The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

“. . . things worse than bombs,” Susan was saying.
Lady Thorton shook her head. “War is no time for sentiment.”
“Is it sentiment?” Susan asked. Her voice sounded far away behind the
humming in my ears. Susan put a hand on my shoulder. “Look at them,”
Susan said. “Look at Ada. If she gets put with the wrong person she’ll go
right back to where she was.”
I shook my head, struggling to stay with them, to hear them above my
increasing panic. But Lady Thorton didn’t reply. When I risked a glance at her
she was staring at Susan with an expression I couldn’t read.
“She isn’t easy,” Susan said, “but I’ll fight for her. I do fight for her.
Someone has to.”
At last Lady Thorton spoke. “I see,” she said quietly. “I’m not sure you’re
correct, but I see what you’re saying. But the boy—”
“No,” Susan said. “Separating them would kill them both.”
When Lady Thorton had left, Susan sat Jamie and me down beside her on
the sofa. She said, “Listen. I am not sending you away.”
She talked a long time after that. I heard nothing beyond the words “not
sending you away.”
The wave inside me flattened out. I could breathe again.
“How do you feel about it?” Susan asked me.
How did I feel? I had no idea. I didn’t know the words to explain. I was
choking and now I can breathe.
Susan waited for me to say something. I still felt dizzy, overwhelmed. I
swallowed. “I guess I’d rather stay here,” I said.
“Good,” Susan said, “because I’m not giving you a choice.”
Susan had been right that all the green leaves and grass came back in
summertime. The weather was glorious. Butter’s pasture reached his knees,
and the vegetables in our Victory Garden thrived.
Fred found an old bicycle in one of the sheds at Thorton House and fixed it
up for Jamie to ride. School had closed for good, since most of the children
were gone, so Jamie came with me every day to help Fred. The former
gardener had proved useless around horses, frightened of them and therefore
inclined to smack them around. He’d been called up anyhow; Fred was alone
again. Lady Thorton had sold two horses, and put down three more who were