rose and thorn

xiii.

xiii.
28th May 1922
~

Rose had wondered how long it would be until Tommy came knocking. In the end, it was less then twenty four hours from her leaving Ada's.

She had been sat at the table close to the door when she heard shuffling in the hallway. Knowing it must've been Thomas, she prepared what she would say to him when she opened the door but the knock never came.

Listening intently, she heard what sounded like an object being placed on the ground right outside her door. With curiosity washing over her, she moved over and opened the door, revealing exactly who she had expected to see.

"Hello Mr Shelby."

"Hi Rosie." His expression was unreadable, a mixture of nervousness, regret and a slight hint of fear that only she could've noticed.

"What do you want?" Her voice was stern but not harsh, he was already getting much further than he had expected.

"I want to explain myself and to apologise for what happened." He turned his body to face her but kept his distance, not wanting to overstep any boundaries. There was something different in her eyes but yet he still couldn't read her.

Following a few moments of silence, she pushed herself off the doorframe, leaving it open behind her as an invitation for him to come in.

"Ada sent you this." He spoke softly, picking up the basket on his way in. "It's just food and tea and stuff."

Looking around her flat, he smiled softly at what she had already done with it. Books were already scattered everywhere despite her only being here a day. It was a small, run down studio flat but she had made it neat and tidy.

"That's kind of her." Rose observed what was in the basket as Tommy awkwardly stood in the kitchenette, unsure what to do. "You can sit down." She told him, aware of his awkwardness.

"How come you left Ada's?" He asked as he took a seat at the small kitchen table.

"I left because every second that I'm associated with your family, my life is at risk. Every second that you're in my flat my life is also at risk so be quick." Her tone was soft but her words somewhat hurt.

"I will." He nodded, looking down as she turned to face him, leaning on the counter. "You were honest with me but I've not been honest with you. I'll tell you whatever you want to know."

"No." They both noticed how dramatic the shift had been between her being intimidated by him to the other way round. "I don't want to know anything. The more I know, the more they can get out of me. I just want to know when I'll be free and I also want to know what you did to the men who attacked me."

"Darby day." He kept his eyes to the table, not saying anything more than he needed to.

"Darby day?"

"I have business with the Italians at the Epsom Derby on Wednesday. Once the business is done, I'll leave you alone but until then you need to be under Shelby protection." His voice held little emotion, leaving Rose wondering what was going on in his head.

"So three days?"

"Yeah. Three days and you won't have to see me again." A hint of sadness laced his words, discreet enough for it to almost go unnoticed.

"And my other question?" Rose moved to sit across from him at the kitchen table, desperately wanting the eye contact he was depriving her of.

"We didn't do anything." His eyes shifted to her hands which were resting on the table but he still couldn't bring himself to look at her injured face or cloudy eyes.

"Don't lie to me Thomas, of course you did something."

Thomas sighed, not wanting to divulge in the details but knowing he didn't have a choice. "The day after the attack, I received a letter from Sabini. It was a detailed account of your whereabouts the three days leading up to the attack. With it was a direct threat that if we retaliated, you would be killed. So no, we didn't do anything."

Rose sighed. She desperately wanted to be angry at him for putting her in this position but the pain clouding his icy eyes led her to instead feel bad for him.

"I'll have a man watching the house at all times." His gaze moved completely away from her to the floor. He knew she could see things in his face that he tried to hide. "From now on I'll leave you alone."

Rose stayed quiet. Part of her wanted to call out and tell him he didn't need to leave her alone but she had to put her safety first. What would it say about her if she put herself in danger for a man she had vowed to never get involved with?

"I'm sorry, Rosie." Once again, Tommy's voice softened, he sounded genuine.

He took Rose's continued silence as a cue to leave. Standing up from the creaky wooden chair, he carefully pushed it back under the table.

Eventually, he built up the courage to look her in the eye. As soon as he did, Rose saw a thousand emotions dancing across his pupils, telling her things he would never say out loud.

"Goodbye Rosie." He spoke with a monotone voice, nodding his head slightly to the woman.

"Goodbye Mr Shelby." She wasn't sure yet whether it was a final goodbye or just for now.

Her skin craved the feeling of his touch, she had to put all her effort into not jumping into his arms. While this may be a harmless gesture, she feared that if she gave in to the temptations screaming in her ear, she would never let him go again.

Thomas felt the same. Standing less than a metre away from her, he debated the consequences of reaching out and touching her but quickly decided against it.

Rose was desperate to call out to him as he turned and moved towards the door. She knew that if he walked out of that door he was unlikely to return but she watched him go.

Two souls who desperately craved each other but they each knew that life would be far easier for both of them if they kept their desires hidden. No matter how much it pained them.