The War I Finally Won

Ada finds Jamie lying on the ground unconscious, having fallen out of the tree he was climbing. His arm, bent at an unnatural angle, is clearly broken. Ada, panic-stricken and crying, reflects that without Jamie, she would die. Susan runs to get help, but in the meantime, Lady Thorton arrives and covers Jamie in a coat. The village physician, Dr. Graham, arrives in his car and takes Jamie to his office. Jamie’s arm is put into a cast, and he is returned to the cottage.

That evening, Lady Thorton and Maggie bring stew and stay for dinner. Lady Thorton asks to see Ada’s right foot. Ada initially refuses, brusque and reluctant. Lady Thorton insists, and Ada struggles to expose the foot that she was always so ashamed of. She relents eventually, feeling that she has no choice since Lady Thorton paid for the surgery.

The doctor gives Susan instructions to wake Jamie up throughout the night. Though Susan sends Ada to bed, she sleeps on Jamie’s floor and wakes to check on him every time the alarm goes off. Ada is terrified that Jamie will be crippled, but Susan reassures her that his arm will be fine. Susan helps Ada focus on breathing calmingly to stave off a panic attack.

Susan reuses tea leaves from the previous day, and they have tea and oatmeal for breakfast. Jamie comes down for breakfast seeming much recovered. Ada cuts down a Christmas tree, and she and Susan decorate it with the few things they can find: buttons and a feather. Ada reluctantly accompanies Susan to church on Christmas Eve. She feels out of place and uncomfortable in the crowd.

Christmas morning, Ada finds a handmade doll in her stocking, a gift from Susan. Instead of feeling grateful, Ada is angry that she never had a doll and that she is now too old for dolls. Susan can tell Ada is nearly overcome with anger and panic, and urges her to go outside to run and calm down. Jamie receives a stuffed cat from Susan and is thrilled. Ada gives both Susan and Jamie red mittens that she knitted while in the hospital.

They go to the Thortons’ and eat Christmas dinner with Lord and Lady Thorton, and their children Jonathan and Maggie. Jamie is excited to meet Jonathan, who is a pilot in the British Air Force. Ada is daunted by the grandeur of the home, especially the immense dining room. She feels more calm when the food is awful, cooked by the Thortons’ only remaining servant, the housekeeper.

Susan asks Lord Thorton for his help in finding a job. He is shocked to learn that she studied mathematics at Oxford. Ada is thrilled to receive a dictionary from the Thortons as her Christmas present.

On Boxing Day, Ada is nervous but excited to join the paper chase, a wartime version of an annual horse ride held by the Thortons. She is thrown off Butter while leaping over a ditch, and Jonathan helps her back into her saddle. Butter and Ada settle into a rhythm, and Ada eventually feels comfortable riding with Maggie and Jonathan.

When Ada gets home, she is thrilled to receive her new Christmas present from Susan (a replacement for the unwelcome doll): ownership papers for Butter the pony, transferring him from Susan’s possession to Ada’s.

Ada looks up the words “ward” and “guardian” in her dictionary to try to understand Susan’s role and their relationship. Susan clarifies that she is there to care for Ada, and to keep her and Jamie safe. Ada wonders how Susan can feel safe when they are surrounded by unpredictability and death.

Ada asks Susan if she can volunteer to fire-watch. This entails watching for German bombers from the church steeple in the village and reporting any bombs or fires. Susan agrees to allow Ada to volunteer.