Chapter 4 Summary

At the end of the chapter, the reader realizes that the flashback to 1944 is in reality Tom's telling of the story to Dr. Lowenstein. A hurricane is approaching the island as Lila Wingo lays in labor. Henry is a pilot stationed in Europe, and a message comes telling Lila that Henry's plane has been shot down over Germany. He is presumed dead. Only Lila's father-in-law, Amos Wingo, an eighty-five-year-old black midwife, Sarah Jenkins, and the baby Luke are in the small house with her. Amos prepares for the storm. Sarah delivers not one but two babies, as Lila loses a great deal of blood.

When the full fury of the storm strikes, the house begins to flood, and Amos realizes that he must get everyone up to the hayloft in the barn. Sarah takes Savannah and Luke through the driving rain out to...