Summary

Catherine Grace shuts down after hearing the news of her mother, and in the beginning of Chapter 9 the others are trying to wake her up. She immediately asks if "that woman" had left, but Gloria Jean responds that "her mother" helped her into bed personally and was sitting in the kitchen drinking coffee. Catherine asks Gloria Jean to make her leave, but Martha Ann intervenes, saying that their mother is a gift and they would not kick her out. They tell Catherine that while her father was a good man, he didn't like that their mother wanted a bigger life outside of her marriage. Maybe, Martha Ann says, they should blame Reverend Cline as well.

Upset beyond reason, Catherine Grace accuses Gloria Jean of keeping Lena Mae's secret so they could be their stand in mother. She immediately apologizes, and Gloria Jean...