Two weeks had passed by since the reappearance of Hurricane Monica. Life had pretty much returned to normal.
A typical day for Frank, starts with him getting up at 4:00 am, being careful not to wake whichever wife he shared his bed with for the night. Before doing anything else, like getting ready for the day, he has a cup of tea while doing his morning devotions. He's done by six, and by that time Mary and Whitney are awake feeding Hawthorne and Jedidiah. His others wives are awake too and the older kids are just trickling out of bed.
Today was a little different though, because Harrison and Olivia got married yesterday which means today they are headed out on their honeymoon. On top of that, Frank was also preparing to go on a ministering mission trip with a few of his followers: 19 year old Joseph Thorsten and 22 year old Alistair Matthews.
While they were getting ready for their trips, doing some last minute packing and saying goodbye to their family and friends, Sammi had her own plans.
In all of the hustle, Sammi slipped out through the backdoor, leaving the family property through the side gate. Riding her bike to the 'L' train, she got on and headed in search of Monica.
Arriving on the South Side of Chicago, Sammi asked around the drug dealers and at bars if they had seen Monica Gallagher. So far nobody had. Hours later, just when the teen was about to give up, she passed by a bar where she spotted Monica in through the window. Thirteen year olds were not supposed to go into bars, but without hesitation, Sammi swung the door open, storming in and over to Monica.
"Can I help you?" Monica slurred out. In her drunken and drugged out state, she didn't recognise the young teen that had once regarded her as a mother.
Sammi just stared at the woman, shaking her head, "You have two options. Either you clean up your act and take the proper medication for your bipolar disorder, so you can be a proper to me and my sister. Or you can continue to drink and do drugs, as long as you stay away from me. And from Fiona. I'll always remember you. The good and the bad. But Fiona...she's still little. In few years, she'll forget all about you. She'll forget the good. The nights you sang her to sleep. But most importantly, she'll forget the bad. She'll forget seeing you strung out."
Monica laughed, giggling, like she wasn't comprehending a word that was being said to her.
"Have a good life...Mom." Sammi added, "I really hope you'll do the right thing. I want you in my life. I want you to have a relationship with Fiona, but we won't suffer if you aren't. We won't long for a mother's love, because we have other mothers. Take care, Mom. I love you."
When Sammi arrived back home, there were police swarming the hotel like building that she called home. She let out a sigh. She should have expected that this would happen. That her father and mothers would call the police. After all, she was gone for most of the day.
Sammi was dreading facing her father now. Not just because she knew she had disappointed him by sneaking off, venturing into the city alone, but also for causing trouble. For causing him to have to call the police. Not that Frank had a problem with the police. It was just that ever since the Waco siege, things with the people of Mount Horeb and the police were a little more tense than usual.
Sammi dredged up the walkway to the front door of her home, passing by all the police like she didn't even see them. As she got closer to the mob of parents, her father wasn't even the first one to notice her. It was Gwendolyn's arms that Sammi felt wrapping themselves around her in a big, tight hug.
"Frank. Frank." Gwendolyn called, "She's alright. Sammi's alright. She's here."
Sammi sung into her step-mother's embrace, hugging her back as she cried, "Mama G, I'm so sorry. Tell Daddy I'm so sorry."
"Shh..." Gwendolyn soothed, "Shh...it's okay. You're safe. You're home. Nothing else matters right now. We'll talk about everything else later."
Frank ran over, sandwiching his daughter between himself and Gwendolyn as Harrison got rid of the police, thanking them for their time and efforts, but that it wasn't needed anymore.
Once everyone had calmed down from the stress of the day, Frank and Sheila sat down with Sammi to talk about where she had gone all day and what she had done.
"I tried, Daddy. I really tried to make her change."
Frank sighed, "Oh...you went to see Monica."
"How did you even find her?" Sheila asked
Sammi shrugged, "I just checked all the usual places she likes to hang out until I found the right one."
"Why did you do it?" Frank asked
"It wasn't for me. I did it for Fiona. I thought I could get through to Monica. I thought I could make her see what she was missing, but she doesn't really love us, does she?"
Frank shrugged, "I don't know. It's really not for me to say, and while I commend you for your efforts, what you did was really dangerous. The parts of the city that Monica hangs out at are not safe."
Sammi nodded, "I know, and I'm sorry."
"Okay. Well, you still have to be punished, so for two weeks, you are grounded."
"I understand, Dad."
Frank hummed, "Good, because if you ever pull another stunt like this again, you will be grounded until the day you get married. After that you'll be your husband's problem."
Sammi laughed, thinking her father was just making a joke.
"I'm not laughing, young lady, and I'm certainly not kidding."
Frank actually was joking. There would be no way that he could actually ground her that long in the event that something like today ever happened again, but he wanted her to realise the severity of what she had done.
Sammi stopped and stared at her father, studying the serious expression on his face. She nodded, "Yes, Sir. I understand."
"Good. Now go on up to bed. I love you."
"I love you, Daddy." Sammi replied, before kissing him on the cheek. She turned to kiss Sheila on the cheek, "And I love you too, Mama Sheila."
Hope you enjoy. Comments are greatly appreciated.
What would you like to see happen next?
