Sinbound

(17) Arthur returns

"Alex, you can't honestly believe he wouldn't do this," Polly sighs.

"Using emotions to decide won't get anyone anywhere, it doesn't matter who believes he could or could not have done it, the facts are, there is no way Tommy could've gone to the police. He was in the pub, with the rest of them, the entire night," Alex states, "I don't know how the police got the information, but Tommy did not purposefully tip them off."

"Ada isn't speaking to anyone, she isn't eating, she is stuck in that shit show of an apartment by herself because of this situation," Polly says.

"Ada has every right to be upset about what happened, but not at us, we haven't done a fucking thing, nobody with the surname Shelby that still lives in Birmingham would do this," Alex replies, "Tommy is mature enough to see that Ada is happy with Freddie. He loves Ada, he wouldn't do this."

"He held a gun to Freddie's head!"

"He's had some sense knocked into him since then," Alex states.

"Why is everyone arguing?" Finn asks quietly from the doorway, "why can't everyone get along?"

"It's a difficult situation, Finn, but it'll sort itself out," Alex assures, "it always does."

"Can it sort itself out now? I don't like it," Finn says.

"Just because we're in a disagreement, it doesn't mean we don't like each other, we just have different viewpoints on a situation, and like your sister said, it will sort itself out," Polly tells him, ruffling up his hair, "now why don't we go to that sweet shop you like, I'll get you anything you want."

"Anything?" Finn smiles.

"Limited amounts, but yes, anything," Polly nods, as Finn grasps onto her hand, walking out the door.

Alex pours herself a drink, coughing slightly, as she does so, her head sharply turning towards the door when she hears three male voices.

There he stood. In between two of her brothers. The man responsible for a portion of the scars that had ever been inflicted upon her.

"My oh my, is that you, little Alexandria?" Arthur senior greets, as Alex freezes, staring across the room at him.

"It's Dad," Arthur chimes in.

"I see that," Alex speaks slowly, "why is he here?"

"He was down at the boxing ring," John states.

"That doesn't explain why you felt the fucking need to bring him back here," Alex responds.

"It was my home once upon a time, I wanted to see what had been done to the place," Arthur senior says, pulling out a chair and sitting down, "what's new with you? Why don't we catch up?"

"No," Alex states, "are you with Vanessa?"

"That's a name I haven't heard in a while," Arthur senior whistles, "how is your mother?"

"I consider her my mother to the same extent I consider you a father, which is not in the slightest," Alex says.

"He made a mistake, he acknowledges that," her eldest brother says.

"Is that what he wants to call it? A mistake?" Alex replies. Mistake. That's what her father had slurred at her whenever he'd had a drink.

Alex glances between her brothers, feeling slightly nauseous, "how could you bring him here?"

"He's our dad."

Tommy enters the home and Arthur senior raises to his feet, "how are you, son?"

"Get out," Tommy states.