Sutton Stracke, Kyle Richards, Garcelle Beauvais and Crystal Kung Minkoff all shed some light on their co-star's state of mind.
It's been a little over two weeks since Dorit Kemsley's world was rocked, her home broken into in the middle of the night, burglars busting through a plate glass window, sneaking into her house and confronting her in her bedroom. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star says she begged for her life, with her two young children -- Jagger, 7, and Phoenix, 5 -- sleeping just a couple doors down.
Thankfully, Dorit and her children survived the night, the intruders sneaking away with clothing and jewelry, but leaving behind an air of unease that Dorit's co-stars say she is still very much working through.
"She is unbelievably strong, and her recounting what happened is just absolutely terrifying, and she really, really handled herself like a pro in that moment," Kyle Richards tells ET. "You know, and the aftermath has not been so easy. I think she was so shocked in the beginning, to be honest, and then it sort of set in what really happened, which is to be expected, and it's gonna take her a long time to heal."
Dorit joined her co-stars Kyle, Sutton Stracke, Garcelle Beauvais and Crystal Kung Minkoff for a "Parisian Night in L.A." event on Wednesday at Sutton's self-titled West Hollywood boutique, where cameras rolled on season 12 of RHOBH.
"So far, everybody's come out really supportive of her and yeah, everybody's rallying around her and seeing how she does," Garcelle shares. "I don't know if I would've been here myself, like, I wouldn't have thrown myself in that quickly, but we're all different."
"I saw the footage yesterday and it was terrifying," Sutton adds, referencing home security tapes LAPD released this week in hopes of identifying the suspects. "And I don't think any of us want to see anyone ever injured or hurt, especially around family and just kind of want them to feel safe again."
"You know, it's challenging because I don't know the right thing, I'm just trying to do my best by being supportive and I sort of approach things like, I'm approaching her really gently," Crystal offers. "I don't want to startle her in any way. So, even like when I give her a hug, it's I let her come toward me, because that's -- I can't imagine that kind of trauma, but everyone, like, jumped up to just protect her and make her feel as safe as possible with us, and she's incredible. I mean, it's not easy to jump back into this and for her to do that really speaks to her resiliency."
While Dorit attended the event, she skipped the press line.
"Being around her, you can see it in her eyes," Sutton notes. "She was very distraught and it was hard. It's just a hard thing for all of us."
"I said, 'How can you still get through this?'" she continues, starting to tear up. "And she said, 'I have to as a mother,' and that's when I totally understood, because as a mother you have to put on your strong face, and I got it. That's what you do as a mother: You get up and act strong and go on with your daily life, and I'm... so impressed by her."
Some disturbing speculation popped up online in the hours after the attack, with RHOBH viewers questioning whether Dorit would fake such an incident for the show. Her co-stars' consensus is that couldn't be further from the truth.
"You know, there's always conspiracy theories," Garcelle says, "but I feel like she wouldn't have done that with her kids in the house, if she were to do it, I don't think she would've chosen with the kids in the house."
The scary ordeal has the women reexamining some of their behavior as the continue sharing their lives on TV. The attack unfolded the same night an episode of the season 11 reunion aired, in which Dorit confirmed she pays retail for all her designer goods.
"I think it's really shook us all," Garcelle confesses. "I don't want to post in real-time anymore. I'm getting more security at my house. I'm leery of what I share now. It's different. You know, times are tough. People are desperate, and it's scary. It's really scary."
"We want to give everybody everything in our lives but also feel safe while we do it, so I just want us to all be safe and feel secure and, but also still have fun doing what we do, which is giving entertainment," Sutton says.
Kyle went through a similar violation years ago, when thieves broke into her home and took off with her jewelry and handbag collections, inspiring her to up her own security game and think twice about what she flaunts to the fans.
"You know, I've already made changes since that time, but it just makes you -- it's just another reminder that, you know, we all have to be careful, everybody," she says. "And you know, when you're in the public eye and you're on Instagram, people can see things, we have to think about those things."
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