During World War II, an American soldier named Cary Skipworth visits his fellow soldier and friend, Chev Sherwood’s, family in Devonshire during his leave. Upon arriving, Cary finds that Chev’s family is icy: the father is uninterested in him, the mother has little to say, and Gerald, Chev’s blinded brother, becomes distant whenever Cary mentions Chev. Cary wonders whether the uneasiness between himself and the family concerns his American manners. The day before he leaves, Cary meets Chev’s fiancé, Sybil Gaylord, who tells him not to worry about Chev’s family’s coldness; he has done nothing wrong. Still, Cary worries. The final morning, the family reveals why they were so impolite: they received the news of Chev’s death the day before Cary’s arrival. Cary bursts out crying, but he thanks the family for their kindness in shielding him from the news to not ruin his short vacation. He proclaims that, had they been in America, nobody could have so valiantly hid a secret.