We switch POVs to Valjean and find ourselves in a coffin with just enough room to breathe shallowly utilizing the small holes that had been added. We reach the graverside with a jolt and wait to see what happens next.
Valjean feels himself lifted and then lowered unevenly. the head of the casket goes in first, then the rest, increasing the anxiety. It’s not a corpse in this coffin but a living person!
The priest proceeds to say his blessing, and then sprinkles the coffin with holy water. Valjean can hear and sense all of this. He knows that his freedom should be coming in a few short minutes. What he does not know is that the grave digger is dead and he is in serious danger of being buried alive.
He hears one shovel of dirt hit the coffin. Then a second shovelful. Then a third. Panic is setting in. Something must be wrong. His airholes are being covered. This was not the plan! With the fourth shovelful Valjean loses consciousness and our chapter comes to a close.