Carrie’s War

In the darkest days of World War II, Carrie Willow and her younger brother Nick are evacuated from their home and taken in by Mr. Samuel Evans and his sister Auntie Lou in a bleak Welsh mining town. The new house feels tense and fragile, yet it offers a sense of safety amid the war's chaos. The Evans household becomes a fragile refuge that will shape the children's sense of belonging.

Carrie and Nick adjust to life under Evans's stern exterior, while Auntie Lou offers warmth and a different kind of care. The family begins to find a rhythm in their new home, even as underlying tensions threaten to erupt. The sense of belonging remains fragile, dependent on small acts of kindness and loyalty.

Nearby, Albert Sandwich and Mister Johnny stay with Mrs. Dilys Gotobed and Hepzibah Green at Druid's Bottom, a house rich in stories and rumors. The children slip into old rooms, listening to legends that hint at a curse tied to a mysterious skull. The tales weave into the children's sense of wonder and fear.

Auntie Lou grows closer to Major Cass Harper, an American soldier, and their budding affection forms quietly away from Evans's view. The relationship is kept secret from her brother, who would not approve. The romance hints at a possible future beyond the patchwork refuge of the Evans household.

Mrs. Dilys Gotobed dies, leaving behind arrangements that imply Hepzibah and Johnny might stay on at the house. Albert notices that a ring Evans has given Carrie once belonged to Mrs. Gotobed, which deepens suspicions about past ties and potential motives. The household's balance begins to tilt as power questions surface.

An envelope disappears from Mrs. Gotobed’s jewellery box following Evans’s inventory visit, becoming a focal point of Carrie’s suspicions. She fears Evans intends to seize everything for himself and unsettles the fragile trust within the household. The mystery tightens the hold of old grievances on the present.

Desperate to prevent a grave injustice, Carrie tosses the skull tied to the house’s curse into the horse pond. The act disrupts the house’s legends and forces the adults to confront whether truth or legend has defined their lives. The pond becomes a symbol of release from inherited fears.

Mrs. Willow arranges a new home for her family near Glasgow, and the children prepare to depart from the town, leaving behind Evans. Auntie Lou departs to marry Major Harper and relocate to North Carolina with him. The old refuge dissolves as new futures begin.

In the years that follow, investigators learn that the envelope contained only a childhood photograph of Evans and Mrs. Gotobed, not a will. Evans is vindicated, though the toll of memory remains heavy for those who left him behind. He dies long before the full truth is understood.

Thirty years later, Carrie’s children discover that Hepzibah and Mister Johnny survived in a converted barn at Druid's Bottom, quietly rebuilding their lives with help from a sympathetic community. Albert Sandwich continues to visit, working toward restoring the ruined house for them one day. The past remains a living presence in the present.

Albert's dedication endures as he visits regularly and helps piece together a future for Hepzibah and Johnny, demonstrating the power of loyalty across generations. The community's quiet support makes the once-haunted house a place of belonging again. The siblings' memories keep the stories alive.

Auntie Lou, now married to Major Cass Harper, lives with him in North Carolina and has at least one son, representing a separate life forged from the town's trials. The narrative closes on the way past and present converge, with family ties persisting despite distance. The tale reiterates that love and memory endure across time and oceans.