One evening, Valjean has trouble finding his pulse. Driven by a supreme compulsion, he puts on his clothes with extreme difficulty, takes out his valise, and spreads Cosette's clothes on the bed. Then he lights the bishop's candlesticks. The effect is disturbingly funereal. Every movement drains his strength. He catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror and finds he has aged thirty years. At last, after a tremendous effort, he manages to sit down and in a trembling hand writes Cosette a last letter. It contains a reassuring explanation of the source of his fortune. Suddenly he is overcome by an immense despair, by an overwhelming yearning to die in Cosette's presence. At that moment, he hears a knock on the door.
One evening, as Marius has been working in his study, he has received a letter that promises important revelations about an individual living with Marius; the tobacco odor and handwriting immediately remind him of Thénardier. Happy to be able to settle his debt at last, Marius orders Thénardier sent in, but he can scarcely recognize him, for Thénardier is thoroughly disguised. Upon Marius' curt invitation to speak, Thénardier explains he wants to retire to an isolated village in Panama, but he needs money. If Marius will provide it, he will provide Marius with a secret. He tells Marius, to whet his appetite, that his father-in-law is a thief, a murderer, and an ex-convict named Jean Valjean.
