After years of watching uniformed men bring bad news to her neighbors' doorsteps, and fearing the day they might come to hers, Harriet's husband Joshua has been returned to her. He's not whole, still haunted by the trenches and recovering from mental and physical injuries, but he's home.To help ease the lingering effects of shellshock, Harriet brings Joshua to her sister's seaside cottage. The trip doesn't seem to be having the desired effect on his ravaged soul—until Harriet finally coaxes her husband into divulging a close-guarded secret and proposes a thoroughly unorthodox solution.