Anna [J.Shelby]

CHAPTER FOURTY-TWO

"Why are you up this early, John?" Anna squinted as she stood at the top of the stairs, her arms wrapped around herself as John shrugged on his coat.

"Anna, it's Epsom today" Anna's eyes widened in realisation.

"I completely forgot, right, Polly's been otherwise occupied, so I'll be the one to tell you this time. You watch out for Finn, right? And yourself, don't get yourself into shit with Coppers, right?"

"Yeah, yeah" John replied, placing his lips on hers, it felt like forever for John. His lips were soft against Anna's, that's one thing she cherished everytime.

"I"m being serious, John. It's not just Tommy or Arthur who need you, you have kids too, John. Sometimes I think you forgot about us at home while you swan off doing Thomas Shelby's work"

"I know I'm not home often, but I don't forge. How can I when they keep me up half the bloody night?" This made Anna laugh and push John away from her.

"Go, before I have half the bloody Peaky Blinders banging on my door"

"So where exactly is everybody today?" Martin asked his daughter later on in the day.

"They've gone to the Epsom races, you know all this business with Sabini up in London, I'm sure I spoke about it in annoyance once or twice"

"Your husband and his family really do love trouble, don't they?"

Anna laughed, "that they do, but they wouldn't be the Shelby's if trouble didn't follow them everywhere, it seems almost natural to me now, fights, coppers, jail, guns. Sounds mad really, given how just 8 years ago I was still in the church"

"Sometimes I think about this question, do you ever regret your decision, to marry John?"

Anna sighed, sitting at the table opposite her father.

"When I first met John, to me he was different, and I quite liked how he had the dangerous side to him, but he was different to all the rest of them, and back then, I would say no, I've no regrets. But I realised, as you get older, your priorities change, and problems occur you wouldn't dream of when you're young. The Shelby family name brings uncertainty to me, and often it makes me quiver in my nightmares. The job that John does, not the nature of it but how often he isn't at home, is something that I greatly dislike. I often dream of John having more time, being home more often, to see his kids more often. But people grow up, dad, and soon they realise, there's things you do for survival. You don't realise until later, if you never made these choices, where would you be? John is my ticket to survival, otherwise I would be stuck with some insanely boring old man who had never had a wife or kids before who had a boring old job and family. Strangely, John is the right man for me, no matter the other factors. Nobody can ever say they don't regret some decisions or aspects of them."

Hours later, the men had returned, and Anna could hear them in the betting shop from houses down,

Anna was washing up plates with the aid of Mariah when John came tumbling through the door.

"I'm guessing the outcome was good then?" Anna called.

"Bloody brilliant" It was Arthur who replied as he strutted through the door with a bounce in his stride.

Anna turned to her brother-in-law and husband in amusement, "oh, so Thomas got you out then?"

"He bloody did"

"Now come on, we're celebrating" John grabbed her hand.

"What about the kids? I can't just keep leaving them"

"That's why we have a nanny" Anna sighed in response and gave in.

The celebration was well under way when Anna stepped in, John was elsewhere, she could spot a few familiar faces, wives of some of the Blinders she was familiar with, and of course the ladies she worked with. The Lees were there also, which only reminded her of the wedding she had begged Tommy to put a stop to, but also how she had betrothed Finn Shelby to another Lee girl by doing so.

If she had never have spoke up, she would still be working in the Garrison, perhaps even blown up with it. Her father wouldn't be with her, she wouldn't be married or have children most likely.

Anna mostly kept to herself, a wife walked over to her, a woman she knew by Cathy Price. She was quite young too, late twenties with a Blinders husband and three children.

"These celebrations aren't quite my favoured scenery, I prefer quiet over drunken men. Still, I feel obliged given Frankies job" Cathy laughed.

"Im married to a Shelby, and even I haven't grown used to, well.. this. Sometimes it all grows a little too loud and alcohol-infested"

"That's men for you" Cathy joked, making Anna chuckle.

"And yet, we're surrounded by men all week during our working hours" Cathy laughed again, she too worked alongside Anna.

Cathy excused herself, leaving Anna alone once more.

She weaved between the crowded room, halting in her steps as John came into sight.

Lizzie Stark was in front of him, with his hands on her arms, one of hers on his as they talked, they laughed.

Anna's heart sped at the sight, Lizzie Stark was a known predator, though, most thought her newfound job as Thomas Shelby's secretary changed her.

So why was her hands on Anna's husband, or so she asked as she couldn't tear her eyes away, Arthur soon began to talk.

"Right, ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to make a toast. To the small heath rifles," there was loud cheers.

"to the Lee boys," even louder the cheers became.

"and to the Peaky Fuckin' Blinders" Arthur shouted, the buzzing in Anna's ears became louder as John and Lizzie cheered together, his arm slung over her shoulder.

"whose gonna stop us, ey?"

Fucking nobody.