Aurelia Cruz is a well respected club owner and madame in London, but she has things she holds very sacred and sacred things that hold her.
Thomas Shelby is a Birmingham gangster making his way up in the business world, and is trying to expand busin...
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Ada paused and noticed the woman who helped her and paid no mind to the men fighting. "Oh, dear you're shaking, come darling they'll take care of the scum, let's get you home." Aurelia says comforting the girl. "No! P-please my son h-he can't see me like this." Ada pleaded and Aurelia couldn't help but sympathize. She would never want Marianna to see her in such a state, it was mostly why she left Steven in the first place. "My home is close by. Why don't we get you fixed up there and you can go home after?" Ada took a moment looking over the woman before nodding. Aurelia is walks over to one of the men and whispers to him to leave the men alive, at least partly alive. "My name is Aurelia Cruz I own that club over there." She introduces herself to the distraught girl. "A-ada Thorne I uh- I work in the library." She stutters out. The two women chat as they walked through the empty alleys to Aurelia's home, the businesswoman trying to get the young mother's mind off the horrible events of tonight.
When they made it to Aurelia's house in no time with Ada's nerves slightly calmed. The Hispanic woman sat Ada down in her living room and wrapped her in a warm blanket before making her and herself a cup of tea. She gave Ada her cup and saucer and at down in her own chair across from her placing her cup on the small table separating them. "Did you know those men?" Aurelia started gently. Ada shook her head biting her lip trying to hold in a sob. Aurelia went and kneeled to comfort the crying woman. "Did they...?" Aurelia didn't even want to finish the sentence; the thought of such actions brought horrid memories and made her sick to her stomach. "No, no they didn't you and your men got to me in time. I don't know what would've happened if-" She started getting hysterical again and Aurelia hugged her and let her sob on her shoulder making calming shush sounds. Knocking sounded on Aurelia's front door scaring Ada. "It's alright I know who it is. No need to be frightened I'll get it." She said getting up and dusting her knees off and opening the door.
Marianna had stayed after school over for dinner at Mrs. Goodwin's for a bit. "Momma! I missed you today! Mrs. Goodwin got a new cat and she let me name him!" The excited four-year-old said to her mother. "Oh, how wonderful! Well, meanwhile you haven't properly greeted your mother and you haven't seen me since this morning." Aurelia said kneeling to be eye level with Marianna. "Sorry. Hi momma." The four-year-old said kissing her mother on the cheek. "Hello mi bebe." She said kissing her daughter's forehead. "Thank you for this Mrs. Goodwin. You have no idea how much this means to me." Aurelia said truthfully. "Not to worry dear. I better get going Dougie is waiting in the car. Goodnight, dears." The woman said giving a kiss on the cheek to the mother and daughter. "Goodnight, Mrs. Goodwin." They told her before Aurelia closed and locked the door.
Aurelia turned to her daughter with a smile. "Marianna, Momma has a guest over. Her name is Ada she's in the living room, she's had a bit of a scare tonight so will you be extra kind to her?" Aurelia asks of her little girl moving a stray curl away from her babies' face. "I promise, momma." The little light said making her mother's smile widen. They walked hand in hand to the living room where Ada sat sipping tea still wrapped in a blanket. "Marianna, this is Ada. Ada, this is my daughter Marianna." Aurelia introduced the two. "Well, aren't you gorgeous." Ada says making the little girl blush at the compliment. "Thank you! You are really pretty, like a princess!" Marianna says truthfully, she already liked Ada. "Well, aren't you sweet! I hope my boy grows up as sweet as you." Ada says tickling the little girl's tummy making her giggle. Aurelia smiled at the interaction from the two. "Alright amorcita go brush your teeth I'll go get your bath ready in a minute." Aurelia nudged her daughter along. "Okay. Goodnight, Princess Ada!" Marianna said waving at Ada. "Goodnight, Marianna."
"Feeling better?" Aurelia asks Ada. "Yeah, I think being called a princess really lifted my spirits. How old is she?" Ada asks. "Four, five in a few months." Aurelia answers. "My boy, Karl, he's two. His father passed a few weeks ago, an illness took him." Ada said, she didn't know why she was revealing all this to Aurelia. She supposes that it's nice talking to someone about this who isn't Aunt Pol but something in her also feels safe with Aurelia like she's talking to a childhood friend. "I'm so sorry for your loss. My mother went the same way." Aurelia sympathized. "It's alright I know he's still with us. What about Marianna's father?" Ada asked and for a moment Aurelia wants to evade the question but instead she just told bits of the truth. "He wasn't a good man. When I found out I was pregnant I left him." Aurelia said plainly. "If you want, I have a brother or two who can sort him out. I'm sure they won't mind." Ada says with a laugh.
"No, all I ask is you keep Marianna a secret. Not many people know I'm a mother and it keeps her safe as possible. You're a mother yourself so I trust you know where I'm coming from?" Aurelia says looking Ada eye to eye. "Of course, I won't tell a soul, you have my word." Aurelia thanked her and excused herself to get Marianna's bath ready while Ada used Aurelia's phone to call a friend to pick her up. The two women exchange information before Ada left. Aurelia went on with her night, tucking Marianna in before going to bath and get ready for sleep herself. In a hospital a long way away from London Thomas Shelby is on a metal table with doctors and nurses frantically moving around him. The fear of The Thomas Shelby dying on their table was palpable through the entire room, luckily, the doctors were competent enough to keep the gangster alive and fix up the wounds they could until time could fix the rest.
