A long way home

Chapter one

Morgan was only a little girl so she didn't understand what death was or why so many people said her daddy wasn't coming back. She wanted to understand what was happening but she was too young to get it. That's what Happy had told her at least, maybe her mommy would tell her. The five year old walked out of her room and ran down the stairs.

Her mother was sitting at the kitchen table staring at a picture, she had hardly moved from that spot or said anything in the last week. Morgan quietly entered and wondered why her mommy was always looking so sad. In fact a few times her mommy had forgotten to feed her, and she had to snack on the few things she reach to keep from going hungry.
"Mommy when is Daddy coming back? " Morgan asked making her presence known, as Pepper hadn't noticed her come in.

The blond haired woman turned to look at her daughter with a fierce look in her eyes.
"Does it look like I know? " She asked and Morgan flinched at her angry tone. Not once had her mother spoken to her like that, her voice was always full of love and kindness.
"You know if you do see him, give him this," Pepper declared and then threw the picture she was holding on the floor near Morgan's feet. The picture shattered and for the first time in her life Morgan was actually afraid of her mother.

"Go to your room, " Pepper demanded as she stood up and Morgan bent down to pick up the picture as she didn't want it to stay broken. However Pepper then got furious and grabbed her daughter by the hair.
"I said go to your room! " Pepper yelled as she dragged her daughter up the stairs by her hair. Morgan screamed and begged for her to stop but she didn't until she had reached Morgan's bedroom.
"Mommy please you're hurting me! " She sobbed and Pepper finally let go but she didn't at all show remorse for what she had just done or attempt to comfort her daughter.

"I don't want you to ever to ask questions about your father, do you understand me?!" She angrily asked and Morgan tearfully nodded, she wasn't sure what she had done wrong but now it seemed her mommy wanted nothing to do with her.
"You stay up here until I call for you and don't come out of your room, " Pepper ordered and then left Morgan alone. The poor girl was so distraught by what had just happened that she cried for hours. Why was her Mommy treating her like this? She never had before.

Unknown to her that was the first of many horrible things that were yet to come. Though her mother never tried to hurt her again, she hardly acknowledged her daughter or cared about her needs. She was too busy caring for herself or drowning herself in whatever alcohol she could find. This often left Morgan hungry, tired and in occasion sick. The poor girl had no idea how to care for herself let alone what foods she had to eat to keep herself healthy. The only thing she could really reach was crackers, applesauce and a large box of cheerios.

Sometimes she would try and reach for the juice pops but whenever she did they would always end up spilled on the floor.
"You clumsy little foul clean that up and get off that chair! " Pepper yelled as she saw the mess Morgan had made while trying to grab a can of peanuts.
"I'm sorry Mommy, I was just so hungry, " Morgan cried as she got off the chair. She didn't mean to do anything wrong, she was just hungry.
"I will decide when you get to eat Morgan not the other way around, now clean up your mess. " Pepper said and then left the kitchen to get ready for her night out.

While her mother wasn't looking Morgan eat the peanuts she had dropped on the floor to make it look like she had picked them up. She then pretended to throw them away and went to the sink to grab some water. She couldn't reach the glasses as they were inside the high cupboards, so she had to use her hands to cup the water. It wasn't much but it was the only way she got water when her mother was home. It seemed that her mother had no problem leaving her daughter alone while she left the house, and it was always for the same reason. She needed to go to the store to buy some more things for herself.

Morgan used this as an opportunity to eat something that would fill her up. She would yogurt from the fridge and crush pieces of crackers to go inside of it. She also grabbed whatever else she could get her hands on without having to cook it. It didn't change the fact though that her mother didn't seem care anymore. Did that mean no one would ever love or want her?