Stolen Heart [Tommy Shelby x OC]

Chapter 20

PART II - 1924

ARROW HOUSE, WARWICKSHIRE

Polly Gray sat down behind Tommy's desk and picked a pen from the stand. Tommy's depression was getting worse day by day and the added pressure of the robbery was not helping at all. To top it all, he had taken off to Wales with Charles and Johnny Dogs.

While she knew he was grieving and could do nothing about it, they needed help. She needed to call her here. Though they hadn't talked in a while, she knew Lily would understand and come back to Birmingham. She had to, because Polly knew her secret.

Bending at her desk, she wrote all that had transpired in the last few months. Beginning with Grace's death and Tommy's involvement with the priest. Then she wrote about the topic of interest, the reason why she was calling her. The robbery and the Russians. Ending the letter with a polite warning about their secret, she sent the help to dispatch the letter.

And hoped she got here before their condition worsened.

CRETE, GREECE

If you ignore the letter, Tommy will come for you.

Lily re-read the last line until the pounding in her heart got under control. More than two years since she had heard from the Shelbys and this was how Polly reached her. With a bloody threat. She tried to refrain from uttering her favorite words by gritting her teeth. Since the birth of Oliver she had promised herself to never swear again, at least when he was around. But the current circumstances were making it hard for her to keep it.

'What are you thinking, latria mou?'

She looked up from the letter and found Alexander, her friend and associate ambling towards her with Oliver in his hands.

'We need to leave for Birmingham.' She declared.

Concern shadowed his sun-bronzed face and he took the letter from her hands.

After a while, he shook his head in disgust. 'These people, Lily.'

'It's all right, Alex. I knew the letter would come someday. Just not like this.'

Lily hadn't thought Polly would use her like this. By threatening to take away Oliver. And it hurt more than the events of the past. She had heard about the Russians from her colleagues at the Guild. She might have taken early retirement but the Guild was still her family. And the members kept her updated with news from England.

What had surprised her was Tommy's involvement. He was heading into dangerous territory and if he knew that, he was in even more trouble.

'Ma.' Oliver reached for her and she took him in her arms.

'Looks like you're going to meet your father, Ollie.' She whispered to her son as he tugged at her long braid.

'Let's get ready, then. We have a long journey ahead of us.' Alex said, even though his skepticism was evident.

'You don't need to come with us, Alex.' She said, only half-heartedly. She needed all the support she could get for going back to Birmingham.

'What will I do in this godforsaken farm, Lily? And travelling alone with Oliver is not safe.'

Lily felt a tug at her heart for the handsome Greek in front of her.

'Thank you, Alex. It means a lot.'

'Mostly because I want to see the bast- the man who caused you so much trouble and punch him.'

'He didn't do anything, it was all me. And remember, he's just lost his wife.'

'Lily, you of all people? What happened to your fire?'

'It's there all right. But it isn't about me now.'

'I doubt that. You still love him.'

'It's a memory of the past.' She said dismissively.

'You would leave everything behind for any other person from the past?'

'It's the order of Peaky Blinders. You don't ignore that.'

The three of them walked into the manor, which had been Lily's home for more than two years.

After leaving Birmingham, she had visited Gerard and asked for an indefinite leave of absence. She was going to be a mother and wanted some time off. Lily had expected contempt, even anger. But his reaction had stumped her. For the first time in twelve years , Gerard had hugged her and kissed her forehead. And she had cried in front of him, after almost seven years.

He had arranged for her to live in a cottage in the country, with a maid and one or two members of the Guild coming to visit every day. Being in the Guild had quelled all her worries about being an unwed mother. If you weren't seen by anyone, then there was no one to make judgements. And her child would grow up in the midst of rational and clever minds, possibly follow their footsteps.

The initial months had been good. Her belly had swollen and she had to stop wearing pants. Spending the days in the country in loose frocks with members of the Guild and regaling stories of the art they'd collected had been one of the best moments of her life.

One day, when she was almost three months along, she and Jessie had gone to watch a movie in London. It was dark by the time they got out, and she'd been gazing out from the car when she saw a proud Tommy with a beautiful blonde. She had to blink her eyes to make sure she'd seen right. And she had, because the undercut was unmistakable. And the woman in the stylish clothes had to be the gorgeous Grace.

That night, she had cried again. She had thought she'd be able live without Tommy. And she had been living. Until she'd seen him, with Grace of all people. The one man she'd given her heart to, loved a woman she could never be.

Wiping her tears, she made a promise to herself. She may love Tommy but she was done crying after him. She had his child and that was enough for her. Tommy and Grace could live their fairy tale.

She had decided to leave for Crete Island the next day, ignoring Gerard's pleading. She needed a fresh start and after some convincing, he had reluctantly agreed. On the condition that someone accompany her. Or she could forget all about it.

And so began her life in Crete. The place was breathtaking and in the vast seas and snowy mountains, Lily found herself. The heartbreak was there all right, but she had learnt to make it an event of the past. Her present and future involved her baby and the farm around her mansion. There was no space for a man who didn't love her.

She had been so wrong.