Chapter twenty-six: Family Drama
Violet smiled as her parents entered the little pub just down the street. Her parents had been enjoying the walk. The nanny had followed beside her, pushing Angie in her little carriage. Violet noted how people that normally shot her dirty looks kept an emotionless expression on their face because she was walking with her father. No one in his or her right mind would dare to say something derogatory about Thomas Shelby's daughter with him standing right there.
The pub was small and informal, which was a nice reprieve from the public, prying eyes. They went into the private room and to her delight; her whole family was there. There were a few minutes of casual conversation and oohing over Angie, who wore an expression of disgust. Angie, even at such a young age, was already showing signs of being an introvert as she deemed most adults inferior to her.
No sooner had they all sat down did the door to their room open and Alfie Solomons entered, along with his family. She kept a smile on her face as Eitan entered the room. He studied her closely, as if looking to see if anything in her expression may have changed. She looked away immediately.
"Well, what the f**k you doing here Solomons?" her father joked. "Bit out of your way, ain't it?"
Alfie shrugs. "No idea, Esther wanted to eat here."
Cafa at that moment pushes past his father and reaches for Esther's hand. The world then falls off its axis as Cafa leans forward and plants a kiss on the corner of Esther's mouth! Esther blushes faintly, but she responds by brush a strand of his mahogany hair back from his face. Violet's jaw drops in shock at the display they're having in front of their family. She risks a glance at Eitan, who looks positively furious. Her parents, well, her mother is smiling but her father looks like he's about to explode. Alfie is shocked and well, his wife Alicia she's equally as shocked.
Esther looks slightly embarrassed as she smiles. "Hi."
"Hello yourself." Cafa says as he pulls out the chair next to him. "I saved you a seat next to me."
"Thank you."
"Hold on a minute." Thomas demands tightly. "What the f**k is going on here?"
"I'm dating Esther." Cafa says simply. "And we decided that, today was a good day to let both sides of the family know."
The second of silence is appreciated because a second later, Thomas suddenly bellows. "No, you're not! You're too f**king young!"
"We're both nineteen." Cafa said firmly. "It's not as if we're planning on getting married!"
"I'm not hearing any talk of marriage." Thomas stated firmly. "Not while you're under my roof."
"About that," Cafa stated seriously. "I'm not living under your roof any longer."
Thomas stared at him. "What did you just say?"
"I've moved out." He stated. "I've already paid for two months rent on a flat here and I start work in two days, full time, in construction."
Thomas blinked. "Job? Construction? Who the f**k hired you?!"
Cafa shot his father a glower, so eerily like his father's scowl on occasion. "Irrelevant, but I've earned my place. You wouldn't let me go to war, so I apprenticed under Mr. Hayes. I worked hard during that time and I liked it, so I finished my apprenticeship and he hired me. Once the war ended, Mr. Hayes gave me a good recommendation and I'm now in charge of a crew."
"What the-
"And, it's taking place here in London. So, I've got a good job, it pays well and I can also spend time in person with Esther instead of writing letters."
Both father's jolted. "What letters?" Mr. Solomons asked.
"I didn't see any letters!" her father stated.
"After hearing how Mr. Solomons destroyed all letters addressed to Violet, I got a box at the post office and so did Esther. We've been corresponding for almost two years now."
Alfie was still trying to absorb this information. Her father reached for his beer and drank it down. Eitan leaned over and whispered in his father's ear. "You can't allow this."
Alfie shot him a look. "Stay out of this."
"Esther's a child." Eitan hissed. "She's too young."
"I am not a child!" Esther stated firmly. "Cafa and I have feelings for one another and we want to see if they develop into something…well, concrete."
"Look," Thomas stated. "Mr. Solomons and I made an agreement."
"Yeah," Alfie rubs his nose. "you can't see her without my permission and-
"I'm not asking your permission." Cafa said firmly as he stared Alfie Solomons down. "I'm telling you both out of courtesy, whether the two of you like it or not! Eitan f**ked up by listening to the two of you."
"I'll cut her off without a f**king cent to her name if she marries you." Alfie states as he steps closer to Cafa.
Cafa isn't even phased who dares to smirk at Alfie. "Do I look like I care for any of your money? I have a job, remember?"
"And I've got one as well." Esther stated. "I've got a job in a bank."
Alfie glowers at her. "Women in our household don't work. It's my job to provide for you. No self-respecting man should allow that."
"I allow her to do whatever she wants, because I respect her decisions!" Cafa retorts back. "Besides, things are different for us than they were for you."
"Alfie," Alicia says patiently. "I think that it may be for the best if we discuss this later."
Kate shook her head. "I disagree." Everyone groaned. "Look, Esther and Cafa are both over eighteen. They are both employed and they've been corresponding for years. Things have obviously developed to a point where they both feel like it was time to inform the parents, which is a good thing." She smiles reassuringly at Esther and Cafa. "I also like how they're both not back down from either of you two men. So, I'm going to encourage this relationship and see where it goes."
Alfie states. "I don't like it!"
"I don't f**king like it either!" Thomas shouts back at him.
"Too bad," Cafa states as he seats Esther and sits down beside her. "because it's happening."
Alfie glowers at Thomas. "You're son's a real f**ker, you know that, right?"
"You're not really going to allow this?" Eitan suddenly bursts out, causing all eyes to go to him. "You said the Shelby's were off limits!"
"Aye, I did but these two just took things into their own hands!"
"Esther," Alicia asks gently. "did either of you consider that, well, that this may be of discomfort to your brother?"
Esther stilled, but Cafa answered for her. "It doesn't matter. He's not going to marry my sister."
Eitan snapped at him. "You're not going to marry my sister!"
"If she says 'yes', in a few years, we might." Cafa leans forward a smirk on his face. "However, my sister wouldn't marry you if you were the last man on earth! "
"Why you-
Eitan lunged across the table for Cafa, who threw his beer in Eitan's face. Violet's last thread of sanity snapped. "Enough!" Violet shouted. "I have had enough of this!" All eyes went to her. "I don't know how many more times I can make this clear for Eitan. I don't think of you that way! I don't think of any man that way! I am broken beyond repair and I don't want to be fixed!" she exhaled and looked towards her mother. "I'm going back home, I'm in no mood to be around this drama. Let me know how it ends." Her mother nods understandingly. She turns towards Alfie Solomons. "If you're a grain of sense, you'll allow my brother to see Esther. If they do marry, it'll legally make it impossible for Eitan to marry me and maybe he'll finally move on with his life because I won't be in his!" She turned back to the nanny who had tucked Angie back into the carriage. "We're leaving."
"Violet," Eitan stated. "wait a minute."
The nanny held the door open for her and she wheeled her way out of the private room. The whispering and curious glances. She kept her eyes focused on the door to the pub. It opened and to her shock, Sarjant entered the pub with another man. The man was laughing and Sarjant rolled his eyes. He opened the door for her nanny and looked back to see her. He nodded and continued holding the door to allow her to exit.
Suddenly, Violet was stopped short. She turned around to see Eitan holding onto the handles of her wheelchair. "Let me go, Eitan."
"Violet," he came around in front of her. "I'm sorry about that, but all I—
"I don't want to hear it! Let me pass!"
Suddenly, he was wrenched away and found he was staring into a furious Sarjant. "Miss Shelby said," he bit out. "to let her go."
"This doesn't concern you."
"Oh, I disagree." She could see Sarjant was fighting for control. "You're restraining her and forcing your unwanted attentions on her. Now, get away from her!"
All eyes were on them as Eitan sized him up. "This doesn't concern you." He foolishly decided that Sarjant wasn't a threat.
"Oi," the man who had arrived with Sarjant, had a thick Irish accent. "I suggest that you crawl back under a rock before he decides to beat you over the head with one!"
Sarjant glanced down at her. "Are you alright?"
"Yes." she exhaled. "I am trying to go home."
"I'll make sure you get home." He looked towards his friend. "You don't mind, do you Scott?"
"Naw. I'll catch up with you later this evening. Right?"
Sarjant stepped towards Eitan and shouldered his way in front of Eitan. Eitan studied Sarjant for a moment before looking at her. His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked back at Sarjant. "You two know each other."
Sarjant nodded. "I help her manage the estate."
Eitan studied Sarjant carefully before asking. "Really? Is that all you help her manage?"
Violet's jaw dropped and a gasp escaped her lips. She could believe Eitan said such a thing, in a public pub about her! Before anyone could react, Sarjant punched Eitan so hard in the face that he knocked him out! That's when the whole restaurant went into an uproar! Alfie went for Sarjant, her father went for Alfie and Sarjant went for the door. Scott slammed a fist into Alfie's jaw, sending him back into her father who fell over Eitan's unconscious body!
Sarjant pushed the door open and pushed her through the doorway. She rolled a short distance away before turning around to see Sarjant use a chair to barricade the doors shut! Sarjant trotted towards her and exhaled. "Right, I can stall them for a bit. Go on."
She inhaled rapidly. "I don't know where to-
He steps out into the street and whistles loudly. A cab pulls up and he turns towards her. "Is this chair foldable?"
"No."
She glances at the café just in time to see a chair fly through the window! He exhales. "Right, I'll put you in the cab."
The nanny is already moving to get inside the cab. Violet reaches for his arm. "But your friend-
"Always loves a good row. He'll be good. Now, I'll make sure that your wheelchair-
"Come with us." She didn't know why she asked him to do that, but she did.
Sarjant studied her for a moment before nodding. He opened the door before turning back to her. "May I help you in?"
"Yes please." Another crash caused her to jump.
"I've got you." Sarjant didn't even turn to look back as he pulled her up out of the chair and placed her inside the cab. Angie started crying loudly and the Violet reached out for Angie. Sarjant carefully tucked her skirt inside and closed the door. He then got into the front seat of the cab and ordered the driver to just drive for a moment. She looked back at the pub to see Eitan running towards them just as the cab pulled away from the street. She noted that his mouth was bleeding, so Sarjant at hurt him. Her father and Alfie came outside, their clothes torn and two very angry wives yelling at them. Sarjant's friend Scott threw Phillip out of the café, making the whole sight between their families like something out of an Abbott and Costello feature.
She turned back towards the front of the cab and concentrated on calming down. There'd been too much excitement and Angie was picking up on the tension. After a minute of crying, Sarjant asked. "Do you think it would help if I gave her my shoe?"
Violet looked at him for a moment. She was sure if she was going to laugh or cry, to her surprise, she did both. Sarjant just watched her for a moment as she held Angie close to her. After a moment, he reached behind him and placed his hand on hers. He might have said a destination to the driver, but she didn't hear him. She needed to take a break. She needed to get away from London and all it's madness.
Lil'Sparrow7: I know, I'm kinda shipping it too.
Idcam: Aww, what would be the fun in that? Sorry about the delay, my laptop battery died and I've been waiting for 2 weeks for it to arrive!
