The Slayer and the Blinder

by StoryQueen2

Maddie is 2020's current chosen one: The vampire slayer. Until she is pulled through time to 1924 and the world of the infamous Peaky Blinders. Years and dates are an estimation so don't judge me too harshly! Initial slow burn romance with some eventual regular smut so read at own risk.

24. Quitter

-A couple of hours earlier-

Tommy clung to Maddie as she kissed him deeply, the two of them stood on the doorstep in the cold as Isiah waited in his car, the engine humming ominously. They broke apart and she looked up at him with her pretty doe eyes, a small smile painting her lips.

'I'll be back before too long Tommy, don't worry,' she whispered before kissing him briefly on the lips again.

Tommy tried to tell his heart to stop thudding angrily in his chest and to believe Maddie when she said she would return. He couldn't understand his sudden increase in protectiveness and paranoia around her well-being. She had been a slayer for many years and by her own admission had faced many beasts like the ones she was now going to fight. But then he remembered the ring on her finger and knew exactly why he was feeling so nervous. A flashback of Grace being shot and dying in his arms flitted through his mind's eye and he shut his eyes before any tears could form. He couldn't understand why Zachary, or rather Zach as Maddie had taken to calling him, had insisted on her going alone when armed back-up was surely a wise course of action. Even more puzzling was how she had agreed with him and made up her mind to go alone. And once that woman's mind was made up, there was no convincing her otherwise.

'Alright,' Tommy whispered back to her, although he knew his eyes conveyed that he was still unsure.

She gave him one last smile, squeezing his hand before letting go and turning away from him, hurrying down the steps with her axe in hand. He watched as she got into the car next to Isiah and gave him one last wave out of the window before Isiah pulled away and drove off down the driveway. That boy had better remember to call me, he thought, and tell me that my fiancé is safe and sound.

Tommy had been the happiest he'd been in his entire life when he heard the word 'yes' leave Maddie's lips after he proposed. Admittedly she had made him wait with his heart thudding in his chest and his eardrums feeling like they would burst from the pressure. He remembered her shocked expression, her eyes wide like a stunned deer as she stared at the ring he had presented to her. The rest of that day had been as close to perfect as it could have been, apart from Alfie eavesdropping on them fucking in the cupboard that is. Somehow, the knowledge that Maddie would soon be his wife made her pussy feel and taste that much better and he was suddenly filled with bitterness as he remembered where the current night had been heading before Zach had turned up.

That reminded him, he had a few things to say to that prick now Maddie wasn't there. Tommy turned and marched back inside the house and headed toward the living room where everyone else was still waiting. Zach was lucky that he was still alive in his opinion. Not only had he faked a robbery at the betting shop, but he had done it not to isolate Maddie to kill her but to put her through a series of tests designed to almost (but not quite) kill her. He couldn't remember the last time he had been so angry as he came close to cutting Zach into small pieces the previous evening as the sound of Maddie's pained voice twisted his stomach into knots.

He entered the living room and saw that Zach was being stared down angrily by all the members of Tommy's family as he sat uncomfortably in his chair. When he heard Tommy enter, he swallowed as he caught the murderous look on Tommy's face as he marched over to him. He grabbed Zach by the collar, lifting him off his chair and slamming him into the nearby wall.

'Tom! Calm down!' called Arthur coming over to grab Tommy's arm 'Don't do anything you'll regret!'

Tommy ignored his older brother and stared at Zach for a few seconds who looked practically terrified, likely convinced Tommy was going to kill him now Maddie wasn't there to stop him. Well, he would be right in a matter of speaking.

'You'd better hope she comes back,' muttered Tommy in low dark tone that was barely audible, but Zach gulped so he was certain he'd heard. 'If she doesn't, don't expect any of your loved ones to hear from you again.'

Zach didn't respond but Tommy could feel him shuddering in his grasp. He shoved Zach once more against the wall before releasing him and turning away, making a bee line for the decanter, an audible sigh of relief filling the room. He poured himself a glass of whisky and sipped it before lighting up a fresh cigarette and drawing on it desperately. He rubbed his sore, dry eyes before shuffling over to the sofa and sitting down silently. The room fell silent as well, no one knowing what to say.

Zach remained stood frozen by the wall, still in shock but Tommy ignored him. Eventually, he shuffled back to his chair and sat down, taking off his glasses to clean them with his handkerchief, his hands shaking making the task take longer and attract attention to himself. Ada who was sat next to Tommy looked over at Zach and huffed in annoyance before getting up and marching to the decanter to pour another shot of whisky before marching over and nearly throwing the glass at him.

'For fuck's sake drink this and pull yourself together,' she said, giving Zach a sour look. 'If Mads doesn't come back it's not just Tommy you'll have to worry about.'

'Damn fucking right,' mumbled John who nodded slowly and looked over at Zach threateningly.

Tommy failed to see how this would make Zach calm down, but the man nodded and took a sip of the whisky and before long his shaking hands calmed a little. Tommy had instructed Isiah to call once Maddie had gone down into the drains to find the two creatures. He estimated it would be just under an hour before he called, and he looked up at the clock and watched it tick by in silence. After a while, Zach took out a leather bound book and began quietly writing in it but thankfully Tommy was able to ignore him, not interested in knowing what he was doing. The time passed agonisingly slowly and as the minute hand reached quarter to eleven, he got up to await the call in his office. The others got up, John stating he wanted to wait in the kitchen and the others nodded in agreement. Despite their promotion to higher society, they still often preferred in times of stress to sit in the kitchen like servants and Tommy was often no exception to this.

'Take him with you,' Tommy instructed, pointing to Zach, not trusting him to be left on his own.

Arthur grabbed Zach by his jacket and lifted him out of his seat and threw him in the direction of the door. Zach stumbled but didn't protest and followed Tommy's family out into the corridor. Tommy made his way to his office and settled into his desk chair, staring at the phone intently as he smoked what felt like his hundredth cigarette. After a couple of minutes, it rang, and he picked it up before the first chime ended.

'Isiah,' he said, not needing to question who it was.

'She just went down, Tom,' replied Isiah.

'Good, call me back in an hour and let me know if she made it out.'

Tommy didn't give Isiah a chance to respond and put the phone down, slamming the receiver a little too hard onto the hook. All he could do now was hope Maddie knew herself well enough and had judged this fight correctly. The thought of her dying underground, cold, wet and scared was too much for him to think about.

When Tommy re-joined everyone in the kitchen, he was surprised to see that Polly had turned up out of nowhere. Apparently, Ada had called her knowing the matriarch would be furious for not being informed of what had happened and told her to come over. His aunt was currently staring daggers at Zach, her lips pursed sourly. She had heard about the cruel tests he had put Maddie through already and now she was yet another Shelby he needed to worry about.

'I swear,' hissed Pol. 'If anything happens to that girl you are going to wish you had never been born.'

'Give it a rest Pol,' mumbled Tommy, going to sit down next to Finn who was between him and Zach. 'If he gets anymore threats from us, they'll start to lose their weight.'

John was sat opposite Zach with Arthur next to him and Pol and Ada were sat next to each other in the seats next to Arthur. They struggled to fill the time with conversation, so John decided to dig out the playing cards and try to pass the time playing rummy. Pol prepared a small meal in case anyone was hungry, and they all nibbled at the bread and jam she had made. Zach, despite his evident awkwardness at being stuck with them alone, was infuriatingly good at rummy and realised this was pissing everyone off and announced that he was terrible at pontoon. John immediately switched the game to pontoon which he was glad about; being the best with numbers out of the family he knew he'd be able to win.

Tommy kept a close eye on his pocket watch, the pain of waiting worse than toothache, and as the hour mark approached, he excused himself to the office again and waited for the phone to ring. His stomach felt like it was turning inside out, he had felt so sick over the past hour he couldn't bring himself to even have one bite of bread. He was glad Isiah was so reliable as on the hour mark exactly, the phone rang and he snatched the receiver of the hook, his heart racing in panic.

'Is she out?' he asked, not even bothering with formalities. There was a pause on the other end of the line which lasted a beat too long before Isiah replied.

'There's no sign of her yet Tom,' he replied, and Tommy felt like his insides might curdle inside him. He took a shaky breath before clearing his throat.

'Wait there, the rest of us will come-.' he started but was cut off suddenly by Isaiah.

'Hang on… I can see someone coming this way,' he said, and Tommy's heart leapt. Please, please let it be her. 'Yeah, it's her! She must have found another way out of the tunnels.'

Tommy sighed with relief, resting his forehead on his desk briefly before lifting head back up. 'Good… good,' he stammered. 'Get her home as fast as you can.'

With that he hung up before burying his face in his hands and fighting back the tears. He didn't know how he was going to cope with this in future. Maddie would no doubt have more and more monsters to fight in her many remaining years, a never-ending army of villains that would try to take her away from him. He wished there was a way for her to give up her calling and to just be his wife, but he knew that was a pipe dream. Tommy ran his hand down his face and took a moment to compose himself. Fucking get a grip, Thomas.

He lit a cigarette and got up from his desk to make his way back to the kitchen to await Maddie's return. Now he knew she was alive he could at least try and relax for the time being. He gave his family the good news and they all sighed with relief. Zach also seemed to relax and smiled gladly at the news. The card games continued, only this time they were a lot less tense, and everyone's attitude toward Zach seemed to soften slightly.

For Tommy, the hour still passed as slow as the others as all he wanted was to know was that Maddie wasn't severely harmed by the fight. Just because she was alive didn't mean she wasn't badly wounded. Eventually, the shimmer of car headlights cast shadows around the room through the window and Ada got up to look outside.

'It's them!' she confirmed followed by a pause. 'They're coming around the side entrance.'

'That's odd,' commented Pol as Ada waved at them through the window.

'How does she look?' asked Tommy, too nervous to look out of the window himself in case he wouldn't like what he saw.

'I don't know, it's too dark to tell,' replied Ada before sitting back down again.

A few seconds later the outside door opened, and Isiah stepped through the door first. His face was contorted in a disgusted expression, his skin looking an awful shade of green. What on earth is the matter with him? He held the door open for Maddie who stepped slowly into the room and Tommy realised why Isiah looked so distressed.

The room fell so quiet you could have heard a pin drop. Maddie was barely even recognisable. She was covered head to foot in a mixture of green and red gunge as well as what looked like blood that made her hair stick flatly to her head. Bits of what looked like gristly chunks of flesh were stuck to her clothes which also looked soaking wet. A few seconds passed before the smell hit them all and everyone recoiled in disgust. Tommy was forced to cover his mouth as a smell that he could have never imagined existed crept up his nostrils. Even after wading through shit at Flanders and the Somme, he had never smelt anything that compared to this.

As she stepped further into the light, Tommy could see Maddie's face clearer. Her expression was that of pure wrath although the three huge gashes across her left cheek didn't help make her look any friendlier. He clenched his teeth at the sight of her mauled face. One of the cuts had taken a small chunk out of her nostril whilst the one below it had cut her lip open, and he could see the blood from the wounds had mixed with the gunge on her chin. It took him a second to notice the red marks around her neck which looked like sucker marks from an octopus. These marks also went up her chin and toward her mouth. What the hell happened down in that sewer?

Maddie remained silent at first and Tommy noticed she was holding something behind her back with one hand and holding her axe by her side with the other. He was so struck dumb by the sight of her that he couldn't speak as she came to stand at the head of the table, everyone covering their noses and trying not to gag. John, who was closest to her along with Zach, managed to recover some of his senses and removed his hand from his face to snigger and open his mouth to speak.

The axe Maddie was holding was swept up, the blade a hairs breath from John's face before he could blink, causing him to swallow his words. The axe was just as filthy as she was and having it so close to his face made him wrinkle his nose and almost gag.

'Not. One. Fucking. Word.'

Maddie's voice had a tone Tommy had never heard before and he felt himself shiver with worry. He wanted to get up and hug her although in her current state he couldn't bring himself to do it. She lowered the axe to her side again, John sewing his lips shut looking terrified of Maddie for the first time ever. Now that she had broken the silence, Zach took the opportunity to recover himself and addressed her as everyone else stared at her in shock.

'Did you kill them?' he asked. 'The Grogan and the Groich?'

Was he serious? Did he think Maddie had been fighting kittens? Her gaze swept to him, and she let out a little chuckle. There was an awkward pause before she brought her hand from behind her back, finally revealing what she had been hiding.

She dropped a giant severed head of what must have been the Grogan onto the kitchen table in front of Zach and it rolled to a stop in front of him. Everyone at the table moved at once; John jumped up with a scream, knocking over his chair as poor Arthur pushed himself away with such force that he toppled off his chair backwards. Pol and Ada screamed and backed away into the corner of the room. Finn, who was sat next to Zach and was the second closest to the head leapt into Tommy's lap who grabbed his baby brother and threw him off him before standing to back away himself. Zach managed to stay seated but flinched and leant away from the head in front of him as a glob of green slime oozed from it tentacled mouth, over the edge of the table and onto the floor by his feet.

The head was grotesque; its skin blue and scaly and its eyes, two enormous black orbs, still open. There was what looked like a huge tooth embedded into the skull and Tommy guessed that Maddie had used a Groich tooth to stab it. A foul wave of yet another foul odour swept through the room, making everyone cover their mouths again. Everyone was too shaken to speak at first but once Arthur got back to his feet he pointed at the head in shock and disgust.

'What the fuck is that?!' he shouted.

Maddie who had remained worryingly stoic during everyone's reaction to her throwing a severed head onto the table huffed angrily. 'That is a Grogan head,' she declared. 'And that stench you can all smell is the guts of the Groich which showered me when I cut its body open.' She looked again at Zach who had an expression of pure shock. 'That proof enough for ya?'

Zach stared back at her blankly, gawping like idiot. Maddie stared at him for a moment expecting an answer, but he remained silent. She snorted in annoyance and threw her axe onto the table next to the head before turning around to make for the door leading to the corridor. Tommy finally regained his senses and went to follow her but was blocked by Zach suddenly standing up from his chair.

'Hold on!' he shouted, making everyone look at him in shock. Maddie froze to the spot but didn't turn around. 'You need to give me a full report of what happened. And you can't leave your weapon without cleaning it.'

This man really didn't know how to read a room and the air suddenly went very icy as a deafening silence filled the room again. No one dared breath in case Maddie decided to turn on them and decapitate them just like the Grogan. Slowly she turned around, fixing her glare on Zach, her nostrils flaring furiously. He stood his ground however, lifting his chin in an authoritative way. This was evidently the last straw as she marched over to the table to retrieve the axe before turning on Zach. This time he flinched as she advanced on him, but she didn't strike him but instead she pushed the axe harshly into his chest, the gunge coming off onto his vest and jacket. She kept hold of the axe and pushed him backward until he hit the wall, his head smacking into the stone.

'If you want this axe cleaned then I suggest you do it yourself,' Maddie spat, no longer able to contain her anger. 'As for what happened. I fought them. They lost. The end.' There was a silent pause as Zach looked down at her in fear, all confidence shaken out of him again. 'Oh, and just so you know. I quit.'

Quit? What did she mean quit?

Maddie took a step back from Zach who was looking at her like she'd lost her mind before managing to stutter out a reply.

'Y-you can't quit. Slayers cannot quit.'

'Oh yeah?' said Maddie, her eyebrows raised. 'Watch me.'

With that Maddie turned on her heel again and marched out of the room. Tommy acted quick and hurried after her, not caring that he was leaving his family alone with a severed head and a shaken Zach. He caught up to her on the stairs, avoiding the trail of muck she was leaving behind her.

'Maddie,' he called. 'Maddie, wait!'

Maddie paused on the stairs and slowly turned to face him. It was difficult to tell with all the grime, but he could see that she was crying.

'Hey,' Tommy said, coming up to stand in front of her but keeping at least a foot between them. He loved her dearly, but he couldn't bring himself to touch her like this. 'Are you alright?'

He realised the stupidity of the question once it left his lips and Maddie answered with a sob.

'Look at the state of me,' she wept, her voice choking. 'Do I look alright to you?'

Tommy sighed. He couldn't bare to see her so upset. 'I'm sorry,' he apologised. 'Come on, you need to get cleaned up.'

'You were right Tommy,' mumbled Maddie as they continued up the stairs. 'I shouldn't have gone alone.'

Tommy kept silent, suppressing another sigh. He didn't think now was the right moment to say 'I told you so' since Maddie's mood was currently on a knife's edge. He wanted to put his hand on her shoulder to express his sympathy but the last thing he wanted was to get any of the guts, blood or gunge on his hands. She didn't look to him for an answer however, obviously reading what she needed from his silence.

As they approached the top of the stairs, Tommy heard a set of footsteps approaching and Esther appeared at the top. She didn't initially notice them, her eyes downcast, but she looked up as she heard their approach. When her eyes landed on Maddie, she let out a terrified scream, covering her mouth in shock. Maddie attempted to give Esther an awkward smile but the housekeeper didn't return it, her face wrinkling into a grimace as the smell hit her.

'What on earth…?' gasped Esther, running her eyes up and down Maddie.

'Long night,' explained Maddie before going to continue up the stairs.

'STOP!' yelled Esther, holding her hands out to halt Maddie in her path making she and Tommy raise their eyebrows at her outburst. She glanced down at Maddie's feet which were caked in slime before looking down the stairs at the slime trail she had left up the wooden staircase. 'Don't walk on the carpet in those shoes! I'll never get… whatever that is, out of it if you traipse it in!'

'Oh…,' muttered Maddie, looking down at her boots and glancing to look at her footprints on the stairs. 'Sorry, Esther. What shall I-?'

'Wait here.'

Esther squeezed past them, putting as much distance between her and Maddie as possible before hurrying down the stairs and disappearing in the direction of the kitchen. A minute later she reappeared carrying an old burlap sack originally used for potatoes. Her face had turned a shade of ghost white, and Tommy realised she must have seen the Gorgon's head when she went in the kitchen. When she reached them, she opened the sack and held it open at arm's length, nodding to Maddie.

'Take your boots off and put them in here.'

Maddie nodded and unlaced her boots, removing them and her socks before dropping them in the sack. She was careful not to step on the slimy patch she was previously stood on with her bare feet. The boots had done a good job of protecting her feet because they were clean, the glistening white skin a stark contrast to the rest of her. She rolled up her trouser legs a little so they wouldn't brush along the floor and proceeded up the stairs with Esther's approval.

Tommy opened the bedroom and bathroom door so Maddie wouldn't have to touch anything as Esther followed with the sack still in hand. Esther held the sack open as she had before so Maddie could strip the rest of her clothes off and drop them in. She was careful to not let any chunks of guts drop onto the floor as she undressed, successfully ridding herself of her ruined clothes until she was naked. Her skin under her clothes hadn't been well shielded from the muck and looked horrendously itchy and uncomfortable.

'What shall I do with these?' asked Esther, hoping the answer wouldn't be to try and wash them.

'I'll burn them,' said Tommy, taking the sack off Esther reluctantly. 'Go and make a start on cleaning the kitchen.'

Maddie shifted her eyes guiltily and gave Esther and apologetic look as the housekeeper hurried from the room. The bathroom was now starting to fill with Maddie's odour and Tommy went over to the window and opened it.

'Maybe I should have taken a dip in the river before I came home,' joked Maddie although the tone of her voice was slightly bitter. She approached the shower to get into it but he stopped her.

'Hang on, let me see the cuts on your face.'

Tommy stood as close as he could to Maddie, making her look up at the light so he could see the cuts clearly. They were so full of dirt and grime that it was impossible to see how deep they really were. If they didn't clean them soon with disinfectant, they would fester and grow a nasty infection if they hadn't already.

'I should clean these first,' said Tommy but Maddie stepped away, shaking her head.

'I'm desperate for a shower Tommy,' she sighed. 'Besides it'll be too hard to clean them without me getting in the shower.' Tommy shook his head, but Maddie looked back at him sternly. 'Please, Tommy, just give me twenty minutes to rid myself of the fucking smell. I'll be careful alright?'

Tommy sighed, not liking the idea of her getting soap into the wounds on her face. However, if there was anyone who wouldn't suffer any severe consequences for that it would be her. 'Alright,' he conceded before spotting a glimmer of light beneath the slime around her neck and realised it was her engagement ring hanging next to her cross. She had put the ring on the necklace as a way to avoid losing it but now it was caked in demon innards. 'I'll clean that whilst you shower,' he said pointing at the necklace.

Maddie looked down at her chest and gasped, realising the ring could well be tarnished, and quickly unclasped the necklace and passed it to Tommy who was less than pleased to touch the gunk covered jewellery. He heard the shower turn on as he held the necklace under the tap to rinse off the offending dirt.

'Is it okay?' asked Maddie, sounding worried.

Tommy took the ring off the chain and cleaned the ring with his fingers. Thankfully, the dirt fell of easily and the diamonds were still in place and no dirt had embedded itself around them.

'It's fine,' replied Tommy and he turned to see Maddie sigh with relief before ducking her head under the hot stream of water.

He dried the ring and laid it to one side on the counter before rinsing the necklace and doing the same. Once finished, he grabbed the soap and nail brush on the side and scrubbed his hands a lot harder than he admitted was necessary. Once his hands were clean, he told Maddie he'd be back shortly and picked up the burlap sack with her clothes in and headed back downstairs.

Esther had sprinkled what looked like caustic soda on the footprints on the staircase which was accompanied by a strong smell of lemon juice. Tommy followed the trail of white powder into the kitchen where he found some of his family members and Esther. Esther was scrubbing at the table with a scarf covering her mouth as Pol and Ada assisted her, all three of them looking disgruntled, the Grogan's head now gone. Isiah was sat near the sink smoking, looking like he was trying his best not to vomit.

'Where are the others?' asked Tommy. 'And where did the head go?'

'They took that… thing outside to burn it,' mumbled Pol before jerking her head in the direction of the window. Tommy glanced through it and could see the warm light of a small fire in the distance. 'Zach told them it was better than burying it.'

'Good,' said Tommy, turning to walk toward the door.

'Wait, Tom,' said Ada, stopping him. 'Is Mads alright? I've never seen her like that before.'

Tommy considered his sister and sighed, 'I don't know.'

'Do you think she meant it?' asked Ada. 'About quitting?'

'I don't know Ada,' repeated Tommy a little impatiently. He carried on out of the side door and into the cold night, his head down as he walked in the direction of the fire.

Part of Tommy was hoping Maddie meant what she had said, about quitting slaying, as he remembered privately hoping that just a couple of hours ago. She had sounded like she meant it, but he knew her well enough that she had likely said it in a height of anger and shock from the night's events. However, her stubbornness would likely mean she would try to stick to her guns for as long as she could until she realised that she could never quit being a slayer. She had told Tommy that herself once all those months ago.

As he neared the bonfire that had been started in the middle of the lawn, Tommy could make out three silhouettes stood near it which he eventually saw were Finn, Arthur and John. They noticed Tommy approach and gathered to meet him as he threw the burlap sack onto the fire.

'She alright, Tom?' asked Arthur. Tommy wished people would stop asking him this question as he found he wasn't sure of the answer.

'The night has shaken her I think, but she's tough,' he replied and his brother's nodded in agreement.

'Zach told us to burn the head outside somewhere,' said John, changing the subject. 'Said we don't want any of the other house staff seeing it.'

'Now they won't see it but they'll sure as hell smell it,' grumbled Finn, giving his brothers sour looks and Tommy guessed that they had bullied him into being the one to carry the head outside, although hopefully inside another sack and not with his bare hands.

Tommy lit up a cigarette and gazed at the fire a moment. 'Not if Esther has anything to do with it,' he said, responding to Finn's comment and sincerely hoping it was true. 'Where is Zach anyway?' Tommy questioned, realising that he hadn't seen the man since Maddie had threatened to quit.

'He skulked off to the training room with that axe when Maddie stormed off,' said John. 'After he had the cheek to order us to dispose of the head.'

'Right,' mumbled Tommy, turning back toward the house. 'Check to see if Esther needs any more help and get yourselves off home.'

The four of them returned to the house and upon entering the kitchen were glad to see that it smelt more of lemons and vinegar than it did of sewage and demon guts. Tommy repeated his instructions to is aunt and sister as well as to Isiah who nodded and looked suddenly grumpy.

'I'm going to have to burn that car,' he grumbled, not to anyone in particular. 'I think that smell has sunk into the seats.'

Tommy felt a sudden pang of guilt, only just realising that Maddie would have been sat in Isiah's car for some time, confining the two of them in a small space with that pungent odour. If it had been his car, he too would have burned it at the first opportunity.

'Isiah,' he called, beckoning the kid over who looked nervous that he had said something out of turn. He got up and came over to Tommy who reached into his pocket and pulled out his wad of cash and counted out a sizeable amount and gave it to Isiah. 'Go and get yourself another car from the Austin factory, give that to the foreman and say I sent you.'

Isiah gave Tommy a flabbergasted look; he wasn't used to receiving cash so forthrightly from Tommy and it took a moment for him to compose himself. 'Er… yeah, thanks Tom.'

Tommy gave him a short nod and bade his family goodbye as they would likely be gone before he returned downstairs. Ada asked him to say her goodbyes to Maddie for her as she needed to return to London urgently now as her babysitter could only keep Karl until morning. Before he went back upstairs to Maddie, Tommy had one more errand to run. He made his way to the training room in the basement and walked in just as Zach was hanging the axe, now clean and shiny, back in the cabinet. Zach turned to see who had entered and gave a look that was a mixture of apprehension and relief.

'Mr Shelby!' said Zach, turning to face Tommy. 'I must speak to Maddie at once. I simply cannot allow her to think she can quit so-.'

'No.'

Tommy cut him off suddenly but didn't raise his voice. Zach looked slightly panicked for a second but took another defiant step forward.

'But Mr Shelby, I must get through to her-,'

Tommy cut him off again by holding up his hand to silence him before responding. 'You won't get anywhere with talking to her tonight. Neither of us will.'

Zach blinked at Tommy in stunned silence a moment as the realisation dawned on him. 'You… you're on my side?'

Tommy gave Zach a pointed look that signified that wasn't entirely the case. 'I'm not on your side but I also don't want Maddie to quit. I don't think she can. But she's convinced herself she can.'

'Then we must stop her!'

'We will, but not tonight,' said Tommy, shaking his head. 'She won't listen to either of us about it right now. Best you get home and clean yourself up and come back tomorrow once she's had chance to calm down.'

Tommy nodded to Zach's clothes where some of the grime on the axe had rubbed off. His hands were also looking considerably grubby. Zach looked like he wanted to protest again but thought better of it and nodded regretfully.

'Very well,' he said, buttoning his jacket. 'I will return tomorrow afternoon. Give her chance to recuperate.'

Tommy showed Zach out before checking his watch, seeing that he'd given Maddie plenty of time to clean up. Esther was methodically making her way up the stairs cleaning the footprints as he passed and she mentioned she would come and clean the bathroom before they retired for bed. He could only smell the scent of strong rose soap as he walked into the bathroom which was a great relief. The room was steamy still, but he spotted her stood in front of the sink looking into the mirror with glazed eyes, the sight making his heart jump a little.

Her face and hair were now clean again, but this made the wounds on her face much gorier looking. The hot water had cleared away the dirt but had also washed away any scabbing, so the wounds were oozing fresh blood down her cheek, neck and into the white towel she'd wrapped around herself. She was absentmindedly prodding her face around the cuts, wincing slightly each time, as well as tracing the now much more visible red tentacle marks around her neck that winded up over her chin and bottom lip.

'Hey,' said Tommy, stepping over to her and taking her hand in his. 'Don't touch, eh?'

Maddie looked up at him as a single tear spilled out of her eye and into the cut beneath it, making her twitch slightly as it stung. Now that she was clean, Tommy didn't hesitate to bring his hand up to cup her good cheek. 'Shh,' he hushed softly with a shake of his head.

'Look at my face Tommy,' she choked, barely above a whisper. 'I look hideous.'

Tommy couldn't exactly argue with this statement, as much as he didn't want to admit it. Her affected cheek was puffy and swollen in the places around the cuts, her undereye swollen to the point that her eye was half-closed. Her lip was also swollen where it was cut which looked an angry shade of red and was evidently causing her considerable pain. However, he didn't think it was a good idea to confirm her self-assessment.

'How did this happen?' asked Tommy, indicating to the red marks around her neck.

Maddie swallowed thickly and looked away. 'The er, Grogan wrapped its tentacle things around my neck and lifted me. It tried to feed me to the Groich and nearly chocked me with its tentacles when I started to scream.'

Tommy wished he hadn't asked the question, the unwanted visual of what she described clouding his head and testing his temper. He pinched the bridge of his nose and ran his hand briefly over his face to try and get the image to disappear.

'We need to stitch those cuts,' he said simply, shaking himself out of it before kissing Maddie on the forehead.

Maddie sat on a stool as Tommy prepared the things he needed. Firstly, he needed to disinfect the wounds properly and he soaked some gauze in alcohol and saw her close her eyes and suck in a breath in preparation for what was to come. He took a deep breath and pressed the gauze to her face. She hissed loudly and clenched her teeth together, making his stomach turn. He could only imagine how painful it was and found himself wishing for the umpteenth time since meeting her that he could trade places with her.

She held the cloth against her cheek as Tommy prepared the stitches until he was ready to begin. He started with the cut beneath her eye, taking great care with the sensitive swollen skin. Maddie whimpered as he passed the needle through her skin and tried her best not to flinch. The other two cuts were easier to stitch although he couldn't stitch together the gap in her nostril as it had already scabbed over. When finished he wiped her face and neck clean and gave her a hopeful smile which she tried to return. The swelling of her cheek along with the new tightness caused by the stitches meant that the action of smiling now hurt and she grimaced, bringing her hand up to hover over her cheek.

Tommy cupped her other cheek and looked at her with yet more concern, but Maddie gave him a quick shake of the head. 'It's alright,' she said. 'It'll heal before too long. I just hope I don't have any scars.'

She stepped away from him and went over to the sink to look at her reflection again, pursing her lips at herself before picking up her ring and putting it back on. She looked down at it for a moment before turning back to Tommy.

'You still want to marry me?' she asked, another tear threatening to make an appearance.

Tommy looked back at her with his eyebrows furrowed. How could she think that? How could she even entertain that idea? He walked over to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. Her expression looked fearful, like he there was a chance he would say he regretted his proposal and wanted the ring back.

'Maddie,' he said. 'I knew who I was asking to marry when I proposed. I love you, Maddie. And I will keep loving you even if you come home looking like you do now.' He looked into her eyes and could feel his own beginning to sting at the sight of her injuries. 'Never think that I don't love you,' he said, dropping his voice to a whisper.

Maddie had started weeping as Tommy spoke and wiped away her tears with a sniff and nodded. 'I'll never stop loving you either Tommy,' she sighed. 'But you won't have to see me come home like this ever again.'

She leaned forward and brushed her lips to his, the stitch in it scratching his lip, before withdrawing and retreating into the bedroom. So, she still wants to quit, thought Tommy. He was right, she was going to stick to her guns with this idea it seemed, and he knew it was going to be difficult for her to let it go.

After Esther did a quick once over of the bathroom, pouring what must have been a full bottle of lemon juice and vinegar all over the shower for good measure, Tommy and Maddie settled into bed for the night. Maddie however didn't sleep well as more than once during the night he awoke to find her awake and sat up in bed. At one point she had got up and sat herself by the window, an exhausted an unsettled look on her face. He eventually helped her to sleep by laying awake next to her and stroking her hair until she drifted off.

The next morning, Tommy had to arise early to go to the office again. He had various meetings that he needed to attend which had been rescheduled due to Zach's destruction of the office. He kissed Maddie on the forehead as she slept, not wanting to wake her now that she finally looked so peaceful. All evidence of the smell she had brought home with her had thankfully gone with Esther's dedicated efforts. However, he instructed the housekeeper to order a new kitchen table as he had no desire to eat at it knowing a decapitated head was sat on it last night.

Tommy's day at the office was awfully tedious and he kept fretting over Maddie and how she was recovering, but mostly he wondered whether she was still wanting to quit or had sleep pushed the idea from her mind. He remembered that Zach was planning on returning to the house that afternoon and he decided he'd better get home to mediate that interaction in case she lost her temper. He managed to leave the office before three, but he was worried he'd be home too late.

Sure enough, when he arrived home, he heard Maddie before he saw her, her raised voice echoing down the corridor from the direction of the living room. He followed it and walked into the room to find her and Zach stood facing each other in the middle of the room mid-argument. Her arms were folded over her chest and her expression was furious. Zach looked as equally unhappy, his hands on his hips as he looked down at her like a father scolding his daughter.

'Why can't you get it into your thick skull?!' huffed Maddie, ignoring Tommy's entrance. 'I'm not doing this shit anymore! I'm done!'

'Preposterous!' retorted Zach. 'You have a calling, Maddie! That, and I will be forced to report back to the Council and the consequences will be dire!'

'I'm not afraid of the bloody Council!' snapped Maddie before Tommy finally decided he needed to interject.

'Alright, that's enough!' he called, raising his voice just enough to make the two of them fall silent.

Maddie gave him a silent look and he knew she wanted him to kick Zach out, but he wasn't prepared to do that. He approached her and put himself between her and Zach for a moment, cupping her face in his hands so he could inspect her face. The cuts were healing at a good pace, as expected, although the stitches would need to stay in a while longer. The marks on her neck and chin had pretty much already faded and he let himself relax a little. She smiled up at him, a small pleading smile.

'Can you please get rid of him?' she asked, her frustration evident. 'He's refusing to leave, and he keeps using magic to evade me.'

Tommy wasn't aware that Zach could use magic, but it made sense he would use it to prevent Maddie from throwing him out the moment she saw him. Tommy didn't see how much better he'd fare if she had struggled, however he wasn't going to kick him out anyway. He turned to face Zach, who was still looking at Maddie with annoyance, and cleared his throat.

'Give me a moment alone with Maddie please Zach,' he said, causing Zach to look at him.

He heard Maddie shuffle next to him and could feel her eyes boring into him, no doubt confused by his request. Zach considered Tommy a moment before nodding sharply and stepping out of the room.

'What are you doing Tommy?' asked Maddie as soon as the door closed. 'Don't tell me you're taking his side?!'

'Maddie,' began Tommy, reaching for her although she backed away from him. 'Sit down for a minute.'

Maddie gave him a furious look before turning away from him and walking to the end of the room. She remained silent so Tommy took the opportunity to speak.

'Maddie,' he began. 'You know well enough you can't quit. You told me so yourself. Even if you tried, you couldn't give up being a slayer anymore than I could change who I am.'

'I thought you would have wanted this!' she shouted suddenly, whipping around to face him. 'I thought you would have been happy for me to focus on being your wife and not worry about this bullshit anymore!'

Tommy sighed, looking down at the floor for a second before meeting her eyes again. 'Part of me does want that,' he admitted with a nod. 'But I've accepted you for who you are Maddie, slayer and all. You may try to stay away from that part of you, but it'll just find you no matter what you do.'

Maddie let her eyes close as Tommy spoke and bowed her head, shaking it angrily as tears tipped over her cheeks. There was a short silence that followed his speech as he watched her carefully, hoping he had gotten through to her. Suddenly, she turned and snatched a whiskey glass off the table she was stood next to and lobbed it at him from across the room with an angry yell. Tommy narrowly managed to duck in time before the glass connected with his head and it collided with the wall behind him, shattering into a rain of tiny glittering shards on the carpet.

It was now his turn to look angry and he looked up at Maddie with a dangerously furious expression. She looked back at him without faltering, as if daring him to lose his temper with her, holding his stare a second before making to march out of the room.

'You know I'm right Maddie!' called Tommy after her, finally snapping at seeing her turn her back on him.

She slammed the door loudly behind her and he looked up at the ceiling in frustration, running his hand down his face and shaking his head. He had hoped she had come to her senses overnight but evidently her stubbornness had been strengthened by her recent experience in the sewers. Maddie evidently wasn't thinking straight and hadn't thought through the potential consequences of her behaviour like Tommy had. Yes, he had some tricks up his sleeve when it came to keeping the watchers at bay, namely access to their secret bank accounts, but he still didn't want to start a war with them. No doubt she was hoping what leverage he had, although he knew she was unaware of the nature of it, was enough to get them to leave her alone despite not honouring their deal. In truth, Tommy knew it wouldn't be enough, and Maddie needed to change her mind before she caused a war that could put her, Tommy and the rest of his family in danger.

Tommy composed himself for a few seconds before following Maddie out but saw she had already disappeared. He went into the foyer to find a disgruntled looking Zach who was rubbing his shoulder with a pained expression.

'I'm guessing your discussion went poorly?' he asked rhetorically. 'Considering she just pushed me over on her way outside.'

'I'll get through to her,' huffed Tommy angrily, looking out of the door where Maddie had apparently just disappeared, no doubt to go riding.

'I hope so, for your sake,' said Zach, making Tommy look at him angrily. 'Otherwise, I will be forced to report back to the Council.'

'No,' Tommy said, shaking his head. 'No. You know this is just a reaction to what happened last night. Give her time. You know it would be of no benefit to the Council to give up on her so easily.'

Zach considered Tommy's words a moment and he knew he had been correct in assuming that the Council also wanted to avoid a confrontation with her. They were likely using the 'deal' as a way to keep her under their thumb and Zach's repeated use of it had ticked him off on it.

'You are right,' said Zach with a nod. 'However, I cannot delay my report to the Council past the end of the week. I hope we can get through to her by then.'

Tommy nodded his understanding. 'She'll likely be gone for a few hours now,' he said. 'It's probably best you aren't here when she gets back.'

Zach nodded and informed Tommy he'd be back again the next day and likely every day until Maddie came around, and took his leave, leaving him alone. He passed the time waiting for Maddie to come home in his office, busying himself with various jobs he needed to see to. After a few hours, as the sun was beginning to set, she finally returned, and he saw her walking over the lawn to the front door though the window. He went to the foyer to meet her before she had chance to slink away from him.

'Maddie,' he called to her as she entered the house.

She cast him a piercing look and Tommy knew she was still angry. She didn't reply and instead ignored him, making her way to the stairs and marching up them. He called after her again, but she pretended not to hear him and disappeared down the upstairs corridor.

This was going to be a long week, thought Tommy.

Over the next couple of days, Maddie continued to ignore Tommy much to his continued frustration. Their fight had put a wedge between them, and he found that it was affecting him more than he wanted to admit. Zach returned each day as he said he would but also had little luck in getting her to even engage with him, and Tommy was getting worried that Zach might have to keep to his threat.

Maddie hadn't removed her engagement ring, much to Tommy's relief, and she continued to sleep in the same bed as him. He tried multiple times to seduce her, hoping that sex would make her relax and come round to his way of thinking, but she brushed him off every time. She wouldn't let him remove her stitches once the cuts had healed, snapping at him that she could manage herself. The cuts were now only faint pink lines and her lip had healed. Her nostril looked like it had grown new skin to fill in the gap that had been ripped out and was the only part that was still scabbed over.

By Thursday, Maddie was still continuing her silent rebellion and Tommy new he needed to do something. She also hadn't set foot in her training room or been out patrolling at all and was avoiding any tasks that required her supernatural strength. That day he spoke to his family about her behaviour, which they agreed was rather worrying and agreed to come to the house for dinner. He sent word to Zach at his lodging in the village near Arrow House, also inviting him, explaining that he hoped an intervention with everyone present would be enough to shake her out of her irrational state.

Everyone returned home with Tommy that afternoon and Maddie came to greet them when she heard their voices. She seemed the most cheerful she had been in days and hugged everyone as they asked how she was.

'I'm much better thanks,' said Maddie. 'But what are you all doing here?'

Tommy's family thankfully kept their composure and Arthur smiled with a shrug. 'Been a while since we saw ya,' he smiled. 'Thought we'd come over for dinner and enjoy time as a family.'

'Oh, good,' sighed Maddie. 'It feels like ages since we did that.'

Polly walked over to Maddie and hooked her arm through hers, 'Come, lets all catch up in the living room.' She began to lead Maddie away and as they passed Tommy, he and Pol shared a knowing glance.

Tommy had spoken privately with Pol earlier that day about his current fears and Pol had agreed she needed to intervene. Despite finding the story of Maddie throwing a glass at him quite amusing, she admitted that Maddie's insistence on giving him the cold shoulder was worryingly out of character. He was hoping that Pol's maternal relationship with Maddie would be enough to make her realise the error of her ways before it was too late.

As everyone sat and chatted in the living room, Pol sat alone with Maddie whilst Tommy kept his distance from them to allow Pol time to soften Maddie's mood. He watched discreetly from the other side of the room, pretending to listen to John and Michael's conversation, as Pol and Maddie chatted on the sofa. He observed their initially cheerful conversation calmly until Maddie's expression eventually changed, her brows furrowing as a sigh huffed out of her chest. Polly must have changed the subject and she sat forward to take Maddie's hand to force her to look in her eyes. Pol then seemed to talk more intently but still kept her soft, non-judgemental expression as she spoke. A technique mothers were so adept at doing when it came to speaking to their beloved children who were heading down the wrong path.

After a moment, Maddie's head began to turn in Tommy's direction and he quickly flicked his gaze away so she wouldn't notice him watching. No doubt she had now cottoned onto what was happening and he could feel her stare boring into him as he kept his eyes looking in John's direction. He dragged on his cigarette and pretended like he was deeply interested in what John was saying. After a minute, he risked a glance over in her direction and saw that Esme was also sat with her and Pol and was contributing to the conversation. Maddie's expression however was a mixture of anger and discontent, as if her mind was battling with itself. Good, thought Tommy, it looks like they're starting to get through to her.

In that moment, Esther appeared to announce dinner was ready and Maddie took that opportunity to escape the conversation she was having with Pol and Esme, jumping up off the sofa and making a beeline for the door. Tommy caught up to Pol as they filed from the room, putting his hand on her shoulder.

'Well?' he asked, somewhat tensely.

'She's as stubborn as an ox that one,' huffed Pol. 'But I think she's beginning to see sense Tom. She needs to know that we all think the same way on this.'

Tommy nodded gravely. He had wanted to avoid an intervention, Polly being his last ditch effort, before he had no choice but to get everyone involved.

As they entered the dining room, Tommy checked his pocket watch. He should be here any second, he realised. As they all sat down, Maddie taking her usual spot next to him despite her recent lack of communication with him. As instructed, his family left the seat opposite her empty, which made her look at them all perplexed for a moment until there was a loud knock on the door to the dining room and everyone looked up in its direction.

'Sorry I'm late,' announced Zach as he entered the room at just the moment Tommy had told him too. He had wanted Zach to turn up at a point that would make it less likely for Maddie to get up and leave, or better yet not beat the poor man to a pulp.

Zach paused in the doorway a second before spotting his seat and making his was round the table as everyone watched in silence. Tommy turned to look at Maddie who's face was thunderous, her cheeks a violent shade of scarlet as her eyes followed him to his seat where he promptly sat before looking at her with a polite expression.

'Good evening, everyone,' he said with a polite smile which no one returned. The words had barely finished leaving his mouth before Maddie snapped her head to look at Tommy, making eye contact with him for the first time in days.

'What the fuck is he doing here?' she snapped, the room falling into a tense silence.

Tommy met Maddie's eyes for a second and reached into his pocket for his cigarette case.

'I invited him,' replied Tommy as he lit his cigarette and Maddie's eyes flashed angrily to signify she had gathered that already. 'I wanted us all here to talk some sense into you.'

Maddie's nostrils flared furiously before she suddenly put her hand on the table and stood up abruptly as if to leave but Tommy was expecting this and quickly grabbed her wrist to stop her. He gripped her wrist tightly, much tighter than ususal, knowing that it would make her realise just how serious he was. She paused and looked back down at him defiantly at first, but he saw her expression falter as she looked down at his hand gripping her wrist solidly. She could have easily pulled her hand away if she wanted but now she realised how angry he had become.

'Sit down, Maddie,' commanded Tommy sternly, a darkness in his tone that he hadn't used toward her before, leaving no room for doubt that he meant it. Maddie blinked and swallowed, a second passing before he released her wrist and she dropped slowly back into her seat. The room had gone so quiet that it sounded like no one was daring to breathe.

Maddie turned to look at everyone else at the table, most of whom turned their eyes away from her guiltily. All except Pol who had made her intention of part in this known to her already.

'So, you all knew about this?' she asked with irritation. Everyone lifted their heads and nodded, gaining some confidence in meeting Maddie's gaze.

'We're concerned, Mads,' said Arthur, making her look directly at him. 'Not just for you but for all of us.'

'I know you want to quit Mads, but if you stop slaying, then the Council will be on our arses,' continued John, giving her an apologetic look.

Maddie huffed angrily. 'I don't care! Besides, I'm not fucking scared of them anymore!'

'Maddie,' interjected Zach, adopting a softness to his voice he hadn't used before. 'Tomorrow I will have to report to the Council about you and they will enact severe consequences if they find out you aren't cooperating.'

She looked at Zach with a venomous expression. 'Go ahead and tell them,' she sneered, sitting back in her chair with her arms folded. 'I'm not going to make myself potential fish food again for your sake. I'm done getting bruised, cut, beaten and getting a new bone broken every other week! I am DONE being the slayer.'

Zach looked back at Maddie despairingly, sighing and looking down at the table in defeat. Fuck, this isn't going well, thought Tommy. He looked over at his family to help him, he needed them to make her see sense. He looked at Pol who looked back at him doubtfully, even she was unsure of what to say.

'But Mads…' came the voice of Finn from the end of the table, making everyone look at him in surprise. 'If you stop slaying, who's going to fight off the demons and vampires around here?' Maddie looked up at Finn, taken aback by his words as she blinked and shuffled in her seat. 'You've taught us some stuff but without you we wouldn't last long. And what if we get attacked like we did a few months ago by those vampires? We wouldn't stand a chance without you…'

Tommy looked at Maddie with bated breath. Of all the people he thought could get through to her, Finn was the last person he would have chosen. Maddie pursed her lips awkwardly and fidgeted in her seat again, her resolve finally beginning to show signs of wavering.

'Well… I-,' she stuttered, faltering on her words before a look of realisation crossed her face. 'Well, Marie is technically the slayer for this time,' she said turning to look at Zach again. 'She can handle everything. You don't even need me!'

'Yes, Marie is the slayer, but the fact is you are also one,' replied Zach. 'And that puts the responsibility on your head whether you like it or not. And I doubt Marie would be much good in helping you keep everyone here safe since she lives in Paris.'

Maddie began to look defeated, her expression weakening. She looked over at the others and they nodded that they agreed with what Finn and Zach had said.

'We wish you didn't have to do this Mads,' said Arthur. 'But it's who you are. From what I've experienced of your world, you can't avoid it forever. And the last thing we need is the demons and the Council on our backs.'

Maddie sighed and put her hands over her face just as the staff entered to place dinner in front of everyone. The room fell back into awkward silence again as the plates were set on the table, everyone waiting for her to speak. Once the staff had exited the room again, she brought her hands away from her face and sat up, looking down at her plate blankly.

'May I be excused?' she asked in a timid voice, tilting her head slightly towards Tommy but not looking at him. He looked back at her silently, processing what she had just asked as everyone else shared concerned glances. The last time Maddie passed up a meal was when she had lost her powers and broke her arm, a memory which made his stomach curdle at the thought. Shelooked up at him after a few seconds of silence had passed. 'Please?' she pleaded, her eyes begging him to let her escape.

Tommy nodded slowly but remained silent and Maddie quickly got up from her chair and practically ran from the room, her heels retreating down the corridor. The table remained silent for a second before he began to get up from his chair.

'Leave her, Thomas,' commanded Pol, turning to look at him. 'Give her some space, she'll come around.'

Tommy looked back at his aunt in irritation but nodded and sat back down, discarding his cigarette in the ashtray before lighting a new one. With that everyone decided it best to begin eating as Tommy looked over at Zach who looked back at him despairingly. Maddie was certainly doubting herself now, but her experience in the sewers must have frightened her more than she let on. So much so that she was fighting her very nature to the point where it was risking her relationship with him and his family. Everyone else ate and found something else to talk about in an effort to release the tension in the room as Tommy ignored his plate as ususal and puffed on his cigarette and sipped his whiskey in silence. He wanted to give her some time to think but he also didn't want to give her too much time in case she found a reason to remain stubborn in her decision. He waited until everyone had finished eating before getting up to go and find her. Arthur and John made to follow him, but he stopped them.

'No, wait in the living room,' he instructed. 'I'll try talking to her first.'

Tommy left the room and marched down the corridor and came to stop in the foyer, realising he wasn't sure where Maddie was. Then Esther appeared from around the corner and he called her over.

'Esther, where's Maddie?' Tommy asked, sounding more impatient than he intended.

'I saw her go downstairs to the cellar not long ago,' said Esther. 'I everything alright, Mr Shelby?'

The cellar? Was she training again? Tommy felt some relief wash over him and he nodded to Esther, not answering her question before heading toward the basement door. As he neared the training room, he strained to hear the familiar sound of arrows hitting the target or the sound of fists hitting the punching bag, but heard nothing but silence. Thinking it best not to barge in, he knocked on the door and waited for Maddie to respond.

A couple of seconds passed with no response. Tommy knocked again, this time louder. 'Maddie?' he called.

Nothing.

'Maddie, can I come in?' Tommy shouted again. Still no reply. He could feel his nerves building and he grasped the door handle and pushed to let himself in. However, the door wouldn't budge, as if something heavy was blocking the door on the other side. He pushed the door again, leaning into it with his shoulder but to no avail. She's barricaded herself in, he realised. A sudden anger bubbled up inside him and this time he banged his fist on the door furiously. 'Maddie! Open the fucking door!' he shouted as he heard the sound of heels coming down the stairs behind him.

'Fucking hell, Tommy what's all the racket about!' called Polly as she marched up the corridor to meet him. Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration and huffed to try and calm himself. Maddie's stubbornness had gone too far, and it had finally gotten to him. This was possibly the most immature thing she had ever done.

'She's barricaded the door,' he huffed, trying his best not to throw himself against the door to knock it down.

Pol pursed her lips at him. 'She wants to be alone,' she said. 'You can hardly blame her.' Tommy gave Pol an angry look before banging his fist on the door again. 'And throwing your fists against the door isn't going to make her let you in!' she snapped, placing her hands on his arm to stop him. 'Give her a little longer.'

Polly led Tommy away from the door and back up the stairs to join everyone else in the living room. They all looked up, expecting Maddie to be with them but looked troubled when she didn't appear. When they told them she had barricaded herself downstairs they looked even more worried.

'What's gotten into her?' asked John. 'She's never missed a meal except for when-.' Tommy flashed his brother a warning look not to mention that haunting time and he fell silent immediately.

'We should have gone with her to those sewers,' mumbled Arthur, casting Zach a dark look.

Zach looked up at them and sighed. 'Yes…' he muttered. 'Perhaps you are right.'

Tommy wanted to launch himself at Zach and cut his eyes out but he stopped himself, pouring himself another dose of whiskey. This was the first time Zach had openly admitted he was wrong, he realised, at least that's something.

After a few drinks, everyone decided it was best to leave Maddie be and allow her to emerge in her own time. Everyone announced they would head home and check in with Tommy at the office tomorrow whilst Zach said he would return again tomorrow morning.

'If she's not changed her mind by then,' he warned Tommy. 'I'm afraid I'll have to tell the Council.'

Tommy grunted his understanding at him and gave him a tired look before he made to leave after the others. He stayed where he was for several minutes with his eyes closed, planning what he was going to do tomorrow if Maddie refused to slay for the Council anymore. He had a letter already written in case he needed to threaten them but he knew it wouldn't be enough to intimidate them into leaving them alone. He tried to think of other ways to avoid a conflict, his mind sifting through all the contacts he had made in relation to the Council but nothing was coming to mind.

Soon, he began to develop a throbbing headache and he decided he needed to distract himself either with work or enough whiskey to down a horse. Tommy got up and slumped out of the living room into the foyer where he bumped into Esther again.

'Oh, Mr Shelby!' she exclaimed, surprised. 'Where is everyone?'

'They've departed for the night,' informed Tommy.

Esther looked mildly surprised and made toward the cupboard where she hung everyone's coats, wanting to check none had been left since she hadn't been there to hand them back to everyone. Tommy started walking toward his office, making it to the door before he heard Esther make a shocked noise and he turned to look at her expectantly.

'Oh dear, Mr Winslow has forgotten his bag!' said Esther, lifting it off the hook. It was a rather old looking leather satchel that was worn around the edges and seemed to suit Zach to the ground.

Tommy, now curious, walked over to Esther and held his hand out for her to pass him the bag. She looked at him bewildered but he raised his eyebrows at her expectantly and she handed him the bag.

'You shouldn't look through his things Mr Shelby,' said Esther, looking at him disapprovingly as Tommy opened the satchel.

'It's in my house, so now it belongs to me,' he said. How the day had ended had put him in such a bad mood, he didn't much care that he was adding theft to his repertoire of crimes. Besides, there may be some useful information about the Council in there that he could use against them.

Tommy reached inside the bag and felt just two objects, a book and a pen. He pulled out the book and examined it. It was leather bound, the same colour leather as the bag, and not very thick. It felt heavy however and he could see that despite its size it was densely packed with pages made from wafer-thin paper. He then recognised the book from the other night and realised that he was holding Zach's diary and his heart skipped a little in triumph. Jackpot.

Tommy handed the bag back to Esther before turning to head toward his office. 'Zach doesn't need to know about this,' he said as he retreated, not bothering to see if Esther had acknowledged his instruction.

He took the diary into his office and poured himself a shot of whiskey before sitting on the sofa. The diary was bound with leather string that was attached to the covers which he undid before opening it and flicking through the pages. The diary had barely been written in; only the first few pages had been used. Very neat and annoyingly small handwriting filled each page with no gaps to spare. Zach was evidently very economical and didn't like to waste paper, even to put spaces between the paragraphs.

Tommy took a sip of his whiskey, put his glasses on that were in his breast pocket and turned to the first page.

-22ndSeptember 1924-

Today I was assigned to my first official post as Watcher, but not for a slayer we were necessarily expecting. Mr Wolton has filled me in on all the information regarding Miss Madeline Chapman and the task of being her Watcher sounds rather challenging. By all accounts the girl is arrogant, impertinent, disobedient, and rather irritating. But she has proven herself to be a slayer, despite having had no formal training in her time it seems. The circumstances around her appearance in this time are rather perplexing, however the council has found little to explain it. I believe she has travelled back from the 21stcentury; a little short of a hundred years.

Tommy stopped reading momentarily and bristled at reading Zach's insulting words about Maddie, confirming that he evidently hadn't thought much of her before he arrived. Sipping his whiskey again, Tommy carried on reading.

Being this girl's watcher will undoubtedly be a challenge but as with all slayers, a firm and authoritative hand should put her in the right direction. I leave for Warwickshire in the morning, Mr Winslow also informed me that the girl has taken allegiance with the Peaky Blinders, of all people, and is residing at the house of their leader, Thomas Shelby. I shall not let this deter me.

The entry ended there and Tommy could feel his blood begin to boil. Zach had judged Maddie before even meeting her and reading his true thoughts was pissing him off. He tensed his jaw and huffed impatiently with himself, it was hardly surprising that a watcher would write something so harsh. He finished his shot of whiskey before lighting a cigarette and moving onto the next entry.

-23rdSeptember 1924-

The situation is far worse than I feared. I arrived at Mr Shelby's residence, Arrow House as I found out it was called, in the early afternoon only to find that he as well as Madeline were not home. The housekeeper informed me that they were at the races and would not be back until the late afternoon at the earliest. I insisted on waiting for them there, despite the housekeeper's protest, until they arrived home. It was bad enough to hear that Madeline had been galivanting at the races rather than training, but it was even more troubling to find out that she was engaged. And to the gangster no less.

My first interaction with Madeline was less than pleasant, Mr Wolton's description of her being completely accurate. She has a bizarre way of speaking, likely due to being a child of the future, and is grossly liberal with her use of foul language. She is rather stubborn and threatened to throw me from the house which she seemed rather close to doing, but I stood my ground. However, Mr Shelby and his family it seems are going to create a more challenging barrier between me and the slayer. Thomas Shelby I could tell is fiercely protective of Madeline and I could tell from their interactions that they have been intimate with each other. The man's mere presence makes one's blood run cold. The rest of them also seem to look at her as if she were their younger sibling. I thought it best to leave when he threatened me; I am not unversed in the horror stories regarding the Shelby family and I am no fool.

Today has presented several issues to me. The major one being Madeline's engagement to Mr Shelby. Her ties to him and the rest of that family will make her weak in her role as a slayer. Her allegiance will align firmly with them unless I find a way to convince her to abandon them. A challenge that will be damn near impossible.

I have updated Mr Wolton via telephone when I returned to my lodging and he has provided me with a way to get Madeline alone tomorrow, away from the Shelby family. Tomorrow, I will test her and see if she really is slayer material.

Tommy managed to read through the entire entry this time without pause but could feel that his jaw was horribly tense from clenching his teeth so hard. It would take a lot of effort for him not to kill Zach the next time he saw him after reading this. It irritated him that Zach could infer so much about their relationship from just observing them. But he needed to read on so he cleared his throat gruffly and moved onto the next entry.

-24thSeptember 1924-

Today could have gone much smoother I admit. However, I feel I have made some valuable insights that have surprised me. Mr Wolton's plan in staging a burglary at the Shelby's betting shop worked as intended and the lot of them were gone for the entire day. Also the men he hired looked like they put up a good fight judging by the state of Thomas and his brother's faces.

Despite my instruction for her to be ready by six, the slayer was still asleep at nine and I had to rouse her from her sleep despite protest from the housekeeper. The girl also seems to lack any modesty as she answered the door in nothing but her undergarments looking less than pleased. However, she was convinced to join me downstairs once I reminded her of her arrangement with the council.

We had a rather surprising interaction over breakfast, which she insisted on eating before any training could commence. She has a surprisingly stout appetite. She seemed to warm up to me a little once I allowed her to address me as Zach and I to address her as Maddie. Turns out she doesn't care much for her full name. Maddie displayed a much more pleasant side to her demeanour which actually made me rather fond of her in a way, even if I would have to get used to the way she butchers the English language. However, what little bond we managed to form in those few minutes was lost by the end of the day.

Tommy took a pause here and looked down to see that Zach had drawn a neat table, almost certainly with a ruler, which had a list of tasks on left hand side and one column for score and one for comments. He skim read it and realised it was a scoresheet for Maddie's performance for the trials he had set.

Test

Score

Comments

Stamina

2

9 penalties incurred over 3 hours. Underwhelming performance

Balance

5

Completed full time. Exceptional agility.

Strength

5

Equivalent 2 tonnes of weight overhead. Surprising bodily strength.

Combat

4

Endured full time limit. Good knowledge of commands in English and Japanese. Poor maintenance of form.

Final

5

Passed. Endurance exemplary.

Total: 21/25

Tommy lingered on the score sheet a moment, slowly realising that Zach had in fact found her performance in his impossible trails to be surprisingly good. The 'final' test Tommy guessed was what he and his brothers had walked in on and tensed at the memory of Maddie being beaten to the ground with a quarterstaff. Her ability to retrieve the quarterstaff and counter Zach must have been enough to earn her full marks for the test despite collapsing immediately afterwards. He smiled to himself as a sense of pride filled his chest, even if the tests had been needlessly cruel. He continued reading, now less reluctant to read on.

After the events following Maddie's tests I realised I may have been too harsh in making her complete these tasks back-to-back. The girl looked like she had only managed to fend me off with the last of her energy although it was more than enough to impress me. I had imagined she might fail the final stage but she had proven to be more tenacious and resourceful than I gave her credit for. I admit also that my short-sightedness prevented me from predicting that, although I could get the Shelby's out of the house for the day, that they would also be resourceful enough to figure who had planned the break in to their office. In particular Thomas, who I have no doubt figured it out first. I did not prepare myself for his wrath when they predictably returned, and he and his brothers openly threatened me much to my admitted terror. Now I know why the country fears him so.

I don't think my presence will be welcomed back at Arrow House for some time and I admit my guilt at almost crippling Maddie is enough to keep me away for a day or two. However, I must admit that she is extraordinary.

Tommy almost chuckled as he read that last line. Took him long enough to catch on, he thought. He was also glad that Zach found he and his brothers intimidating. Good, that should keep him from overstepping his bounds.

-25thSeptember 1924-

A disaster is at hand. I write this as I sit amongst the Shelby family to await Maddie's return from the tunnels beneath Birmingham. I was forced to return to the house sooner than I would have liked and it has proven a risky but necessary endeavour. Mr Wolton contacted my not long before teatime to inform me that there were supernatural seismic readings detected in Birmingham and their research had concluded that a Groich demon was nesting in the tunnels beneath the city. He commanded I prepare Maddie and dispatch her at once to deal with the creature before it could cause catastrophic damage to the city above. Of course I departed at once although I cannot deny the sense of dread I felt at facing Maddie and Thomas again so soon.

When I arrived, I didn't fail to notice that I had interrupted something between Thomas and Maddie as she was blushed brighter than a rose which soon faded when she saw me. I informed them as well as the Shelby sister, Ada, about the threat since Maddie was insistent they be involved. This discussion soon took a turn when I said she must go alone. Thomas lost his temper within seconds, and I have feared for my life for the second time in his presence. His brothers were also not happy to hear this news. Maddie however has agreed to go alone and has been driven to the location I suggested with a member of their gang. In hindsight, I probably should have been the one to escort her, but judging from the physical intimidation Thomas and his brothers showed me after she left I doubt he would have let me within a six feet of her without him around.

Their bond is much stronger than I realised. I had thought that it was mostly girlish love for a roguish figure on Maddie's part but now I realise that they are truly in love and therefore their relationship creates a much more serious impairment to her slayer duties.

But for now, all I can do is wait for Maddie to return and hope the Shelby family do not decide to execute me in the meantime. I admit that I fear for her safety, and even if she won't accept it, I feel responsible as her watcher for her well-being and I fear that if she does not return, I will not forgive myself. And neither will Thomas, I'm sure.

A long breath escaped Tommy as he read the last few lines, not wanting to accept that perhaps Zach does in fact care for Maddie in a way, although his dislike of his and Maddie's relationship was a problem that would no doubt come to a head soon. He paused again before continuing, preparing himself for finding out just how Zach felt after the events of that night.

-26thSeptember 1924-

Maddie is alive and mostly unharmed. Physically at least. Although I fear that her experience alone in the tunnels has shaken her quite deeply as she has insisted that she will no longer be a slayer. After returning, it was evident she had been successful by the state of her. She was barely recognisable, and the unmistakeable stench of demon viscera was so pungent it took a great effort to not regurgitate. Her anger was evident as she dropped the head of the Grogan on the table in front of me.

I don't know if it was my own denial of guilt or feelings of inadequacy as watcher that caused me to scold her at such an inappropriate time and I am thankful she did not decide to decapitate me also. She has shown me her most terrifying side and it is enough to make a grown man like myself shake down to the bone. I fear that her threat of 'quitting' is a serious one judging by the look in her eye when she said it. She cannot quit. It has never been done in the history of all slayers. It will be impossible for her to give up that responsibility.

However, Thomas has also shown a side of himself that I did not know existed. The man seems to also agree that Maddie cannot give up slaying. He is a cunning yet wise man it seems and his care for her doesn't seem to involve trying to deter her from slaying, but rather the opposite which I find quite perplexing. He rightly suggested I leave Maddie be for the night, but I made it clear that I would have to contact the Council if she did not come around.

Today, I returned in the hopes Maddie had changed her mind, but I was sadly mistaken. I was as stalwart as I could have been, using a spell to dodge her attempts to grab me until Thomas returned home. Unfortunately, even he could not make her see sense as she pushed me to the floor on her way out of the house after hearing a worrying sound of glass shattering. Thomas has seemed to pick up on the Council's weakness in the fact that they would rather have a slayer on their side rather than against them, but then that is hardly surprising for him. I have until Friday to report to the Council, and I have told Thomas so. I will try daily to get her to speak to me until then.

So… he felt guilty. At least that is something, admitted Tommy. Zach clearly wasn't the man he presented himself to be; an obedient lacky for the Council, but a decent man who cared about Maddie. Tommy skim read the few days entries following the last, all being a few sentences long since Zach hadn't managed to have much contact with Maddie. However one line caught Tommy's attention as he reached the end of the last entry.

'I have noticed that this dilemma has drawn a rift between Maddie and Thomas, and I am no longer afraid to admit that it pains me to see it.'

Tommy took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes as what he had read sunk in. It seemed Zach's attitude had taken a 180 over the course of single week. Both towards Maddie and towards her relationship to him. He closed the diary and gazed down at it a moment, an idea suddenly forming in his head. He stubbed out his cigarette before getting up and leaving the room, heading back towards the basement. When he reached the door, he tried opening it in case Maddie had removed the barricade but found it was still blocked. He rapped on the door again, only this time like he was knocking on the door of a friend he was visiting.

'Maddie, its me,' he called softly. 'Let me in, I have something you need to see.'

Tommy hoped that Maddie's curiosity would get the best of her as he waited patiently for her to respond, the silence worryingly long. Eventually her voice responded from the other side of the door.

'What is it?' she asked, sounding inpatient but certainly curious.

'Open the door and I'll show you.'

Maddie huffed audibly from the other side of the door followed by another pause before Tommy heard the sound of her moving heavy objects away from the door which made loud scraping noises on the wooden floor. Soon the handle turned, and the door opened. She stood in the doorway and gave him a nod to come in. He observed her face and saw that she had been crying, her eyes red and wet looking. He resisted the urge to approach and try to hug her as he was sure she was still not wanting to make contact with him. As he entered he looked to see what she had barricaded the door with and saw that she had used her weapons cabinet, punching bag and all the barbell waits to do it. There were visible scrape line on the floor where she had dragged the cabinet across the room.

'What do you want to show me?' asked Maddie, and edge of annoyance in her voice which made Tommy face her. He held the leather diary out to her for her to take which she eyed with confusion before slowly taking it and giving him a look to explain.

'Just read it,' he said.

Maddie huffed and opened the diary to the first page, reading the first few lines before looking back at Tommy with irritation. 'Zach's diary,' she stated flatly, holding the diary up impatiently. 'What makes you think I would want to read this?'

'Read all of it, to the end,' instructed Tommy simply. 'I'll wait.'

He began to take his cigarette case from his pocket as Maddie pursed her lips in irritation but looked back down at the page anyway. Tommy watched her face as she read Zach's account of the last week, her face contorting through various emotions as she did so. Eventually, she must have reached a point where Zach's opinion of her became more positive as her face became softer, a perplexed smile lifting the corners of her mouth. Soon after, he could see her eyes beginning to well up and a tear spilled over her cheek as she reached the last sentence. The one Tommy wanted her to read the most.

Maddie closed the diary and hastily wiped away her tear before looking up at Tommy. She looked at him for a moment, realisation crossing her features before she leapt toward him and buried herself into his chest. He sighed and wrapped his arms around her, glad to feel her embrace after what felt like weeks. She began to sob into his jacket and he shushed her quietly, stroking her hair.

'I'm so sorry,' she blubbed. 'I was just so scared after that night.' Tommy shut his eyes and sighed, he had guessed as much, but it was a relief to hear Maddie get the words out for her own sake. 'I know I can't quit but… I just hoped I could, ya know?'

Tommy pulled Maddie away from him and looked down at her with a sympathetic smile. 'I know.' He knew how she felt. He had wished himself that he could quit his life as a gangster but knew that once you were in, there was no way out. 'Come on, let's go upstairs and I'll ask Esther to make some tea and biscuits eh?'

Maddie let out a short laugh and nodded, wiping her eyes again now that the tears had finally stopped. They walked hand in hand up the stairs and to the living room, sitting on the sofa as Esther came in and Tommy asked her for a tray and tea and biscuits. Maddie curled her legs underneath her and he grabbed a throw that was neatly folded on the back of the sofa and covered both their legs with it. The cold autumn air was turning into winter, and it was palpable in the air despite the fire raging in the hearth. She rested her head on his shoulder and looked down at the diary she was still holding.

'I can't believe he actually thinks I'm extraordinary,' she whispered.

Tommy chuckled. 'If he didn't then he may as well be blind.'

Maddie turned her head up to look at him and gave him a bashful smile. He looked into her eyes softly and cupped her cheek with his hand, glad to finally feel her soft skin in his palm again. The cuts on her face had now faded to faint white lines that would likely be gone by the next day. Soon his gaze shifted to her lips which were pink and inviting after a long week of being ignored and he quickly ducked his head to connect his own lips to them. They felt warm and tasted sweet and he quickly began to move his lips against hers forcefully and thankfully she responded with some force of her own. He snaked his arms around her waist to pull her to him as she glided her fingers into his hair, his cock now throbbing eagerly.

A knock on the door broke them apart just in time as Esther entered the room with the tea that Tommy now regretted requesting. Maddie thanked Esther and her eyes were immediately drawn to the biscuits. She poured a cup for Tommy and handed it to him before pouring a cup for herself and picking up the plate of biscuits to put them on her lap, an excited look on her face. She rested against him as she methodically dipped her biscuits into the tea and ate them, Tommy refusing the one she offered him as he sipped his tea as patiently as he could with his cock still hard in his trousers. He had to wait until she finished the whole plate, which wasn't surprising considering she hadn't eaten any dinner. Once she had finished her last sip of tea, he took the cup from her and returned it to the tray before turning to face her, giving her a look that was unmistakable in its intent. She looked back at him with faux apprehension, and it was clear that her playful side had returned, and he was ecstatic to see it.

Tommy connected his lips to hers again as he pushed her back onto the sofa so that she was lying on it and he moved himself so he was above her. He heard a light thud as the diary that had been sat on their laps fell to the floor as he began to run his hand up and under Maddie's skirt toward her waist where his hand felt the silk of her underwear. Suddenly, he felt Maddie push him away sharply and their lips broke apart. He looked down at her with confusion, concerned he had done something to upset her but saw that her expression looked oddly excited and devious.

'Wait,' she said, sitting herself up. 'I'll be back in a minute.'

She made to get up but Tommy grasped her arm to stop her, his frustration building. He really wasn't in the mood for games tonight.

'No games,' he warned, giving Maddie a dark look which made her pupils blow before biting her lip.

'You like my games,' she toyed coyly with a flutter of her eyelashes. 'Besides, you're going to like this one.'

Tommy huffed, his nostrils flaring. He wanted to stop her from leaving the room but also admitted he was curious as to what game she had concocted in her head. He released her arm and nodded slowly.

'Don't keep me waiting.'

With a knowing smile, Maddie jumped off the sofa and exited the room, leaving Tommy on his own. She'd better not be trying to play hide and seek, he thought, then I'd really have to punish her. He waited patiently, watching the clock tick by, the sound seeming much more annoying when one was anticipating something. A couple of minutes passed which felt like a millennium before he heard her footsteps returning to the room. He heard the door begin to open behind him and he turned to give her an unimpressed look before stopping as she called out.

'Wait!' she called. 'Don't look, not yet.' Tommy furrowed his brow, his mind now reeling with anticipation. 'Close your eyes, and don't you dare peek!'

Tommy sighed, wanting to do nothing more than turn his head but what was left of his boyish nature got the better of him, and he sat back on the sofa and shut his eyes. 'Fine, they're closed,' he grunted, and he heard the sound of the door opening fully and closing softly before he heard Maddie's bare feet padding around the sofa. He was desperately tempted to peek as she walked around the room but he forced himself to keep his eyes shut in the hopes at what he was going to see was worth the wait. She came to a stop somewhere in front of him and a beat passed before she spoke.

'Okay, open them.'

Tommy opened his eyes but kept his gaze low at first. The first thing he saw was Maddie's bare legs stood opposite him on the other side of the coffee table and he initially thought that she had walked through the house naked. She wasn't, but she may as well have been. He raked his eyes upward slowly and hungrily to bring her into full view and had to fight to stop his mouth from falling open. She was wearing a new set of white sheer lingerie that was embroidered with a floral pattern and hugged her figure perfectly. The bra and bottoms were separate and showed off her bare stomach. The material was so sheer that it did not hide anything underneath. It didn't take long for Tommy to notice Maddie's nipples showing through the bra, which were also erect and straining against the fabric. His gaze lingered there for several seconds before he looked down at her crotch to see that her pussy was also fully visible through the material. She was also wearing a gown to cover herself that came to her knees that was made from the same sheer material, which made it entirely pointless.

'What do you think?' asked Maddie timidly yet with a coy smile on her lips. I was at this point Tommy realised that she had put red lipstick on her lips and that he had been sat there dumbstruck and silent for at least thirty seconds. He then registered that his cock was throbbing painfully in his trousers and had to take deep breath through his nose as he continued to admire her silently.

Maddie shuffled on the spot nervously under Tommy's gaze and looked down at the floor bringing her hands together anxiously, waiting for his reply. This slight change in her demeanour, the submissiveness of it, caused arousal to ripple through his body violently and it took all of his willpower to remain seated. He waited for her to look up again and locked eyes with her, giving her a dangerous look. She must have had that lingerie stored away all week since her shopping trip, he realised. He then remembered what she had whispered in his ear just before Zach arrived at the house earlier that week and recognised that this was what she had been describing. A hot flush of anger spread through him as he realised, he could have seen this every night for the past several days if it hadn't been for that fucking awful night.

Tommy kept his gaze locked on Maddie, not answering her question and instead lifted his hand up and beckoned her to approach menacingly. A nervous look flittered over her features and she stayed rooted the spot. He narrowed his eyes at her, sharpening his stare and setting his features sternly. It was a slight changed but it was enough to make her loose her nerve and begin walking around the table toward him. She came to stand directly in front of him between his knees and looked down at him with her shining blue eyes. Tommy sat forward and placed his hands softly on the back of Maddie's calves, making only feather lite contact with the tips of his fingers. Her skin was warm and soft, as usual, and he wanted nothing more than grasp it fully with his hands, but he resisted. He held her eyes as he tenderly began to run his finger-tips up and down the backs of her legs from the crook of her knees up under her underwear to the curve of her backside. He felt her muscles shiver under her skin and heard the accompanying quiver of her breath hitching with his touch. He tried to contain his smug grin but failed although she could do little to show her annoyance.

From where he was sat, Tommy quickly began to smell Maddie's arousal building between her legs and he moved his eyes down to look at her lace covered pussy. His head was beginning to feel hazy with the overload of pleasurable sensations but he was determined to maintain his composure so as not to give her too much confidence. He was in control of her for the moment and he would be damned if he let her take over now.

Setting his sights on the waistband of her underwear, Tommy slowly leant forward so that his lips were hairs breath away from the skin of Maddie's abdomen just above it. He ran his hands back up her legs and over her buttocks this time to rest on her waist. Her breath hitched again in her chest and he knew that she could feel his hot breath against her skin as she waited in anticipation. Tommy let his lips touch her skin, but only slightly, and felt her skin twitch as he did so. Slowly he ghosted his lips along the waistband, his lips barely touching her but it's effect was tremendous. The scent of her arousal was now so overwhelming that he was thankful that he could hide his hazy expression from her with his face so close to her body.

Soon, Maddie began to make small whimpering noises and Tommy knew he had her where he wanted her. He withdrew his lips and looked up to see she was stood with her eyes now closed as if lost in a dream. He traced his hand back down her legs to the backs of her knees again before grasping them more firmly and pulling. Her knees bent and her weight fell forward as he simultaneously sat back on the sofa and pulled her onto his lap to straddle him. She let out a gasp of shock and opened her eyes wide as she came to sit directly on his erection that was straining inside his trousers. Automatically, Maddie began to grind her hips against him, but Tommy quickly grasped her hips with a firm grip. He looked up at her with a stony expression and slowly moved his head from side to side just once. The signal was enough to subdue her and she made herself relax still on his lap. He knew she could feel his cock pressing against her clit and pussy and it would be damn near torturous for her to sit still, the thought making his cock throb which made her tense with the sensation.

Tommy returned his attention to Maddie's face, releasing her hips so he could reach up and cup her jaw softly. He traced his thumbs along her cheekbones and down to her lips where he ran one thumb under her lower lip, following his hands with his eyes. This was the longest he had ever taken with foreplay, and he found he wished he had done it sooner. His slow purposeful movements had stunned her like a deer and she could do nothing but sit on his lap and pant with pleasure. He moved down further to her neck and traced the tendons and muscles there before gently following the curve of her collar bone with his index finger. Her chest was now rising and falling rapidly, making it hard for him not to look at her breasts, but he was determined to take his time.

When he reached her shoulders, her pulled the gown back and down to uncover them so he could see the straps of her bra. He hooked his index fingers under both straps and ran them up and down, brushing the skin of her chest, before lifting one strap off her shoulder so it dangled over her arm. Maddie tensed, likely expecting that Tommy was about to remove her bra, but he left the strap where it was and moved his hand down to the lower seam of her bra and slipped his thumb underneath. Placing his other hand on her lower back, he ran his thumb along her ribs just underneath her bra and goosebumps began to appear on her skin. As he did this, the tip of his thumb bushed the bottom of her breasts and she flinched as it brushed one then the other.

Tommy couldn't hold in the short chuckle that escaped him but Maddie didn't seem to notice as she began to whimper again. Next, he moved his hands back to her waist before lifting them both to hover over her breasts. He took a beat to admire her pink nipples which were still fighting against the lace of her bra. The sight made his mouth water and he wanted nothing more than to have them in his mouth to suck and bite them hard but he was determined to continue with his soft approach. With that, he cupped each breast lightly before slowly tracing semicircles underneath her nipples. She let out a small moan and gazed down at him half -lidded and dazed, a pleading look in her eyes. Her composure was failing, and it was a matter of time before she would need to beg him to be more forceful. After a few semicircles, Tommy finally moved his thumbs over Maddie's nipples which felt like bullets under the lace. She squeaked and jumped slightly, opening her mouth as if to say something but she resisted much to his surprise.

He wanted to do it again to see if she would finally say something but part of him was enjoying the silence. He removed his hands from her breasts and rested them on her hips making her give him a disgruntled look for the first time which he ignored. Slowly, at a snails pace, he began to move one hand down over her belly and towards her crotch which quickly wiped the look from her face. Maddie put her hands, which she had managed to keep by her sides until now, on Tommy's shoulders which he didn't mind as she was likely going to need something to hold onto. Once his hand reached her pussy, he felt that that lace underwear was soaked through and as the back of his hand brushed his trousers he realised that it had seeped through and soaked them as well. The smell of her wetness was hot and heady and it made his heart beat in his ears angrily. Maddie was keeping her hips still for him, but he could tell that she was fighting hard not grind against his hand. He moved across to her thigh and grasped the crotch of the lace underwear before moving it across to expose her finally, a loud gasp escaping her lips.

Tommy hovered there for a few agonising seconds, watching as Maddie fought to control her shuddering breath. Eventually, he gently pressed two fingers against her opening, making her moan loudly. She narrowly managed to stop herself from forcing her hips down onto his hand, but it looked like it took considerable effort. As soon as his fingers made contact with her pussy, he felt more moisture drip from her and onto his hand which was soon covered and he hadn't even moved his hand yet. He hissed with the feel of how wet she was, the first unintentional sound he had made. No, he needed to recover his composure. Slowly still, he began to push the two fingers inside her, stretching the tight walls and curling them up and back to press against the rough spot inside. Her whole body tensed, her hand grabbing fistfuls of his shirt, and she shuddered with pleasure as a weak moan left her mouth. Holding his hand in place, keeping her still, Tommy used his free hand and reached up to grasp Maddie's chin, only this time with much more force which pulled her out of her daze with gasp. He forced her head down to look at him, but she kept her eyes closed and he finally spoke for the first time since she had entered the room.

'Hey,' he hummed, his voice sounding thick and gravelly. 'Look at me.' Maddie opened her eyes and met his gaze, a pleading look in them. Her pupils were now so dilated that they appeared black. 'You are going to wear this under your clothes every day until I say so,' he muttered dangerously. 'Or there will be dire consequences.'

Maddie swallowed thickly and Tommy flicked his gaze down to watch her throat muscles bob up and down before looking up at her expectantly. She didn't reply, looking unsure as to whether he wanted her to speak so he decided to prompt her.

'Understood?' he purred as he simultaneously pinched her chin harder and pulled her hips toward him with the fingers that was still inside her making them press against her g-spot and more moisture come pooling out onto his palm. Maddie moaned but hastily nodded her understanding and the walls of her pussy tightened around his fingers. But that still wasn't good enough. He moved his hand up into her hair and tugged it firmly but hot too hard so that she gasped again. 'Words, Maddie,' he commanded with an edge of annoyance in his voice as he took it a step further and pressed his thumb against her clit.

'Yes,' she finally panted desperately, breaking her silence.

'Yes, what?'

Tommy did a purposeful but quick circle around Maddie's clit with his thumb, and she had to bite her lip to stop herself from screaming.

'Yes, sir,' she groaned shakily. 'I understand.'

Satisfied, Tommy released Maddie's hair and took a hold of her chin again, keeping the other inside her and continued to draw circles around her clit. He gave her a smug smile he knew would rile her up later and he finally saw a flash of annoyance flit across her eyes.

'Good,' he murmured and he pressed his thumb against Maddie's lower lip and dragged it down so that he smeared her red lipstick onto her chin. 'Now, are you ready for me to fuck you?

'Yes, sir,' she answered without a seconds pause, finally gathering courage to grind herself against his hand, no longer able to keep still.

Tommy's nostrils flared angrily and all previous pretence of being slow and methodical was quickly forgotten. He removed his hand from Maddie's pussy and grabbed her before throwing her off his lap toward the arm of the sofa. She caught herself with her arms before looking over her shoulder at him with a look of shock before his connected his palm to her backside harshly. The crack was loud enough to no doubt alert the whole house but he was beyond caring what noise they made. Which was good because she responded by squealing and moaning in response before attempting to straighten herself up. However, Tommy was quick and came to kneel behind her and pressed his hand into her back to make her lean over the arm of the sofa. She looked back at him again, a now excited and satisfied look in her eye, but he no longer had enough control to scold her for looking so smug. He undid the buttons on his trousers with one hand and with expert dexterity, finally releasing his marble hard cock which was now so hard it was becoming painful. He pressed firmly on her back again as an instruction to stay in her current position before moving the crotch of her underwear to the side again. The sight before him was indescribable, her pussy was pulsating and was so wet that it was dripping onto the sofa. A fresh red handprint decorated her right buttock and when he saw it he knew he couldn't wait any longer.

Tommy pushed himself into Maddie's waiting wetness with a grunt, filling her up fully and stretching her walls which made her cry out. She was so tight that hesaw stars, swore loudly in Romani and dug his fingers in as he gripped her hip bones.

'Ah, fuck!' screamed Maddie, finally uttering her first curse as Tommy began to thrust in and out of her.

He struggled to find a pace at first, the overwhelming sensation of being inside her making it difficult for him to build any speed without feeling his orgasm approaching too soon. Eventually he found a steady pace and leaned forward so he could tuck his arm under her chest and lift her back up into an upright position. His hands quickly found their targets, one on her breast to squeeze her nipple and the other down the front of her bottoms to massage her clit. She soon began to moan loudly, verging on a scream as Tommy decided to pick up his pace a little. She reached up and laced her fingers through his hair, pulling on it harshly as she struggled to figure out what to do with herself. Despite this, he kept up his barrage on her body, massaging her clit steadily until he felt her abdominal muscles begin to tense and her walls ripple around his cock, the signs that she was close to her climax.

'Don't stop!' cried Maddie. 'Don't fucking stop!'

A second later, she came hard and loud, screaming Tommy's name at the top of her lungs. Her pussy tightened even more and he could no longer hold on as he reached his own orgasm, his cock throbbing as he came inside her.

They both collapsed back onto the sofa with a long breath, both of them sweaty and hot to the touch. Tommy had been fully dressed the entire time and his shirt was visibly soaked. She lay on his chest as they rested there gasping for several seconds, their minds both turned to mush as they took time to recover. Predictably, Maddie was the first to catch her breath and tuned herself around to look down at him with an amused grin.

'You know what we say in the future after sex like that?' she asked.

'Hmm?' grunted Tommy, his mind still too addled to form words.

'I think you just fucked by brains out.'

Maddie snickered to herself as Tommy allowed himself to smile as he realised just how accurate the statement was.