AMERICA DREAMING EPISODE 6

FLASHBACK: 1932...
As Teddy and Paulie neared the corner store, passsing the oh-so-tempting wares on the apple cart and the small dog yapping as water cascaded over it from a busted fire hydrant, they spotted the store owner, Mr Riley, putting out a new batch of pulp mags on the weather-beaten spinner rack.
"C'n ya see if he's got da noo 'Mazin' Stories?" asked Paulie, re-lighting his pipe.
"Not sure. But I can see a new issue of The Glass Spider!" replied Teddy.
Paulie shrugged at this and said: "Naah, that mag's a pile o' garbage."
Teddy disagreed , he had always enjoyed reading The Glass Spider.
"Hey, Paulie, wouldn't it be neat if they published an American Sentry mag?!" enthused Teddy.
The boys grabbed a handful of the store's new pulp mags and headed into the shop. It was always dark in Mr Riley's store. Shafts of dusty sunlight filtered across the interior.
Mr Riley busied himself with an ice box and nearby sat rown upon row of jars of brightly coloured candy.
Teddy had always loved the store and he had first met Paulie there when they'd been about ten.
Mr Riley looked up from the ice box and grinned. His usual smile was tainted by an ugly bruise on his cheek, a dark purple with black streaks.
"Cheez, Mr Riley, wha' happened?" piped Paulie.
"N-nothing, lads." came the shopkeeper's guarded reply.
Both boys' heads turned as in came Hannah, Mr Riley's daughter. Hannah was a couple of years older than Teddy and Paulie, and was the subject of their teenage daydreams.
"Dad had a run-in with," began the girl before she was cut off by Mr Riley.
"If you won't tell them, I will!" said the girl angrily.
Hannah put down the pile of fabric she was carrying and said: "It was Donovan and his goons. They want dad to pay protection money."
Paulie looked angry and Teddy was staggered. He's heard of Dagger Donovan but never thought that the small-time hood would try anything in his neighbourhood.
"Mr Riley, is Donovan coming back?" asked Teddy.
The shopkeeper didn't reply but Hannah did, saying that the thug would be back on Friday.
Teddy looked determinedly at Paule and whispered: "We've got to do something."
TO BE CONTINUED....