“Aw, c’mon Race, yer my friend! I’d do the same t’ing fer you if it was de uddah way round!”

Race groaned. “Blink, I really don’t feel like entertainin’ some dumb broad so dat ya can hit da honey pot wid her sistah! Why don’t ya ask Mush?”

“I did, but he awready got a date tamorrow. Please Race, yer my only chance!” Blink knew he was begging, but the girl in question was definitely worth it. “Besides, ya need ta go out wid goils some more!”

“Says who?” Race snapped. He hadn’t had any luck at the tracks that day, and Blink was seriously getting on his nerves. He continued marching towards the lodging house, evading Blink’s pleading eyes on purpose.

“C’mon, ya ain’t had no date since Valentine’s Day, an’ dat was half a year ago!”

Blink realized he had touched a sore spot the second Race was glaring at him, his eyes promising havoc if he dared to pursue the matter any further. Anxious to stay on Race's good side Blink tried to soften it over.

“Please Race, it’s gonna be fun! Ya was gonna come wid us ta Medda’s anyhow, an’ now ya even got a cute chick ta go wid you! Ya’ll have da time of ya life!”

“I really doubt dat,” Race grumbled. “Go ask one a de uddah guys.” He made the mistake of looking into Blinks face, alarmed by what he saw in it. “Everyone but me got a date?”

Blink hung his head, unable to think of something to say.

Lighting a cigar Race tried to hide his embarrassment. “Dat goil we’se talkin’ about... She pretty?”

“Shoah she is!” Blink replied with utter conviction. Race frowned at him, doubt shining in his eyes.

“Ya ain’t got no clue, right?”

Blink decided to be honest. “Well, I haven’t actually seen da sistah, but Sally’s absolutely gorgeous!” His eyes filled with hope.

“So, ya gonna do it?”

Race sighed. “Awright, but ya owe me on dis one.” Blink started to grin with delight, his step growing light and bouncy.

“T’anks Race, yer da best! An’ don’t worry, ya won’t regret it!”

Later that night Kloppman stood at the counter in the lobby checking his files, shooting the few lingering newsies an affectionate glance now and then. When he heard the door open and turned around to scold the latecomer his eyes widened in surprise.

“Why, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle!”

The girl sauntered towards him, a small satchel carelessly slung over one shoulder. “Heya Kloppman. Got a bunk free for a homeless stray?”

Just then Sparkles caught sight of her and started to squeal uncontrollably.

“May!”

Race’s head snapped up, but his short moment of lacking control went by unnoticed as some of the other newsies ran past him to greet her.

Sparkles hung around Mayhem’s neck as if she was drowning. “Oh May, I missed ya so much!” The other girl just smiled wanly and hugged her back.

“Nice ta see ya again, Mayhem.” She looked up to see Jack approaching her, for a moment confused by the authority ringing in his voice. Dey must have made him leadah aftah Rambler quit...

Jack watched Mayhem critically. On the first glance she looked much healthier than when he had seen her last, she wasn’t as scrawny and her skin had a slight tan, but underneath it she seemed pale and her eyes were cast deep with shadows.

“Heya Cowboy. Got a bunk free fer me?” The hint of desperation in her eyes made Jack worry. The Mayhem he had known would rather have eaten dirt than beg anyone for anything.

Kloppman answered for him. “Of course ya can sleep here, girl. As long as I still run this lodging house ya’ll always have a place ta sleep.” He turned towards Sparkles. “I think ya should all go upstairs now, it’s already late and ya got papes ta sell tomorrow.”

Sparkles took Mayhem’s hand and started to pull her towards the stairs, chatting excitedly. “Oh May, it’s so great yer heah, I can’t believe ya really came back, even though ya promised ya would! Ya can have ya ole bunk, it’s still free! Most a de goils ya’ll remember, but dere’s some newbies, too.”

Mayhem’s smiled slightly as she noticed Race climb the stairs behind her. “Heya Higgins.”

He mumbled “Mayhem,” and quickly vanished into the boys’ room.

Well, what did ya expect, dat he’d jump back onto ya lap aftah all dis time? Come on, get back ta real life, babe. She sighed and followed Sparkles into the girls’ room.

“Hey, listen everyone, Mayhem’s back!” Soon they were surrounded by the other girls in the room, greeting her noisily. Mayhem made out several unfamiliar faces. Her already screaming headache increased in strength.

“Listen goils, I’m really beat, let’s do da catchin’ up later, okay?” Not waiting for an answer she lay down on her old bed and closed her eyes.

“Well,” Sassy snorted, “Yer still da same ol’ charmer.”

Mayhem chose to ignore this comment. Sparkles sat down on her side and continued to fill her in about the latest ongoings, as ignorant of Mayhem’s bad mood as ever.

“Blaze and Shadow joined shortly aftah ya left, an’ Kneecaps last month. Velvet left ta woik as a maid, an’ Egghead an’ Tate moved out aftah Eggs got dat job ovah in Harlem...”

Mayhem just let the words wash over her, pleasantly lulled by Sparkles’ droning voice. Before noticing she had drifted into the first wisp of sleep she’d had for three days.

Race, on the other hand, couldn’t sleep a wink. Whenever he closed his eyes Mayhem’s face haunted him, an image he’d tried to ban from his mind for the last six months. He had thought he was over her, but apparently that assumption had been self-delusional.

Why did she hafta come back?!?

“Goddammit Race, could ya stop dat tossin’? Some people in dis room would like ta sleep!” Blink hissed from the bunk above. Race stifled a groan and forced himself to lie still. He wasn’t able to rest for a second that night.

The next morning Mayhem awoke to someone shaking her by the arm. For a moment she had no idea where she was and half expected to see Leadpipe’s face, but to her confusion it was Sparkles. “Wha...”

Sparkles giggled. “Gee, I had forgotten what a sleepyhead ya is! C’mon, we’se awready late!”

She dragged Mayhem out of bed and towards the washroom, not paying her unladylike remarks any attention. Mayhem pumped up some water and held her head under the stream to clear her mind.

“Ya never was exactly a mornin’ poison, right Jet?”

Her head jerked up. None of the newsies except Race knew her old nickname. On the other side of the room a short girl smirked at her.

“Caps! What da hell’s ya doin’ heah?”

The other girl strolled towards her. “Same as you, I peddle papes.”

“Whadda ya mean, ya peddle papes? What happened ta de gang?” Mayhem demanded to know. Kneecaps evaded her stare.

“Dere ain’t no gang no more,” she mumbled.

Mayhem wasn’t in the mood to put up with any crap now. She came dangerously close and grabbed the neck of Kneecaps’ shirt. “Tell me what happened. Now!”

The other girl shrank back a little. “De gang broke up,” she blurted out, eager to please Mayhem’s hot temper, “One day Ace was gone an’ no one knew where, an’ we tried ta carry on widout him, but it didn’t woik, de boys kept fightin’, an’ den one aftah anuddah everyone left.”

Mayhem kept her grip tight. “An’ wheah did dey go? Wheah did Trifle go?”

Kneecaps shrugged. “I don’t know ‘bout Trifle, but I hoid Mustang an’ Carrots joined wid Tick’s gang.” Mayhem stared at her coldly, not in the least satisfied with this answer.

“An’ everyone else? What about Magpie? An’ Grubs, an’ Shivers, an’ Guffy, an’ Tinker?”

As Kneecaps only shrugged again Mayhem had to restrain herself from striking the unnervingly ignorant girl. Instead she left her standing at the pump and marched over to the bunk room. Kneecaps let out a sigh of relief.

“Are ya gonna sell wid me taday, Mayhem?” Sparkles asked while brushing her hair. Mayhem shook her head, feeling a little guilty as she saw Sparkles’ disappointed expression.

“Sorry Sparks, I gotta go an’ find me sistah.” She dressed as quickly as she could, wracking her brain on where to start looking for Trifle.

“Ya got a sistah? Why didn’t ya tell us about her?” Sparkles asked, frowning.

Mayhem shrugged. “Jist nevah found da right moment.” She tied her laces and ran out of the room. “See ya later!”

Just when he was walking into the washroom Race caught a glimpse of Mayhem running past it. Jack followed his gaze.

“Funny dat she came back so suddenly.”

Race shrugged. “Bet she’ll be gone aftah a week, jist like last time.” Before Jack could get out another word Race quickly vanished into a stall.

As he was about to leave the circulation yard for Coney Island, Blink stepped into his path, eyes slightly worried. “Yer still goin’ ta Medda’s wid me an’ da goils tanight, right Race?”

“Yeah, shoah. Why shouldn’t I?”

Blink frowned. “Dunno, I jist thought dat maybe ya changed ya mind, now dat Mayhem’s back...” Race glared at him.

“What’s dat gotta do wid anythin’? I don’t give a damn if she’s in New Yawk or San Francisco, an’ I t’ink it’s about time ya guys shut up about her!”

At that he stomped out of the circulation yard, leaving a very puzzled Blink behind.

Mayhem trudged over the Brooklyn Bridge, exhausted from several hours of running around the hot town looking for Trifle. So far the search had been fruitless, and now the only person she could think of to ask for help was Spot. He had been dating Trifle for more than two weeks the year before, and since then those two had always been on excellent terms, even though Spot and Mayhem hadn’t been able to warm up to each other at that time. She had been disgusted by his self-centeredness and he had just ignored her.

After she had joined the Manhattan newsies and after he had saved her from Blade’s wrath on Valentine’s Day they had almost behaved like friends, but that had been half a year ago. Somehow now everything seemed to have changed. Jist like Race. She pushed this thought out of her mind.

As she arrived at the docks some Brooklynites were cooling themselves off in the East River’s water. Eyeing them enviously she proceeded towards the center of commotion, sure to find the leader there. A cold voice rang out behind her.

“Well, look what da cat dragged in.”

Mayhem turned around slowly, and found herself looking into a pair of icy blue eyes. “Hi Spot.” She decided to get to the point quickly and then get the hell out of this place. “Seen Trifle lately?”

Spot didn’t answer, his face remained emotionless. After staring at her for some time he asked “Have ya eaten awready?”

The question caught Mayhem by surprise. She didn’t even try to remember when she’d had her last meal. Spot turned around and started to walk away. “C’mon!” he shouted over his shoulder. She blinked and followed him reluctantly.

Spot took her to a small restaurant and ordered for both of them, but otherwise didn’t utter a word. While she wolfed down her food he regarded her with cold eyes. Only when they were both finished eating and Mayhem had just lit a cigarette he broke the silence.

“Where da hell have ya been?”

Mayhem blew some smokerings into the air, trying to buy some time. She realized lying wouldn’t get her anywhere, and she really needed Spot’s help for finding her sister, but laying out her personal life in front of the snotty Brooklyn leader made her more than uncomfortable.

“I went ta Florida wid Leadpipe.”

Spot looked at her impatiently. “And?”

Mayhem hung her head, but didn’t answer. None a his business anyway, she thought stubbornly.

Glaring at her, Spot spoke up. “Listen Powell, dis ain’t how it woiks. If ya want me ta tell ya about Trifle yer gonna have ta open ya lazy trap, or ya can search for her until ya drop dead. So,” he pinned her with an icy look, “why are ya back again?”

“Guess I missed da stinkin’ city,” Mayhem shrugged. Sensing his annoyed gaze she continued, “Florida was boring as hell. Leads an’ me did our old routine, toined a few tricks, even swam in da sea. Den we had a fight, an’ I caught da next train goin’ ta New Yawk. An’ dat’s dat.”

If Spot wasn’t satisfied with that answer he didn’t let it on. Instead he threw some coins onto the table and made a motion to leave. She grabbed his sleeve.

“What about Trifle?”

Mayhem could have sworn he evaded her eyes now.

“She woiks at Annabelle Johnson’s place, over in Harlem.”

“And Blue Moon wins the race with two lengths, followed closely by Angel Boy and Jamaica...”

Race sighed heavily and shredded his betting ticket. Everything seemed to go wrong these last days.

“No luck taday, Higgins?”

He flinched at the cold voice and turned around slowly, a nervous grin plastered to his face. “Hey Fingers, hiya Beef, what’s up?”

Two mean-looking adolescents walked towards him, one of them absently fiddling around with a stick.

“What a coincidence, meetin’ ya two heah at Coney Island...” Race tried to look nowhere as scared as he felt, no easy task as they continued to come closer. Fingers, the taller of the two, pinned him with a cold stare.

“Spider wants his money.”

Race gulped. “Shoah, I’m gonna give him da five bucks next week, I just had some problems lately...”

They had cornered him. Fingers’ expression promised trouble.

“Spider said ya owe him ten, an’ he wants da money by Thursday.”

“Ten bucks? No way!” Race cried out, then was grabbed by the collar and hurled against the wall. The alcohol on Beef’s breath hit him like a hammer.

“Listen short stuff, if Spider says ya owe him ten bucks an’ he wants ‘em by Thursday ya should get off ya little ass an’ get dem, or somethin’ really nasty might happen to ya! Got dat?”

Race nodded vivaciously.

“Swell.” Fingers smiled slightly. “Now maybe ya should go an’ start touchin’ people fer money.”

Beef released Race from his choking grip. Just as he tried to walk past the two Fingers held him back.

“Jist ta remind ya dat we ain’t kiddin’...”

Beef grabbed Race and hit him hard in the face, causing his left eye to swell close, then punched him in the stomach. Race doubled over, and Beef continued beating him while Fingers made sure no one paid them closer attention. Then Race collapsed, hit his head on the ground and faded into sweet oblivion.

Just as most of the newsies had gathered in the lobby before going to Medda’s they heard squabbling voices come near.

“Gee, I guess Mayhem’s home again,” Sassy sighed. The other newsies snickered.

None of them were prepared for what followed, however.

Mayhem stormed into the lodging house, pulling another girl behind her. “I don’t care about dat good-fer-nuttin’ slut, dere’s no way yer gonna woik dere again, an’ dat’s final!” she bellowed.

The newsies gaped at the other girl’s appearance. She wore a skimpy costume that left little to the imagination, but accentuated her rather curvaceous body. She had Mayhem’s green eyes and her medium height, but her hair was longer and close to auburn. Her painted lips were drawn into a pout.

“Stop actin’ like yer me muddah, cause ya ain’t! Yer jist one lousy year oldah dan me!”

Mayhem glared at her, eyes blazing with fire. She started to shove the girl towards the staircase. “Get ya lazy bum up dere. NOW!” Then she turned to the baffled audience. “An’ if you’se don’t stop gawkin’ at my sistah I’m gonna crack ya heads open!”

At that she ran up the stairs. The heated argument could be heard for some minutes, then something burst with a loud crash. Jack sighed and got up. “Go on ta Medda’s, I’ll be right behind ya aftah I made shoah dey ain’t killin’ each other...”

“Good luck, Jack,” Specs grinned. “Hope ya gonna come back in one piece!”

But the two girls were far from killing each other when he entered the girls’ bunkroom. Mayhem sat at the open window, smoking, while her sister lay on a bed staring at the ceiling.

Jack cleared his throat. “Um, Mayhem? Ain’t ya gonna introduce us er sumpthin’?”

“Oh, sorry Jack, I completely forgot me mannahs,” Mayhem’s voice was dripping with sarcasm. “Dis is Trifle, me lil’ sistah.”

The other girl flashed him a smile. “Hello Jack.” He smirked and pulled her hand near for a kiss. “I’m pleased ta meetya, Trifle.”

“Yeah, yeah, we’se all thrilled ta be heah,” Mayhem interrupted them impatiently. “Trifle needs a place ta stay an’ a new job,” at that Trifle tried to say something, but Mayhem cut her off short, “I t’ink she should stay heah an’ become a newsie, ‘cause I wanna keep a close eye on her anyway.”

Jack discovered that Mayhem’s glare seemed to be a family feature. Trifle didn’t appear to be too happy about her sister’s plans.

“I don’t need no job, I awready got one! An’ I’ll be damned if I give it up fer always bein’ broke, ink-stained and hungry!”

“Dancin’ on tables ain’t what I’d call a job.” Mayhem said icily.

“Ya got da noive ta disappear fer half a year widout lettin’ anyone know if yer dead er alive, an’ now ya wanna tell me how ta live my life?” Trifle let out a bitter laugh.

“Ahem, goils?” Jack tried to draw their attention to him. “I t’ink I might have a suggestion fer both a youse.”

They turned to him, Trifle smiling and Mayhem glaring. Somehow either sight made him slightly uncomfortable.

“Um, a good friend a mine jist happens ta look fer a waitress now, I guess dat might be da thing fer Trifle if she don’t wanna be a newsie. An’ it’s not too far away from heah, so she could still stay at da lodging house.”

Trifle beamed at him. “Thanks Jack, dat’s really sweet of you.”

Encouraged by her smile he warmed to the subject. “Ya know, dere’s a little party at her place tanight, we can ask her right now if ya want to...”

“A party? How wonderful!” Trifle bounced around exitedly. “I’d love ta go to a party wid you! Just a minute now, I’ll change into sumpthin’ more fittin’.” She jumped up and vanished into the washroom with a bag she had brought with her.

Jack realized too late the predicament he had gotten himself into. Sarah was waiting with David at the Jacobs’ apartment for him to pick them up, and he wasn’t keen to see her reaction when he showed up with this girl at his side.

After a short while Trifle came back, her makeup a little more subtle. Although she wasn’t wearing the frivolous costume anymore the neckline of her dress was low enough to make Jack’s eyes pop out, which earned him a sharp punch in the side by Mayhem. Trifle pretended not to notice.

“Awright, I’m ready, let’s go!”

Jack sighed and they went downstairs.

Everyone but Blink was gone. Jack looked at him in surprise.

“Didn’t ya have a date tanight?”

Blink glared at him. “I’m waitin’ fer Race. We’se havin’ a double date, but da suckah ain’t home yet!”

Trifle heard her sister hold her breath. She regarded Mayhem closely, but the other girl’s face didn’t betray any emotion. Trifle decided to have a look at the mentioned guy as soon as she had a chance.

The three of them set out for the Jacobs’.

“Goddammit Race, wheah ya been?” Blink shouted angrily the second Race entered the lodging house. “We was supposed ta pick da goils up half an hour ago, an’ it’s a damn long way ta deir house, too!”

But when he saw Race’s battered face his expression changed from anger to surprise. “What happened to ya?”

Race grunted something and stumbled to the washroom, managing to soak a washing rag and then holding it to a throbbing bump which had formed on his head.

Blink had followed him and stood at the door. “Ya comin’ er should I call da whole t’ing off?” The question was purely rhetorical, Race was quite aware that Blink would only let him stay home if he was bleeding out of his ears. And maybe not even then.

“I’m comin’,” Race sighed and went to his bunk to get a cigar. At the sight of the empty box he cursed. I’m gonna kill dat little twerp!

Blink grabbed him by the vest and pulled him outside. They shortened their way considerably by sneaking into the back of a trolley.

The door Blink had knocked on was opened by a little girl of about ten years. Before he could say anything she squealed “Sally, it’s da pirate!” and ran inside. Race almost choked on his laughter, while Blink stood there with a perplexed look on his face.

Then a pretty blonde appeared. At the sight of Blink she started to beam. He grinned and planted a kiss on her hand. “Heya sweets, sorry we’se a bit late. Dis is Race, da friend I told ya about. Ya two ready?”

Smiling, the girl took the hand Race had extended towards her. “Heya Race, nice ta meetcha. Yeah, we’re ready.”

Right then a second girl walked up to the door. Race blinked. Boy, she’s gorgeous! Suddenly he wished he’d taken the time to make himself a little bit more presentable.

From the look on the girl’s face she was thinking the same.

“So Race, dis is my sister Millie.”

She looked at him coldly. “Hello.” Race realized that she was at least two inches taller than him. Damn.

Blink sensed the discomfort between the two and quickly suggested they should get going.

If Jack had hoped that Trifle would act a little more subtle around Sarah that plan hadn’t worked out. Trifle sparkled with charm and flirted with everyone, including Mr Jacobs who came home from work as the small party was about to leave. As a result Sarah clung to Jack even more than usual.

While Sarah, Trifle and Jack quite enjoyed themselves on their way to Irving Hall, even though Sarah was a bit reserved towards the other girl, Mayhem and Dave trudged behind them quietly. Mayhem’s headache had returned, and the only reason why she hadn’t stayed at the lodging house was the prospect of a stiff drink.

David had been tongue-tied since the minute they had met, blushing profusely whenever Trifle so much as glanced in his direction, and Mayhem thought she had never met a duller person.

Starting to sweat, David wracked his brain to come up with anything to talk about with the glum girl at his side, but her moody face alone discouraged him already.

“So, um, how come they call ya Mayhem?” he tried to at least say something, but the glare she shot in his direction made him regret it immediately.

“Broke Oscar Delancey’s nose. An’ why do dey call ya Mouth?” She eyed him with raised eyebrows. “Ferget it, I don’t t’ink I really wanna know.”

David blushed once again and wished they had already arrived.

When they entered Irving Hall the party was already in full swing. Mayhem sorted through her mind for the name of any newsies she could ask for a loan, and the first familiar face coming into her vision was Bumlets. She started to smile, sure that Sparkles couldn’t be far away then.

“Heya Mayhem, have ya met Blaze already?” he asked her, smiling, and pointed to a blonde girl next to him.

“Hey,” she replied, nodding a brief greeting to the other girl. “Wheah’s ya sweetheart?”

Bumlets’ relaxed expression vanished. “Din’t Sparkles tell ya she got dis side job at one a dem small theaters on Broadway?” he mumbled, and vanished into the crowd before Mayhem could enquire any further, pulling Blaze with him. Mayhem stared after him, puzzled. Then she shrugged and caught up with the others.

Jack was just introducing Trifle to everyone around. She was beaming widely, apparently soaking the whole atmosphere up, while stealing longing glances at the crowded dance floor. Taking David’s hand Trifle tried to pull him into that direction. “Come on!”

David put up a struggle, his face deeply crimson. “Er, I can’t dance.” Trifle raised her eyebrows.

“Don’t be modest now, Davey.”

Jack tried to stifle a laugh, but failed miserably. “Believe me Trifle, dat ain’t modesty, but da plain truth!”

While David glared at him Trifle started to smile. “Don’t worry, it’s not dat hard. I’ll teach ya.” Ignoring his protests she succeeded in dragging him with her.

Jack, Sarah and Mayhem sat down at a table, Jack treating the two girls to a drink. Mayhem was surprised at his generosity, but grimaced when she realized it was just sarsaparilla.

“Hey Jack!”

The hairs on the back of her neck rose as she saw Blink, Race, and two girls make through the crowd towards them. Jack grinned.

“Heya Blink. Who are de lovely ladies?” Sarah’s smile started to look a bit strained.

“Sally’s wid me, an’ dis is her sister Millie.”

Mayhem regarded them coldly as everyone nodded their greeting. Race’s date looked as if she had swallowed a stick, but she was quite pretty. Her blue eyes contrasted beautifully with her blond hair, which fell down her back in slight waves. Moreover, she looked clean and healthy, as if she had just come back from a nice holiday at the countryside. It didn’t take long for Mayhem to make her deeply despise this girl.

She tried to estimate how good exactly Race and this girl knew each other, but she couldn’t come to a conclusion. Race evaded Mayhem’s eyes and completely ignored her, which made her temper rise. She hadn’t expected them to be as close as before she had left, but she had hoped they could at least be friends again. Race acts like a real idiot, she thought angrily. Jist ferget about him.

“Oh my god Race, what happened to your face?” Sarah asked concernedly. Jack smirked.

“Didya try ta steal one a dem hosses?”

Race blushed and mumbled something about walking into a lamp pole.

“It’s definitely an improvement.”

Everyone’s eyes turned upon Mayhem who got up and walked over to the bar.