Note: British Slang: (according to the internet)

Hand Shandy: ahem...male masterbation, lol

Tickety-boo: everything is good

Chapter 26

Small Heath - Birmingham

#6 Watery Lane

Monday January 26, 1920

Tommy POV

The last twenty-four hours had been a complete and total crap shoot. Between Graces sudden reappearance, Polly's attitude regarding her return, that fuckin Inspector Taylor messing with his damn men again and another Monday with no hearing from Aoife he was ready to empty a bottle all by himself.

As it was he'd tried to relax in the bath with a glass full of whiskey and a cigarette. He thought back on the latest batch of letters Aoife had sent. They'd remained a mixture of informative and personal and he found he appreciated that Aoife wasn't shy in her writing either. For fuck's sake he hadn't had as many hand shandys since his formative years.

One of the letters had outlined in vague detail the events that had brought about the destruction of The Cavalier in Virginia Beach. He'd been grateful that they'd refrained from continuing with the sale and had left after getting rid of the man who'd tried to take him. If Inspector Taylor hadn't been falsifying to see about getting a reaction out of him then the blokes in the Colonies had been being watched and the Adelisa could have been endanger of being caught had the deal gone through.

As it stood now, he had the possible makings of a plan that would put everything to bed and get him what he wanted at the same time. Inspector Taylor off his back and Cheltenham in his pocket. He just needed to speak with Aoife.

Her other letters had been uneventful with simple updates on everyone. The sailing had been smooth from the Colonies to the Cayman's. They'd been unable to check in due to a relay being down and in the process of being fixed. They were supposed to have been in range of a relay in Mexico tonight, but they hadn't come through on the bell. He could only hope it was due to another downed relay or inclement weather.

They'd had a good day on Grand Cayman. Ada, Michael and Finn had enjoyed the ocean and Finn had even started learning to swim. Aoife had mentioned that they'd had a grand time snorkeling and seeing the various sea creatures in their natural habitat. Finn had even touched a sting ray apparently. They'd had a few pictures taken and they'd shown up in the post the previous day. A friend of Aoife's had mailed them once they'd been developed.

He could tell it was warm weather due to the lack of layers they'd been wearing. Ada had been in a sleeveless shirt and a skirt type style of trousers. Michael and Finn were in lightweight trousers and short sleeved shirts. Aoife had been in a dress that hugged her body as it wrapped around her. The other Deveroux's were in a couple of the shots and all were dressed similarly. They did look like they were enjoying themselves. The smiles on Finn, Ada and Michael's faces were huge.

By all accounts they should have already experienced the two Mesoamerican ruins that Aoife had mentioned to him during one of their previous conversations. They should be heading out across the Pacific Ocean within the next day or two. It would have been interesting to hear what Finn had thought about them.

It had occurred to him that Aoife enjoyed history. There was a passion in her voice when she spoke of historic places and she seemed to fancy learning about ancient civilizations. He'd noted that all the places she'd mentioned wanting to show his family were historic. On his last trip into London he'd stopped at a book store and picked up a book on the History of Mesoamerica and had started to read about what his family was experiencing and what seemed to fascinate Aoife.

He finished his cigarette and put his glass down, picking up the book in its place and continued to read where he'd left off while the water still retained some heat.

Grace POV

Grace had managed to find lodging near the Shelby's. She'd also found it fairly easy to get a job at a nearby seamstress shop. She'd only work there until the Garrison reopened and then she'd see if Arthur would hire her on. By that time she should have managed to sway Tommy away from Lizzie and back into her own bed.

She'd been surprised by the changes that she'd noticed since her return. The Peaky Blinders had both illegal and legal businesses. It was clear that their power base had expanded, their territory extended much further than she'd ever thought it could.

She'd kept her ear to the ground and soaked up all the gossip possible. She wanted to learn even the smallest of details in regards to what Tommy'd been up to since they'd parted. It wasn't surprising to learn that he'd enlisted and gone to war. It had been shocking to hear he'd won medals and achieved the rank of Sergeant Major. No doubt his cleverness came in handy during those four years.

Polly had continued to run the family business while the boys had been away and they reclaimed their positions of power upon their return. Tommy had since aligned himself with the man in power down in Camden Town an Alfie Solomons. She'd heard they'd worked something together that came out in both their favors and now had a tentative 'friendship'.

When Tommy had come home he'd started visiting Lizzie. It was unclear if he paid for Lizzie's services or if Lizzie and Tommy had started to truly see each other while she continued to make money on her back. Grace couldn't picture Tommy allowing the woman he called his, to make her living that way. He'd want to be the only man in between his woman's legs. So she guessed that they hadn't become an exclusive item until she'd started working for him, as his secretary.

Grace didn't believe that rekindling those old feelings in Tommy would take too much effort. He wasn't a man that most women could handle in any sense. His options were limited in Small Heath and he'd always had an eye for women who had that posh air about them. The two of them shared a history and she had the advantage of already having his love. All she needed to do was get him to admit to himself that he still wanted her. Why wouldn't he want the woman who'd once held his heart. Over the one that probably spread her legs to half the men in Small Heath.

It would simply take a bit more effort than she'd anticipated that's all. She'd find out more about this man down in Camden Town and what current business Tommy was working. It might help make her invaluable to him.

Polly POV

Polly was in the sitting room, enjoying that peacefulness and a glass of whiskey, since that's the only thing it seemed the boys were bringing home. John and Esme had moved back over into his own home which gave the rest of them a nice break from listening to them coupling practically every single night. If that girl wasn't with child by the end of the month she'd be surprised.

Tommy had assured her the day before when he'd come back from his 'talk' with Grace that nothing had happened between the two of them. He'd told her everything Grace had said and the fact that she'd gone so far as to kiss him. When he'd mentioned Grace intended to stay for a bit she'd gotten a bad feeling.

He'd asked her what Grace's letter had said, he seemed sure there was more to her reappearance. Unfortunately there really hadn't been anything telling. Grace had basically said she missed him and was hoping to hear back from him. That life away from Small Heath hadn't been all she'd hoped and while she'd been many places and seen many things, she continued to find herself drawn to his memory and even to Small Heath.

That was it in a nutshell. Oh Grace had used flowery pretty words and anecdotes to try and maneuver any drop of feeling he might still retain for her to the surface but that was just her being manipulative and Polly was happy Tommy had decided to burn the damn thing without ever reading it.

Esme POV

Esme found that she really did enjoy having John as her husband. He was handsome, he had a soft spot for family. His temper wasn't really that bad, compared to some men. He had a good sense of humor and he talked to her, treated her like a lady. He was also good in bed. At first she'd worried that she'd be treated poorly because she was a Lee and he was a Shelby. She'd heard all sorts of horrible things said about Shelby's from the men in her family.

She was happy to find the men in her family had been wrong. Yes, she could see how some of the things they've said could be true in regards to Tommy. He was a scary man, it was like the devil himself was looking at you through those chips of ice he had for eyes. He took the air out of the room whenever he entered it and not in a good way. She was intimidated by him, and always found herself wanting to hide away when he was near. Not wanting to draw his attention to her in anyway.

She'd been surprised to hear that he had a woman. One that he hadn't taken cause he wanted or paid to have her company. Rather he apparently had a woman who wasn't afraid of him. What she wouldn't give to have been a fly on the wall when John said the woman had actually had the nerve to censure him. She was looking forward to meeting her, she only hoped that she was friendly. She could certainly use some friends here in Small Heath.

Arthur and Polly seemed to accept her presence but hadn't really been warm or inviting. Hopefully after yesterday she'd finally start to get somewhere with Polly. She imagined if she could get Polly's approval then the rest would follow suit.

She also hoped that John's sister Ada and little brother Finn would be welcoming. Though she had to admit she was most nervous about meeting his children. She didn't know if they'd be open to her being there. She really, really wanted them to like her.

John came back into the bedroom and climbed in next to her, she enjoyed how he curled his body around hers when they slept. It made her feel safe and protected. She liked his heat too. He spoke quietly in her ear.

"What are ya still doin up? Thought ya'd be asleep by now."

"Just thinking about your family. I really want your kids to like me."

"Once they get ta know ya, they'll love ya Esme."

"I hope so. Polly actually talked to me the other day."

"Yeah, see I told ya. Once things started ta get back ta normal and even out they'd start openin up."

"She told me about Grace."

It took a moment but when John responded his voice sounded at a lower octave.

"...Grace. Why were ya talkin' about her?"

"She came by the den the other day."

"Grace...Grace came by the den, when?"

"Yeah, yesterday. She spoke with Polly about wanting to speak with Tommy. She was just leaving when he came back. They left together, I would assume to talk."

"What she deserves is a fuckin bullet."

"Polly didn't like her, or the fact that Tommy left with her. Says she hopes Grace leaves soon, before Aoife comes back. She also said not to mention Aoife to Grace."

"Yeah, probably best if she knows as little as possible about what's going on around here. With what Tommy has planned the less people that know anything about Aoife the better...Stay away from Grace, Esme. She's not the sweet innocent thing that she seems. She'll stab us all in the back the first chance she gets."

"All right, John."

Airship Adelisa Aiglentine

Aoife POV

Aoife was quite frankly pissed. How was it possible for the relay booster to be down in the Cayman's and then for their own equipment, their new equipment to be malfunctioning. If they didn't get their line out to England before they left transmission range they wouldn't get another chance until they made it to Fiji. There were no boosters anywhere near the Hawaiian Islands.

Aoife had expected to speak with Tommy this week and let him know it would be another week to two weeks before they'd be within transmission range again. At this rate Tommy and Alfie would both be three to four weeks without a check in.

She continued to check the Comm links diagnostic system, trying to find where the problem was so they could fix it. She'd already been through half of the system and still nothing. She didn't care if it was three o'clock in the damn morning England time when she got it working. She was going to make this fucking call while they still could.

*0*

She had no fucking clue how long she'd been checking voltage and wire connections. She'd finally found a short and had repaired the wiring, reestablishing the connection. Now the real test, to see if the bloody thing would finally work.

She had to re-input their secure line and connect to the booster before the line started to click and finally a damn operator picked up the line. She gave the woman the number she wanted and she heard the line ring.

The operator came back on and asked if she'd like to continue to try or disconnect the call when no one answered.

"Let it ring, someone will pick up eventually."

She allowed it to continue ringing and just as she'd said she finally heard a click and the gruff annoyed voice of her favorite Camden man.

"WHAT! Someone better be fuckin dead, right. Who the bloody fuckin 'ell is this? "

"Alfie."

"...You all righ' lit'l one?"

"Aye Alfie, I just wanted to check in. We'll be heading toward the Hawaiian Islands and won't be able to check in for one to two weeks. Since we missed last week due to a downed booster I wanted to make sure I got a hold of you before we leave range."

"All 'ight, why didn't ya ring earlier?"

"Comms were down, a short. I've spent I don't know how many hours banging away at it. Just now finally got it up and running again."

"Mm. All right. Everything is tickety-boo here."

"Glad to hear it, don't suppose you'd have heard anything about this cargo that was undeliverable have you?"

"Fraid I haven't lit'l one. That one's been busy he has, haven't seen him since the last time we spoke, right."

"Okay, thanks anyway. Take care of yourself Big Man, sorry to have woken you."

"No, don't worry about it. Much rather have heard what was happening wit ya than be worried cause I'd hadn't 'eard. Safe travels darlin, eh."

"Till next time Alfie."

After Alfie disconnected the line and she transferred back to the operator, she asked her to connect her with a different number. She made sure to tell the woman to let it ring, she'd just disconnect herself when she got tired of waiting. It actually didn't take nearly as long for the line to be answered as it had with Alfie.

"Hello?"

Arthurs gruff voice came through loud and clear, she wondered if he'd been drinking heavily or not. His words were slightly slurred but that could have also been from waking up suddenly.

"Arthur?"

"Yeah. Okay, right. Hold on a minute."

Aoife could hear Arthur's muffled shouting from her end of the line. Then she heard Polly yelling at Arthur to stop shouting the house down. A moment later she heard a kind of shuffling and then Polly's voice came through.

"Hello?"

"Hey, how is everything there?"

"We're doing all right. We have some things we'd like to discuss with you. What happened to ringing the bell earlier?"

"We had a malfunction with our Comms but it's up and running now. I'm going to send for the others so you can have a talk with them."

"Thank you, we've been getting a bit lonely here."

"I can imagine, everyone's been looking forward to hearing all of your voices."

"Glad to hear it. Don't bother the wee ones, their father isn't here."

"Will do, just a moment."

Aoife placed the mic on mute and went on the PA to call Ada, Michael and Finn to the Comms room.

*0*

Aoife had been fighting a yawn when the others had entered the Comms to catch up with their family. She may have even fallen asleep for a wink, because before she knew it Ada was gently squeezing her shoulder and she found herself lifting her head from the navigation desk. It was around ten their time which meant it was about four am in London.

"Aoife, Tommy's on the line for you."

"Thanks Ada."

Ada nodded and then headed off below for bed no doubt. Finn gave her a hug and said good night before he went back to bed as well. She re-entered the Comms room and closed the door behind her. There weren't many crewmen up and about but she'd prefer privacy.

She fought another yawn as she pressed the control button to speak.

"Hey."

"Mm. I heard your comms were down."

"Yeah, just managed to get it up and running again before we rang you."

"I'm glad ya did. My cousin made mention that you'll not be able ta ring again till you get to Fiji."

"Mm. No boosters near the Big Island. Kind of like a no man's land for communication. The natives prefer it that way. They believe it helps them maintain their way of life. I suppose in some ways it does."

"Ya sound tired. What time is it there?"

"Around ten, ten thirty. Crawling around, going through endless amounts of wires and connections is more draining than it seems."

"Mm. I received your other letters. Is there a way for me ta get a letter to ya?"

"Mm. The best way to reach me, would be to post something using Orient Express. You must insist that it be transferred to The Fenris when it reaches India, instead of the East India Trading Company. The Fenris will be in the same location as us for a couple of days. As long as it is clearly marked to me, they'll make sure I get it."

"Orient Express to the Fenris."

"Yeah, you'll have to get it posted within the next four to five days though in order for the Express to catch the Fenris before it leaves port."

"All right. When ya get it, get back ta me as soon as you're able."

"Will do. I'm assuming it's to do with business?"

"Yeah. Hopefully everything will work for the best."

"Mm."

"It's good ta hear your voice and just so that you're aware. I miss ya too."

"That's comforting to hear."

"There is something I should let you know about..."

"Mm. Why does it feel like something is about to go bang."

"...Grace showed up."

"In Birmingham. Why?"

"I'm not sure yet. She says she wants...she wants ta give us another go. Went so far as ta kiss me."

"Did she now."

"She kissed me, I did not kiss her."

"...Hm."

"She pressed her lips to mine. I did not respond and when I held her away from me I told her it wasn't goin ta happen. It was too late. She assumes that I'm seeing Lizzie."

"She assumes you're with Lizzie. Why would she think that?"

"She said something about Lizzie's reaction ta her arrival. She asked me if it was Lizzie and I didn't refute it. Let her believe what she wants."

Aoife sighed. She was just over nine thousand kilometers from London, and she was still about eight weeks from returning. There was nothing that she could do, other than trust Tommy to handle Graces advances with restraint. She had no doubts that Grace would continue to try and woo Tommy back to her. Regardless of if she believed he had someone else now. Grace wasn't one to give up that easily, she'd scheme and manipulate as long as the end results were what she wanted.

"My discs are still around your neck right. Remember what they mean."

"I know... I trust you to handle her. I just don't like the woman. Every time I think she's finally gone she crops back up out of nowhere. Dealing with her gets tiring. Never thought I'd be in a relationship with a man that knew her."

"...I can't change me past Luv."

"I wouldn't want you to. You wouldn't be the man you are if it'd been different."

"Remember that I miss ya. We're a third of the way through now."

"A third of the way. I miss you too."

"You know how I know her. We never discussed how you do."

"And I take it with her sudden appearance, we need to now."

"I'd appreciate it Luv. Might be something in there that will help me figure out what she's really doing here."

"You don't believe she just wants back, what she walked away from?"

"No. Feels like there's something else going on with her."

"This is a conversation I'd much rather have in person but since that's not an option right now. We'll just make do.

My family met Grace in late 1915 up in the Colony of New York. She was involved with the son of a man that had a spice business. It seemed he'd come to blows with the East India Trading Company and was looking for a new shipper.

We agreed to meet with him, his son and Grace were in attendance. We ended up taking him on as client and would see her on various occasions when we'd import export for them. One time we came and found she'd married the son. Then the next time we showed up, she was a widow. We never really got the details of what happened but I know they told everyone it was an accident.

Grace was beside herself as she was a newly wed. The father either suspected her of foul play or was just a fucking arsehole because he refused to support her in any way. Went as far as kicking her out of the house she'd been living in with his son. He came from money and had friends in high places. His sons will was overturned and Grace was left nothing.

We took pity on her and offered a ride out of New York, no charge. We were headed south and she asked to go home back to Ireland. Which meant she'd be onboard for a good four to five months before we made it that way.

We offered to pay for a more direct transport for her. She refused, wouldn't take charity and offered to work while she was aboard. She was a fast learner and she did well in the air.

She and Carrick became friendly and that soon shifted into something more serious. Due to their involvement she stayed on with us when we made it to Ireland.

Eventually she absconded with some packages we'd been hired to deliver. Sensitive important material to the man who paid us. We hadn't realized that they were no longer locked in the safe when we went to deliver them. The man took great offense and was ready to make an example out of what happens to people that disappoint him.

That was about 1917. Reilly was eighteen and I wasn't about to let the man kill him over a few fucking packages. So I put a knife through his eye from twenty five feet.

If she truly cared about Carrick like she said she did. She wouldn't a run off in the middle of the night. Taking things she'd no right to. Putting our family in danger. Only leaving a note saying she was sorry. She realized that life in the air wasn't for her.

That's why I don't like Grace."

"...Fuck..."

"Mm.

"Don't worry about Grace. She's not what I want anymore. Now go get some sleep before you fall asleep talking to me."

"Hm. Would that be so bad? I do find myself to be quite fond of your voice, it can be very tranquilizing."

"I'm certainly glad to hear of yet another thing that ya enjoy about me. However ya won't get a good night's rest falling asleep in the Comms room. I'd much rather think of you tucked up in your room either swinging away in your hammock or stretched out on your bunk."

"Hm."

"Go to bed Luv. Until we speak again."

"G'night, Darlin."

As always, I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. Please know that reviews are appreciated - I haven't written in a while and I am thankful for all the comments I've received so far. I like to think of writing this as limbering up my writing skills and allowing my creativity/imagination to get some exercise.