By repeating the amount of time she has spent away from home
Answer:
We did not read the story and we don't even know which story it is bruh
(joke chill)
I don't know honestly
Its emphasises the writers message and keeps it constant, andstuck in the readers mind, so therefore the reader will want to read on due to the fact that they'd want to find out more about what is actually happening and it gets them hooked.