The House of Saint-Méran
The conversation turns to the house’s previous owner. Château-Renaud recalls that M. de Saint-Méran advertised the property for sale two or three years ago, prompting Madame de Villefort to recognize it as belonging to her father-in-law. Monte Cristo admits his steward handled the purchase without informing him of the former owner. The house had been unoccupied for ten years with weeds and closed blinds.
The Dramatic Room
Monte Cristo mentions one room that struck him as particularly dramatic—a plain chamber hung with red damask. He wonders aloud at the instinct that recognizes places where we seem to breathe sadness, comparing it to the chamber of the Marquise de Ganges or Desdemona. He offers to show this room to his guests, promising coffee in the garden afterward.
The Sinister Chamber
The guests enter the room, which remains unlit despite disappearing daylight and maintains old-fashioned furnishings unlike the rest of the redecorated house. Madame de Villefort cries that it appears frightful. The gloomy bed with blood-colored hangings and faded crayon portraits with staring eyes create an ominous atmosphere that unanimsously impresses everyone as sinister.
The Hidden Staircase
Monte Cristo reveals a door concealed by drapery, opening it to expose a narrow, crooked staircase. Château-Renaud comments on its wicked appearance while Debray observes that everything seems black to him. Monte Cristo suggests dark imagery of some Othello or Abbé de Ganges descending with a secret burden, causing Madame Danglars to nearly faint.
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