"You are still here?" Claude couldn't help but ask when he saw the stranger from yesterday. It was still very early; Dawn, Malachi, and Squishie were all still sleeping. Most of the others were still asleep as well; even Quasimodo did not wake this early. Something had been on Claude's mind, however, and he was an early riser out of habit anyway. He'd decided to go for a walk and cherish this rare time for himself before he spent all day around others.
"Yes, Your Worship," the man responded respectfully, "I hoped you wouldn't mind; I had nowhere else to lodge for the night."
"Of course not," Claude answered, "we have plenty of room—you should have asked. Those pews can't possibly be a comfortable resting place."
The man stretched awkwardly. There was something oddly familiar about the way he moved, but Claude couldn't quite place it. Nevertheless, the recognition was there, tugging at the edge of his mind.
"I never got to thank you properly for helping me when I was ill," Claude told him, "I owe you my life."
He was vaguely surprised at the man's expression. He looked like he would burst into tears any second.
"What you have done to the least of these, you have also done to me," he recited the Bible verse quietly. It didn't stop his eyes from filling. He turned away from Claude to try and regain his composure. Concerned, Claude placed his hand on his shoulder and turned him back around.
"What's the matter?" Claude asked, knowing there was something bothering him immensely. He knew this look…it was the look of a very burdened soul.
"I suppose I was trying to make up for what I'd done," he choked out, "but I realize I could never atone for all the terrible things I've done. I will never find rest in this life or the next."
He looked pale enough to faint and quickly dropped into one of the pews.
"What did you do exactly?"
Joseph lowered his hood.
"Must I repeat it when you were the one I sinned against?"
….
Dawn had gotten Malachi's diaper changed and dressed him. After re-braiding her own hair and getting her own dress on, she hummed to him on the way down the stairs. Eager for a chunk of bread, Squishie bounded out in front of them. They passed the sanctuary and Squishie suddenly started barking savagely and streaked inside. Confused, Dawn followed her. She knew all of Squishie's different barks and she hadn't heard the dog sound so defensive in ages. Malachi started fussing, so she put him down. Since she hadn't yet seen Claude that morning, she wondered if he was having a relapse of his sickness or if he was in some kind of trouble. She had to lift her skirts to be able to run.
She skidded to a stop when she saw Claude backing away from a man in the floor. The man was on his knees and tears streamed down his face. Though his features were marred by scars, she'd never forget that face or that voice. He jerked in surprise at her sudden appearance. Squishie leapt between Joseph and Claude and growled sinisterly. Malachi was frightened by the noise and hid behind one of the pews.
"You!"
Dawn's complexion rapidly reddened in anger. She had only twitched when Claude suddenly seized her from behind and pinned her arms down.
"Don't," he pleaded in her ear.
"Why shouldn't I?" Dawn snapped, "This guy almost killed both of us and here he is TOUCHING my BABY and YOU! The nerve!"
She had torn herself loose from Claude's grasp. He went cold all over when he saw the glint of metal in the dim light. He knew that she'd started carrying a dagger a long time ago, but she'd always hidden it and never had to use it. The other priests had heard the commotion and come running, but Dawn's dagger was already at Joseph's throat. All it took was the graze of cold metal against his skin and he fell apart.
"Do it! Do it, please! End my cursed existence!"
"Get the guards!" Dawn yelled to the gathering crowd. Several of them dispersed at once, moving faster than she'd ever seen old guys move. Claude could hear his own heart pounding in his ears. The expression on Dawn's face frightened him. Anyone could become a murderer under the right circumstances—he knew that.
"Why did you come back here?" Dawn demanded of Joseph. His eyes were squeezed shut and he was trembling violently.
"I…I don't know…" he admitted.
"Yes, you do. You wanted to confess, now confess!" she snarled.
"I couldn't stay…away," Joseph choked out, "I wanted to see for myself if he was happy and he is…you've given him a son…you've given him everything that I couldn't…I wasn't going to hurt your boy, I swear…I only wanted to hold him…"
A teeny tiny droplet of blood showed at the edge of the blade. Claude hoped that Joseph would stay still…he would never be able to bear seeing someone murdered in his cathedral.
"I never meant to frighten everyone…" Joseph continued, voice still high-pitched with fear, "I meant to leave this very day…I just had to tell someone…"
There was quite a crowd now, all surrounding them in a circle. The guards had appeared. Claude was clutching the back of one of the pews so tightly that his knuckles had gone pale. His entire expression was filled with shock, disbelief, embarrassment, anger, and fear.
"For what it's worth…I'm sorry to both of you. I'm sorry I did all of those terrible things…I was jealous! I've come to realize that if I truly loved you then I should be happy for you! I've changed, I promise!"
His dark eyes locked on Claude's.
"I only wanted to ask your forgiveness…" he begged, "…and then, I would have gone far away. I would have lived out the rest of my life in solitude…I would have lived and died in peace knowing that you would always be loved and taken care of…"
Claude did not know what to say. He was absolutely mortified at this display. Most of the preachers had heard and they all wore looks of mutual disgust and anger. They were all staring at Joseph as if he'd suddenly sprouted horns and a tail.
Dawn suddenly released him and stepped between him and Claude.
"You are a sick human being, you know that?" she muttered. With a snap of her fingers, the guards hauled Joseph up off the floor and dragged him towards the door. He suddenly started to fight them. Bolting towards the nearest staircase, he yelled "SANCTUARY!" at the top of his lungs.
"Son-of-a-" Dawn bit off the curse when Claude gave her a stern look.
"We're sorry, Your Worship," one of the guards said uneasily, "you'll have to get Parliament to break it…"
Dawn groaned. That could take days or even weeks. She put her arm around Claude, who looked like he would throw up any second. Grateful for her support, he leaned against her as he tried to digest what had just happened.
"If he wants sanctuary, then we'll give it to him. But we're putting him in one of the second-story rooms at the opposite end of the place," she said forcefully, "and I want him locked in there twenty-four seven. If he escapes, you'll all be sorry."
She steered Claude away from the crowd and into one of the back chambers behind the sanctuary. They were alone now, just the two of them.
"You all right?" she asked him in a much gentler tone.
He hugged her tightly to him, thanking God for how warm and how solid she was. There were so many emotions going through him right now that he thought his nerves would rattle apart. She rubbed his back and mumbled comforts to him, but he didn't register a thing she said.
"You would have killed him," he said in awed horror, "You actually would have killed him…"
"When it comes to you and Malachi, anything and everything is possible," she said firmly, "we almost lost each other because of that prick. He doesn't deserve peace or happiness. He's lucky he's still breathing."
Claude stared at her. This was a side of Dawn he hadn't seen yet and it deeply disturbed him.
"Don't look at me like that," she scolded him, "if you'd seen the look on his face when he held that dagger up…I still have nightmares about it. Admit it, Claude: you'd kill for us, too. You almost did for Esmeralda."
He did not like to be reminded of that horrible night and shuddered. The grim part of his conscience told him that he'd be a hypocrite if he condemned her for something he himself had done.
"Where's Malachi?" he asked uneasily.
"Jacques moved him out of the sanctuary when I drew the knife," Dawn told him, "they're probably in the kitchen. He probably wanted to keep Malachi from seeing all that."
Claude was grateful for that. He couldn't stomach the thought of Dawn murdering anyone no matter what the situation was. As they walked hand-in-hand out of the room, Claude was asking questions to God in his head. Why had Joseph returned? Why did he insist on making such a scene? Granted, he might not have if Dawn hadn't held the dagger to his throat…but why had he followed them and spied on them? None of it made sense to him.
Maybe he should have a word with Joseph…but Dawn would never stand for it. He would have to do it when she wasn't around. As long as she knew Joseph was here, she'd be very unlikely to leave because her feelings were so strong…
Please, God, help us to untangle this mess, he added silently after asking God to bless the food.
