Somewhere // Spot Conlon

Chapter 19

"We'll both take a hundred papes," Spot smiles at Jack.

Jack hands up two bundles of papers through the small window. Les stopped us on our way to Brooklyn and told us the whole plan. Our job is to get the word out to the Brooklyn kids. I put the papers on my shoulder like Spot does, these are a lot heavier than what they look. Spot takes me to any factory, mine, or spot on the street he knows to hand out papers to working kids. We would give them a paper then tell them to meet us at the Brooklyn Bridge in the morning.

"Can you read?" I ask a miner who's about seventeen he shakes his head.

"Come here!" I yell.

I quickly read the paper to him and hand him a couple to give his friends. Spot's reading to a little girl who came out of a sewing factory. This has to work. It has to.

***

Spot and I lead the group of probably more than two hundred kids to Manhattan.

"If ya got a hundred voices singin' who can hear a lousy whistle blow!" They sing.

Hey, anything to get them on our side, right? Kids in the crowd start yelling Brooklyn over and over again. Spot and I work our way up to the front with the Manhattan newsies. The crowd is going crazy. This man takes Jack and David in to talk to Mr. Pulitzer. I hang onto Spot as we chant louder and louder. After a couple minutes, David and Jack come back out with smiles on their faces. Jack leans down to whisper something in Les' ear. Jack raises him up on his shoulders. The crowd falls silent.

"We beat 'em!!"

The crowd screams and cheers. A carriage breaks through the crowd. What the heck is this? Snyder! We start to push Jack away, but Denton grabs him.

"Jack, its over. You don't have to run. Not from the likes of him," Denton explains.

Boys start jumping out of the carriage until a boy with a crutch hops out. This boy puts Snyder in the back of the carriage and slams the door close behind him. The kid hops over to us and it's like someone came home from a ten years war. This boy tells us some story about a man coming in and busting Snyder.

"Who?" Jack asks him.

"Well, you know your friend, him!" The boy points at another carriage," Teddy Roosevelt!"

The governor! Teddy waves and shakes hands with the kids surrounding his carriage. Spot and I walk with the Manhattan newsies that want to see Jack off. Teddy's offered to take him to the train yard. I look back to see Les and Sarah crying. She's probably heartbroken. The crowd soon starts to leave, but Spot and I stay behind.

"Try Bottle alley or the Harbor," Mush sings sadly.

"Try Central Park its guaranteed," Race sighs.

"Try any banker, bum, or barber," Crutchie sings.

"They's almost all knows how to read," Blink smiles at me and tips his hat.

"Summer stinks! And winter's waiting!" We sing.

"Welcome to New York!" I sing.

Spot wraps his arm around me as the Manhattan newsies get in line for their papers. The carriage with Teddy Roosevelt and Jack pulls into the Circulation center. Jack hops out and goes over to David. Spot works us a path to Teddy Roosevelt. What on Earth is he doing?

He reaches up to shake Teddy's hand," Spot Conlon, da King of Brooklyn."

"Well, I bet a King and Queen could ride home in style," he warmly smiles at me.

"We'se love dat," Spot smirks.

Spot lifts me up into the carriage and he jumps in after me. It's like a fairytale. Spot throws one arm over the side of the carriage and the other around me. He leans in to kiss me. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him closing to me. He closes the small gap between us, making his lips finally touch mine again. I smile into the kiss. I can't even remember the last time I was this happy.