The Mysteries of Udolpho

Emily receives several letters from Madame Cheron. Although Emily doesn’t dare question St. Aubert’s choice for her new guardian, she does write back to Madame Cheron begging to stay at her current chateau.

One day, Emily gets the idea to go down to the fishing house to play her lute. She gets there and finds everything where she left it. All of a sudden, Emily hears footsteps outside, and then someone opens the door. The stranger’s voice is familiar—Emily realizes it’s Valancourt. When Valancourt says that he hopes traveling was good for St. Aubert’s health, Emily immediately starts crying, revealing that he’s dead.

Valancourt knows that nothing he says will be enough to comfort Emily. He offers her his arm and takes her on a walk through the woods. Emily gets the courage to tell Valancourt the full story of St. Aubert’s death. Valancourt is dismayed he wasn’t there. He says he has to leave the next day, but he’d like to come say goodbye to Emily in the morning. Although Emily doesn’t want to see him go, she agrees to this. That night, she thinks of how solemn her father looked when he told her to burn the papers, and she feels guilty about not doing it yet.