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Chapter

David's POV

The next morning was just as miserable as the one before. All the newsies were waiting for the cart carrying food and the girls. They were running late this morning. I knew that Flora wouldn't be on it. She'd decided to stay with Medda.

"I can't go back there," she whispered, eyes wide and scared. It was almost unbelievable to see her look so vulnerable. When I first met her, she'd seemed so alive, like nothing could touch her. Now she seemed so isolated and afraid. "After that last time… They'd never let me out again! I'd be trapped."

"Stay here then," I replied. "They'll come looking, but you could hide somewhere. Eventually they'll stop, and you'll be free."

"You're right, I could stay here," she said, fidgeting nervously. "But they'd hound Medda night and day. I'd need to stay somewhere else for a while."

"You could stay with me," I suggested. "They'd never think to look for you there!"

"I couldn't do that," she declined. "You barely know me. It's not fair to drag you into my troubles." I thought about pushing it, but I didn't. She was a very independent person, and she would do this with as little help as possible.

"Earth ta Dave!" Race yelled, and snapped me back to reality. "What is goin' with yous?"

"I'll tell ya what goin' on with 'im," Kid Blink laughed. "He's think' 'bout dat girl of 'is. Flora. Couldn't take 'is eyes off her yesterday."

I blushed furiously. "She's not my girl!"

"Ya, and how would ya even know what happened yesterday? Yous was too busy flirting with Eleanor!" Mush added.

Everybody cracked up as the cart rolled around a corner. They stopped sharply directly in front of us. Sister Mary Martha was gone, and in her place was a much older woman, a tower of sharp angles. Eleanor was there, but she looked like she'd shrunk in on herself since yesterday. There was a large red mark across her face that looked like it'd been partially concealed by makeup. They began to hand out rolls of bread wordlessly.

"Ey, Elle!" Kid Blink called out to her. "How ya doin'?" She hurried in the other direction. He looked hurt, and a little angry at her wordless dismissal. He clearly didn't see the fear in her hazel eyes, and the way she looked at the nun. After Flora's escape, they'd clearly taken it out on Elle.

She cast another worried glance at the nun, then reached into a small pocket in her skirt and retrieved a small object. She grabbed an apple, and bypassing all the other outstretched hands, walked straight to me and pressed them both into my hands. She gave a tiny smile, and then hurried away.

I turned to Les. "Hey, do you want my apple?" He grabbed my apple and took off to talk to Jack. I inspected the object she'd pressed into my hand. It was a piece of paper wrapped around a smaller thing. I unrolled it and began to read.

Dear David,

I assume by this point Flora will have told you her story. I think it's good for you to know, but I'm going to clarify one thing: why she wanted to run away. St. Jerome's declares itself to be a sanctuary for the abandoned girls of Manhattan. That is a lie. We eat, we have shelter, we have clothing, that's true. But we are utterly abused in every way. Have you ever read Jane Eyre? It is very much like Lowood School. Flora's too headstrong, too fearless for her good. She finds little ways to undermine the sisters, who in turn punish her severely. She's been getting bolder for a while now, and I think it's because her 15th birthday's approaching. It's in three months actually. The convent owns you until you're 18, but she can open the safe deposit box when she's 15. In the three years after that, St. Jerome's will have full control over her assets, whatever they may be. That's why they're so desperate to get her back. They think it's a fortune or something. You've got to hide her. Medda's is the first place they'll look! Get her out of there as soon as you can, disguise her, for at least three months. Then she'll have the inheritance, and she can do whatever she wants to. That's why I'm giving you this. Make sure she gets it.

Thank you for everything,

Eleanor

I stared at the letter in my hands, and then snapped out of it. So that's why they'd wanted her back so badly. I shoved the small object in my pocket without looking at it, and walked over to a cluster of newsies. They were all consoling Blink about Elle giving him the cold shoulder.

"Betta luck next time!" Mush laughed. "Believe me, I knows 'bout dis. Yous will find some otha goil and forget all 'bout her."

"I can't believe she'd just ignore me like dat," he grumbled. "Why? I's poifectly nice to her."

"She must be crazy," Jack snickered. "A goil ignorin' yous? Can't even imagine it!"

"She gave something to Dave, didn't she?" Les piped up. I silently willed him to be quiet. "A letter or something." Everyone turned to stare at me.

"Yes, she did," I answered nervously. Kid Blink was giving me a scary look, and I didn't think he'd actually take the time to read the letter if he made up his mind to soak me. I didn't even know if Kid Blink could read. "But it's not about her, it's about Flora."

"Come Davey, read it!" Mush catcalled.

"Okay, but there's some things I should tell you first," I wasn't sure how much to tell them. It was Flora's story, and I had the feeling that she didn't tell just anyone. It made me absurdly happy that she'd chosen to tell me. In the end, I told them a brief synopsis, just including the safety deposit box and St. Jerome's. By the end, they were all much more serious.

"So what was in da letta?" Race asked. I quickly read them the letter. I turned it over and saw a post script I hadn't noticed before. "P.S. You should dye her hair and cover her freckles. They're her most distinctive features. P.P.S. Have you considered taking her out on a date? You would be perfect for each other." Everyone whooped at that last part, and I cursed myself for not reading the post scripts before saying them aloud. "P.P.P.S. Tell Kid Blink I would love to take him up on his offer, but I may never be let out of the convent ever again after this." There was dead silence. Then…

"I think you should take her out on a date. She's really pretty and nice," Les interjected. Everyone burst out laughing, even me, a little. Then they sobered up.

"So, could we hide her?" Race asked. "It wouldn't be too hard. She could stay at the lodging house for a while."

"Ya," Jack scratched his head thoughtfully. "That'd probably be smaht."

"She's with Medda right now, but she can't stay there for long," I added thoughtfully. "I could go get her after I'm done selling today."

"You, me, and Les can go," Jack interjected. "What if ya run into da Delancys again?" We all agreed, and started towards the World headquarters. Suddenly, Les turned to me.

"In the letter, Eleanor mentions something she gave to you. What was it?" he asked.

I frowned. "I didn't see. I think I put it in my pocket." I reached into my pocket and felt around. Sure enough, my hand closed on a small object. I pulled it out, and opened my hand. Sitting in my palm was an iron key.

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