Jehan bounced up and down as he and Enjolras walked along the small pathway that went through the woods.
"You get to talk with your dad today, Enjolras, aren't you excited? I would be excited. My dad is dead but my mom comes every week to see me. I love my mom, do you love your mom, Enjolras?"
Enjolras rubbed his eyes. "You talk too fast, Jehan Prouvaire."
Jehan giggled. "Noémi says that I also ask a lot of questions." He turned around and called behind him. "Don't I ask a lot of questions, Noémi?"
Noémi, who was walking with Combeferre a few yards away from the two, smiled and nodded. "All the time, Jehan, all the time."
"I like questions." Jehan said, turning back to Enjolras. "So are you excited to talk with you dad today?"
Enjolras shook his head. "No."
Jehan frowned. "No? Do you not like your dad, Enjolras?"
Enjolras looked away. "No. Leon Enjolras is not a good man."
"Enjolras, look at me." Combeferre said firmly to Enjolras who was sitting in the corner of his room, with his knees drawn up to his chest and his head on top of them. When he didn't respond, Combeferre signed and tried again. "Enjolras, I know you are scared but if you don't talk to him today, he will keep coming back again and again. If you speak with him today, it will be the last time you ever have to do so."
"Do you promise?" Enjolras asked, still not lifting his head.
"I promise."
Enjolras looked up at Combeferre. "He is not a good man, Combeferre."
"I know but I'm going to be with you the whole time, okay?"
"Okay, Combeferre. Can we go see Courfeyrac after I talk to Leon Enjolras?"
Combeferre nodded. "If that's what you want to do, then sure."
"That is what I want to do."
"Okay." Combeferre looked up at the clock on the wall. "We have to go now."
Enjolras groaned and covered his ears with his hands. "No, I don't want to go, Combeferre. I don't …"
Combeferre gently lowered Enjolras's arms and looked him in the eyes. "It's going to be okay."
The minute Enjolras saw his father standing in the courtyard he got behind Combeferre and refused to move forward.
"He is not a good man." Enjolras kept muttering. "Joly says to stay away and Bahorel agrees. If Bahorel agrees then I shouldn't go because Bahorel knows lots of not good men."
Combeferre turned around. "Enjolras, let's just get through this. You and me, okay? We are only going to talk to him for twenty minutes and then we are going to leave."
Enjolras wrung out his hands but nodded. The two walked towards Enjolras's father and as they got closer Combeferre could see the resemblance between the son and the father. The elder Enjolras had short, slightly curly grey hair, he was tall and thin and stood with his shoulders high and his hands behind his back. He was wearing a suit like he'd just come from a high paying job and he was slowly pacing back and forth.
"Monsieur Enjolras?" Combeferre asked when they were close to him.
The elder man snapped his head towards the two, causing the younger Enjolras to flinch and whimper very softly.
"Ah, yes. You must be Doctor Guillaume Combeferre." Leon Enjolras didn't offer a hand to shake and his cold blue eyes only briefly looked at Combeferre before staring at Enjolras, who was still standing behind Combeferre with his eyes directed intently at the ground. "I would like to speak with my son in private if I could."
Combeferre shook his head. "I'm sorry but I can't leave."
Leon Enjolras looked at Combeferre with an expression of distaste. "Then perhaps you could sit on that bench over there?"
Combeferre looked at the bench that was a few yards away and sighed. "All right."
Enjolras grabbed Combeferre's arm as he started to leave. "No, don't leave." He whispered.
Combeferre looked at him and whispered back. "I'm just going to be over there, okay? I'm going to be watching the whole thing."
Enjolras let go of Combeferre's arm as he walked away and watched him until he sat on the bench. Then he hesitantly turned his father and opened his mouth to say something.
Leon Enjolras put up his hand. "You will speak when you are spoken to."
Enjolras looked down at the ground and started to rock back and forth on his feet.
The elder Enjolras frowned. "Stop that. You look ridiculous. I have come to speak with a man, not a boy."
Enjolras tried to stop but he couldn't. "I can't help it, Leon Enjolras." He said quietly.
The old man sighed angrily. "I see that haven't even started to cure you yet."
Enjolras looked up. "Cure? I'm not sick."
"If you aren't sick then you are an abomination to this family. Do you want to be an abomination?"
Enjolras frowned. "No but … I'm not sick."
Leon shook his head. "You are, Jacob."
Enjolras flinched at the name but didn't address it. "Okay." He said quietly.
Leon reached into his pocket and drew out a piece of paper. "I came to tell you that your grandfather has died and, unfortunately, he has seen fit to leave you a large sum of money. You will sign this form that entitles all of that money over to me instead."
Enjolras stared at the form in his father's hand. "I don't want to sign that."
The elder man walked closer to Enjolras. "You will sign it. You have no concept of how much money you have been given so I will take it from here on out."
"But I was given the money, Leon Enjolras. If he gave it to me then it's mine, not yours." Anger swept over Leon's face and Enjolras instinctively took a few steps back. "I'm sorry." He said.
"Do you think you know better than I do?" Leon said, angrily taking another step towards him.
Enjolras shook his head and his eyes flicked to where Combeferre was sitting. He wanted to leave the courtyard …
Suddenly, Leon grabbed Enjolras's hand and stuffed the form in it. "You WILL sign this!"
Enjolras gasped. "Five!" He yelled and ripped his arm out of his father's grip. "Don't touch me, please, Leon Enjolras."
"How dare you!" Leon bellowed. "Do not defy me!"
Courfyerac walked out from behind Enjolras's father. "Don't let him scare you."
"You're a strong person, Enjolras." Feuilly said, coming to stand beside him.
Enjolras looked at his father and said again. "Please, do not touch me."
"I will do what I please, you damn retard!"
A red flag went up in Enjolras's mind.
"Punch him, Enjolras." Bahorel said.
Joly stood beside Bahorel. "No one can call you that."
"Do it!" Bossuet chimed in.
Before he understood what he was doing, Enjolras had pulled back his fist and will all of his force he punched his father in the jaw. Leon Enjolras reeled backwards, holding his mouth and cursing all the while.
Suddenly, Combeferre was by his side but all Enjolras could register was the overwhelming sound of Bahorel saying …
"Punch him too, Enjolras! He let your father in here in the first place!"
It all happened far to quickly and Enjolras's mind was so confused that all he remembered was seeing Combeferre stumble backwards, with blood dripping from his nose.
And then there was a sharp prick in his neck and everything went black.
