𝓡𝓔𝓥𝓔𝓡𝓘𝓔 - 𝓟𝓔𝓐𝓚𝓨 𝓑𝓛𝓘𝓝𝓓𝓔𝓡𝓢

9

"Good of you to join us," Maura says to her older sister who stumbles down the stairs at midday.

"Where have you been all day?" Polly asks.

"In bed," Ada says as she slathers jam onto a piece of bread.

Maura and Polly exchange glances. Ada had hated sweet food for as long as they could remember and for her to slather the bread in jam was unusual.

"Couldn't sleep. Then I couldn't wake up," Ada's voice is muffled through the mouthful of bread. "Then I was cold, and then I had to go for a wee. Then I was with this bear on a boat. That was just a dream. Then I was hungry"

Maura's eyes flick over the page in her book before she turns it.

"Why are you reading the paper?" Ada asks Polly.

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, I've never seen you read the paper," Ada says, sitting down opposite Maura. "I've only ever seen you light fires with them"

"They have words on them Ada," Maura says. "Your supposed to read them first"

A chunk of jam coated bread flies and hits Maura on her cheek.

"You fucking c-"

"The BSA on strike," Polly raises her voice to drown out Maura. "Miners are on strike. IRA are killing our boys. Ten a day"

Polly stares at Ada, her head tilted to the side.

"What?" Ada asks.

"Stand up," Polly says.

"Why?"

"Just stand up," Polly says. "Side on"

Ada follows her Aunt's instructions and gasps when Polly grips her breast. Maura laughs, coughing as the smoke from her cigarette hits the back of her throat due to the sharp intake of breath.

"Oi, what are you doing?"

"Ada, how late are you?" Polly asks.

"Oh fucking hell Ada," Maura says, not looking up from where she was scribbling on the paper.

"One week," Ada says and Polly raises an eyebrow. "Five weeks. Seven, if you count weekends. I think it's a lack of iron. I got some tablets"

"But they didn't work," Polly states.

"No," Ada shakes her head.

"Let's go," Polly says. "Hide your faces"

"You can get dressed now, love," The nurse says.

"So, am I or not?" Ada asks.

"You are, love," The nurse nods.

The trio step outside and Ada stumbles, clearly in shock of the news, and Polly pulls on her arm.

"Keep bloody walking, Ada. If anybody sees us here, they'll know,"

"I'm not getting rid of it, Aunt Pol," Ada says firmly.

"Just come home Ada and we'll talk about it," Maura says.

"You get off of me, or I'll scream it, I swear,"

Polly lets go of Ada's arm and whirls around, fury in her eyes.

"All right, you want to do this on the street? Let's do it," Polly hisses. "Whose is it?"

Maura looks to her older sister with questioning eyes and Ada's eyes tell Maura everything she needs to know.

"If I tell you, you'll tell them and they'll cut him to pieces," Ada says.

"Not if he marries you, they won't," Polly says. "Will he marry you?"

"I don't know. I don't know where he is,"

"Jesus Christ, Ada!"

"Look, he's gone away but he said he'd come back," Ada says.

"Yeah, but they all say they'll come back," Polly sighs at her niece's naivety.

"He's not like that, he's a good man, he promised," Ada says. "He will come back, Aunt Pol, I know he will"

"If he doesn't come back, I will hunt him down and make sure he can never have another child," Maura says.

"You know who it is?" Polly asks and Maura mimes zipping her lips.

"My lips are sealed and the day they fall loose is the day I lose my voice,"

The door to Maura's bedroom slams open, her second eldest brother storming in.

"Thomas," Maura says. "As courteous as usual I see"

"You fucking knew?" Tommy shouts.

"Us Shelby sisters have a type," Maura hums and Tommy sits on the edge of her bed, taking his hat off of his head.

"Well one of you picked the good brother," Tommy says. "Speaking of which I've not seen him recently"

"Well we're not courting," Maura says. "So wherever he is, whatever or whoever he doing is none of my concern"

"So if Arthur, John and Ed all went to a brothel," Tommy begins. "You wouldn't care?"

"No,"

"Why not?"

"I'd just fuck someone else to piss him off," Maura says. "An eye for an eye"

"Jesus fucking Christ Maura!"Tommy's face contorts in disgust at his sister's blunt words.

"So Monaghan Boy finally lost?" Maura asks her older brother who nods as he lights a cigarette.

"Third time unlucky," Tommy says. "We took money from all over the city"

"You paid the people around here?" Maura asks. "You've got to buy your popularity back. Especially with the coppers trashing the fucking place"

"Already done," Tommy says, holding the cigarette box out to Maura and she takes one of the cigarettes, lighting it.

"Polly taught you well," Maura says. "Did you fix this race without the permission of Billy Kimber?"

Tommy nods and Maura slaps him upside the head harshly.

"Rule one. You don't punch above your weight," Maura says.

"So you're fucking telling what to do now? Maura I've been in this business for longer than you,"

"Someone has to!"

"Billy Kimber is there for the taking,"

"Says who?" Maura asks. "Says Tommy and his fucking government of one. I ran this business for three years. I was fifteen, cutting people who tried to cross us. So don't tell me I don't know what I'm doing"

"You ran the business while I was away fighting, remember?" Tommy asks and Maura nods. "Where I learned some things, such as you strike when the enemy is weak"

"Seeing as war is the only analysis you'll listen to, you're walking on a fucking minefield and the wrong step is going to blow us all up"

"I need you to come with me to a meeting I have with inspector Campbell," Tommy says.

"Why?"

"Because he's got some kind of sick attraction to you," Tommy says. "And as much as I hate it, we can use it"