Chapters 90-94 Summary
After Mercedes leaves the count, the full emotional weight of the count’s decision to not kill Albert in the duel but to allow the young man to kill him falls heavily on the count. He questions why he has agreed with Mercedes, especially now, when all his long-planned schemes are starting to unfold. Danglars has lost large sums of money as well as his standing in Parisian society. Villefort is slowly losing members of his family. Although the count’s full revenge has not completely played out, the count is witnessing some of its rewards. But if he dies, as he has promised Mercedes, he will not see his plans fully played out.
The count, who has thought of himself as God’s avenger, is having second thoughts about his role in life. But he cannot allow Mercedes to suffer the loss of her son, so he is determined to meet Albert and face the consequences.
The count writes a new will, splitting most of his wealth between Maximilian, whom he has begun to think of as his son, and Haydee, whom he considers his daughter. Just as he signs the will, Haydee walks into the room and sees what he is doing. Haydee cries for him, then she grabs the will and tears it into pieces. She will have nothing to do with his money. All she wants is him. If he dies, so too will she. But when she leaves the room, the count rewrites the will on a new piece of paper. He also ponders Haydee’s love for him and wonders if it goes deeper than merely considering him as a father.
He notices that the sun is rising. It is time for the duel. Maximilian arrives with his brother-in-law, Emmanuel, and the three of them ride together to the meeting place. Maximilian asks the count not to kill Albert. He suggests that the count merely shoot the young man in the arm. The count refuses. He tells Maximilian he is ready to die. Then the count attempts to entice Maximilian to marry Haydee and take care of her, but Maximilian tells the count is already in love with someone else but does not disclose her name.
When Albert arrives at the appointed meeting place, he tells the count that he has made a grave mistake. Albert apologizes and says there will be no duel. He has learned how his father had betrayed the count, thus giving the count reason for his revenge. Albert then leaves without explaining any further his change of mind to his friends whom he had asked to be present at the duel. The count is impressed with Albert’s strong mind, his sense of what is right, and his courage.
Albert returns home to pack a few things for his travels. He has decided to leave France. When he sees his father leave, Albert goes to his mother, who is also packing. She, too, plans to leave. Neither is sure of where they will find the money to finance their departure or their well-being once they arrive at their new destination. However, both know that they can no longer stay at the house in Paris. Their reputations are ruined and neither wants to rely on the money Fernand has stolen.
As they are about to leave in a carriage, a letter arrives from one of the count’s servants. In the note, the count tells them where he has buried some money. This money was the dowry he had intended to bring to his marriage to Mercedes. He had buried it in the yard of the house that his father once owned and planned on digging it up after the wedding ceremony. Mercedes and Albert are to use the money to ensure their safety. The bulk of the gift is to go to Mercedes so she will not have to suffer. Mercedes has determined to go to a nunnery while Albert seeks a profession.
Fernand, in the meantime, is on his way to see the count. He wants to take up the duel from which his son has backed away. Fernand thinks his son is a coward. The count assures him that this is not the case. He says he will duel with Fernand, but first the count reveals his true identity. Fernand is shaken by this information and runs away. Once Fernand returns to his empty house and realizes that both his wife and his son have left him, he shoots himself in the head.
At the Villefort house, Maximilian visits Valentine to find that she is not feeling well. Fearing that someone might poison her, Noirtier has been giving her small doses of the same poison that killed his servant. In this way, he had hoped to make Valentine immune to the poison. At first Noirtier had believed that it was just the small doses that were making Valentine feel ill, but while Maximilian is there, Valentine faints.
They soon discover that Valentine has been drinking water that might have been tainted with the poison, which would have increased the amount of poison to a lethal dose. They call Villefort into the room and Villefort sees all the signs of his daughter’s having been poisoned the same as his mother-in-law and his father’s servant. He runs to get the doctor. Because the doctor had thought that Valentine might have been the one who was poisoning the people at the Villefort home, he had originally refused to ever return there. But with the news that it is Valentine who is failing, the doctor rushes to Valentine’s aid.
At the home, the doctor is surprised that Valentine is not dead. He questions Noirtier because he senses that the old man has something to tell him. Noirtier tells the doctor that he had been giving Valentine small doses of the poison to protect her. When the doctor returns to Valentine’s room, he finds the Abbey Busoni there (who is the count in disguise). Maximilian had gone to the count to tell him everything he knew about the deaths at the Villefort home. The count was at first nonchalant about the whole affair; he did not care if members of the family of one of his enemies were dying. Then Maximilian confessed that he is in love with Villefort’s daughter. At first the count was saddened by this news. He did not understand how someone for whom he truly cares could be in love with his enemy. Maximilian urged the count to accept his feelings and to hurry to Valentine’s side to save her.
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