Guardian Angel | Thomas Shelby

Eleven

Ruby thanked the gods when they finally reached Charlie's yard after helping Tommy through half of Birmingham. Her legs were aching from the weight she had to carry when she helped him walk with his arm around her shoulder.
"Who goes there?" Charlie yelled once the two lovers had opened the gate, which wasn't as easy as one would think with Tommy almost fainting next to Ruby. They walked towards the two men and through the dim light of the yard they could slowly make out their faces. Charlie pulled out a chair for Tommy to sit on and Ruby helped him plop down on it.
"Are you fucking mad, Doyle?" Charlie mumbled when Tommy finally sat, asking Curly to get him some kind of oil.
"They said you'd be in for another 3 weeks."
"I need to get on a boat to London, tonight." Tommy explained and Charlie shot Ruby a look, to which she only shrugged her shoulders.
"I'm a sitting duck in there, Charlie. Sabini could send a man at any time. I need to get some things done." They talked about which boat Charlie had to transport them and then Charlie and Curly went to work, filling the boat up and getting all the things they needed. While they waited Ruby mindlessly put her hand to Thomas' cheek, feeling the extreme heat of his body.
"My god, you're burning up." He quickly took her hand from his face and planted a kiss on it.
„I'll be fine. Will you come with me? To London?" Ruby hummed in response.
„What do we want in London?" She asked. "Yes? Because I need you, I need my guardian angel by my side." Ruby let him ramble on, she thought it was probably the fever that made him talk nonsense.
„If I sleep all the way, it's Camden Town."

It took them four days to get to London. Tommy was sleeping most of the time, fighting the fever that was eating him up, while Ruby tried her best to care for him and make him feel better with tea and medication. His wounds were healing up nicely though he still was weak and bruised.
Ruby talked a lot with Curly and found him lovely, a truly good companion.
On the fourth day, when they were almost in London, Tommy came outside for the first time. Curly went to make something to eat for them and left Tommy to steer the boat before he went down the stairs. Tommy looked at Ruby who was sitting on the roof of the boat, facing him with a little smile on her face. Tommy couldn't help but think that she almost looked like a gypsy, with her bare feet and tangled up hair.
„Do you feel better?" She asked.
"Thanks to my lovely doctor, yes." Tommy grinned at her cheekily, to which Ruby smiled.

It wasn't long after they had arrived in London that the pair was sitting in an office, surrounded by barrels of rum and whiskey. For the second time this week a gun was pointed at Ruby and she almost sighed in annoyance. But much like Tommy, she sat there and didn't move a muscle. Though when they walked out of the huge cellar, she didn't know what the hell had happened. The only thing she knew was that Alfie Solomons was an unusual man and a force to be reckoned with.