Sylvester Part V

Phoebe and Tom go to Dover with Lady Ingham to sail to France, but the weather is bad and the old lady is nervous of travelling so they wait a day or 2. While they are there, Phoebe is fighting depression. She fears that she has ruined her chances of having a social life, unless the fuss is forgotten when they come back from France. Tom is still a bit lame, but he goes out walking. His attention is caught by a very fine yacht in the port. A carriage is being loaded into it. Phoebe goes with him to look, and sees a child she knows, going aboard. It is Edmund. She realises that Ianthe and Fotherby are taking Edmund away, and they are probably sailing to France to get him away from Sylvester. She is horrified because it seems likely that her novel gave Ianthe the idea of taking the child abroad. Sylvester will be involved now in another fuss and scandal getting his ward back. Feeling guilty, she tells Tom they must go aboard and persuade Ianthe to let the child come back to London. Tom says they should not interfere. Phoebe has a strong conscience and she insists... When they get aboard, Ianthe tells her gleefully that she did get the idea of taking her son abroad from the book. She tells her friend that she married Fotherby earlier that day and now plans to honeymoon in France. While Phoebe is trying to explain to Ianthe that she cannot do this, and that a novel is not real life, Fotherby orders the captain to sail. They suddenly realise that the ship is moving. The captain tells them that even if he wanted to, he can't put back into port, they are bound for France. Phoebe is horrified and so is Tom. They can't get a message to Lady Ingham and they have no clothes..The sea turns out to be very rough and Edmund is a bad traveller. Phoebe is very angry with Ianthe. She knows that her son is sick in boats and carriages and she has not made any provisions for his travelling. She did not take his nurse, Mrs Button and she did not even buy him clothes for the journey. Phoebe tells Tom that even if it was foolish, she is glad that she got on the ship as Edmund needs someone to look after him. She hopes she can persuade Ianthe to give up the boy. Ianthe is ill with sea sickness and Phoebe looks after Edmund.