Mrs Gray

eight.

eight.
nessun dorma

Despite Tommy's wishes, Anna charged into the hospital without considering the possibility of the Italians still being there. With endless possibilities going round and round in her head, she ran down hallways, ignoring the pleas from the men behind her to wait for them. All she knew was that she needed to check Michael was alive, even if that cost Anna her own life.

As she approached his room, she was met by a body laid in the hallway with a fresh bullet wound in his head. Only stopping to look for a second, she carried on to Michael, breathing a huge sigh of relief when she saw him alive and well through the window.

His head snapped to look towards her as he heard a noise, appearing equally as relieved. Anna tried to get in but the door had been locked from the inside. Luckily, by this time the other men had caught up with her.

"Stand back." Arthur instructed the young woman before shooting at the lock on the door and kicking it to open it.

Anna wasted no time in rushing into the room and tackling her husband in a huge hug, not even worrying about the bullet wounds that were still healing. Pulling back, he forcibly kissed her, the men behind them hanging back and letting them have a moment before questioning him.

"Michael, what happened?" Tommy spoke up once the couple had pulled apart although they stayed in eachother's grip asif the other would disappear if they parted fully.

"They heard you coming. The gun misfired, they ran away." Anna felt tears brimming in her eyes. She was so close to losing him yet again. "You came just in time."

The other men ran out of the room in the hope of catching up to the monsters who attacked an already wounded man. This left just Michael, Anna and Tommy sat around.

"Are you hurt?" Tommy asked.

"I'm fine." Michael insisted. The room fell silent as each of them processed what had happened and what needed to happen next.

*

Tommy eventually left the couple in peace. Anna had already called and told the nanny to bring louis back immediately. She wanted her family here where she knew they were all safe. The bad feeling she had felt all day had now moved from the pit of her stomach and was encasing her whole body.

"You're not staying here." Anna paced up and down the room, gun in hand while Michael sat at the table. Her fear and upset had morphed into pure rage.

"Anna you need to calm down."

"I will not calm down. You're already injured and the nurses who are supposed to be looking after you are handing you over to be killed. No Michael, you're not staying here. We can't trust them. We can't trust anyone but each other."

Before Michael had chance to respond, the door opened, prompting Anna to whip around with her gun pointed. She relaxed once she saw it was Polly.

"Hope I'm not interrupting." The woman moved to take a seat at the table with Michael. Anna noted that she wasn't nearly as harsh as usual, she almost looked sorry, but for what?

"Well you are interrupting actually." Anna snapped back.

"Anna." Michael warned, attempting to be a sort of peace maker.

"What happened then?" Polly asked the man as she lit a cigarette. Anna refused to sit down, constantly remaining on high alert in case they came back.

"He spared me." Michael spoke almost asif he was accusing the woman of something. "He said tell Polly that we have a deal." Anna whipped around to face her mother who had a guilty look written all over her face.

"What fucking deal?" Anna barked, walking over to where the two sat.

"A deal to spare your life." Polly smiled slightly, looking up at her daughter. "You, Michael and the baby."

Anna leaned on the table with two hands, bowing her head. Half of her was relieved, the other hand felt betrayed.

"In return for what?" Michael questioned. Polly turned away from the pair, avoiding a question she knew would be forced out of her at some point anyway.

"You gave up Tommy, didn't you?" Michael pressed. Anna's head snapped up, suddenly realising what her mother had done.

"No." Anna yelled.

"You never forgave him, did you?" Michael continued to question the woman while Anna shook her head in disbelief.

"We're out of our league." Polly attempted to justify her actions.

"No." Anna shook her head. "You don't do that to your own. To your family. You fucking disgust me." Anna spat at her mother, storming out of the room.

As much as she hated not being in the same room as Michael, she couldn't stand being in one with her mother knowing what she'd done.

Stepping outside the hospital, she lit a cigarette, leaning against the wall with her head in her hands. The smoke in her lungs calmed her considerably but didn't stop her heart beating so fast or her thoughts running wild.

"There you are." She heard her mother's voice and turned her back to the woman. "Anna, listen to me."

"What?" She snapped.

"What I said back there wasn't entirely true."

"What are you talking about mum?" Anna was ultimately very confused and overwhelmed but she wanted to hear her mum out.

"Truth is, I did give Tommy up to Luca." Polly moved closer to Anna so that she could speak at a volume only her daughter would hear. "But tommy's in on it."

Anna's face softened. "Right."

"I've given the Italians a time and a place, we'll be prepared." Polly explained. Anna nodded her head, finally looking her mother in the eyes.

"Right, I'm sorry for yelling mum." Anna apologised, earning a smirk from her mother.

"Never thought I'd hear you apologising. Especially not to me."

"Don't make me take it back." The two shared the first smile in a long time.

"You can't tell Michael that Tommy knows."

"Why not?"

"The less people that know the better. You can tell him when it's over."

"Okay." Anna agreed, taking a final puff of her cigarette before throwing it to the side. "I can't let Michael stay here any longer though, even with a deal." Anna explained, hoping Polly would have an idea like she always does.

"Don't worry, I've been thinking about that too. I've got a plan."

"You and your fucking plans." Anna playfully rolled her eyes before the two began their discussion of Polly's alleged plan.