A girl is shot.

Caterina
___________

Rina rushed Dimitri to his father's house in East London. It was the early hours of the morning when the streets were still empty and dark. She drove like a madman, clenching and unclenching her gloved hands around the steering wheel.

Dimitri was not safe with her. Even though it broke her heart Rina would always put her boy above herself every time; even if that meant staying at his father's for a while.

When Alfred's tall house came into view, Rina willed the car to a stop, leaving it idling as she gingerly scooped up her sleeping son into her trembling arms. Rina's heels clicked against the slick cobblestones on her way to the front door before balancing Dimitri against her shoulder so she could better pound her fist against the old wood.

It groaned against her force but it had to be loud enough to wake Alfred upstairs, for she knew he could sleep like the dead after a long day at work.

After what seemed like an eternity, the door was yanked open to reveal the barrel of a pistol.

"Alfred!" Rina gasped, drawing her son away from the gun's line of sight.

As quickly as it appeared, the gun dropped from its position and out came Alfred, the hair on one side of his head flat from sleep.

"Fuckin' 'ell, love! My apologies, right, my apologies. You can never be too careful in this part of town, you know." He said, ushering them inside.

Rina didn't respond right away. Instead, she pushed past Alfred and climbed the stairs to his bedroom, where she lay her son down into the worn sheets. She could hear him follow her up as she planted kisses all over her boy's face, watching him stir slightly in his sleep.

"What's this?" Alfie asked, approaching her from behind.

Standing upright, Rina wiped the tear from her cheek and turned to Alfred, her lips quivering.

His bloodshot dark, blue eyes softened the moment they settled on her so broken. Rina knew it reminded him of the first night she had come to his house fresh from America.

Rina grabbed a hold of his rough hands, squeezing lightly. "He's not safe with me, Alfred."

Alfie's brows knitted together. In the soft yellow lamplight, Rina could see the concern etched into his face.

"Who?" He said. All he needed was a name.

Rina shook her head. "I don't know. Thomas said-"

"Bringing my son around Thomas now, ain't you?" Alfred cut her off, his voice sharp.

She had completely forgotten to mention the fact that she was talking to Thomas again, let alone seeing him.

Dropping her hands from his, Rina frowned. "It's not like that."

"Right, then how is it then, hm?"

"We're only friends, Alfred. Don't be ridiculous." She replied, hotly.

He nodded once. "Right well, are you safe?"

Cooling down Rina cupped his cheek, planting a long kiss against Alfred's full mouth. Oh, how she missed that.

Pulling away she said, "I can handle myself just fine, darling."

⚜️

"You look beautiful," said Thomas, "That necklace was made for you, I see that now."

He held out his hand for Rina to grab as she ducked into the car, her fur coat speckled with rain. The corners of her pink mouth quirked upwards, and even in the dark Thomas could see just how breathtaking she was.

She turned to face him.

"Yeah? I reckon if you piss me off one day I'll go on and sell it. How much do you think it's worth? A couple hundred thousand?"

Thomas chuckled. "More like millions."

Her brown eyes went wide. Still, neither of them had noticed that their hands were interlaced until there was a slight bump in the road that jolted then apart. Rina's cheeks went rogue.

They rode in silence after that.

⚜️

The Shelby Foundation Dinner was a smash. The moment they walked in, arm in arm, the wave of conversation mixed with booze hit them like a wave. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. And rightly so.  

Heads turned as they walked, and it wasn't until Thomas conversed with the leader of the Birmingham City Council that Rina finally felt her shoulders relax; that is until she noticed Thomas's gaze fix onto something or someone from across the room.

"Now the party's really started." The City Councilman murmured.

Rina cocked her head, following their line of sight towards a priest standing beside a bald man who never quite stopped scanning the room. For what, she did not know. The only thing Rina did know was that they made Thomas furious. Even if he looked collected from the outside, she could see right through his tight-lipped expression.

"Who are they?"

"Father John Hughes from St. Mary's Boys Reformatory. And with him is Mr. Patrick Jarvis, MP." Explained Daniel. "They are part of an organization called the Economic League."

Rina turned to Thomas. "Do you know them?"

Daniel perked up. "I'll introduce you, Tommy."

But Thomas shook his head. "That's all right, Danny. I'll introduce myself."

And like that, Rina watched him go. Unable to shake the uneasy feeling she held in her gut.

⚜️

After discussing the next steps of business with that bastard of a priest, Thomas left the concert hall fuming. He slipped through the crowd searching for the only thing that could ease his worry.

Rina.

But when his cerulean blue eyes finally found her familiar delicate frame draped in a dress the color of mint, she was already engrossed in conversation.

It was only when he neared that she noticed him.

She smiled an easy smile. "Thomas, this is Duchess Tatiana Petrovna."

The Duchess met his gaze with a coy smirk as he scanned her from head to toe unimpressed. Granted she could never stand a chance considering the Italian Mob Princess she stood beside. Thomas cleared his throat.

"Come on, Thomas, aren't you impressed to meet a real duchess?" Rina pressed. 

"Well, I understand they charge a fee." He deadpanned.

Tatiana scoffed. Looking over at Rina with fake embarrassment.

"Mr. Shelby, you are very direct."

Rina stared knowingly at Thomas in a way only a jealous woman could.

"Too direct," She added.

Thomas reluctantly met her sharp gaze.

The duchess chuckled. "But it's true. I attend these things for the champagne."

Rina tore her eyes away from Thomas and met Tatiana with a polite smile.

"And for the chance to be treated like a duchess again," Tatiana added, turning to Thomas. "You should have kissed my hand, Mr. Shelby."

For a grueling moment, they all stared back at each other in silence. But Thomas couldn't take the daggers Rina shot him any longer.

"Forgive me." He said, and going against every nerve ending in his body telling him to not get any closer to that snake, he kissed her gloved hand anyway.

When he stood upwards again, Rina mentioned:

"She was asking about my sapphire."

His blood turned to ice.

"I thought I recognized it." The Duchess explained.

Rina smiled through gritted teeth. "She said it was Russian. I didn't know you had a business in Russia, Thomas. Perhaps you know about it, Tatiana?"

The two women eyed one another knowingly, but before Tatiana could speak, Thomas said cooly:

"Well, tonight is not a night for business, eh?"

"Is that why you were in the concert hall for ten minutes?" Rina interjected.

Thomas ignored her. He'd explain everything to her later, but for now, he had to get Rina away from the duchess as soon as possible.

"I think people are ready for dinner now, Rina. Why don't you go and join them?"

"No, no. I'm not done pumping people for money on your behalf." She smiled.

Tatiana cocked her head at Rina, intrigued. "What is 'pump for money'?"

Thomas's face was impassive, "It's what I do every day."

Rina looked between the two of them for a while before finally saying: "You know each other, do you?"

By the grace of God, Thomas spotted Ada from across the room and motioned her over with a wave.

Rina went off. "You see, I come from a very powerful family from a little city called Chicago, in America. You've heard of it? Because it seems I thought I knew most of these people through my family's business, but somehow I've never heard of a so-called duchess all the way from goddamn Russia. But Thomas here, has?"

Tatiana blinked unfazed. "I hear he's very well connected."

"And where does a duchess hear that?" Rina asked incredulously.

"In certain circles." The Duchess said, matter-of-factly.

Before Rina could sink her teeth into Tatiana, Thomas butted in.

"All right, enough." He said, "Ada."

His sister came up from behind Rina, placing her hand on her friend's tense shoulder.

"Rina, I hear they're serving tiramisu for dessert, your favorite. Why don't we go into the kitchen and help ourselves, yeah?"

Reluctantly, Rina couldn't resist her massive sweet tooth and regarded Tatiana cooly.

"Tatiana, you and I will speak later." She said and meant it.

The Duchess watched her go with a grin. "I would like that."

Thomas didn't waste any time the moment he knew Rina was out of earshot. "Going to the factory tomorrow is a mistake."

Tatiana stepped into him. "Nevertheless, we will go."

After the tense conversation they all just shared, Thomas wished now more than ever that looks could kill.

"Also, my uncle ordered me to seduce you to give us an advantage." She added, "But with a beautiful woman like that on your arm it will be difficult, no?"

"Impossible." He said, "And tomorrow is a mistake."

The duchess's large, doe eyes regarded him unblinkingly.

"Haven't you heard? We have no morals, we Russians."

"And no fucking sense."

"And no options." She added, "I would fuck you for the cause. What do you think of that?"

Thomas pauses for a brief moment before beginning to walk past her. "I think you should not drink vodka with champagne."

Tatiana stopped him mid-stride, however.

She laughed like a madwoman, "Does your lover know that the sapphire she is wearing has been cursed by a Gypsy?"

Thomas froze, his mouth parted slightly.

"What did you say?"

The Duchess suddenly grew serious. "Nothing on Earth would make me wear it."

An eerie silence passed between the two of them before the duchess turned and walked away. Slightly stunned, Thomas took a second to compose the weight of her words and turned to find Rina deep in conversation with Polly.

Still, the Gypsy blood in him knew that something wasn't right and that he must go to her. Now.

He cut through the crowd of people to her, his hands gingerly pulling her close.

"Rina, listen to me." The panic rose in his voice when the clock marked another hour. "Look, I can explain."

"Go away." She hushed, "For once you shouldn't have to explain."

But the sapphire still sat comfortably on her open chest, mocking him.

"You look beautiful, but you need to take this off."

She spun around to face him, her eyes unforgiving.

"Why? Because you think it would look better on her?"

He had seen Rina in a jealous rage like this only once before and knew that only the truth could bring them back together again.

Thomas pulled her close and said, "Rina, look at me, fuck these people, eh. Fuck 'em, I need you to be all right. I need you, Rina. I need you."

And just like that, the anger in her expression dissipated into forgiveness. She ran her hands over his shoulders and paused to plant a tender kiss onto his cheek, pulling him into a tight embrace afterward.

"Damn you, Thomas Shelby." She giggled.

The sound brought peace back into him, if only for a moment. Rina pulled back from the embrace only to have her face merely inches from his. Thomas couldn't bear the thought of not having her for another moment on. He had been yearning since the moment he laid eyes on her at the Eden Club all those years ago to feel her lips on his.

Thomas pressed himself into her, their lips intertwining as if they had never known anything else. He ran his hands up and down her exposed spine, feeling the goosebumps that followed. He knew she felt it too.

Despite his efforts, she pulled away, breathing hard. Her expression unreadable.

Her voice was barely above a whisper, "Shall we go inside?"

Thomas nodded, unwillingly loosening his grip on her. "Yeah."

When they turned to follow the others, suddenly there was a waiter rushing towards them, yelling out: "For Angel!"

There was a gun in his hand.

Thomas shot his arm out in front of Rina and saw that Arthur tackled the man to the ground, but it was too late.

The gunshot echoed through the entire palace as the people around him began running for safety.

Rina's legs gave out as Thomas guided her to the floor, screaming out in a panic for someone, anyone to go get fucking help.

Blood began to spill from her chest and onto the floor, staining her gown and the tiles beneath her crimson. He felt her unsteady hands grip at his shirt weakly, and he knew then that if they didn't get an ambulance fast, he'd lose her.

Thomas pulled her into his chest, cupping her cheek to let her know that he was here, that he would never leave. But her eyes were not wide but rather half-closed and unfocused. Her lips mumbled incoherently.

Her blood seeped it's way onto his hands, his shirt, but he didn't seem to notice. Thomas pressed his cheek against hers and prayed to whatever God that would listen to save her.

While his brothers' pummeled into the murderer, Polly raced to Thomas side. Lifting his hand for only a moment, he told her to go get help. Meanwhile, Tatiana looked on with a cigarette between her teeth.

_________
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