Crown of a Prince (Finn Shelby)

83.

She should have known he would have left already, taking the car back to Small Heath. Frances had her bags ready for her by the door and a footman put her things into the car Niall had waiting. She said a quick goodbye to Lizzie and the kids, promising to visit them later in the week. Liam drove while Niall complained and grumbled about the Billy Boys taking racecourses and betting pitches. Ailbhe didn’t listen to half of it, only nodding and humming in agreement when he asked her.
 
She kept racking her brains for something to say to Finn to stop him looking at her like she had lied to him. But she didn’t have an excuse or an explanation. She hadn’t told him the truth and she wasn’t sure why not. She was sure there was a part of her, a big part that just wanted to have some time with Finn where neither of them lost their temper and where they could just enjoy being together. Everything seemed to be interrupted these days and Niall had started checking on her at night to be sure she was in her own bed. So maybe she had been a little selfish, wanting Finn all to herself for a while. But there was another part of her that had kept Tommy’s secrets, had been there for Tommy and not for Finn. And she didn’t like it every time she thought of it.
 
She knocked on the door of the house on Watery Lane, waiting only a minute before letting herself in through the betting shop. She searched around, calling his name and checking his room but he wasn’t there. The thought came to her as she shut his bedroom door again. Of course, he wasn’t at home.
 
Charlie was the entrance of the yard, smoking a cigarette and throwing papers into a burning barrel when she arrived. He didn’t notice her until she was right beside him, checking over his shoulder and realising he was burning ownership forms of cars.
 
“What you doing, Uncle Charlie?” She asked rhetorically, raising an eyebrow at him.
 
He jumped, not knowing anyone was there. She was like a cat in the night sometimes, could sneak up on you without making a sound.
 
“Jesus Christ Ailbhe, almost gave me a heart attack” he grumbled, shoving the last few pieces of paper into the fire.
 
“Who owns those cars?” She asked, knowing that now officially nobody owned them. Well, they couldn’t prove it anyway.
 
Charlie turned to her, a clever smile on his face that was practically black with soot and grease.
 
“What cars?” He asked, winking at her.
 
It didn’t matter how much legitimate money they made; Charlie was in it for the sport more than anything. He loved the rush of stealing and selling, of sneaking past police and smuggling in cargo.
 
Ailbhe just rolled her eyes, smiling half-heartedly to him as the names on the documents were swallowed up by the flames leaving them to be ashes.
 
“Charlie, I’m looking for-” She started to say but he interrupted her.
 
“He’s in the far stable” He replied, straight off the bat while his cigarette hung precariously in his mouth.
 
Of course, he knew who and what she was looking for.
 
“How’d you know?” She questioned, not sure she wanted to know the answer.
 
It might have been how she had such a frown on her face that she had two deep lines between her eyebrows. It might have been how her eyes had darted around the yards while they talked. It might have been how everyone knew that where one of them was, the other wasn’t far behind.
 
“Came in here like a shot out of hell half an hour ago. Face like thunder on him and hasn’t said a word since”
 
Charlie muttered in reply, having seen how Finn had stormed into the yard and thrown off his jacket, getting stuck into work like he had been excited to shovel shit since he woke up this morning. The only person with that kind of enthusiasm was Curly and Finn didn’t share it.
 
“You keeping out of trouble?” He asked her, taking the last drag from his cigarette before tossing it into the flames.
 
Ailbhe sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose for a second. She still hadn’t figured out what to say to Finn.
 
“Nah” She sighed, throwing her hands up before turning on her heel to go find Finn.
 
“Don’t know how” She called over her shoulder to Charlie who had tugged on his hat and started to head back to work too.

He knew that already. Ailbhe didn’t know how to stay out of trouble any more than Charlie knew how to dance the flamenco. And neither of them were going to learn any time soon.