The setting was rather quaint; a hotel bar area in the murkiest depths of the night. The place was dead, for all but the exhausted looking chap behind the bar, Verity and Eli.

Verity had taken a seat in a tub chair by one of the large windows, that peered out onto an empty street. She couldn't ignore the otherworldly, almost hallucinatory feeling that her current situation gave her. It was not long before the aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled her nostrils, a comforting scent. She turned her head to see Eli returning to the chair opposite with one steaming cup for her and a glass of whisky for himself. She thanked him kindly for the drink, and took her first humbling sip. It was almost as good as the coffee Scarlett would make with breakfast – singing loudly in the kitchen without a care. The atmosphere in this place was entirely different.

"Can I ask what you were doing, wandering about in the street?" Eli suddenly chipped in after a moments peaceful silence.  Dainty fingertips lowering the cup back down to the rounded table top, Verity savoured the full flavour of the coffee as she prepared her response.

"I told you, I'd gone for a walk." She replied, deciding to answer his question with another question. "And what about you? You're out late."

"Night time is my day time, love." Eli replied, his humour at her quip evident as his low laughter filled the space. He dared to remove those sunglasses for the first time since they'd run into one another. His dark brown eyes stared down at the table nonchalantly as he responded.

"If you really want to know, I was on my way back from an appointment with my PA." he replied in a matter of fact tone, his dark hickory eyes fleeting up to meet her own hazel ones. "I know it's not all that interesting or scandalous, but there it is."

Lips curving into a softened smirk, Verity leaned back in her seat.

"Scandalous?" Her head tilted with a curious crass smile, "why would it need to be scandalous? What you do is of no concern to me."

She was as quick and feisty as she was beautiful, Eli thought. He liked a woman who could give back as much as she took.

"True." Valentine mused, "just figured you assumed maybe all club owners are mysterious and exciting like the Shelby's." He took a long drawn sip of his whisky, the alcoholic flavours dancing about his tongue.

"So, are you going to tell me why you were really out?" Eli added after the drink had descended down his throat, "or are we going to play silly buggers all night?"

Verity relented, after all, he had told her so the least she could do was be upfront. She didn't exactly have to give him the whole story.

"I was just passing the time. I don't really have a home at the moment-" before she could elaborate more, she was unexpectedly interrupted.

"Arthur did mention you were staying with Ebson."

Lips slightly agape, Verity registered his response and cocked her head slowly with a frown. Since when were there business meetings for discussing personal issues that didn't concern them?

"That wasn't exactly his information to divulge." She remarked hotly, and Eli sensed her frustration.

"Sorry love, it's not like we talked about you two for the whole 3 hours. It was just passing in conversation." He explained, gesturing his ring adorned hand - the picture of decadence. "Carry on."

A little disconcerted – Verity carried on none the less with her tale.

"My sister couldn't bare the thought of me working in the club so – I moved out. She has a young child so it's best I left. Hence I'm staying with Scarlett." She told, clutching the warm coffee cup between her hands, "but I'm unable to go to Scarlett's as... Arthur is there."

She wondered whether she'd said too much, but Eli just started laughing.

"They're together again!? My last few meetings with Arthur have just been fuckin' therapy sessions. Christ – he's a soppy bastard for that girl." Eli found the situation highly amusing.

Verity shrugged uncertainly, chewing her lip hesitantly.

"They're not exactly together but I assume they will be. Arthur's gone to make some romantic gesture of some kind." Her voice was underlined with nervousness. "Please don't tell Arthur I told you this."

Eli nodded, his face spelled nothing but seriousness – however deep down Verity wondered of his true character. She reminded herself of the way he'd whispered like a serpent in her ear those few weeks ago – the way he'd hissed about her loyalty to 'those Shelby boys'. In that moment to her, it was as if he was an enemy ... not a friend. Yet, had he turned a new leaf? The signs were so confusing. She hated people that weren't straight forwards to read.

"I won't mention a thing." He stated, shaking his head slightly as his thoughts moved on. "I don't know what that Scarlett girl sees in him. Let's be honest – Arthur Shelby isn't most ladies idea of a catch."Eli's voice was remnant of the bitter flair of a child bickering on the playground, and Verity naturally recoiled at hearing that from a grown man.

"Looks aren't everything." She chastised, "Scarlett sees something in him, I'm sure."

Eli copped a short smirk – she was so the type to try and see the best in everyone , everything. Yet so aware of the brutal and fragile nature of life. Although he marvelled at her perception l, he also secretly hated the fact she was so bold to speak against him.

"She must do." He brushed it off, "and what about you and Tommy? What do you see in him?" His voice was almost cutting, cold. It's delivery and his averted gaze a sign of negativity. Verity's brows creased, she couldn't believe she was having to say this once again.

"I already told you I'm not affiliated with Tommy like that." She snapped, frankly tired that he seemed to want to cause more strife rather than to make amends. "Why do you keep pushing?"

It was then Eli looked up, swirling the whisky passively around the small crystallised glass.

"When he interrupted our chat the other week – I saw the way he looked at you. The way he seemed to want to posses you – keep you from me." He explained, lifting the glass to his lips as he greedily drank the last remnants of the alcohol. "Perhaps he just hasn't shown you that yet."

Frustrated, Verity shot upwards in an angry flare.

"Perhaps you read into it all too much." She growled, "you men have no idea. Women can work in an establishment and not fuck their boss." Lashing to the side of the chair, she grabbed her bag with a disappointed and mortified form of anger on her face.

"Oh course," Eli scoffed, remaining ignorantly nonchalant despite Verity's display of animosity. "Scarlett is the shining example of that!"

This of course did nothing to diffuse the boiling situation. Verity could feel her throat tightening like a vice, her chest thumping and the blood coursing around her body.

"You didn't really want to apologise to me at all. You just wanted to wring me out like a dirty cloth, find out all you could." She spat venomously, her eyes watery with the threat of frustrated tears. She felt so foolish – the feeling in her gut had been right all along and she should not of ignored that.

"I'm just trying to have a conversation!" He played it down as if to avoid the point, but Verity was not stupid. She knew mind games all too well.

"Stop lying. Stop lying to me and stop lying to yourself." Her anger had cooled off but the caution burned hot, and her voice was dangerous – an indication of a woman not to be toyed with. "You want to mess with the club? Fine! Want to gossip with Arthur and be best friends? Go ahead!"

She clutched her purse tightly within her grip, her eyes narrowing.

"But don't play games and try and involve me in a world I'm doing my best to stay out of."

She had nothing else to say. Throwing on her camel coloured mac coat, Verity marched out of the hotel lobby and back into the street. It was so much colder than before, and to make matters worse the air was filled with the fine type of rain that could soak your clothes within mere minutes. She was so wound up to the point where the bitter weather paid her no effects. All she knew now was she only had one bed option for the night.

Her makeshift one in the dressing room of the Eden Club.

Wrapping her coat tightly around herself, Verity desperately searched for a sign of a cab but had minimal hope of finding one at this hour. In that moment as the rain soaked her hair and the wet droplets gathered as a cold sheen over her features, Verity decided that as of tomorrow, she was going to start looking for a home for herself. Somewhere to call her own; a sanctuary of safety fair away from the maddening pull of the crazy world she found herself neck deep in.

-

A/N: apologies this is rather short. I didn't want to write the next events in the same chapter as I feel they need their own respective chapter - besides I think the next one should more than compensate for word count (considering what I have planned...)

Thanks once again to all those who read x