“Have you told anyone?” asked Kara. “Your parents?” “Not yet,” said Maddy. “I wanted to finish this first. I had to.” “Yeah,” said August. “If I had something like that hanging around my gut, I’d want to get it out too. It’s like the end of the world.” “And the beginning,” said Maddy.” PainFriendsGirlsSecretsRape Book:The Pain Eater Source: The Pain Eater
“Riveted, Maddy stared at the sphere. Blood pounded in her ears; her heart started a dull, painful thud; a cry leapt from her mouth. Then, like a blossoming flower of light, the sphere seemed to open, and something passed from it directly into Maddy’s forehead. She felt it like gentle fire, like angel wings, like the breath of a soul coming home. Oh! she thought, beginning to cry. Oh my goodness! It was her goodness, her own good soul – the part of her that had left her during the rape because it wasn’t able to bear what was happening. Now, finally, it had returned. Sitting down, Maddy hugged and rocked herself, welcoming the lost part of herself home.” SoulHomePainFaithGoodnessRapeThe Pain Eater Book:The Pain Eater Source: The Pain Eater
“The groans did not frighten her. As she watched, her heart thudded slow and steady; she felt something dark and unnamed shift deep within herself. That inner shifting and what she'd drawn on the wall seemed to go together; Maddy could feel the formlessness inside herself reaching out toward the wall, as if wanting to connect. She thought of Rhonda Hinkle standing before the class and proclaiming "I can!" She thought of David, his head down, saying, "Just an average, ordinary kid. A watcher and a knower." Well, that was what she was too - an average, ordinary kid now staring at some kind of knowing... a knowing that was undefined, something inside herself that wanted out. I can, Maddy thought.” High SchoolRape Book:The Pain Eater Source: The Pain Eater