Alfie hated leaving Ruthie, but his anger was too demanding. Watching her drink from the faucet, drink the soup as fast as she could, and fear him leaving had grown a monster inside him that would not go away until he took care of this particular error.

"Why am I here?" He could hear Benjamin asking Ishmael when he entered the building.

"Alfie will be here in a moment." Was the response he was given.

The click of Alfie's cane on the stone floor echoed through the factory as he proceeded to his target. He walked at a leisurely pace as if he didn't have a care in the world, rather than a man that had a beaten and terrified wife at home.

"Benji!" Alfie said in a friendly tone, holding his arms out. "How are you mate?"

"I'm alright. W-what's the problem?"

"Oh, you want to get right to it then? Alright, the problem, mate-" Alfie paused, his anger ready to pounce. "Is that you disobeyed a fucking order. And that resulted in a very bad thing happening to my family."

"N-no sir. I didn't disobey. I told you when you got in that-"

"That's not what she instructed you to do though, is it?" Alfie's exterior was calm, but the grip on his cane was tight. "She told you to find me. Isn't that right?"

Alfie's eyes remained fixated on Benjamin's daring him to lie.

"Y-yes, sir. But I didn't know where you were and I-"

Alfie began to blink repeatedly at him, knowing he was about to say something that would make matters worse, and Benjamin stopped.

"You fucking what? Mm?"

The older man fell silent and stared up at Alfie, his chin set in defiance.

"Do you know what happened to my family because of you?" Alfie asked. "My wife was kidnapped, the hair ripped from her head before she was shoved in a trunk and carried away. Then she was tied up and gagged. My son walking around the fucking house looking for his mum. My daughter crying until she was purple because she didn't have her mum's tit." Alfie's anger seemed to make him grow larger, towering over Benjamin. "All because YOU DIDN'T FOLLOW A FUCKING ORDER, GIVEN TO YOU BY-"

Benjamin's own anger rose, and he interrupted Alfie, finishing his sentence. "BY A WORTHLESS PIKEY WHORE WHO LAID ON HER BACK FOR-"

Alfie didn't remember raining the handle of his cane onto Benjamin's face. He only saw flashes of red before Ishmael was pulling him away from the body.

"It's over, Alfie. He's dead!" Ishmael said, attempting to help his boss to gain some sort of control over himself.

"FFFUUUCCCKKK!" Alfie shouted as he threw his cane across the room.

"Alfie." Ishmael said. "Ruthie is home. Where she belongs." Ishmael with all sincerity. "She needs you, Alfie. After what she's been through, she's fragile right now. You can't go home in this state, boss. You'll scare the shit out of her."

Ishmael was right, Alfie knew that. Alfie's chest rose and fell before he aggressively ran his hand through his hair. Turning his back to Ishmael he turned toward the wall to calm himself.

"I'll get Goliath. We'll take care of this." Ishmael said, gesturing to Benjamin but Alfie remained with his back toward him.

Alfie heard Ishmael leave and took a few more deep breaths before picking up his cane and proceeded toward home.

Ruthie sat at her vanity while Sarah brushed her hair, occasionally shooting nervous glances at the window. When she heard a knock at the door, her eyes went wide, and her head snapped in the direction of the sitting room.

"I'll go see." Sarah said before she calmly put the brush down and left the bathroom.

Ruthie began to shake as she stared at the bathroom door, waiting. She could hear hushed voices as she stood and backed toward the wall. When Alfie appeared in the doorway, she released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. Alfie stared at her with concern, and she knew he could see the fear on her face.

"Ruthie?" He said gently.

"Are you done with business?" She asked, the plea clear in her voice.

"Yes. I'm done. I'm not leaving again. At least, not without you." He said with a small smile. "How was your bath?"

Ruthie returned his smile with a small one of her own and nodded. She saw the blood on his knuckled and stared at them before meeting her husband's eyes.

"No one will ever fucking disobey you again." He pledged and Ruthie swore that she could see pain in his eyes.

Ruthie walked toward him, getting so close, Alfie could smell her favorite lemongrass soap. She placed a hand on his cheek and leaned onto her toes, kissing him softly. When she pulled back from the kiss, her hands slowly went to untie her robe, allowing it to pool at her feet.

"What are you doing?" Alfie whispered.

"Touch me, Alfie." She said as she grabbed his hands and placed them on her body.

Alfie shook his head and began to remove his hands. "No. You have been through too much. I can't. After everything… you need r-"

"What I NEED is my husband." Ruthie implored as she moved his hands back to her body. "I need you Alfie. The whole time I was in that cellar, I kept thinking that if I could just been in your arms again then everything would be alright."

Alfie allowed his hands to remain on her hips, but she could still sense his hesitation.

Worry etched her face before she said, "Do you-….Do you not believe me? I swear, Alfie, he didn't-"

Alfie's mouth was on hers before she could finish her sentence. Before she could deepen the kiss, Alfie pulled back.

"I believe you, Ruthie. But, look at you." He said motioning toward her wrists. "You've been abused. What kind of man would I be if I touched you after what that fucker put you through?"

Ruthie put her hand on his and moved it from her hip, dragging it slowly to between her thighs. "I know what I have been through." She put her finger on his and began to rub her clit. "I need you to take it all back. To be gentle to me and to make me feel good. Help me to forget my pain and show me that I am safe again." Her eyes closed slowly for a moment before she opened them and stared at her husband.

Her hand stopped moving, but Alfie's didn't and Ruthie began to relax as he rubbed her slowly. She placed her hands on his chest and closed her eyes, giving into the feel of the strong, safe hands that coaxed her arousal. She gave a small moan, all thoughts of where she had been escaping as he slowly pushed a finger inside her. She looked up at him, her pupils dilated, and her lips parted. Alfie leaned down and kissed her before he removed his hand from her and lifted her into his arms.

Ruthie wrapped her arms and legs around him, desperately holding onto the familiar broad shoulders that made her feel so safe. He carried her to the bed and laid her down. She reached for him as he pulled off his shirt and moved over her. He kissed her deeply and began to move his mouth over her body, worshipping every inch of skin that he touched with his hands and his mouth. His tongue swirled around her bellybutton before he moved lower. Her body tingled with every loving touch and her toes began to curl as he nipped at the skin between her navel and her sex. It only took one swipe of his tongue over her slit to make her bow her back off the bed, her legs tensing as pleasure took over her body. He continued with his mouth on her, tasting the woman he worried would be gone forever just a few hours earlier.

"Alfie," She said as she extended her arms, reaching for him again. "I want to feel your weight on me."

Alfie moved above her, dipping his tongue into her mouth as she moaned and tasted herself. He freed himself and slowly entered her, releasing a satisfied moan of gratitude that he could make love to his wife once more. He took his time, memorizing every sound that escaped her lips and enjoying every pulsation of her softness around him. When they had both finished, he pulled her close and held her tight.

They were silent for a long time, neither in any hurry to get back to reality until Ruthie said, "I want to hold my children." And Alfie gave her one last kiss before he rose and they began to dress.

The drive to Birmingham was quiet as the weight of what they were going to be doing rested between them. Arriving, Ruthie took a deep breath and stared at the patch of woods.

"We can go see the children first." Alfie offered but Ruthie shook her head.

"No. I want this behind me when I see them."

They followed the sound of male voices into the trees until they came to a small clearing and saw her brothers and cousin. A silence fell over the group as she stared at Simon's unidentifiable face and gave a slow, shaky nod. At her signal, Tommy flicked a match onto the petrol covered wood and the large fire blossomed. Ruthie's eyes didn't move or blink as she stared at the man that had caused her so much fear and terror go up in smoke. After a while, the emotions she had held below the surface boiled up and she pulled her arms tight around her, turning her face into her husband's chest. Alfie wrapped his arms around her, holding her close while silent tears drained down her face as she continued to watch Simon's body disappear into ash.

"I've seen enough." Ruthie said thickly and Alfie quickly turned from the scene and began to usher her to the house.

She wiped her cheeks, not wanting to frighten her children with her tears and opened the door. The moment she stepped across the threshold two pairs of tiny feet clambered across the wood floor toward her. Ruthie fell to her knees, tears beginning to fall once more and wrapped her arms around her son, who made it to her first. She kissed his face and squeezed him close before opening her arm to her daughter, whose little legs had finally reached her. She kissed and hugged her children, remaining on the floor in tears until the rest of the men had joined them in the house.

"C'mon. Francis made biscuits and tea." Polly said, wiping the tears from her own cheeks and the group began toward the parlor.

"Ruthie." John said as he put a hand on her elbow and motioned with his head for her to stay back.

Alfie looked at her for a moment and Ruthie nodded that he could go on before he took their children away for some sweets.

"I, uh.." John started as his jaw clenched and his eyes grew watery.

"It's our fault" Arthur said, putting a hand on John's shoulder. "For what happened. We're sorry, sister."

Ruthie looked at them with confusion. "No. It's not your-"

"We were supposed to have taken care of him the first time. We turned our back. We didn't see it through." Arthur continued as John wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and looked away. "We didn't do that this time. We watched until he was ash. He's not coming back-"

"Don't." Ruthie said with a shake of her head and the men's heads bowed. "Nothing that happened was because of you. Simon was mad. He got a second chance at life and he chose not to take it. He could have left and moved on, but he didn't. He came back. That isn't your fault. Don't blame yourself, because I don't blame you." She said as she placed a hand on her brothers' cheeks and gave a small smile before walking away.

On the drive back to London, Alfie looked over to his family. Both children were asleep on their mother, who had her head resting on his shoulder. Little Alfie snored loudly and Alfie chuckled when his hand twitched in his sleep just as Ruthie swore his did. Maggie's mouth was lazily puckered around her mother's breast and milk streamed down her chin.

Ruthie moved to cover herself up before looking up at him.

"They'll be alright, won't they?" She asked with a small smile.

"Yeah, love. They'll be alright. We all will." He answered and Ruthie's smile broadened before her eyelids sagged and she laid her head back on his shoulder, quickly falling asleep. "I'll make sure of it." Alfie said with confidence as he took his family home.