Choking On Sapphires

Part 94 The Less I Know the Better

Alfie Solomons was known for many things, but unpreparedness was not one of them. He would never go into a meeting blindly and hope for the best. He would know his chances before we ever agreed to it, let alone walk in.

After Sabini and himself decided that a united front would serve them best, he reached out to other leaders. Meetings are easy enough to schedule, most others will agree to one when things are up in the air, everyone waiting for the right wagon to band onto with the rest of the lot when things get unstable. It was clear that most thought the only unstable thing in this scenario was Nikko. The Asian's had their Opium, their biggest pull, and Alfie didn't give a fuck about the drugs, and they knew that. Adding a common ground of oppression that they both sprang from, culminating with the worry of the growing powers in Germany it led to an easily found agreement that they should work together. Some contracts were written up and signed, others only discussed over phone calls. Mainly with one Tommy Shelby. He could have both the Birmingham boys and the gypsy's all on their side. Tommy was in deep with the cabinet, knew things even Alfie did not. With what he could, he helped Alfie, for the sake of Genevive, avoid foreseen chaos when he could.

There was plenty of things brewing, but just like Alfie was feeling with his local problems, everything felt a bit electric and up in the air. They said their goodbyes with well-wishes for the misses and said they would speak soon, but unlike most other times, they meant it. Tommy could reach places Alfie could not, Alfie could gather men and turn a group in his favor better than any man Tommy knew. The wedding only solidified the now verbal alliance that had been long coming between the Jews and the Shelby lot.

Except for the always aloof until bullets were flying English boys, and the big bookie Comer who knew where his bread was buttered with the Greeks, Alfie had been able to agree to at least not attacking one another with most of the influential groups in London. So when the night came to have this group meeting everything had been accounted for. That was until the phone on his desk rang and an unexpected Genevieve was happily chirping and cooing on the other end that she was home early from one of her many quick prances back and forth to see Freddie in France for her wedding plans.

One of the biggest reasons he was going to marry her was her ability to be sensible with him. Yes, it took her a while to come around sometimes and the sporadic losing her temper temporarily in anger were still spells that fell upon her. But when it came to business she would always find her way around to the side of reason.

So when Alfie apologized profusely for having a meeting that night because he hadn't expected her back so soon she understood. She didn't inquire further and left him with a soft goodbye that would've made any lesser man crumble and spill out his true plans for the night.

But unfortunately for her, Alfie knew her better than herself. Gen knew her emotions still had the tendency to get carried away on their own and that would probably be something she always struggled with but she accepted it. Thus, he knew once she found out about the meeting he was about to go into without her, that she would eventually see his side of things.

Alfie was rarely surprised by people. He knew the motives and on the rarest of occasions, he encountered a reaction he did not expect. But even for him feeling very on his toes, the meeting could not have been more predictable. Any worries he'd had about Nikko were quickly downgraded when he responded in the most cliche of ways to Alfie's words.

He demanded he leave Genevieve, and of course, Alfie said no. He threatened he is not the only one who thinks she can't be trusted. Alfie tells him although mostly incorrect, he doesn't care. Alfie, too calmly for Nikko's taste, tells him he's a silly little boy who needs to understand the real man won and it's time to get off his mother's tit and act like an adult with a shred of shame like the rest of them.