Chapter 2
***8 years ago***
"…Katarina?"
I looked up from the bench I was sitting on, but when I saw who had approached me, I froze. My grandmother, my mother's mother, her face contorted with emotion, swept her arms around me and wept. I had never known her too well since she only saw me once when I was a baby and she never wrote or sent gifts or anything.
"The last time I saw you, you were just a tiny little baby. Now look at you! It's been so long!"
"Where's my father?"
She abruptly stopped crying and pulled away from me. Her blue eyes were filled with pain and sadness.
"Katarina, why are you still thinking about him?"
This confused me. Why shouldn't I be thinking about my father? Nobody ever told me about him. Not even Mother. Why shouldn't I be curious? And they did say he was living in Brooklyn.
"He was a newsie, Katarina. Newsies are not the kind of people you would want to get acquainted with. They run around the streets making awful noise with their yelling. Your father was nothing better. I don't understand why your mother took to him."
"Well, if it weren't for that newsie, I never would've been born, would I?"
This left my grandmother speechless. Staring at me intently, she realized that I was not just an ordinary child. She took my arm and said softly, "You are not like I thought you would be, Katarina. But that makes no difference, because you are my granddaughter and I will always love you. It does not matter how you think about your father because as long as that's what you think of him, I will not torment you to think anything else. Now, let's go home, hmm?"
I wanted to shout that I didn't have a home and that she was not my family. If she was, then how come she never came to see me? Suddenly, my face filled with tears. And I started sobbing. My mother was dead, and my father was nowhere to be found. Who else could I turn to? Grandmother, seeing through my troubles, wrapped me in a big, warm hug. I did not push her away in anger, I could no longer be angry. I just continued sobbing. She took me to her house, which was very big, much bigger than where my mother and I lived. And from then on, my grandmother raised me.
My grandmother was very rich and always got me whatever I wanted. And she also made sure I got a proper education at a good school. There I learned all sorts of things that I never knew. I had taken a rather liking to painting, which became a daily activity for me, and I stayed away from the newsies. I never really bothered to pay attention to them, but I always had a certain attraction to them. They were free to roam around the streets, not sitting at a desk in a school and listening to the teacher's talking. And they did not worry about how to dress, talk, or eat. Especially suitors. My grandmother would always try to find me some old, rich, and disgusting slob to marry. My life was heaven compared to before, but there was never any freedom. I loved my grandmother, but there were times when I wished that she would just leave me alone. As I said, life was heaven compared to before, but that all changed at about a month ago and the one thing I feared so much had finally come.
***1 month before Katarina goes to the Lodge House***
I had just celebrated my 15th birthday a week ago and was walking home when suddenly a woman with short blond hair and in a white uniform came over to me.
"Um, Ms. Katarina Strutly?"
I answered yes, but I wondered who this lady was since I had never met her before ever since I came to Brooklyn. She told me to come with her quickly to the hospital and rushed me into a carriage. Along the way she introduced herself and explained everything.
"I'm one of the nurses of the hospital and Dr. Frank sent me to come here and fetch you because your grandmother is in the hospital sick at this very moment."
I froze at her words. My grandmother in the hospital? How could it be? She was always in perfect condition.
"But…"
"She was struck by a disease passing Brooklyn and has never been able to get rid of it."
I couldn't speak. How could my grandmother, the most careful person in the world, catch a disease? She never seemed like she was sick. I was so shocked, I could not move, I opened my mouth but no words came out. Suddenly, the whole carriage started spinning and everything went black.
"Ms. Strutly?"
I opened my eyes and looked around. It seemed that I wasn't in the carriage anymore, but in a brilliantly furnished room with lots of paintings. It reminded me of my grandmother's house.
"Ahem, Ms. Strutly?"
I snapped back into the room instantly and looked at the impatient speaker who was slightly annoyed that I wasn't paying attention. I looked up and saw two men. One was tall and had a beard and seemed to be the one who was talking to me by his expression; the other was bald and slightly pudgy. The tall one cleared his throat and started to speak again.
"Ms. Strutly, I'm Dr. Frank, and this is Mr. Emerson. You fainted on the way here. I'm terribly sorry, but your grandmother just passed away an hour ago."
I froze. My grandmother had just died? This wasn't possible! She was always so healthy and happy!! Why would she leave me like this?
"I'm sorry to interrupt your little dream, but could we get onto other important matters?"
I was shocked by Dr. Frank's words. Was the fact that my grandmother just died not important? I wanted to strangle him, but I kept my anger in.
"Alright then, what's the important matter you wanted to discuss?"
Mr. Emerson spoke up. "Actually, it's something I wanted to discuss with you. We figured that your grandmother could not make it before she really died, so we had been looking for a will that she wrote. Unfortunately, we never found one, so nothing of hers can be put into your possession. I'm sorry, but you cannot occupy that home anymore. But I'm sure you will find a home with another one of your relatives."
Once again, I was left speechless. My grandmother had never been the one to socialize, so she didn't have that many friends. Wait, if I didn't have a place to stay, then that meant that I'd have to live in an orphanage!! I couldn't do that!! I'd never survive! I realized that living with my grandmother had made me extremely needy. I had to depend on someone to be able to survive. And I definitely wouldn't get what I needed in an orphanage. I had lived in an orphanage before when my mother died and I hadn't gone to Brooklyn yet. Oh, it was horrible. I shudder just to think of it. Everything was dirty and the air was bad and since I was so small, I often became the target for rude remarks and laughs.
It was a while before I realized that I was being pushed out of Dr. Frank's office. He had become very agitated with me and was trying to get rid of me as soon as possible. He led me out of the hospital and said to me, "I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do. I'd take you in myself if I could. You've got quite a pretty face I must say, and would do me some good." He chuckled to himself and walked away. Horrified at his last remark, I rushed away as quickly as possible.
