Lucien herself. Lucien, ever the poet, doesn't do well in prison. Although Vautrin actually manages to fool his interrogators into believing that he might be Carlos Herrera, a priest on a secret mission for the Spanish king, Lucien succumbs easily to the wiles of his interviewer. He tells his interrogator, the judge Camusot, everything, including Vautrin's true identity. Afterwards, he regrets what he has done and hangs himself in his cell. His suicide, like Esther's, is badly timed. In an effort not to compromise the high society ladies who were involved with him, the justices had arranged to let Lucien go. But when he kills himself, things get more sticky and the maneuverings more desperate. It turns out that Vautrin possesses the very compromising letters sent by these women to Lucien, and he uses them to negotiate his release. He also manages to save and help several of his accomplices along the way, helping them to avoid a death sentence or abject poverty. At the end of the novel, Vautrin actually becomes a member of the police force before retiring in 1845. The nobility that was so fearful for its reputation moves on to other affairs. Main characters Esther Van Gobseck, former courtesan and lover of Lucien, assigned to seducing Nucingen. Commits suicide after sleeping with Nucingen for money. Lucien de Rubempré, ambitious young poet protected by Vautrin, trying to marry Clotilde de Grandlieu. Commits suicide in prison. Vautrin, escaped convict with the alias Carlos Herrera, real name Jacques Collin, nickname Trompe-la-Mort. Has a weakness for pretty young men, tries to help Lucien move up in society in every evil way possible. Baron de Nucingen, obsessed with Esther and the target of Vautrin's money machinations. Jacqueline Collin, aunt of Vautrin, alias of Asie. Charged with watching over Esther and helping Vautrin in his various schemes. Clotilde de Grandlieu, target of Lucien's affections, key to his advancement in society. But he cannot marry her unless he buys back his family's ancient land, worth one million francs. Her father prevents the marriage after finding out that the money, which actually came from Esther, did not really come from an inheritance (from Lucien's father), as Lucien was claiming. Comtesse de Sérizy and Duchesse de Maufrigneuse, former lovers of Lucien of whom Vautrin possesses very compromising letters. Camusot de Marville, Comte de Granville, judge and magistrate respectively. Try to work out the case of