Later that night, I walked into the Garrison to find the whole place singing, there were even a few people dancing. The new barmaid, Grace, came out of the snug beside me with an empty bucket. I smiled politely at her and went inside. I hadn't spoken to her yet but Tommy and John had told me about her.
Tommy, John, Arthur, Scudboat and Lovelock were all inside playing cards. Tommy stood up when I entered, allowing me to slide into the booth next to John. He sat back down beside me. "It's about time, Tommy." John said beside me, squeezing my leg in greeting. "Time for what?" Tommy asked, looking at his younger brother. Arthur laughed. "Time you took yourself a woman." John told him, a smile in his voice. "Just play the bloody hands." Tommy told the room as we all erupted into laughter, I gave him a playful nudge. "Something you want to tell me?" I laughed. "You stay the way you are, Tommy. Remember what Dad used to say. Fast women and slow horses will ruin your life." Arthur said, still chuckling. Tommy rolled his eyes, a smile on his face. They continued to play cards.
After a few minutes, Tommy nudged me slightly. "All go to plan today?" he asked. "Not exactly." I responded, without looking at him. John shifted behind me, hearing our conversation.
Before either one of them could respond, a car pulled up outside. "Coppers." John said, throwing his cards down on the table. "No." Tommy said, shaking his head and looking at the frosted window. The doors to the bar opened as we all waited in anticipation. The bar went quiet. I looked up at Tommy, he didn't look surprised. "Is there any man here named Shelby?" someone called from the bar.
There was silence in the pub as John, Tommy and Arthur looked among themselves. Then there was a gunshot, people in the bar screamed. "I said, is there any man here named Shelby?" the man repeated, growing angrier. Tommy stood up, holding his hand out to me and helping me out the booth. "You keep your head down." he whispered to me, as John stood up behind me. I nodded, letting go of his hand. I untied a bit of fabric from my wrist and used it to contain my curls into a bun. Tommy opened the door as I started collecting the empty glasses, John and Arthur followed him out.
"Harry, get these men a drink. Everyone else, go home!" Tommy told the bar. Chairs scrapped along the floor as people tried to get out as soon as possible. John grabbed my wrist and pushed me out the door, hoping that Kimber hadn't noticed I was in there. I quickly placed the empty glasses on the bar and went round the other side, tying an apron around my waist. Grace nodded at me, signalling that she will play along.
Once the bar was cleared out, Grace took over a tray of glasses and a bottle of whiskey. "You go home." Tommy told her, sitting next to Arthur at the table. "But Mr. Fenton said…" Grace started but Tommy cut her off. "I said, go home." she did what she was told the second time, looking towards me as she walked away.
I stood behind the bar, cleaning the glasses when Mr Kimber started talking. Harry came over and stood next to me, also picking up the dirty glasses to clean. "I've never approved of women in pubs, but when they look like these…" he said, watching Grace walk away before giving me a wink. "You said you wanted men called Shelby. You've got three of them." Tommy said, drawing Kimbers attention back to him and away from me. "I'd never heard of you. Then I did hear of you. Some little Diddicoy razor gang. I thought to myself, "So, what?"" He started, looking at the three men stood in front of him. "But then you fuck me over. So now you have my undivided attention." he finished.
He looked between the three brothers. "By the way, which one am I talking to? Who's the boss?" he questioned. Arthur spoke first, "Well, I'm the oldest." Kimber laughed at him. "Clearly." he commented. "Are you laughing at my brother?" John questioned lowly, toothpick in hand. I knew he would be angry from Kimbers comment about me. Kimber did not look happy at his threatening tone. "Right, he's the oldest, you're the thickest. I'm told the boss is called Tommy and I'm guessing that's you, 'cause you're looking me up and down like I'm a fucking tart." Kimber told them. I had to stifle my laughter at that and turned to face the other way, putting away glasses to cover my sudden movements. "I want to know what you want." Tommy told him, calmly.
"There were suspicious betting patterns at Kempton Park. A horse called Monaghan Boy. He won by a length twice and then finished last, with 3,000 pounds bet on him." another voice said, I assumed it was the gentleman who was sat beside Kimber. "Which one am I talking to? Which one of you is the boss?" Tommy asked, mocking the pair. I turned again, picking up a rag and wiping the bar, so I could watch what was going on.
"I am Mr Roberts, Mr. Kimber's adviser and accountant." the man said. "And I'm the fucking boss. Okay, right, end of parley." Kimber shouted, standing up quickly so his chair clattered to the floor behind him. "You fixed a race without my permission. You fucking Gypsy scum. What, live of the war pensions of these poor Garrison Lane widows! That's your level! I am Billy Kimber, I run the races! You fixed one of them so I'm going to have you shot against a post." he shouted at the brothers before turning. His eye caught me and stopped him. "And then, I will have your dirty little pub and your little whore barmaids." he laughed, staring directly at me. John went to stand up but Tommy but his hand out to stop him. Tommy stood instead.
"Mr Kimber." He called, Kimbers guards quickly pulled guns on him. Tommy threw something to Kimber who caught it easily. "Look at it." Tommy instructed as Kimber inspected the small item in his hand. "That is my name on it. It's from the Lee family. You are also at war with the Lees, Mr. Kimber, am I right?" Tommy asked, although something told me that he already knew the answer. "The Lees are attacking your bookies and taking your money. Your men can't control them. You need help." Tommy continued. "Perhaps we should listen to what Mr. Shelby has to say. Before we make our decisions." Mr Roberts suggested. "Right. The Lees are doing a lot of talking at the fairs. They have a lot of kin. They're saying the race tracks are easy meat, because the police are busy with strikes. Now, we have connections. We know how they operate. You have muscle. Together, we can beat them. Divided, maybe not." Tommy proposed.
After a moment, Mr Roberts spoke again, "Mr. Kimber, perhaps we should take some time for reflection, possibly make arrangements for a second meeting." he suggested. Tommy shifted on his feet. "I admire you, Mr. Kimber. You started with nothing, and built a legitimate business. It would be an honor to work with you, Mr. Kimber." Tommy confessed. Kimber thought about this for a moment. "Nobody works with me. People work for me." Kimber told him before throwing a coin on the floor at Tommys feet. "Pick it up, pikey." he instructed. Tommy watched him for a moment.
"Or I could get your lovely barmaid to do it for you." Kimber suggested, raising a hand in my direction. John stood up in anger, going to pick up the coin himself. "Sit, sit down." Tommy commanded, pointing at him. John backed off as Tommy bent down to pick up the coin. Kimber looked please before looking up at the ceiling. "It's for your ceiling." he said before turning and walking away. "Thank you, Mr. Kimber." Tommy called after him, putting the coin in his pocket. Kimber ignored him, walking out the door. Mr Roberts stood up and went to Tommy. "We will be at Cheltenham." he announced. "As will I." Tommy informed him. Mr Roberts nodded at him, put on his hat and followed Kimber out the door. The two guards followed him.
Tommy went to the doors, bolting it shut behind them. John looked over at me and I smiled back to him reassuringly. Arthur was not looking happy beside him. "So you picked a fight with the Lees on purpose." Arthur said. I pulled off the apron from around my waist and went round the bar to where they were sat. John watched me, cap low over his eyes as I sat in the chair next to him and poured out four more glasses of whiskey. He was still angry at the way Kimber spoke about me and it was evident in his eyes. He wasn't a possessive person but he was a protective one, being known to cut men that so much glance at me the wrong way.
I gave a full glass to him, pushed one in Arthur's direction and held one out to my left for Tommy. Once he had taken it, I picked mine up and sat back in the chair, watching the argument that was bound to happen unfold. "Tommy, we can't mess with Billy fucking Kimber." Arthur continued. "Get yourself a decent haircut, man. We're going to the races." Tommy told him, downing his drink and slamming his glass on the table. "Is this a smart idea, Tommy?" I asked, sipping my drink. He looked at me.
"I will deal with Billy Kimber. You should be more concerned about what didn't happen today." he told me, sitting opposite me. The other men around us was silent. "Freddie did the right thing but they didn't leave the city." I told him, leaning forward and placing my glass on the table. "Where did they go?" Tommy asked me. I shrugged."Not a clue. He's not scared of you, Tom. He made that clear." I responded, watching him closely. "Are you going to send out a witch hunt for your own sister?" I asked him after a silent few moments. "I just want to what's best for her." he replied. "I'll see what I can find out but I am not promising anything." I told him before downing my drink. I turned to John. "Ready to go home?" I asked, he nodded downing his drink and standing.
A/N What did you everyone think? Was Evie right to challenge Tommy? Should she have pressed him more? What do you want to see happen next?