Les Miserables by Victor Hugo Read Free Book Online Page A

house. He said I could visit every evening, and I did.
    But Marius’s welcome vanished. Soon I knew he didn’t want me to come by. I missed an evening now and then. Finally, I stopped my visits.
    I’m sorry I hurt you Cosette. I’m sorry I pulled away from you. I loved you like a father, yet I wasn’t your father. I made you stop calling me “Father.” I couldn’t bear the lie anymore.
    I saw the hurt in your eyes when I asked you to call me “Monsieur Jean.”
    Marius thinks I stole the money. Now you can tell him the truth. I was an outcast all my life. I have loved you, Cosette, for as long as I have known you. I did everything I could to make you happy.
    Now I am finished. I am ready to die. I will lie down and wait for the end to come. It won’t be long. Soon I will wake to a newday when this dark night is over.
    The pen fell from Jean Valjean’s fingers. He had given up on life. But he did not rest for long.
    Suddenly someone knocked at the door. It was Cosette and Marius. They had come to see him.
    Cosette rushed into the room. Marius stood in the doorway.
    â€œCosette,” said Jean Valjean. He sat upright in his chair. His face was thin and pale. But his eyes were happy. Cosette ran into his arms.
    â€œFather!” she cried.
    â€œSo have you forgiven me, my Cosette?” asked Jean Valjean.
    Looking at Marius he said, “And you, too, have you forgiven me?”
    Cosette’s eyes filled with tears. Marius bowed his head.
    â€œThank you,” said Jean Valjean. “I havelived a hard life. Now I can die in peace.”
    Jean Valjean walked to his bed and lay down. He felt as though the world were slipping away from him.
    Marius ran to his bedside.
    â€œNow I know what you did for me,” he said. “Why didn’t you tell me? It is I who asks forgiveness of you.”
    Marius was on his knees. Cosette was kneeling too.
    â€œYou saved my life,” said Marius. “Even more, you gave me Cosette! I can never repay you.”
    â€œYou have no need to say all this,” murmured Jean Valjean.
    â€œYou will not spend another day in this horrible place,” said Marius. “You are Cosette’s father and mine as well. You are part of us.”
    â€œYes, Father,” said Cosette. “You will come to live with us.”
    â€œChildren, I am dying,” whispered JeanValjean. “I will not live in this world much longer.”
    â€œYou will not die,” said Marius.
    â€œPeople don’t die just like that. You have suffered so much. But now your suffering is over. You must not only live. You must live with us.”
    â€œSee, Father,” said Cosette. “Marius says you aren’t to die. We will be happy together.”
    Jean Valjean smiled.
    â€œCome close to me, both of you,” he said. “I love you dearly. How sweet it is to die like this.”
    The old man’s eyes closed for the last time. Light from two silver candlesticks fell on his face.
    Cosette and Marius kissed Jean Valjean good-bye. But he could not return their kiss.

Victor Hugo was born in France in 1802. He started writing when he was very young. He published his first book of poetry when he was only twenty and later wrote several successful plays and novels, including
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
and
Les Misérables.
Hugos stories are best known for their richly realized characters—simple people who overcome great obstacles.
    During the 1840s, Hugo became involved in French politics. When Emperor Napoleon III overthrew the government in 1851, Hugo fled France for Belgium. Although he did not return for almost twenty years, his passion for writing never wavered. Victor Hugo, one of the best Romantic writers of his time, died in France in 1885.
    Monica Kulling was born in British Columbia, Canada. Ms. Kulling is the author of the Stepping Stones adaptations of
Little Women, Les Misérables,
and
The Adventures of Tom