The Patrol and Killing of Gérard Duval

Paul volunteers for a patrol. He becomes separated from his comrades and, in a moment of terror, kills a French soldier, Gérard Duval, in a shell-hole. He spends hours with the dying man, feeling remorse and horror. He finds the man's letters and photographs and promises to write to his family. The experience profoundly shakes Paul, forcing him to confront the personal cost of killing.