Chapter 19
pBy the time Nichole stepped off the Brooklyn bridge the sun had disappeared completely and darkness engulfed her. Out of both nervouness and instinct Nichole kept glancing over her shoulder, every block or so. She thought Spot would have followed her, or atleast send one of his newsies to watch her. But the streets were deserted, save a few men who appeared to be working late. /p
pPassing by them, she quickened her pace and sighed in relief she was back in Manhattan. She wasn't completely sure where she was headed. The lodging house was only blocks away and in the general direction she was heading, but wasn't sure she would return that night. The reality of what occurred today repeated itself through her mind, and she couldn't bring herself up to face it. /p
pEverything in her life seemed to be caving in around her, and there was no way of stopping it from completely destroying her. Race was the only person holding her up and she had to be stupid enough to walk away from him. Mary could reassure her many time in her mothering voice and Blink could talk to her as many time as he wanted, but only Race could ease her worries now./p
pWhy had she reacted so stupid when Mary had confronted her this morning? Why couldn't she just pretend she was okay with the pregnancy instead of being so selfish? Now everything was screwed up because of her stupidity. /p
pStopping at a corner, she inhaled and took a rest, not realizing the fast pace she had been walking at. However, she regretted her actions when she was grabbed from behind. Her first reaction was to scream, but that was silenced when an ink cover hand clamped tightly over her mouth. She struggled and took one last glance at the lodging house that sat peacefully across the street as she was effortlessly dragged into an alley. /p
pNichole assailant flung her cruelly against the brick wall. She groaned out in pain, and gritted her teeth as she was pinned to the wall, and her head hit the brick with a sickening thud. /p
p"I told you, you'd get what was coming to you, ya little whore."/p
pNichole closed her eyes, placing a face with the voice. She knew who it was the moment he grabbed her. She maneuvered her head, wincing when the wound on her head scraped against the brick. "Nice to see you again too, Morris." /p
p"Shut up, and open your eyes, bitch!"/p
pNichole flinched against the volume of his voice and did as he said. She opened one eye and than the other. Footsteps sounded to her right. She tried to see who it was, but discontinued her effort as more weight was pressed into her back. With a small cry of pain, she clamped her eyes shut again. /p
p"I told you to open your eyes." /p
pMorris shifted behind her and she obeyed his command. She flinched back as something was held in front of face. /p
p"Remember this?"/p
pSquinting into the darkness Nichole could make out a round metal object that hung from a chain. "My necklace," She uttered. /p
pMorris laughed and shoved the necklace into pocket. "Yea it is, but that's not the point of this little get together. I bumped into your little friend Mario, and we had an interesting talk. It seems that he's here to take care of a little business."/p
pPressing harder against her back, he wrapped a hand around her neck and began to trail kisses down her jawline. Whimpering, she closed her eyes and let a single tear slip down her cheek. She knew she was trapped, and had no where to go./p
p"Now, me and Oscar, we said we would take care of his business for him, but than I thought, why would I kill you before I had a little fun with you? So, here we are now. My brother and I are going to have our fun, than leave the rest up to Mario," Removing his body weight from her back, he flung Nichole into Oscar's awaiting arms. "Of course, by the time Mario finds you, you may dead," He sneered. /p
pTears now flowed freely down her face, as she helplessly hung in Oscar's arms as Morris advanced towards her, painstakingly slow. Knowing any attempt of fighting would be useless she sighed in defeat and waited for the worst. /P
HR
pRace shifted impatiently and lifted his eyes from the cards he shuffled to the door. He sighed and went back to shuffling, finding the doorway empty. He knew Nichole didn't specify what time she would return, he was still apprehensive. It was nearly noon and none of the guys even been back to acknowledge that they seen her. New York was a huge city and it would be very unlikely to find the one person you were looking for, but there were newseis all over the city. One of them must have caught a glimpse of her. /p
pStanding, he began to pace the lobby waiting for someone, anyone to show up with some news. Another half-hour passed by slowly and the lobby still remained empty. With a frustrated grunt, he walked briskly out the door and to Tibby's where the others would surely be. /p
pUpon entering Tibby's, Race received a variety of "Heys" and "How's it rolling?" Giving a short mumble to the greetings, he plopped down in the first vacant seat next to Jack. Giving a small smile, he glanced across the table where Blink and Mary sat talking quietly, oblivious to the others around them. /p
pJack nudged his arm and whispered in a low tone. "They've been like that all day. Haven't talk to nobody but each other, so don't even bother trying." /p
pPushing Jack away, Race ignored his advice and cleared his throat loudly. "Mary, did Nick say anything to you about what time she would be back today," He paused, but than continued when Mary turned towards him questionably. "Because, she isn't back yet, and I'm starting to worry."/p
p"What the hell do you mean she's not back yet," Mary exclaimed, leaning over the table. "I thought she told you that she would be back today!" /p
pRace shrunk back, surprised by her reaction. "She did…She just didn't say when, and I kinda expected her to back by now," Race uttered, shifting uncomfortably. /p
pFalling back against the seat, she closed her eyes. "I told you she wasn't coming back," Mary whispered, turning back towards Blink./p
p"Nick is coming back," Jack reassured glancing out the window. "She wouldn't just get up and leave ya, Mary. You guys are to good of friends. Besides, where would she go," He added as an after thought. /p
pMary pulled herself out of Blink's arms. "Well, obviously you don't know Nick like I do. She had a good reason for leaving so I'm not really mad with her," She wiped her eyes and added quietly. "I just wish she would have told me she was leaving instead of lying to me." /p
pAll the boys stared at her blankly. Race was the first to muster up enough courage and ask, "And what exactly would the reason for leaving be?" /p
pMary's head snapped back towards Race, realizing her slip up. "Well…I really don't feel like discussing that," She stuttered, standing. "Why don't we go out and look for Nick. Maybe she didn't leave. Maybe she's just thinking somewhere." /p
pJack, Blink, and Race knew Mary was only trying to cover up the real problem of the situation, but stood and reluctantly followed her. The foursome wandered through the streets, none of them positive where they were going. /p
pThe boys just followed silently behind Mary, not knowing what else to do. It seemed like an eternity before Race stopped and sighed, catching the others attention. "Where the hell are we going? I want to find Nick as much as you do Mary, but this is ridiculous. We're in New York, and we don't even know where she is! She could be anywhere," He gave another loud sigh. Placing a cigar between his teeth, he lit the end and inhaled deeply, ignoring the stares her received from people in the street. /p
pMary turned and glared at him angrily. "How could you stand there and call yourself her boyfriend? Nick is gone and you don't even want to look for her," She sneered, her eyes narrowing. /p
pRace flicked the ash off the end his cigar and raised an eyebrow in surprised. He never thought sweet little Mary could get so defensive and snide. "Mary, you know I want to look Nick and find her as soon as possible, but what we are doing is pointless."/p
p"Race is right," Jack jumped in. "we don't even know if she's in Manhattan. We should just finish selling out papes, go back to the lodging house and wait for her to come back on her own." Jack stated knowingly. Blink nodded, hoping it would emphasize Jack's point. /p
p"Well, that's just stupid," Mary hissed. "What if she's hurt or in trouble somewhere and we're sitting in the lodging house waiting for her? I don't think so. I'm not going to sit around and jeopardize my best friends life."/p
pRace scoffed. "How can you sit there and call yourself her best friend when you didn't even have enough faith in her yesterday to believe that she would come back. You ask me what kind of boyfriend I am, but what kind of friend does that makeI you/I?"/p
pShe opened her mouth to say something, but closed her mouth realizing she didn't know how to react or what to say. Her mind drew a total blank. Dropping her defensive stance, she dropped her head and let her shoulders sag. "I don't know," She whispered. Turning in the other direction, she ran. /p
pBriskly running his tongue over his lips, Blink rubbed his forehead and turned giving his friends an apologetic look before run off after Mary. /p
pExhaling the last of his cigar, Race threw the snub to the ground. "Great, now things are even more screwed up than they were to begin with." /p
pJack threw an arm around his shoulders. "Things will work themselves out in time. Just got to be patient," He reassured. /p
HR
pThe lodging house was umcomfortably calm that evening. Mary returned with Blink soon after the sun set, and now sat in a corner discussing things among themselves. /p
pThrowing his cards down, Race growled and rubbed his tired eyes. His mind was too jumbled with thoughts to even try to concentrate on poker and he had just proven that to himself by losing every one of the six hands played. /p
pStanding, he excused himself from the table despite the protest of his friends and threw himself on his bed. Despite Jack's knowledgeable advice, and his own faith that Nichole would return, he was really beginning to worry. It was already late into the evening and still, nothing. No sitings from the others, no Nichole. /p
pMaybe Mary had been right this whole time. Perhaps she wasn't going to come back. Maybe she was already somewhere else planning a new life for herself. Rolling onto his side, he glanced across the room to where Blink and Mary sat in each others arms. /p
pGroaning quietly to himself, he clamped his eyes shut and rolled onto his back, hoping every horrible event would somehow just be a night of bad dreams. Unfortunately reality came crashing back down upon him, as he opened his as and everything was as it was. /p
pHis friends spread out around the bunkroom enjoying their evening, Blink and May cuddling in a corner, and no site to Nichole anywhere./p
pOut of the corner of his eye, he caught glimpse of Snipeshooter dash into the room and straight to Jack. Race turned he gaze back to the top bunk and didn't pay no attention to the two until they made a quick side glance at him. Catching the concerned look on Jack's face, he pushed himself into a sitting position and stared at them curiously. /p
pBy the time Nichole stepped off the Brooklyn bridge the sun had disappeared completely and darkness engulfed her. Out of both nervouness and instinct Nichole kept glancing over her shoulder, every block or so. She thought Spot would have followed her, or atleast send one of his newsies to watch her. But the streets were deserted, save a few men who appeared to be working late. /p
pPassing by them, she quickened her pace and sighed in relief she was back in Manhattan. She wasn't completely sure where she was headed. The lodging house was only blocks away and in the general direction she was heading, but wasn't sure she would return that night. The reality of what occurred today repeated itself through her mind, and she couldn't bring herself up to face it. /p
pEverything in her life seemed to be caving in around her, and there was no way of stopping it from completely destroying her. Race was the only person holding her up and she had to be stupid enough to walk away from him. Mary could reassure her many time in her mothering voice and Blink could talk to her as many time as he wanted, but only Race could ease her worries now./p
pWhy had she reacted so stupid when Mary had confronted her this morning? Why couldn't she just pretend she was okay with the pregnancy instead of being so selfish? Now everything was screwed up because of her stupidity. /p
pStopping at a corner, she inhaled and took a rest, not realizing the fast pace she had been walking at. However, she regretted her actions when she was grabbed from behind. Her first reaction was to scream, but that was silenced when an ink cover hand clamped tightly over her mouth. She struggled and took one last glance at the lodging house that sat peacefully across the street as she was effortlessly dragged into an alley. /p
pNichole assailant flung her cruelly against the brick wall. She groaned out in pain, and gritted her teeth as she was pinned to the wall, and her head hit the brick with a sickening thud. /p
p"I told you, you'd get what was coming to you, ya little whore."/p
pNichole closed her eyes, placing a face with the voice. She knew who it was the moment he grabbed her. She maneuvered her head, wincing when the wound on her head scraped against the brick. "Nice to see you again too, Morris." /p
p"Shut up, and open your eyes, bitch!"/p
pNichole flinched against the volume of his voice and did as he said. She opened one eye and than the other. Footsteps sounded to her right. She tried to see who it was, but discontinued her effort as more weight was pressed into her back. With a small cry of pain, she clamped her eyes shut again. /p
p"I told you to open your eyes." /p
pMorris shifted behind her and she obeyed his command. She flinched back as something was held in front of face. /p
p"Remember this?"/p
pSquinting into the darkness Nichole could make out a round metal object that hung from a chain. "My necklace," She uttered. /p
pMorris laughed and shoved the necklace into pocket. "Yea it is, but that's not the point of this little get together. I bumped into your little friend Mario, and we had an interesting talk. It seems that he's here to take care of a little business."/p
pPressing harder against her back, he wrapped a hand around her neck and began to trail kisses down her jawline. Whimpering, she closed her eyes and let a single tear slip down her cheek. She knew she was trapped, and had no where to go./p
p"Now, me and Oscar, we said we would take care of his business for him, but than I thought, why would I kill you before I had a little fun with you? So, here we are now. My brother and I are going to have our fun, than leave the rest up to Mario," Removing his body weight from her back, he flung Nichole into Oscar's awaiting arms. "Of course, by the time Mario finds you, you may dead," He sneered. /p
pTears now flowed freely down her face, as she helplessly hung in Oscar's arms as Morris advanced towards her, painstakingly slow. Knowing any attempt of fighting would be useless she sighed in defeat and waited for the worst. /P
HR
pRace shifted impatiently and lifted his eyes from the cards he shuffled to the door. He sighed and went back to shuffling, finding the doorway empty. He knew Nichole didn't specify what time she would return, he was still apprehensive. It was nearly noon and none of the guys even been back to acknowledge that they seen her. New York was a huge city and it would be very unlikely to find the one person you were looking for, but there were newseis all over the city. One of them must have caught a glimpse of her. /p
pStanding, he began to pace the lobby waiting for someone, anyone to show up with some news. Another half-hour passed by slowly and the lobby still remained empty. With a frustrated grunt, he walked briskly out the door and to Tibby's where the others would surely be. /p
pUpon entering Tibby's, Race received a variety of "Heys" and "How's it rolling?" Giving a short mumble to the greetings, he plopped down in the first vacant seat next to Jack. Giving a small smile, he glanced across the table where Blink and Mary sat talking quietly, oblivious to the others around them. /p
pJack nudged his arm and whispered in a low tone. "They've been like that all day. Haven't talk to nobody but each other, so don't even bother trying." /p
pPushing Jack away, Race ignored his advice and cleared his throat loudly. "Mary, did Nick say anything to you about what time she would be back today," He paused, but than continued when Mary turned towards him questionably. "Because, she isn't back yet, and I'm starting to worry."/p
p"What the hell do you mean she's not back yet," Mary exclaimed, leaning over the table. "I thought she told you that she would be back today!" /p
pRace shrunk back, surprised by her reaction. "She did…She just didn't say when, and I kinda expected her to back by now," Race uttered, shifting uncomfortably. /p
pFalling back against the seat, she closed her eyes. "I told you she wasn't coming back," Mary whispered, turning back towards Blink./p
p"Nick is coming back," Jack reassured glancing out the window. "She wouldn't just get up and leave ya, Mary. You guys are to good of friends. Besides, where would she go," He added as an after thought. /p
pMary pulled herself out of Blink's arms. "Well, obviously you don't know Nick like I do. She had a good reason for leaving so I'm not really mad with her," She wiped her eyes and added quietly. "I just wish she would have told me she was leaving instead of lying to me." /p
pAll the boys stared at her blankly. Race was the first to muster up enough courage and ask, "And what exactly would the reason for leaving be?" /p
pMary's head snapped back towards Race, realizing her slip up. "Well…I really don't feel like discussing that," She stuttered, standing. "Why don't we go out and look for Nick. Maybe she didn't leave. Maybe she's just thinking somewhere." /p
pJack, Blink, and Race knew Mary was only trying to cover up the real problem of the situation, but stood and reluctantly followed her. The foursome wandered through the streets, none of them positive where they were going. /p
pThe boys just followed silently behind Mary, not knowing what else to do. It seemed like an eternity before Race stopped and sighed, catching the others attention. "Where the hell are we going? I want to find Nick as much as you do Mary, but this is ridiculous. We're in New York, and we don't even know where she is! She could be anywhere," He gave another loud sigh. Placing a cigar between his teeth, he lit the end and inhaled deeply, ignoring the stares her received from people in the street. /p
pMary turned and glared at him angrily. "How could you stand there and call yourself her boyfriend? Nick is gone and you don't even want to look for her," She sneered, her eyes narrowing. /p
pRace flicked the ash off the end his cigar and raised an eyebrow in surprised. He never thought sweet little Mary could get so defensive and snide. "Mary, you know I want to look Nick and find her as soon as possible, but what we are doing is pointless."/p
p"Race is right," Jack jumped in. "we don't even know if she's in Manhattan. We should just finish selling out papes, go back to the lodging house and wait for her to come back on her own." Jack stated knowingly. Blink nodded, hoping it would emphasize Jack's point. /p
p"Well, that's just stupid," Mary hissed. "What if she's hurt or in trouble somewhere and we're sitting in the lodging house waiting for her? I don't think so. I'm not going to sit around and jeopardize my best friends life."/p
pRace scoffed. "How can you sit there and call yourself her best friend when you didn't even have enough faith in her yesterday to believe that she would come back. You ask me what kind of boyfriend I am, but what kind of friend does that makeI you/I?"/p
pShe opened her mouth to say something, but closed her mouth realizing she didn't know how to react or what to say. Her mind drew a total blank. Dropping her defensive stance, she dropped her head and let her shoulders sag. "I don't know," She whispered. Turning in the other direction, she ran. /p
pBriskly running his tongue over his lips, Blink rubbed his forehead and turned giving his friends an apologetic look before run off after Mary. /p
pExhaling the last of his cigar, Race threw the snub to the ground. "Great, now things are even more screwed up than they were to begin with." /p
pJack threw an arm around his shoulders. "Things will work themselves out in time. Just got to be patient," He reassured. /p
HR
pThe lodging house was umcomfortably calm that evening. Mary returned with Blink soon after the sun set, and now sat in a corner discussing things among themselves. /p
pThrowing his cards down, Race growled and rubbed his tired eyes. His mind was too jumbled with thoughts to even try to concentrate on poker and he had just proven that to himself by losing every one of the six hands played. /p
pStanding, he excused himself from the table despite the protest of his friends and threw himself on his bed. Despite Jack's knowledgeable advice, and his own faith that Nichole would return, he was really beginning to worry. It was already late into the evening and still, nothing. No sitings from the others, no Nichole. /p
pMaybe Mary had been right this whole time. Perhaps she wasn't going to come back. Maybe she was already somewhere else planning a new life for herself. Rolling onto his side, he glanced across the room to where Blink and Mary sat in each others arms. /p
pGroaning quietly to himself, he clamped his eyes shut and rolled onto his back, hoping every horrible event would somehow just be a night of bad dreams. Unfortunately reality came crashing back down upon him, as he opened his as and everything was as it was. /p
pHis friends spread out around the bunkroom enjoying their evening, Blink and May cuddling in a corner, and no site to Nichole anywhere./p
pOut of the corner of his eye, he caught glimpse of Snipeshooter dash into the room and straight to Jack. Race turned he gaze back to the top bunk and didn't pay no attention to the two until they made a quick side glance at him. Catching the concerned look on Jack's face, he pushed himself into a sitting position and stared at them curiously. /p