Chapter One
Kid Blink opened his eye reluctantly and looked at the sunlight that was streaming in through the thin curtains. He could hear the sounds of other bodies stirring as the light worked its way through their eyelids, trying to rouse the unwilling boys from their beds. Bringing his hands to his face, he rubbed it vigorously wondering if it would help drive away the tiredness that followed him throughout the day. He stared at the slats of the bunk above him and passed a hand over his sandy blonde hair, scratching absentmindedly at the chord that kept his eye patch in place. "Another day of work," he thought tiredly.
The door to the room opened and Kloppman, the old man in charge of the Newsboy Lodging House, came in with a pan and a wooden spoon. He smiled mischievously as he banged the pot and boys shot up around him shouting in anger. He ignored them and yelled cheerily, "Come on, boys, you got papers to sell! Get on out of those beds." Kloppman made a circuit of the room to make sure everyone was awake and not in danger of falling asleep again before leaving. Blink shrugged off his suspenders and took off his undershirt before walking into the bathroom to get a sink before they were all taken up, not that there was too much of a rush, everyone else was still grumbling about the rude awakening they had gotten.
By the time it was getting crowded in the bathroom, he was already shaved and washed and was able to get out of there before they started fighting over towels or soap. He walked over to his bunk and grabbed a shirt. He buttoned it and slipped on a vest. He tied a scarf around his neck and rolled the sleeves of his shirt up to his elbows, revealing the muscular forearms he had got from working in the lumber mill.
The boys began emptying out of the bathroom and they all gathered to head down to get their papers for the day. They walked through the streets of New York City, making their usual raucous cries and shouting insults to each other. Once getting their papers, they immediately set out into the city, shouting out the headlines.
Later in the morning, his last paper in hand, Blink joined up with Racetrack and Mush as they argued about a girl who had just walked past and whom she had smiled at.
"I'd bet me mother that girl was giving me the eye," Racetrack said while waving his lit cigar. He used his other hand to adjust the cap on his head. Racetrack was quick to make bets and pick fights.
"Your mother!" Mush laughed, "You don't know where your mother is."
Racetrack looked like he was about to slug Mush when Blink put an arm around both of their shoulders. "Boys, please," he said merrily, "I think you both know that the lady was looking in my direction. The girls can't resist my charm."
They both shrugged out from under his arms and Mush pushed him away, "What charm? With that patch you look like a pirate!"
Mush laughed triumphantly and Blink jumped on his back, digging his fist into his dark curly hair. Mush yelled angrily and soon they were both on the ground fighting. The Newsies quickly gathered around them and Racetrack wasted no time in taking bets.
Molly O'Malley had pinned her hat tightly to her head to insure it wouldn't be ruffled in anyway on her journey uptown. Her carefully pinned hair was still a little damp from her bath, and dark brown curls fell out to frame her face. Only the servants of the house would see her, but it wouldn't do her business any good if she were seen in poor appearance. That is, she quickly corrected, it wouldn't do her father's business any good. She set out early so she could still open the shop at its normal time.
O'Malley's Candle Company was still operating and making good money, even though gas lights were becoming more popular. Molly worried about the business; she feared that someday people would tire of candles when gas was so cheap and readily available. Although her father had told her that it was useless to spend her energy worrying about something that might happen, she worked as hard as she could to make the best candles in Manhattan.
The delivery had been a great idea on her part. Unfortunately, she hadn't thought through where to find a reliable delivery boy. She had been through two this month and she didn't have the time to deliver candles all day, but this morning she had to do a quick delivery herself. She had two bundles that she carried carefully as the streets started to grow busy. They were for a well-to-do family that still used candles at all of their dinner parties.
It was worth the trouble to deliver these; this family was especially loyal and swore that her father was the only candle maker who always made the perfect shade of white. Their recommendations to friends had been helpful as well. Her only problem was that the increased workload was conflicting with the new delivery service she was offering.
Her thoughts were distracting her from the bustling crowds around her and the normally penetrating cries of the newspaper boys just flew over her head. A few men cajoled her as she passed by, but even their crude gestures went unnoticed. She had business to attend to and nothing was going to get in her way.
Molly turned a corner and was blocked by a crowd stopped in the middle of the walk. Some people rustled and moved around whatever was blocking their way to continue with their errands. Soon she was in view of the problem that was taking up so much space.
Two young men were wrestling on the dusty cobblestones, a bunch of the day's newspapers beneath them. The sandy-haired youth had a dark haired man pinned to the ground. The pinned man grunted out, "Enough!" The blonde stood up and adjusted something on his head. Molly's breath stuck in her throat when he looked her direction. One eye was covered with a patch while the other blue eye locked with hers.
"Ah!" the man on the ground lunged at the other man's legs and they were both falling down. Molly hadn't realized how close to the two she had drifted. The blonde tried in vain to twist around her, but gravity was against him. Molly screamed as they slammed into her and they all hit the ground in a heap.
There was a mad scramble on the ground as they untangled themselves. The other man set upon the blonde, and in his frustration he punched him in the eye. The dark haired man backed away with a howl, "Dammit, Blink! My eye!"
"Sorry Mush," he said begrudgingly. Blink's only real concern was the girl they had practically assaulted. She was sitting in the dust holding the back of her head and looked shaken, her brown hair coming undone. A matron was kneeling beside her, using one of Mush's discarded papers to cool her face. Blink kneeled beside her, "I'm terribly sorry miss. You hurt much?"
The older woman was glaring at him and he chose to ignore her all together. Molly's green eyes widened spectacularly and she looked at the crushed bundles in her lap. The paper was torn, revealing broken candles. Her mouth dropped open as she saw nearly all of the candles were snapped in half. "I…" she squeaked. "You…" Blink watched in shock as her dazed look quickly turned. She glared at him, her freckled cheeks turning red. Her Irish accent came out thick when she yelled. "You stupid boy! Look what ye've done!" She held out the candles accusingly, "Do ye have any idea how long it takes to make these?" "What were ye thinking, brawling in the middle of the street!"
She stood up shakily, clutching the bundles in her arms. Blink reached out to steady her and immediately wished he hadn't. She slapped his hand away and said something in a language he didn't understand. A few older men standing nearby roared with laughter. Blink was confused and speechless. "I don't suppose ye have the money to pay for these? By your appearance I should say that ye don't." Molly knew it was a low blow, but she was too angry to care. Her day had just become a lot more complicated.
Now she would have to run back to the store to get new candles and pray that Mrs. Thompson's staff wouldn't tell everyone that she was unreliable for being late. Then she would have to spend the rest of the day replacing the set of candles to put out in the show room. She screamed inwardly, she wouldn't be back to open the store on time. She sighed, "I don't have time for this!" She turned back down the street at as brisk a pace as she could manage. She didn't get far before she heard a "Hey!" being yelled at her. Blink was running after her with a murderous look on his face. She couldn't help but swear under her breath.
"Hey lady!" he shouted. He walked along side her, easily keeping up with her. Molly glared at him briefly, but decided not to respond. "Hey, listen here!" All the politeness was gone. As pretty as she was, he wasn't going to let some stuck up girl talk to him that way. "You're some kind of pill, talking to me that way. I may not have a lot of money or some fancy suit, but I don't deserve to be talked at that way. May be I don't have money to pay for some stupid candles, but I would've found a way to help you out if you'd been nice about it."
Molly's mouth dropped open in offense, he was making her even more frustrated. She was too proud to admit she had been harsh, but she knew that her anger had gotten the best of her. The sun was getting hotter by the second and the sweat was starting to build up on her face. A shadow stepped in front of her, "Excuse me, Miss."
A policeman was blocking her path. He had seen the commotion from up the street and was suspicious of the young man trailing her, "Is this man bothering you?"
Blink decided to bolt and made up an excuse, "No, I was-"
"No," Molly said. Blink stopped talking and glanced in her direction, ready to run as soon as she ratted him out. The cop looked more than ready to escort him to the nearest jail cell. "He's my father's delivery boy." Blink's mouth nearly dropped open, but the policeman was watching him closely and he tried to remain as calm as possible.
"If you're sure, Miss." He paused for one last nod of confirmation and then continued walking down the length of the street, sparing them a glance over his shoulder.
Blink gave her a sidelong glance and watched as she tucked a strand of her dark hair behind one ear. Her hand paused and she patted her head. "Shoot, my hat." Blink had picked it up when she had walked away and now held it out to her nonchalantly. He suppressed a smile at the look on her face when she took it. "Thank you," she muttered.
"Don't mention it." He shoved his hands into his pockets, glancing away from her. "I guess I should say thank you for not telling on me to that cop."
The hat was securely on her head and she thought about how to pose her next question. "Were you serious earlier? That you would have been willing to help if I had asked?"
"If you had asked nicely."
She grimaced a little, "I know. But would you still be willing? The truth is, I'm in need of a delivery boy. I'm fast running out of time to get everything done today and I'm at the end of my rope. If you would run a few deliveries for me, then can we forget this ever happened?" She gestured to the candles solemnly.
Blink considered this briefly. In truth he did feel bad about knocking her down. Although the fault had mainly been Mush's, and he deserved that black eye. You don't go attacking a man after you've admitted defeat. If anything, this could help him avoid Mush for a little bit. "Alright, I'll do it."