Meanwhile, in Birmingham, heartache spread through the town.

With the women having to take the roles of their husbands, brothers and sons, accidents happened more often than people had realised. As well as this, the cramped conditions in some of the working spaces meant the spread of such uncontrollable diseases like tuberculosis had taken over towns and cities.

A Shelby child, one of Johns, hadn't made it illness free in months, weakened immune systems  weren't easily treatable with the resources the city had.

Katie was dependant on the medicines the doctors gave to soothe her rickety coughs and the worry that she had caused her mother had quickly spread to her aunt and great aunt. They knew how damaging it would be if John returned to his first born having passed whilst he was away.

Finn was doing his part to help but he himself was still only a child, a child who enjoyed chasing away the pigeons and the seagulls - trying to evade being shat on as retribution.

"Finn!" Ada's voice echoed through the empty Garrison, her voice laced with anticipation and worry.

All of their voices had been laced with at least an ounce of worry since the boys left...

Well, almost all.

Theodora had left three weeks after Bash, saying she would feel much safer in the comfort of her parents house but Polly knew she was off to see her lover once again. After that, in the — Polly hadn't been keeping count (but Ada had), time since, none of them had even heard from the girl who was supposed to be a Shelby now.

It was quite rich, coming from someone who vowed a forever and always in a sense.

To abandon at the first small hurdle, well, it was expected of her in the back of everyone's minds.

"Finn, please! This is important!" Ada added, her voice getting louder and louder with every word - borderline screaming by the time Finn walked out from behind the bar.

By the time Martha had managed to pop her head round, Finn had sat himself in Tommys chair, hands tapping heavily against the aged wood. For a moment, he looked like all of the brothers melded into one, and it made Polly and Ada miss them all the more.

Ada sat down in her seat, baby Katie on her lap as Martha held a fussy Harry.

Knowing that Martha had to raise a two and a half year old along with a six month old alone hurt the other women- she kept refusing help despite the constant offers. But Martha was a Shelby, and when it came to it she would ask for help when things became too much.

"So..." Martha started, her voice timid but still loud enough to hear.

"We have letters- well, telegrams..."

Before Finn had the chance to ask what exactly a telegram was, small pieces of paper were placed onto the table, the red military wax sent hearts dropping.

Telegrams were rarely holding good news, but none of them dared to think like that. At least not until they had at least heard what the first one had to say.

"It says here that John was superficially  wounded —" Polly stopped, her head turning to look at the calendar that was pinned to the wall before continuing, "fifteen days ago."

"So why isn't he home?" Ada asked, confusion slowly making its way over both her and Martha's body's.

Polly thought about it for a moment, wanting to brush it off- knowing the real answer was the army needed as many men as possible even those who were slightly injured, but it was better to tell them the truth than what she thought they wanted to hear.

"Well, he wasn't wounded enough for them to deem him unfit to fight. Says here 'superficial would to left arm, no through and through.', so that's good news. He's alive, albeit a little hurt." Polly finished, extending a hand towards Martha.

The hurt had etched its way onto Martha's face the moment Johns name had been mentioned. She couldn't imagine the love of her life hurt or injured, for her to be unable to help him.

To be there for him.

As their hands touched, tears started to slowly fall from Martha's green eyes, but she didn't make a sound. Even if her children were oblivious, she didn't want to be sad with them there.

Polly was proud of the girl, more so than Martha could have ever fathomed, she had shown herself to fit right in to their little vagabond of a family.

"Who's next? Who else got themselves f—" a glare from Polly cut Ada off from her almost tearful rant.

Ada hadn't been without her brothers in almost twenty years, so hearing that she wasn't the one to cause her brothers harm- well, as backwards as it sounded, she hated it and wanted retribution. At least a backhand or two, but they were fighting for her- or so they had all said.

"Tom got a promotion!"

Silence followed Pollys words, the colour had all but drained from her face once her eyes continued to read on.

The happy feelings quickly subsided, dread following in its place.

"He's a tunneller now..."
"But that's a death wish!"

Ada couldn't help but slam her hand down in anger. Her brother had just signed his own death warrant, having to dig tunnels to advance further into occupied territory.

"How could he have been so fucking stupid?" Ada snapped, luckily Finn had already been sent out to fetch a drink for himself and a toy for Katie.

"I don't think he would've had much of a choice, Ada." Martha's voice of reason chimed in, but it fell on deaf ears.

Seething, Ada sat in silence, probably plotting revenge for Tom, but more likely planning on how many strongly worded letters she could write and send to the home office by the end of the week.

"Right, there's two brothers left and three cards- how does that make any sense?" Martha asked, eyes only briefly leaving her child to watch how Ada was coping.

And coping she was not.

"Bash wrote one himself. But it's not for us directly, we've to write a letter to some service men's wives and mothers... not good news for them, but Bash is alive which is good for us."  Pollys answer was quick, as if trying to help the youngest Shelby sibling still sat in the room, and it did...

For a moment.

She had silently made it her job to help Sebastian write to the loved ones of those who passed, it was like she was helping others reach some sort of closure of a door that swung open far too quickly for anyone to stop it.

Ada's hand had extended towards Pollys, who knew the girl wasn't reaching out to hold hands. The small piece of pink card was placed gently into the younger girls hand, and instead of scrunching it like she usually would've, her fingers folded delicately over it- as if it was the finest piece of crystal glass she had ever seen.

"Arthur is being awarded a medal, of what it doesn't say."

Actual good news, finally.

Martha's face cracked a large smile, which made baby Harry's face light up like a Christmas tree.

Before Polly could continue with the last one, there was a knock at the door. Finn hadn't come back yet but he knew better than to knock. Knocks only ever meant bad news, but after that small high they had all just gotten, they were all prepared for something exciting.

"Sorry to disturb you all, Mrs Shelby, ma'am..." Volunteer Police officer, constable McCarey, started, his hat firmly underneath his left arm.

Silence, once again, fell upon the girls, if it wasn't for the coo's of the children, it would've been deathly quiet.

"What can we do for you, officer?"

"I'm sad to say I do not come bearing good news." He replied, the same solemn look not once leaving his face, even when he gave a sympathetic smile towards the little ones.

'Knew it was all too good to be fucking true', Ada thought silently to herself, becoming angry at herself for allowing that momentary moment of happiness.

Polly gestured the policeman to continue, having had enough of the anticipation, and the man continued.

Breaking hearts with every sentence he spoke.

"Marjory Thorne, Jemima Finnegan and Pearl Jones have all succumbed to their illnesses... and it isn't looking quite positive for Bernadette Hare."

All of these people were people Ada and Finn saw almost daily. Bernie and Finn went to the park together often and no one had even known she was poorly.

"We've had to inform you all due to your close proximity to the deceased, and to ask you if you wouldn't mind..." the policeman paused, looking for the right words to say, "staying inside your homes for a few days, incase you've... incase you too, fall ill."

When death came knocking, he knocked hard.

"Wait— did you say Marjory Thorne, as in Freddie's sister?" Ada asked, but hadn't asked in time, the police man had already been several steps away from the private room at the back of the Garrison.

Death was a bad omen, for things to come, and Polly knew something was going to happen to one of her boys... she just didn't know what.