As the youngest Shelby child and twin to Finn Shelby, Kezia has spent the last 4 of her 10 years locked away for her mental defectiveness.
She returns to Small Heath under the legal guardianship of her brother, Thomas Shelby. Despite knowing she's s...
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She's a long one.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
"I don't remember family meetings only including us," Polly said.
No answer. Only those frustratingly vacant blue eyes.
"I'm not Kizzie, Thomas. I can't read your mind."
He took a deep drag from his cigarette. "I've been calling you."
"I'm on holiday. Like I told you. But you said it was urgent. Where's Kizzie?"
"She's home. On her way here now with Oscar."
She slapped her legs. "So she's fine then? Why the bloody hell am I here then?"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Tell you what?"
Tommy put out the half-gone cigarette into the ashtray. "That you and Kizzie met the Mad Baker of Camden Town four years ago. And then Kizzie went there again, and again, and again."
Nothing she said would make him calm. No excuse, no matter how truthful. But she'd be damned if he put the entire blame on her.
"Camden Town had the best bread, did they not, Thomas?"
He laughed, cold and lifeless, and refocused his eyes at the furthest wall. Unable to forget the interaction between his lambkin and Solomons just two days ago: the tension in the air—two familiar souls colliding that left Tommy as bare and boring and forgetful as wallpaper. "You should have left the moment you realized."
"We were already in the bakery, buying bread when his fucking dog came running out. The man stumbled out after him. You knew, as well as I do, that Camden Town is Jewish. What were the fucking odds that the bakery we went to was the one owned by the Mad Baker?" Destiny. Destiny crafted the odds and God crafted certainty. "And before you go and fucking blame me for bringing her back there, I had nothing to do with that! Nor did I even know she was going. But it makes sense, doesn't it? Why—when you found out she was using the side door?"
Tommy shook his head. "She can't read, Polly. Can't count."
She pointed to her head. "But she's smart. Can remember everything in perfect detail after just seeing it once."
Tommy was the same. Remembered everything like a photograph. Him and Kizzie were so alike, two sides of one soul, truly. But Polly knew this. Knew to report to Tommy about threats to his and Kizzie's relationship.
"You should have told me."
"And you would have done what? We were in no position back then to start anything with Solomons." She exhaled. "If I had told you, there would have been nothing to stop you from walking off that cliff and getting us all killed."
