Promises Not Kept

28

            "Can't say I've ever been to a boxing match." Leah walked arm in arm with Ada to the venue.

"It's only entertaining towards the end." The Shelby woman shrugged. "I brought something to make it a little more exciting." She coyly showed Leah the bottle tucked away in her purse.

Her sister-in-law giggled and shook her head. "You Shelby girls just love getting in trouble."

"Well, you're one of us now," Ada replied pointedly. "Although I hope Tommy doesn't make you wait too long for a nicer ceremony."

"He said he and Grace were married in the church down the road from Arrow House."

Ada nodded. "I can remember the looks on her family's faces. They were horrified at the idea of Grace marrying him."

Leah smiled softly and followed her to the front of the building where a line of men was waiting to enter. "But they loved each other."

"It's difficult to measure love." Ada shrugged and pushed past the men, not even waiting for the bouncers at the door to greet them. "But you can see it in people's eyes." The two women had to squeeze close together to get through the narrow hallway packed with loud shouts.

"No weapons! Empty out your pockets, lads! No admittance with weapons!"

Past the hallway, they finally entered the seating area. The rows were already starting to fill up with onlookers.

"Do you wonder if you'll ever find anyone else?" Having never known Ada when she was married, Leah wasn't sure if she was overstepping her boundaries. The woman spoke about Freddie every so often, especially when saying how much Karl looked like him.

Ada found their seats at the front row where Linda and Lizzie were already sat. Polly appeared to be speaking to her nephews a little bit away. "Sometimes I wonder." She admitted. "But I suppose I won't know until it's clearly obvious."

Leah smiled warmly. "I suppose you never know."

Polly walked over and sat beside her. "Ada, I hope you brought what I asked you to."

Ada pulled the bottle from her purse and began handing it down the line of women. She also exchanged a cigarette with Leah and her aunt. "How's Bonnie look?"

"Like he's going to rip someone to shreds," Polly answered and lounged back in her chair. "The Lord put too much power in such a small little thing."

"Do you think he actually has a chance?" Leah wondered. She'd only seen Bonnie in passing and he looked hardly big enough to throw a punch. Meanwhile, Tommy said that Alfie Solomons's nephew was built like a tank. Leah thought her husband was kidding when he called the boy Goliath. But apparently God did have a sense of humor.

"Gypsy boys never stay down. They always keep getting up." Polly gazed out over the ring. "I once broke up a fight between the boys and some Irish kids who they argued with constantly on the streets. Tommy was on the ground and I thought he'd had his entire face kicked in." She grimaced at the memory of her bloodied nephew, no more than twelve or thirteen at the time. "Could hardly make him out, didn't think it was him for a moment. I got them separated and out of nowhere Tommy springs up like a fucking animal. Leaped at one of the boys from behind me and brought him to the ground, fucking broke the poor lad's arm like it was a twig."

Ada only chuckled even though the event sounded harrowing. "Doesn't fight like that anymore does he?"

"Fights behind a desk." Lizzie agreed. "Wouldn't want to get those suits of his dirty."