Back at the lodging house later, before we left for the poker game, I had
that day on my mind, and what Angel had said about Race. But just as I was
wondering if what she had said could be true, my door opened and Racetrack
entered the room.
"Doodles ye 'bout ready?"
"Uh, yeah." I said walking towards him, "Where's Spot?"
"He's waitin downstairs." Race replied.
We walked down the stairs together oddly not speaking.
"So..." I said trying to think of something to say, "Who's gonna be dere?"
"Uh a buncha newsies." Race said vaguely.
"Real descriptive." I laughed and he seemed to snap out of it a little.
"Oh, uh sorry." He said this but he didn't say anything else.
As he was about to reply we stepped off the stairs and Spot was standing there with Angel.
"Whudd were ye doin upstairs?" Spot asked, an evil grin on his face,
"Whudd took ye so long?."
"Shuddup Spot.", Race said looking a little annoyed and almost
embarrassed.
I laughed "Are we ready to go?"
"Yeah", Race said, "Lets go."
We walked for a while until we reached a small, old looking building and entered me an Angel behind Race and Spot. We walked down a hallway and saw Bailey and Jack standing outside the door of a darkened room.
"Hi." I said to them as we walked up. "I didn't know ye guys whudd be hea."
"I decided I wanted te come along. Hey ye guys," Bailey said.
"Ready ta win?" Jack asked Race and Spot after saying hi to me and Angel.
But before they could answer him the outside door opened and in walked a group of people I didn't know and also didn't look too friendly.
"Whudd are ye doin hea?!" Race exclaimed with disgust.
"We thought we'd give yous a little surprise." One boy around 18 said. Suddenly he saw me, "Who's dis?"
"None of yer business." Spot spat out rubbing his knuckles.
"Well dat don't matter, we just came fer some fun. An, we," he indicated a shorter boy who looked like him, "brought some friends along."
"Hold on a sec," another older man stepped out of the menacing group. "I think dis might be dat goil dat got away from Shadow de odda day."
I accidentally let out an audible gasp although I had been trying to keep quiet. I guessed Shadow was the name of the man who killed my mother and who had tried to kill me.
"I guess I should jus finish de job fer 'im.", he said and began to walk towards me.
Suddenly he jumped at me and fortunately my reflexes were good thanks to the fact I knew how to throw a good punch from growing up in a rough neighborhood. I caught him right in the stomach and air whooshed out of him leaving him gasping on the floor.
"You'll pay fer dat." he managed to get out. "I'm glad yer mudder wasn't let off easy."
Hate burned in me, "Shuddup 'bout me mudda!", I yelled a him.
"Ye mean yer dead mudder." He taunted me, and although he was on his knees he suddenly grabbed my collar and yanked me off my feet.
He managed to get in one bruising punch before someone grabbed him and began to do the punching. It was Race. All around me was chaos. Jack was telling Bailey and Angel to get them and me out of the building. Race, Jack, and Spot were outnumbered but some boys came out of the room we were about to and joined the fight, not looking fazed by it. My cheek, where he had punched me, stung but I got up and although the boys were telling us to get out I joined the fight.
"Let's beat id!" Jack yelled as even more guys entered the outside door.
Race grabbed my arm and pulled me after him as we ran through some hallways and out a back door. We ran a few streets over and stopped for a breath there.
"Who were all dose people?" I asked nobody in particular as I gasped for air.
"Dey're da Delancy broddas Oscar and Morris, along with some of deir friends from de Crypts.", Angel told me wiping a spot of blood off Spot's forehead.
"Dey're who?" I asked.
"Da Delancy broddas are scabbas and dev always been rats." Spot
sneered.
"And the Crypts are a group of dangerois men, who, unfortunatly are
friends with Osca and Morris." Jack added.
"Are ye ok? Yer cheek's already pretty swollen." Race asked me.
"I'll be fine." deciding I'd totally figure out what was going on later. "Are ye ok? Oh! Yer bleedin."
Race had a thin cut on his arm that didn't look too deep but still was bleeding pretty well. "It's not too bad." he said shaking it off.
I ripped a piece off the bottom of my shirt and rapped his arm in it. Meanwhile Jack and Spot were checking on Angel and Bailey, who looked ok though they were still worried.
"Jack! Get over hea," Bailey ordered, "yer bleedin too."
She did the same as I had and made a bandage for Jack's cut on his hand. Race had just opened his mouth about to say something when Spot cut in.
"Lets head back to th lodgin house befora we discuss dis. Dey might try te find us."
Nobody argued so we walked back to the lodging house wary, and silent.
"Doodles ye 'bout ready?"
"Uh, yeah." I said walking towards him, "Where's Spot?"
"He's waitin downstairs." Race replied.
We walked down the stairs together oddly not speaking.
"So..." I said trying to think of something to say, "Who's gonna be dere?"
"Uh a buncha newsies." Race said vaguely.
"Real descriptive." I laughed and he seemed to snap out of it a little.
"Oh, uh sorry." He said this but he didn't say anything else.
As he was about to reply we stepped off the stairs and Spot was standing there with Angel.
"Whudd were ye doin upstairs?" Spot asked, an evil grin on his face,
"Whudd took ye so long?."
"Shuddup Spot.", Race said looking a little annoyed and almost
embarrassed.
I laughed "Are we ready to go?"
"Yeah", Race said, "Lets go."
We walked for a while until we reached a small, old looking building and entered me an Angel behind Race and Spot. We walked down a hallway and saw Bailey and Jack standing outside the door of a darkened room.
"Hi." I said to them as we walked up. "I didn't know ye guys whudd be hea."
"I decided I wanted te come along. Hey ye guys," Bailey said.
"Ready ta win?" Jack asked Race and Spot after saying hi to me and Angel.
But before they could answer him the outside door opened and in walked a group of people I didn't know and also didn't look too friendly.
"Whudd are ye doin hea?!" Race exclaimed with disgust.
"We thought we'd give yous a little surprise." One boy around 18 said. Suddenly he saw me, "Who's dis?"
"None of yer business." Spot spat out rubbing his knuckles.
"Well dat don't matter, we just came fer some fun. An, we," he indicated a shorter boy who looked like him, "brought some friends along."
"Hold on a sec," another older man stepped out of the menacing group. "I think dis might be dat goil dat got away from Shadow de odda day."
I accidentally let out an audible gasp although I had been trying to keep quiet. I guessed Shadow was the name of the man who killed my mother and who had tried to kill me.
"I guess I should jus finish de job fer 'im.", he said and began to walk towards me.
Suddenly he jumped at me and fortunately my reflexes were good thanks to the fact I knew how to throw a good punch from growing up in a rough neighborhood. I caught him right in the stomach and air whooshed out of him leaving him gasping on the floor.
"You'll pay fer dat." he managed to get out. "I'm glad yer mudder wasn't let off easy."
Hate burned in me, "Shuddup 'bout me mudda!", I yelled a him.
"Ye mean yer dead mudder." He taunted me, and although he was on his knees he suddenly grabbed my collar and yanked me off my feet.
He managed to get in one bruising punch before someone grabbed him and began to do the punching. It was Race. All around me was chaos. Jack was telling Bailey and Angel to get them and me out of the building. Race, Jack, and Spot were outnumbered but some boys came out of the room we were about to and joined the fight, not looking fazed by it. My cheek, where he had punched me, stung but I got up and although the boys were telling us to get out I joined the fight.
"Let's beat id!" Jack yelled as even more guys entered the outside door.
Race grabbed my arm and pulled me after him as we ran through some hallways and out a back door. We ran a few streets over and stopped for a breath there.
"Who were all dose people?" I asked nobody in particular as I gasped for air.
"Dey're da Delancy broddas Oscar and Morris, along with some of deir friends from de Crypts.", Angel told me wiping a spot of blood off Spot's forehead.
"Dey're who?" I asked.
"Da Delancy broddas are scabbas and dev always been rats." Spot
sneered.
"And the Crypts are a group of dangerois men, who, unfortunatly are
friends with Osca and Morris." Jack added.
"Are ye ok? Yer cheek's already pretty swollen." Race asked me.
"I'll be fine." deciding I'd totally figure out what was going on later. "Are ye ok? Oh! Yer bleedin."
Race had a thin cut on his arm that didn't look too deep but still was bleeding pretty well. "It's not too bad." he said shaking it off.
I ripped a piece off the bottom of my shirt and rapped his arm in it. Meanwhile Jack and Spot were checking on Angel and Bailey, who looked ok though they were still worried.
"Jack! Get over hea," Bailey ordered, "yer bleedin too."
She did the same as I had and made a bandage for Jack's cut on his hand. Race had just opened his mouth about to say something when Spot cut in.
"Lets head back to th lodgin house befora we discuss dis. Dey might try te find us."
Nobody argued so we walked back to the lodging house wary, and silent.