363Chapter 56- You Say Goodbye and I Say Hello
Sam, Danny, and Willow didn't bother trying to sleep that night. Sam and Danny kept their guns ready, uncertain if something would happen. They didn't even play cards or chess. They just sat in silence as if something would happen.
Sam kept glancing out the window, then sat between them, and Willow fidgeted nervously. Yes, Danny should have been able to go with his dad… but did he have to be so cold to him? What if something happened to him? Danny would regret that for the rest of his life…
Boom!
Sam clenched Willow and Danny's hands tightly at the distant sound of an explosion.
Scout walked out crying. "What was that noise?"
Sam held her arms out to her, and Scout ran over jumping on her lap.
Boom!
A second explosion sounded, closer to them.
Sam rose to her feet and lifted Scout in her arms. "Okay, to the basement… now!"
Willow grabbed Franklin, and Danny got his gun ready as they headed downstairs. They all sat on Sam and Drew's bed, shaking and breathing rapidly.
"Mommy, I'm scared," Scout cried.
"I know, sweetie, I know." Sam held her tightly and kissed the top of her head.
"So, they either knew we were attacking tonight, or the May 5th date was just a red herring!" Danny said.
They sat in an uncomfortable silence for the next 20 minutes, not daring to fall asleep. Suddenly, there was banging on the door. Danny's heart sped up again.
"What do we do?" Danny asked.
The banging continued and Sam gulped. "Scout, stay with Willow and Danny."
Scout wrapped her arms around Willow's waist and buried her face in her chest. Sam lifted her gun in front of her and looked back at them before heading up the stairs.
Danny exchanged a worried look with Willow.
They heard a click, then finally: "Carly! What are you doing?" Sam scream whispered loud enough so they could hear.
"Let us in, please!" Carly begged. "Every other house is locked, and no one will answer!"
"Okay, in the basement!"
Seconds later, Carly hastened down the stairs carrying Donna. Bobbie and Sam followed her.
"We heard an explosion and thought we should go somewhere safe," Bobbie said. "But then something dropped from a helicopter and blew up our house!"
Sam's eyes grew wide and she sat beside Willow and Scout. "Oh my gosh…"
Sam offered to let Carly and Bobbie sit on the end of the bed with Donna, but they ended up sitting on the floor. After a while, Donna fell asleep curled up on Carly's lap, and Scout snored softly between Sam and Willow. Franklin sat on Danny's lap watching everyone.
"Your mother cursed me…" Carly said barely above a whisper. "I thought it was a joke, but it really worked."
Sam frowned. "Well, I think we're all cursed, really. Yours is just specific, it seems. But it wasn't really my mom who did it. She had Helena's mind-map. The real Helena actually cursed me once."
"She did?" Carly asked.
"She did?" Willow and Danny asked in unison.
"Oh, yeah," Sam said. "I thought it was a joke too."
"Well, how did you get it to stop?" Carly asked. "This is the second time in a matter of eight months that my house has been destroyed!"
Sam shrugged. "There are times when I think the curse hasn't worn off. But then…" She smiled at Willow, Danny, and Scout. "I realize I can't be that cursed if I have my family with me again. Just stop focusing on the negative. Focus on Donna and on making amends with Michael and Josslyn, but on their terms."
"That's what I've been trying to do…"
"But on their terms?" Sam raised an eyebrow. "And I also think you need to let Jason go."
She frowned. "Jason is my best friend."
"And it might be one of the hardest things you have to do. But trust me… as soon as I let him go, things started changing for me, for the better. Then maybe things will for you too. And who knows… when Jason sees that you're changing and not trying to control his life, then maybe you might be able to have a healthier and more balanced friendship."
Carly stared at her.
"But even if that doesn't happen," Sam said. "If Jason doesn't want that or if it just doesn't work out. You just have to be okay with that and be grateful for the family you have."
"I think that's some pretty good advice," Bobbie said, rubbing Carly's back.
It felt like they waited for hours, with no more explosions. In fact, they couldn't hear anything from outside. Scout and Donna continued to sleep soundly, and Franklin drifted off too. Carly was especially quiet after Sam's little pep talk with her. Bobbie expressed concern for Lulu, Michael, and Josslyn, and Sam said she was worried about Drew, her parents, and the rest of their family. Then, finally, Danny sat up.
"Okay, I want to see what's going on outside," Danny said. "We've been down here for three hours and we haven't heard a thing!"
Sam sighed. "You're right. We should go check it out."
"And I'm going with you!" Danny insisted. "I'm not just sitting down here any longer.
Sam looked at him for several seconds, then nodded. "Okay. Willow, can you stay here with Scout?"
Willow nodded. "Yeah, of course."
Sam reached under the bed and pulled an extra gun from a box and set it on the night table. She kissed the top of Scout's head firmly, then hugged Willow tightly. "I love you. So so much… am I'm so thankful we found each other."
Willow started to tear up. "I… I love you too."
Sam let go of the hug, her eyes wet with tears too. She cupped Willow's face in her hands, smiled, then kissed her forehead.
"Okay, come on," Danny interrupted. "Enough of the mushiness… no one's dying."
After their tearful goodbye, Sam and Danny headed upstairs and grabbed some flashlights. They slowly made their way outside. It was eerily quiet, but TJ was standing on his porch, also scouting out the village. Sam exchanged a look with Danny, then glanced around, before taking his hand and taking him over to Curtis.
"Hey, are you guys okay?" TJ asked.
"So far, yeah," Sam said. "How about you guys? Molly? Lexie?"
TJ sighed, but smiled slightly.
"What is it?" Sam asked.
"Molly gave birth two hours ago," TJ said. "I delivered the baby in the basement. Kind of bittersweet."
Danny's eyes grew wide. "Why does Aunt Molly always seem to have a newborn during a crisis?"
"Well is she okay?" Sam asked. "And the baby?"
"Molly's scared," TJ said. "We all are. Aunt Stella's with her right now. Lexie's sleeping. But we're all okay."
"Did she have a boy or a girl?" Sam asked.
TJ smiled. "Another girl. She's beautiful, Sam. Looks a lot like Lexie did when she was born. We're calling her Ruth Kristen Ashford. Kristen is after your grandmother. I picked Ruth. We want to call her Ruthie."
Sam smiled "That's wonderful. Another little Davis girl."
"Sam!" Jax came down the street with Josslyn and Rocco, who was carrying Max. "Willow… is she okay?"
Sam nodded. "She's with Scout in our basement. Actually, can you go to them and protect them? Here's the key to get in… I need to go check Wyndemere."
Jax took the key. "Yeah, of course."
"Carly, Bobbie, and Donna are with them," Sam said. "Please… don't let anything happen to Willow and Scout."
"I won't," Jax promised.
"TJ, go back in with Molly," Sam said. "We'll go see that everyone else is okay."
The rest of the island, leading up to Wyndemere, was still very quiet. But when they reached Wyndemere, they heard voices and a quarter of the castle was destroyed.
"Leo? Nikolas?" Sam called out when they ran over to them and Spencer. "Are you okay? What happened?"
Nikolas shook his head. "She's gone. They took her."
"What?" Sam scrunched her face. "Who?"
"Sam!" Kristina ran over crying and crashed into Sam's arms. Lucas followed her.
Lucas squeezed Sam's hand, tears in his eyes too. "A helicopter flew over the island three hours ago and bombed Wyndemere, then somewhere in the village."
"Max and Milo were guarding her…" Nikolas started to choke up. "They knocked them out."
Danny's heart sped up.
"They're fine now," Lucas said. "They're with Jason, Cameron, and Jake. They said it was some of the Marchesis."
"They took Aunt Alexis," Nikolas said. "She's gone."
Sam's face paled and her eyes welled with tears, as Kristina continued to hug her for dear life.
"We're back!"
Danny whipped his head around to the sound of his grandfather's voice. He was standing with Drew, some of the army's soldiers, along with a bunch of the captives. Anna had her arm around Robert; Finn and Hayden were holding hands; Mac and Felicia were trying to restrain Maxie from getting away, while Curtis and Scott were carrying James and Malcolm; Kevin had his arm around Laura; and Charlotte clung tightly to her mother, sobbing and shaking not wanting to let go, while Dante smiled sadly at them.
"Mother!" Nikolas ran over and crash hugged her, crying in her embrace.