Angel

6

            We'd only been in the house for two days. And on that second night, there came a rapping on the front door. I furrowed my eyebrows, pulling a robe over my short satin shift wondering who would be at our door at close to midnight. I hurried down the two flights of stairs, slowly opening the door. I was met with two figures, one supporting another. "Mr. Solomons, I take it my services are required?" I asked, and he nodded in response, eyes glazing over the robe that hugged my body. "It's Alfie to you, love, and yes they are," he replied, meeting my eyes. I opened the door and gestured for them to come inside. "The parlour is on the second floor, can you get him up the stairs?" I asked quietly, not wanting to disturb my sister or my sleeping nephew. Alfie nodded in response, and he followed me up the stairs, his boots landing heavily on each stair. They followed me into the parlour and I turned on a few lamps as Alfie set the man down on the couch. I crossed the room to examine the man on the couch. His eye was blackened, cuts adorning his face. "What happened?" I asked, as I scoured the rest of his body for injuries.

            "'E was attacked protecting a family who pays me good fuckin' money. Bloody fuckin' Italians," Alfie said lowly. "It doesn't look too bad, he'll need rest and some fluids. All the wounds are superficial, though he'll need stitches on his chest," I said, and Alfie nodded, sitting down in an armchair that was pushed against the wall. He silently watched me work as I washed the dried blood off the man's face and poured some alcohol into a small vial. "Hold him down and give him something to bite down on. If he screams and wakes up my nephew my sister will have all our heads," I said, and Alfie rose, placing a cloth in the man's mouth and placing his large hands down on his shoulders. "Are you ready?" I asked the man, and he nodded, steeling himself. I poured the vial of alcohol into the wound on his shoulder to sterilize it, and he let out a muffled cry. "This is going to hurt," I warned him, taking out a needle and thread from the desk. I inserted the needle into his skin, and he groaned aloud in pain as I sutured the cut on his chest. With each suture he cried out, the sound muffled by the cloth in his mouth. He jerked a little, but Alfie held him down strongly.

            "There, all done," I said gently, and Alfie removed his hands from the man's shoulders and took the cloth out of his mouth. I grabbed a small piece of white gauze and some medical tape, and placed the gauze over the stitches, taping it firmly to his chest. "You're quite good at that, ain't ya, pet," Alfie commented. "Well I am a certified nurse," I retorted, cleaning up my work station. "How often do you think you'll be bringing men by?" I asked as Alfie took a seat once more, grimacing. "Well if they do their jobs fuckin' right, see, not too often," he replied, and I nodded. I watched as he shifted in the chair, grimacing at the pain in his back. "You have sciatica," I commented, and his gaze flickered up to mine. "'Appened in the war love," he answered, "Caught a piece of shrapnel and it scraped a nerve." "Lay on your stomach," I told him, and he furrowed his eyebrows. "Do you want to sit there in pain or not?" I sighed, raising my eyebrows and glancing down at the cot and then back up to him. He held his hands up in mock surrender before lifting himself up and laying down on his stomach on the cot. I crossed the room and positioned my hands over his lower back.

            I knew where the sciatic nerve was, and as soon as my hands met his back I could feel the knots in it. I lifted his shirt up slightly, placing my hands on the smooth skin of his bare back and digging them into the knots. He gasped quietly when my skin touched his back, groaning softly as my fingers worked out the knots. I found myself clenching my thighs together at the noises that escaped his lips. Minutes passed in silence as my fingers worked, and within a half hour all the knots has disappeared. "Alright, that should help some," I said softly, placing his shirt back down. Alfie slowly rose and got to his feet. "Fuckin' 'ell angel, where've you been all my life," he grinned as he stretched his back and I chuckled. "Feeling better I take it?" I asked, and he nodded. "I think this arrangement will work out quite nicely, eh?" he smiled, and I nodded. "I don't think it'll be half bad, Alfie," I replied, liking the way his name rolled off my tongue. I scolded myself silently, swallowing hard.

            "Thank you, love," Alfie said gently, walking over to his man and lifting him up. "I suppose I'll be seein' ya soon then," he said, gesturing for his man to leave the room. "The end of next week I presume?" I asked, and Alfie chuckled, approaching me. "Well, can't have ya commuting all the way to London for nothing, now, can we?" he said. I wasn't used to such bold interest from men thanks to my family, and my heart pounded in my chest as he bent down to kiss my cheek, his beard tickling the side of my face. "Until next time angel," he gave a curt nod, and the corners of my lips turned up as I followed them down the stairs, watching them leave and closing and locking the door behind them. Well, it looked like Tommy was right. Maybe I wasn't in any physical danger after all. And maybe this arrangement would work out quite nicely...

************

            I parked the car outside the address Tommy had sent to Ada's in a telegram. It was just south of Small Heath, in the countryside. "He bought another fucking house," I muttered with a chuckle and I descended from the car, taking in the lush scenery surrounding the house. I smiled at the silence that enveloped me, taking in the fresh air, a beautiful smell. I had been cooped up in the smoke filled streets of Birmingham for too long. The country was what I needed, and my half gypsy heart soared at the sight of my surroundings and the wide open spaces. I'd never been one for big cities anyway, but I couldn't bear to live too far away from my family. My thoughts were interrupted as I heard a door open, and my gaze flickered to the large house in front of me. Tommy stood in the doorway, gesturing for me to enter. "You bought another house," I stated, walking inside as he closed the door after me. "You'll be living here with me throughout the week before you head off to Ada's for the weekend. It's all for us love," Polly grinned as she entered the room. "Pol, this is beautiful. And a very happy birthday to you," I smiled, hugging my aunt tightly. "Oh hush now, you don't need to say that," she fussed, breaking away from me.

            "There is one more thing. In compensation for your nursing services and taking part in the deal, I've gotten you one other thing," Tommy said, beckoning for me to follow. "You mean other than the two other houses I'll be living in?" I asked jokingly. He remained silent and I followed him through the kitchen and out to the yard, where I saw a stable. He led me over to the first stall, where a beautiful black friesian stood easily at sixteen hands. I gasped in shock. "Tommy you didn't," I whispered in awe, letting myself into his stall. "He's a gelding, five years old, already broken in," he told me as I approached the horse. I'd always followed Tommy around when we were younger, and we both had an affinity for horses, some nights even falling asleep in the pastures. "Hello boy," I whispered gently as the horse sniffed at my hand. I reached up, placing a hand on his forehead and dragging it slowly down his muzzle. He breathed heavily, stepping closer to me. I let out a chuckle as he shoved his head into me, rubbing his head into my chest. I scanned him up and down, taking in his beautiful conformation and the feathering at his pasterns. "He's absolutely beautiful. Does he have a name?" I asked, moving to the side and running a hand down the smooth black coat that covered his neck.

            "I figured I'd leave that part to you," Tommy replied, lighting a cigarette. "How about Odin. A name fit for a king," I said, and the horse whinnied in response, bobbing his head up and down. "You like that do you?" I chuckled. "I know how much you wish you were a simple girl, and you don't necessarily like material things, so I figured a horse could be an alternate form of transportation between here and London," Tommy explained, and I exited the stall, turning to face my brother. "Thank you, Tommy," I grinned, throwing my arms around my brother and hugging him tightly. When we broke apart, a smile adorned his face. "He'll be in the best hands with you. And Curly will be here more often than not to care for him for you," Tommy said, and I smiled. "'He'll be in the best hands', so does that mean that you're finally admitting I'm better with horses than you are?" I chuckled, and Tommy held his hands up in mock surrender. "Alright, alright, I admit it," he chuckled. "Don't you go thinking you can just buy my affection or loyalty with horses," I warned, jabbing a finger into his chest as he chuckled, throwing an arm around my shoulders and walking us back into the house. "Never love, never," he laughed.