𝖕𝖊𝖆𝖐𝖞 𝖇𝖑𝖎𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖘
❛ you wanna know why i came
back, tommy? well, i came back
for you. ❜
━━ IN WHICH an orphaned heiress and the ex-fiancée of the most dangerous man in birmingham returns to her home with a broken he...
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POLLY ENSURED that Nellie was completely unarmed before they stepped into the Garrison. She even went so far as to slide her fingers through Nellie's hair and confiscate hair pins and any other sharp or dangerous object from her person, though both women knew that Nellie didn't need a weapon to kill someone.
She grew up as the only girl involved in not one but two gangster families and she was a nurse in the war. She knew where to strike someone to make it hurt, and she knew exactly how to put someone to sleep so that they might never wake up again. And when it came to Grace Burgess, Nellie had no problem utilizing her skill set for harm.
Her engagement rings felt as if they weighed a thousand tonnes in her pocket, and though she tried to ignore them and their cruel reminder of what was lost, it was hard to drag her mind away from the bands, even as she and Polly waltzed into the Garrison.
The pub was desolate, the only living soul within that of the pretty barmaid that almost brought about the downfall of Thomas Shelby.
Nellie's heart was thundering in her chest as she glared at the Irish woman, her fingers twitching at her sides as she watched Grace casually fix her coat and sling her purse over her shoulder. She looked as calm as she could be, as if she didn't even care about what she had done to Tommy and his family.
"Going for good?" Polly's voice was deceptively pleasant as she met Grace's stare.
The barmaid didn't look at Polly as she spoke. Rather, she held Nellie's intense stare, her blue eyes revealing the sorrow she felt. Nellie was sure that Grace felt for Thomas, but was it love that she felt for the gangster? Because Nellie would have never betrayed a man she loved in such a horrible manner, but then again, Nellie thought that Thomas loved her and he betrayed her.
So perhaps love wasn't what Nellie thought it was. Perhaps it was darker and more corrupting. Nellie was beginning to think that she didn't know what love was anymore, and maybe she had never even known what love was.
The thought churned her stomach as Polly began to slide a sharp pin from her hair, much to Nellie's chagrin. So she could threaten Grace, but Nellie couldn't? She just barely bit back her scoff as Grace's hand moved to her clutch and popped it open, wariness filling her eyes.
"We know who you are. Tommy knows as well. Turns out that copper as good as told him this morning, but I wanted to hear it from your own lips." Polly held the pin before her chest as Nellie took a step forward, her glare piercing.
"A gun will not save you, Grace." Her voice was as soft as a plush feather, her tone deceptively calm as she stared down the barmaid.
Grace ignored Nellie's warning and drew her weapon anyways, pointing it squarely at Nellie's chest with the certainty of a woman who believed she had done nothing wrong. "I am an agent of the Crown." Nellie's brow rose in surprise. She knew Grace was a rat, but to actually be working with the royals and the coppers? That surprised her. "I have the power to arrest and the right to use force, so please, step out of my way."
