Dear you, Bridget Kathleen [english novels to read txt] 📗

many lights, but it still looked spectacular.

As they neared the O'Brian house they noticed that there was a dim light lite. The girls stomachs' tightened.
"Uh ok..." Evelyn said.
"What?" Spot asked.
"The lights...they're on."
Bianca cursed. "Damn..."
They all walked up the stairs, Bianca leading and Spot at the end. When Bianca opened the door there was Mr. O'Brian waiting for them. His wife, Sybelle was sitting in the living room on the couch sniffling her nose.
"Thomas! Is that...them?" Charles came walking in, his hair was unkempt and his face looked white. He turned away from Thomas and saw the three standing in the doorway. His face flushed mad red. "You..." he said looking at Spot.

Thomas stepped in front of him and looked at them all. "Where have you been?" it was a simple question yet it was so hard to answer.

"We-" Spot began.

"Silence!" Thomas shouted at him, making Spot take a step back. Mr. O'Brian looked to the girls. "Where were you?"

"Dancing." Bianca said.

Sybelle walked in this time. "Dancing? Where?"
"At..." Evelyn Began.
"At a club?" Charles finished for her. The three said nothing.
"Do you have any idea how worried we were?" Said Sybelle. "From now on, Abigail will be walking you to and from school. You are no longer to go out on the weekends. You are to be grounded hear till the start of summer. Understood?" The girls knew that Sybelle was serious for this was the first time they had ever seen her so upset and her voice sounding so stern; the girls could only nod.

Mr. O'Brian saw that Evelyn and Spot were holding hands and cleared his throat. He motioned the girls to go upstairs. It was just Spot now and he knew he was in trouble. "You..." said Charles. "You put this sweet, young and innocent girls in danger by taking them to a club? How dare you!" Thomas held up a hand to quiet him.

"It wasn't my fault! I was jus' taken' them home!"
Thoms shook his head. "Spot...you can be a good lad at times and otheh times...ya just don' know when to stop an' think."
"What he's saying, Spot Conlon is that he doesn't believe you." Charles cut in.

"This aint none of ya damn business!" Spot fired back. Sybelle walked out of the room by this time and went to her room.
"It is MY business, Mr. Conlon! I am Evelyn's Fiance."
Spot narrowed his eyes and looked to Thomas. "Ya can't be serious."
Mr. O'Brian nodded. "I am. After tonight, I find Charles to be a suitable husband for her."
"And what about Bianca?" Spot quiestioned. "You don' seem ta be poundin' down on her 'bout marriage."
"There has not been a man in her life that I know is interested or if she is even interested in any man at the moment."
Spot scoffed and shook his head. "And ya Evelyn is ready? You think Evelyn's got a man of her own she really wants?"
Mr. O'Brian walked up close to Spot and looked him dead in the eyes. "Oh I know she has her sights on someone and that someone is not a man. He's a boy still many ways." spot said nothing. "It's you, Spot. It's you she thinks she likes." Spot swallowed hard and Thomas went on. "You are not FIT to take care of her. Evelyn may not be my daughter but I think of her as one and as a father figure to her I do not see you fit to be her husband!"
The words slapped Spot right in the face. "Please...let me explain." he pleaded with Mr. O'Brian.

"I think you have done enough here, Spot." said Charles.
"Stop tryin' ta butt in! Why...Why is he even heah?!" he said to Thomas.
"That's nothing for you to be concerned about." said Thomas.

Spot was pissed. He was only walking the girls home. He took no part in bringing them to the dance. "Please let me explain myself! I was only walking them home!"
But Thomas shook his head. "I've heard enough. You should leave now. And I better not catch you talkin' me girls anytime soon." he practically pushed Spot out of the house and closed the door in his face. Spot stood there, humiliated and worried. He did something good for the man he worked for and his kindness was slapped in his face with harsh words. And he was worried about Evelyn. How would she handle this? How would she handle Charles? If he lays one hand on her head, Spot thought, there will be hell to pay! Finally, he stuffed he hands in his pockets and headed for home. There was nothing left for him to do and even a pint of beer was of no interest to him.

Mr. O'Brian walked up the stairs to the girls room and let himself in. Evelyn and Bianca stood by each other and looked over to him. It looked like they had been talking.
"Evelyn," he said, "You are to forget about Spot Conlon. He may be a good worker, a good son and brother to his family...but I cannot count on him being a good husband...reliable."
"What do you mean?" she asked him.
Thomas closed his eyes for a second and shook his head. "I know that you have feelings for him." Evelyn could say nothing for this was clearly true. "You are to marry Charles Vanham."
Bianca gasped. "What? You can't just DO that! She's not your daughter!"
"And this is not your house!" he raised his voice. "I brought you both in out of kindness and this is how you repay me? All I asked was that you behave and go to school to get a good education and you are messing that all up!" he was angry now. The girls had never seen him angry and it scared them. He walked up closer to them. "I don't know who you two think you are, but I am only doing what I think is best. Both Sybelle and I want you to have good futures." he looked Evelyn. "Charles will be a great supportive and reliable husband and father."
"But I don't love him..." she said.
Thomas pushed Bianca to the side and took a strong hold on to Evelyn's shoulders. "It's not about love! It's about surviving! In this day and age you must do everything you can do! This is not just some fairy tale world you live in! You will marry Charles or so help me God, I will-" he was cut off by Bianca pulling him back with all her might.
"GET OUT!" she screamed. "You leave my friend alone!" Bianca had tears piling up in her eyes as she said this. Her knuckles were white because she held them tight in a fist and her face was flushed red. "You can't just expect her to yes to a man she hardly knows. Even with arranged marriages they have plans to have the two get to know one another. Besides, look at you and Sybelle. You love your wife to death, I'm sure. Just calm down..."

Thomas let out a big sighed and tried to calm himself. "You have till the summer to decide, Evelyn. What future do you want?" with that he left and closed the door behind him.

Evelyn's legs gave in and she sat on her bed, her whole body shaking. Bianca ran to her side and sat down beside her. "Are you going to be ok?" Bianca asked her. Evelyn rested her head on her friends shoulder and started to cry.
"This is all my fault..."
"Hey...don't blame yourself, Evelyn." Bianca told her. "Just let him cool down. And besides, we both agreed to go to the dance. It is my fault too ya know." She hugged her friend. "We are in this together no matter what. Ok?"
Evelyn picked her up and dried her tears. "I hate this...This isn't supposed to happen. We are not even supposed to be here!"
Bianca patted Evelyn's back. "I don't think that's true. We are her for a reason, Evelyn."
"And what reason is that?" she asked.
Bianca shrugged her shoulders. "Well...I guess we'll find out."
Chapter 19: Threats

Spot held up his stack of papes and shouted out the finest headline he had come up with all day. A few by-standers stopped to buy a paper from him. He earned three cents. Spot nodded a good day to them and continued on shouting. Selling papes was something Spot never failed at. He was done early and earned tips half the time. He had done this for years before he ever started working at the Brooklyn District Union. Anyway, it was a rainy day, the snow had gone and spring was right around the corner.
"Over here boy!" Shouted a voice.
Spot turned, ready to greet the man with a fake cheerful smile but it fell as soon as he realized who it was. "Oh." said Spot.
"Spot Conlon?" said Charles. He wore a tan trench coat and a hat to match it. Spot almost didn't recognize him. "I didn't recognize you from behind. You looked like a mere boy." Charles snickered at this and Spot said nothing. Charles then handed Spot a penny. "One paper please." Spot handed him his pape and received his penny. "By the way, Spot...why are you at the union?"
"Taken some time off. Why you care?"
"I don't," he said bluntly. "Just making conversation."
"Yeah? Well make conversation else whereh."
Charles smirked. "Angry? At me? What for?"
"I've got papes t'sell." Spot turned and shouted out again, louder this time.
"You know what you did was wrong, Conlon. Taking those girls out to a party like and so late."
Spot sold a pape just then and stuffed his money in his pocket. When the buyer walked away Spot turned back around and looked Charles dead in the eyes. "I didn' take those goils out. I brought em' home and dats it!"
"Then who took them out. Tell me if you’re not lying."
Spot knew who took them out and he wasn't about ready to rad out his friend Racetrack. He'd die before he became a scabber. "Don' know. Caught them as they were walkin' out."
Charles stared at him for a few seconds and bid his goodbyes and left Spot there selling the rest of his papes on the street.

Evelyn had become so absent minded since the fight that she had been forgetting the simplest of things; she had even lost weight. Bianca stopped her as they walked home from school with Abigail and touched her forehead. "You fell really hot, Eve."
"Do I?" Evelyn closed her eyes.
Bianca looked to Abigail. "What do you think?" she asked her.
Abigail walked over and felt Evelyn's head. "Oh, yeah. You're right. You do feel a bit warm." Abigail had been informed to walk the girls home for the remainder of the school year. It was the best way to keep them out of "trouble".
Evelyn then gasped and her eyes shot open. "Oh!"
"What?" Bianca said.
"I completely forgot my bag. How STUPID of me!" She face palmed herself and ran back to the school. Bianca and Abigal waiting outside for her.

The building was quiet and only a few voices from the teachers echoed in the halls and so did Evelyn brown laced up boots that she wore every day. She turned the corner quickly and stopped abruptly when she saw Miss. Thorn crying. Her teacher immediately stopped and looked over at