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V . Victor’s Story : William and Justine When we came back from this walk , a letter from my father was waiting for me . “ My dear Victor , ” he wrote , “ I have terrible news . William is dead ! Last Thursday Elizabeth , your two brothers and I went for a walk in Plainpalais , a park near the city . William and Ernest ran on ahead . Later Ernest came back alone . The two boys were playing a game , and William ran away to hide . Ernest could not find him . We looked for him all night . At five in the morning I found my sweet boy on the grass . He was dead , and there were marks of a hand on his neck . ” Elizabeth was heartbroken . That evening William had asked her to let him wear a small picture of my mother , a very valuable one . She had agreed , and now the picture was gone . Everyone thought that the killer had taken it . “ Come home , Victor , ” my father wrote . “ Only you can comfort Elizabeth . ” I left at once . It was night when I reached Geneva , and the city gates were already shut . So I decided to visit the place where William died . On the way a great storm began over the mountains . Lightning lit up the lake . I stood there in the rain and cried , “ William , my dear little angel ! ” At that moment I saw a figure behind some trees near me . A flash of lightning showed him clearly . He was huge , and his face was more terrible than any human face . It was the creature that I had given life to . What was he doing here ? Was he my brother’s killer ? As soon as I thought of it , I knew it was true . Another flash showed him climbing the steep rocks of a mountain near the city . Soon he reached the top and disappeared . In the morning I went to my father’s house . My brother Ernest met me at the door . “ Welcome , dear Victor , ” he said sadly . “ Now there is more trouble . They have found the murderer . It is Justine . ” “ Justine ! That is impossible ! ” I cried . But Ernest explained . On the night of the murder Justine was out looking for William too . When she came back , the city gates were shut , so she spent the night in a barn . In the morning a servant found my mother’s picture in the pocket of her dress . I knew that Justine was innocent , but nobody would believe my story . People would only think I was mad . Elizabeth believed in Justine , and at the trial she spoke for her bravely . But it did not help . The judges decided that Justine was guilty . The day before her death , Elizabeth and I visited her in prison . Justine had told the priest that she was the killer , and Elizabeth could not understand why . “ Why did you say that ? ” she asked . “ It was a lie , ” said Justine , crying . “ The priest frightened me . He said that I would go to hell if I did not confess . Everyone already thought I was a monster . But you believe me , dear lady , and now I can die in peace . ” The next day , poor Justine was put to death . I was the true cause of two deaths . I felt it deep in my heart , but I said nothing .
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