ALTOONA -- Her away message said she'd be right back, but Margo "Maggie" Davis never returned home.

It's been more than four months since police found the Penn State Altoona student dead in the trunk of her car, but the Davis family said their everyday life has yet to return to normal.

"Every father is supposed to protect their child, and I couldn't protect her," said Maggie's father, John Davis. "All I see is her last moments and her fear. She might've said my name and I couldn't be there."

With just days until Thursday's formal arraignment of Sean L. Allen, the man charged in connection with Maggie's death, the Davis family spoke about how it has affected their faith, community and family.

"I don't want people's pity. I just want people to understand," said Maggie's mother, Pat Davis. "God only knows what she could have given the world."

A Tested Faith

John stood watering the family garden in his front yard, his wife sitting behind him on the front porch.

"Maggie helped plant these," he said, pointing to the growth in the garden.

The water sprinkled under a tree in their front yard near a three-foot tall white cross placed in honor of Maggie, 20 at the time of her death. A Virgin Mary statue of the same size stands next to the cross, her arms open and head lowered in sorrow.

Pat's eyes locked on the statue.

"I'm having a real hard time with my faith right now," she said later inside their home. "Whatever the outcome is, nothing will ever bring her back. Nothing will ever be the same. Convicting somebody and sentencing them is not enough. It's never going to be right."

In the coming weeks, DNA tests will be returned to court officials to help determine what sentence Allen, 20, will face if convicted: the death penalty or life in prison.

"The death penalty is the easy way out," Pat said. "To live the rest of your life knowing what you did and having to think about that for the rest of your natural life is a worse punishment than being put to death."

The tests focus on items found in two trash bags at the foot of Allen's bed the same day police found Maggie's body.

Inside the black trash bag, police found a bloody comforter and two used condoms, according to court documents. The other bag contained bloody towels, bloody rubber gloves, a phone with Maggie's name on it and a smashed flashlight, according to court documents.

An autopsy revealed Maggie had head injuries and was strangled, police said.

"I want whoever did this to have to think about this for every waking moment of their lives -- over and over and over," Pat said. "I want for whoever did this, for their family to know our loss. I can only hope if there is a just God, there is a special place in hell for this person."

The Davis family did not mention Allen's name with regard to the trial. They said that no matter what the court decides, nothing will ever be the same because Maggie will still be dead.

A Small Town's Tragedy

"Everybody knows everybody," Maggie's younger sister Rachel, who graduated high school this year, said of Altoona.

It's the town where Maggie grew up, where she taught Sunday school to toddlers and where she twirled the flag as part of the silks team alongside the high school marching band.

It's where she went to the local Sheetz to buy iced tea and apple slices with caramel.

It's also the town where she first met Sean Allen, Rachel said.

While the two were never best friends, their social circles overlapped in high school, said her brother, John, 23.

They even attended a ninth grade dance with the same group of friends, Rachel said.

Maggie's parents said they never met Allen, and Rachel and John said they only spoke with him on a few occasions when they were younger.

As details surrounding Maggie's death emerge, the Davis family said the community's support has waned.

"We are treated like we have a disease," Pat said.

Allen told police the night of March 3 that Maggie asked him if he "could get her some marijuana," according to court documents. Allen told police that he told Maggie he'd make some phone calls and "see what he could do," according to court documents.

On March 3, police went to the Verizon Wireless Legal Department to obtain Maggie's cell phone records, according to the affidavit.

Three phone calls were made between 1:04 a.m. and 1:39 a.m. March 3. Allen's number is listed as the caller and Maggie's number as the receiver, according to court documents.

On March 2, the two texted each other about where Maggie could receive the marijuana, according to Pennsylvania State Trooper Kevin Garhart's March 9 testimony.

"This isn't a drug case. It's a murder case," said Maggie's brother, John. The family said they feel Maggie's reputation is being unfairly tarnished because of the circumstances of the case.

"It's parents and stuff who judge her. I feel like I have to defend her," Rachel said.

Allen's attorney, Steven Passarello, did not return phone calls seeking comment. The Allen family could not be reached for comment.

A Family Mourns

Inside the Davis home, family photos hang along the walls, including pictures of Maggie.

"I don't make it real," Maggie's older sister, Michelle, said of the death.

Michelle said she can't sleep at night. Her sister's death consumes her thoughts everyday.

Sitting on couches and chairs inside the living room of their Altoona home, the Davis family sipped coffee while remembering Maggie.

"She was never afraid of playing in the dirt," the younger John said with a laugh, remembering their childhood together.

Robert Frost was one of her favorite poets, and she enjoyed listening to Rihanna. She'd spend hours at night laughing with her siblings in her room.

Maggie first attended Carlow University in Pittsburgh, studying criminal justice. She transferred to Penn State Altoona and changed her major to elementary education because she enjoyed working with kids.

"She was always the person I went to when I needed help," Rachel said.

John laughed as he remembered how his sisters would always make him watch The Hills or Gilmore Girls, two of Maggie's favorite shows.

His voice deepened when he remembered the last time he came across those shows on TV.

"You flip through the channels and you can't even look at it," he said.

But there's no escaping the details of Maggie's death, they said.

"It's like a video running through my mind constantly," Pat said. "Your imagination goes wild. We've had so many unanswered questions. There's always the 'what-ifs.' "

Rachel and John said watching their parents cope with Maggie's death has been a struggle. They ask their mother every day if she's eaten; Pat said she's lost 25 pounds since Maggie's death.

"I have my public face," Pat said. "I can't show people how I really feel. We have to do things to exist, and that's all we're doing -- existing."

What's next

The family said they'll attend Thursday's court date together. With an expected autumn trial looming, the Davis family said they will not be able to fully mourn until after justice has been served.

"Until this trial is over we can't begin to grieve ... We're literally spectators in this trial," Pat said. "There's not enough words and not enough emotions to tell her story."