In the parched summer of 1936, Rune drives to Chandy Thetanatt’s estate, reflecting on his long bond with the family. Five months earlier, Chandy’s wife, Leelamma, died from a perforated typhoid ulcer, leaving their temperamental son and little Elsie bereft. Rune vows regular visits, while Saint Bridget’s modest prosperity—especially its plum wine—links their worlds.

Chandy relays an urgent message from Lena Mylin. After a morning with the children and bridge, Rune heads to AllSuch and glimpses a foreigner in a lungi with bandaged hands. Lena describes how a surgeon saved her life in Madras and now hides in their cottage; Franz remains silent but supportive.

Rune meets the guest, Digby, and, moved by the sight of his ruined hands, offers wordless solidarity before examining him. The right hand is scarred, contracted, and clawed after desperate self-grafts; the left palm is tethered by a burn scar; his face shows superficial burns. Rune deliberately addresses Digby’s “greater wound” to the spirit, then answers the practical question: the left hand can be released; the right will be harder.

Invoking the historical Indian forehead flap used for Cowasjee’s nose, Rune challenges Western assumptions and outlines reconstructive possibilities. He invites Digby to Saint Bridget’s the next morning to begin treatment, making it conditional only on Digby’s acceptance—signaled playfully by his appreciation of Saint Bridget’s plum wine.