Disclaimer: "I do not own the Count of Monte Cristo, any of the characters, or any part of that franchise. Alexandre Dumas is the one who wrote the story, and all credit for that should be his. Any quotes from the 2002 movie version of this book belong to the producers, editors, writers, and so forth. I only own Hadlee, and any original content I make her do or say."

Chapter 8

Hadlee was waiting near the gates of Fernand's estate. She was hoping to catch Cristo before he left for the evening. But if she didn't, she was sure he had a way of finding her. Still, she was eager to hear whatever story he wanted to tell her, so she was trying to make it easy.

As his carriage pulls up at the door, she expects to see him step out of the gate at any moment. But, to her surprise, he simply steps out of the carriage with a flourish. Ducking down behind a bush, she watches the annoyed look on his face grow more so as whomever he's trying to get out of his carriage refuses to exit.

Sighing, he then asks the woman inside, "This Edmond? You loved him?"

Mercedes. Hadlee should've known. It would be ironic, if Hadlee didn't also consider it so eternally frustrating, that the only other man she'd ever developed feelings for, Mercedes was trying to seduce as well.

Through the window of the carriage, Mercedes insists, "All my life." Cristo narrows his eyes, "Then why, after only a month after receiving news of his imprisonment and death, did you readily and happily marry the Count Mondego?"

Blinking in surprise, Mercedes says, "That's… that's not fair. Edmond… he was dead. And I was…" Cristo shakes his head, "I am a very hard man to lie to. And I know for a fact that, when you love someone your whole life, you're never able to let them go. They stay with you, always." Looking Mercedes up and down, he says, "You had completely forgotten about Edmond, until you decided to look upon me and see his face in mine."

What?! Mercedes thought that Monte Cristo was Edmond? But…

As Mercedes steps down from the carriage, she says, "I know it's you. I know it is…" "And why are you so insistent on that point?" "Because she looks at you the way she only ever used to look at Edmond!"

Cristo tilts his head, but then actually smiles when he asks, "You mean Mademoiselle Hadlee Mondego?" "Yes, of course!" Then Cristo hardens his gaze, "Meaning you knew she loved him, truly and wholeheartedly. And still you seduced him into being in love with you, a woman who would never truly give him her whole heart."

Mercedes blinks, and then says, "Edmond…" "I am not Edmond. You said it yourself earlier. Edmond Dantes is dead. Now, if you'll excuse me Countess, I bid you a goodnight."

And without further ado, he climbs back into the carriage, bringing Jacopo with him so they can discuss just how that woman managed to get into his carriage.

Meanwhile, as the carriage pulls away, Hadlee keeps herself concealed behind the shrubbery. Only when it's out of sight, does she comes back out.

Edmond Dantes. To her knowledge, which she admits might not be complete… but Mercedes had never said Edmond's last name to the Count of Monte Cristo. So why should he know it? No one in this town, aside from her, remembered that name. No one, aside from her, cared anymore.

The only other person still alive, the only person who would have any connection to that name… would be Edmond Dantes himself.

Hadlee clamps a hand over her mouth at that realization. The gasping breaths that came in and out raggedly no longer seem capable of filling her lungs anymore. Edmond Dantes. Edmond Dantes! If it was… but how… and when...

And why the hell hadn't he told her?

She couldn't decide whether she was happy, furious, sad, or simply confused. And she still hadn't made up her mind, when Fernand came out and found her still standing at the edge of his property. Not paying any mind to her frazzled state, he simply began walking up while saying, "Well, this certainly makes things more convenient for me."

Snapping her eyes to him, she settles on being furious at him for the moment. Glaring, she asks, "What do you want?" "You, out of the way." At her confused expression, he adds, "Don't play naïve. I've seen the knowing looks you've been sending Villefort's and my way. You overheard our plans. Again. And your unappealing habit of eavesdropping where you're not wanted is really beginning to grate on my last nerve."

He nods towards someone behind her, and Hadlee turns to see Villefort, plus several other men, all coming towards them. Back to her brother, she watches him smirk before he says, "Let's just say, you won't be a problem for us very much longer. You see… sometimes it's nice, to have connections in high places."

So, it had come to this. Fernand had plotted to kill their father, and now he was planning on killing her. Fantastic.

They weren't taking into account all the time she'd spent away from them. All her time spent in the darker places of the world, and onboard ships filled with smugglers and thieves. Honorable thieves… but thieves nonetheless. She knew how to fight, to an extent. But more than that, she knew how to run.

A good thief could fight his way back to the ship with the merchandise. A great thief, could run back to the ship without ever having to raise his sword to his enemy. He could simply slip into the crowd, hide in the shadows, and make his way back to port, leaving the authorities none-the-wiser about which way to go.

And Hadlee, was a great thief.

She does pull out the dagger she'd hidden at her waist for a moment, cutting into the arm of the closest man to her. She never went anywhere near her brother without some sort of weapon with which to defend herself. But after that, Hadlee took off down the street, slipping into an alley, and taking as many twists and turns as she could, before pausing for a breath.

It was times like these when she really hated ever needing to wear heels. But now that she had a minute, she slips them off. And though she's loath to do it, she can't very well be trying to hold up the skirts of her dress while running away from these men. So she takes her dagger back out, and cuts off just enough of the bottom to ensure her feet aren't going to trip over the material.

She's only just finished, when she hears some of the men shouting about thinking they know where she went. And with that in mind, she takes off back into the alleys, running down the cobblestone and dirt streets, trying to twist and turn these men around, until they can't even tell which way is up.

She's been running for hours. One man actually did catch up to her once. He tore off her right sleeve in the process of trying to subdue her. But in the end, she slipped away, leaving him with a cut to his side. But other than that, none of them had come close again to grabbing her.

None of them were quitting either, which was the problem. She needed a ship she could board so she could get away from them for a while. But this wasn't like when she was with the smugglers. There was no ship she could get on that wouldn't also alert the guardsmen that she was trespassing. And that would bring on a whole other slew of problems.

She was running down another alley, breaking out onto a street near to where her home was, when a carriage sped around the corner and began heading towards her. Hadlee began sprinting up the street, looking for another suitable alley to run into.

That's when Jacopo's voice shouted, "Mademoiselle Mondego!"

Stopping short, she turns to see him sitting up with the driver of the carriage. But as they approach, upon seeing her appearance, he quickly hops down and asks, "What's going on?! What has happened to you?!"

For a moment, she doesn't respond. Not because she doesn't want to. She simply can't catch her breath. But then she glances sharply to her right upon hearing voices shouting in the distance. Back to Jacopo, Hadlee says, "My brother and Villefort are planning to rob the Count. And because I know about it, they're trying to have me killed before I can warn him."

Jacopo's eyes widen a bit, but then they harden into slits as he says, "His Grace will not be happy about this. Rest assured, vengeance is being enacted as we speak." Hadlee blinks, "What? But… how…" But Jacopo simply guides her up and into the carriage. Closing her in, he says, "Don't worry Miss Mondego. The Count has requested that I bring you to his home so that you may talk. You will be kept quite safe there. And I'm certain everything will be revealed once we arrive."

And as the carriage pulls away, leaving the men who were chasing her behind, Hadlee sighs in relief before then remembering what she'd been thinking about before this had started.

Mainly, that the Count was, probably, not the Count. Well… he was a Count now. But he hadn't been before. He'd been Edmond Dantes before. At least, Hadlee thinks he was.

She hopes he is. That's what she finds herself thinking. Because the prospect of maybe finding him gave her a renewed sense of joy she hadn't felt in a long time. And she's not sure she'd survive having it ripped away all over again.

After his long night out, the Count of Monte Cristo returned home to find Jacopo outside. Mercedes, in an attempt to come after him again, had been trying to sneak into his home to ambush him when he came back. But Jacopo was not about to let her slip past him twice in the same night.

It also means that when he first came inside, he had no warning to the fact that Hadlee was there as well. Sitting on one of his couches near the fireplace, she was still wearing the torn dress that he'd purchased for her to wear to the ball.

The fact that it was torn at the shoulder and all the way around at the bottom, and that she was barefoot, and that her hair was now spilling out of it's braid… all led him to believe she was not only here to talk. Jacopo, upon finally finding her, had brought her here for her safety.

Hadlee, for her part, had tried to remain awake. But after a while, the long night finally caught up with her, and she found herself drifting to sleep on the couch. So when she feels hands gently touching her arms, trying to shift her around, she has a brief moment of panic.

Cristo tightens his grip as she sits up and immediately begins trying to fight him. The dagger she manages to twist out of her waist band and draw up near his face is a bit shocking. He grabs her wrist before she can hit him in the face with it. "Hadlee! Hadlee, calm down. Hadlee, look at me."

Eyes finally meeting his, Hadlee pauses and takes a moment to register that he's here. The Count of Monte Cristo has finally returned.

The man who might just turn out to be, Edmond Dantes.

Cristo frowns when she rises to her feet and turns away from him. Stepping closer to the fire, she says, "You said you'd explain everything to me. So… go ahead." "And I will, I assure you. But first, what happened?" "I'm fine. You need to…"

He turns her around, one hand finding her bare shoulder where the dress had been ripped. His other hand cups her face as he asks, "Hadlee, who did this to you? Where are they?"

The anger in his eyes at the way she'd been treated made her want to fall into his arms. But not yet. No, she needed answers first. And damn it, she'd have them. Pulling away, she says, "Explain." "Hadlee, I promise you I will. But first…" "No! Now, please!"

At the tears welling up in her eyes, Cristo drops down to one knee in front of her. "Hadlee, darling, please talk to me. What has upset you so? If it is something I've done, please tell me and I will make amends. If someone has hurt you, tell me and I will see them dealt with immediately. But please, don't…"

She turns away from him again. She couldn't handle looking at him while she asked this next question. But she had to know. More than she needed to know what his plans were, or why he needed to talk to Villefort. More than she needed to know anything else right now… she needed to know this one thing.

"Is Mercedes right?" Cristo blinks behind her, and then rises to his full height while asking, "About what?" "I saw her get out of your carriage when you brought her back to the house." "Hadlee, I have no interest in that woman. Surely you…" "No, I know that. That's not…"

Taking a breath, Hadlee continues, "I heard what she said. About how she was sure you were Edmond. And how she was sure because… because of the way I look at you. And I… I need you to tell me… was she right? Are you…" The last part comes out as a whisper, "Are you Edmond Dantes?"

Silence is all that meets her for a while, so long that Hadlee wonders if she might pass out from trying to hold her breath. But finally, two strong arms slowly wrap around her from behind. One at shoulder height, and the other around her waist. He pulls her to lean back against his body.

Sighing shakily, he says, "I have a great many things to tell you. And this is not the order I planned to tell them in. But… if this is the one thing you care about most right now… I will answer it for you. Is that what you want?"

Hadlee ponders it for a moment, trying to really think about what it is she needs to know. But even if she could think that straight, she thinks this would still be what she needed most. So she nods and says, "Please… please just tell me. Either way, put me out of the misery of doubt that I've been living in for the past hours. I… I can't take it anymore. I…"

A tender kiss to her cheek stops her speaking anymore, and then he says gently, "Yes. I am your Edmond."

Her time of anger was over. And the time for unspeakable joy was just around the corner. But first… first Hadlee felt her legs give out from under her. If not for Edmond's strong arms, she would've fallen to the ground.

Clinging to the arm that wraps around her chest, she begs through her tears, "Why? Why didn't you tell me?" "I have so much to tell you, my sweet Hadlee. The timing of everything has needed to be so perfect. And I did not want to involve you in my plot if I did not have to. There are many ways it could've gone south, and I did not want to risk you getting caught up in that if it did."

He kisses her cheek again, and then down to her neck before asking, "What would you have me do? I can explain everything to you, if you like. Or I can tell you about what happened to me after I was arrested. I can tell you about what I did when I finally escaped. I will tell you anything you want to know, Hadlee Mondego. I will do whatever you wish of me. Say the word, just one word, and I will see your will done."

She trembles in his arms, and then asks, "How did you find out about my brother, and the other two?" Edmond sighs, "I had a great deal of time to think while I was locked away. There was a priest in a cell as well, and together we were tunneling to get out. He was a wise old man, who taught me everything I may ever need to know about how the world works. And in so doing, he helped me fit together the pieces of why I was sent to Chateu D'if."

Hadlee clamps a hand over her mouth to try and keep from sobbing. She'd been to the Chateu D'if, but that had been a prison she hadn't been allowed to enter. Her description of Edmond had been met with the answer that he wasn't there. That had obviously been a lie. But there were so many tales of men who did look like Edmond in other prisons, she'd had to let that place go and search for others.

She should've demanded entrance. She should've broken in during the dead of night and found him that way.

Edmond's arms around her tighten, "My imprisonment, my years of suffering, none of it is your fault, Hadlee Mondego. And you are not allowed to blame yourself for any of it either." "But…"

He kisses her neck again, and then says, "For years in prison, the only things that gave me hope were thoughts of you and Mercedes. When I came back, Mercedes was taken from me, and her true colors shown to me. But you… you have remained forever constant for me. You are a bright light in my dark world. You are my north star that guides me in an otherwise endless black night."

Sighing heavily against her, he adds, "You are the only reason there is still a soul inside this body of mine. I have asked God for my vengeance, and he is granting it to me as we speak. But you… oh, Hadlee. You he has given to me as my saving Grace. You are my reminder that not all the world is as dark and cynical as it seems. You are my redemption."

Hadlee squeezes the arm across her chest once more, and then lets out a shaky breath. Leaning her head back on his chest, she says, "Please… please explain to me what you've been doing since you got back here. You have no intention of hurting Albert… but then why lie to him? Why the show?"

Edmond pauses for a moment, but then sighs. Tightening his grip on her again, he says, "I needed a way into Fernand's life. Albert was the key to that. So… I orchestrated his kidnapping in Rome, so that I could rescue him and be invited in to meet his family."

Hadlee's tensing under his arms was not surprising. And when she squirmed to try and get away, he wasn't surprised then either. Holding fast, he assures, "I knew by then how much the boy meant to you. The plan was only to have him kidnapped. Everyone that touched him knew he was not to be harmed. Not a single hair on his head was to be misplaced. He was simply to be captured, threatened at the appropriate time, and then I would appear and save him. He was never, not even for a moment, in any real danger."

She pauses at that, and then asks tremblingly, "You swear?" "I swear in the name of God and everything in this world that remains holy. The boy has never had anything to fear from me, nor shall he ever."

After a moment of silence, Hadlee says, "How are you exacting your vengeance then?"

That takes him a while to explain. He first had to tell her that his priest friend had revealed to him where the treasure of Spada had been hidden for so many years. Then he had to explain how he had procured all his lands and houses. All his servants and informants. And finally, how he had exacted his revenge by playing on the thing that had corrupted all three of his former friends in the first place. Greed. For power, money, or position. It mattered not. They were all greedy, and they all wanted what he had.

All Edmond had done, was say a few key words in Albert's presence. The boy had then relayed the information to his father, merely in the act of telling his stories from Rome. And then his three enemies had done the rest on their own.

Edmond had always known Villefort and Fernand would plot to steal his shipment. He knew they'd get Danglars to help pull it off. And now they were all going to suffer.

Sighing against her skin, Edmond says, "Danglars and Villefort are already arrested and being taken away. Fernand… his end will come on the morrow."

Hadlee ponders all of that for a moment, and then slowly begins trying to turn around to face him. When he lets her, she stares up at him for a moment.

He was so very different. So much harder and older and wiser than the young man she'd originally been in love with. But his eyes… though they were sharper and much more intense… they were still his eyes. He was a changed man; that was certain. But in spite of that, everything she loved most about him, was all still there.

Reaching up to gently touch his face, she swallows thickly and asks, "Did… did you suffer?" Edmond turns to kiss the inside of her palm, and then says softly, "Yes. For years. But I survived, and I made it back to you." "To me?"

Edmond nods, and then smiles gently before saying, "My eyes were opened to a great many things when I first returned to Marseilles. Monsieur Morrell told me the tale of what happened to everyone after I had left. He told me how you had never wavered on your stance of my innocence."

His eyes finding hers again, he says, "He told me how to find you. And I believe you spoke to a man by the name of 'Zatarra' that same night." Hadlee nods, and then her eyes widen before she asks, "You? That… was you?" Edmond nods, and can't help smirking when she blushes clean to the roots of her beautiful hair.

She'd told him, quite bluntly, that she loved him that night. Well, she'd thought she was telling a stranger, but that wasn't the case. She'd told Edmond himself; that she was in love with him.

God… talk about embarrassing.

Before she can pull her hand away though, Edmond catches her wrist. Kissing the inside of her palm again, he says, "Now… if you aren't too furious with me about everything I'd told you so far, would you please be kind enough to tell me what happened to you this night." "I'm fine." "Perhaps. But while you still look lovely in it, that is not how the dress looked when I saw you earlier this evening."

Hadlee glances down at herself, and then shrugs, "I… Jacopo took care of it. I'm…" Edmond raises an eyebrow, "Good for Jacopo. I still want you to tell me who I need to kill to make amends for what has happened to you this night."

Her eyes widen briefly, but then she simply reaches to trace his face again. Resting both hands on his chest, she says, "Can… Can we just be here together? Please? I… I have missed you… for so long. I…" Edmond kisses her forehead, "I know, my sweet Hadlee. I know. But I promise you this. You will never have to go through that again. As long as I live, you will be treasured and loved as you so rightly deserve. Everything your heart could ever want, it will be made yours." "Edmond, I have only ever wanted you."

Grinning, he trails kisses down to her cheek, and then says, "Then you have me. I am yours, heart, mind and soul. Everything I am and ever will be, I place in your hands." "Edmond…" "You are the keeper of my heart, Hadlee Mondego. That was true in the past, when I was too young and naïve to understand it. It is true now, when I am older and wiser and have eyes that see more clearly than I ever could before. And it will remain true, until the day I die."

He plants a kiss at the very corner of her mouth, and then says, "Let me love you as you have loved me. Please." "Oh, Edmond…"

She wraps her arms around his neck, launching herself the rest of the way into his arms. Burying her face in the curve of his neck, she can't help weeping again at her ability to hold him. His strong arms hold her tight in return, and then he scoops her up in his arms and begins walking her through his house.

When they get to his bedroom, he places Hadlee on the bed gently. Holding himself up above her, he says, "You will tell me what happened to you tonight, my love. I will have no arguments about that. You are a gem to be treasured, and those who don't keep that in mind will suffer for their ignorance."

Tracing her face with his hand, he says gently, "But first… we have a great deal of time to make up for. And I for one, am tired of standing so close to you these past few months, and not being able to touch you as I've wanted."

Hadlee's skin blushes again, but before she can comment on his insistence of knowing what happened tonight, his lips land on hers in a delicate kiss. He pulls away briefly, gauging her response, and then he dives back down for more.

Hadlee still has tears on her cheeks from all she'd learned tonight. But she quickly forgets about those as his mouth works hers over. Her hands find purchase in the thick black hair at the back of his head, holding him to her for all she's worth.

Her hands eventually scaled down to try and get at his shirt. But the fancy buttons were not something she was accustomed to working with.

Edmond couldn't help smirking when, after trying for a moment and failing, he heard the buttons of his shirt falling to land on the ground beside the bed, as Hadlee simply tore the shirt open. If possible, her cheeks darkened to an even deeper shade of red.

Sitting up over top of her, Edmond slid the shirt down his arms and tossed it to the side of the room. Hadlee's eyes then widened at the few scars she could see on his torso. And judging from the sides of his body, there were even more scars on his back that she had yet to see.

He must see the question in her eyes, about to come out of her lips. But before she can speak it, he kisses her silent. Leaning back again, he says gently, "I will tell you all. I promise. But not right now. Please?"

And Hadlee couldn't help grinning. For a moment, he looked like the eager young boy that had once had no worries, no enemies, and had never been sent away from her. Certainly, he'd been in love with Mercedes at the time. And even then, his excitement and eagerness did not match what she was seeing in his eyes now.

He wanted her. More than anything. Same as she had always wanted him.

The idea of making him wait intrigued her for a moment. She had, after all, waited years for him. Wasn't she within her rights to make him wait at least a few minutes, or an hour, if she wanted to.

But she must've looked too much like she was about to tease him. His sharp eyes narrowed, his mouth turned up into a teasing grin of his own. He bent down to kiss her neck, openly pulling and tugging at the sensitive curve there.

When he heard her moan, he chuckles and asks, "Do you still have questions?" Her hand in his hair pulls him quickly so he faces her again. Still breathless, she says, "I have waited years for you to come to your senses and love me the way I have always loved you. You are not allowed to tease me, in this moment, by trying to make me wait any longer."

He grins in response, but nods in understanding and says, "You are quite right, my love. I have much to make amends for." Tugging at the one sleeve still on her dress, beginning to pull it down her body with the rest of it, he whispers deeply, "Let me show you how loved you are. Let me prove that you will never feel unloved again."

And for the remainder of the night, and well into the morning, that is what he does. In every way he knows how. And Hadlee knows that there is still more to come from his plans for revenge and vengeance. She knows that Fernand still has to pay.

But lying in Edmond's bed, wrapped in his arms and love… she knows wholeheartedly that his plans for recapturing her heart are full and complete. And if his impressive grip on her was anything to go by, she knows he never intends to let her go again.

Chapter 8! Just one more to go!