scaffold,
as that would bring shame to both himself and to his son. Villefort
instead instructs her to take her own life, using the poison she
used to commit her murders. If she has not done this by the time
he returns from court, he warns, he will publicly denounce her and
have the authorities execute her.
Chapter 110: The Assizes
Benedetto’s trial is a major event, and all of the fashionable
Parisians turn out at the courthouse to watch. During the trial,
Benedetto announces that he is the son of Villefort. He tells the
story of his birth—how his father buried him alive, how a man then
stabbed Villefort and stole the box in which he was buried, and
how he was taken in and raised by adoptive parents. The court asks
for proof, but Villefort interrupts and declares himself guilty.
Chapter 111: Expiation
[H]e felt he had passed beyond the bounds
of vengeance, and that he could no longer say, “God is for and with
me.”
(See Important Quotations Explained)
On his way back home, Villefort regrets condemning
his wife to death, realizing that he is no more innocent than she.
He decides that he will let her live, and that they will flee France
together. However, when he comes home, he finds that she has already
followed his orders. In addition to killing herself, Madame Villefort
has also killed Edward, unwilling to let her son live on without
her.
Seeking solace, Villefort runs to see his father, Noirtier,
who is accompanied by the Abbé Busoni. The Abbé reveals his true
identity as Edmond Dantès. Grabbing him by the wrist, Villefort
leads Dantès to the corpses of his wife and son, and he asks if
Dantès’s vengeance is complete now. At the sight of the
dead boy, Dantès’s face takes on a look of anguish. He tries to
revive Edward with the powerful elixir that he uses earlier, but
is unsuccessful. Dantès approaches Villefort in order to offer him
comfort in the knowledge that Valentine is not really dead, but
Villefort has apparently gone insane. For the first time, Dantès
doubts the justice of the project he has been carrying out. Back at
home, he tells Maximilian that they will leave Paris the next day.
Chapter 112: The Departure
The next day Maximilian goes to say goodbye to Julie and
Emmanuel. Monte Cristo comes to pick up Maximilian, and they leave Paris
together. As they go, Monte Cristo looks out over the city and declares
his work of vengeance done.
Chapter 113: The House in the Allées de Meillan
Maximilian and Monte Cristo arrive in Marseilles
in time to watch Albert board a ship bound for his military post
in Africa. Maximilian goes to visit his father’s grave, while Monte
Cristo pays a visit to Mercédès, who is now living in the small
house that Louis Dantès once inhabited. Monte Cristo promises Mercédès
that he will help her son in any way he can. Mercédès expresses
passive resignation toward her ill fate, claiming that it must be
God’s will. Monte Cristo chides her, reminding her that God created
man with free will. Monte Cristo then meets Maximilian in the cemetery
and tells him to wait in Marseilles in several days, since he must
take care of some business in Italy.
