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1924

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CLARA SHELBY WAS SLAMMED AGAINST THE BACK OF A DOOR. Her heart raced as the blood pumped through her body. She felt feverish as if each of her veins had been ignited while pure fire swam through them. Her back pressed against the wood, the frame of the door digging into her spine. Adrenaline fueled her brain as she lunged forward again, her hands reached out to grasp and clutch whatever she could to draw closer.

"Christ, Shelby, we really need to stop doing this,"

Clara slightly drew away from the kiss. "Then start ignoring my calls," she grinned, ducking to kiss the girl once more.

Nadia's hands gripped Clara's shoulders, her fingernails leaving small dents in the skin. The firm weight of the other girl's hands allowed Clara to anchor herself, to plant herself into the ground and reach some sort of stability. The drugs and alcohol that pumped through her veins only seemed to be increasing the flurry of excitement that rushed through her.

"Anyone would think you missed me—" Nadia panted between kisses.

Clara slowly pulled away from the kiss, her teeth pulling Nadia's lip with her. "And if I did?" She asked breathlessly. Their foreheads leaned against one another as Clara tilted her head slightly with a smirk. Both of their chests brushed against each other as they rose and fell.

Nadia's eyes drifted from Clara's eyes back to her lips. "Then I'd recommend you kiss me harder," she uttered, looking back towards Clara's gleaming eyes.

And that was all the Shelby girl needed.

Clara pulled the girl to her as she hungrily captured Nadia's lips with hers. The two girls leaned into one another as the loud music from outside filled the silence. The Shelby girl's fingers were tangled in Nadia's ebony locks, desperately clutching onto the hair.

Nadia Marie Evans groaned as Clara pulled on the hair. What a glorious sound. It was one Clara had grown used to, yet it never ceased to send waves of warmth and desire through her soul and body.

For the two years Clara had known Nadia, she had yet to hear a sound that bested it.

It had been a relatively short two years since her final school exams. For the first year after the exams, the Shelby girl had split her time between working in Small Heath and attending a business class in London three days a week for one year. That was the deal she and Tommy had struck up, but once Clara had upheld that end of the deal and finished out the business school, the Shelby girl still found herself wandering up in London at least once a week.

'For business', she liked to claim.

Clara had been promoted at Shelby Company Limited and now held the established title of 'Director of Administrations', a job which Clara has been promised all those years ago, a job which she thoroughly enjoyed. She got to meet with potential clients and oversee each and every single fund, contract, file and budget entering and leaving the building. She had a lot of control and she liked that. She relished it. It was nice.

Whilst in London, two years prior, she had stumbled upon Nadia in the 43 Club again and the two became firm friends...at least for the first month until Nadia had eventually shut Clara up by kissing her. The two had agreed to meet up every time the Shelby girl was in London and they kept it easy and casual. No labels, no nothing. It was something so different for Clara. Something that excited and thrilled her. A small void in her heart was temporarily patched. A void left by the love of her youth.

The pain that followed Penny Crawford's depart from Clara's life had slowly eased with time and it no longer hurt to hear the blonde's name. The Shelby girl still held love for her, hell, Penny was her first love, but she hadn't even seen her Angel in two long years. The last she'd heard about Penny was that she'd been sent to finishing school— Clara found that quite funny. She couldn't imagine the blonde acting all prim and proper.

"Shelby, hello? You in there?"

Clara shook her head as she refocused her blurred mind on the girl in front of her. The London girl had tapped her fingers against Clara's forehead before they slipped down below her ear, hovering above her pulse point.

"Mhmm...what were you saying?" she hummed, whilst Nadia moved to kiss down her neck.

"You think too much," the black-haired girl whispered, her warm breath brushing Clara's neck, sending tingles down her spine. The Shelby girl arched into the embrace.

"Perhaps, I do,"

"Then maybe you should let your mind take a break?" Nadia pulled away with a suggestive smile. Her fingers dipped into Clara's pants pocket and slowly withdrew the half-empty blue cylinder.

"I do like your way of thinking, Evans," Clara lowly chuckled,

"Uh, uh, uh..." Nadia tutted, tapping out some of the powder onto the back of her hand. "Thought we were giving you and your mind a break?"

Clara bit her lip as she fell into silence. The black-haired girl pecked Clara's lips once more before she looked down at the snow. The Shelby girl bent down and swiftly sniffed up the clump of white powder from Nadia's hand. It wasn't her first dose of the night, in fact, it was bordering her third or fourth, perhaps her fifth?— she'd lost count. She leaned her head back against the wooden door as the powder worked its way into her blood while Nadia's nimble fingers continued to trail down Clara's face.

Fingers traced her jaw, skimming over each little white scar before it trailed up towards the faded scar across her cheekbone. Nadia's hand remained there as Clara leaned into the warm, familiar touch, her teeth still sunken into her lip. The two girls stood in comfortable silence, the gap between them becoming smaller and smaller as Nadia rested her forehead against Clara's. The music from outside of the bathroom echoed around each wall, the beat of the drum and the shrill trumpets weaving in harmony. They could hear the faint noise of people dancing and laughing and drinking. They could hear women outside of the cubicles talking amongst one another, their posh London accents seems to stick out like a sore thumb to Clara.

Clara leaned forward and gently pressed a kiss to Nadia's lips. Her hands trailed up Nadia's chest before they fell back to the girl's hips where Clara held her tight.

"I'm not going to run away, y'know," Nadia lightly laughed at the Shelby girl's grip, moving her head away ever so slightly. Her breath tickled Clara's cheek as her thumb continued to stroke along the whitened scar.

"I'm not taking any bloody chances," Clara mumbled before she raised a hand and moved Nadia's jaw so that their lips touched in the feverish manner they'd embodied before. Clara smiled into the kiss, her hands smoothly running across Nadia's torso as if trying to memorise each bump and crevice.

Clara couldn't even remember getting back to Ada's house in London that night. She barely remembered what happened after the bathroom. All she knew was that her head was on the verge of implosion and her stomach was churning in threat. The girl rolled over in the guest room bed and pulled the sheet over her head to try to block out the rising sun. She'd gotten home late and it was her typical Shelby luck that forced her to wake at the crack of dawn.

She could hear the clattering of pots below her as well as the squeals from Karl, while his heavy footsteps traipsed up and down the hall outside of the room. Clara let out a disgruntled groan and sluggishly dug her head underneath the pillow. The footsteps felt like a marching band had paraded through her brain with their drums hollowly rumbling. It was too loud. Her hands pressed against her ears from above the pillow. Her eyes squeezed shut.

Just as she felt herself dozing off back into a semi-comfortable slumber, she heard a sharp knock on the door before it was promptly opened.

"Clara, get up!" Ada huffed, folding her arms at the large lump beneath the covers. "We have to be leaving in under an hour. UP!"

"Ada, please just, shush," Clara childishly whined, her eyes still shut as she withdrew from underneath the pillow. "It's so early."

"It's almost eleven, get up!"

"You're just proving my point!"

Ada scowled and ripped the covers off of Clara's body. The older girl's hand lifted to her mouth in shock and amusement, her stifled laughs not going unheard. The younger girl let out a moan, curling up into a tight ball. It was only then that she realised she was still wearing the dress and makeup she'd worn the night before. Her makeup was now smeared and runny, the black kohl from around her eyes (something Nadia had gifted to her and shown her how to use) was smudged in dark circles around her eyes. After her laughter had subsided, Ada let out a loud sigh, looking over Clara once more.

"I thought I heard you come home late," Ada mused.

"–was busy," Clara mumbled, her face buried in the fluff of the pillow. She felt like she was being trampled beneath the King's finest horses, their hooves stamping down and crushing each bone in her body. Her stomach ached and rumbled, threatening to overspill.

"Get up, the wedding is in less than three hours and it's not exactly a short drive there...Up!" Ada retreated towards the door before she turned back to the curled up girl. "And it would also be in your best interest to try cover that bloody neck of yours as much as possible today."

Clara's eyes sprung open which instantly sent a shard of glass through her brain. She held her head as she stumbled to her feet and towards the mirror atop the dresser. She squinted as her eyes adjusted to the light. Her fingers brushed against her neck as she let out a soft gasp.

Her neck was covered in vibrant, purple bruises, each blotch barely spaced out and as bright as the sun which shone in. The girl lightly traced the trail of bruises, her mouth agape as her eyes scanned the damage.

"Shit," she muttered, her hand rubbing her face. Of all days, Nadia had decided to mark her up on the day of Tommy's wedding. A day where every single family member of hers would be in attendance. "Shit, shit, shit."

Clara pinched her nose before she travelled towards her wardrobe, pulling out the new suit that she'd recently had tailored specifically for the wedding. It was black in colour, the tie an ocean blue. The girl placed the suit on the wardrobe handle before unzipping her dress (which did not go as planned; she had struggled so much and had gotten so dizzy that she had ended up collapsed in a heap on the floor), the girl feebly covered herself with a blanket before she lugged herself towards the bathroom with her clothes in hand.

Clara exited the bathroom almost half an hour later with a pounding headache and an unsuccessful attempt to not vomit. In simpler terms, she had thrown up all the contents of her stomach and only looked slightly better than she had thirty minutes before. Her limbs felt weak and unusable as she practically crawled down the stairs. Her white knuckles clutched the bannister hard and tight as she prayed with each step that she wouldn't fall. Clara could hear Karl's laughter bouncing off of each wall. Each laugh cut through her like someone was taking a grater to her mind and shredding slowly and painfully waiting for the girl to black out.

She massaged her temples as she entered the kitchen. Ada was sitting and reading a newspaper, already dressed and ready to go. The girl lazily slumped into the seat, her arm draped over the back of the chair as leaned into the wood.

"There are eggs on the counter," Ada mindlessly pointed out, glancing up from the paper.

Clara sniffed and instantly caught a whiff of the food before she audibly gagged. Her hand went over her mouth whilst Karl giggled at his disgruntled aunt.

"No...no eggs," she mumbled, forcing herself to breathe out of her mouth.

Ada hummed but adorned the teasing smile she usually wore when talking to Clara. "I see you've covered it up," she commented, looking at the girl's neck. Clara had sheathed it to the best of her ability with powder and hid the rest with her white shirt and her loose hair. "You look like you got mauled by a wild animal."

"And what if I did?" Clara's lips dwindled into a small smile.

"Then tell him to leave them in less noticeable spots next time." Ada went back to reading her newspaper. "Always worked for me."

"Jesus, Ada..." Clara let out a small breathy chuckle, her fingers tapping on Ada's cup of coffee. Her heart jumped when Ada had mentioned whom she was out with. Clara was used to lying about who she was with, it had become second nature to her. She loved Ada, she really did, but this secret was Clara's and hers alone.

"Can I take this?" The girl glanced down at the half-full cup and without getting an answer, she downed the bitter drink.

"Hey! I was drinking that," Ada scoffed, folding her paper in half.

"Drinking what?" Clara feigned her innocence as she licked her lips. "Besides, we have to go now, don't we?"

Ada rolled her eyes as her tongue pushed against the inside of her cheek. "Fine, get ready," She eventually huffed, standing up from her seat and whacking Clara with the rolled-up newspaper. "Also, I'm only driving halfway, so start sobering up!" Ada then threw a singular slice of bread towards her as if it would offer her respite.

The girl rubbed her head with a wince before she caught the bread resumed her leaned back position. Her brain throbbed and begged for a certain mercy. The mercy which lay in a cylindrical blue bottle hidden in the depths of her jacket. Clara raised a hand to cover her eyes, squeezing them ever so slightly. Her fingers itched to tap out some of the powder but she couldn't do it around Ada— her older sister was like a bloodhound with that stuff.

As Clara sat, she had soon concluded that today was not going to be fun. Between the extreme hangover and the upcoming wedding, there was no way the day could ever provide any sense of enjoyment.

☆

"OH, I SWEAR TO CHRIST," CLARA GRUMBLED, her hands flexed around the car's steering wheel as Ada sat in the back with Karl. Clara had taken over from her sister halfway through the long journey as discussed at breakfast, allowing the woman to relax until they had arrived at the church. The girl's hangover has eased slightly, but her head continued to rage a vicious war.

As Clara pulled into the lane leading to the chapel causing her to let out a sharp whistle. The outside of the church was littered with men wearing red jackets. The girl knew that all of them were from Grace's side of the family, even though less than a week ago at a family meeting, Tommy had reassured his brothers that the red cavalry uniforms wouldn't be making an appearance.

"Oh, John is gonna get a kick out of this," She snickered, turning into an empty space in which she presumed she could park the car. The girl's eyes scanned for their family amongst the red and immediately she was met with the very disgruntled John and Arthur, who looked suspiciously towards the men from Grace's side while they entered the church.

"Alright, let's go," Ada pursed her lips as she straightened out her dress. Clara ran a hand through her hair, ensuring her neck was properly covered. She hopped out of the car, tucking the keys into her pocket as she slammed the door shut.

"SHELBY!"

The girl whipped her head towards the voice that boomed across the entrance to the church. She felt her lips draw back into a smile as the person approached despite the number of looks they had gained.

"It must be a miracle that you're up this early!"

"Good to see you too, Clarke," Clara greeted,

Will Clarke grinned as he slung an arm over Clara's shoulders, dragging her close to him. "Ah, I've missed you, Shelby," Will drawled as he squished her against him. "You've been up in London and I haven't seen you in years!"

"It's been three days, Will," Clara rolled her eyes.

"Three very long days," he exaggerated, leaning more heavily on her. "Three whole days is practically a lifetime."

"A lifetime in which you have yet to cut that horrific hair," Clara teased, ruffling the boy's shoulder-length locks. The boy immediately scowled, his hands flattened the hair.

"I think I look quite charming," he cockily smiled.

"Is that what mummy dearest told you?"

Will hit the girl hard on the back as they entered the church causing the girl to gasp in horror.

"Hitting a girl in a church are we?" She mocked, "That's a sin, Will. You could go to hell for that."

"Then I'll save you a seat and wait for you to arrive," The boy shot back. Clara shook her head and entered the church. Her eyes scanned the church, watching as babies and kids ran amuck the Shelby side whilst on the Burgess side every single person was sitting up straight with a disapproving frown across their faces.

"Your brothers went mental when the cavalry showed up." He commented, waving slyly towards the red-coated men who sat on the left who were sending disgusted looks towards them and the rest of the extended Shelby family who was sitting on the right.

"'m not surprised," she shrugged as they made their way up the steps leading to the church. "Tommy is gonna get an earful from them later, no doubt." Clara's eyes drifted to the top of the church where Tommy was already stationed alongside his best man, Arthur. His eyes seemed to be scanning everyone in the church and when they landed on the pair, the girl wiggled her fingers. Her older brother nodded in acknowledgment before moving to speak to Arthur.

Clara was dragged back by Will as he moved to find their seats. The girl squeezed past Ada, Karl and Michael. She sunk into an empty seat with Finn on her right as Will took the seat on her left. Clara subconsciously fixed her hair to cover her neck as she glanced around at the family. Bells rang out around the church causing the girl to immediately wince and clutch her ears because while she was not feeling as bad as she had been feeling earlier, the deafening knell of the church bells sounded like a welcoming song from Hell.

"You look like shite," Finn commented. The girl raised a brow and stomped down hard onto his foot. The boy bit his tongue and flinched as she gritted her teeth. A flourish of the organ sent the church into complete silence as everyone stood up. Clara straightened up and habitually fixed her hair as the choir of boys began to sing.

"In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan. Earth stood hard as iron, Water like a stone."

Clara let a half-amused smile fill her face at the song choice. It was a sad song, not one that could be related to any good memory or image. She supposed the song matched the atmosphere because whilst the Shelby side was grinning and looking excited for their Tommy, the Burgess side continued to look at them with distaste as if they were nothing but dirt on the bottom of their pristine shoes.

Clara almost cackled as Jeremiah Jesus entered the church. Beside her, she could feel Isiah, Will and Finn shaking in silent laughter as the Burgess side stood with open mouths.

"Snow had fallen, Snow on snow on snow. In the bleak midwinter. Long, long ago..."

The Burgess side seemed to be utterly appalled. It was as if Jeremiah had strung up their favourite child on a cross. They seemed speechless their distaste morphing to shock and despite her amusement at their reactions, Clara didn't hesitate to glare at any of them.

The organ began to play again. "Here come the fucking cavalry, late as usual," John stiffly remarked. He was quiet enough to not be heard by Thomas and Pol but Clara caught it and almost burst into a fit of laughter at his completely unamused expression. She'd rarely seen John this rattled. His lips were pressed together and he was intensely glaring at the red-jacketed men across from them.

Clara watched as a purple blob rounded the corner arm in arm with an older cavalryman. The girl watched as Grace moved down the aisle, her purple dress trailing along the floor as the deep purple veil sheathed her face. The man beside Grace sent the dirtiest look towards the Shelby side as if in pure disbelief that his precious daughter would be marrying scum like them.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today, to join together in holy matrimony, Thomas Michael Shelby and Grace Helen Burgess."

Clara's hands clasped together as it dawned on her that the day was going to be far longer than she hoped it would be.

And by the love of God, she wasn't ready.

Like expected, the ceremony had ended up feeling like it had lasted years. By the time it had ended, Clara's mind and heart desperately craved both a drink and the white powder stashed in her pocket. She stood outside of the church beside Will, smoking a cigarette as they watched women fight over Grace's thrown bouquet, each vying to be the lucky one to get married off next. The girl chuckled as she watched Arthur enter the group of haggling women to try to break up the fighting.

"Reckon he'll get kicked?" Clara mused, leaning towards Will in amusement as she watched the man struggle to stop the vicious women. Before Will could answer, the girl's name was called out.

"Clara Shelby!" Pol called out. The girl turned to see her entire family and Grace's family gathered on the steps of the church for a photo.

"Fuck!" She hissed as she stubbed out her cigarette. "Two seconds!" Her hands flattened down the hair on her neck and tried to ensure that not a single blotch was visible. She heard her name being called again. "Yeah, alright! I'm coming!"

Clara stalked towards the group and was promptly dragged to stand in between John and Finn. She rolled her shoulders back with a grumble as she straightened up.

"Go on! Take the photograph!" Arthur boomed. A large flash blinded Clara as she feigned a smile. Once the photos had been taken she pinched the skin between her eyes, trying to shake the glare from the flash that lingered in her sight. She went to move out of the group and towards Will before she was tugged backwards by John.

"Clara?"

"Yes? What?" She let her exasperation seep through her words as she faced her older brother. She watched as his hand darted out and brushed away a piece of hair.

"What's that on your neck?" He questioned, his jaw clicking as it clenched.

Fuck...

"Burnt myself on Ada's curling iron," she shrugged, covering the skin.

"–and the one on the other side?"

Double fuck...

"Another burn...now if you'll excuse me—" Clara said hurriedly going to walk again before she was pulled back once again.

"They don't look much like burns," John persisted. "What are they, Clara?" She knew the jig was up. He knew damn well what they were. He was trying to get her to admit it.

"John, you bloody know what they are, are we done here?" Clara hissed, yanking her arm out of his grip.

"What's his name?" John questioned angrily. Clara merely laughed as she leaned closer to the man.

"None of your bloody business," she sneered until she quickly shot out of his arm's reach and escaped towards Will. She quickly stumbled towards her friend as John's voice echoed behind her.

"We're not done talking about this!"

Clara shook her head and took Will's arm practically dragging him towards the car.

"Woah, slow down Shelby, you'll run over one of John's little ones!" Will joked as he stumbled.

"Maybe then he'll finally shut up," she spat before hesitating slightly. She looked towards an amused Will. "Too far?"

"Just a little," the boy grinned, "they're your nieces and nephews after all."

"Christ, I don't need a bloody reminder!"

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HELLO MY BEAUTIFUL READERS!!

How are you on this fine Friday and how are you finding act three Clara so far?? I, for one, am feeling great because I love season three Clara and I love the angst that will be coming with her!

FOR THOSE WHO HAVE FORGOTTEN NADIA, GO TAKE A PEEK AT CHAPTER 28 NEAR THE END!!

While you're all here, I'd just like to say thank you so much to all of you for reading this book, your comments, votes and feedback mean the world to me and it genuinely never fails to make my day.

Anyways, I LOVE YOU ALL (and here's your weekly meme)

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