Fourthly, Elnora has always concealed from her mother the fact that she can earn money by selling moths. As she works through her final year of high school and hopes to go to college, she finds that there is a single moth she must collect, which will pay the way for her future. In the central conflict of the novel, Elnora sees her mother destroy that moth. When she protests, Mrs. Comstock slaps her. Elnora has always been patient, but now she screams that she hates her mother and rushes out. Mrs. Comstock, finally realizing how essential Elnora is to her stable home life, sets out that night to replace the moth. She worsens the situation, a result which Elnora hides from her, but when the Sintons discover that Mrs. Comstock hit Elnora, Margaret determines on an intervention. She tells Katharine that she has been mourning for a husband who was promiscuous and planning to cheat on her. With this news, Katharine understands how she has neglected a loving, talented daughter.