Chapter 4:

It was near dawn as Spot wearily trudged up the walk to the house. He entered to find it all dark but one small light, where Rae was sitting on a chair, asleep, with Sam dozing in his cradle at her feet. Kendra slept curled up in Rae's lap, her tiny fists tightly clutching Rae's robe. With a smile, he crossed the room, and gently kissed Rae's forehead.

She slowly opened her eyes and gave him a weary smile. "Hey," she whispered.

"Hello," he replied with a smile in return. "Did you wait up for me?"

"I was going to wait up alone, but two someones wouldn't let me."

Gently, he patted Kendra's head. "Well of course, they want to protect their mom, as they should." Again, he smiled.

"Want to help me get them to their beds?"

"Sure." He scooped up Sam's cradle and rested it on his hip. "Lead the way, fair damsel."

She smiled and shook her head as she headed up the stairs with Kendra in her arms.

He followed her and set Sam at the foot of their bed.

Rae placed Kendra in the bed in the girls' room, before joining Spot in their room. "How did everything go?" she inquired, crawling into bed next to him.

"Well, Chris was about as rotten and immature as I assumed he'd be." He grinned a bit. "But I think Brooklyn will knock him straight again."

"Silk?" Rae asked around a yawn.

With a soft laugh, he nodded. "You know me too well."

She smiled and rested her head on his shoulder.

"How were the kids? Any trouble?"

"Julie moped around a bit, but no real problems."

"About Chris?" He looked at her curiously. "I told her she could have come if she wanted to."

"She didn't want to, but she does miss him.  From what I gathered, they've never been separated before."

He looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully for a while. "I wonder what made him start behaving like this." It certainly boggled his mind. Perfectly well behaved to downright rebellious. "Did Julie say anything about him acting out before?"

"No.  Do you think it could be because they still haven't heard from their father?"

Pausing to consider this, he finally replied, "You know... I don't know... If it is... we probably could have went a little easier on him... we both have been in... similar- though not quite- situations."

Rae sighed. "How much longer were we supposed to let it continue? First the fire, then leaving the twins in the woods, and letting Kendra fall down the stairs. Were we supposed to wait until one was them was seriously hurt or even killed?"

"Well, no, of course not... I just thought... aghh.." He sighed.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.  "Maybe I shouldn't have said anything."

Spot shook his head. "You had a point."

"I wish there had been some other way."

"So do I."

She sighed deeply. "I wish we could find their father."

He nodded. "I wonder if there's a way we could ... I don't know... search more area...." He sighed. "It's an awful big world though..."

"That's the problem."

"Yes.... that's almost the only problem."

Rae yawned loudly and nodded.

With a smile, he kissed her gently. "Go to sleep."

"Yes sir," she whispered sleepily.

"Love you," he murmured.

"Love you...too..."

* * *

Chris tossed about on the thin, uncomfortable mattress that rested on the bunk Hades had grudgingly given him. She was just about as eager to see him as he was to be there. And boy, had she given up a fight about it. He groaned, hearing a couple of boys snoring, one talking in his sleep about dancing donkeys, and a few others tossing fitfully in their dreams. Maybe he should just leave. Hades would sure be happy to see him leave. So would Blank, Shadow and Molly.

Besides, having all these people around was liable to drive him batty! At first, he thought the house with Spot, Rae, and everyone was crowded... but never before had he seen such a small building stuffed to the gills with ... just people! What he really wanted to do was go find his father, but he didn't have to money for passage to Europe, so he was stuck here until he earned enough money to do so. IF his father was even still IN Europe, reason argued. He frowned deeply, shifting his weight off a hard lump in the mattress.

"Quit moving around and go to sleep!" A rough voice from the bunk below his muttered.

Chris fell motionless. He didn't remember who was sleeping down there, and at that moment, he didn't really want to find out. He sighed. I wonder what Julie is doing...

"Sleeping like the rest of us are TRYING to do!" Chris hadn't realized that he had spoken his thoughts. "You're already on my bad side, kid. I'd suggest not making me any madder," Blank muttered, from beneath him.

Oh right... it was Blank... Chris grumbled under his breath and, if it were daylight, he would have been able to give Blank a glare to end all glares.

"Go to sleep, kid. We have to get up with the sun."

"I'm trying," he muttered, rolling onto his other side.

"Quiet!" someone from across the room hissed loudly.

The door flew open and Hades stormed in. "SHUT UP NOW! We can hear all your noise across the hall." And the room fell totally silent, even from the sleepers. "GOODNIGHT!" she barked, before slamming the door shut again.

And there was no more to be said on any subject for the remainder of that night.

* * *

Morning came far too early for Chris, but he managed to crawl out of bed and follow the newsies to the distribution center.  Once there he reached into his back pocket to grab his wallet, but found it empty.

'Must've left it in the lodging house,' he thought, frowning. He turned and headed back in the direction of the house.

A girl about his age stood in front of the gate, blocking his way.  "Looking for this?" she asked, holding up his wallet.

His mouth fell open. "Wha- how... you?... Where'd you find that?"

She snickered. "In your pocket."

"But.... I..." Then he gave her an accusing look. "You picked my pocket!

"Of course."

He choked. "What do you MEAN of course?!"

"It's my job to pick pockets."

"Not mine!" he yelped.

"Yes, yours actually. I got paid good money to pick your pocket."

"I- you- I- WHAT!"

She tossed the wallet at him. "See ya 'round, kid," she said, walking away.

He fumbled, catching the wallet and poked through it. "Hey! I had two dollars in here!" he yelled.

"Check your pocket," she yelled over her shoulder.

So he did. The two dollars where there, just like she said.  He chased after her. "Wait up!"

She kept walking.

He sighed in defeat and stopped one of the older newsies walking past with his papers. "Who was that?"

"That is one of the slickest pickpockets in New York."

"What's her name?"

The boy smiled. "You'll learn soon enough."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Chris asked as the boy walked away.

"She'll pick your pocket again once or twice before you leave, no doubt about it."

"Wonderful," Chris muttered.

Opening his wallet, he took out a couple coins and went up to the distribution counter. "I'd like some papers." The man behind the counter threw a stack of papers at him. He jumped back, startled for a second, and then grabbed the papers, scowling deeply.

"Do you even know what you are doing, kid?" Blank asked, stooping to pick up the one or two papers that Chris dropped.

He just gave Blank a very agitated look.

"Have you ever sold papers before?"

"No..." he finally grunted.

Blank rolled his eyes. "Look...kid...I don't like you very much, but I'm going to help you out a bit.  Not for you, but because Spot and Rae are good friends of mine."

"I don't really care whether or not they're good friends of yours."

Blank smacked the back of his head. "Watch the way you talk to me."

"Hey!" he yelped, rubbing his head.

"You sass me again, and I'll hit you again. And next time I might not go so easy on you."

With a sigh, Chris resorted to just glaring at him again.

"Now pick up those papers you just dropped and follow me.  Watch carefully, because I really don't feel like having to explain everything in detail."

Snatching up the papers, he stalked after Blank.

* * *

Julie sat on the window seat in her room, staring out into the yard where Spot was playing with the twins.  She missed her brother, and half regretted her decision to stay here without him. What was the longest they had been separated? A few hours, perhaps? No longer than a day.... And who knew when he'd come home? She sighed deeply. For as much as they bickered, she really did love him.  After all, he was probably the only family she had left.

She glanced at the door for a second. 'Should I ask to go to Brooklyn?' Then she frowned. Yes, she missed him, but she didn't like the way he acted.... and if she went to Brooklyn to stay with him, it would probably just encourage his behavior, not correct it.

She sighed and leaned her head against the cool windowpanes. A few moments later a knock sounded on the door.

She lifted her head from the window. "Yes?"

The door opened and Rae stuck her head in. "Are you alright?"

She smiled and gave a little nod. "Yes, just thinking is all."

Rae gave her a slight smile. "You look tired."

"I guess I am, a little."

"Why don't you take a nap?  We don't want you getting sick."

"I've tried," she admitted. "I just don't think I'm THAT tired."

"I'll bring you a book if you would like."

Julie smiled faintly. "That'd be nice."

Rae smiled. "I know I probably say this a lot, but thanks for all that you've done around here."

She nodded and smiled a little more. "I'm glad I can help."

"I'll be right back with a book. You just stay up here and rest."

"Yes ma'am."

* * *

Chris stumbled wearily into the Brooklyn lodging house and collapsed onto the worn couch.  After lugging that stack of papers all over Brooklyn he wasn't sure that he could take another step, much less climb the stairs to the bunkroom.

"Just think," Blank said, strolling in after him. "You've still got evening papers to sell."

"Count me out," Chris grumbled.

"Mm, not if you want to eat, sell papes the next day, and have a place to sleep."

"But I'm too tired to move," Chris whined.

"Tough."

Chris groaned loudly, but didn't move

"Life ain't so easy out here, is it, kid?"

"You got that right."

"Kinda makes you miss what you had back home, don't it?"

"Everything but that tyrant."

"So you say."

"You don't understand, Blank. You never lived there."

"No... you don't understand. You think Spot is bad?" He snorted. "Trying living with him before his accident. When I went to visit y'all, I was stunned to see how much he had changed- improved, even."

Chris sent him a questioning look. "What do you mean?"

"Before his accident, he was the cockiest jerk in Brooklyn. Everyone was afraid of him. Well, except Rae, because she was as bad as he was sometimes...."

"That I can't imagine," Chris snorted.

"Because you're a selfish brat, that's why."

"Watch it," Chris said, sitting up.

"Are you telling me what to do?" Blank towered over him.

"No one calls me a selfish brat."

"I just did."

Chris jumped to his feet, his weariness forgotten. "Take it back!"

"You can't take back the truth, kid. Sometimes the truth hurts, ya know."

"I'm not a selfish brat!" Chris roared.

Blank made a tut-tut sound. "From what I've seen you are."

Chris growled and swung his fist at Blank. He grabbed the boy's fist before it struck, and punched him hard in the gut. Chris gasped for air as he doubled over.

"Want to try that again?" Blank asked.

He merely croaked and shook his head.

"I let you off easy that time. Try something like that again and I won't go so easy on you."

He groaned, curling his arm around his stomach, and he rose to his feet.

"Time to go, kid."

"Already?" he moaned.

"Normally I don't take the time to come back between editions."

"You're crazy."

"No...just trying to survive, kid, just trying to survive."

He sighed heavily, thumping wearily after Blank.

"You'll get used to it in a couple of days."

He just gave him a look and kept on trudging.

* * *

Rae stood on the porch, leaning against the railing.  It was rare that she had a few quiet minutes to just sit and enjoy her surroundings.  She loved to go stand out on the porch and watch the sunrise or set, but with three active children, a crawler and a newborn in the house, quiet just didn't happen until they were all asleep in their beds at night.

But for once, she was enjoying a quite afternoon. Sam was fast asleep, and Spot had taken the children on a walk, because they were itching to do some exploring.

As much as she was enjoying this, she was dreading having to go into the house and get started on dinner. Slowly, she rose to her feet and then paused. Dinner could wait a little while longer.

A pair of hands covered her eyes, "Guess who?" She grabbed the hands from her eyes and turned. "Hey sweetheart," Spot said, kissing her.

"Back already?" she asked, kissing him back.

"Kendra was sleeping and the twins wanted to go see the cow."

She laughed faintly. "What they like about that cow so much, I don't think I'll ever know."

He wrapped his arms around her. "What were you thinking about?"

"Just about how nice the quiet was... and how much I didn't want to start cooking dinner..."

"Probably wishing that I never insisted on teaching you to cook, right?"

She smiled. "Along those lines."

He sighed and stared off into the distance.

She looked at him curiously. "What's the matter?"

"I was thinking about how much better off you would be if you hadn't married you. You wouldn't be playing mommy to five children. And you wouldn't be tied to a monster like me for the rest of your life."

She gave a VERY exasperated sigh. "Spot, how many times have we gone over this? I love the children and I. Love. YOU."

He didn't hear her. "You don't deserve to live out here away from town and from all your friends because of my face..."

"Will you stop complaining about your stupid face already?!"

His jaw dropped and he blinked.

She folded her arms over her chest and gave him a very stern look. "All you do is complain about it. And I am tired of it!"

He stared at her in shock for a moment before responding. "FINE! You won't have to listen to it anymore!" he yelled, storming off the porch and into the woods.

"FINE!" she yelled back, not wanting him to have the last word.

Ann and Andy ran out onto the porch.  "Where's Daddy?" Ann asked.

With an agitated sigh, she thrust her hand out, pointing across the field and stalked into the house.

Andy looked to where Rae had pointed and then at the door that Rae had just slammed. "Wonder what's wrong with Momma," he mused.

Ann shrugged. "I dunno..."

Rae stormed up the stairs to check on Sam.  She knelt next to his cradle and sighed.

"What am I going to do?" she murmured, stroking her baby's face gently. "Your daddy can be... such a... such a... something unpleasant... sometimes."

He opened his eyes and stared up at her.  She sighed, "Looking at you is like looking at him...before..."

She leaned over and kissed him gently on the head. "You think after all this time, he'd get a little less thickheaded and listen when I WANT him too..." Sam just stared at her, wide-eyed.

Ann crept in and buried her face in Rae's shoulder sobbing.

This startled Rae from her one-sided conversation. "Annie? What's wrong sweetie?"

"Daddy just came in and he yelled at me and Andy...and he locked himself in the study."

"Shhh..." Gently, she stroked Ann's hair. "It's okay... Daddy... he's just... in a bad mood." Kind of like the one she was in, but she had managed NOT to snap at the children.

Rae sighed.  "Let's go cook dinner alright? Maybe that will put Daddy in a better mood."

Ann sniffled and nodded. "Okay..."

* * *

"Blank?" Chris asked his selling partner.

He gave a slightly agitated sigh and said "What?" But in truth... he was sort of getting used to the brat.

"What was Spot like...before...you know..."

"Well," Blank began thoughtfully. "He was... arrogant. A lot of girls liked him, so no wonder. Kind of a bully sometimes. He was in control here. Him and Hades... He was pretty much as bad as Hades, in fact."

"He's pretty bad now, but I couldn't imagine him as bad as Hades."

He smirked to himself. "On occasion, he could be worse. But that was rare."

Chris snickered.  "What about Rae? Was she as bad as Spot or Hades?"

"Mm.... in her own way. Her and Spot butted heads on many occasions."

"I can't imagine that."

"Yep. Well, when I saw them all lovey, dovey married, THAT was hard to imagine."

"I don't think I've seen them mad at each other for more than five minutes."

"Oh, it used to go on longer than that, my friend... I think their longest was... maybe a month?"

Chris' eyebrows raised. "What could have kept them mad at each other THAT long?"

"Well... it was over the dumbest thing... It was over a marble. He claimed she stole it, she claimed he lied, and.... well... it just wouldn't end."

Chris laughed. "I guess it's a good thing they've changed, huh?"

Blank nodded, handing off a newspaper to an old man. "Otherwise I think they'd kill one another."

Chris turned and silently contemplated all that he had just learned, as he continued to sell his papers

* * *

Dinner didn't go quite as well as Rae thought.

The roast was not quite done enough and the biscuits were a little dark. Spot had come out of the study for dinner, but he had been sullen throughout the meal, snapping at everyone from Rae to Kendra.  He had even made several comments about the food and it was all Rae could do not to snap back or burst into tears.

"I'll clean up for you," Julie offered, when Spot left the table after making a snide comment about the slightly undercooked potatoes.

"Thanks Julie," Rae said, picking up Kendra who had managed to get the potatoes everywhere, including her hair.

With a small sigh, she took the happily chattering girl to the bathroom and proceeded to clean her up.

Rae sighed. "Maybe I shouldn't have said those mean things to Daddy."

She scrubbed soap through Kendra's hair. "But he really should stop thinking I shouldn't love him because of a few scars... It makes me so mad that he seems to think it's the only thing I care about!"

Kendra chattered happily.

"Maybe I should go in there and make him listen to me." She smiled softly at Kendra. "What do you think? Should I go talk to him?"

Kendra mumbled something and rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Well, I think a little someone needs to go to bed." Rae carried the now clean girl up the stairs and rather than putting her down in the girls' room, she took her into the master bedroom and lay down next to her on the bed.

Being Mrs. Spot Conlon sure got tough every now and again.

She struggled to keep her eyes open, knowing that she should go talk to Spot, but it was a useless struggle, for sleep soon overcame her.