Good day, all! It's been a while, hasn't it?
But my swim season is finally over, so I'm gonna have the great and glorious thing known as free time! Huzzah!
Review Responses:
lucykeeven7: Ooh, Hotshot's in trouble! Mission accomplished! The spoon fight was sufficiently hilarious. I'm always glad to make readers laugh! Thank you!
JustVildaPotter: Oh, Hotshot. He's effed up. You shall find out where Specky-boy went! Yes, Davey's accent, and HELL YEAH SPRACE!
AndrewKeenanBolgerFan: Hotshot, no. You're gonna get yourself into a fight with Spot if you keep doing this, Hotshot. That fight you've described would be especially epic. SPOT WILL MAKE HOTSHOT PAY FOR INSULTING RACE! Thank you very much!
Onward and yonward!
Chapter 48- Specs
Sunday, September 19, 1999, 11:15 a.m.
As preoccupied with throwing cutlery as the rest of his friends had been when he'd slipped out of Jacobi's, Specs had not anticipated any one of them following him. And yet, there was Katherine. She was, after all, their star reporter, so it followed that she would continue to sniff out stories.
"Specs, wait up!" The student teacher called, breaking into a jog in order to catch him up.
Specs didn't want to wait up. What he wanted was to find those newsies that were missing, and check on Romeo. To get everything back to normal, pretend the strike had never happened. But Katherine, as intuitive as she was, didn't seem able to read him.
"Where are you going?" she panted, coming to a stop near Specs.
He didn't say anything. After learning who her father was, Specs couldn't bring himself to trust Katherine, despite her insistence that she hadn't given Pulitzer any information. The fact that she was related to the very man they were fighting against, the same man who had sent the cops after the newsies the day before... none of that sat right with Specs. And on top of this new distrust, there had been so much discourse over who was missing and whose absence wasn't cause for worry that Specs no longer knew which one of his missing friends held priority. This was the second part of his reasoning for failing to answer Katherine's question: he couldn't tell her where he was going because he didn't have the faintest idea himself.
What would Jack do, Specs silently wondered, if he had friends missing?
Well, obviously, he was quick to answer himself, Jack would go out of his way to look for them.
Specs remembered now, his earlier promise to Davey, that he was going to look for Crutchie. That was a solid plan of action, but he had no starting point to work off of, having not seen where Crutchie had ended up during the riot. While the others had celebrated the success of their headline, Specs, like Smalls, had been hung up on the bad rather than the good. Crutchie could be dead, or worse. Jack's fate could be the same, or somehow, drastically different. Maybe Jack was fine, simply hiding from his friends because he no longer wanted to be bothered with the drama of the strike. It was possible he might be avoiding them. Wherever Jack was, Specs wished he knew, for if anyone had any knowledge about Crutchie's whereabouts, it was going to be Jack.
So there was his answer to both Katherine's question and his own. "I gotta find Jack an' Crutchie." As soon as possible. Preferably in that order.
A face had never fallen as fast as Katherine's did at Specs' answer. "Wait, Crutchie? You- you're sure he's missing?"
"Of course I'm sure," Specs snapped. Did she think he'd fail to notice the absence of one of the boys who had lived with him for weeks at the group home? Certainly, no one had been talking much about the missing boy, but that was because most people were hung up on Jack, and the missing of Crutchie had been thoroughly discussed at Jacobi's the previous night, before everyone had gone their separate ways. Katherine, being at the hospital during that time, hadn't been in attendance for that conversation. Therefore, it made sense that she wasn't aware that Crutchie was missing.
Except now there was something in her tone, in the way she was avoiding making eye contact with Specs, that implied she knew more than she was letting on. "Did your father tell you somethin'?" Specs demanded, hoping he was about to get a lead.
"Now that I think about it... he did mention something this morning about one of the newsies getting arrested. It slipped my mind, because I'd been thinking it was Jack, until Albert said none of you had any idea... But it must be Crutchie he was referring to, that would make the most sense."
Specs' stomach dropped into his dilapidated shoes. "So you know where Crutchie is now?"
"I don't, but I know how we can find out." As she decided this, Katherine pulled out her phone and flipped it open. "Are you up for a taxi ride?"
Fifteen minutes later, Katherine's friend Bill, who worked part time as a cabbie, had arrived to transport the pair of them to the police station, in search of answers regarding Crutchie's location. Normally, Specs would have been more wary about marching into the bullpen to demand information. But as Katherine was coming along with him on this excursion, he had his fingers crossed, hoping that the officers wouldn't give him a hard time.
Unsurprisingly, the officer behind the front desk shot a suspicious look at Specs before asking Katherine in a pleasant tone, "Can I help you with something?"
"Yes, if it isn't too much trouble," Katherine answered, nudging Specs forward so he was no longer lurking behind her. "My friend and I are curious about the riot yesterday, at Roosevelt High."
"That made front page news today, didn't it? My pal Bob was sent to break those kids up. Hey, Bob-" the officer turned to another man sitting with his back turned at a desk behind him. Bob, the man in question, swiveled around in his chair, and Specs sharply gripped the edge of the front desk, horrified to find that he vaguely recognized him. It was the man who had attacked Romeo the instant he'd arrived on the scene. "These kids wanna talk about the riot yesterday, Bob," finished the first officer.
"Really, Jeff?" asked Bob, sounding annoyed. "I'm on break." His eyes moved back and forth between Specs and Katherine. Instinctively, Specs pushed his cap lower so that it better obscured his face. This probably gave him a more suspicious appearance, but he didn't want to risk behind recognized by this officer. "What d'you kids got ta be interested in, anyway?"
Gee, I don't know, thought Specs, why don't we discuss the way you brutally concussed my friend?
Katherine was motioning for him to speak up, but he knew that if he did, his tone would showcase the way his blood was boiling at the sight of Bob. Not an ideal trait when speaking to law enforcement. Although, if there was no possibility of repercussions, Specs would've been more than happy to punch the man. But he couldn't. Instead, he held tight to the counter, focusing all of his frustrated energy into one of his legs. This caused it to bounce rapidly up and down, making a loud tapping sound against the floor.
After a moment of his resigned verbal silence, Katherine plowed ahead with the made-up reason for them being there. "We're wondering if any of those students were arrested."
Bob narrowed his eyes. "Were you two involved in the strike or somethin'?"
"No," Specs lied, putting an end to the shaking of his foot. He forced his voice to stay even as he went on, "But you see, Kath- er, Kathy's cousin goes to Roosevelt, an' she hasn't heard from him since yesterday morning, so naturally, she's becoming a bit concerned."
"Of course," said Jeff, the first officer, paying no attention to the awkward slip-up that had occurred when Specs had almost revealed Katherine's real name. "We can look into that. Bob, you all only brought in one kid yesterday, right?"
"Two, actually," Bob told them. "One of 'em got bailed out by his uncle earlier. I s'pose that'd be your cousin, 'Kathy'." He had noticed Specs' mistake, but thankfully wasn't saying anything about it.
Katherine questioned, "Were either of those boys named Jack Kelly?"
"Jeff can look through the records for ya," grunted Bob, "I'm on break." And he turned away, leaving Specs and Katherine with the officer they had initially been speaking to.
Jeff typed rapidly on the keyboard in front of him before telling the pair, "I'm sorry, I don't see any Jack Kelly in our system. But that's common for a first offense, especially if we're talking about something that happened only a day ago."
"Is there anyone you could ask?" Katherine pressed, "Perhaps the officer who actually made the arrest?"
"I suppose I could do a quick ask-around, but are you sure no one retrieved your cousin from our custody yet?"
"No one's heard from him."
"Alright," said Jeff, standing up. "Hang on a moment. I'll see what I can do."
When he had walked away, the student teacher whispered to Specs, "Why isn't Jack in their system?"
Specs knew the answer to this. It was simple, really. Glancing over at Bob to make sure the man wasn't listening in, he explained in a hushed voice, "His real name's Francis Sullivan, rememba'? He's in there under that name, for sure."
"For sure!" Katherine whisper-shouted, slapping a palm to her forehead. "I can't believe I forgot about that." Amazed, she shook her head. "Wild, isn't it, how familiar you can become with someone's false name."
That was rather wild, Specs internally agreed, thinking over how he'd been known as "Specs" since his freshman year of high school, and as "SJ" in the years before that. Kloppmann and his adoptive parents- before they'd kicked him out, that was- were the only people to ever call him Samuel. He much preferred Specs, anyhow.
Officer Jeff returned, a beaming smile on his face. "I got your answer. I was lucky enough to catch Officer Snyder just before he left for lunch."
Crap. "Officer Snyder?" Specs repeated, feeling suddenly frozen to the linoleum floor.
"He's the man who made the arrests," said Jeff, raising an eyebrow at Specs' worried tone. "He brought in Oscar Delancey, the guy who got bailed out, and another kid... uh, what was it- Charlie. Charlie Morris."
Shit. By coincidence, Specs' next question was the same as Katherine's, and they both spoke in accidental unison. "Is he still here?"
"'Fraid not."
"Then where is he?" Off Jeff's concerned look, Katherine hurriedly excused her frantic query. "Jack, my cousin, he talks a lot about a friend of his with that name. I might need to notify the kid's parents that their son's in trouble."
"Good luck with that."
Specs could tell that Jeff must have discovered the deceased state of Crutchie's parents, and was quick to put in, "She means foster parents."
"Oh. Well, either way, you're going to have some bad news for those people."
No. "Wh- whaddaya mean... How- how bad of news, exactly?"
"Uh, if you don't mind me asking, young man, what's it ta you?"
Dammit. "I..." Specs was now regretting having asked so many questions. It looked suspicious, and he knew it. "I, um..."
"He's my friend," Katherine launched into another excuse. "And he's very... very intrigued by the inner workings of the criminal justice system. I know it's a bit strange, but he's only trying to help me figure out where my cousin is."
Jeff raised an eyebrow. "And knowing about this Charlie Morris kid helps you find your cousin how?"
"Charlie might know where Jack is, so if we find him..." It was a flimsy cover story, and everyone present knew it.
Or... maybe not everyone. "Right." Jeff shrugged, "Well then, that's a-okay with me."
"So what's the bad news?" Specs asked, now that he was more or less cleared of suspicion in the eyes of this random cop.
"Officer Snyder said he found Charlie in the middle of a fight with Oscar Delancey, and that Charlie had the upper hand, that he was messin' Oscar up bad. So, he's being charged for that, and on top of it, there's a great deal of evidence that points to him committing vandalism."
"Vandalism?"
"Apparently, someone decorated one of Roosevelt High's walls during the protest, and Charlie was the last one at the scene."
Jack. Jack had written "STRIKE" in giant letters on a wall the day before. But Specs was certain that piece of art had been done in chalk, so surely, that didn't qualify as vandalism.
Katherine started, "But if the officer only suspects Charlie-"
"It's more than just suspicion, actually. Oscar gave a vivid account of seeing Charlie deface the school. He testified before our judge here. It was decided that yesterday's riot be kept quiet, and dealt with in police court as soon as possible, so Charlie received his sentence this morning. He got six months in the group home Officer Snyder runs."
That was the Refuge. God-effing-dammit.
"But," insisted Katherine, "but wasn't there anyone to bail Charlie out? Any records of foster parents or anything?"
"There was one man who's s'posed ta be looking after him... but he couldn't be reached, and we reviewed the files of some of the other boys in his care. It's a troublesome bunch, let me tell you that much. And so, our judge saw fit to remove Charlie from that home."
"That makes sense." Katherine said this, but Specs knew, that she knew, that the words hardly made sense. "Thank you for trying to help."
"Of course," Jeff gave them a content smile as they exited. "Good luck finding your cousin."
Katherine thanked him before the door swung shut, letting them out into the daylight. To Specs, the city around them looked like it was spinning. The sun was too bright, and he had to screw his eyes shut to combat it. What was he going to tell Mr. Kloppmann or the other boys at Duane Street? Why hadn't Kloppmann been available to talk to the police when they'd tried to contact him? Specs had been sitting by the landline nearly all night, how had he missed that call? He was supposed to be a leader, so why was it he could never seem to do anything when it counted most? And where the hell was Jack when the other newsies needed him?
"So, how'd it go?" Bill inquired, rushing over to the pair. "Did you get your information?"
"Oh, we got info, all right," Specs growled. "Crutchie's in the goddamn Refuge."
"I... have no idea what that is. But I assume it's someplace bad."
"Ya don't know the half a' it. The whole place is run by this monster, the Spider. He's definitely gonna beat up Crutchie." Or worse, Specs added to himself but didn't say aloud.
Katherine furthered the explanation, telling Bill, "The Refuge is where Jack used to live. It took him years to escape."
Shocked, Bill decided, "Then we've got to get your friend out of there as soon as possible."
"Ya think?" Specs shrieked, surprising even himself with the volume. "If I knew a way ta break 'im out, I'd already be there, doin' it!"
"Specs," warned Katherine, glancing warily at the police station mere paces away from the trio, "maybe quiet down a little?"
That was a valid request. Specs shut his mouth, turning to Bill, who was tapping his chin in thought. The older guy asked Katherine, "How much do you know about this Refuge place?"
"Nothing."
"Okay, what about you, Specs?"
"A lot less than Jack does. I neva' had the pleasure a' bein' locked up wit him an' Race."
"Okay... do you at least know where it is?"
Specs admitted, "I got no clue. But Smalls might remember. Don't think she's in any position ta tell us 'bout it, though."
"Well, how long do you think it'll take to get it out of her?"
Katherine studied Bill, questioning him before Specs could answer. "Why are you so curious?"
"I'm trying to figure out a way to break out this Crutchie kid. If I can get enough information as to what the security is like, I might be able to hack the Spider's system. Or something. Just an idea, of course."
"There ain't security at the Refuge," Specs scoffed, almost laughing at the way Bill was practically fantasizing about facing off with Snyder. "'cept maybe some locks on the windows, from what Jack's told me. But Snyder's awful enough on his own."
"No guards or anything? Why don't the kids break themselves out? I mean, if they all ganged up against this Spider guy, they could certainly overtake him, right?"
The answers to this rapid array of questions were answers Katherine knew, and Specs allowed her to provide them. "Mr. Snyder doesn't need guards. He's a powerful man, and most of the kids he keeps there have nowhere else to go, even if they did succeed in an escape. Besides, he always finds them eventually."
"Huh. Okay." Bill's mouth quirked up into a grin. "So, what you're saying is, it's possible to break out of there."
"Bill, no. Only Jack has ever managed to-"
"Specs, how easy do you think it'd be for you to get a good look inside the Refuge, if we went tonight?"
Specs considered. "I... think I could manage it."
"Guys," Katherine hissed, "we're in front of a police station..."
Neither boy paid attention to her warning. Specs asked Bill, "What do you have in mind?"
"I propose we start with the first step of any good heist."
"By which you mean..." Katherine prompted, her tone sharp with exasperation.
Specs smirked, catching on quickly to Bill's plan. "We gotta case the joint."
Ay! Figuring out where Crutchie is! Making absolute disaster plans!
We're very proud of Bill and Specs, aren't we?
I believe I have no school Wednesday, so I'll probably post the next chapter then. Otherwise, I'll be back next weekend.
In the meantime, please review!