Another chapter! I hope the end is in sight!

Disclaimer: Wish I owned Gankutsuou and pokemon and Count of Monte Cristo! Then I’d kill all the damned annoying fake off-topic Mary-Sue adaptations! But I do own this fanfic, heh!

Chapter 28 – The spring

“Abbé Busoni!” Bruno repeated again, wondering how on earth the man was here.

“So you would rob the Count of Monte Cristo?” He asked calmly.

“I…!”

“A window with a pane of glass half-missing, a dark lantern, a handful of lock picks, and a desk forced… I think the explanation is tolerably clear.”

Bruno’s teeth started to chatter. Oh, this was bad, very bad… “I had no choice! I was poor! I needed money to survive, and he didn’t!”

“Poor?” He took in Bruno’s state. Not quite… “Poverty may force a man to steal a loaf of bread, to beg, but poverty does not force one to break into a house and rob boldly, and when I gave you the diamond to cure you of your wretchedness, was it poverty that made you kill the jeweler?”

“I…!” How did he know?

Dark eyes slitted in anger as their owner glared. “And should you not still be serving out your term for murder?”

“An Englishman released me.”

“Then he failed society by his act.” Lance snapped. “I ought to call the police.”

“By heaven, you will disclose nothing!” Bruno shouted, and pulling from his vest a knife and striking said priest in the breast.

At the same moment, a noose suddenly settled ‘round his neck and pulled taut, yanking him backwards off his feet and causing him to lose his balance.

Claire smirked. After a moment, Lance got to his feet effortlessly. “Well, that went well…” * lucky I wear silversteel armor… *

“Release me!”

“You just attempted to murder me, so I think not.”

“Please, have mercy! You spared my life once before!”

“Oh? And that should be incentive to spare it again? After what I have seen tonight, I think not.”

“Forgive me!”

“Forgiveness is not mine to give.” He stated. “If I had found you humble and unrepentant I would not have resorted to this, but I found you as greedy and bloodthirsty as ever. I would have been dead now if not for my coat of mail.”

Bruno charged… or attempted to, and in the process, strangled himself.

Claire frowned. This hadn’t been part of the plan. Lance shook his head, and then called the police. “One…!”

When they arrived, they found Abbé Busoni praying over the murderer’s soul.

Villefort would have prosecuted, but as the man was already dead, there was really no point of doing so and so the topic was dropped, except in the society columns where gossipmongers wondered why…. The corpse was taken t the morgue, buried in an unmarked grave, and no one really cared…

But the Count was clean, quite clean. He had been at the opera, and everyone had seen him. So….

There were three days until Sabrina’s wedding and Morcerf’s trial.

“I’m sorry.”

“Whatever for, my dear viscount? I enjoy your company.”

“It’s just that… I heard that you are leaving Paris.”

“You heard correctly. I am going to visit my estate in Normandy.”

“Can I go with you?”

“You do not wish to stay in Paris?”

“I can’t! Everywhere I go, people stare…” Amber eyes were bright with pain and fear. “Please… I promise not to be too much trouble.”

“Of course you may accompany me, my dear viscount...”

“Really?” Ash’s eyes lit up. * He’s not using my name… he’s so polite! But I feel safe around him, although I don’t know why… *

“We are friends, are we not?”

“Yes we are.” Ash grinned. He then sobered up upon realization that it was very true. * He saved my life again, and I have nothing to offer in return… *

Somehow, he felt guilty about that. But what could he give?

“My coach leaves in two hours. You had best be packed before then.”

“Thank you!” Ash rushed home and immediately and packed like mad. Yay, road trip! I love traveling! Still a child at heart, it seemed… naive little viscount…

Well, he had enough clothes for two weeks… hopefully that would be all he needed, and some pocket money…

A post-chaise drawn by six night-black horses waited. Each had a silver crescent moon upon their foreheads, just above the eyes. They sped off and within hours, they had arrived at the Count’s hunting-lodge in Normandy.

Pheasants roamed the surrounding woods, salmon and trout flourished in the stream…

It was quite pleasant and airy, not large, of course, but homely… there were two guest bedrooms, so Ash took one obligingly.

He sank into a luxurious bed of furs and sighed.

How wonderful… maybe perhaps here, he could forget about his father and the shame and disgrace…

He did not wish to be present for the investigation. Somehow, in his heart, he knew that it might not turn out the way he wished.

Poor father…

Poor Lorelei… if the story holds true, how much she must have suffered… I wonder where she is? It seems she’s left Paris…

“Count?”

“Yes, my dear viscount?”

“Er… I was wondering about something… I heard Princess Lorelei left Paris…”

“Yes, she and her fiancée are heading to Marseilles, so his father will give his blessing.”

“Her fiancée? Who?”

“I believe you know him. Monsieur Koga Andrews.”

“Oh!” How exciting…

“So tell me, I hear Green is returning to Paris as well, to conclude his engagement to Janine de Villefort.”

“Yes, I’ll be glad to see him again.”

“Mm… how is your injury?”

Ash winced. “I was hoping you would not bring up that topic.”

“Whatever for? Tis no shame to admit it pains you…”

Ash bit his lips. “I’m that open?”

“Indeed you are. Tis rather captivating…” Ash blushed as Lance spoke those words, despite the fact that the man was staring out the open window.

“I… you are fond of me?”

“We are friends, are we not?”

“I remember that before, I asked you that question, and then…” His whole face was slowly turning tomato-red.

“Yes?” So where was this leading?

Ash blushed further, before he walked over to Lance and kissed him again. The former sailor hid a smirk as he kissed Ash back.

So simple… after all, what is more devastating than making your enemy’s child fall in love with you?

Poor child…

Back in Paris…

“We’re leaving.”

Yellow – or Andrea, looked up from his novel. “I know you are not pleased, Mademoiselle, but…”

“No.” Sabrina shook her head. “We both have secrets we would rather not share. Please, find another girl and love her in my stead.”

“I will not stop you.” Caging a bird, caging a girl – what difference did it make? He was a free man and valued it, slavery had been harsh but he had escaped at last. Now… he would repay his debt. He would free her just as he had been freed… you may not believe in providence, Lord Wilmore, but perhaps one day it shall be returned to you, despite all odds…

Sabrina nodded, as she and Erika finished packing, a tillbury ready at the gate, two horses waiting. “I trust you.”

That afternoon, Danglars’s daughter was long gone… and by evening, Andrea Cavalcanti had left Paris.

Danglars was ruined. Completely and utterly ruined… he was stripped of his title, his estates, even his wife…!

Daisy and her young lover Wallace left Paris as well.

Elsewhere… Giovanni and Gold met in secret.

“I fear that we have something in common, my friend.” Giovanni stated.

“If you mean misfortune, then I can attest to that. Alas… both Monsieur and Madame de Saint-Meran have died… and now, just tonight, my dear father as well…”

“I fear some unknown enemy.’

“Enemy! I have none.” Gold stated proudly. A Villefort does not have enemies…

“Come, come now Gold. You are not a fool. You are a judge, and yet you not see the murder occurring in your very own household. I say murder because although Madame de Saint-Meran might have suffered from her husband’s grief and died thus, she and Monsieur Noirter could not have died within the same day.”

“Mere coincidence!”

“No. It is not. Listen to me, Gold. Quit being such an arrogant ass! There is someone after us!”

“Who would dare…?” The magistrate hissed.

“Listen. You have investigated the Count of Monte Cristo. Was there anything suspicious that you found?”

“His credentials were favorable enough.”

“I need you to dig deeper than… we are missing something”

“If you wish to search yourself, Giovanni, be my guest. I’ve tried my best and I’ve had enough of your groundless fears.”

With that, the procurer du roi left.

End Chapter

Completed 4/29/05

Lance: Long chapter

Phantomness: Needed to resolve plot!