"Work with Spot today, okay?" said Ralphie one morning as he and Adelaide walked through the dividing sheet.
"Where are you going?" Adelaide asked.
"If I wanted you to know, I'd tell you."
"Okay."
"Spot," Ralphie called over.
Spot stood up and took his time walking over to the two. Ralphie dug into his pocket and pulled out a small canvas pouch and handed it to Spot. "Take Addie here with you today. I don't care if she sells or not. And take that to Violet."
With that, he walked away. Adelaide exhaled as soon as Ralphie was gone.
"You okay?" asked Spot.
"No, I'm not okay," Adelaide snapped. "I'm stuck in this rotten city until I die being forced to steal for a man that I loathe more than anything in this world."
Spot shrugged. "There are worse places to be."
Adelaide rolled her eyes as they walked out of the building and turned down the street. Instead of heading toward the distribution wagon, Spot headed toward the trolley line.
"So who's Violet?" Adelaide asked as they hopped on a trolley.
"Ralphie's sister," said Spot.
Adelaide's eyebrows shot up. "Ralphie has a sister?"
Spot nodded.
"And she doesn't stay with you guys?"
Spot shook his head. "Violet would rather sleep in the East River than live with Ralphie."
Adelaide nodded at the pouch in Spot's hands. "So why does he give her money?"
"Violet can't survive without it," said Spot. "And since he can't control her by living with her, he controls her by making her dependent on him."
Adelaide looked up at Spot. "And what about all of that6 makes you want to follow a guy like him?"
Spot shrugged. "Protection."
They spent the rest of the trolley ride down Flatbush in silence. Spot stared straight ahead and Adelaide watched out the window at the city passing by them.
They got off the trolley and Spot lead her down the street to a tenement building. They walked up the stairs and down the hall.
Spot knocked on the door. Moments later the door opened.
"Spot!" Violet grinned and threw her arms around his neck. Adelaide's eyebrows shot up.
"Hey," said Spot, putting his arms around her middle, holding her for a few moments. "You doin' okay?"
"Yeah," she said. Her relieved smile turned sour when she saw Adelaide. "Who is she?"
Spot pulled back and glanced back at Adelaide. "This is Adelaide," he said.
Violet looked at Spot and frowned.
Spot shook his head. "She's one of Ralphie's girls."
"Hmm." Violet looked Adelaide up and down. Adelaide shifted uncomfortably under Violet's scrutiny. "She don't look like one of his usual girls."
Adelaide glanced up at Violet.
"She's from Manhattan," said Spot.
"What dump did he pull you out of?"
"He didn't," said Adelaide.
Violet raised an eyebrow. "You're with him by choice?"
"He threatened to hurt my brother if I didn't come with him."
"Huh," said Violet.
Adelaide looked off to the side.
"Ralphie wanted me to give you this," Spot said, drawing her attention back to him. He handed her the small canvas pouch.
Violet took the bag and looked inside. "This should get me through another month," she said.
Spot nodded.
Violet looked up at Spot, over to Adelaide, and back to Spot.
Spot cleared his throat. "Aide, mind waiting outside?"
Adelaide raised an eyebrow. "Sure. I'll just…stand on the street corner and wait around. I'm sure nothing could happen to me doing that. Ralphie won't mind me going missing at all."
Spot closed his eyes. "Just…" he sighed, "fine." He turned back to Violet. "Can I come in?"
Violet nodded and backed in to her small apartment.
"Wait here in the hall. I'll be a minute," Spot said to Adelaide before walking into the apartment and closing the door.
"What did you bring her around here for?" Adelaide heard Violet ask.
"I gotta stay with her."
"What, like a baby sitter?" There was a moment of silence. "Well, the next time you come here, don't bring her. I don't want no other girl hangin' around while we're together."
"I'll come by and see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Okay. Is this all Ralphie sent with you this time?"
"You need more? I can get you more."
"No, I'll make do."
"Here."
Adelaide heard the jingle of additional coins on a table.
"Thanks."
There was silence before Aide heard footsteps coming toward the door. She stepped to the side so it wouldn't look like she was eavesdropping.
The door opened and Spot walked out. "Let's go."
Adelaide was silent as she followed him out of the tenement. "She seems…sweet."
"She's not so bad," said Spot.
They walked in silence down Flatbush toward the trolley stop.
"That's where all my pape money goes, isn't it?" asked Adelaide.
Spot was silent for a few steps. "Yeah."
Adelaide didn't say anything.
"Life's dealt her a pretty rotten hand," said Spot. "Havin' Ralphie for a big brother doesn't exactly make you trustful of people."
Adelaide glanced over at him. "And life hasn't dealt the rest of us a rotten hand?"
Spot shrugged.
They walked along in silence for a while.
"You had it pretty good for a while, didn't you?" asked Spot.
"Where'd you hear that?"
"Does it matter?"
Adelaide sighed softly. "Mikey and I were born in Brooklyn Heights. Our parents weren't rich, but we had enough and Mama didn't have to work." She kicked a pebble along as they walked. "But then everything went south when I was eleven. Papa lost his job, and we had to move to another neighborhood. Ralphie's old neighborhood."
"In Red Hook?"
Adelaide nodded. "Papa searched and searched for work, but there was nothing. Finally, he found a job on a merchant ship and he would send money home every month. But one day the money stopped coming. We never heard from him again."
"What happened?"
Adelaide shrugged. "We never found out. But Mama had to go to work…she was…she had to…" Adelaide swallowed; she couldn't bring herself to say it.
"I've got a pretty good idea," said Spot.
"Yeah," Adelaide nodded. "Anyway, one morning she didn't come home. Mikey and I had enough cash in the house to feed ourselves for a couple days, but then the rent was due."
"And Ralphie came knocking."
Adelaide looked over at him. "What about you? What sort of rotten hand did life deal you?"
Spot shrugged. "I haven't had it so bad."
"Liar. Why else would you have fallen in with Ralphie?"
Spot shrugged and smirked. "He's got a cute sister."
Adelaide chuckled. She knew he was lying, but she also got the sense that the harder she pushed, the more he would pull away.
"You're different with her," she said.
Spot shrugged. "I'm sure Skittery is different with you than he is with his friends."
"How long have you two been together?"
"A few months."
"Does Ralphie know?"
"Yep." Spot kept looking forward.
"And he doesn't care?"
"Nope."
Adelaide watched his profile.
"His exact words were, 'do whatever you want with her.'" Spot looked over at her. "He sends her money because she's family, and he's obligated to. But the truth is, he doesn't give two shits what happens to her." He turned his gaze back in front of him.
Adelaide watched him for a few more beats before she looked ahead again. If Ralphie felt that way towards his sister, Adelaide could only imagine how little Ralphie cared about what happened to her.
