Which statement best describes the effect of the story's complicating incident? It leads readers to feel angry at Great-Aunt Gertrude for what she did.

It leads readers to feel sympathy toward Great-Aunt Gertrude.

It leads readers to wonder what awful deed Great-Aunt Gertrude must have committed.

It leads readers to marvel at why Great-Aunt Gertrude lived in Slovakia.

(story is "secrets in slavolkia")

The correct answer is It leads the readers to wonder what awful deed Great-Aunt Gertrude must have committed.

In accordance to the story "Secret in Slovakia", given the author's persistent remarks on Great-Aunt Gertrude's distant and dark personality - as well as the description of her intimidating house in Slovakia -, the reader would naturally endure a growing feeling of suspense as the plot unfolds, wondering what catastrophic event Gertrude would have caused - judging by her grim appareance and her sudden, desperate request for forgiveness towards her niece, right before Gertrude's passing.

A sense of relief fills the reader once the truth about Gertrude's secret is uncovered, proving there wasn't anything horrible about it.

The rest of the statements cannot be considered correct since:

The reader cannot feel angry at Gertrude without knowing the true nature of her secret. The reader may sympathize with Gertrude, but only once the secret is revealed at the end of the story. The fact that Gertrude lived in Slovakia is irrelevant to the story's main plot; the slow-paced uncovering of the secret grabs the reader's attention, rather than the location of Gertrude's house.