Madame de Saint-Méran Demands the Notary
Madame de Saint-Méran Demands the Notary Arriving at the house following her husband’s apoplectic death, the marchioness is gripped by a single burning imperative: to see a notary without delay so that the family property is guaranteed to pass to Valentine. Despite her feverish state and her granddaughter’s entreaties to send for a doctor instead, she insists on the notary and waves away all concerns about her health. When Valentine hesitantly offers her a glass of orangeade—the same glass the old woman believes was touched by a phantom spectre—the marchioness drains it at a single draught and sinks back onto her pillow, still repeating her demand. M. de Villefort leaves the room to arrange matters, and shortly afterward the notary is announced and admitted to the bedside.
Valentine Fears Maximilian’s Despair
Valentine Fears Maximilian’s Despair Left alone with her sleeping grandmother, Valentine is consumed by the thought of how Maximilian will take the news. She had hoped that Madame de Saint-Méran might be persuaded to favor their union, but instead the marchioness is unconsciously working against them. More than once Valentine nearly reveals the secret of her engagement, but she always checks herself: Morrel is of plebeian origin, and she knows that the haughty marquise despises all who are not noble. The conviction that disclosure would be useless—because her parents, were they to learn of it, would destroy everything—forces her silence each time.
Valentine Summons Doctor d’Avrigny
Valentine Summons Doctor d’Avrigny When the notary arrives, Madame de Saint-Méran dismisses Valentine from the room, and the young woman, pale and feverish, hurries down to the dining-room where Doctor d’Avrigny is waiting. He is a trusted family friend, a physician of great skill who works upon the body through the mind, and the father of a daughter of Valentine’s own age whose health is a constant source of anxiety. After a brief exchange of personal news, Valentine explains that she has not summoned him for her father or her stepmother, but for her grandmother, and she begs him to go upstairs at once.
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