VICIOUS

Chapter Nine

Nightshade was not happy. I told her about Spot plowing his fist into Silver's jaw and she started ranting in Scottish, which was actually pretty terrifying. Scottish girls were like Irish girls: don't get them mad unless you weren't too fond of your kneecaps.

My Manhattan friends had about the same reaction.

"I can't believe that!" Pip fumed. "What a damn bastard!"

"I can't believe Angel didn't deck him," Izzy said, smoking a cigarette as we all hung out outside Tibby's, since she decided to smoke before heading in for lunch and Pip and I had shared a few inhales with her.

"It was tempting," I admitted and Charlie laughed.

"I'd pay big money to see Angel kick Spot Conlon's ass." She laughed again and slung her arm around my neck.

Wendy smiled. "He'd probably let her, too, being his girl and all."

I was glad Wendy was getting comfy hanging around us girls. I liked her immensely and I felt close to her, being a foreigner myself to this strange land. Although, I'd been around for six years, I still felt a little out of place. I was thankful that my Irish accent had thinned out, though. People here seemed to have this obscene notion that Irish people were below everyone else. It was idiotic.

"You know, it sounds like Spot's been acting off ever since he let Desiree stick around," Pirate said, having been oddly quiet during our conversation. Usually she was very animated with us girls. She was very opinionated and never went too long without dishing it out. But today she had been quiet, except for a few moments ago.

I chewed my bottom lip thoughtfully. "You're right, he has. That's so… unlike him."

"Maybe havin' Desire 'round makes him nervous, since he knows ya don't like her," Izzy offered her own thoughts, inhaling on the cigarette one last time before tossing it into the street.

Piper nodded. "It makes sense. That could be why he overreacted to Silver leavin' ya outside for thirty seconds. I mean, Johnny's not one to shit around with, but still. It wasn't like he tried takin' advantage of you or nothin'."

I sighed. "I dunno, guys, but I'm so tired of trying to figure this shit out. Let's go eat."

Charlie and Izzy left to go sit with their boys, both boys' faces lighting up at the same time. Blink put his arm around Izzy when she settled into the chair beside him and his mouth found the apple of her cheek, making her smile at him like a girl in love. And Mush hugged Charlie in close to him and then led her by the hand back to his table, continuing to hold her hand even though it made eating a sandwich hideously hard to do.

That left me, Wendy, Pip and Pirate to occupy the only open booth in Tibby's. We all ordered and after getting mugs of root beer, except for Wendy who opted for water, we moved on to lighter subjects of conversation, since I wasn't too keen on continuing the confusing saga of the complex man, with the even more complex life, named Spot Conlon.

We ate roast beef sandwiches until Wendy inquired on the time and nearly jumped out of her seat with Pip checked her pocket watch and told her it was nearly one o'clock in the afternoon. Piper finished her meal and then hugged both Pirate and I goodbye to take Wendy back to Meadow Alley, the name of the brothel she worked at. Wendy didn't like walking the streets alone, even though it was daylight out, and she and Pip seemed to be the closest. The boys called out their goodbyes to Pip as she left with Wendy in tow, leaving just Pirate and I sitting at the booth.

"Angel, I've got to tell you somethin'," Pirate said after a moment, leaning across the table towards me.

I took a swig of root beer and nodded for her to continue.

"I heard that Spot and Desiree went off alone together when he got back from walking you back to Manhattan," she said, frowning.

I frowned as well. "Where'd you hear it from?"

"Blue told me. He's my friend," she said and I nodded. Blue was a tough guy, with a mean poker face, but he was kind of like Brooklyn's body guard. Nobody wanted him to beat them up. He was huge. "Said Conlon told the birds no to trail them."

"And it's a sure thing, yeah?"

"Yeah," Pirate nodded. "I'm sure Sneak'll come by later to tell you himself." She reached out and grasped my hand. "I'm only telling you this because I care about you, Angel. You have a right to know. You're his girl."

I nodded. Yes, I knew she cared, but it bothered me. Pirate was right though, and I wasn't surprised. One of the birds did come and tell me about Spot and Desiree, but it wasn't Sneak.

It was the O'Shea sisters, Fire and Rain, that came to see me. Fire told me how Desiree was waiting for Spot when he returned to the docks. Fire knew this because she'd been talking to Silver all afternoon. She told me how he motioned Desiree to follow him, after informing everyone that Silver was in charge until he got back and that nobody was to follow him.

Fire also told me how Silver told her and rain to go and let me know about this, since Silver didn't like the feeling it gave him that Desiree and Spot were going off together, alone.

"I hope you ain't mad at me for tellin' ya," Fire said and it was the first time she looked nervous. I'd never seen her without her fierce face on.

I shrugged. "Ain't you fault a tramp is following my man." I kicked the wall outside the girls' Lodging House. "I just can't believe the cheek of that girl. She waited until I was gone to jump on him. Is it wrong to be pissed?"

Fire laughed. "Ain't nobody can't tell you what and who to be pissed at but you. Honestly, I'd be pissed too if some whore like Desiree was following my boyfriend around like a lost puppy."

"Everyone knows Johnny likes Desiree, though, Fire," I said and leaned back against the wall. "What if she's workin' for him or somethin'?"

Fire shook her head. "Conlon knows everything about everyone. Ain't no way that's goin' on. If she is workin' for Johnny, though, then he must be one smart sonova bitch, y'know?"

I sighed and started pacing, smoking my cigarette at an inhuman pace. "I almost can't leave Brooklyn, Fire. Maybe I shouldn't have split my time between Manhattan and Brooklyn. If I stayed with him all the time, this wouldn't be happening."

"Nah, that wouldn't solve nothin'." Fire grinned at me. "You'd be pissed all the time that you ain't here and bitchin' all the damn time about it. And this would still be happenin', 'cept Conlon'd prob'ly be sneakin' around on ya since he knows you ain't fond of the whore. And he couldn't face ya about it, since you'se kind of a bitch when ya mad, Angel."

I stopped mid-pace and grinned at Fire, who was grinning at me. "You're a damn smart ass, you know that, Fire?"

She nodded like this was a compliment. "And don't ya forget it, Angel."

Our meeting was cut short, though, since Rain decided that she was tired and kept tugging on her older sister's shirt and whining about it.

"I'll keep you posted about Desiree, Angel. Whatever she's doin' she ain't gettin' away with," Fire assured me and we spit-shook firmly about it.

Until she hugged me.

I blinked in surprise as her arm came around me, hugging me fiercely. To say I was surprised would've been a severe understatement.

"Don't be a stranger, Angel, all right? If you need anything, just ask," she said softly and left as quickly as she'd come, leaving me standing with my mouth open like an absolute idiot.

Needless to say, I didn't sleep most of the night. Not that I ever slept well, but this time I was lucky I got two hours of sleep. I was up most of the night worrying about what the hell Spot and Desiree were discussing in their walk of solitude. And why didn't he let the birds trail him? What was so damn secret that even his birds couldn't follow?

Just as my eyes were closing, I could hear Pirate shouting at all of us to get up to sell. I groaned slightly and sat up, rubbing my eyes. I walked half asleep to the distribution yard, smiling slightly when we caught up with boys, exchanging hugs and claps on the back.

I would never get tired of being in Manhattan. They were such nice guys, always clamoring to say hello or to be your selling partner for the day since you were a girl and they wanted to make sure nobody ripped you off. And it wasn't because I was Spot's girl. They were always like this.

"We're going to the Battery, Angel. Ya comin'?" Charlie beamed at me and hung her arm around my neck. I bobbed my head in agreement and walked with her and Mush to the Battery, calling out headlines as we went.

We skirted around the open air market and I hardly even bothered to pay attention to the headlines I was calling out, smiling and thanking people that pressed pennies into my hand. I hoped I was giving them their papers but I wasn't paying attention.

I waved slightly to Charlie and Mush as I went off my own way when we reached Battery Park, waving my papers around like a mad woman. I fished out an old story that I'd used when I was younger and had first started out as a newsie. Telling high-class women about my abusive father who would beat me mercilessly if I didn't sell all my papers by noon always won hearts.

After all, every lie has some truth to it.

I squirmed deeper into the broom closet, crying out as his hands reached for me, forcing me o press my back tighter against the wall, hoping it would give way and swallow me up. I t never did. He grabbed my shoulders and hauled me out, tossing me away as quickly as he got a hold of me. I slid to the ground when my back hit the wall and sobbed once, fear in my eyes. He bent down and grabbed a fistful of thick, blonde locks, his breath smelling like rich Irish whisky as he sneered down at me. "I wouldn't have to do this if you weren't such a naughty, naughty little girl."

I shook out of my memories when I received a sound slap on my back, making me jump, which made Charlie jump. I looked up at her and saw the fear in her eyes.

"Goodness, I thought you were havin' a fit," she said, sounding terrified.

"'Goodness'?" I tilted my head at her and she gave me another slap on the back, smiling.

"You've been off all morning. Do we need to talk?" She hugged her last few papers to her chest and I spotted Mush heading towards us.

I shook my head and took a step back as Mush joined us, sliding his arm around Charlie's thin, shapely waist. I felt so stupid, trying to be happy with them when I was just… not happy. I pressed my lips together and smiled at them.

"I didn't get my sleep last night. I'm probably just going to go back to bed," I said, almost honestly.

Charlie smiled. "Want me to bring you back some lunch?"

"No. That's all right. I won't be hungry," I told her, and then left the park quickly, stopping at the distribution yard to sell back my papers.

I shuffled along back to the girls' Lodging House, flopped on my cot and went back to bed. I woke up to the sounds of the city outside and sat up, rubbing my eyes. I leaned over and stole Pip's pocket watch that she'd left on her bed, looking at the time. It was nearly seven o'clock. I'd slept through lunch and dinner.

I ran a brush through my hair and then tucked it up under my cap, trotting out of the Lodging House. The girls weren't home yet, which only meant that they were with the boys until curfew. I stuck my hands in my pockets and decided to join them, stopping when I realized that a high class girl who was walking on the arm of a very distinguished gentlemen wearing a top hat was Diana Pemberton.

They were walking towards me and I debated on whether to say hello or to just pull my hat lower and ignore them. I blinked a few times and started walking again, only to have my arm grabbed. I bit back a shriek and looked up, realizing that Diana had grabbed my arm.

"Lissie," she said, looking as shocked as I felt.

She looked terrible, now that we were up close. Her cheeks were red, like she'd pinched them beforehand too long, and her eyes looked tired, yet there was no bags to be seen. Her dress was neat and tidy, laced up tighter than she liked, and she was fanning herself as quickly as was deemed appropriate. The man whose arm she was on gave me a sneer.

"You know this sewer rat?" he asked her and looked down upon me like I was utterly inferior to himself and Diana.

"Yes, I do," Diana said quietly, like she was trying to defend me but couldn't risk the scandal of talking back to a man. "She's my friend, Marcus."

"Yes, well, when we are wed, you will have no such correspondence with one so… vulgar as this dirty street child," the man told her with an air of arrogance that was nothing like Spot's; it was worse.

I blinked. "Wed?" I murmured.

"Oh, goodness, where are my manners?" Diana nearly squawked. "Alyssa, may I present my fiancé, Marcus Blanchett. Marcus, this is my best friend, Alyssa O'Rourke."

I held out my hand and smiled to be polite but he just glared at my hand. I was about to pull it back but he reached out and grasped it, pumping my hand once in a way that made me fear he was about to rip my arm free of its socket.

I blinked and rubbed my shoulder in pain, watching him wipe his hands on my trousers as if I was contaminated with some hideous disease. I frowned at him.

"Yes, well, I think that's quite enough of that," Marcus said. I rolled my eyes.

"I couldn't agree more," I muttered and then tipped my hat. "Goodbye, Diana."

I stormed off and rolled my eyes. I was so happy I'd left that life. God, I couldn't even begin to describe how hideous it must be to have to be married off to some horrible man like Marcus Blanchett. Yuck.

As I was storming, I didn't notice a boy coming towards me until we collided rather hard. I blinked a few times and rubbed my head, wondering why of all times that so much was happening to me. Until a hand was extended to me and I looked up into the most beautiful brown eyes I'd ever seen.

:Whip pan to Third Person!:

She smirked in the shadows and shook Pirate's hand, giving her a few more coins for god measure.

"Nice thinking with that guy. I have to give it to you. I picked well," Desiree said and crossed her arms.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm keeping my end of the bargain. You keep yours. Spot's still not interested in you," Pirate said, glaring at her. "I've all ready planted the doubt in that stupid blonde. Now get Spot to stop thinking about her."

Desiree crossed her arms and glared back. "Spot's very difficult to understand. It takes time to crack him. You have to give me time."

Pirate gripped Desiree's shoulders and gave her a sound shake. "There ain't gonna be no time when that nitwit figures out what's going on! She may be annoying but she ain't stupid. And those friends of hers will help her out. If they figure it out, I ain't coming to your rescue, ya hear me?"

"All right, just unhand me, you brute," Desiree huffed when Pirate let her go. "I will get Spot away from her. I mean, how hard can it be? They don't even live in the same borough."

Woot! This plot twist came out of NOWHERE. But I'm loving it and it helps with the story arc that I'm working on for this story. And I'm hoping it will draw the story out as much as hideously possible because I'm LOVING this right now. Hahah, I'm such a creeper.

BTW, Miss Vivian, to answer your question, Piper is my character. She'd been buzzing around in my head for a while and I had to insert her this time around. So she's mine. Isn't she such a pistol? I love her. Hhaha.

Rain, Fire, Smooth, Izzy, Charlie and Wendy all belong to their respective owners who've given me temporary parental rights to their characters until I see fit to return them. Which will probably be at the end of the sequel to this story. (Oh geez, ANOTHER SEQUEL?)

If you like it, then review it, friends. I love you all.

CTB!

xx Wicked