Crown of a Prince (Finn Shelby)

56.

Ailbhe might have dreading the meeting but she couldn’t wait to see her brothers. When she arrived at Tommy’s house for the board meeting, Niall and Liam were outside the main entrance. Their excuse had been to take a minute for a breath of fresh air and a cigarette but they both knew that they were looking forward to seeing their sister. They had missed her. Her interfering and her pestering with questions, the way she kept their house feeling like a home and how she always tried to make Liam eat and Niall rest.

Ailbhe hopped out of the car, noticing the smiles on their faces and how they seemed genuinely glad to see her. She was relieved. There had been mixed reactions to Ailbhe’s little Irish involvement and while Polly and Finn were furious with her and condemned the decision, her brothers and the other Shelby boys backed her wholeheartedly, even if they wished she had kept out of it.
 
 Polly had given Liam a letter for Ailbhe for when he said goodbye. She had told Ailbhe that she couldn’t believe she was stupid enough to get caught but that New York would be good for her. Even Polly admitted that Michael wasn’t going to do the job perfectly in New York and Ailbhe would be able to put him on a tighter leash. Polly told her that she would miss her and to stay sharp. It was rare to get such sentiment from Polly so Ailbhe treasured it.
 
“Alright trouble?” Niall exclaimed, hugging her tight in one hand and his cigarette in the other.
 
They looked the exact same, like nothing had changed thankfully.
 
“I’m good, glad to be back” she sighed, accepting the hug from Liam too.
 
Niall wasn’t much of a writer but he had signed off the letters that Liam wrote occasionally. They were mainly business but some contained news around Birmingham and of the family.
 
“So, Michael fucked it?” Niall asked, nodding his head at Ailbhe.
 
Niall wouldn’t begin to pretend he understood the stock market but he knew enough to understand that if Michael had done what Ailbhe and Tommy told him, they wouldn’t be up shit creek without a paddle.
 
“Essentially, yes” Ailbhe replied, falling into step beside her brothers and feeling more at home than ever as they passed through the hallway and into the meeting room. There was something so comforting and familiar about being back as part of the family, being the formidable Shelby Kennedy family.
 
Portraits of John, Arthur and Tommy hung on the walls behind them and the photo of Séan in his uniform before the war was up on the mantelpiece. Polly, Lizzie, Ada, Finn, Linda and the newest member had already taken their seats around the long table. Niall, Liam and Ailbhe strode in past the doorway, noticing Arthur at the head of the table with Linda beside him.
 
“Sorry we’re late” Niall piped up, taking his seat beside Arthur across from Linda.
 
Liam sat down beside Ada while Ailbhe sat on his other side. Finn was in the chair across from Ada, opposite Ailbhe but they didn’t look at each other. Ailbhe checked her watch and they weren’t late, they were five minutes early but everyone must have been anxious to get started and yet Tommy still hadn’t arrived.
 
“Alright sweetheart?” Polly asked quietly directed to Ailbhe, glad to have Ailbhe back in spite of the circumstances. She was also glad to see her looking so well and they all had to admit that New York had made Ailbhe that bit more striking with her new clothes and make-up.
 
Ailbhe nodded back, seeing the relief in Polly’s eyes to see Ailbhe was back in England and she wasn’t going to be put in prison or hanged. Polly gave her a subtle wink as if to say ‘we’ll talk more later’ and Ailbhe just nodded.
 
“Good to have you back Ailbhe” Arthur nodded in her direction, also glad to see her home.
 
“Where were we?” He asked, catching his train of thought before he lost it as Liam lit a cigarette and Niall poured himself a cup of tea, dropping some whiskey into it from his hipflask.
 
“We weren’t the only ones effected by this... the whole world was” Arthur started to explain but Polly interrupted him, casting tired eyes in his direction.
 
“Arthur, shouldn’t we just wait for Thomas?” she sighed, having had enough of Arthur’s babbling.
 
Linda scoffed. She looked the same as ever, perhaps a little more preppy but then again cocaine would do that to you. She sat up straight as if there was a poker up her backside and turned to Polly snootily.
 
“Polly, Arthur’s now chairman of the board” She sniped but everyone knew Tommy was still the boss.
 
Polly just put a hand up, blocking Linda’s face from her view and giving Arthur a look that just said ‘drop it’.
 
“Mr Chairman, while we are waiting for Thomas I might lighten the gloom and express, as a relatively new member of this company, what a pleasure it is to be in a board room that has so many females in it”
 
The new man piped up. He must be the new board member that Polly had mentioned in one of her letters, Mr Greene. Ailbhe found him to be harmless but much too eager to be bearable for long amounts of time. He was right however; the board room did have an almost equal divide between the sexes.
 
“All the females who are both sharp witted and decorative” He added, looking around between the women and admiring them.
 
Ailbhe narrowed her eyes slightly, not wanting to laugh but Polly’s face was priceless.
 
“Yes, well we’re a very modern company Mr Greene” Arthur replied, getting an eye roll in response from Linda.
 
“Indeed” he replied, a nervous smile on his face for fear he would say the wrong thing.
 
“Although there are some amongst us who cling to their old-fashioned values” Polly sniped at Linda whose patience and tolerance for her so-called family was growing thinner by the day.
 
She turned towards Polly and the other women, glaring at Ailbhe.
 
“There are also some among us who have their head in the clouds about how the world works”
 
Ailbhe was wondering how long it would take for Linda to take a swipe at Ailbhe for what she’d done to make her go to New York. Linda would only love to have more ammunition when it came to the other women and Ailbhe being named as an accomplice to treason was perfect. She had always made catty remarks about Ada and Ailbhe’s politics. She once told Ailbhe that Ireland didn't deserve her freedom after the resistance they had forced upon England. Ailbhe had been held back by Finn before she could slap her for insinuating that the pleas and resistance of Ireland was anything other than brave and noble.
 
Mr Greene turned in his seat towards Ailbhe and smiled nervously
 
“I don’t believe we’ve had the pleasure Miss Kennedy; I’ve heard a lot about you from your family! Your reputation precedes you” He interjected, despite Linda’s clear disdain for her.
 
Mr Greene had indeed heard a lot about Ailbhe Kennedy. Her brothers had explained her absence as temporary leave in New York to oversee the company’s expansion. Mr Greene was both dubious and unsure when he heard that the company, he was now involved in had a young woman of barely twenty-one years old overseeing a restructure and expansion to such an extent. However, after reading the reports and statements she passed on through Tommy, he had no doubt she was up to the task.
 
Now that she sat in front of him, pretty as a picture he found himself doubting her again but he shouldn’t. The other rumours were true too. The rumours included that the Kennedy’s sister had both charm and intelligence to spare and she was also still linked to Ireland’s fight, perhaps more so than the Shelby brothers would like. He had also heard about Finn Shelby and her being involved, that nothing came between them and yet he had noticed that they barely looked at each other since she came into the room. They stole glances at each other but never met each other’s eyes.
 
Ailbhe swallowed down her desire to take a swipe at Linda and pulled on a genuine smile, the sweetest she had.
 
“The pleasure is mine Mr Greene” She replied kindly.
 
Finn had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. There goes another man charmed by her. Most men did fall under her spell with her sharp mind, her pretty face and genuine nature. But most didn’t fall as hard as Finn had, hook line and sinker.
 
The door swung open before Ailbhe could let loose on Linda thankfully. Tommy strode in, throwing his briefcase on the table.
 
“How far have we got?” He asked, looking around at them.