In her upcoming book, Captive: A Mother’s Crusade to Save Her Daughter from a Terrifying Cult, Dynasty actress Catherine Oxenberg gets candid about the emotional experience of losing her daughter to the cult NXIVM. In 2011, Oxenberg introduced daughter India to the organisation when she took her to a workshop in an effort to bond. However, the then 19-year-old was slowly consumed by the organisation, finding her way into the inner circle that treated the women as "slaves," restricting their eating and branding them with leader Kieth Raniere’s initials. The seven-year ordeal has been emotional and tortuous, but Oxenberg revealed to People that she finally has her daughter back.
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“India is spending time with her friends and family,” she explained, revealing that the two reunited after the organisation suspended operations in June. “She is moving forward with her life and will share her story when she is ready. At this time, she has asked for privacy.”
In an interview with Dateline Monday night, Oxenberg admitted that she was filled with guilt since she's the one who brought her daughter to NXIVM in the first place. She echoed the same sentiment in an interview with Megyn Kelly Tuesday morning.
"I brought her in. And that’s why I feel responsible for getting her out," Oxenberg explained on Dateline. "At first I felt horrendous guilt that I had participated in bringing my daughter into an organisation that was this deviant and dangerous. And then I started to educate myself. And I spoke to numerous experts. And they said, ‘Would you stop blaming yourself? These cults are well-oiled machines. And India never stood a chance.’"
Now, both women are healing. The legal battles with members Raniere and Smallville actress Allison Mack are still ongoing.
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