The Countdown of Monte Cristo

La Carconte withdraws to her room, warning her husband not to act rashly. But Caderousse, flushed with greed and fear, bolts the inn’s door and seats himself across from the abbé, ready to unburden himself. The priest remains in shadow, his eyes fixed and unblinking, while the light falls harshly on the innkeeper’s face.
 
With his wife’s trembling voice echoing faintly from above, Caderousse insists he will bear the consequences alone. And so, at last, he begins to tell the story—the truth behind the ruin of Edmond Dantès.
 
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The Countdown of Monte Cristo is a daily podcast reading one page at a time from Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel — every day, for four years.

The abbé explains that Edmond Dantès’ diamond is to be divided into five shares—one each for Caderousse, Danglars, Fernand, Mercédès, and the late Edmond’s father, whose portion will now be shared among the four survivors. But even as the priest calmly replaces the jewel in his cassock, the atmosphere in the inn grows charged with unspoken desire.
Sweat beads on Caderousse’s brow as he realizes the fortune before him could be his alone. He and La Carconte exchange dark, wordless looks, weighing whether piety or greed will guide them. His wife mutters that she will take no responsibility, “washing her hands” of what might follow. And yet, the thought gnaws at them both: the diamond could be theirs—if they dared.
 
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The Countdown of Monte Cristo is a daily podcast reading one page at a time from Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel — every day, for four years.

The abbé presses no further about Fernand or Danglars, but instead turns to the task he claims was entrusted to him by Edmond Dantès: the selling of a diamond worth fifty thousand francs. When he opens the small box, the brilliant stone flashes in the dim inn light, dazzling Caderousse, who calls urgently for his wife.
La Carconte descends, her feigned frailty giving way to sudden eagerness at the sight of the jewel. As Caderousse explains, the diamond was meant to be divided among Edmond’s loved ones and supposed friends. Yet both husband and wife can barely conceal their amazement—and their greed—before the sparkling temptation set before them.
 
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The Countdown of Monte Cristo is a daily podcast reading one page at a time from Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel — every day, for four years.

The abbé presses further: could Fernand, once called a “faithful friend,” truly have betrayed Edmond? From the stairs, La Carconte interrupts again, warning her husband to keep silent. But Caderousse, irritated and restless, cannot resist his own bitter knowledge. How could Fernand be faithful to a man whose fiancée he coveted? Edmond’s very honesty, Caderousse says, had left him blind to the treachery of those around him. Better, perhaps, that he died never knowing the full extent of his betrayal.
Yet even here, fear lingers—fear not of the hatred of the living, but of the curse of the dead. To speak ill of the past is dangerous, Caderousse insists. What good, after all, in exposing the guilty, when Edmond himself is gone?
 
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The Countdown of Monte Cristo is a daily podcast reading one page at a time from Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel — every day, for four years.

La Carconte cuts in sharply, mocking her husband’s “politeness” and warning him of the danger in revealing too much. Her words drip with suspicion—promises of safety, she says, always dissolve into misery and persecution for the poor and helpless. The abbé counters with calm assurance, but her muttering presence lingers like a shadow on the room. When she sinks back into weakness, the conversation resumes, but the tone has shifted.
The abbé presses on, his voice steadied only by repeated draughts of water. Was old Dantès truly left to starve with no one to help him? Caderousse, shifting uneasily, admits there were some who tried—Mercédès, ever loyal, and Monsieur Morrel, generous and steadfast. Yet Edmond’s father despised Fernand, the man once counted among his “faithful friends.” With a bitter smile, Caderousse makes clear: even in kindness, betrayal haunted the house of Dantès.
 
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The Countdown of Monte Cristo is a daily podcast reading one page at a time from Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel — every day, for four years.

The abbé presses for the truth, and Caderousse gives it with a grim pause: Edmond’s father did not die of illness, but of starvation. The words strike like a thunderbolt—too cruel to believe, and yet undeniable. A man left to waste away in grief and hunger, while others lived steps away. The abbé recoils in outrage, unable to contain his horror at such neglect. At this moment, another voice interrupts: La Carconte, pale and haggard, descends the stairs. From her post on the steps, she has heard everything, and cuts in bitterly—Caderousse should never have spoken at all. What use is it, she implies, to dig up the past? But the abbé’s questioning has only just begun.
 
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New to the journey? Start from the beginning at: http://countdownofmontecristo.com
 
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The Countdown of Monte Cristo is a daily podcast reading one page at a time from Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel — every day, for four years.

The abbé continues Edmond’s final instructions.
The diamond, he says, was to be sold and its value divided into five equal shares: for Caderousse, for Danglars, for Fernand, for Mercédès—and for Edmond’s father. But the old man is gone, and the mention of his death shakes Caderousse with conflicting passions. The priest presses further, asking how the elder Dantès died. Caderousse, his voice thick with guilt and sorrow, admits the truth: the poor man had wasted away, abandoned and starving, broken by grief and neglect. Each word drags Edmond’s memory closer, and the abbé’s eyes linger, measuring Caderousse’s story against the weight of hidden knowledge.
 
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New to the journey? Start from the beginning at: http://countdownofmontecristo.com
 
Join the conversation on our Discord: https://discord.gg/Sg2prdm
 
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The Countdown of Monte Cristo is a daily podcast reading one page at a time from Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel — every day, for four years.

The abbé places temptation directly before Caderousse.
From his pocket he draws a small black box—and inside, a glittering diamond, worth fifty thousand francs. Caderousse can scarcely breathe, his eyes locked on the stone as if it could already be his.
The priest explains: the diamond was left in trust. Dantès had once counted four loyal friends, and wished the stone to be shared among them—or given whole to whichever among them proved most worthy. He names the first: Caderousse. He names another: Danglars. And then, even his rival, Fernand. Each name strikes Caderousse with visible unease, as if ghosts have returned to judge him.
 
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New to the journey? Start from the beginning at: http://countdownofmontecristo.com
 
Join the conversation on our Discord: https://discord.gg/Sg2prdm
 
Support the project on Patreon and receive full-length, story-only audio after each chapter: https://patreon.com/gruntworkpod
 
Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or follow along on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCf3vyewhvQugX5M3oREl57A
 
⸻
 
The Countdown of Monte Cristo is a daily podcast reading one page at a time from Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel — every day, for four years.