Suddenly, Last Summer

Catharine’s mother and younger brother, George, enter the garden. The stage direction describes Mrs. Holly as “fatuous” and George as tall and handsome. After expressing gratitude that Catharine is at St. Mary’s, Mrs. Holly asks Sister Felicity if she and her son might speak to Catharine alone. The nun reluctantly withdraws, whereupon George loudly berates Catharine for “ruining” the family. Catharine remarks on how “elegant” her brother looks, and Mrs. Holly tells her that George has inherited Sebastian’s clothes; however, everything else is tied up in probate. She iv hints that Violet may not have long to live and suggests that Catharine be “very careful” what she tells her about what happened to Sebastian at Cabeza de Lobo. She suggests that Catharine, the only witness who has come forward, must surely be suffering from some kind of delusion or nightmare and that the family stands to lose a great deal of money if Catharine continues to torment her aunt with that “horrible” story. George explains that Sebastian left the three of them $50,000 each, but Violet can legally block it for as long as she likes.

Catharine points out that if the doctor injects her with truth serum, as seems likely, she will have no choice but to tell her aunt exactly what happened to her son.