Of course, right when Marius was right by my side, able to see the whole thing, did the man and his daughter come home. All of us tried to look completely innocent. Marius seemed confused.
"Here's the old boy. Stay on the job and watch out for the law." Mother said in a low whisper. Marius opened his mouth to question us but I put a finger to his lips.
"Stay out of this."
"But, Eponine-"
"You'll be in trouble here. It's not your concern - you'll be in the clear." I said, turning away from him to my father.
"Who is that man?" Marius persisted. I sighed.
"Leave. Me. Alone." I hissed through my teeth. Marius ignored me.
"Why is he here?" he asked. I began to walk away. "Hey, Eponine!" he called after me, accidentally bumping into the man's daughter. He stared at her, obviously intrigued by her beauty. My face fell.
Any chance I ever had with him, no matter how small, was now gone.
"I didn't see you there, forgive me." he said to her. They locked eyes for a moment and I could feel my heart breaking in my chest. Father looked at me, his eyes saying 'I have a plan. Go with it.' I nodded, willing to do anything not to look at Marius.
"Please M'sieur, come this way, here's a child that ain't eaten today." Father lied, pushing me forward. I fell to the ground, the tough cobblestone road scraping my knee. "Save a life, spare a sou, God rewards all the good that you do." Father said, touching his finger to his forehead, then his chest, then his left and right shoulders in a cross. Then he froze.
"Wait a bit. I know that face." Father said, going back to his normal voice. "Ain't the world a remarkable place? Men like me don't forget... you're the bastard who 'borrowed' Cosette."
I suddenly knew who it was. It was our mayor, Monsieur Madelaine.
"What is this? Are you mad? No, Monsieur, you don't know what you're talking about." Monsieur Madelaine said, one hand grabbing the girl next to him's arm. Cosette, I guess.
Cosette... we had been children together. She now looked so beautiful, although when she had worked for Mother and Father, she was dirty and ragged and I was the pretty one... well, Cosette, look at me now. There's blood running down my leg, my hair's a mess, and I'm wearing the same dress that I've been wearing for the past two weeks.
"You know me. I'm a con. Just like you." Father spit in Monsieur Madelaine's face. Then, I heard the sound of horses' hooves along the ground and froze.
"It's the police! Disappear! Run! It's Javert!" I said in a worried whisper, bolting behind my Mother.
