Valentine lay in bed, her body weak and her mind foggy. The prosecutor had told Madame Danglars the truth, Valentine wasn't recovered yet. Exhausted beyond measure, she was confined to her bedroom, where her stepmother, Madame de Villefort, had filled her in on all the shocking news. Eugénie's sudden disappearance, the arrest of Andrea Cavalcanti, whose real name was apparently Benedetto, and the murder charges against him.
But Valentine was so drained that the news barely registered. Her brain felt like it was wrapped in cotton, filled only with vague impressions and shadowy images that drifted through her consciousness like smoke.
