CHAPTER TWO

She had promised Charles she would return that evening. She quickly packed her bags, paid the bill, ordered a carriage, and left.

When she arrived home, Felicite was waiting for her.

"You've got to go to Monsieur Homais immediately, Madame. It's something important."

She went to the Homais'. The family was in the kitchen making jam. Justin was standing quietly as the chemist screamed at him.

"Who told you to go up to my cupboard for it?"

"What is it? What is the matter?" asked Emma.

"The matter?" said the chemist. "We're making jam. We need a pan to cook it in, so I asked for another pan. And he, this foolish boy, took the key to my cupboard in my laboratory! Take a pan from the store, not my laboratory! Do you know what danger you were in? No, you don't know! Well, I do know! Next to the pan you took was next to a blue glass bottle, which contains a white powder, and on which I had written the word Dangerous. Do you know what it is? Arsenic, a poisonous chemical!"

Emma turned to Madame Homais. "They told me to come ... 

"Oh, yes! It's bad news ... " Madame Homais began.

She couldn't continue. The chemist was screaming at his assistant. "Empty it! Clean it! Take it back quickly!"

"Monsieur Homais!" said Emma. "Had you something to tell me?"

"I had, Madame. Your father-in-law is dead!"

Monsieur Bovary senior died quite suddenly two days ago. Out of a careful respect for Emma's feelings, Charles had asked that Monsieur Homais tell Emma the news. Homais had thought of a speech, full of tenderness, to tell Emma that her dear father-in-law had died. But Homais, in his anger, had forgotten his speech.

Emma left. The chemist continued to scold Justin. Charles, who had been waiting for Emma to return, walked to her with open arms.

"Ah, my dear," he said, with tears in his eyes.

"Yes ... I know ... I know," she said to him.

At dinner, Charles said little, unmoving, looking quite depressed.

"I wish I could have seen him again!" he said with a sigh.

She was silent.

Eventually, however, she thought she should say something. "How old was he?"

"Fifty-eight."

"Ah!"

Some time later, he added, "Poor mother! What will she do now?"

Emma said nothing.

Charles thought Emma was silent because she was mourning his father's death. He forced himself to say nothing more about it, to avoid upsetting Emma. He soon asked, "Did you enjoy yourself yesterday?"

"Yes."

They finished dinner, and continued to sit at the table. She became quite bored with sitting in silence. She looked at her husband; he seemed so weak, pitiable in every way. Would this evening never end?

Next day, his mother arrived. She and her son cried many tears, and Emma disappeared, saying she had housework to do.

Charles was surprised to feel upset at his father's death. His mother thought of her husband as she cried; she wished to have even the worst days of her marriage again ... Emma was thinking that just two days ago, she was with Leon, away from everyone.

The next day, Monsieur Lheureux came to the gate. He had come to offer his services in "time of sadness."

"Very sorry!" he said. "But I must speak with you about the matter we discussed—you know!" he told Charles in a whisper.

"Ah, yes, yes, of course ... " Charles said, with embarrassment.

Monsieur Lheureux came to demand that Charles pay back the money he had borrowed from Monsieur Lheureux during Madame Bovary's illness.

As he was leaving, Lheureux congratulated Emma on the money she would receive after Monsieur Bovary senior's death.

"Your husband was in quite a terrible situation when you were ill. Particularly when those travel bags and suitcases of yours arrived," he paused to look at her. "Of course, now that you are healthy, he mustn't be worried, he'll have his patients to take care of. It would be a good idea if he gave you the expenses to handle. It'd be quite simple with the Power of Attorney. You would pay the bills, and he wouldn't be worried with such matters. You and I could handle these little matters ourselves," Monsieur Lheureux suggested with a smile.

She didn't understand. He suggested that he order her some fabric for a new dress.

He brought the fabric. Then, he came back to measure her, and returned again for other reasons. Each time he came, he would casually discuss the conveniences of having the Power of Attorney, which would give Madame Bovary the right to handle all the bills, leaving her husband to handle his medical affairs.

With Lheureux's help and suggestions, she examined the Power of Attorney laws, and soon enough, brought her husband the document to be signed.

Charles, surprised, asked where the document had come from.

"From Monsieur Guillaumin," she told him. Monsieur Guillaumin was the main lawyer for Yonville, who Leon worked under while living in Yonville. "I don't trust him, though. Perhaps, we should discuss this matter with someone else ... but there's no one!" she added.

"Perhaps ... Leon ... " Charles said.

Yes, but Emma told her husband that it would be too difficult to discuss it through the post, so she offered to go to Rouen herself.

"How sweet you are!" Charles said, kissing her on the forehead.

The very next morning, she left for Rouen to meet Monsieur Leon. She stayed there three days.

(end of section)