"You good?" Liv waved her hand in front of Iris's face.

"Why aren't you mad at me?" the blonde turned onto her side to face the girl better.

"Because I want my dad to pay and if you being spy for Campbell is my revenge then I'm taking it," the girl answered truthfully in a hushed voice since Imogen was walking towards the girl's bedroom.

"What are you two plotting?" the blonde asked, opening Liv's bedroom door. The brunette had moved in with Imogen so she didn't have to see Tommy that much but the only issue was she had moved back into Ali and Liv's old flat since Imogen had the keys and both Imogen and Liv refused to let Tommy sell it.

"Nothing," the brunette shook her head.

"Well whatever it is, it better include you staying in school and leaving Tommy alone," the blonde told her niece with a stern look.

"You were the one who said I had to try forgive him," Liv reminded the blonde woman with a shrug.

"The forgive bit didn't include plotting against him, Olivia."

"I'm not plotting, Imogen." Imogen stared at the girl to try detect any hints of a lie but once she saw that there wasn't any sign she gave the girl a stern look before leaving to go to work.

Iris glanced to the brunette with a soft smile on her face. "What?" the brunette asked, a smile breaking on to her lips.

"Nothing just the fact you think this will work," she shrugged. "I don't think Imogen is as in the dark as she makes out. I think she's waiting for you to slip up."

Liv laid down beside the blonde and let out a sigh, "As long as we keep up the act, she won't suspect a thing. Immy is smart but she also believes that I've backed off so as long I make out that I have we're in the clear." The blonde let out a sigh before nodding. "So, what's our next mission?" the brunette asked.

"I don't know yet, I'll let you know when I speak to the Inspector again."

✧

Liv and Iris walked down Watery Lane when the Shelby girl bumped into someone, sending her backwards making Iris grab onto her to stabilise her. "Shit, sorry," she apologised, looking up to see the woman from the Garrison the night of her mum's funeral. "Oh, it's you."

"Sorry, that was my fault. I wasn't looking where I was going," Alex apologised with a smile.

"It's fine," Liv smiled back.

"Iris?"

"Hi, Al," Iris sent the woman an awkward wave.

The three of them went their separate ways and once Alex was out of earshot Liv turned to Iris. "How do you know her?"

"Erm she's my mum's best friend and I live with her," Iris replied.

"Does she know about you working for the Inspector?"

"No. How do you know her?"

"After my mum's funeral, we went back to the Garrison and I saw her with a blonde woman, think it was your mum anyway I hated the way everyone was pretending that it wasn't my dad's fault so I went outside and threw up and Alex sat with me," Liv replied as they turned into the cemetery.

Liv stood at Danny Whizzbang's grave, placing flowers down before moving to Ali's grave while Iris sat at her aunt's grave. This was the first time the girl had visited her mum in two weeks. During those two weeks she told herself that she would visit her mum but never got around to it until now.

✧

"Who are you taking to the races then? The barmaid or the nurse?" Liv asked her dad when she walked into the kitchen of her aunt Pol's house. "And if you're going to treat whoever you take like a whore, I hope you know I will never speak to you. Ever again."

"You don't speak to me anyway," Tommy replied bluntly.

"Yeah well, I want my dad back. You want your daughter back. Who knows, if you're nice to me you might get your wish," the girl shrugged with a smile. She knew he would end up taking Grace to the races, she just had to make sure that Alex wasn't a choice since she wasn't entirely sure what he was up to but she knew it would be bad.

"Oh and I was at Danny's grave yesterday, looked a bit you know sad and dull so I put some flowers down," she told him.

"It's a grave, Liv. What were you expecting? Sunshines and rainbows?" Imogen's voice travelled through the kitchen.

"No I just mean, he deserves a grave that doesn't look so dull, don't you think?"

"Go to school or somewhere," Tommy told her.

"Iris is outside waiting for you," Imogen informed the girl, passing her some money. "When you're out will you get me some bread from the bakery please, you and Iris ate all of it."

"We did not," the girl shook her head.

"You ate a lot of it." Imogen deadpanned, giving her the stare she usually gets from Tommy. "Go."

Liv exited Polly's house to be met with Iris kicking herself off the wall and waiting until they were away from any blinders or anyone who could snitch on them to Tommy. "I have to go see the Inspector soon, will you be alright?" Iris asked her.

"Yeah, I need to go to the bakery for Immy. Do you want anything from the bakery while I'm there?"

"No thanks," Iris shook her head.

"Okay well meet me back at mine after your done?" Liv asked. "Immy will be at work until late tonight anyway."

"Yeah, I'll see you soon," the blonde smiled and the two went their separate ways.

Dalton's bakery was one if not her all time favourite place in Small Heath. "Olivia!" Clara Dalton smiled at the sight of the Meadows-Shelby girl. "Haven't seen you in a while, the usual?"

"Yeah please and can I also have a loaf of bread too please," she smiled, leaning on the counter watching the woman get the bread, shortbread and Victoria sponge cake for her.

"There you go," the woman smiled, holding her hand up when the girl tried to pay. "You know you don't pay."

"No, Tommy doesn't. I do and my mum used to," she left the money on the counter for the woman.

✧

"Well?" Liv turned around at the sound of the door closing, looking up from her book.

Iris sat down beside her, stealing one of her shortbreads. "Thought you didn't want anything," the brunette tapped her arm.

The blonde shrugged, "Changed my mind anyway. Your dad, sorry Tommy, exchanged money for the location of the stolen guns with some IRA men I think they were, tuned out after a bit. Anyway then Grace killed the IRA guy."

"I think I know where they are actually," Liv placed her book down. "So you know when we went to the cemetery and I went to Danny's grave before I went to my mums?" Iris nodded so she carried on. "Well there was something off about his grave, I don know how to describe it other than just off so I don't know whether the guns are buried with him or instead of him, I'm not sure but they're something to do with the grave."

Iris turned to look the girl in the eye, "Are you a hundred percent sure?"

"A hundred percent sure of what?" Imogen's voice cut Liv's reply off.

"You're early," she commented.

"A hundred percent sure of what?" Imogen asked again.

"That I've failed the test I had at school," the girl rolled her eyes.

Imogen looked at her niece with her hand on her hip, "Well it's funny you say that because I got a phone call from the school to tell me you haven't been in two weeks so yeah I guess you have failed the test because you can't pass it if you don't take it."

"It's not a big deal, I'll just take it at a different time," she shrugged, picking her book back up.

"I didn't agree to let you live with me for you to start skipping school, Liv," the woman sighed. "I promised Polly I'd make sure you went to school."

"I still go just not as much," she shrugged. "I don't understand what the big deal is."

"You made a promise to your mum that you'd stay in school," Imogen sighed. "You might not remember but I do and-"

"How would you remember? You were never there, Immy. Not for me and not for my mum so don't stand there and act as if you give a shit about me because you don't, not really. You just feel bad because Tommy can't look at me without seeing her and she's not here anymore."

"Liv," Imogen called after the brunette who stormed out of the flat with Iris following after her. "For fuck sake," she muttered, pinching the bridge of her nose. Liv was right, she never showed up not when they needed her anyway, maybe if Imogen had have seen them the week of Ali's death, maybe it could have been avoided. Maybe if she convinced Ali to take Liv and leave for London with her, she wouldn't have died. There were a list of maybe if's and what if's that flooded her thoughts everyday and there wasn't a day that went by where she didn't regret not visiting them more, maybe if she did visit them she'd be able to understand Liv properly.

✧

"Olive, what are we doing?" Iris asked as they stood outside Alex which also happened to be Iris' apartment.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "I really don't know."

"Well are you coming in or standing out here?" Iris asked, opening the door and holding it open for the brunette staring at her aunt's apartment door.

Liv followed after Iris into Alex's apartment. Alex turned her attention from her book to the girls that had just walked in. "You two alright?" she asked, her attention solely on Liv rather than Iris.

"Can Liv stay here tonight? She's had an argument with Imogen," Iris explained as Alex nodded, patting the seats beside her for the girls to sit down.

"What happened?" the woman asked.

"Didn't go to school and Immy found out and she mentioned my mum so I got mad because she was never there for us, not when we needed her anyway," she shrugged.

Alex placed her hand on the girl's shoulder, "It might not seem it but Imogen loves you and she loved your mum, still does, she's just grieving like you still are."

"Doesn't change that she wasn't there though."

"No," the woman shook her head. "It doesn't but she's trying now and I bet she regrets not being there and I bet she's beating herself up over not being there. Stay here tonight, let things blow over and go back and hear her out."

Liv nodded, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, you can stay in Iris' room. I'm sure she's got some spare clothes you can sleep in," the woman squeezed the girl's shoulder.

✧

The girls had eaten and now Liv was reading while laying next to Iris on the blonde's bed. The blonde shifted so she was resting on her elbow so she could see the brunette.

"I hate being a Shelby you know. I would much rather just be a Meadows," Liv sighed.

"If you weren't a Shelby you wouldn't have Ada, Polly and your uncles," Iris reasoned. "It mustn't be nice everything you've already been through."

"There's more to come I can feel it. Tommy makes deals with the wrong people and everyone else pays for it," she sighed, putting the book on the bedside table. "What about you? Why are you in Small Heath anyway?"

"My mum's too busy with work and Alex said she'd look after me for her until she's got more free time," the blonde replied. "I don't mind it though I love Alex. Just wish my mum had more time for me."

"So, why the whole spy thing?"

"My dad got into some trouble with the police and my mum asked  the Inspector for help and in return I had to help him out," she shrugged. "When I found out I'd be living in Small Heath my mum asked Alex if she'd look after me and she agreed so here I am."

Before either of them could say anything else, Alex knocked on the door and opened the door, both girls looking at her. "I'm going to bed because I have work tomorrow so try get some sleep soon, please," she told them with a smile. The two nodded bidding the woman a goodnight as she closed the door. 

"I think we should go to sleep if you're at school tomorrow," Iris told Liv. 

"Yeah," she nodded, putting her book on the table and laying down properly, facing the ceiling while Iris got comfy too. "Night," Liv whispered into the dark.

"Night," Iris whispered back.