Having left a note and breakfast for Katja, I resumed selling the next day. I can't afford to take too many days off. Even if I can swing it financially, I risk losing the faith of my regular customers. It was surprising how understanding they were, especially later in the shift. Most of them had seen the accident, and some of them had even known the Fischers and seen us at our regular lunch bench. I was asked to pass on so many condolences and received them myself. It was obvious that even those who hadn't known Mr. Fischer personally had respected him from afar, and that made me feel a bit better. The morning edition sold relatively well, especially since I had set lower goals for the day, and I headed back to the lodging house to meet Katja. We took Jimmy for a walk, and then I walked her to work like I often had earlier this spring. That part, other than the route, felt mostly normal, and I think the prospect of a routine put Katja at ease.

"What about him?" Katja asked, motioning to the dog at her heels. We had normally dropped him at the apartment before, but I had an idea. I explained about Roller, and she agreed.

When we arrived and Katja's friend Muriel came out to meet us, we knew something was up. I was immediately on edge. Katja did NOT need this, and quite frankly, neither did I. We headed over to the little cafe, and Katja led me over to a portly man in his early thirties who didn't bother with introductions as he jumped into the reason for the meeting.

"The police were looking for you at work. They were checking the papers of all the girls," he said by way of greeting. Damn. I had hoped that simply finding her gone from the apartment would be enough for us to move on. She really didn't need this now, but at least the guy got rid of them and warned us. He gave me an uneasy feeling, but I have to admit that he stepped up on this one.

"You gonna do something about it?" I said, which probably sounded more aggressive than the guy deserved.

"Calm down, young man. Yes, I have an idea. I was to be switched to day shift tomorrow. Since Katie has worked that before, she can switch back. She may need to find a place to stay until trouble ends. It might be awhile before things settle down. The police were not happy to find her apartment empty."

Well, given what she's been through in the last few days, I wasn't about to send her to stay with anyone unless she wanted to. Besides, the lodging house is safe-girls aren't supposed to be there, after all. And day shift worked well-it actually fit our schedule at the lodging house better. Santorelli seemed to agree, and he left us cash and departed without having eaten anything. I grinned-I love it when people give me money for no reason.

"What do I do now?" Katja asked, and I grabbed the dollar.

"We eat lunch, take the change, and buy a few extra papes," I said, and Katja laughed-a real laugh. It felt so good to hear that, and it must have felt good. She stopped laughing abruptly, and I jumped in quickly.

"Hey, what do you want to eat?" I asked, and she smiled. Good. Small steps.

Katja opted to spend the day selling with Roller and Jimmy. To tell the truth, I think she was embarrassed to try her hand in front of me. I wasn't surprised-as shy as she is, selling isn't really her speed-but I was also glad. Not only is the kid good for her, but I needed to focus on my selling and on the goings on on my turf. I wanted to see if I could earn a little extra-the leftover from lunch didn't do much to make up for the missed sales over the past days, and I needed to see and be seen.

The fresh air and the time spent with Roller and the dog were good for Katja. I suspect she really needs space and the outdoors. That evening a few of the guys spent some time trying to teach her poker, which might even be less her thing than selling newspapers. She has an open expression, and I was pleased to see occasional smiles. Maybe we could find a normal for her that worked. Maybe that normal could include a move forward in our relationship, something I had not really thought about for a few days. Love is a funny thing. When things are calm, my focus is on our relationship-on both of us. When she is hurting, though, my focus is only on her well-being. Nothing matters except that she is safe and happy. She wasn't there yet, but I am hoping she will be soon.

I allowed myself the luxury of not going on watch tonight but heading to bed and falling into an unusually deep sleep. It took Ace shaking my shoulder to alert me to the voices downstairs. That's unusual for me.

"Bulls," he whispered. "Coming to the Lodging House. I think they're looking for Katja," he said. He'd been on watch. I knew there was a good reason I did that, but I didn't have time to think of that now. My mind raced. First get her out, then explain her things. The roof. Okay. I got a poor, bewildered, and frightened Katja out the window and had a flash of inspiration. I ran into the bunkroom and woke Roller. The poor boy was still confused as I dragged him into Katja's bed.

"Bulls," I said once I knew he could register the information. "If they come in, the stuff is your sister's." He nodded, then went to his work. I have to hand it to the kid-he's a natural actor. Learning to sell newspapers at this early stage in life helps. He "fell asleep" so convincingly as I went downstairs to play my own part.

It worked like a charm. Roller had the bulls backing off, he was so convincing. I half believed him myself! Of course, he is just a kid, so is it any wonder he fell asleep almost before the bulls had left? I waited a few minutes before climbing out of my own window to go rescue a likely cold, confused, and frightened Katja.

"So what do I do?" she asked as I filled her in on what had happened.

"For now? Come back down and sleep. Tomorrow we'll come up with something," I said as we climbed back down the fire escape.

"I left Roller in your bed in case they come back. For tonight you can bunk with me," I said, suddenly aware of the nice side effect this little adventure would have. She nodded as she followed me back into my room. I couldn't help but think how right it felt to have her there beside me-how well she fit into my side. She fell asleep almost immediately, and much as I wanted to stay awake and and enjoy it, my own feeling of contentedness meant I also fell asleep quickly.