Lunchtime read: Around the World in Eighty Days

Luck twists and turns not just for Phileas Fogg but also his servant as the half waypoint of the 80 day journey is reached and the truth about just why detective Fix is trying to detain Fogg becomes shared knowledge with Passepartout.

Highlights between chapters XIX to XXII

Having discovered that the steamer they were hoping to catch has been delayed everyone seems relaxed but as he goes to book the cabins Passepartout discovers that the boat is sailing that evening with the problem fixed slightly earlier than expected. But rather than let him tell his master Fix takes him to an opium den, tells him who he really is and not an agent of the wagers. He plies the servant with drink until he falls unconscious and sure enough Fogg misses the boat. But he charters another and pays the crew to get him in a position to catch up with the steamer.

Terrible storms ravage the boat but Fogg is totally focused on his goal and the boat draws near to port he sees the steamer leaving and calls on the captain to hail it with a distress call. Meanwhile things are filled in on the side of Passepartout and he is onboard the steamer after having been taken aboard after shouting out the name of the boat as he came round in the opium den. He realises that his master is not on board and starts to panic about what he will do when the boat reaches port.

More tomorrow...