Is Lori Still Manipulating Carter?

Well, if anyone was starting to doubt that Lori is manipulating Carter on Finding Carter , they got their answer on Tuesday night. During last week's "Riptide," Lori attempted suicide on Finding Carter and put Carter in a difficult position, forcing her to wonder whether or not she should be cutting this woman out of her life for ever. (No thanks to Madison's presence, obviously.) Unsurprisingly, Carter decided to go see her biological mother and, after a heartbreaking scene, it became more clear than ever that Lori is just playing games with Carter's emotions.

There are a lot of moving parts in whatever Lori is planning as her next scheme. And, as much as I want to believe that Lori is genuinely ill and she's not as malicious as she seems, Tuesday night's "I Knew You Were Trouble" really didn't make a good case for her. During Carter's visit, Lori was removed and almost cruel to the "daughter" she'd fought so hard to keep and upset Carter so much that she practically begged Lori to say that she "loves her more." She didn't and it seemed like sending Madison and all of those letters to Carter might not have been part of an elaborate scheme. Well, obviously that's just wrong.

After Carter left her room, Lori started smiling and maniacally telling the nurses that she "knew she'd come" and reiterating that Carter had said she loved her, making it seem like Lori's suicide attempt wasn't meant to end her life at all. We know for sure that Lori sent Madison to the Wilsons to try to convince Carter to forgive Lori and distance herself from her family and, between Madison and injuring herself, Lori managed to get Carter to see her.

So, what is Lori planning? She's clearly back under Carter's skin and Carter's not going to give up until she can get some closure or maintain some type of relationship with her kidnapper. There's also still the mystery of the unidentified person Lori called while Carter was passed out on that hotel bad in the Season 2 premiere. Lori knew exactly what it would take to get back into Carter's life and we really can't underestimate what she might be planning for the rest of Season 2. Carter's life is back in her hands now.

Image: screengrab/MTV