Character Analysis
Mrs. King is the landlady who rents Deborah a room in town when she is released from the mental hospital.
Mrs. King is not from the town originally, so she doesn't have the same deeply rooted prejudices and fears about the mental hospital that other townspeople have. She's welcoming and rather matter-of-fact with Deborah, and she doesn't act like being from the hospital is a huge deal. She trusts Deborah enough to let her babysit her infant granddaughter while she goes out for an hour. This makes Deborah feel like a real person for once.
Seriously, though. The main thing about Mrs. King is that she treats Deborah like a normal person. Imagine having that be such a huge deal.