The gunshot echoed through the whole building.

Isie stared at her brother, wide-eyed with shock. He still held the gun still, smoke dancing around the barrel. Her attention turned back to Wolfe who lay on the floor writhing in pain, blood oozing from the fresh wound. At the last moment, Spot had lowered the barrel of the gun, lodging a bullet in the man's leg, just above the knee.

"You pass that message along to your boss, with my compliments," Spot said with a smirk, kicking the wounded man toward the door.

Champ tried to slow his heart rate as he watched Wolfe crawl toward the door. The adrenaline rush from the fight and being far too close to someone who had just been shot had the blood pumping through his veins so quickly that it made him dizzy. As soon as Wolfe was safely out the door, Champ threw the bolt across and turned to Spot. "A warning would have been nice. That was a little to close for comfort."

Spot shrugged and turned his back to the door, leaning against the rough wood.

Kiara sat frozen on the bed as the boys around her stirred from sleep and bolted out the door. She felt like all the blood had drained from her body. If she had learned one thing from her dealings with the O'Shea gang, it was that when they shot, they never missed. A sudden vision of a certain redhead facing the cold steel barrel of Wolfe's gun flashed before her eyes and she felt her pulse accelerate. Mustering up as much courage as she could manage, she pushed herself off the bed and followed the throng of newsies down the stairs.

"Nothing to see here boys," she heard echo from the lobby as she slowly descended the stairs. "Get back to bed."

She plastered herself against the wall as the crowd of boys pushed passed her and headed back to the bunk room. When they had finally cleared out, she got her first view of the lobby. Wolfe was nowhere to be seen, but there was a trail of blood that led out the door. Her eyes instinctively searched for Isie, scanning her petite body quickly to insure that she was unharmed. Satisfied that Isie wasn't injured, she let her eyes wander across the room. They settled on Champ, sitting on the tattered couch directly across the room from her, hanging his head. Even from across the room, she could see his hands shaking faintly. He chose that moment to look up, locking his green eyes with hers. A slow smile crept across his lips as he stood and swiftly crossed the room.

Champ's nerves immediately calmed when he saw Kiara come down the stairs. There was something comforting in her presence. All thoughts of the fight and shooting were replaced with thoughts that he didn't really want to admit to yet. He reached her just as she reached the final step and tentatively rested a hand on either side of her slender waist, his eyes never leaving hers. As if reading his thoughts and giving silent consent, Kiara wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her.

Their intimate moment was quickly interrupted when Spot's voice pierced the air.

"What the hell have you gotten us into Isabel?" He pushed her backward with the tip of his can poking into her shoulder until he back knocked into the wall. Jack lunged for Spot, pulling him off of Isie and landing them both on the floor in the process. Two years of pent up frustration between the two of them bubbled to the surface and fists started flying.

Blondie dashed across the room and went to pull them apart, getting an elbow to the eye for his trouble. "A little help here Champ!"

The redhead in question reluctantly broke away from Kiara, somehow oblivious to the fight happening behind them. When he saw the tangle of body parts and Blondie's reddening eye, Champ cursed and bolted toward them. He and Blondie each reached for one of the leaders and tried in vein to pull them apart. Isie joined in the chaos, reaching blindly into the mess or limbs to calm them men any way she could.

Suddenly everything seemed to move in slow motion. Spot pulled away quickly, sending Blondie flailing across the floor. Before anyone could react, the revolver was pulled from its forgotten place at the back of Spot's pants and aimed directly at Jack.

Everyone in the room froze.

"Put the gun down, Spot," Champ pleaded, holding up a hand and trying to pull Jack out of the line of fire at the same moment. Blondie tried to lunge at Spot's extended hand, but was knocked backward by the business end of his cane.

"None of this would have happened if it weren't for you," Spot spat venomously, cocking the gun.

Without hesitation, Isie stepped in front of Jack and into the line of fire. When Jack finally recovered from the shock, he tried to push Isie back out of the way, but she stood her ground.

"You going to shoot me Spot?" She raised her head defiantly. "Cause if anyone is to blame here, it's me."

Spot's hand began to shake, but he didn't lower the gun.

"Go ahead," Isie continued defiantly. "Do it. I dare you."