Devil | A Solomons

THIRTY EIGHT - NO VENGEANCE

"Look at this," Irina said, running her hand across the jagged edge of the hole in the thick iron door that fronted the vault, "What made this?"

Alfie and Tommy walked up behind her, Alfie sniffling to himself as he did so, clearing his throat after allowing himself to feel an emotion for the first time in a while.

Thomas peered inside the vault, sticking his head through the large cut in the door, seeing nothing but empty, broken shelves.

"Nothing I've ever seen before, I can't think of any tool that would make this kind of edge."

Alfie stepped forward and touched the door, swiping his fingers across the jagged iron. Irina was stood inside the vault, her arms crossed as she peered around at the large empty space, her eyes tired and shadowed, filled with disappointment.

Looking up at her, Alfie sensed the heaviness of her heart, knowing just how much of a battle she was fighting with herself before the robbery, realising how hard it would have intensified for her after suffering such a huge loss to her business.

"They used a special kind of flame and a saw, it's manufactured in a warehouse in Brixton. I know because I sold my rum to them once and they showed me."

Irina immediately looked at Alfie, her dark eyes flashing warmer with innocent hope at his information, widening in emotion.

"And this Joseph Levy," Thomas interrupted, waving his hand nonchalantly as he spoke, "Does he run this factory too?"

"Nah," Alfie shook his head, pursing his lips as he looked at the shape of the cut in the door again, "I don't think the manufacturers had anything to do with this, but I do think that if you have your money locked away anywhere else that isn't in a bank, it probably won't be safe for much longer."

Irina sighed loudly and headed back outside, not wanting to stand in a room full of misery any longer.

The sun was hiding behind thick clouds and the world appeared darker than it usually did. There was a bleakness in the atmosphere that sent an uncomfortable shiver down Irina's spine, a deafening drone of machinery that was worse than silence felt like a cut to the throat over and over again.

Irina was incredibly hard on herself, and she had been that way since she was a child. Growing up and evolving her mind had made no difference, her intolerance to losing never lessened and her lust for success only grew stronger, feeling like an irresistible urge only satisfied by a tangible asset like money. Losing that felt like the biggest loss she had ever suffered.

"Irina,"

She jumped slightly, being snapped out of an intrusive thought as she stared blankly at nothing, her heart racing as Alfie touched her shoulder, his voice cutting through the factory roar.

"Tommy's gone to talk to your boys in the offices. You'll get your money back."

"Yeah," she said sarcastically, "Before or after they take everything else that I have?"

Alfie bit his tongue. He was all too used to her bitter tone, but he didn't appreciate being spoken to negatively when he was offering his help to her from the good of his heart. Despite that, he knew she didn't mean it, seeing the way she rolled her eyes after speaking and knowing she instantly felt bad.

"I'm sorry," Irina said, turning to look at him, "I just have a lot going on, nothing seems to have gone right for me since..."

"Since when?" Alfie pried, a sinking feeling in his stomach telling him he already knew the answer.

Irina rarely felt moments of weakness in her life, in fact, she could pinpoint every single one. It was a cringeworthy statistic to be able to recall, and one that she despised knowing. The truth was, Irina had never been in tune with her feelings before meeting Alfie, and every time in her life that she experienced the feeling of vulnerability and craving the protection and help of somebody else, it had always been in his presence.

And that moment outside the warehouse was a new, yet not surprising, addition to her list. Looking up at him made her want to be held, just for a second. Irina longed for the feeling of being looked after, like she could share the weight of her problems with somebody for only a short while to give herself a break. With Alfie, it never felt like a burden, knowing that he wanted to help her in any way he could. The issue was, Irina didn't think she could ever let him back into her life the way she so badly wanted to, even if she only felt that way for tiny moments scattered throughout her life.

"Since you met me. That's what you were going to say, isn't it?" Alfie continued, swallowing hard after he was met with silence.

Irina looked down at her feet, feeling guilty at the weight of her words. She never had any problem being rude, but she hated the fact that she could hurt Alfie so easily by throwing words around.

Vengeance was never something that had weaved its way into her life, and even though Alfie had broken her heart, she still felt no urge to do the same to him. Irina cared for him, and it hurt her to hurt him, the thought alone being painful enough to make her want to never part her lips and speak again.

"I'm sorry," Alfie said, his eyes forcefully narrowed as he felt the lump in his throat that he'd swallowed earlier begin to rise again, "I'm sorry for hurting you, it's the worst fuckin' thing I've ever done, and a man like me has a list as long as the fuckin' Thames of bad things he's got to his name. If I could go back and undo one thing, it would be hurting you, Irina."

Deep down, Alfie knew that had he and Irina never met and their relationship not happened, then the break in at the vault wouldn't be hurting her nearly as much as it was. It was clear that adding another wound to an unhealed scar was what was killing Irina, and Alfie knew that she felt like there was no light at the end of her tunnel, as if there was cut after cut scarring her perfect skin.

"But you can't go back." She said quietly, her hair blowing behind her shoulders in a gentle breeze.

"No," he replied, "I can't. But I can't imagine my life without you in it, and I'll do whatever I can to keep myself close to you. I want to see you happy, I want to see you get better, and I want to see you sat in that comfy chair in your house surrounded by piles of your fuckin' money once I help you get it back. And if that's all I'm ever meant to see, forever, then I'll leave you alone after."

Irina could sense the urge that Alfie was suppressing to not continue talking.

"But?" She said, meeting his watery gaze, knowing that there was almost definitely more words hanging onto the end of his tongue.

"But," he repeated, "If it changes, and I'm meant to be in your life beyond healing what I know I broke, then just know that I'd grab that opportunity with both fucking hands and that time, that fuckin' time, I wouldn't be foolish enough to let it go."

an;;
a short chapter sorry!! should Irina give Alfie another chance?? Or are we girl boss only vibes??