The pain in my abdomen slowly faded as I heard the two men panting in battle. I was afraid for Quasimodo. I rose slowly, taking the lantern with me. As I approached, Quasimodo turned to me, Raphael standing behind him, raising his sword. I rushed towards Quasimodo and placed myself between the two. The tip of the sword pierced my right side. I let out a cry of pain and fell to the ground. Quasimodo called my name in such desperation that it brought tears to my eyes.
Raphael took advantage of the brief moment of confusion by throwing his sword at the ceiling and cutting the rope that held the heavy wooden beam to the ceiling. The beam swung from the ceiling towards the bell ringer. But through the lantern light, Quasimodo saw the beam rushing towards him in time. He was able to grab the beam in time and stop it. He swung wide and threw the beam, which was now only hanging from the ceiling on a rope, back at Raphael. The force knocked the mercenary down and he remained unconscious on the ground. Quasimodo approached Raphael, grabbed him by the collar and dragged him up the steps into the tower.
Once at the top of the tower, Raphael regained consciousness and saw the bell ringer hoist him up from the ground.
"What are you doing?! No, NO!" Raphael shouted in panic.
"The evil ones shall not escape punishment!" Quasimodo shouted and swung his arm to throw the mercenary from the tower. Quasimodo rushed back down to Regina, afraid of losing her.
The pain from the stab wound was bad, but bearable. I could imagine what Quasimodo would do to Raphael. Like Frollo, he would throw the mercenary off a church tower. Of course, nothing excuses murder. But I probably wouldn't have reacted differently if I were him. Suddenly I heard heavy footsteps and Quasimodo's panting breath as he approached.
He leaned down and lifted me into his arms. Quasimodo carried me back to his parents' house. Of course they were totally perplexed to see us both in such a bad state. Quasimodo had a gash on his temple and a few scratches. But that was secondary. The stab wound in my side wasn't deep, but it wouldn't stop bleeding. Hannah rushed to the medic while Joe and Quasimodo carefully laid me on a clean sheet in the guest bed. Joe gave me a clean cloth to press onto the wound. As we waited for the medic, I felt myself getting weaker...my vision blurred and eventually I lost consciousness.
The medic arrived shortly after Regina fell unconscious. Quasimodo had grabbed Regina's left hand and was sobbing because he feared he had lost her. But the doctor was able to calm the bell ringer. Regina had passed out from the shock and blood loss. The doctor cleaned the wound with alcohol and then sewed it up. Then he put a padding bandage on Regina. After that it was time to wait. Regina had to recover from everything first. Quasimodo did not leave Regina's bedside. He wanted to watch over her and be with her when she woke up. But Quasimodo had also been ill and after the doctor had treated him, Quasimodo fell asleep shortly afterwards, bent over the bed.
It was a struggle to open my eyes again. Part of me wanted to go back to sleep. But I knew someone was waiting for me. When I slowly opened my eyes, I saw Quasimodo lying next to me to my right with his upper body on the bed. He snored softly. I slowly raised my right hand and stroked his hair. At some point Quasimodo raised his head and looked at me. He was beaming from ear to ear, he was so happy to see me again. He pressed his forehead against mine and kissed me on the cheek: "You're awake again. I'm so glad."
"Is it over now?" I asked.
"Yes. As soon as you're on your feet again, we can go back to Paris," said Quasimodo.
"What? But what about Brother Martin?" I asked.
"He's in a mental institution. And all his suspicions against you have been declared unfounded," Quasimodo said.
"And where is... this mental institution?" I asked.
"As far as I know, in Rouen. So far away from Paris," said Quasimodo.
I breathed a sigh of relief: "If that's the case... I'd love to go back to Paris with you."
It took a few days before I could stand up again. Until then, Quasimodo looked after me touchingly. Marie came to me for her bedtime story and the doctor checked on me every day. Quasimodo then served as a support when I stood up or walked. After I was back on my feet, Joe organized a cart with an oxen. We were supposed to return to Paris in it, because I couldn't walk such a long distance yet. The Mc Grobains bid us a warm farewell and then Quasimodo pulled the ox in the direction we wanted. We returned to Paris without any particular incident and were warmly welcomed in the cathedral. As Notre Dame came into view, I was overcome by that pleasantly warm feeling of home that I had always had when looking at Cologne Cathedral. Jean Bureau personally apologized to us for Brother Martin's behavior.
Quasimodo was reinstated as a bell ringer and we were allowed to move back into our nest in the bell tower. I was so happy when I saw our cell again. I was a little cocky and collapsed onto the straw mattress that had been our marriage bed. This caused a dull pain on my right side because the wound was still healing.
Quasimodo saw my pained face and leaned over me.
"Are you all right?"
"Yeah. Don't worry," I said.
Quasimodo stroked my cheek: "I thank God for leading me to you."
I didn't expect a sentence like that from Quasimodo and tears welled up in my eyes. I kissed him on the cheek, "And I thank you that I can share this life with you."