A Shelby Mistress

Billy Shelby

Tommy watched Aurora from the wing mirror of the driver's side door, resisting the urge to go back to her after she hit the floor in a flood of tears. With her back pressed firmly against the bricked wall she buried her face into the tulips resting in her hands and continued to cry until the last tear had dried only then did she wipe her eyes and get up from the ground. Her eyes scanned the area one last time, still looking for him after he'd disappeared like a shadow in the night. Once she realised he wasn't to be find she finally turned away from the street and walked back around the corner in the direction of her home. Tommy stayed in his place until he was certain she was gone and no longer seeking him before he finally turned the car on and drove away, hoping this wouldn't be the last time he saw her.

Aurora stared at the envelope resting upon the fireplace. It remained unopened next to Tommy's old cigarette case. There it had rested for over a month while she'd been on the road with Masilda and her family. Unlike the last time Aurora refused to throw this envelope in the fire yet she also didn't feel inclined to open it so it would remain on the fireplace collecting dust until she felt the need to retrieve it. Pulling her eyes away from it she continued to dust her ornaments, kicking herself for leaving them too long and wishing she would of cleaned before she left.
"Aurora?! Aurora?!" Her Mam's voice called out as the front door slammed loudly, the sound of her heels causing Aurora's head to pound the closer she got to the room. She hadn't seen her Mam since the day she came back to Middlesbrough although it wasn't on Aurora's part that they didn't see each other. Aurora had tried a whole week before going away to see her Mam but she'd been refused each time. She knew she was being punished for Tommy's fault and whilst Aurora understood some of her Mam's reasoning, a part of her was still angry.
Why was she here now?
Their time apart hadn't been long enough and Aurora was already regretting not locking her door. The tone in her Mam's voice told her she wasn't here for a friendly social gathering, she was here to bite and bite hard.

Putting down her duster, Aurora dropped it onto the floor and quickly moved to sit in the arm chair with a long quiet moan of distress.
"Good afternoon Mam, how are you?" Aurora started placing a friendly smile on her face as a stormy stare finally made its way into the room and glowered down at her.
Her Mam wasn't here to play nice but Aurora would be, she loved her more than anything and would still respect the woman who had raised her.
"Why is the office locked?! Your brothers have been trying to get in but it's been locked and chained!" Anne bit out pointing her finger accusingly at Aurora. She was doing her best to get this family back on track yet it didn't matter what she did, there were always hurdles in the way and Anne, well she'd had enough.
'No point offering her a cup of tea' Aurora thought preparing herself for the words that were about to come out her mouth, the words that would send her Mam into a fit of rage.
"Tommy's locked it up"
She flinched as the statement rolled off her tongue. There was no going back now, they were out but if her Mam had been to see her Dad she would of known this information before hand.
"He can't do that! We own it!" Anne screeched feeling her face grow flush with anger. She hated Thomas Shelby, he was nothing but a backstreet mutt disguising himself in fancy clothing.
"Yes he can, it his building he owns it. What did you expect Mam?! You made the call, you told Tommy we would no longer be a part of the company. Yes Jane told me all about your phone call" Aurora groaned and resting her fingers against her head she took a deep breath in and exhaled sharply.
"We own half! That has always been the deal Aurora. He has no right to do this to us"
"Mam! We don't own half!" Aurora yelled trying to swallow back her frustration as quickly as it came out "We own half the club but nothin' more. Dad gave Tommy control of the north, he gave him control of our businesses. We as a family were working for Tommy, we may 'ave been close, fucking 'ell I was in Tommy's bed but I was still an employee and now thanks to your call we are back down the ladder. We're not even on the bottom of the ladder we're under the fucking ground and you would know this if you took the time to visit your husband"
"Don't speak to me like that Aurora Elizabeth when you haven't been to see him either! You ran away to go on the road again" Anne snapped wondering when her children believed they had a right to speak to her the way they did just because they were adults. She was still their Mam and they would speak to her properly.
"I 'ave been to see him, he's the one who convinced me to go on the road to clear my mind" Aurora shrugged, she wouldn't be accused of running this time. Her Dad had took his time in convincing her to leave for a few weeks to relieve some of the stress from the last few weeks and in the end she'd been grateful. Her mind was now clear and she was focused on helping her family get back on their feet. If they were starting again they needed to start now.