The other 3 girls in the stories leading up to Cathy had made reference to her quiet, helpless behavior. All of them questioned what her story could possibly be. The morning of her story, Cathy was not feeling well. She didn't want to go, but she didn't want to let the other girls feel as if they were right. She wanted to show them that she was brave, and that she could face her past. Cathy's mother was extremely over-protective, and her father was absent much of Cathy's childhood. Cathy was heavier than the other girls, and much more enhanced in her chest region. She was very self conscious, and her mother didn't help her to feel any better about her body. Cathy was taught that her body developing so early and rapidly was a bad thing, and she needed to hide it as best she could. When her father noticed that she was developing, he started to come around more often. He made her feel like he was going to look after her, and help her mother to understand her pains, but in acutality, he had just enjoyed seeing her in the nude. She told of having to hide her pains, and appear happy to everyone around her, no matter what. Her father had decided to "teach" her about the birds and the bees, and how to handle the boys when they try to get what they want, especially if she wants the same things they want. They started out with a few mild(er) "lessons" and for her final one, her dad took her on a trip out of town without her mother. He wound up raping her, and she was told to keep all of the lessons to herself, as he was only helping her to understand. She was naive and thought nothing more of it except feeling dirty. During this trip, he told her not to feel bad about what they were doing, because he was not her real father, they had adopted her as a child. When they returned home, she went into histarics, and wound up falling down the last few stairs and knocking herself out. While she was out of it, she mentioned her lessons to anyone who listened to her, and so they took her to the hospital. She had self-induced amnesia, trying to repress the memory of her lessons with her father, as well as everything else in her life. The doctor hypnotized her, and got her to remember everything, and by the time she returned home, her father was gone. She didn't ask questions about it, because she was raised to never question anything.
After she returned home from her therapy session, she waited a few days before talking to her mother about anything. When she did talk to her, she asked her to explain why she was adopted, and why they got married if they were not in love to begin with. Her mother was reluctant to answer, but did anyways. Cathy was born to her "mother's" mother when she was 45 years old. Her parents did not want another child, and her father had suspiscions that she was not even his. The biological parents had given Cathy to their oldest daughter with a large inheritance if she were married to this man. Technically, Cathy and her mother are step-sisters, but Cathy recognized true feelings in her mother that day, and decided to continue calling her mother. Even though she was not a very good mother, she loved her and only wanted what was best for her.
Overall, this book really captured my attention. I loved how it was told directly by the girls, and their emotions were captured and expressed through their own words. I look forward to reading more books by V.C. Andrews, and already have a new one picked out from our library!
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