CHAPTER ELEVEN.

               THE BOY THAT WAS born to Ada did not get to experience the short bout of merriment that had befallen the family. No sooner than the baby took its second breath had the police barged through the doors with angry, shouted demands for Freddie Thorne's arrest. The new mother was left crying as she cradled her new-born to her chest: hot, angry, bewildered tears streaming down her cheeks.

Felicity had rushed from Thomas' side the moment they had returned from the earlier wedding and now she did her best to comfort Ada, alongside Polly and Esme. The newest Shelby had wasted no time in helping her sister-in-law, both throughout the labour and when the coppers had entered the scene.

"Aren't you coming?" Felicity had asked Thomas once the car had arrived at the house, a mere twenty minute drive that had been one of apparent agony to the expectant mother. The blonde stepped out into the street from where she had stood, halfway through the threshold of the door.

Thomas shook his head, taking measured steps backwards, away from the women. "There's not much us men can do now, Lis" he returned, with wry, wary laughter lighting his voice.

Arthur had nodded with a grin. "Except go and get drunk!"

Thomas confirmed this with a retaliating, amused smile as he turned away from the house. "Right," he'd claimed to his brothers. "Come on."

He would have gotten further had Polly not reminded him just who's baby was about to be born. "There's one man who should be here," she said in a particularly pointed manner.

Turning on his heel, Thomas caught Felicity's eye as he inhaled from the cigarette that he gripped between his fingers. She held his gaze, silently pleading with him to give in to his aunt's wishes and just let Freddie Thorne walk free for the night without the threat of a war hanging over his head.

"You're right, Pol," he eventually exhaled, allowing the silvery smoke to disperse into the air in short clouds. "Freddie should be here.

Felicity raised her eyebrows as she attempted to prevent the smile from growing on her lips. "Is that a heartbeat I hear inside that chest?" She teased.

"The truce lasts 'til sunrise, on my oath." Thomas ignored her quip but the bemused expression that had quickly alighted his features was not hard to miss. "Tell Freddie it's safe."

Beside her, Polly's face broke into a grin as she turned from her nephews and ran back into the house, shouting for the Shelby girl. "Ada!" The joy in her voice was as clear as day, and Felicity hoped it would last.

The blonde turned to Tommy. "D'you really mean that? That it's safe for Freddie?"

He simply nodded. "Today's the biggest day of my sister's life," he hummed. "I've got enough of a heart to allow her husband to be a part of it."

Thomas Shelby had more of a heart than he would ever give himself credit for, and the girl knew this. Returning his smile with a warm one of her own, she turned quickly to help the other women as Ada screamed bloody murder, her pained cries ringing with exhaustion. The man watched her go before he too turned on his heel and towards his brothers.

"Right boys," he called to John and Arthur. "Let's wet this baby's head, eh?"

The youngest grinned, sauntering ahead with a cigarette jutting out of his upturned, amused lips. "Our brother hasn't turned soft for the girl, hmm?"

Thomas shot him a half-arsed glare, but the smile that was present in his baby blue irises gave him away. "The only thing that has happened is that I need a drink, John Boy, believe me."

⎯

                In the week that came after, tensions were high in the Shelby residence and there was nothing that Felicity could do to dampen them. With Polly insistent on the fact that it had been Thomas who gave in Freddie Thorne, her anger raged throughout the home like a burning flame that had the same intensity as the bright blue flame that burned in Thomas' own eyes.

The days mainly consisted of what they always did - Felicity working in the Garrison alongside Grace, who had taken to trying to be even more involved in the business and in the family than she had ever before. She and Felicity only continued to grow closer despite this, as she hardly suspected anything on the matter of Felicity being somewhat more involved with Thomas than she was. Felicity found that Grace was a good friend to have when it came to wanting something, anything, to serve as a distraction from the day to day ordeals.

As of now, though, Felicity had turned up at the door of the flat that Ada had taken to residing behind. The day that Freddie had been hauled out of the house was the day she too had left, without a word to any one of her siblings.

"Ada?" She called through the door after raising a hand and gently knocking on the paint-peeling wood. "It's Felicity."

Not a single sound was uttered in reply and so Felicity only sighed with defeat for the day and dropped the basket at the foot of the threshold.

"Think of the little one, love," Felicity tried once more softly. "Please, Ada."

When the other girl didn't respond, the blonde gave in and left, but not before calling to her friend that she had left the basket outside of the door, and that she would always be there for whenever she decided to return home.

Once back at the Garrison, Felicity busied herself with clearing up the spillages she had missed the night before. It was a poor attempt at distraction but it appeared to be working, to which she was ridiculously pleased about.

"When'd the Shelby's get in?" She queried to her friend.

Grace shrugged idly. "Whilst you were out back," was all she returned.

Thomas glanced up from the table when Felicity entered, wearing a grim expression upon his features as he faced his aunt. Polly sat at the other end of the wood, not saying a word to her nephew, although Felicity suspected that she had already fired her accusations at the man before the blonde had arrived.

"Did you speak to her?" Thomas asked, his tone rough and impatient.

Felicity pressed her lips together as she plucked the glasses from the table swiftly. "She didn't speak back."

"Well. . ." The man gritted his teeth, avoiding the glare that came from Polly. "Did you tell her?"

At this, Polly shot her nephew a scowl. "She should only tell her what she knows to be true," she spat, taking the girl's reply into her own hands before stalking out of the pub without another word.

It was no secret that the older woman was unbelievably furious with Tommy, yet Felicity could not help but think that this was being dragged out far too much. . . especially considering the other girl had said fewer words to her elder brother. Ada had taken off into the night just hours after her husband, and rather than choosing to scream angrily at the man of whom everyone blamed, she chose to fixate her mind with the subject of her newborn.

Felicity raised an eyebrow at the woman's angry disappearance before readjusting her grip on the glasses that balanced in her hand. "I'll go again tomorrow," she assured Thomas quietly.

Tommy merely acknowledged this with a short nod, downing the final few drops of whiskey that had previously lay dormant in his glass. With the bronze liquid gone and only a few glistening droplets hovering on the rim of the crystal, he stood up and sighed heavily.

"I suppose you're off?" Felicity hummed as she made her way towards the door.

Tommy nodded, his fingers curling tightly around his glass as he edged around the girl, so that he could hold it open for her. "Business as usual," he confirmed.

The girl rolled her eyes with a wary smile. "Business as fucking usual," she mimicked, to which his retaliating amusement triggered a smile to flash across her peony lips.

She discarded the glasses on the bar top, vaguely aware of how Grace's whereabouts were unknown to her, yet not bothering to investigate the matter any further. There was still over an hour to go before the men escaped from their workplaces and emerged through the frosted glass doors, so it was no surprise to Felicity that Grace had made a fleeting disappearance for the short moment that she had enough time to do so.

"Thanks." Felicity took the glass from his outstretched hand gratefully and slid it over to the rest, telling herself in her head that she would deal with them later.

"I'm to see your father tomorrow." Thomas didn't look at her as the words left his lips - instead, he focused on shrugging the dark overcoat over his suit jacket, knowing that the blonde would try and wriggle her way into coming along with him to the bitter conversation.

Sure enough, Felicity immediately piped up. "Not alone. Not if I can help it."

Felicity glanced up and meeting his cerulean irises with her own warm, anxious ones. There was not a chance in hell she would leave the man to go against John Woods, even if it was in a seemingly-passive meeting. The Woods patriarch was aggressive and unpredictable and he had a harder time at consuming his anger than the raven-haired gangster.

"You tagging along isn't going to be helping matters in any way, shape or form," was all he returned, his voice firm.

"Tommy. . ."

He fixed her with a disapproving frown. "Spend the day with Polly, or Grace. It'll do you more good than to be hovering near the one man who has no heart when it comes to you."

The girl scowled sulkily. "Careful, Tom," she remarked. "It'll begin to look like you've got more of a heart than you're likely to admit."

Tommy laughed, making his way towards the door. "I'll be more careful next time, then?"

Felicity pulled a face. "You couldn't if you tried."

His bemusement continued. "Make sure you don't utter a single syllable about my whereabouts to Polly," Tommy instructed, closing his hand around the door handle in preparation to escape into the blinding light of the winter's day.

Felicity's lips turned downwards once again. "Why?"

"I've got enough to deal with as it is, and I'll be back before anyone knows it."

"She's your family, though. Don't you tell them shit?"

He raised a single eyebrow in response. "Lis, everyone in my family hates me. Why would I tell them?"

The look that has crept into his eyes was one of distaste, as though he could not expect her to understand what any of it was like. He often ceased to remember just what sort of a man John Woods was known for being. And just how much she wished for someone, anyone to understand. Understand he did, but often forgot to show such a thing. Emotions were fickle things, he assumed, most especially when it came to the blonde barmaid who had - rather annoyingly - worked her way into his heart.

When it came to Felicity Woods, though, thing that would be Thomas Shelby's downfall was his continuous habit to forget just how broken the blonde really was, most especially when it came to her family. She needed comfort as much as the next person, as much as him.

Perhaps it was because she tried to never let it show. Tried to keep it hidden: as though pushing away the past was the same as it ceasing to exist. Felicity Woods assumed that because he never asked, she would never tell. No need to burden the man with yet another distasteful backstory.

And so when it came to Thomas Shelby, that would be her downfall.

AUTHOR'S NOTE
the last chapter made me fall in
love with writing this again so here
we are <3 hope you're enjoying this
&   i love you all so much omg!!
( happy valentine's day from this
single asf bitch btw ) apologies for
the boring chapter ugh