"Whaddaya thinkin’?"
Fingers glanced at Diamond. She hadn’t really been thinking of much in particular – the contentment of walking here this evening, the uncertainty of Forlani lurking somewhere about, the news recently sprung on them by Dice and Mess, and perhaps her own good fortune . . .
She shrugged. "I don’t spend me time worryin’ ovah t’ings."
Diamond raised an eyebrow. "So what’re ya not spendin’ time worryin’ about?"
"Nothin’," she replied with the slightest edge to her voice. Why on earth did he spend his worry on her? She could take care of herself perfectly well. Some girls may spend their lives in need of another half, but she’d neither expected nor wanted one until he came along. She shook her head.
He stopped, and asked quietly. "Ya shoa?"
Fitting him into her life made everything awkward. Not bad, by any means, but awkward. "Ain’t nothin’ tawkin’ll do anythin’ about," she answered, off guard.
"Aw right," he nodded and they began walking again. Neither spoke until they reached the lodging house. Diamond opened the door. "Afta’ you," he gestured with a grin.
That was the other thing. She’d never been treated like a lady before. Like a friend, yes. Like an enemy, frequently. Like a criminal, occasionally, like a whore, once, before she drew a knife on the poor soul who tried, but never like a lady. She didn’t know any ladies – well, Ash and Ver, she supposed. Respect was all she asked for. This was a certain kind of deference that she found disconcerting, but at the same time didn’t keep Diamond from giving as good as he got, verbally, at least, when they fought.
"C’mere . . . I gotta tawk ta ya." He closed the door behind him and crossed to the parlor, gesturing for her to follow.
Fingers raised an eyebrow, but joined him. What’re you up to? "Yeah?"
Diamond placed a hand on the small of her back and opened the parlor door.
"Happy Birthday!"
Stock still, she looked around the room. No need to ask who had masterminded this. Ruby was in front, grinning from ear to ear. Cody McGowan stood by the light switch, beaming indiscriminately at Fingers and Imp. Nearly all the Harlem girls and a good number of the boys from were present, as well others from all over the city.
Ruby offered her a pineapple square. "Happy Birthday, love," she said hesitantly. Ash smiled as well, holding out a card.
Fingers took them both, uncertainly. "It’s Tuesday," she muttered, not knowing what else to say.
"We know," said Verity. "But it would be more of a surprise to do this today."
"’Appy Birthday," Mess put in. Fingers noted that he held Ash’s hand in his own, but did not have time to be upset about this.
"So we’se a little early." Diamond grinned and grabbed a pineapple square from the plate Ruby held. "I don’t got my present heah. I’ll give it ta ya on Tuesday."
"Aren’t you going to say anything?" Verity teased.
Fingers glanced at her. She would, if she could think of something to say. Ash’s card held a crisp dollar bill. "Ya should keep yer money, Villaflores," she muttered.
Ash frowned, shoulders slumping and left the parlor with Mess trailing behind her. Fingers scowled. She hadn’t meant – but, darn it, she hadn’t asked for anything!
Diamond rested his chin on her shoulder and looked at the card. "Ya want some punch?"
"Shoa." That would do as well as anything, she supposed.
"Aw right." While he sought out the punch bowl, Ruby produced her own gift, a nail file wrapped in a bow. The girls must have gotten a lot of enjoyment out of that.
"Happy Birthday, love," she repeated with a hug.
Fingers endured it stoically. Diamond returned and handed her a glass. She could see the nervousness as her friends continued to await her reaction. Dammit . . . She glanced around again and downed her punch resolutely. "Dere a poker game anywhere around heah?"
Greaser looked up from a corner. "Yeah, here." He scooted over to make room for her. "Maybe you can wipe dat smirk off his face." He nodded at Pistol who showed no signs of smirking, but plenty of a lucky evening.
Diamond grinned with relief and
leaned back against the wall. She liked it.
* * *
Yes, she liked it. That is, well she did like it. Really. Just . . . "Deal me out," Fingers said. Greaser glanced at her and nodded. "I'm gettin' a drink," she mumbled, then stood and walked straight past the punch bowl in the center of the parlor to the kitchen.
When she'd been there fifteen minutes, Diamond wandered in, smiling. "Heya."
"Hey," she replied.
He leaned on the counter next to her. "Why da frown?"
She shrugged.
He moved to stand directly in front of her, still smiling. "It's yer birthday."
Over his shoulder, she replied, "It's Tuesday."
He sighed and put his hands on her shoulders, catching her gaze. "So we're early. What's wrong?"
"I ain't a party person," she muttered stiffly.
He laughed gently. "Now why am I not surprised?"
"Damn Gallagher . . ." she muttered under her breath. Why had she . . .
Diamond frowned. "'Ey now. She did dis 'cause she's yer friend."
Friend? Fingers snorted. She had friends, of a sort. But no one would claim her . . .
"'Ey." He lifted her chin with a hand. He always did that . . . "What?"
She shrugged, finding it difficult to keep a light tone with his eyes fixed on her. "I ain't dat popular a person." Not that she worried about it. She didn't try to be popular. And this . . . display . . . was for a popular person.
He snorted himself. "Shoa ya are."
"Ain't no reason da do dis fer me," she mumbled, hoping he wouldn't hear her. Why did she answer, then? He had the right, dammit. She'd given him a name and the right to ask her. The right to order her, if he ever chose to use it.
"Heather, Ann, Mulcahy." He put a hand on either arm. "Da reason is dat we want to."
"Don't call me dat," she glared immediately. It was easier to argue with than the rest of it.
She stiffened as he pulled her into a hug. "Jus' fer one minute let yaself believe we like ya? We like ya more dan ya think?" When she didn't reply, he added. "Please . . . jus' enjoy da night?"
"I'm enjoyin' it." She had been. Too much.
"Right."
Fingers scowled.
"What does it take? Really? What do I hafta do?" Diamond asked.
Damn him! "Nothin'!" she said sharply. Didn't he realize that? Dared she tell him?
He sighed.
"I'm fine," she mumbled.
"Of course ya are."
Silence.
All right, then. Shrugging, Fingers extricated herself from his arms and headed back to the parlor. She still hadn't gotten her drink, but it didn't matter.
Diamond followed, his frustration tangible. Why did he . . . "We'se partyin', right?" she asked, keeping him in the corner of her eye.
He grinned. "Of course."
Just because her favored expression
was a scowl didn't mean she couldn't appreciate a smile. Particularly his
smile. "Aw right."
* * *
Fingers rolled the blanket over her. It was - nice of them. Well, they were nice girls. Why they bothered with someone who quite clearly wasn't and made no attempt to be - Yer babblin', she snapped at herself, and went to sleep.
* * *
Fingers looked up yet again from filing her fingertips. Ruby was still moping by the window. D*mmit. She returned to filing, then looked up again. D*mmit. She stood and crossed her arms. “Tawk.”
“Talk?” Ruby looked startled. “What about?”
“Ya know d*mn well.”
Ruby shrugged and looked away again. “There’s nothin’ ta talk about.”
She glowered. “Shoa.”
Quill, the only other girl in the room, said quietly, “I don’t think she should have to talk if she doesn’t want to.” She and Ruby exchanged small smiles.
Fingers whirled on her. “Mind yer own business, Swipple!”
Immediately the smile faded; Quill cringed.
“Leave her alone, Fingers,” Ruby said quietly.
She turned the glare on Ruby and stalked out of the room, cursing Forlani, Ryrie, Mahan, O’Malley and life in general.
Ruby sighed and rubbed her eyes, defeated. “D*mmit.” She followed. “What do you want me to say, Fingers?”
To be perfectly honest, she didn’t know. Something to show she was reacting to the current situation, at least. Something other than sitting and staring. Perhaps that thought was the universe’s rationale for the next few weeks. Nothing like a good case of pot calling kettle black for Fortune to stand up and take notice.
“Do ya wanna hear me say I’m scared?” Ruby asked. “I am! Ya wanna hear me say I can’t do this anymore? I can’t! But what good is talkin’ about it gonna do?”
“More dan-” The scowl deepened. She didn’t have anything to say, either!
“Am I interruptin’ somethin’, ladies?”
Not now.
Diamond put a hand on Fingers’ shoulder when neither answered. “What’s goin’ on?”
“Forget it,” Ruby sighed and returned to the bunkroom.
He frowned, watching her go. “What was dat?”
“Nothin’,” Fingers replied between clenched teeth.
“Right.” Almost gently, he asked, “Ya gonna tawk ta me or ya gonna go hit some more walls?”
“Ain’t nothin’ ta tawk about.” She almost laughed at the echo.
“Dere nevah is, is dere?” Diamond frowned.
There was a knock on the door downstairs.
“Ask her!” she waved after Ruby.
“I’d ratha’ ask you.” He looked at her.
But she didn’t know! Fingers leaned on the railing and frowned at knock.
“Ya gonna get it, or should I?” Diamond asked.
It was an excuse to walk away. “I ain’t gonna push me help where it ain’t wanted,” she muttered on her way down the stairs. She yanked the door open. “Yeah?”
One of the younger Brooklyn newsboys stood in the doorway – Kipper, she thought, Douglas. He straightened and attempted an impression of his leader’s lazy smirk. “Hey, Mulcahy, got a message for ya.”
Diamond, having followed, leaned against the wall to watch.
Fingers would have been amused if she weren’t angry. Ya ain’t Conlon, kid. “Yeah? An’ what would dat be?”
“Uhh.” Kipper shifted his weight. “Yer ma’s sick.” He shrugged. “Sorry.”
* * *
Both of Diamond’s eyebrows flew up. Fingers had never mentioned a mother. Granted, she’d never mentioned a lot of things.
She swore. “Great. Great. Wonderful.” More curses. “Aw right.” She took a step out the door, but hesitated. Without looking back at him, she spoke to Diamond. “Come wit me?”
She needed to ask? “A’ coise.”
* * *
The building looked little different from his neighbors. A tad more well-kept up, perhaps, but with nothing to draw attention to it other than the red-tinted lamp over the door. Diamond hadn’t spoken during the entire trip, but neither had she. She wondered what he’d say, if she informed him she was born here. Probably nothing.
Annoyed with her thoughts, she strode up to the door and barged in. The interior of the building was no more oppressive than the outside. Dirtier, perhaps.
“Heather!” A short, broad man leered a bit at her. Instead of looking at him, Fingers scowled over her shoulder. Diamond was glaring at him. The man only grinned back.
“He ain’t nothin’ ta do wit us,” she muttered over her shoulder.
Den what’re we doin’ heah? she could almost hear him reply, and turned back before he could search her face and find what was absolutely not fear.
“Go ta h*ll, Neely,” she said aloud. “I’m heah fer Enid.”
Diamond threw her another glance. She avoided it as she had been avoiding them for the entire evening.
The proprietor looked displeased with this. “You know I always takes care a’ my ladies,” he replied, retrieving his grease-caked smile.
A bath would definitely follow this trip. Or a jump in the river perhaps. Even the East River had to be cleaner than Grover Neely’s presence. Shooting him a glare, she headed for the back of the room. Grover looked disposed to follow, but he while he was far from clever, he wasn’t stupid. Not only did Diamond have some six inches on him, but the last time he’d tried to interfere with Fingers, she’d brought a good four inches of steel into closer contact with some precious possessions than he cared for.
* * *
Ruby jumped and looked around the room. There was nothing to see, of course, besides Verity engrossed in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Lady Jane dragging someone’s stocking around the bunkroom floor. The shriek she’d heard had not come from up here. Maybe she hadn’t heard it, she thought miserably. Maybe Luke’s games were finally driving her mad. It was about time.
The shriek came again, and she ran downstairs. Diamond held open the front door, and Fingers carried in a small, quarrellsome, and rather disheveled woman who bore her a strong resemblance and was quite clearly the source of the shrieks.
“Shut up, Enid,” Fingers muttered, carrying the woman to the parlor.
‘Enid’ fought her the entire way, rolling off the seatee when Fingers finally set her down. Fingers picked her up, returned her to the couch and left the room.
Ruby lingered in the doorway. “Who-?” she asked as Fingers passed.
“Me mudda.” The pickpocket headed for the linen closet without another word.
“Oh.” Ruby turned back to the parlor. Oh. She smiled at Enid, then looked at D who appeared about as confused as she. “Anythin’ I can do?” she asked him.
He sighed. “I dunno.” He raised his voice. “Anythin’ we can get ya, ma’am?”
The women threw a brief frown at Ruby and then smiled at Diamond. “You might . . .” He waited, expectantly. She waved at the seatee. “Sit down.”
Ruby, still trying to figure out why she was being frowned at, thought Enid looked slightly disappointed when Diamond pulled a chair up next to her.
“So you’re me daughter’s boy.”
Ruby smiled as Diamond reddened slightly. “Yes, ma’am.”
Enid shook her head regretfully and leaned back, studying him. “I’m afraid I haven’t taught her very well.”
Diamond cleared his throat, uncertain how to respond, and looked up gratefully when Fingers returned with an armful of blankets.
Fingers dropped the blankets on
the seatee, glanced between them and said matter of factly, “Leave ‘im
alone, Enid. He couldn’t afford ya.”
Ruby blinked.
Enid replied with a resounding slap. Fingers pushed her back against the cushions, barely reacting. “Go ta sleep, Enid.”
Diamond reddened and stood. He cleared his throat. “Ya need anythin’?”
Dismissing the exchange, Enid batted her eyes at him. “A sip of laudanum? Fer me head?”
He crossed his arms. “I t’ink dat’s up ta yer daughter, ma’am.”
“Don’t lissen ta ‘er,” Fingers replied.
He nodded and leaned against the wall while Enid launched a string of unrepeatables at her daughter.
“Go ta sleep,” Fingers repeated.
Stay tuned! More to come!
