Part 1: Chapters 1-3 Summary

Catherine Dollanganger, her brothers Christopher and Cory, and her sister Carrie were all held captive in a secluded room in Foxworth Hall that had access to the attic. After three years and nearly five months of captivity, Catherine, Christopher, and Carrie escaped. However, Cory died from the arsenic poisoning their mother fed to them to prevent them from escaping and letting the world know of their existence, breaking the stipulations laid out in their grandfather's will.

Free, At Last! Catherine, Christopher, and Carrie are on a bus traveling to Florida where they hope to get jobs as acrobats in order to provide for themselves without adult help. However, Carrie is very sick and the other passengers on the bus are beginning to complain. A kind woman comes to their assistance and directs the bus driver to the home of...