Candy [THOMAS SHELBY]

Chapter Fifty-Two

They walked down to the Vardo which was sat in the middle of a field together, hand in hand, in silence. It was the first moment of normality and peace they've had over the past few days and that shocked Josephine. In the past year, things had been 'normal' and simple for them, as if they were just a normal couple and not part of a gang. The addition of Theodore most certainly helped with that and for a while, they were simply just a small family.

When they reached the Vardo, Josephine placed a rose and said her final goodbyes. It was only now just settling in that John was dead and her heart hurt beyond comprehension. John was such a well-meaning man who had his demons but he was well intentioned and had a good heart.

She cursed herself for not even attempting to visit after he had got released, since the last time she saw him, he was getting dragged out by the police and she wondered if he even knew about Theodore.

After she had said her goodbyes, she takes a step back and stands next to Johnny Dogs who gives her a warm smile and a tap on her shoulders before they both turn to face Tommy who was standing in front of the Vardo.

"This is how John wanted to go. On the smoke and the truth is... we died together once before. Arthur, me, Danny Whizzbang, Freddie Thorne, Jeremiah, and John. We were cut off from the retreat. No bullets left, waiting for the Prussian cavalry to come and to finish us off. And while we waited... Jeremiah said, 'We should sing, 'In the Bleak Midwinter.' But we were spared." Tommy spoke, recalling their time from the war.

"The enemy never came and we all agreed...that everything after that was extra and when our time came... we'd all remember."

Polly spoke up, her voice trembling, "You remember that God spared you. But what did you do with that extra time that he gave you, eh, Thomas?"

There was silence after that, no one daring to speak until Arthur walked towards the Vardo and lit a match, flicking it to the timber that surrounded it, setting it alight.

Josephine watched as the Vardo went up in flames with tears in her eyes. She was upset with herself for not doing anything to improve the situation between Tommy and his family but a part of her truly knew that, no matter what she would have done, the inevitable was inevitable.

The sudden loud bang of a gun going off made her cry out in alarm and shock before she crouched down and placed her hand on Teddy's back, looking down to make sure he was okay.

He was awake, undoubtedly woken by the commotion and he was beginning to cry, frightened by everything and she had no doubt that he could feel her heart racing since his head was on her chest. A hand on her shoulder distracted her temporarily and made her glance up.

It was Johnny Dogs. He had one hand on her shoulder and the other was on his gun, he was standing protectively over them and Josephine was grateful because at that moment she realised how vulnerable she really was. She couldn't protect Teddy, single-handedly, she can't keep him safe. The realisation horrified her but the scared wailing from Teddy pulled her back to reality.

She quickly unwrapped him from the wrap and tucked his head into her neck, pressed kisses to his head and rubbed a comforting hand up and down his back in hopes that it would calm him. Josephine felt his tears drop on to her neck as she heard Tommy shouting.

"At ease! At ease. Do not return fire. I repeat, do not return fire. Stand down." Tommy shouted at the crowd, "The men doing the firing are on our side. I took the trouble...of giving an invitation to Aberama Gold."

"Oh, fuck! Now it's begun." Johnny Dogs cursed

"Put it out in the open on purpose. You used John's funeral fire as a fucking beacon." Polly realized.