The day after the incident with the three goons I had a chat with Mr. Fischer. I had actually tracked him down early so that I could talk to him before Katja arrived.
"Did Katja tell you what happened last night?" I asked him as I hitched a ride in his carriage over to our bench.
"She mentioned that some men had frightened her, but that you came and escorted her home," he said. "I sense that it was a bit more than that, yes?" I nodded. "Then I am in your debt, Herr Conlon," he said.
"No, sir," I said firmly. "You and your daughter have been kinder to me and to my boys than anyone has ever been. It's an honor for all of them to return the favor, and that is especially true for me. You've both been like the family I haven't had," I said honestly. No way was that man ever going to be in my debt.
"Ah, we come to the heart of the matter. You and Katja, yes?" he said, a knowing twinkle in his eye.
"No!" I blurted out too quickly, then realized how my protest sounded even to myself. "I mean, yes. Maybe. I don't know," I said. Boy, if anyone but Mr. Fischer had heard that, I am pretty sure I would have soaked them within an inch of their lives out of sheer embarrassment. I took a breath and gathered myself.
"I really like your daughter. But I don't think she sees me that way. Honestly, that's okay because even if she did, she's awfully young. She needs a lot more time to grow up before she even knows what she wants. Heck, I'm not sure I know what I want. For now I can just be her friend," I said. I hoped that was good enough—after all, this was the man's daughter we were talking about!
"Spot, you understand my daughter better than she understands herself, I think. You respect her and treat her well. I am grateful every day for your friendship to her. You have become like a son to me as well. It is a wonderful act from God to put your selling spot right where we had lunch every day for so long, I think. You are good for the Fischer family. But you are also much older than your years, young Spot. It is that which makes me worried for you," Mr. Fischer said.
Wait, did he just give me leave to date his daughter? I think he did. But now is not the time—I wanted to speak to him about last night, not talk about a future with a girl who probably doesn't notice that I am a guy and certainly is immune to any seductive charms I may have.
"Maybe," I responded. "The streets are tough, and we have to be tough with them. It pays to be able to fight. Like last night," I added.
"Yes, and I cannot tell you how grateful I am. I know better than Katja what could have happened. She does not understand. I am, in spite of your protests, in your debt," he said, sighing. "But you are not so tough as you would like to think, young man. I have seen that you are also full of compassion and goodness. It is this which I think Katja sees in you. Be patient, young Spot, and I think Katja may one day realize that you are the kind of man she needs. Maybe then you will actually be my son, ja?" he smiled at the thought. I realized that this man was more perceptive than even I had given him credit for. It never occurred to me at the time that perhaps my own vulnerability with him might have contributed to the fact that he was the only person in the world who could read me like a book. I just marveled that such wisdom and such naïve innocence could share blood and live under one roof.
In the days that followed that conversation, I noticed how jumpy Katja had become. Clearly the events of that night had frightened the wits out of her. It killed me to think that she could be so frightened. I arranged with her father to set her at ease. I picked her up from work and took her down to the docks. I knew she'd never been down here and that the area would probably be intimidating, but I didn't care. I needed her to understand. Besides, being seen with me would only help keep people away from her—nobody messes with what's mine, and even though I didn't see Katja as a possession, the boys didn't know that! I heard a dock worker wolf-whistle, and I turned to glare at him. The man saw me and instantly ducked his head; I don't think he had recognized me before he whistled. Good. Now he knew that I wouldn't tolerate any of that, and so did everyone who was nearby.
As we reached the swimming spot, the boys started calling out greetings. I watched Silver messing around with a few of the younger guys and saw that he was giving some veiled fighting instruction. Good. We don't actually teach fighting formally here, but I like my guys to know how to take care of themselves. The system works pretty well—my boys are good fighters. Some of the bigger boys were wresting at the end of the pier, trying to throw each other in. I saw Katja's eyes widen at the sight of the three big boys, shirtless and wet, grappling with obvious skill. Good. That's what' I'd wanted her to see.
"Cat, these are most of the newsies of Brooklyn," I said as we settled down on a crate. "They operate all over the borough. They know the people, the places, and the goings on of Brooklyn, and they report to me." I stopped to chat as Legs came up, eager to tell me about his day. The kid was new, but he was a fast learner. I saw a lot of potential in him, and he was eager to contribute to the group. I sent him off, then turned back to Katja.
"These boys have my back. They will do anything I ask and more. And because we're friends they got your back, too. I didn't tell 'em to keep an eye on you, but they do. And Ingrid and yer pa, too." I explained. "Word of what happened made it around. Those goons won't be botherin' you or anyone else, and I would be shocked to see anyone else try it. I wanted you to know that. I wanted you to know that you are as safe as anybody can be in Brooklyn."
I looked intently at her, and I saw the light that had been missing the last few days return. She looked relieved, and a small part of me was, too. I needed her to trust that she would be okay; I needed her to understand.
"But that don't mean that we can protect you from everything. You still gotta take care of yourself. Don't take foolish chances. But you don't need to be so jumpy all the time. We're here. Anything happens, ever, and you just make sure the nearest newsie knows. We'll take it from there," I added. I wanted her to feel safe, but not foolhardy! I saw her acceptance, and I turned back to watch the wrestling match on the dock.
We chatted a bit more, this time about money. I explained my savings system. I had been saving for five years, and I had squirreled away quite a bit over that time. While I saved 50¢ per day on average, I also dipped into that sock on occasion for splurges, so it really averaged out to 40¢ per day at about 350 days a year. The rest were sick days, slow days, days off, etc. I had been saving that aggressively for three years now, and it was paying off. I didn't tell Katja that, though. I just explained the system, then walked her home. She felt safe, and that had been my primary goal.