It was a late December day in Las Vegas, it was the kind of day when you would expect to see kids playing with their parents in the park. However for one little baby girl it was the day of her father's funeral. Poor little Franny Grissom would never know her father.
Gilbert Grissom had been shot in the line of duty only two days after his daughter's birth. The whole night staff mourned his death. Sara ,his wife, held her tiny daughter as his casket was laid to rest. As soon as the last shovel of dirt was placed on the grave a monarch butterfly flew down and landed on the tiny baby's nose. Everyone smiled as she giggled at it. She was Gil's little girl all right. Tears slipped out of Sara's eyes because Gil said that Fran would be his little butterfly when he held her right after birth.
Seventeen years later the now seventeen year old, Fran Grissom, was walking to visit her father's grave. It was normal for her to visit his grave once a month. She walked towards his grave marker only to see a man standing there with a pot of butterfly blossoms in his hand..
"It seems that we had the same idea Sir." she said taking in the man's appearance. He seemed to be the bookish type. He wore a turtle neck and pressed cotton pants. His curly hair was trimmed neatly.
The man looked at her strangely making her back up. She knew that some people were creepy and wanted to make her the only child of Gilbert Grissom their prize. She had been trained to fight and scream like hell.
"You re smarter then you would appear but don't worry I was a friend of Gil's." he said hoping that she bought it. He was actually Gil. He was staring at his only daughter. She had long brown hair and warm blue eyes. She seemed to be a bit of a bookworm. She had pale skin and wore a simple tank top with faded blue jeans. In one hand she held a butterfly cage.
"I come here once a year to honor him memory." he said taking out a trowel. She helped him plant his flowers then took opened her cage twenty monarch butterflies. They flew around her making Gil chuckle. it was very lovely.
Gil smiled as he spoke "They are beautiful but fragile little things. Don't you think."
Fran gave him a look that said you crazy old man. "don't mistake their beauty for fragileness. Monarch butterflies fly for thousands of miles to reach Florida or Mexico." said the young lepidopterist as one landed on her face.
"Quite true, though fragile in appearance these lovely butterflies are strong. Just like you Ms..?" He didn't know that he was talking to his daughter.
"My name is Frances Grissom." she said tilting her head to the side something that she did when she was uncomfortable. Gil was shocked to finally meet his daughter. She was into butterflies like he was with cockroaches, totally in love with them.
"Oh Gil's daughter. I should have guessed when I saw the butterflies around you. Gil loved insects like some people like artwork." He said with a smile. She looked so sweet with the butterfly on her cheek.
Fran looked at him with curiosity in her blue eyes. She had never heard that. She really didn't know much about her father. Every time she asked about him her mother would get to sad about him. At age seven she had stopped asking about him.
"Really I never knew that. When ever I ask about Dad Mom goes all teary eyed." She hoped that he could tell her more about the man she ever got to know.
Gil understood why but he wanted his daughter to know him even if it was only memory of him she knew. "you need to ask her about your dad. Sometimes when we lose someone it hurts to only know you can see them in memories." he said as she gently shoed to little butterfly away.
She realized that he was right. She had never asked about Gil enough. She nodded as she walked away. Once she was far enough away Gil heard someone walking on the gravel path towards him. He turned to see Jim Brass standing there.
Jim Brass was a short balding man who knew why Gil was playing dead. The day after his daughter had been born Gil had received a death threat on his daughter's life. He had gone into hiding after faking his own death. Now he knew that his little girl had grown up safely.
"she is an amazing young lady, Gil. Sara raised her well." said Brass as he lit a cigarette. If Fran caught him smoking he was dead the girl had threatened to take his cigarette and burn him with it. She did it to him three time already.
"That she is Jim." he said as he watched his daughter leave the graveyard. She was some beautiful and full of life.
"Gil I think it is time to come back from the dead. It has been seventeen years since you went into hiding. I think the threat has passed. They deserve to know why we did this." Jim said also watching Fran as she left. She was so much like her father and mother.
He didn't mention to Gil that his daughter had implanted hearing aids. She had been deaf from a young age.
"Jim I can't disrupt their lives. Sara has probly moved on now." Said Gil as he felt his heart drop.
"Are you nuts Sara is still mourning you. Nick is the closest thing Fran has to a dad. Look Gil come with me to my place I have something that you should see." he dragged Gil to his place where he took out of his closet a box.
"This box is full of things that I have been getting from Fran since she could walk." he said as he opened it to reveal that it was full of home movies ,photos ,drawings ,crafts and written things that Fran had made or was in.
"Fran is really artistic and peaceful. She wrote this when she was nine. It is a poem." He handed the composition paper to Gil. The poem was simple but funny and moving.
What do you say to the daughter
Who will never know her father
Many would say nothing from the fear
That she would not like to hear
about the man they held dear
She then wants to kick their rears
Gil laughed for a nine year old she was really gifted at writing poetry. She had made it funny even though it was sad. She really wanted to know him.
"Gil she deserves to know the man she got her love of bugs and roller-costars from. She is old enough to understand now. Sara is the one I am worried about." said Jim as he took the poem back.
"Let me think about it okay Jimmy. Mind if I barrow the box." Gil asked wanting to know his daughter as she grew up.
"Go a head you can keep the photos and the movies I got more copies of them." Said Jim knowing that would Gil would come around after watching his daughter as she grew up through home movies.
Gil walked into his place and sat down on his chair and popped the first video it had tons of her first on it including her first time with an insect. With each video he realized that he had missed out on his one child growing up.
The next morning Jim found him sleeping in his chair with the last movie paused on a scene with Fran dancing with her friends at her birthday at the butterfly gardens. "Gil is it time." he asked already knowing the answer.
"yes it is Jim." said Gil standing up and cracking his back. He made a mental note to never sleep in his chair again.
"as your daughter would say 'about time you baka.'" said Jim as he and Gil drove towards Fran and Sara's home.
They pulled up to the apartment building that the two women lived. "it is a small place but they live in comfort." Said Jim as he forced Gil to the door. They could hear music playing inside of it. Jim rang the doorbell. The music stopped and they could hear footsteps coming to the door.
The door opened to reveal Fran in a blue and purple set of Pajamas. Jim smirked at her because she still had bed head. She looked at him with a confused look on her face.
"Is everything okay Uncle Jim." she asked looking at them both. She was so sweet that Jim had to ruffle her hair.
"Nothing wrong Franny Bannanny. I just need to talk to you and your mother about Gil." he said gently but firmly. He knew how to get Fran to do as he told her.
"Hold on let me get mom out of bed that woman can sleep through a bomb blowing up." said Fran as she let them into the home. She walked quietly to her mother's room.
They sat down as they waited for Sara and Fran to come into the room. They smiled when they heard screaming from the room and saw Fran running for her life from a soaking wet Sara.
"They do this every morning. Fran poor a glass of water on Sara's stomach then runs." said Jim as he chuckled.
Fran finally sat down while her mother blew dried herself. Once both were sat down Jim said "Fran, Sara I want you to meet someone that has a long story for you. Meet Gilbert Grissom"
Fran paled while her mother flipped her lid. Gil waited until Fran and Jim had her tied to a chair. "Look at me Sara when I say this. I never wanted to hurt you but it was for Fran's protection. I only recently returned to Vegas. I met Fran in the grave yard yesterday when she come to visit my grave."
Fran sighed she understood now why he was gone for her life.