Previously on The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, rumors were reportedly flying about Angie Katsanevas’ husband Shawn Trujillo, and Monica Garcia had a big fight with her mom at Angie’s Easter Brunch. It was ugly. Here’s what went down on RHOSLC Season 4, Episode 8: “Moms, Missions, and Matrimony.”
Monica’s abandonment issues
The day after Angie’s disastrous Easter Brunch, Heather Gay invites Monica to go for a snowmobile ride. Afterward, they cozy up with a hot drink in the lodge.
“Thank you so much for calling me,” Monica tells Heather. “That meant a lot, and I really needed this.”
“Yesterday was hard,” Heather responds. “When I saw you leaving [Angie’s] with your kids in your arms and no shoes, I couldn’t get it out of my mind … to have your mom there but not helping you, you know?” It reminded Heather of her own damaged relationship with her mom.
Heather and her mom were close, but they grew apart when Heather got divorced. “It was really hard for everybody to accept,” she said. “It just didn’t feel like anybody had my back, you know?”
The volatility of Monica’s relationship with her mom goes back to her childhood. “When I turned 12,” she began, getting emotional, “my mom … decided that she wanted to chase her dreams, so she dropped me off with a family in Pennsylvania and went and lived in New York.”
Heather is visibly shocked, but Monica continues, “My dad left me when I was four, and then my mom left me.” This is the root of her abandonment issues.
Things got so intense at Angie’s house because Monica felt, once again, abandoned by her mother. Linda didn’t defend her and was even apologizing for her behavior.
“You and I actually have way more in common than I would have ever thought,” Monica tells Heather. “I really am so grateful … I wouldn’t have even left my bed today, truly.”
“You have a village,” Heather responds. “You’re creating a new village, and you’re gonna be okay.”
Tantrums and control tactics
A few days later, Heather hosts another outdoor gathering. She invites Whitney Rose, Meredith Marks and Monica to go cross-country skiing, followed by a tailgate party in the parking lot.
While they’re enjoying their snacks in the sunshine, Whitney asks, “So, Monica, what’s going on with the car? You got a new Range Rover.”
“That’s a rental,” Monica explains. Apparently, Monica’s credit is bad, so when she had to get a new car, her mom financed it and Monica makes the payments. “So every time she gets mad at me, she takes the car. She took my car after Angie’s Easter dinner and left me without a f*cking car for my four kids. So, I had to rent another car.”
Heather’s jaw dropped. Mine did, too. That’s unbelievable … but it gets worse.
Monica’s mom called and said, “I want the car by 4 p.m., or I’m calling the police and saying it was stolen.” The other women are stunned. Monica’s mom is … well let’s just say, she’s not nice.
“It’s just because she’s angry,” Monica says. “It’s a control tactic.”
“She’s like Ted Bundy, right?” Monica jokes. “No one ever thought he was a murderer ’cause he was so charismatic.”
Whitney and Mary’s disastrous dinner
Whitney checks in for her dinner reservation for two. Who is she meeting? Uh oh, it’s Mary Cosby. This should be fun.
“We missed you at Greek Easter,” Whitney says.
“I didn’t miss it,” Mary lobs back. Oh, she’s not going to play nice – but then, she never does.
When the waitress brings their food, she accidentally spills a little juice onto Mary’s empty dinner plate. Mary’s eyes nearly pop out of her head.
“I am so sorry!” the server apologizes. “Let me grab you a new plate, okay?”
“You did not spill food on me,” Mary mutters. “Oh, my gosh.” In an interview, she adds, “Why didn’t she spill it on Whitney? That’s a sign. You should not be here tonight.”
After Mary urges her to “shoot your shot,” Whitney begins with an apology, “I got caught up in a lot of bullsh*t talking about you, and I’m so sorry.”
“You severed our future,” Mary tells her.
“But, Mary,” Whitney whines, “you have to own it, too.”
“What do you mean?” Mary asks. “I have to own you talking about me?”
“You sent me mean text messages,” Whitney responds, “and it hurt my feelings.”
“Grow up, little girl,” Mary says. “I’m done … I’m not doing this with you. You’ve wasted enough of my time … You called my husband and [me] “predators … I’m not wasting my time with you. Wake up, bobblehead … Watch me walk out the door.” She takes her food to go and leaves.
“You can’t just say anything about people,” Mary interviews, “and think it’s okay. Someone’s gonna backhand you. Seriously, it might be me.”
Monica and Linda face off
In another Salt Lake City eatery, Monica’s meeting her mom. As soon as Monica sits down, Linda starts to sob, which is so manipulative. Fortunately, Monica’s seen this show before and doesn’t fall for it.
Linda progresses to her second manipulative move. “I watched a movie,” she begins, “about an older lady in Croatia, who had issues with her mom. The mom died, and they hadn’t resolved their issues. I don’t want that to happen to us.”
“You want me to feel bad for you,” Monica responds, “but when I was crying, you didn’t give a sh*t. At Angie’s dinner, you made me feel completely alone … And then you expect me to sit here and feel bad for you that you’re crying.”
“I’m not asking you to feel bad for me,” Linda says, the tears suddenly drying up as her voice rises. “I’m asking you to have a conversation with me.”
“Don’t talk to me like that,” Monica answers.
“I’m not gonna talk to you like some weak-ass bitch,” Linda yells, pounding her fist on the table for emphasis. “When you were in Palm Springs, you said that Angie was acting like a crazy person … you were trying to calm her down, and I was just trying to do that for you.”
“I didn’t get in Angie’s face and humiliate her,” Monica says. “You instantly took her side … I don’t understand that.”
“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do with this,” Linda shrugs.
“You tried crying. You tried yelling. That’s usually all you do.”
“Stop that,” Linda argues. “That was sincere. Don’t be disrespectful.”
Monica draws the line in RHOSLC Season 4, Episode 8
“Mom, you’re not gonna scold me like I’m a f*cking little child anymore.”
“And you’re not gonna disrespect me,” Linda fires back. “I’m still your mother … Don’t mock my feelings.”
“Like you did to me?” Monica asks.
“I don’t care,” Linda shouts. “I don’t. I’m so over it.”
“I know you don’t care,” Monica claps back.
“Let me talk, motherf*cker,” Linda shouts. Whoa! What kind of a person calls their child a motherf*cker? Get up and walk out, Monica. Get your own damn car and cut ties. Your mom is toxic, as well as batsh*t crazy.
“Where did this start?” Linda asks, gesturing wildly.
“Easter at Angie’s was reliving my abandonment as a child,” Monica continues. “I was 12 years old, and it was so easy for you to leave me … and go off to live your life in New York.
“You treat me like I’m still that little, tiny girl that you can f*cking sh*t on and leave here and leave there … And still right now you don’t give a f*ck.”
“Get over it,” Linda says coldly.
“I’ve dealt with emotional and mental abuse my entire life,” Monica interviews. “All I can do is make sure my kids never feel that and break that cycle.”
When Linda asks when she’ll be forgiven, Monica tells her, “You just told me you don’t really feel bad, so not today!
“This sh*t is now affecting my children, and that’s where I draw the f*cking line … When you take our vehicle, I’m done.”
Before leaving to go home to her kids, Monica and Linda agree to go to therapy. That might take a while. There’s a lot of hurt there.
The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City continues Tuesdays at 8/7c on Bravo.
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF RHOSLC SEASON 4, EPISODE 8? CAN YOU BELIEVE THE WAY LINDA SPEAKS TO HER DAUGHTER? WERE YOU SHOCKED THAT LINDA TOOK HER CAR AWAY?
