In chapter 7, while Philip and Gerald are aboard the Old Province, Jennison, under the pseudonym John Alexander Belmont, attempts to coerce Philip into handing Gerald over (55-56). Jennison tells Philip that if he brings Gerald off the boat while they stop at Martha's Vineyard that he will let Philip "understand things far more fully [than] he can tonight" (57). However, the Old Province never makes it to Martha's Vineyard because an explosion causes the ship to sink, and everyone must evacuate (66). Later, in chapter 9, Captain Widgins tells Eversham, the lifeboat captain that Philip and Gerald are on, to man the cutter to "Knoxport Cove" (68). There is no trace of Knoxport Cove on any map, but they never make it there because the lifeboat flips, which drowns everyone except Philip and Gerald (70-71). In chapter 10, Gerald's father hears, from a newspaper, that Philip and Gerald have died and makes his way west towards Knoxport and Mr. Marcy (74).
In chapters 11 and 12, Philip and Gerald find themselves stranded. They come across an abandoned property, and Philip investigates to see if he can find anything that will help them survive (84). Upon further exploration, Philip discovers that they are on Mr. and Mrs. Probasco's property, which happens to be near Chantico (86). Much like Knoxport Cove, Chantico does not exist. Tribunella's notes confirm that Knoxport and Chantico are fictitious (169-170). However, based on Jennison's comment about stopping at Martha's Vineyard, the boys are somewhere, as the narrator says, "along the shore of the seabound States of New England" (80).
Eventually, after the Probascos' return to their home, they explain the history of their home, and Philip discovers that Mr. Jennison is the true name of the novel's villain and that he owns the house where they are currently seeking refuge (120). After staying with the Probascos', Philip and Gerald travel to Kossuth House in Knoxport (123). They hope they are in time to intercept Gerald's father and Mr. Marcy, but Mr. Banger, the inn clerk, informs the boys that they had left a couple of days earlier (123). While waiting to hear from Gerald's father and Mr. Marcy, the boys explore Knoxport and have an interesting description of the town: "Don't you think Halifax is a small sort of country city?' And he pointed, laughing, at Knoxport's main street and tiny green square, with its black-painted anchors and chains" (129). Philip, joking about being in Halifax, creates an interesting image of Halifax that coincides with Prime-Stevenson's earlier description of the Nova Scotians on the Old Province.
In chapter 17, the final confrontation between Jennison and Philip and Gerald happens outside of the Kossuth House. Jennison tries to kidnap Gerald and tries to convince Mr. Banger that Philip is the son of a criminal and that he has escaped an orphanage, but Gerald's father and Mr. Marcy arrive in time to foil Jennsion's plans (143-146). This segment brings a close to the novel, but later, Jennison provides Philip with the story of his father's downfall.