Anne Blythe let her namesake cry for ten minutes before she attempted to halt the tears. She was thinking of how wrong it was that her girls had to go through all this uncertainty and suffering.

"Nan darling," She said eventually as she stroked her daughters nut-brown hair. "I know it's difficult but please stop crying."

Nan gulped and gallantly managed to control herself in a much shorter amount of time than her Mother had expected her to.

"Good girl." Anne told her as she kissed her on the forehead. "Now why don't you go and get ready for bed, you must be worn out after that long journey, and I'll go and hunt out some food for you. I'll bring it up to you and we can have a talk. Would you like that?"

"Yes." Nan said quietly as she moved to go upstairs to her room.

Anne watched her leave the room and sighed. She had known Nan would have taken the news of Jerry's injury badly, but it was still a shock to see this sombre and fragile side of her normally laughing and brave eldest daughter.

"How is Nan, Mrs Dr. dear?" Susan asked anxiously as Anne entered the kitchen.

"Scared, worried, vulnerable." Anne answered as her husband walked in through the back door.

"Who's scared, worried and vulnerable?" He asked quickly noticing the anxiety on his wife's face.

"It's Nan, Gilbert." Anne said turning to him. "She came home all by her-self today, and oh to look at her you would never think that she used to be full of laughter and joy."

"Have you talked to her Anne?" Gilbert asked.

"Not yet Gilbert, I was going to get her something to eat and then go and talk to her."

"What do you want for me to fix up for her, Mrs Dr. dear?" Susan asked briskly. "There's some cold meat in the larder, or some of tonight's pie, which is still reasonably warm."

"I think the pie will do Susan." Anne told her.

"How did Nan look physically, Anne?" Gilbert asked.

"She was so pale Gilbert." Anne replied. "I have the feeling she hasn't been sleeping very well, and I have my suspicions that she hasn't been eating properly."

"I'll go and have a look at her once you've spoken to her, it might be for the best if I give her a tonic to help her sleep." Gilbert found himself in a situation where he did not know how to act. He could not bear to think of his daughter in pain but he did not know how to fix it for her. Whereas Anne was close to their children in the sense that she could get underneath their skins and discover their innermost thoughts, Gilbert was close to them through being able to make them laugh and always being guaranteed to offer good practical advice.

Susan quickly got a tray of food ready for the eldest daughter of Ingleside and Anne, after thanking her, took it up to Nan's room.

Knocking gently she asked, "Is it all right if I come in."

"Yes." Answered a small, tired voice.

Anne opened the door and found that Nan was sitting up in bed, no longer crying, but certainly not looking like her normal self.

"Susan's fixed you some food." Anne told her as she placed the tray on Nan's bedside table.

"Dear Susan," Nan replied fondly, "I gave her quite a fright when I first came in. I hope she's not too cross with me."

"Of course she's not cross with you!" Anne exclaimed, "She'll only be cross if you fail to eat the food she's prepared for you."

Nan smiled, it was a sad smile, but it was definitely a start Anne told herself as she watched her daughter eat.

"Mother I can't eat anymore." Nan said sombrely pushing the tray away. "I want to but I just can't. It's making me feel sick."

Anne seeing that her daughter had eaten over half, which was more than she had expected her to eat, said, "It doesn't matter darling, you've eaten something at least." She paused before asking, "Do you want to talk?"

"Yes please." Nan stated as she turned her big brown sorrow filled eyes on her Mother.

Anne placed her arms around her daughter and waited for her to speak. "I'm so scared Mother," Nan began, "So scared that Jerry will die. What will happen to me if he does? I can't live in a world without him I just know that I can't. I love him too much and if he leaves me then I know that my heart will break into a million pieces and will never fix itself back together."

"I know how you are feeling dearest." Anne told her daughter. "Before your Father and I were engaged he got sick. It was feared that he would not survive. I did not realise until the moment I heard the news that I loved him and that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. He thought that I loved another… He did not have the knowledge of my love for him to fight for his survival, Jerry knows that you love him though Nan and he will fight for life and you. I'm sure of it."

"Did you feel as if the end of the world had come when you found out that Father was sick Mother?" Nan asked as she clasped her Mother's hand.

"Yes darling I did."

"Oh I'm so glad we understand each other!" Nan exclaimed as her eyes flashed with tears.

"Now darling no more crying, you have to keep hope that Jerry is alive and that you will see him again, and one day you'll be happily married and live in a house full of laughter and joy just like your Father and I did."

"That will happen Mother, won't it, it really will?"

"It will my darling baby Nan, it will." Anne did not know why she was so sure of her conviction that Jerry would survive. All she knew was that Gilbert had survived when she had experienced such anxiety and pain, surely Jerry would to.

"I love you Mother." Nan told her as she kissed her on the cheek.

"I love you to." Anne told her as she returned the kiss. "Now do you want to see your Father before you go to sleep."

"Oh yes please."

Anne went in search of Gilbert and presently brought him to Nan.

"Hello Dad." Nan said on seeing him. She was not her usual cheerful self, but neither was she engulfed in anxiety and despair as she had been earlier, she had found hope in her heart.

"Hello my elfin princess." Gilbert replied as he kissed her forehead. "Do you want me to get you anything to help you sleep or not?"

"I think I may try and sleep on my on accord tonight, Mother has calmed my worries."

Gilbert smiled, "Your Mother is perfect at that sort of thing."

"She's convinced me that there's hope left for Jerry yet Dad."

"There certainly is my darling," He paused before saying, "Now you have very prominent bags under your eyes young lady I want to see them vanish!"

Nan smiled, "Night Dad, you could always make me smile when I was in the depths of despair."

Gilbert closed the door after him and went in search of his wife.

"How does she seem to you Gilbert?" Anne asked him fearfully.

"Better than I expected." Gilbert answered truthfully. "It seems that the talk you had with her really helped."

Anne sighed in relief, as she offered a small prayer to God that this war would end soon and free her children of the uncertainty, grief and pain which it had brought with it.