The Woman in White: The Second Epoch: Part 3, Chapter 2 Summary & Analysis

A couple of days after this, Sir Percival sent Mrs. Michelson to Torquay to look at houses. He said he wanted to rent one for a few weeks with Marian and Laura and gave Mrs. Michelson a list of peculiar instructions on the type of house she should choose. She felt that these instructions were almost impossible to follow but had no choice but to go. When she returned a few days later—having found no house that met Sir Percival’s conditions—she found that Count Fosco and Madame Fosco had left Blackwater Park to stay in London.

On her return, Mrs. Michelson went to check on Laura, who was waited on by Margaret Poacher. Mrs. Michelson and Laura decided to visit Marian’s room together but, on the way, were stopped by Sir Percival, who told them that Marian had gone to London with Count Fosco and Madame Fosco. Laura was horrified by this news and rushed to check Marian’s room, which was empty. She begged Mrs. Michelson not to leave her and then ran after Sir Percival and demanded to know where her sister had gone. He told her that Marian would stop in London overnight on her way to Limmeridge, where she would to speak with Mr. Fairlie, as he had requested in his letter.

Laura followed Sir Percival to his study and dragged Mrs. Michelson along with her. She insisted that she must follow her sister and Sir Percival told her that she could leave the next day, travel to London in the morning, and meet Count Fosco there. She will spend the night in his house, then travel to Limmeridge the next day, just as Marian has done. He showed her a note from Mr. Fairlie inviting her to Limmeridge whenever she wanted. Laura was utterly horrified at the idea of Marian staying in Count Fosco’s house and Mrs. Michelson, again, attributes this to Laura’s hatred of foreigners.

Mrs. Michelson took Laura back to her room, where Laura remained adamant that she would not sleep in Count Fosco’s house. She learned from Mrs. Michelson that Count Fosco had dismissed Mr. Dawson and felt that this was part of the conspiracy, as, had Mr. Dawson been present, he would not have allowed Marian to travel. Laura planned to escape Count Fosco in London and to stay with Mrs. Vesey instead. She begged Mrs. Michelson to deliver a letter to Mrs. Vesey for her at the village and pleaded with her to keep it secret.

Mrs. Michelson carried out Laura’s wishes and the next day escorted her to the station. Laura complained that she was “troubled by dreams” the night before and looked pale as they waited on the platform. When the train pulled in, she said goodbye to Mrs. Michelson and, for a moment, put her hand to her heart as though in pain. Mrs. Michelson saw her into a carriage and returned to Blackwater, very concerned about Laura’s state of mind.

Back at Blackwater, Mrs. Michelson felt restless and walked in the grounds to clear her head. She was shocked to see Mrs. Rubelle in the garden, as she believed that Mrs. Rubelle had gone to London with Marian. Mrs. Michelson approached her for an explanation and Mrs. Rubelle casually informed her that neither she nor Marian had left Blackwater Park. Sir Percival arrived home at that moment and told Mrs. Michelson that Mrs. Rubelle was quite right; instead of traveling to London, Marian had been concealed in a separate wing of the house. Mrs. Michelson was aghast at the deception practiced on Laura and tried to resign, but Sir Percival protested that he only lied for Laura’s own good—to force her away from Blackwater for a change of air for the sake of her health.

Mrs. Michelson still wished to resign but changed her mind when Sir Percival told her that, if she did, Marian would be left all alone, as Mrs. Rubelle planned to leave that day. Mrs. Michelson went to Marian’s room and sent for Mr. Dawson, who was unwell himself and could not come. In the middle of the night, she heard Sir Percival crashing around the house and thought that he must be drunk. The groom—whom Sir Percival knocked down in his hurry to saddle a horse—told her that Sir Percival was not drunk but had left Blackwater Park in a frenzy.

Marian was distraught when she discovered that Laura had gone. Mrs. Michelson spent the remainder of her time at Blackwater caring for Marian until Marian left for Limmeridge. Mrs. Michelson closes her narrative by stating that she believes that Count Fosco is totally innocent of the deceptions practiced on Laura and Marian, and that she is sorry she cannot remember the exact date of Laura’s journey to London.