Crown of a Prince (Finn Shelby)

74.

Thankfully, Polly had the good sense to knock on Finn’s office door. She most certainly didn’t want to walk into something she didn’t want to see involving Finn and Ailbhe. Less than a minute after she knocked, Ailbhe yanked open the door. She was dressed but her hair was a bit wild and her buttons were done up wrong.
 
“Charlie’s Yard, now. Thomas is waiting for us” She told her, lighting a cigarette between her lips as Ailbhe stepped out to join her.
 
Things were a little tense. Ailbhe didn’t trust Michael, or Gina. Michael was Polly’s son and Gina was carrying Polly’s grandchild. Of course, it was going to cause an atmosphere. But Ailbhe and Polly had always trusted each other, loved each other. Ailbhe lifted her chin, making eye contact with her and searching for some sort of an understanding. They didn’t have to hate each other, did they? Ailbhe wasn’t sure she could even try and hate Polly. Polly had saved Ailbhe’s life, given her a chance to have a real life with their family.
 
“I heard Aberama Gold is back...” Ailbhe broke the silence, making Polly’s eyes widen for a second.
 
“Forty-five years old and still breaking hearts” Ailbhe quoted Tommy when she saw how Polly even nearly smiled.
 
Polly rolled her eyes slightly. Whatever business was going on with Michael, Ailbhe was her Ailbhe.
 
“You need to be careful” Polly warned her smiling, pointing at the door behind them where Finn was “If you get pregnant, he’ll want to marry you”
 
Ailbhe rolled her eyes, falling into step beside her as they walked back out to the car where Polly’s driver waited.
 
“I’m not being reckless Pol, I’ve got a... thing. I got it from a shop in London” Ailbhe explained, keeping the details brief. She didn’t want to go into it, not only because Polly didn’t need to know but if the driver heard them, she thought he might faint.
 
“Good. You’re too good for marriage... takes away your freedom” Polly said cynically, sitting back into the seat of the car and lifting the cigarette to her lips.
 
While she had no desire to be Finn’s wife, nor the mother to his children right now that didn’t mean she wouldn’t one day. She also knew that Polly wasn’t a cynic, not when it came to matters of the heart. She just acted like it.
 
“You seem in a better mood” Polly commented, looking her niece up and down.
 
She did. She seemed lighter, like there was less of a cloud over her and she looked less tired. Maybe Tommy was right after all. Maybe Finn and Ailbhe did need each other, have to have each other around to balance out, to keep each other on the right side of things.
 
“Do I?” She asked her, raising an eyebrow but almost smiling through it. She did feel in a better mood. Having Finn around did that to her.
 
He had made her see sense. She wasn’t the Peaky Blinder’s witch or fortune teller, that wasn’t what she was there for. She was their sister, their friend and ally. And there had been enough death and harm, enough pain for a while.
 
The car grinded to a halt outside Charlie’s yard and Polly didn’t wait for the driver to get out and help her. She threw open the door, tossing her cigarette aside and stepping out, straight into a pile of mud.
 
Polly looked back at Ailbhe and down at her shoes. They both had brand new heels from Paris on their feet. Ailbhe huffed, leaning down and undoing the buckle.
 
“What are you doing?” Polly asked her, looking her up and down as if she was crazy.
 
“These are brand new Pol” She answered, pulling them off her feet and rolling her stockings up and shoving them into the shoes.
 
She smiled when she saw Polly doing the same.
 
“Come on Aunt Pol, will make you feel young” Ailbhe joked, looking up at her with big green eyes that had the mischievous glint in her eye that could have been a Shelby trait.
 
“I am still young” Polly replied quickly, putting her shoes up on the front of the car.
 
They found Arthur and Tommy standing around a fire pit, warming themselves against it and waiting for the two women who arrived, barefoot and at ease.
 
“Sorry for calling the meeting here but the location is part of the deal” Tommy told them, not looking up when he saw them but keeping his eyes on the flames as he smoked.
 
Arthur looked the women up and down, his eyes drawn to their bare feet. What the fuck were they doing?
 
“What fucking deal?” Arthur asked, looking back at his brother.
 
He hoped it wasn’t anything to do with those Chinese. They were bad news, he didn’t care if Ailbhe had no bad feelings about them. He did. And he didn’t want a deal with them.
 
Ailbhe folded her arms across her chest, feeling the cool mud under her feet that was warmed from being near the fire pit. It felt good to be back on solid ground in bare feet, like when she was a child running around Small heath or their farm back home.
 
When they first got to England, Ailbhe had refused to wear shoes, never having any need for them back home. But when she had to go to school, had to learn English and fit in, she had been forced into them. She still remembered how heavy and ridiculous they felt on her feet, like they slowed her down with every step. Her mother had worked tirelessly for weeks to get the cash for Ailbhe to have her first pair of shoes. And now Ailbhe wore high heels from Paris that she had in six different colours because she couldn’t decide.
 
Tommy looked down, realising the women had cast off their shoes.
 
“How does it feel to be barefoot in the mud again?” He asked them, shadow of a smile on his lips.
 
Polly looked across at Ailbhe, a smile on her face as she shook her head. Ailbhe was right.
 
“Makes me feel young” Polly admitted, nodding towards Arthur “What fucking deal?”
 
Ailbhe had a feeling Tommy wouldn’t say no to Chang, not after all the money Michael had lost them. It was a high-risk high reward situation and if Tommy put Michael in charge, and if it went belly up then it would be Michael taking the fall, not the family.
 
“Four boats. Four days. Up the Grand Union. Poplar to here. Half the cargo is coal, underneath the coal is pure opium crystal”
 
Tommy explained, having done the figures and working out a plan.
 
Ailbhe stayed quiet. She didn’t want any deal with the Chinese but it was the best they had.
 
“Opium?” Polly asked, wishing she had heard Tommy wrong “I vote against it!”
 
“They can’t use trucks because the Chinese drivers get stopped by the police. They need to get it out of London because all the warehouses are being searched by customs”
 
Ailbhe had been the one to phone the Poplar docks. She knew the facts as well as Tommy did. And it would make them a lot of money fast.
 
“Seven tonnes bound for San Francisco and the outward ship doesn’t sail for seven days from Liverpool. They need somewhere safe to store it. All we have to do is take it up the canal and keep it here for a week!”
 
Tommy explained as if it was that easy. And maybe it was, but they had no reason to trust the Chinese.
 
Arthur knew that and he never trusted anyone.
 
“We don’t fuck with the Chinese Tom! Dad always said it” Arthur argued, not convinced.
“He also said don’t fuck with the Irish” Ailbhe added plainly, looking up at the men.
 
It was true. Arthur Sr had told his boys to steer clear of Irish business, not wanting to get dragged into the mess that was Irish Republicanism. He said it wasn’t worth their time.
 
But Liam and Niall were their brothers and Ailbhe was their sister so they clearly hadn’t listened.
 
“Ask yourself, would he turn down two hundred and fifty thousand pounds to drive four boats up the canal with no prospect of inspection?” Tommy argued, throwing his hands out.
 
It was a lot of cash, exactly what they needed.
 
“I vote against it Tom” Arthur shook his head, looking between Polly and Ailbhe, hoping they would feel the same. But he should have known that Ailbhe would be on Tommy’s side.
 
“Polly! Two hundred and fifty thousand pounds” Tommy turned to Polly, trying to reason with her.
 
She seemed unsure too, she didn’t like dealing with opium. She didn’t want more lives on their consciences and opium was lethal.
 
“That’s half of what Michael lost in New York and Chicago, half of what he has to pay back” Ailbhe reminded her, catching eyes with Thomas who nodded at her.
 
“I’ll be asking him to take charge of this” Tommy told Polly, wanting Michael to be in charge of this endeavour and the only one to be responsible.
 
“Michael’s position will be reinstated within the company?” She questioned, wanting it confirmed.
 
Tommy shrugged, nodding his head.
 
“His period of quarantine will be over” Tommy promised her but Ailbhe would still be keeping a very close eye on him.
 
Ailbhe watched Polly think for a moment, be convinced and seduced by the idea and nod. She was on board. They needed a majority decision, that was how they worked these smaller meetings.
 
“Think about it brother. Easiest money we’ll ever make”
 
Ailbhe looked Arthur in the eye, wanting him to believe her and trust her when she said they needed this money. She knew opium was a bad business and if they had another choice, she’d vote against it. But so long as Michael was in charge and it couldn’t be her or Finn or her brothers being sent down for it, she was on board.
 
She had a bad feeling about adding another spinning plate to the pile they were juggling, especially when it was Chinese business. Ailbhe wanted to have her full attention free to keep an eye on Brilliant Chang but now there was a lot more for them to worry about too. Whatever about her bad feelings and hunches, she was trusting Tommy.
 
“Four boats sailing up the cut smelling of woodsmoke and bacon” Tommy turned back to Arthur, needing him to be on board for this.
 
“And which one of Charlie’s gypsy diddicoy friends do you trust Tom? Eh Ailbhe? With a cargo worth a million pounds?”
 
Arthur asked them. It was a good question. But as usual, Tommy had an answer.
 
“I’ve already made provisions. I’m needed at a meeting so let’s vote” Tommy answered, knowing it would always come down to a vote.
 
“Those in favour” Tommy stated, raising his left hand up.
 
Ailbhe looked between them, lifting up her left hand too.
 
Polly copied. Majority rules. Motion carried.
 
“Arthur, tell Charlie we need four boats, four tonnes of coal before it gets dark. They sail south tonight”
 
Tommy shouted over his shoulder, nodding at Ailbhe.
 
“Ailbhe, a word” He beckoned her over, making sure he slowed his steps for her to catch up.
 
They could both hear Arthur yelling, how he kicked over the fire and let the hot coals spray all over the ground.
 
“I’ll be back late tonight. And you are going to come with me to meet McCavern” He told her, walking quickly but making sure she kept up.
 
She didn’t want to meet McCavern if she had any choice but when Tommy asked her to do something, she did it. It wasn’t a matter of her preferences.
 
“Why me, Tommy?” She questioned, wishing he would take Arthur or Niall.
 
Tommy skidded to a halt at the door of his car, turning back to face her. She was still so young and yet she was undoubtedly wise beyond her years.
 
“Because I’m asking you Ailbhe, alright?” He stated, raising his eyebrows at her and not giving her any type of explanation.
 
Truthfully, he couldn’t come up with one. He could have brought Liam who knew the books and figures, he could have brought Niall who would just keep his mouth shut but look tough as nails, he could have brought Finn who would learn a lot from it. But he wanted Ailbhe there. There was something men found equally intimidating and inciting about her, something that made them less clever and show their weak spots. He also needed someone he wouldn’t have to explain everything to, someone who already knew about the deal and what it entailed.
 
She nodded, stepping back and letting Tommy climb into the car and start the engine. The car pulled away, kicking up dust and dirt from the ground of Charlie’s yard. She looked down at her bare feet, how they were now filthy and yet she felt all the better for it. Polly was right, freedom did feel better than anything else. Ailbhe had that now and she wasn't going to give it up.