It was one of her roommates that gave her the news that she was being
dismissed from Mrs. Donnelly's boarding house. Two others came to help her
pack her things while Ophelia cowered in the corner whimpering, wondering
where she could go.
Mrs. Donnelly sat downstairs chain smoking at the kitchen table and refused to speak with anyone. As the clock ticked, the young boarders tiptoed around the house whispering and waiting to see who would relent first.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Race finally found Mush in the alley next to their apartment building beating the shit out of a sand-filled burlap bag.
"Shit… I fergot 'bout the fight tomorrow…." He ran his fingers through his thick hair. His head was pounding from the day's events, and he hadn't slept in over two days.
"S'okay," Mush breathed as he slammed his right fist into the bag again.
"Sumptin wrong Mushy-boy?" Race asked as he patted Mush on the back.
"Got swindled inta 'elpin da Mannigan boys tonight," Mush stopped hitting the punching bag and kicked at a rat that was trying to sneak by them.
"Dat Timmy Michelson is trouble I hear," Race commented as he lit his freshly stolen cigar. "What's he got ya doin'?"
"Meetin' wit' Spot ta scare some barbar that's been causin' trouble in dere neighborhood. Gonna take all my energy not ta beat da shit outta Spot instead."
"Wanna drag?" Race asked as he offered Mush his cigar. Mush nodded and took a puff of it.
"I gotta get ta da west side ta meet Spot." Mush offered his hand and Race spit in his and they shook before Mush walked out of the lighted street and into the shadows beyond.
Rounding the corner to the front of the apartment building, Race noticed a lone girl arguing with one of the tenants. He recognized her as one of Ophelia's friends from work. "Hey Kathryn!"
The girl stopped talking and turned and squinted at Race. Once she recognized him, she ran to him. "You have ta come ta the house. Mrs. Donnelly made up her mind. She's kicking Ophelia out! You gotta do somethin'!"
"Calm down kid. I'm on my way. But go ta da pub down da street and tell Kid Blink ta get his butt to da boarding house. Tell 'im Race said so."
She thanked him and leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, then ran down the street towards the pub.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Mush cursed to himself the whole way to bar he was supposed to meet Spot at. Spot sat outside the bar on a wooden crate nursing a pint of beer. He looked up and nodded at Mush. He couldn't rightly make eye contact with Mush after that afternoon's confrontation with his girlfriend.
Mush leaned against the wall next to Spot. "So where we gotta go?" he stuffed his hands in his pockets.
Spot took another sip of his ale. "Ten blocks down. It's 'bout supper time. Good time ta scare 'em."
Mush was confused. "Ya mean in front a his family??"
Spot just nodded. Mush felt the blood rush to his face, but tried to restrain himself. "Let's jus' go get dis over wit'," he said and started in the direction Spot had pointed earlier. Spot jumped up and caught up with Mush.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Mrs. Donnelly didn't even put up a fight with Race as he started up the stairs to Ophelia's room. He'd never been upstairs before, but some girls quietly pointed him in the direction of her room. One of her roommates was trying to convince Ophelia to get up off the floor when he walked in. When she saw him enter, she quickly left the room for she knew the consequences of being in one of the bedrooms with a boy. Ophelia remained where she was, curled up in fetal position on the floor, her face buried in her arms.
"Opie? Hey," hey said softly.
Ophelia looked up, her eyes were huge with shock and confusion. But instead of saying anything, she threw up her arms to him as a child would to its mother. Race kneeled down in front of her and embraced her, at the same time picking her up and setting her on her feet. She held onto him tightly enough that he had to loosen her arms to breathe properly. He smoothed down her shiny black hair and just held her as she sobbed onto his shoulder.
"Isn't dis a purty sight?" a voice interrupted. They both turned to see Blink standing in the doorway. "Ya sent fer me?" he said with a smirk and a slight bow.
"Yeah," Race said. "Can ya grab her bags? We're gonna put her up in my apartment until we find a new place fer her."
Ophelia gasped. She was still at a loss for words. Race was coming to save her!
Blink carried her two carpetbags out the front door, while Race helped Ophelia out. Before leaving, he turned to Mrs. Donnelly, who was looming in the hallway, and winked. She smiled and nodded at him, "Ya take of dat girl, ya hear me?"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Spot thought maybe they should have brought more people along with them, but never questioned his boss, especially lately since he hadn't yet been chastised for fixing those fights. He hoped maybe they'd overlook it if he did everything else right.
Mush didn't seem to be in the mood to talk, but that was fine with Spot, who was feeling somewhat guilty about threatening Sadie earlier. He figured she wouldn't tell Mush, but one can't be too careful – especially when girls were involved. They reached the building with the barbershop on the first floor and the barber's apartment on the second, and Spot pulled Mush into the shadows.
"What's da plan?" Mush whispered.
"Here take dis," Spot handed him a broken pipe, "Jus' break some windows, throw some shit around. Dis ain't nuttin big. I'll run in and leave dis note from da big boss, den we leave. Quick an easy."
"Where should we meet if sumptin goes wrong?" Mush asked.
"Meet at da same tavern. Ready?"
"Ready."
The two young men stormed the barbershop. Mush shattered the two large front windows with the pipe. Spot broke the front door with a metal bar, and kicked it in. Inside, he pushed over the heavy barber chairs. Before Mush even made it through the doorway, they were both stopped by a gunshot. They both froze like deer in headlights.
Spot dropped his boss's letter to the barber on the floor and escaped through the broken window. He was three blocks away before a he realized Mush wasn't behind him.
Mrs. Donnelly sat downstairs chain smoking at the kitchen table and refused to speak with anyone. As the clock ticked, the young boarders tiptoed around the house whispering and waiting to see who would relent first.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Race finally found Mush in the alley next to their apartment building beating the shit out of a sand-filled burlap bag.
"Shit… I fergot 'bout the fight tomorrow…." He ran his fingers through his thick hair. His head was pounding from the day's events, and he hadn't slept in over two days.
"S'okay," Mush breathed as he slammed his right fist into the bag again.
"Sumptin wrong Mushy-boy?" Race asked as he patted Mush on the back.
"Got swindled inta 'elpin da Mannigan boys tonight," Mush stopped hitting the punching bag and kicked at a rat that was trying to sneak by them.
"Dat Timmy Michelson is trouble I hear," Race commented as he lit his freshly stolen cigar. "What's he got ya doin'?"
"Meetin' wit' Spot ta scare some barbar that's been causin' trouble in dere neighborhood. Gonna take all my energy not ta beat da shit outta Spot instead."
"Wanna drag?" Race asked as he offered Mush his cigar. Mush nodded and took a puff of it.
"I gotta get ta da west side ta meet Spot." Mush offered his hand and Race spit in his and they shook before Mush walked out of the lighted street and into the shadows beyond.
Rounding the corner to the front of the apartment building, Race noticed a lone girl arguing with one of the tenants. He recognized her as one of Ophelia's friends from work. "Hey Kathryn!"
The girl stopped talking and turned and squinted at Race. Once she recognized him, she ran to him. "You have ta come ta the house. Mrs. Donnelly made up her mind. She's kicking Ophelia out! You gotta do somethin'!"
"Calm down kid. I'm on my way. But go ta da pub down da street and tell Kid Blink ta get his butt to da boarding house. Tell 'im Race said so."
She thanked him and leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, then ran down the street towards the pub.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Mush cursed to himself the whole way to bar he was supposed to meet Spot at. Spot sat outside the bar on a wooden crate nursing a pint of beer. He looked up and nodded at Mush. He couldn't rightly make eye contact with Mush after that afternoon's confrontation with his girlfriend.
Mush leaned against the wall next to Spot. "So where we gotta go?" he stuffed his hands in his pockets.
Spot took another sip of his ale. "Ten blocks down. It's 'bout supper time. Good time ta scare 'em."
Mush was confused. "Ya mean in front a his family??"
Spot just nodded. Mush felt the blood rush to his face, but tried to restrain himself. "Let's jus' go get dis over wit'," he said and started in the direction Spot had pointed earlier. Spot jumped up and caught up with Mush.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Mrs. Donnelly didn't even put up a fight with Race as he started up the stairs to Ophelia's room. He'd never been upstairs before, but some girls quietly pointed him in the direction of her room. One of her roommates was trying to convince Ophelia to get up off the floor when he walked in. When she saw him enter, she quickly left the room for she knew the consequences of being in one of the bedrooms with a boy. Ophelia remained where she was, curled up in fetal position on the floor, her face buried in her arms.
"Opie? Hey," hey said softly.
Ophelia looked up, her eyes were huge with shock and confusion. But instead of saying anything, she threw up her arms to him as a child would to its mother. Race kneeled down in front of her and embraced her, at the same time picking her up and setting her on her feet. She held onto him tightly enough that he had to loosen her arms to breathe properly. He smoothed down her shiny black hair and just held her as she sobbed onto his shoulder.
"Isn't dis a purty sight?" a voice interrupted. They both turned to see Blink standing in the doorway. "Ya sent fer me?" he said with a smirk and a slight bow.
"Yeah," Race said. "Can ya grab her bags? We're gonna put her up in my apartment until we find a new place fer her."
Ophelia gasped. She was still at a loss for words. Race was coming to save her!
Blink carried her two carpetbags out the front door, while Race helped Ophelia out. Before leaving, he turned to Mrs. Donnelly, who was looming in the hallway, and winked. She smiled and nodded at him, "Ya take of dat girl, ya hear me?"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Spot thought maybe they should have brought more people along with them, but never questioned his boss, especially lately since he hadn't yet been chastised for fixing those fights. He hoped maybe they'd overlook it if he did everything else right.
Mush didn't seem to be in the mood to talk, but that was fine with Spot, who was feeling somewhat guilty about threatening Sadie earlier. He figured she wouldn't tell Mush, but one can't be too careful – especially when girls were involved. They reached the building with the barbershop on the first floor and the barber's apartment on the second, and Spot pulled Mush into the shadows.
"What's da plan?" Mush whispered.
"Here take dis," Spot handed him a broken pipe, "Jus' break some windows, throw some shit around. Dis ain't nuttin big. I'll run in and leave dis note from da big boss, den we leave. Quick an easy."
"Where should we meet if sumptin goes wrong?" Mush asked.
"Meet at da same tavern. Ready?"
"Ready."
The two young men stormed the barbershop. Mush shattered the two large front windows with the pipe. Spot broke the front door with a metal bar, and kicked it in. Inside, he pushed over the heavy barber chairs. Before Mush even made it through the doorway, they were both stopped by a gunshot. They both froze like deer in headlights.
Spot dropped his boss's letter to the barber on the floor and escaped through the broken window. He was three blocks away before a he realized Mush wasn't behind him.