Criminal Royalty

John's Family Meeting

As he waited for his family to show up for the meeting he had called, John sat in their booth at the Garrison, bouncing his leg apprehensively. In his family, he didn't often take the initiative, preferring to defer authority to his older brothers; calling a family meeting was therefore a big deal in and of itself. He simply prayed that today would go more smoothly than he knew it would.

Just before John's scheduled meeting time, Thomas, Polly, and Arthur arrived to the booth simultaneously. Although none of them understood what it would be about, they all agreed that they needed to finish it promptly so they could move on to more worthwhile endeavours.

"C'mon John, be quick; I've left the house with just Scudboat protecting it".

Perhaps telling them jointly wasn't the best plan, but John couldn't back out now. His palms were clammy. His heart was pounding with ferocity. The Shelby's were waiting for him to get to the point.

John began to explain how difficult it was for him to raise children on his own, stumbling over his words. He was only one man, and everyone knew it took a village to raise a child, but more importantly for John, he felt they were lacking the figure of a mother.

He finally made his point, bluntly declaring, "The kids need a mother, so I've asked Lizzie to marry me."

There was silence for a brief moment. The sound of a pin dropping could have been heard. This, of course, could not have lasted. His beloved but straight-talking aunt broke the silence.

"As in Lizzie Stark, the whore?" Polly questioned in disbelief, as his two brothers burst out laughing at the prospect.

"Right, I want it known, if anyone calls her a whore again, I will push the barrel of my revolver down their throats and blow the word back down into their hearts," John defended his bride-to-be.

They could not believe the severity of John's voice. Marrying a woman like Lizzie seemed so absurd to them that they couldn't comprehend it. A Shelby marrying a whore, what a sight that would be.

Hoping to sway them, John continued, "I hope you can come to respect Lizzie as a hard worker."

This brought out a scoff from his Aunt Pol, "Men and their cocks never cease to amaze me. John, Lizzie Stark's never done a day's work vertical."

His brothers smirked, displaying their immaturity. 

Lizzie had been hard at work, attending to his brother Thomas, unbeknownst to John. Thomas was convinced that, regardless of what she told John, she had not given up her working life and would go to any length to prove it before his brother made a hasty decision. As a self-appointed leader of their family, he could not stand to see his brother be foolish.

"Well at least think of it as brave then," John attempted to gain their approval.

"Brave is going where no man's gone before. And with Lizzie Stark, John, that is really not what you'll be doing."

Tommy took a drag of his cigarette, glad that even when his own brother was clearly away with the fairies, he could rely on Polly to be a voice of reason.

Arthur chimed in with his own point after he'd stopped laughing at his younger brother, "I thought Polly's friend was going to help you with the kids; is she not doing a good job?"

Polly frowned; she couldn't think of anyone who was better with children than Rose, and she couldn't imagine how she hadn't been a tremendous help to John. She was frequently found at his home, caring for his children. In fact, she was surprised more by who he had proposed to than by the proposal itself; she knew he was lonely, but she would have preferred welcoming Rose into the family over Lizzie.

"No, no, Rose has been a great help, but the kids need someone permanent; they need their mother, but she isn't here, so they deserve the next best thing." 

John was quick to defend both his decision and Polly's mysterious friend's assistance. She had been a blessing, but she could never replace the love of a mother or, at the very least, a stepmother. Lizzie would grow to love them as if they were her own, he hoped. They deserved that much.

This warmed Polly's heart; she knew deep down that John was only trying to do what he thought was right, even if she disagreed.

"John, the right woman will appear when she is destined to." She reassured her downtrodden nephew, "I'll never approve of a woman like Lizzie. I admire her, but you'd be better off with a woman like Rose, someone who could look after you and the kids. Lizzie is a good woman, but she is not a doting mother."

John, who was stubborn to a fault, despised the possibility that his aunt was correct. Despite his desire to marry Lizzie, she had yet to express an interest in his children. A bad omen for a woman about to become a stepmother. And while John didn't know Rose very well, he'd seen her interactions with his children—she adored them, and it was clear they adored her. The same could not be said of John's fiancée.

Fortunately, he was saved from having to find a rebuttal when the youngest Shelby brother, Finn, swung open the doors of their Garrison booth.

"We've been done over!" He shouted, out of breath from his urgent run.