Authors: Mercedes Keyes
"Where is he?" Manny asked again, checking his watch. Earlier he had been cool and calm but now there seemed to be an urgency wringing his nerves. In his stress, he looked down the opposite side of the block, where his son and Joe, who had walked out behind them, were also peering attentively. About three blocks down and across the road, there was a large crowd of people gathering together, staring at something going on. Carmine's was nearer to the wharf where as on the same street, further up the block and across the street was ‘Season's In Fashion’.
"Now what the hell is going on down there?" Mike asked aloud, as if speaking to himself. Manny shook his head. "Don't know, all I want is Leon to get here."
"Someone is screaming! Did you hear that?" Mike asked, looking back at his father. Without a word, Joe started moving in the direction of the commotion. Mike turned, saw him, and burst into speed, following him.
"Wait! Where are you two going, what about Leon?!" Hope called out to them. She had also slipped out of the restaurant following her husband. Turning from them, she looked back at her father, his attention was now distracted by their quick flight and suddenly, he too moved quickly after them toward the crowd.
"Daddy! What about Leon?!"
"He'll wait… someone is screaming, I'm going to investigate."
Hope sighed, looked toward the direction Leon would be coming from and then back to see her father, husband and brother – all
running
.
"What in the-…" She murmured and then picked up her skirts and headed off behind them.
Mike and Joe reached the crowd of people, parted their way through and to their horror, there was Rory. "Rory! My God!" Mike exclaimed, putting all differences aside. He grabbed him from those that were trying to help him. "My mother ... please ... help my mother ... they got my mother ... down the alley... quick ... please!!!" Rory forced out with labored breathing. Mike let him go as he and Joe sprinted for the alley before the last plea.
Catching up to them, "Oh my God!! What’s happened to him?" Hope screamed on arrival behind her father who felt staggered by the look of the youth, before he could comment, Rory's words registered first,
"Help - my mother!"
"Get him to Carmine’s Hope!" Manny yelled over his shoulder as he headed off behind his sons. Rory felt tears stinging his wounds as he tried to inhale deeply, which only hurt more.
"Rory … oh Rory." Hope began softly. "Come on, let me help you." Rory shook his head. "No ...I have to ... to help - my mother ... if anything ... if anything happens to her ... I've got to ... to help." He tried to pull from the wall to go back but his face screwed up into a deep grimace of pain. "Oh no you don't ...trust me, if anyone can help your mother ... they can." Rory shook his head as tears fell from his eyes. "You don't understand-..."
"I do understand this; you can hardly stand on your own feet for the pain you're in. You've done all you can for her, let my father, husband, and brother help your mother. Please Rory..."
He looked at her, deep into her eyes, and knew, beyond all doubt, this was his sister. He shook all over, his legs felt like jelly as he let her support him. He thought he might throw up.
"Here, I'll help you madam." A man offered who had been there to pick him up. Another one joined him as Hope thanked them, leading the way back to the restaurant. Just as they were in the center of the road, Leon rode up. Immediately upon seeing them, he dismounted and ran to give aid.
"What happened?!" He asked urgently.
"Rory was beat up trying to help his ... his mother." It was only then when she said that, as they were entering the restaurant that Rory heard the fear in her voice. He looked back at her as she stopped to tell Leon what was going on. The men carried him into the back of the restaurant. The kitchen door opened as Carmine was about to enter with food.
"Rory! My goodness, look at you boy! Now what have you gotten yourself into?!" Carmine asked, with subtle scolding, the only one of Sandra’s and Lena's business associates that knew Rory to be Lena's son, a son that was in trouble often of late. Immediately he put down the food and called to one of his six daughters. "Louisa, take this order to table eight, I must see to Miss Lena's Rory." Hearing the restaurant owner talk familiarly about Lena and Rory made Hope and Leon glance at each other as they came into the center of the kitchen. "You know him, his mother?" Hope asked, growing weak in the knees.
"Here, seat him here ...aye mamah come see, hurry! Rory has been fighting with a bull I think." He called, pulling out a chair at the small table in the kitchen. "Aye, of course I do." Carmine answered Hope's question.
"Some men ... some men Mr. Bager, they got my mother." Rory panted.
Leon looked down at him and asked quickly. "Where Rory?!"
"Oh - my God, Miss Lena! Why for heavens sake?" Carmine's wife asked after hearing Rory's panicked claim.
"The alley – she ran behind the millinery... or … towards David's fabric - warehouse." He gasped. Leon took off out of the restaurant. Hope sat before Rory with her pulse pounding in her ears and stared at him as Lettie tended his cuts and bruises, all the while clucking her tongue in worried dismay over Lena.
"Oh what is thisa world comina' to. Why the gentle Missa Lena, she harma no one, why these bada men go after your mamah?"
It was then that Rory opened his good eye after having it closed against the pain, to see Hope staring at him. The two remained that way, staring at each other, both knowing the other to be a sibling, both knowing this stranger before them, was actually their blood. Suddenly Hope swallowed the lump in her throat and said.
"Your mother ... is ... my mother, that's why you acted as you did when you saw me ...I look just like her, don't I?"
Lettie suddenly stopped her administering to him and turned slowly to look at Hope, who was still staring at Rory, who nodded yes.
"Oh my…what is this you saying?" Lettie asked, and then as her words penetrated, she gasped surprised. "You… is'a true…you are very much like Missa Lena. What is'a goin' on?"
Hope's eyes closed as she covered her mouth, tears gathered and fell. "Oh Daddy! We've found her ... we’ve finally found her."
Lena felt as if at any moment her lungs would burst into flames or her heart would give out, it was beating so fast. Why hide? She had wanted to give up on all for a long time, so why fight it? She fought because she was not a quitter, no matter how tough the battle she could not just give in. Her heart would have to fail before she gave herself up to them.
So far she had evaded them as she sat hunched inside a garbage shoot, in a narrow pathway between two buildings, struggling to bring her breathing under control. She needed time to regain the much required oxygen to run for it or fight again, which she knew would be soon. Breathing slowly, she prayed, chancing a look out to the alley where they ran searching. Snatching back she hoped Moosey hadn't seen her, he stood right at an opening where she’d entered, scratching his head, unable to figure out where she’d disappeared to so quickly. As Lena leaned back, closed her eyes, and willed herself to calm down and think, she heard a squeak somewhere close.
A huge rat was sitting on the
hem of her dress, immediately spoiling what might have been a good hiding place. She screamed at the top of her lungs and swatted quickly at the rat, knocking it to the ground. It ran away frightened.
Moosey saw and heard her, then rushed to the opening, reaching in for her.
"Come on lady, don't be fightin' me no more. Come on out'a there." Lena knew if she didn't do as he said while there was only him to face, she would have the others, as well, to contend with.
"Okay I'll come out…please, just back away so I can."
"Okaaay, but don't you try nothin'." He shook his head like a child as he spoke, granting her his trust, he stepped back. Lena quickly put her feet down looking for more rats noticing how filthy the hole she’d climbed in was.
"That's good lady - now come along, no more fightin'."
"Sure, okay." Lena agreed, noticing the others were fast approaching them from the other end of the alley. Moosey grabbed her wrist and she fell forward biting him as hard as she could. He yelled out letting her go. She ran for the opposite end of the alley.
"Damn it Moosey!! You stupid asshole!! You had her!!!"
"She bit me!" Complained Moosey.
"I don’t give a God damn shit!! Get her, you dumb bastard!!" Wilkes bellowed but then passed Moosey up to try to catch her himself. Lena knew she was in trouble as she reached a dead end. Unable to stop, she grabbed up her skirt and took to the fire escape. Every window was boarded up; Lena grabbed one after another screaming in panic as her pursuers closed in on her. Finding a loose board, Lena pulled it out and launched it at Wilkes who was not far behind her. It struck his arm but he kept coming.
The opening was just big enough for her to squeeze through. She ripped her dress on a nail that cut into her leg going in, making her cry out in pain. As her feet touched the floor she turned to run further in, and stopped just in time, screaming as she tossed herself back against the window she'd climbed in. Had she taken just two more steps, she would have fallen two floors through a wide hole in the center of the floor. With her heart hammering, she stared at the gaping hole wondering what she was to do. Screaming again, she felt a hand snake through the hole to grab her arm.
"I've got you now damn it!" Wilkes crowed as he tried to hold onto her and pull her back through the hole. Lena stood breathless, shaking and afraid, willing to risk falling as she jerked, pulled and twisted her arm, desperate to get away.
As she broke free, he yelled out frustrated, "
Damn you! Get back here, I said – god damn you!"
With her back to the wall, she side stepped away from the opening in the window as fast as she could. Working her way around the hole on what little floor edge was left. She realized, not knowing where the floor would be weakest, that every step she took might be the one to send her down to her death. Reaching the end of the floor, at the corner of the wall, she took a deep breath and carefully crossed the corner to the adjacent wall; five steps brought her to a door. She opened it to step in but the door fell from her hand through another hole on the other side.
Screaming, Lena stepped across the doorway and clung to the frame as tears fell. Shaking, she wiped her eyes to see Wilkes yanking and pulling on the remaining boards where she had climbed through. After the forth, he began climbing in but looked behind him to see at that moment, Moosey, Davis, and Dwight were being thoroughly worked over half way up the alley by three men, two as large or larger than Moosey and himself. He knew his only chance to escape the same fate was to get to Lena and use her for protection. "Alright now Princess." He began gently, as if coaxing a kitten. "Come slowly back over here and don't make me come in there after you. Somebody could get hurt. This warehouse is not the place for this. Just - very careful now, make your way back. You mean a lot of money to a lot of people. They're depending on me to bring you in and we're not going to disappoint them." He coaxed, looking from her to the hole in the floor.
"Why can't you just leave me alone?"
"It's not us; all we want to do is take you home to your father." He said, stepping onto the floor edge, testing it, wondering if it was strong enough to hold him. "I can get home on my own. I just want to be left alone!"
Wilkes stepped onto the edge, holding his breath, afraid to let go of the window sill in case it gave way. "Aaah Princess, it ain't that easy." He said, finally turning his attention away from the floor.
"You stay away from me!" Lena screeched as she noticed he was making his way slowly towards the corner she’d crossed. "Wouldn't it be much easier if you gave yourself up, so we can be out of here?"
"I'm not going anywhere with you - or anyone else!"
"Well that's too bad, 'cause Princess, as far as I can see, you got no choice."
With her head leaning against the door jamb and her heart pumping madly, Lena wondered how in the world was she to get out of her predicament.
She held onto the frame and swiped at her tears. "I'm gonna die.
This is where it all ends." She whispered to herself, her eyes closed as if in prayer. She could see no other way out. Sniffing, she turned to look around her, afraid to move. In the center of the gaping floor was a wrought iron circular staircase. Looking up, she noted that it was supported by an iron post still attached to a girder in the partially destroyed ceiling. Lena stared at it and prayed. She laughed simply because she couldn't help it; her only means of escape was that wrought iron staircase which was too far from her to reach.
"Alright Princess! This is it! I got no more time left to play this game with you! Get - here ... now!" He yelled.
Lena turned back to Wilkes. She didn't care anymore. "You go to Hell!" Wilkes dragged out a long sigh and then pulled his pistol from his jacket. Smiling he stated. "As I said, over here ... now!"
Lena noted the gun and smiled. "I'm not stupid and neither are you. We both know I'm no good dead. You shoot me and the people you work for will be very - disappointed in you…my father won't pay you a rock off the beach."
"You bitch!! You black whore!!! I'm tired of this! Now get your black ass over here. I don't have to kill you, I could wound you."