The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

tea. Back and forth, back and forth down the rows.
It seemed impossible that all these men could come from one ship, even if
it had been a big ship. When I said so to Daisy, another villager cut in, “We’re
on the third or fourth ship by now. They’re unloading wherever they can
dock, and going back for more.”
Sometime after dark Daisy’s mother insisted we rest in the kitchen. She sat
us at a long table and pushed plates of food in front of us. “Eat,” she
commanded.
Daisy sat unmoving. I was trying to will myself to pick up a fork when I
saw something splash onto Daisy’s plate. I looked up. Tears streamed down
Daisy’s face.
“None of that,” Daisy’s mother said. “Won’t help any.”
“But they’re dying,” Daisy said.
“No, they’re not. They look awful, but men can look much worse and still
live. You’d be surprised. Eat and rest, or I’ll send you both to bed.”
We ate. “You’ve ruined your dress,” Daisy said.
I looked down. My sky-blue dress was covered with dark smudges and
smears of grime. “It’s my favorite,” I said.
Daisy nodded. “It’s pretty.”
When we’d rested we went back out and made another round of tea.
One soldier looked up at me, his eyes very bright. “Miss?” he said. “Could
you do me a favor, and write a letter for me? My hands feel a little numb.”
“Daisy will,” I said. My handwriting was still so slow and clumsy. I went
to fetch Daisy, and some paper and a pen. We came back and the man’s eyes
were closed.
He was dead.
He died, right there on the floor of the pub. He didn’t even look wounded
—he wasn’t bleeding. One of the other soldiers undid his tunic, searching for
a heartbeat, and there wasn’t any blood at all. But he was dead. The soldiers
found a blanket and pulled it over his head.
I couldn’t breathe. Dead, when he’d just been talking to me. Dead, when
he’d wanted to write a letter. A wave of grief washed over me. I started to go
away in my head, to somewhere safe, to Butter or Jamie or wherever, but
Daisy grabbed my hand and squeezed it hard, and I came back.
“It’s really a war now,” Daisy whispered. I nodded. One of the soldiers