Drenched from the flood, Philipose reaches the gate of Saint Bridget’s with a limp infant, torn between fear of the leprosarium and the child’s desperate need. He pushes inside, is confronted by a leprosy-affected gatekeeper insisting children aren’t allowed, and is told their big doctor has died. A white doctor with scarred, awkward hands appears, sizes up the crisis, and beckons Philipose forward.

As the boatman pleads, the doctor examines the baby’s obstructed airway and notes the lack of tracheal tubes. Hearing Philipose’s bookish English, he quickly decides he cannot operate with his injured hands and compels Philipose to act while he directs. He marks the neck and orders a tracheotomy, promising step-by-step guidance.

Under instruction, Philipose incises low in the neck, controls his fear as blood wells, spreads the tissues, and exposes the corrugated trachea. At the doctor’s prompting, he makes a tiny cut into the windpipe; air bubbles through, and a leathery membrane is extracted. The doctor places a metal tube, and the infant’s color returns, limbs move, and breath rasps steadily through the opening.

The doctor explains it is diphtheria—the sloughed “leather” membrane choking the airway—and that malnourished young children succumb most. Together they suture the tube and close the wound. The baby reaches for his father and tries to cry, but only air escapes; the doctor welcomes him back, the rescue binding Philipose to this place while revealing the doctor’s resolve despite his damaged hands.