Mistakes Were Made

Chapter 24: Let's Prey

                      The cicadas sing their song, filling the late afternoon air. The Allen house is dead silent despite how full the dinning table is. The table is contains 4 plates, 4 forks, 4 knives to go along with their home cooked meal. Something Dakota and Hank rarely has these days. The smell of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans fills the air. Dakota grabs her fork and starts to dig in when Preacher's voice stops her.
                     "Let's prey." Preacher looks around the table.
                      Dakota stops, looking at Hank. He nods his head at her, his face formed into his usual scowl. Dakota puts her fork down on the table, looking between Hank and Katie. Both the Preacher and Katie bow their heads, their eyes closed. Dakota does the same, feeling odd. Hank lowers his head but does not close his eyes, rebelling against what he feels obligated to do.
                          "Heavenly Father, please bless this meal and the people who made it. Lord, thank you for bringing my little girl back to me. My precious Kathrine. And Lord, thank you  for bringing Miss Dakota to our house, we are all grateful to have her in our lives lord." Dakota looks up when the Preacher pauses, smiling that it's over. "Heavenly Father, I thank you most of all for bringing me back my Henry. I've preyed for this day to come." Dakota quickly puts her head back down, pouting. "In Jesus's name, amen."
                       "Amen." Katie says with a small smile, looking up at Dakota.
                       "Amen?" Dakota says unsure, the word foreign to her.
                       Preacher looks up at Hank, who stares bullets through him. A familiar look the Preacher knows all too well from his son. But despite how offended the Preacher Man feels, he still smiles with joy.
"So, Henry, what brings you back home?" Preacher says with a smile.
Hank looks to Dakota, whose pigging out at the moment with her food. He looks back at his father, who thinks he understands. Preacher man takes his fork and takes a bite of his green beans.
"So, where do you live now Henry?" Preacher continues on, "I've called you a few times to see if you wanted to join us at the church, but after 9 years of not answering my calls, I just assume you've been busy."
Hank's hand automatically smacks against the table, immediately regretting his actions.
"Preacher, I don't want to start this. Not here." Hank says firmly.
In the heat of the moment, Dakota chimes in. "This is really good chicken, Mr. A. It's way better than KFC's."
That makes Hank crack a slight smile, quickly wiping it away with his scowl and annoyed eyes. Preacher notices this, thoughts forming in his head. Preacher looks down, taking a bite of his mashed potatoes. He glances up to see Dakota continuing to pig out.
"Good lord, Henry. Don't you feed this young lady?" Preacher was with a smile. "Well, I can see that Hank doesn't give you the nutritious food a growing girl needs."
Hank shakes his head, annoyed at how negative his father is. He begins to question why he had thought to come there.
"Dakota, are you in any extracurricular activities?" Preacher says, "Are you in any sport or debate club at your school on the Southside?"
Dakota shakes her head. "No, but I've learned how to bend over backwards in the past 4 months."
Hank gives Dakota a half surprised, half unfazed look. Hank looks to Preacher with wide eyes. The Preacher lets out a chuckle, seeming to be unaware of the dirty joke. For once not his life, Hank thanks God that Preacher doesn't know how honest Dakota's statement is. The 27-year-old man wipes the sweat rolling down his temple, feeling as if he dodged a bullet.
"Well, that's very good sweetie." Preacher says, "What do you do for fun?"
"Fu—" Hank's hand slams against the dinning room table, making everyone jump. Katie gives him a look.
"Dakota—" Hank clears his throat, "There isn't really much to do on the Southside. I usually let Dakota stay at her friends house."
"Or Mona's." Dakota chimes in, smiling.
Katie leans forward on the table. "Well Dad, guess what I did in—"
"Whose Mona?" Preacher says to Dakota with a smile, turning to Katie. "Elbows off the table, Kathrine Dear."
Katie sighs, smoothing the back of her short hair down. Being ignored is just one of the aspects of being older. Or at least it is in the Allen family.
"Oh, Mona? She's this hilarious black lady that lives just down our road. She makes a mean Apple pie." Dakota takes a bite of her chicken.

After dinner, Dakota and Katie went to their bedrooms. Hank had settled Dakota in the guest bedroom. The young girl is dressed for bed, Drew's t-shirt and her thong with fuzzy socks. Dakota starts to get into bed when the door opens, she jumps into the bed and covers herself. Hank steps into the room, closing the door behind him. Dakota relaxes and shows herself. He looks her up and down, enjoying the view.
"Why does David get to call you Henry? Can I start calling you Henry?" Dakota refers to the Preacher.
Hank glares at her, his eyebrows furrowed. "Not if you want me to answer, sweetheart."
Hank walks over to her, sitting down on the side of the bed. Dakota leans into him, wanting to be close. He kisses her forehead and looks her deep in the eyes.
"If you need me, or having another night spell, just come get me." Hank says in a concerned voice, which is rare. "I'm only one room over."
Dakota kisses Hank's cheek very slowly, lingering. He takes her face in his hands and kisses her softly, his thumb rubbing her cheeks. He wants her, as he always does, but they're in Preacher's house. And Hank has other things he need to attend to. He kisses her once more on the lips before tucking Dakota in. Before Hank walks out, he turns on one of Katie's old nightlights for Dakota. He has a feeling she'll find her way to his room sometime in the night.