Osgood departs for war and dies in the battle of Lexington in 1775 when his daughters are 19 years old. Alice and Mary ably carry on the orchard business after his death. In addition, they also amuse themselves by creating musical compositions. Alice plays the fife, while Mary plays the piano and sings. They write ballads that they perform together. Although they’re identical twins, they have very different temperaments. Mary is practical and oversees the orchard business. Alice is more inclined to dream of romance. She exudes an indefinable charm that makes her more beautiful than Mary.

During their childhood, Osgood told the girls the story of the golden apple of discord that the goddess Eris tossed into a feast on Mount Olympus. It was inscribed “to the fairest” and became the spark that ignited the Trojan War. Each year, he replayed the scene and offered the apple to the fairest of his daughters. He showed no overt partiality, but Mary was sure that his gaze always lingered longer on Alice. The girls attended a school taught by Minister Carter. He was a bad teacher, but the girls befriended his amusing son, George. He showed them parts of the woods they’d never seen before and introduced them to an Indigenous healer man named Joe Walker.