Summer 1940. Juliet has come to Birchwood with her daughter, Bea, her son, Freddy, and her youngest son, Tip. As she puts her children to bed, Juliet reflects on how precious they are to her. She worries especially about Tip and the “innate, gossamer frailty she sensed in him; the fear that she could not protect him, that she would not be able to mend him if he broke” (286). Juliet thinks about her husband, Alan, away fighting in France.

She goes to the jetty and looks at the river. She and Alan came to the area 12 years ago on their honeymoon. When Juliet emerged from a bomb shelter in London to find that their house had been obliterated, she decided to bring her children here. Juliet has made arrangements with her editor at the paper to keep working. He suggested that she write a weekly column about village life that would help to distract people from the war. As she returns to the house, Juliet sees a flash of light in the attic.