It is October 19, 1940, and a search is underway for a missing girl named Flora by Aiden Davies and others at the river's edge.
Bridie last saw Flora when she left to register for a telephone; Hazel remembers Flora sleeping on a blanket near the river.
Harry, pale from worry, was looking for Hazel when Flora disappeared and didn’t want to wake her.
Hazel and Harry had helplessly searched and called for Flora; Bridie notified the police; the community assisted in searching the riverbanks and woods.
Hazel discovered Flora's teddy bear, Berry, partly submerged in the river, prompting fears that Flora had entered the water.
Officer Aiden Davies instructed people not to disturb potential footprints near the river, though none were found, suggesting Flora might be in the river.
Hazel, in a desperate attempt, jumped into the river to search for Flora but was pulled out by Aiden due to the dangers it posed.
Hazel pointedly accused Mrs. Marchman, a local woman, of taking Flora, claiming she took her to replace another child, Kelty.
Despite being told to go home, Hazel sprinted to confront Mrs. Marchman but found the woman confused and unknowing of the situation.
Harry comforted Hazel after the confrontation, and Hazel, recalling a nightmare, directed the search to a nearby well associated with a story they told Flora.
Upon reaching the well with Harry, they found that Aiden and others were already there for the feast of St. Frideswide, with no sign of Flora.
A new policeman dismissed the magical significance of the well and insisted that the river was the likely place to find Flora.
As Hazel is overwhelmed by guilt and fear, blaming herself for Flora's disappearance, her physical state starts to deteriorate, mirroring the feeling of drowning.