My mother is a abuser who uses gaslighting.
I won't dwell on her treatment of me, but, it was incredibly validating when she did it to a friend. The friend was able to see exactly what she is. And was completely floored by her bizarre behaviour.
The friend and my mother were involved in a group. One of the people in the group was Bill. He was best friends with his next door neighbour, Paul.
They were both very active members of the group too.
Bill had been to our home, many, many, many times.
My mother had an affair with Paul. So was more than aware in this way too, of his best friend Bill.
When Bill died, my friend got in touch with my mother to tell her.
She denied all knowledge of ever having known him.
My friend was floored. She simply didn't understand why. This was chicken feed compared to the stuff she'd done to me growing up. But it was good that a completely independent third party was left in a state of utter bewilderment.
There is no explanation. They live in a vortex of insanity, where nothing makes sense. There is no continuity of history. There is only the emotional hit of the current moment. Nothing else, and no one else exists for these people.
The ONLY answer, is to keep well away!
Names have been changed....obvs!