Strangers in Time

Ignatius leads the children to the underground shelter. He tells Molly what will happen, since it’s her first air raid, and he helps the warden secure the shelter. The trio sits together as the sound of planes grows louder. Bombs hit nearby, causing the debris to fall inside. Charlie comforts Molly, though he’s frightened himself, and Ignatius puts his arms around them both. The bombs drop for hours, and when they cease, everyone waits for the all-clear to sound before leaving.

Aboveground, fires blaze and people scream. A man yells for help, and Molly rushes to his side. Charlie and Ignatius hold him down as Molly realigns the artery in his wounded arm. She ties a tourniquet with her hat ribbon and packs the wound with her handkerchief while Charlie runs to get help. Molly tells the man to calm his breathing, which helps to slow the bleeding. 

When the ambulance arrives, Molly updates the medics and instructs them on what to tell the surgeon. She asks to administer morphine, but the medics dismiss her for being a child. Ignatius pretends to be a doctor, and the medics finally listen to Molly’s advice. Ignatius and Charlie are awed by Molly’s skill. When they walk back to Molly’s house, they see it’s destroyed.

Molly, Charlie, and Ignatius stand on the street as rescuers pull Mrs. Pride’s body from the rubble. A policeman asks Molly if she has somewhere to stay, and Ignatius claims to be a family friend who can house her. Molly wants to bury Mrs. Pride, but she doesn’t know whether Mrs. Pride has any family. Ignatius invites the children to his home.

Ignatius offers Charlie and Molly the guest room and some old clothes. Molly and Charlie don’t have their ration books, but they can be replaced. The three drink tea in silence as Ignatius calculates how to support his new family. Molly asks Ignatius to finish his story, which the bombing had interrupted. 

Ignatius tells them that he discovered that Mr. Wakefield signed the Official Secrets Act. He doesn’t know whether the man is dead or alive, but he promises to make more inquiries. Ignatius also learned there is minimal train service to Cornwall, but Molly is determined to find work and save up for a train ticket. Charlie also promises to get a job so that they don’t overburden Ignatius. Everyone goes to bed filled with anxiety about the future.

Ignatius goes to Imogen’s study at dawn. He sits at the typewriter and thinks. Imogen never wanted children, but Ignatius was open to the idea, and now he has two grown children to take care of. He picks up the manuscript and reads about the anxiety of war and people’s dissatisfaction with their government.

Ignatius notices Molly and Charlie at the door. A leak in the roof woke them, and Ignatius promises to fix it. He tries to block their view of the desk, but Molly sees the typewriter. She asks about the unfinished manuscript, and Ignatius fibs that he isn’t trying to finish it. He ushers the children out, and while he makes breakfast, the children discuss whether to report Ignatius’s suspicious behavior out of duty to the country. Charlie is more concerned about Desdemona reporting them to an orphanage. He thinks about Eddie and wonders about Lonzo.

Lonzo claims he’s 18 years old in front of a military recruiter. He uses Charlie’s old flat as his address and lies that he lives with his grandmother. The sergeant notices Lonzo’s Italian name and accuses the boy of having foreign loyalties, but Lonzo explains his dad died fighting for England. Lonzo must pass a physical exam, but the sergeant helps him fill out his paperwork. While the boy dozes in a chair, the sergeant calls Detective Inspector Willoughby, who takes Lonzo to the police station.

Willoughby leads Lonzo into a small interrogation room and shows him a picture of Eddie’s crushed skull. Lonzo claims he doesn’t know what happened. Suddenly, another constable slams Lonzo’s head into the table, punches him to the ground, and pulls him back into the chair. Willoughby says he can help Lonzo if he gives up the other boy’s name.

Lonzo reluctantly tells Willoughby about Charlie, though he doesn’t know where he lives. Willoughby breaks Lonzo’s finger, prompting him to confess that they tried stealing from The Book Keep because Charlie knew there was money inside. Lonzo thinks Charlie was friends with the owner. Thinking he’s lying, the constable clubs Lonzo on the back of the head, and Lonzo falls to the floor vomiting. Willoughby sends him away to prison.

Molly tidies up her clothes and searches for a job. She gets rejected everywhere, and she blames her young age. When she’s about to give up, she sees an advertisement for nurse auxiliaries in a nearby clinic. She meets Sister Helen, who immediately dismisses Molly and disbelieves her story. 

Matron Tweedy overhears the conversation and quizzes Molly, who describes common medicines and procedures, as well as the amputations she saw in Leiston. Matron Tweedy and Sister Helen apologize for their doubts and offer Molly the position. They explain that wages and meals are provided with the job; Molly needs to bring a letter of permission from her father so she can start work the next day.

Molly walks happily back to The Book Keep but stops short when she sees Inspector Willoughby talking to Ignatius. The inspector tells them about Eddie’s death, and Ignatius and Molly both lie that they don’t know Charlie. When Willoughby leaves, Molly and Ignatius realize Charlie has been sad because of his friend’s death. Ignatius worries Charlie will face prison time, since Willoughby listed several charges. Molly informs Ignatius of her new job, and he agrees to write the permission letter.

Charlie performs odd jobs for pocket money and steals some items to sell. When he earns enough for the day, he goes to Molly’s house and rummages through the rubble. The garage stands untouched, so Charlie picks the lock to look at the car. He sits behind the wheel, imagining Molly’s family trips. He pockets the keys so no one will steal the car and locks the garage. 

Charlie catches a ride back to The Book Keep but hides when he sees Ignatius and Molly talking to Willoughby. He hears his and Lonzo’s names and realizes his friends now know about the botched burglary. He berates himself for putting his friends in danger. He watches Molly and Ignatius talk, and when they leave the shop, he sneaks in to leave the items from Molly’s house. With one look back, Charlie runs away to live where he can’t hurt his friends.

Molly and Ignatius see the items on the counter and realize Charlie was there. Molly wants to find him so that he knows she doesn’t think less of him. Ignatius agrees—he doesn’t mind breaking the law to harbor Charlie because he knows Charlie’s a good person. 

The pair immediately set out for Charlie’s old flat. On the way, Molly describes her nursing work, and Ignatius is impressed by the young girl’s maturity. At Charlie’s building, the neighbors say they haven’t seen him since Gran’s death. Molly and Ignatius walk through the small flat and take a photograph of Charlie’s parents before catching a bus back to Covent Garden.

Charlie tries to keep warm in the back of the Wakefields’ car. After several cold hours, he goes to the bakery where Gran used to work and steals some rolls and jars of preserves to eat. He goes to Lonzo and Eddie’s old hideout and, to his surprise, he finds the journal and sees that Lonzo wrote “Sawree Edee” in its pages. Charlie repeats the apology. He looks out over the city and considers the irreversibility of his crime. He lies down on Eddie’s old bed and cries.

After Ignatius finishes his warden duties, he writes the letter for Molly’s new job. He also writes to his friend, Major Scott Bryant in the War Office, asking about Mr. Wakefield. He recalls a conversation with Imogen about the bookstore’s obscure location. Imogen and her father believed that everyone deserved to have access to books, not just those who could afford to shop in fashionable areas. The bookstores on Paternoster Row were destroyed by German bombing, and when Imogen and Ignatius visited the ruins, Imogen broke down at the destruction. Ignatius’s mind turns to the other horrors he witnesses as a warden. He worries about Charlie, as well as nosy Desdemona.

Matron Tweedy accepts Molly’s letter and gives her a uniform. Molly rolls bandages and follows a nurse on her rounds. At the end of the day, she tells Ignatius about her tasks, noticing Desdemona watching them through the window. As Ignatius makes dinner, Molly’s mind turns to her suspicions. Molly wants to ask Ignatius about his mystery visitor, but she worries about losing his friendship.

Molly picks up a George Sand book and is pleased it isn’t tampered with, like the one Charlie found. Ignatius returns and talks about the book. When he mentions Imogen’s work, Molly asks why Ignatius only voices Imogen’s opinions and never his own. Ignatius explains that his odd habit results from his desire to keep Imogen’s memory alive, since he feels guilty about her death. Before he can explain, the screaming kettle calls him away. Over tea, Ignatius discusses the letter he sent to the War Office, and Molly shares her desire to write to the Beneficial Institute. Ignatius plans to search for Charlie each afternoon while Molly is at work.

A constable informs Detective Willoughby that Lonzo isn’t waking up. Willoughby enters Lonzo’s cell and tries unsuccessfully to rouse the injured boy. Willoughby doesn’t want a doctor involved, since he’s already under investigation for abuse. He decides to hide Lonzo’s body in the rubble of the recent bombing to cover up his crime.

Ignatius puts on his air warden uniform and meets up with his partner to patrol their sector. Warning sirens blare, and people rush into the streets. Ignatius directs people to the shelters and makes a list of those who haven’t arrived. Ignatius checks on these citizens, one of whom is Desdemona, who refuses to leave. 

Ignatius feels the ground shake and hears the bombs falling, so he jumps behind a pile of sandbags. He loses his hearing and sees magnesium incendiaries burning around him, which he puts out with sand. The building next to him falters, and as he runs away, the force of its collapse propels him into the air. As he catches his breath, people scream for help.