Bête noire → Peaky Blinders [Tommy Shelby] [ BOOK 1 ]

Thirteen.

Chapter thirteen: Bundle of blue

"It's okay, Ada, I've got you!"

"You're practically a child! You shouldn't be in here!"

"Who the fuck do you think you're talking to? I was a nurse during the war so I believe that my knowledge makes me a whole lot older than you!"

Not long after they'd all arrived back to Watery Lane, Caroline sent Oscar to bed, knowing he would be somewhat safe in their house as Collin was back. On the way home, Ada's waters had broken and in the emergency state it was, Caroline promised she'd return once the baby was delivered safely.

She was unsure who the baby's father was. She'd never met him before in her life but it was alright, for men were not allowed to be present during the births, but from what she'd gathered, he'd been absent for awhile as a result of conflict between himself and Tommy. To replace him, she, Polly and John's new wife, Esme, were preparing her for a difficult birth. The two new members of the gang weren't exactly seeing eye to eye, however, they had to put their angst aside and help a fellow woman out in her desperate time of need.

Ada's squeals could be heard beyond the door. In the dim lighted room, her body clenched, sweating profusely, dampening her hair and her white nightgown, staining her features of absolute agony, way beyond her body's capability level. Caroline didn't have much experience with delivering babies, so she stood on the other side of Polly and held Ada's hand. With the intense pressure Ada used, Caroline's hand felt crushed but she didn't think twice about it.

Esme pressed her hand under Ada's stomach and looked to Polly with uncertainty. "I think it might be the wrong way round. I attended three sisters."

"Yeah. You're right."

Caroline interjected. "We should lean her forward."

Through Ada's desperate screams, the women helped to stabilise her onto her feet before allowing her to lean forward. Caroline took a bunch of Ada's greasy hair and held it back for her, keeping the strands out of her face as if she needed anything else to worry about.

"Come on. Not long now, darling." Polly encouraged her niece with her hand rubbing her lower back. "Push!"

After an intense few minutes of howling, the body of the baby gradually left Ada's cervix and Caroline wasted no time in taking the baby into her arms to rinse him of blood and bodily fluids. In her nursing, she discovered that this child was a boy and as Polly came over, she smiled and handed the older woman her newest family addition.

"Congratulations, Ada. It's a little boy!"

Caroline didn't have the heart to embrace the child the same way its mother should. She craved a perfect life; the perfect husband and children, living elsewhere, away from the hustle and bustle of the smoke infested city. This wasn't what Ada lived with despite the riches that dripped from her body, but her bond with her son was priceless, which was the exact type of love Caroline craved.

The front door opened suddenly, and there stood a man, his dark hair slicked back and shaved at the sides like many others. With a long, cream coat, he was breathless at the sight of Ada and the boy in her arms, and the passion in his lenses when he saw his two loves made Caroline share a small smile with the other women in the room. Caroline could tell that Ada wasn't a very happy woman. She lived in the shadow of her criminal brothers, and yet, the second Freddie walked through the door, her face diminished all traces of pain. 

Ada beamed to her partner, rocking the child in her arms. "It's a boy, Freddie."

For a moment, Freddie's hands were together in a praying manner. Then, when he gathered the courage, he waddled over to his family, pulling a stool out and he sat in front of them.