42. Grace

                                    

                                          

"I'll get us another." Cora said tapping Lizzie's shoulder. 
''Who are you?''
 ''I'm May Carleton. I train Tommy Shelby's horse.'' Cora practically gaged. All of Tommy's whores in one place.  ''And you're the woman who he said was going to sail away.''
"Give me the bottle." Cora requested and the bar keep smirked back at her. 
 ''I see he didn't tell you about me." May remarked.
 ''He did tell me about you, I wonder if that's significant...'' Grace countered. 
"NOW PLEASE!" Cora begged reaching over the bar.
 ''Tell me what about you?'' 
''Do you have any idea where he is?'' Grace asked and Cora couldn't help her snigger.
 ''I'm waiting for him here.'' May answered. "Cora... right?"
"Yeah." She agreed. 
"You're cora?" Grace asked. 
"I am." She agreed. 
"You know where Tommy is?" Grace questioned but Cora kept her focus on the bar. "He talked about you." Grace remarked. "They all did. None of them liked me but they loved you"
"They still do." Cora confirmed. 
"What's going on down there?" May questioned. 
'' There's been trouble on the track. All the bookies have had their licences burnt. Shouldn't you be down with the horses?'' Cora questioned. "Trainer..." May glared back at her.  ''Which means they'll have to re-apply for their legal pitches. It's all part of Tommy's plan for the future."
 ''What do you know about Tommy's future?"
"I'm in business with him. Tricky shit working with your ex husband and current cock but we make due." Cora told them. "Put this on her tab." Cora instructed tipping her head to May. 
"What is Tommy's plan?" May asked again.
''The applications will be denied, of course. Then all the pitches will be allocated instead to Tommy's bookies." Cora told her. "And because he fucked you he knows it will work because you have sway with the board. You didn't think you were special did you?" Cora chuckled. "Oh you did... precious."  Cora chuckled. ''There's business and there's love, although I don't think Tommy is capable of love... There's Thomas Shelby. Go ask him, or fuck him. Women are just cunts for his enjoyment." Cora told them. 
 ''What do you want from him?''
"I want him to stay out of my fucking life." Cora hissed as she walked off. 
 
''Look at this place, we own it!''
 ''Put your money away before I take it off ya.'' Arthur declared as John pulled Cora down to him. 
"You pay for that?" John asked kissing her shoulder. 
"I can't remember the last time I paid for a drink." Cora countered lifting the bottle to her lips. She felt John's hands on her hips and thighs pulling lightly at her dress, pinching her skin. 
 ''fuck' clean up! Get up! Lizzie, what the fuck are you doing here?" John declared. 
"Tommy is going to get her killed.' Cora answered passing off the bottle.
 'Working for Tommy, same as all of us.'' Lizzie told him glumly. 
"I don't work for Tommy or the peaky blinders." Cora corrected.
 ''You work for the Blinders." John corrected resting his chin on Cora's shoulder. ''What happened to you?''
 ''Fell over.'' Lizzie murmured
 ''Oh, don't fuckin' give me that. Lizzie... Come here, come here. Come here, come here. Eh?" John said reaching for her hand. ''Were you working? Yeah? Thought you'd earn yourself a few bob at the races, eh?'' Cora watched as Lizzie brought the bottle to her lips again. The cuts on her  face from the officers abuse before Cora intervened.  ''It's gotta stop, Lizzie. It's gotta stop, Tommy's already told you. Toffs at the races are the worst, you know that. Hey, come here, come here''.
"Yeah. Listening to Tommy has to stop." Cora agreed as John reached around Cora touching lizzie's cheek. 
 ''Look at me. Cheer up. We won. We fucking took Epsom. We kicked the Cockneys' fucking arses." John reminded her. 
 ''Fuck yeah. We fucking beat them, all right. John didn't even shoot his gun!" Arthur agreed. ''We're kings! Kings of the fucking world!"
"I hope not." Cora muttered. 
 ''John, I don't see the same thing in your eyes that I see in Tommy's. You should get out. You should get out.'' Lizzie told him softly. 
 ''Where is Tommy, anyway?''
 
 ''Any of you boys in France?'' Tommy questioned as they rode. He knew this was coming he just wished he was on better terms, with all of them. They stopped in a field a grave already dug and ready for his body to be buried.  ''You know, I wouldn't mind a cigarette.'' 
Tommy let out a puff of smoke dragging the cigarette from his lips. 
 ''So fucking close. So fucking close." Tommy whispered.  ''Oh... And there's a woman. Yeah. A woman who I love, but she hates me. She hates me and every time I see her, which is a hell of a lot, might I add." Tommy took another drag. "It reminds me how much I fucked up. You know she is going to be jealous. She wanted to be the one to kill me... but I always hoped that was a lie." Tommy turned back around taking slow steps to his grave. ''and I got close. Nearly got fucking everything! Oh, what the fuck? Get it done, boys." Tommy said closing his eyes. 
 ''Comrade, we have our orders, you know how it is.''
 ''I know how it is. In the bleak midwinter.'' Tommy whispered and gun shots went off and tommy fell into the grave, two bodies collided with him. He opened his eyes, a gun still pointed down at him. 
 ''At some point in the near future, Mr Churchill will want to speak to you in person, Mr Shelby. He has a job for you. We will be in touch. Get out of the grave, tinker. Be on your fucking way!"
 
"How was the derby?"
"I should have stayed in bed." Cora told Alfie as he pulled her inside. Cyril jumped up on her giving her big slopy wet kisses and she laughed out running her hands over his ears. 
"Can I get a kiss first you big mooch?" Alfie muttered closing the door. 
Alfie dipped his head to her clavicle, enticing her with gentle kisses as his rough fingers tug at her dress. The dress fell away easily, exposing her body, flushed with desire, before she had a chance to register the cool air blowing in from the window on her skin, Alfie's lips had found her again. 
His lips ravaged her, there was nothing gentle about this kiss. It was all tongues and gnashing of teeth as he plundered her depths. The immediate response of her body was not lost on her. Her heart thundered in its cage and she felt the tight coil of need awaken in her belly. He bit her lip and she bit him back, it was tit for tat and she wasn't about to lose this one. He moved her back laying her back in his bed, he trailed his mouth down across her body, nipping and sucking and kissing every inch of her.  Hiking her leg around his hips, she thrust herself against his heat. He flipped their positions so that she was straddling him. He brought his lips up to her breasts peak and sucked at her left nipple, his hand cupping her right breast. She arched back, relishing the sensation. She cried out his name, pushing more of her breast into his mouth. He loosened his grip on her hips allowing her to move freely over him. 
"We should have stayed in bed." Alfie agreed.