Part 3 Chapter 18 Summary

Dr. Rivers reads of hopeful news in the paper that the war will soon end. So many people have talked of peace that he would hardly notice if the war ended. Simultaneously, Prior is crouching in a ditch, waiting for the return of his wristwatch, which is being synchronized with others'. They await the start of battle.

Dr. Rivers, on night duty, can also do nothing but wait; wait for the next emergency. Only Dr. Rivers and Sister Roberts remain on the ward because of the flu. The Hallett family; including his fiancée, Susan, who remains by his bedside, waits for him to die.

Reminded of the tent he shared with Hocart on Eddystone, Rivers allows his mind to go back to that time, his last night on the island. He wants Njiru to tell him about Ave, a...