Laura's Secret

Chapter 4 - April 7th, 1921

3rd person POV

Laura is currently in the Garrison, preparing to open up. She has wiped down the tables and set up the beer taps. She was just lining up the whiskey and rum bottles on the shelf when there was a hard knock on the door. Assuming it would be either Arthur or Tommy, she quickly makes her way through the room and opens the door. Before she can register who it is, she is being pushed back into the pub with a gun held to her chest. "Hello again, Miss Alexander" a thick Irish voice speaks from behind the two men who are holding her tightly. "How have you been keeping?" the voice asks, getting closer to where she is stood. Before he makes himself known, Laura is forced onto a chair.

Laura's POV

As I'm pushed onto the chair, I can feel my heart racing. I'm not used to being dragged around like this. "I see that we're playing the game of silence again." The voice speaks again. I know that voice from somewhere. Campbell then walks into view with the same cocky smirk as last time. Shit. Tommy's gonna be here soon. Shit. Fuck. Shit. "Hmm. Still as beautiful as before. It's a shame I'm going to have to ruin that perfect little face of yours." He says as he walks closer to me.

All I can do is sit and watch him. My shock must be evident but I'm trying so hard to keep my cool. His two henchmen are holding my arms so tight. I dread to think what the bruises will be like. "Where's Thomas? I hope for your sake you know where he is." Campbell says in that disgusting perverted tone. "Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you" I say before spitting towards his feet, causing a deep chuckle to erupt from all of them. "Oh, you're going to regret that, sweetheart."

3rd person POV

Campbell reaches into his pocket and slowly pulls out a pocketknife. He gestures to the two men holding Laura to keep her still. He walks even closer to where she is forcibly being sat and bends down so he is eye level. "One last chance. Where is Tommy Shelby?" he says in her face, only to be met with silence. "Fine then, have it your way" he says with a smirk before lifting the knife towards her face. He digs the knife into her cheek and slowly pulls it downwards until it reaches her jawline. She tries her best not to scream. Small whimpers escape her lips but nothing more. Her breath quickens with panic as he once again lifts the knife towards her face. However, he redirects his hands towards her long brown hair. She was never one to follow trends, and she found the idea of cutting her hair absolutely terrifying. Campbell roughly takes some of her hair in his hand, causing her to gasp as her head is pulled back. "Such lovely long hair. It's a shame you're going to lose it all because you protected Tommy Shelby, ey?" he whispers into her ear, making her cringe.

Before she can even think, he rags the knife roughly through her hair. The cutting sounds ring in her ears as tears begin to form in her eyes. One handful of hair lands on the floor. Then another. And another. Before long, most of Laura's beautiful hair is being trod on by Campbell and his men.

"Now, now. I see she's not as tough as she makes herself out to be. I'm going to ask you this one more time..." Campbell starts before hitting her in the face. "Where is Thomas", he hits her again, "fucking", another strike to the face, "Shelby?" he hits her again before taking the knife and slashing her near her collar bone, cutting her dress slightly. "I'm right here."

Tommy's POV

"I'm right here." I say, making myself known to the people in the room. I look towards Laura, who is currently breathing heavily and trying to blink away her tears. I take in the blood dripping from her left cheek and right collar bone. Jesus Christ. They cut her hair off. She lost all of her beautiful hair because she was protecting me. Again. "Ah, Thomas Shelby. What a pleasant surprise. Seems your whore got hurt for nothing" Campbell says to me with a smirk, wiping the blood off his knife and onto Laura's dress. "What do you want?" I say, keeping my cold tone and blank facial expression. "I want you. I have a job for you. Let me know what you decide. I'm never too far away, remember." He says as he walks towards me. He hands me a small card with a telephone number on. "I'll ring you." I say as he leaves. He whistles as he reaches the door, prompting his men to let go of Laura and follow him out the doors of the pub. I quickly follow and lock the doors behind them before rushing to help Laura.

I pull her off the chair and into my arms. She doesn't return the hug and I understand why. I look down to the feet of the chair and see clumps of hair. My heart begins to break for her. She always said she was never a big fan of her appearance apart from her hair. She had always found her hair to be her main feature of beauty. She starts to pull away from me, but her feet stay planted. Her eyes are fixed to the floor. What the hell am I meant to do?

She clears her throat, preparing to speak. "I, uhm..." she starts, still refusing to look up at me, "I don't know what to say." She continues quietly. Her hands then begin to shake. This is all my fault. "You don't have to say anything. I should be thanking you. You got hurt for me. Again. You gave up your favourite feature. Why didn't you just tell him I was coming here?" I ask her, taking her hands in mine, hoping she would look at me. I'm met with silence. Her eyes are still looking towards the floor.

BANG BANG BANG

The knocking on the door causes Laura to flinch. "Stay here, it will just be Arthur and Poll." I say softly as I walk towards the door. As soon as the doors are open, Arthur and Polly rush inside, causing Laura to turn and face the other way. "We've just seen Campbell driving away from here. What's going on?" my brother asks me as he walks round the bar to get a drink, not noticing Laura. "What the hell happened here?" Polly says before I can answer Arthur. "Laura are you alright, love?" she adds, noticing the hair on the floor. She walks towards her and walks round to see her face. A gasp is all it takes for Laura to break down, finally catching Arthur's attention.

I watch as Polly pulls Laura into her arms. Arthur walks over and hands me a drink. "What happened, Tom?" he asks. I take a deep breath as I try to figure it all out in my head. "Campbell wanted to know where I was. She refused to tell him, so he, uhm, did that." I say as I gesture towards the weeping girl in front of us. "Why did Campbell want you?" he asks. "He needs me to do his dirty work. I'm still deciding whether or not it's a good idea." I say truthfully. "That bastard hurt our friend. If you don't kill him I bloody will" Polly speaks, anger threated in her voice. "Come on, love. I'll get you cleaned up. I'm sure Arthur can give you the night off." She says in a softer tone to Laura, who was still sobbing into her chest. "Take as much time as you need, the job will be here whenever you're ready" Arthur says as he grabs Laura's coat. I watch sadly as Polly guides the poor woman out of the pub, presumably to our house.

It's all my fucking fault.