The Sweetest of Hearts.1| T.S

•I love you.

"Who else knew today was the day you were moving on Kimber?" Polly asked him before looking over at Maude, by now knowing Maude knew more than the rest of Tommy's family. "You said you kept it a secret. Who else did you tell?" She asked as she glanced between the two.

Realization hit Maude hard. "It's not who he told, it's who listened when he spoke." Maude insisted as she looked at Polly before turning towards the man in front of her. "Grace, Tommy." She told him firmly. "Harry told me this morning she conveniently left before the coppers showed up at the Garrison and she insisted a phone be installed. He said she often called her family, the same ones she told me she ran from." She explained as she stared at the back of Tommy's head. "I told you, barmaids fucking listen, Tommy."

"But how could she have known of this day?" Polly asked, her eyebrows deeply furrowing as she glanced between Tommy and Maude.

"Because she was working the bar when Tommy told me in the snug. She came in to serve me drinks while I had the dairies open." Maude explained, sighing deeply as she looked over at Polly before slowly turning to Tommy. "I think she's the one who told the coppers of the guns." She informed him, and he pushed himself away from the cabinet, turning to face her. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about when you got back...I didn't think she'd go this far."

Polly glanced at Tommy, seeing in his eyes that he was on the same page as Maude as he nodded his head. "I'll deal with Grace." She insisted as she glanced between Tommy and Maude with pursed lips.

"If you set eyes on her again, you might kill her." She said as her gaze landed on Tommy for a second before she turned around and rushed off.

"You stay here with Ada and the baby." Tommy insisted as he grabbed Maude's face between his hands, giving her a stern look that silently warned and begged her not to defy him on this. He'd let her defy him on anything, but not her safety. Never her safety.

"Please be careful." She begged him as she placed her hands on top of his, staring up at him with frightened eyes. Tommy nodded his head, pressing a soft and warm kiss to her lips before he pulled away from her.

"Ada, Freddie's back." He informed his sister before making his way towards the front door and leaving the home, leaving Maude and Ada to share confused and shocked looks.

The two girls stayed at the house, waiting for Polly to come back from her talk with Grace before they'd go to the bullring as Tommy had instructed them. Maude was sitting on the couch, arms crossed over her chest and foot tapping rapidly against Polly's hardwood floor. She listened as Ada went through Polly's room, searching for something, doing something.

Ada returned a few minutes after wandering off, dressed in one of Polly's black church dresses, a veil covering her face. "Here, put these on." She instructed as she handed Maude a black dress with a matching black veil.

Maude stared at Ada with furrowed eyebrows, confusion clear in her deep blue eyes. "Ada, what are you wearing? "She asked as she raised her eyebrows at the girl.

"Those men are out there, getting ready to kill each other. My brothers are out there, and so are yours. The man I love is out there, and so is the man you love." Ada explained as she pointed towards the front door of the home, her voice shaking with all her pent-up emotions. "We have to stop them."

"By making a fashion statement?" Maude asked as she glanced between Ada and the dress she had been given

Ada shook her head as a huff slipped from her lips. "By showing them how they will be mourned." She explained as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"What of Karl?" Maude asked as she glanced at the baby who slept soundly in his bassinet, unaware and unbothered by all the chaos that surrounded him.

Ada was silent for a second as she stared back at Maude, inhaling sharply as she shook her head. "They won't shoot if he's with us." She reasoned with the older girl as she shrugged her shoulders.