I felt safe in Jeremiah's arms and was confused when we stopped just moments later. Lifting my head I saw that we had already made it to the Shelby house. Jeremiah managed to knock on the door and was waiting patiently for Polly to answer while looking at me nervously. My whole body ached and my head had begun to pound as Polly answered the door. "Jesus Christ! What the hell has happened to her?" she exclaimed as she let us in the house. "I don't know. The Irish inspector told me to pick her up and take her home. Tommy is going to the hospital." Jeremiah told her. "Take her upstairs to the washroom. I'll put some water to boil." Polly instructed.
The time was getting away from me as a moment later I was sat on a stool in front of the bath with Polly in front of me. "Come on, stand up and lets get you out of these clothes." she instructed. I did as I was told, watching the steam curl up from the bath as Polly undid my dress and pulled it over my head. Her breath shifting as she saw the bruises on my arms. She quickly pulled off my slip as well, her eyes turning murderous at the hand marks on my thighs. She helped me into the bath and I gladly slipped into the warm water, fighting away the shivers that I hadn't noticed.
Polly sat on the stool and watched me as I leant back. "Finn has gone to find John so before he gets here tell me what happened." she told me. I looked at her for a moment. "Sabinis men were beating Tommy. I interrupted." I explained, my voice croaky as I went back to staring into nothing. "And did they..?" she didn't have to say it, I knew what she meant. I nodded, a tear streaking down my face. I heard her breathing hitch. "They made Tommy watch." I told her as the door slammed downstairs. "Evie!" John shouted. Polly quickly got up to meet him in the hallway. I knew she was trying to be quiet but I could hear her clearly. "You do not go in there and upset her any more than she already is. You do not kick off, you be there for your wife. Do you understand me? Your little girl is in the next room and I do not want her woken up by you and your temper." Polly instructed. John must've agreed as he was suddenly at the door way.
His eyes went wide when he saw me and I gave him a small smile that hurt my face. "Do I look that bad?" I joked, voice barely above a whisper. John quickly regained his composure and came further into the room, pushing the door up so it was only open slightly. He sat on the stool next to the tub and looked down my body, his eyes settling on the bruises around and between my thighs. "I'm okay." I lied, surprising myself how convincing I sounded. His eyes flickered back up to mine. I could see the range of emotions going through him through his eyes. Anger, sorrow, uncertainty. "I don't like it when other people put their hands on you." he admitted, searching my face. "I know, my love." I whispered. He took my hand in his and brought it up to his lips, kissing it gently while watching me.
We sat like this for a moment, John still had my hand in his and his other hand was resting on top of my head, gently stroking my damp hair. There was a small knock at the door. "Come in." John said, his voice croaky. Polly slowly pushed the door open, looking cautiously between us both. "I've brought you some more hot water and some clean towels." she told us, placing the towels on the floor beside the bath. I pulled my feet up so my knees where in the air as she poured the hot water into the rapidly cooling tub. "I've put some clean sheets on your bed and one of Tommy shirts. I don't have anything of yours here." she told us. "It's fine, Pol. Thank you." John replied. "I've moved Lil into Ada's room at the front so she's closer to me. I'll get up with her." she added as she finished adding the hot water. "Thank you, Polly." I told her. She smiled at us before leaving, gently closing the door behind her.
"Let's get you cleaned up and into bed." John said, letting go of my hand to remove his jacket and roll up his sleeves. He took the washcloth off the side of the bath and dunked it in the water. He brushed my hair gently out of the way as he ran the wet washcloth over my shoulder and back, moving off the stool to kneel beside the tub. "These are going to be sore in the morning." he commented running his fingertips gently over the bruises on my back. "I'll be okay." I told him. His eyes came back to my face, watching me for a moment. I could see the torment and underlying anger in his eyes, his jaw was clenched and I knew what he would be planning to do to the men responsible.
"You don't always have to be the strong one, Evie. Let me look after you." He whispered. I brought a hand up to the side of his face and rested my forehead on his. I watched his blue eyes, the same ones I see when I look at our daughter. "I love you, John Shelby, but you can't be there to protect me all the time." I started. John looked like he was going to say something but I continued. "I know you are angry. I am angry but it's not going to help me or you or our family if you go after the people that did this. I am here with you now and I am safe, okay?" I finished. His eyes avoided my gaze and his jaw was still clenched.
"Nothing happened." I lied, drawing his eyes back to me. "Don't lie to make me feel better, Evie." He whispered. "I'm not lying, Campbell got there in time." I replied. "Have you looked at yourself? You've got hand marks all over you. Your neck, your arms, your legs." He ground out, staring into my green eyes. "Trust me, John. I'm not as defenseless as I look." The lies were coming easier now as I searched his face. He watched me for a moment and I hoped he wouldn't see through me. It was a long moment later when he nodded. "Okay." He resigned. I wasn't sure if he actually believed me or he just didn't want to argue with me but he gently pressed his lips to mine before helping me wash.
John had helped me out of the bath, wrapping me in a fluffy towel and his arms as we stood for a moment, my wet hair on his chest. His chin was rested on the top of my head. He kissed my head once before we went into our old room and got ready for bed, John gently helping me dry off and put on Tommy's shirt before striping himself down to his boxers. When we got into bed, John laid behind me, my back against his chest and his arms around me. I stroked John's arm until he fell asleep, silently watching the door and reliving the nights events over and over in my head. I didn't know how long I had laid there but I knew I couldn't be in the dark and quiet room for any longer.
I gently untangled myself from John's arms, kissing his forehead before quietly leaving the room. I could hear Lily was unsettled and quickly went to get her. Approaching her crib I could see that she was awake, her bright blue eyes staring up at me as she smiled and started babbling. "Hello, baba." I whispered, lifting her up with her blankets and cradling her to me, her cheek resting on my shoulder. I rested my cheek on her head and closed my eyes against the forming tears. I kissed her cheek and gently rocked her as I left the room.
Going downstairs I balanced Lily in one arm as I picked up a blanket from the back of the sofa when I walked passed. I went straight through to the shop, settling myself in Tommy's office with the books from the day in front of me. I adjusted Lily so she was laid across my body, her head cradled in my elbow and I placed the blanket over her and my legs. I opened the desk drawer and pulled out the bottle of whiskey and glass that I knew Tommy always kept in there, pouring myself a glass. "Go back to sleep, my baby. Mamas got you." I whispered as I pressed my lips to Lily's head. I picked up a pencil and began working through the numbers in front of me.
John POV
I woke up with a start to find an empty bed. The sheets where Evie should've been were cold, telling me she hadn't been there for a while. I rubbed my face before getting up and getting dressed. I poked my head in Adas room to see that Lily's crib was empty.
I found Polly in the kitchen, no sign of Evie or Lily. "How's she doing?" Polly asked, handing me a cup of tea. "Dunno, she weren't in bed so I assumed she was down here." I said, taking a sip. "No, Lil wasn't in her crib when I got up so I assumed you had her in with you." She replied. We shared a look and then there was a cry. It was muffled but distinctly Lily. I followed the crying through the double doors and into the shop. The crying had stopped but I quickly spotted them through the window of Tommy's office. Evie was gently rocking Lily in her arms, her dark curls hung around her face as she worked. Even with the dark bruising that covered her face she was still the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.
A/N Do you think it was the right thing for her to lie to John about it? And how do you think this is going to effect them going forward? Always love hearing your thoughts guys! And I promise I am going to deal with the Tommy/Evie kiss in the next few chapters! Hope you enjoyed :)