what does August say about T. Ray and Deborah's relationship? ch 12

August knew exactly who her mother was. August confesses that as soon as Lily told August her name, August knew exactly who she was. Lily asks why August did not bring it up sooner, but August insists that everything comes with time.

August tells Lily that she was a housekeeper in Deborah’s house. Deborah loved peanut butter and dolls but hated schoolwork. Lily also confesses that she lied about her father being dead. August knows his name, and Lily explains that he is a bad father. She tells August that T. Ray insisted that her mother left both T. Ray and Lily. Lily cries against August and says that she did not believe T. Ray; she set out to prove him wrong. August describes her interaction with Lily’s mother. She explains how she began working for Deborah’s mother, Sarah, when Deborah was four years old. She worked there for nine years and then began teaching. When she left for South Carolina, Deborah was nineteen years old and was devastated that she left. Deborah moved to Sylvan, following the advice of a high school friend. Deborah met T. Ray there, and they were married. Lily questions why she would marry him, and August insists that he started off a good man; Deborah loved him. However, August points out, people change after life gets through with them. Besides, when T. Ray first proposed, Deborah had rejected the proposal, but she later changed her mind because she was pregnant.