"g's on the block, bitches on the cock; ain't a house party till somebody get shot." ——
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two years later
Iris couldn't sleep. Thomas had been out all day looking for answers that were gravely needed, but since she had heard that he went to an Irish pub where they had enemies, she was literally worried sick. The poor woman had been darting to the toilet all evening with bouts of vomiting.
Earlier that day, the whole Shelby Clan had been at the funeral of Freddie Thorne, Ada's husband, who had passed away from the influenza. While they had been gone, their territory had been unprotected, which enticed one of their enemies to crawl from their hole and bomb The Garrison. It was almost completely decimated, save a couple of bottles of alcohol. The police had tried to inquire, but Thomas had shut them out. He told Iris he had an idea of who had done it, and that was it.
After hours of Iris' fretting, the door finally swung open and in came Tommy's heavy footsteps. Iris sprung from the bed and leant as far over the bannister as she could so she could see him.
"Alright love." He said tiredly.
"Well?" Iris demanded as she examined his slumped posture; he looked exhausted. "Where the fuck have you been?"
"What?" Thomas asked looking disinterested at his wife's anger already.
"Someone said they saw you walking to the Black Lion and nobody's heard from you for hours since! I thought those paddies killed you."
He sighed. "Not just yet."
"So, was it them? Was it the IRA who bombed our pub?" Iris asked.
"I suppose. They did it to get my attention; they want me to carry out a mission for them." He began to jog up the stairs and across the landing, pushing past Iris as he did so.
Of course, that didn't stop her from relentlessly following him. "And what mission is that?"
"They want me to kill someone. An Irishman. Other side of the treaty to them."
"Will you do it?" She asked carefully.
He sat heavily down on the bed and lit a cigarette. "I don't have a choice."
"Oh." Iris sat behind him and rested her chin on his shoulder. "Perhaps there'll be a benefit for us somewhere."
"Perhaps." He said with a heavy sigh that was filled with resentment for those who had once more taken the control over his life. —— Iris didn't see Tommy much after he told her the deal with the IRA he had. Things like this often happened, them being apart for days at a time. It was a given with their line of work.
Tommy would be off to London the next morning, and she had to travel to Liverpool to secure a business deal. Regardless of their frequent separation, their love never faltered. Iris and Tommy were still as strong as ever. For the time being, at least.
