CHAPTER 31

"What was that about?" David demanded as she leaned over the drawers beside the phone. "Matilda!"

"Angel Changretta has threatened to have me killed. All because i wouldn't..fucking go out with him!" She hissed, placing her fist onto her lips. David stood in shock, slight panic filling him.

"But the Shelby's can do something, right?" He asked, walking up to her. "I fucking hope so," Tilly whispered, relaxing slightly when he placed his hands on her face. "Nothing will happen to you," he said. "I promise."

His words took her back to a time when she and Finn were together. When he promised to keep her safe and always be there for her. A time before she had to go and ruin everything.

She stared at him, only being able to think about Finn. About how good he was to her at the beginning. How she contributed to their downfall.

"Matilda? Tilly?" David repeated her name a few times. "Hm?" She snapped back to reality, slightly embarrassed at her behaviour.

"I need to" she paused, "i need to get ready for my doctors appointment," she excused herself, remembering the appointment she had. A monthly appointment which made her feel worse than she already was.

Both her and Polly had established that she'd inherited issues from Janice that only fully developed after Janice had died. Her death somewhat triggered them due to the state she was put in. Although you could say it was the death of her father that started them off but they were that mild nobody noticed.

David stood and watched her walk up the stairs slowly. He took a deep breath and turned to the phone again, calling the number that Tilly had just used.

"Fucks sake who is it now?" Arthur groaned, placing the phone to his ear. "It's David," he spoke quietly. "And what do you want, eh?"

"I want to know if you're going to do something about this?" David asked.

"You what? Of course we will fucking do something about it what the fuck do you take us for?" Arthur spat, leaning his chair backward.

"I'm sorry, Arthur. But you and I both know that Matilda has enough on her plate. We don't need anything else-"

"What do you mean we? You mean she. It's her who has the issues, not you." Arthur cut him off. "Yes, my mistake." David ran a hand over his face,

"Yeah well don't make that mistake again. Tilly's gone through fucking everything, David, not you." Arthur said his name in a mocking tone. David cleared his throat. "Have a nice day, Arthur."

He didn't wait for Arthur to reply before he put the phone down.

-

"So, what did she say then?" John entered the den once more, placing a book down. Arthur spun on his heels, clearing his throat. "Angel Changretta has threatened to kill her or something,"

"Or something?" John questioned his words, anger automatically flooding through him. "And you're not out there looking for him-"

"John calm down alright?"

"No i won't fuckin calm down. I'm sick of these foreigners comin ere and causing shit. Why do they get to do that. We're the peaky fuckin blinders!" John shouted. "Do you know what Finn would do if he found out you were sat ere doing fuck all?" Arthur said nothing, "he'd go mental!"

"Who gives a fuck what Finn would do, eh? He's not her fella anymore, she's moved on. He needs to move on too."

"That doesn't mean he doesn't still care for her, Arthur. Look at what happened to Martha!" John argued, referring to the girl he'd married before he went off to France who ended up dying from illness.

"How many fuckin years did it take me to move on, hm?" John pointed a finger at him, "seven years."

"Yeah..well Matilda ain't dead, is she?"

"That's not the point, Arthur." John shook his head, grabbing his peaky cap and jacket. "Listen, all right, this whole Changretta feud was Lizzie's fault to begin with, yeah. So let er deal with it."

"And this situation was yours, what's your point?"

Silence.

"Artha, she's a nineteen year old girl who's got a war going on in her head. She doesn't need people like Angel Changretta saying he'll kill her! You of all people should know this. Ya tried to hang yerself twice, you've had a war goin on in your head ever since we got back from France."

"What the bloody hell is going on in here?" Polly scolded, standing at the door. John breathed heavily, his chest heaving up and down. "Is nobody going to tell me what's going on?"

"The Changretta's-"

"Oh yeah, i heard about your stunt yesterday, John. Do you understand what you've done?"

"Oh give over, Pol." John scoffed, wiping his mouth.

"I say you apologise." Arthur grumbled.

"I think you should compromise," Polly added. John shoved a chair to the floor, letting out a breath of frustration.

"John, calm down and nobody will lose face." Polly said quickly. "I'll take his fucking face, how about that." He hissed, walking out and slamming the door.

Arthur and Polly looked at each other. "You boys need help. The devil has gotten inside you both." Polly shook her head.

-

Tilly collected her prescription of medication from the doctor and walked out of the building, hugging her coat to her body and walking as quickly as she could.

Her heart was racing as she constantly looked over her shoulder. "Oi," a voice shouted. She kept her head down and walked faster. "Ignore it," she whispered to herself.

"Oi, i'm shouting you," they called out again. Tilly refused to look up from the floor until a hand grabbed her shoulder. A hand covered her mouth and she attempted to scream but no noise came out.

"Stay fucking still..you bastard!" the man muttered as he dragged her over to the wall. "I'm here on behalf of Angel Changretta," he said, holding her up against the wall. She shook her head with pleading eyes.

The man pulled a gun from his pocket and held it to her chest, his hand remaining over her mouth. Tilly's mind went to David, to Finn. Thousands of thoughts rushed through her head as time went slow.

Her hands moved down to where he held the gun, trying to move it away.

Bang.

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