SMALL HEATH
THERE WAS ONLY ONE place in the dark, cloudy town of Small Heath that attracted the crowds and that was the Shelby betting shop on Watery Lane. Run by the family of seven, it was an ever growing success despite the dark years caused by the war. The room filled daily for hours on end with men of the small town rushing to place their hard earned money on a chance of luck. The booming voice of the John Shelby yelling numbers to inform the eager men. The buzz of excitement and eagerness never failed to appear in the small shop.
On this particular day, Deborah was forced to work alongside John after an abrupt exit earlier from the new leader of the family. Since the Shelby men's return from the war, they were quick to slot themselves back into their usual tasks. This left the women of the family thrown aside for household tasks and 'female business', despite their impressive efforts in keeping the betting shop up and running during the difficult few years. Of course the men couldn't handle it on their own for very long and were soon looking for aid from their female family members.
This lead Deborah to her current predicament, arguing with sexist and stubborn men who couldn't comprehend the fact they has lost their weeks savings. It most definitely wasn't an easy job but it kept her busy and away from the cooking and cleaning. Most days were the same old thing, unfortunately today just wasn't that easy.
With a yell of her name from the back office, Deborah glared at Dusty Bill, who had called her a 'damn housemaid' too many times in one sentence, before giving him the famous finger and stomping off towards the back of the shop. She wasn't surprised to see the eldest Shelby pacing the old wooden floors of his office and muttering curses to himself. It wasn't an usual sight but this time it seemed his frustrations weren't towards the business.
"Bloody Tommy." Arthur snapped, before a harmless chair was kicked across the room in anger.
Thomas Shelby, of course he was the problem. Recently anywhere that man went trouble followed and he enjoyed every minute of it. In the last couple of months, since all the men's return from the war, Tommy had taken it upon himself to take business matters into his own hands. When the company was ripped away from the women of the family, Arthur was expected to take over. Unfortunately for poor Arthur, Tommy had the brains and personality to take the business in another direction - that's when the trouble arrived.
Deborah leaned her shoulder against the door frame and sighed. "What did that chair ever do to you?" She joked, getting great joy seeing the vein over Arthur's right eye pulse again with anger.
"I'm fucking sick of it. You're all driving me towards my death!" He snapped, while running a hand through his long greasy strands of hair. "That fucking idiot was spotted down at the Garrison Court. He was doing the powder trick, fixing races."
That took Deborah by surprise, she never thought she'd see any of them chance their arm at that kind of risky business. Small Heath was a small town and Tommy poking his nose into the races will bring about a whole different, dangerous kind of group from all parts of England.
"What the fuck was he thinking?" She questioned, more to herself than Arthur.
"I haven't a fucking clue but I'll beat the answer out of him if I have to." The man huffed, fists clenched to prove his point.
This is when the women had to step into men's business. Moving further into the room and shutting the door, Deborah approached Arthur. "That's the last thing you're going to do. The only way Tommy will tell us what he's up to is if we catch him in the act." She explained. "Don't go accusing him of shit until I have this figured out." Was the final warning before she left the office.
Now all she had to do was make sure Arthur and Tommy avoided crossing paths until she learnt more about this powder trick. Unfortunately, she didn't even make it to her jacket and purse before the sound of John calling Tommy's name announced his presence. Not only did she not want to break up another Shelby brother argument, but she also didn't fancy being in Tommy Shelby's presence. Deborah just prayed she made it out the door without any interruptions.
"Hey Deb! Where do you think you're off to?" John yelled through the shop, causing the once loud chatter to come to a sudden halt.
Just as she turned to face the loudest brother, someone unexpected spoke up. "What's she doing here?" Tommy questioned or more like demanded to know.
John looked a bit unsure of the current situation but of course answered his dear brother - probably out of fear. "Deb's been helping out with placing bets and running numbers." He revealed, avoiding the piercing blue eyes staring him down. "We needed an extra hand, especially with the plan you came up with."
"We don't need the women's help." Tommy spoke, voice smooth but there was a punch behind his words.
Deborah immediately scoffed and shook her head. "You weren't saying that when you were all stuck in trenches." She snapped, referring to the dark days the men spent in the war.
The other men in the shop watched on in astonishment and terror as the two ex-lover's glared darkly at one another from across the room. It was the most interaction they had seen between the two since before the war and it definitely wasn't anything like how they were.
"We're back now and the men can handle the business. Stick to drinking your tea and sowing your dresses." Tommy told her before turning his back to her.
Deborah tried to keep her mouth shut but it was no use when she felt her blood begin to boil. "Maybe instead I'll head down to Garrison Court, find myself a witch and a horse." She threatened.
Almost immediately Tommy froze and snapped his head around to face her. They both knew she would catch him out and expose him to the real terrifying member of the family - Polly.
"Bye John, see you here tomorrow morning." Deborah said, eyes locked on Tommy's.
She didn't wait for any replies before she was out the door and throwing her jacket on. When the green door shut behind her, Tommy's voice boomed before the chatter of the customers started up again.
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It wasn't a surprise when a family meeting was called later that evening by Arthur. There was no choice on attending, each member of the family had to attend or there was consequences, usually from Polly. They were usually filled with orders from the men and nods from the women who had long given up on voicing their opinions on the matters.
"Right, I've called this family meeting because I've got some very important news." Arthur's booming voice broke the silence in the room. "Scudboat and Lovelock got back from Belfast last night. They were buying a stallion to cover their mares. They were in a pub on the Shankhill Road yesterday, and in that pub, there was a copper handing out these."
Everyone grabbed the sheet of paper Scudboat and Lovelock handed out to them. Ada didn't bother taking one, instead leaned closer to Deborah's side to read her's.
"If you're over five feet and can fight, come to Birmingham." John read out loud.
"They're recruiting Protestant Irishmen to come over here as Specials." Arthur explained, noticing his family's furrowed eyebrows.
Ada looked lost with the topic of conversation. "To do what?" She questioned in confusion.
"To clean up the city, Ada. He's the a Chief Inspector. The last four years he's been clearing the IRA out of Belfast." Tommy explained.
Deborah eyed the man suspiciously. "How do you know so much?" She asked him, curious to why he hadn't mentioned anything sooner.
Tommy didn't seem surprised with Deborah's question. "'Cos I asked the coppers on our payroll." He replied, eyes locked with hers.
"And why didn't you tell me?" Arthur spoke up, glaring at his younger brother.
"I'm telling you." Tommy raised an eyebrow at the older man.
"So why are they sending him to Birmingham?" Polly turned to Tommy, while examining the paper in closer detail.
"Well, there's been all these bloody strikes at the BSA and the Austin works lately." At Tommy's words, Deborah felt Ada freeze beside her. "Now the papers are talking about sedition. And revolution. I reckon it's Communists he's after."
As Polly asked Tommy another question about the copper, Deborah glanced at Ada and gently shoved her knee. "What happened?" She mouthed to her friend, who in reply shook her head and looked away.
"Yeah but we ain't IRA." John argued. "We bloody fought for the King. Anyway, we're Peaky Blinders. We're not scared of coppers." Arthur nodded in agreement with his brother. "If they come for us, we'll cut them a smile each.
Tommy tapped his foot impatiently and looked around. "So, Arthur is that it?" He asked.
This was the first time since before the war the family sniffed trouble. Usually it was always something they could handle but as Deborah eyed Tommy, she knew he was keeping something from them all. There was more to this visit than they knew.
Arthur turned to his aunt for confirmation, leaning on her as usual. "What do you think, Aunt Pol?"
"This family does everything open." She reminded them. "You've nothing more to say to this meeting, Thomas?"
Tommy stared at his aunt as he shook his head. "No. Nothing that's women's business."
Deborah once again scoffed as this topic came to light yet again that day. "This again, Thomas? This whole fucking enterprise was women's business while you boys were at war. What changed?"
The rest of the family watched silently as the ex-lover's stared one another down with fire in their eyes. They were both beyond stubborn and too passionate about what they believed in so there was no chance of intervening. However, they were aware of the affect that the words that came out of Tommy's mouth next would have on Deborah.
"We came back."
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The giggles sounding through the house were an uncommon occurrence in the dreary and misty town, except when there were three particular ladies put together. The group included Deborah, Ada and the lovely Nancy Croft and by most of the towns people they were known as the troublesome trio. Soon after Deborah was welcomed into the Shelby family, she ran made friends with the quiet girl next door with pigtails and pink dresses she adored. They were identical in age and their personalities were perfect one another. While one was strong willed and fearless from her traumatic childhood, the other was timid and shy from years of protection from the harsh world they grew up in. The perfect duo.
Once Ada became old enough to gossip about makeup, dresses and boys, she was soon welcomed to the friendship. However, Deborah and Nancy couldn't trust anyone else the way they trusted each other. Their bond was unbreakable despite the heavy involvement Deborah had in the Shelby business. While Nancy disagreed with the family's ways of earning a living, she would never abandon her dearest friend. She especially stood by Deborah's side after the men returned from war and Tommy Shelby teared her heart into pieces. They were each other's forever.
The three woman were sprawled across Nancy's bed as they all complained about the men in their lives. Deborah had just finished her weekly rant about how she dreamed of smothering a certain steel blue eyed Shelby once again. It was all just jokes and thoughts they would only dream sharing with each other but it definitely eased their minds.
"I want to hear more about our little Ada and Freddie Thorne." Nancy slyly threw into the conversation. The two older women smirked and eyed their friend.
Ada's mouth dropped and eyes widened at the Croft girl's words, shocked to know her secret was revealed. "Deb, you bitch!" Ada cursed, before flinging a cushion towards her adopted older sister.
Dodging the incoming attack, the tan skinned woman cackled in delight. "I didn't say a word." She lied, her growing grin showing the truth.
"How else would she know?" Ada yelled, still processing what was happening.
"Oh please Ada, you're not exactly subtle about it." Deborah told her, as she gestured towards the younger woman's neck.
The Shelby sister gasped in shock and placed a hand over the darkening bruise that peaked out from her hair. Deborah wasn't exaggerating, Ada and Freddie hadn't been careful the last few weeks. They were lucky no one had caught on yet, especially Tommy. His opinion on his old friend was nothing deemed brother-in-law material since they returned from the war. If he knew what his sister was doing, or who, he would have him shot and thrown to the bottom of the river.
"You need to be careful, Ada." Nancy sighed, ending their jokes. "If Tommy catches word of this, who knows what he'll bloody do."
"Shoot him." Deborah mutters, although her words were clear in the quietening room.
Ada shook her head and stood from the bed. She didn't say anything as she scanned through Nancy's wardrobe for a dress. "I know what I'm doing. Freddie's a good man." She assured them.
"We know that Ada, you just need to know what you're getting yourself into." Deborah reminds her, ensuring she didn't sound too harsh.
"I know exactly what I'm getting myself into. I just need you both to trust me." The younger woman begged, turning to her friends.
Almost in sync Deborah and Nancy glanced at each other before nodding. "Of course Ada, this stays between us." Nancy promised, speaking on behalf of them both.
With a sigh Deborah stood up and approached her friend and sister. "I just want what's best for you." Deborah smiled sadly.
"And that's Freddie." Ada said before pulling Deborah in for a tight hug.
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The following morning, after successfully sneaking Ada back in the house earlier, Deborah decided to stop into the Garrison on her way back from the market. Polly had sent her off for fresh eggs after little Finn used them all on old Mr. Harlow's windows the other day. Deborah didn't mind the journey through the town, it gave her time to herself which was very limited these days. The only downside was the looks she received at every corner and the forced 'good mornings' from those who feared the 'deadly' Peaky Blinders.
She was close to snapping at the next person who stopped completely while she passed, when the sound of soft singing coming from inside the Garrison. It wasn't usual to hear any kind of live music in the town since the Shelby men banned it. They said it reminded them too much of their last night before the war.
Deborah creeped in the back door and stood quietly as she observed the owner of the pub, Harry, and a pretty blonde woman. Once the song had come to an end, Deborah stepped out from behind the bar and applauded. The noise startled Harry who jumped and snapped his head towards her, as did the women by his side. Deborah took a moment to observe the mysterious woman, she was blonde, obviously pretty and dressed in green from head to toe.
At the sight of Deborah, Harry's eyes widened and he immediately began stuttering an apology. "Miss Gray, I'm very sorry! S-she just started singing. Please don't tell the men." The older man pleaded.
Stepping out from behind the bar, Deborah approached the pair and placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. "It's alright Harry, I'm not going to tell the lads." She assured him, before turning back to the woman. "You have a gorgeous voice."
"Thank you." An Irish accent was evident in her tone. "My names Grace, I'm here to apply for the job as a barmaid." The woman, Grace, explained.
Harry rushed to shake his head and turn back towards the powerful woman. "I told her already, she won't be able to handle them, Miss Gray." Harry interrupted, noticing the brunettes furrowing eyebrows.
Deborah could feel Grace's eyes scanning her from top to toe. The golden skinned woman didn't need to stare the other down to know there was more to her that met the eye. "Well we won't know unless we give her a try, right Harry?" She finally spoke, patting the man's back in warning.
Even without owning a cent of the pub, the Shelby family had final say over everything in the town of Small Heath.
"Congratulations Grace, you're hired."
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During her lunch break from the betting shop, Deborah returned to the pub to check on the new face in town. While it seemed to Grace like a friendly gesture to check in, anyone else would know Deborah was digging for more information. Anyone knew to the town were already warned of the power the Peaky Blinders held but this woman was up to something if she hadn't ran away by now.
While Deborah perched herself by the corner of the bar, away from the many loud men filling the Garrison, Grace poured her a glass of whiskey. The blonde woman didn't hide her gaze as she stared openly at the ring that adored the stunning brunette's right index finger.
"It was my mother's." Deborah spoke up, taking the woman in front of her by surprise.
Grace cleared her throat and awkwardly fidgeted with the glasses across the bar. "I'm very sorry for your loss." She said.
"Don't be, it was years ago." Deborah shrugged, swinging back the whiskey. "I've been through too much since then to dwell on the past."
Knowing well it was time to change the topic of conversation, Grace gestured towards the crowds of rowdy men. "Is it always this busy in daytime?" Grace questioned, while rapidly filling glasses.
"No. These boys are on their way to St. Andrews." Harry spoke up, joining the women's conversation as he filled Deborah's glass.
"To pray?" Grace asked in disbelief.
Deborah chuckled and shook her head. "That'll be the day."
"St. Andrew's is a football ground. The Blues are playing." Harry continued. "That's the forward line there. And that's the goalie, believe it to not."
The small window beside Deborah's head snapped open, revealing Tommy Shelby in the private room. "Hello!" Tommy yelled over the sound of men's chatting.
Grace approached the impatient man, while Deborah decided to keep her distance and return her attention to the full glass of whiskey in her hand.
Once Tommy was handed the bottle of whatever he need, she expected him to leave, but she was surprised to see him turn to her. "Why aren't you at the shop?" He questioned.
The young woman scoffed as she stood from the stool. "I thought you didn't want the women working there." She reminded him, demeanour hard and cold.
"I would rather see you there than in here with these crowds of men." He said, taking her by surprise.
Of course, Deborah made sure she showed no reaction to her words. "Careful Tommy, you're showing emotion." She hissed before turning to leave.
Tommy stopped her before she could. "Arthur was beaten by the coppers, Polly and Ada are patching him up back at home." He explained, watching the women's eyes widen.
Ignoring his sudden change in topic, Deborah's mind was now focused on getting to Arthur. She flew out the doors and bolted her way down Watery Lane and towards the house.
Grace, who had been watching the exchange between the women and man, watched as the two fled from the pub. Their interaction had caught her attention and the obvious tension between the two was interesting. She turned to Harry, who was still busy at work.
"He's the one you were talking about?" She questioned, eyes still fixed on the doors.
She recalled the gang that Harry had informed her all about, although unknown to him, she already knew everything about the Shelby family and their gang. "What was that about? Between that woman and him."
"Polly Gray, the Shelby's aunt, found Deborah on the street when she was young and took her in. She's now apart of the Shelby family and many know her as Polly's adoptive daughter." Harry began. "She's like a sister to the men since they were kids but Tommy and her were young and in love. They were to marry when he returned from the war but suddenly they started acting like that."
"He wasn't the man he once was?" Grace mumbled to herself, although Harry heard.
"Afraid not." He sighed. "Look Grace, Deborah's a nice women but don't forget she is apart of the Peaky Blinders. If they ask for anything, you do it without complaint. Just stay out of their way."
In the meantime, Deborah rushed into the Shelby home. "Let me see him." She announced, crouching in front of a bloody Arthur.
"Thank God Deb's here." John breathed. "Ada over here thought she was a bloody doctor."
Deborah chuckled and grabbed the warm towel Tommy had coated with alcohol and placed it on the side of Arthur's face. "All Ada did was take one bloody first aid course down in the church."
"Better then you." Ada snapped over the sound of her family's laughing.
"He said Mr. Churchill sent him to Birmingham." Arthur spoke up, looking towards Tommy as Deborah continued to clean his face. "National interest, he said. Something about a robbery. He said he wants us to help him."
"We don't help coppers." John reminded him.
"He knew all about our war records." Arthur continued, still staring at a silent Tommy. "He said we're patriots like him. He wants us to be his eyes an ears. I said we'd have a family meeting and take a vote." The room was silent. "Well, why not? We've no truck with Fenians or Communists. What's wrong with you?"
Deborah stared at Tommy, noticing the distant look in his eyes. There was something going on with him and he had decided to keep it from his family and most importantly his brothers. From what Deborah had gathered from the way Polly acted, she knew something and the young women was going to find out exactly what was going on.
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Edited!!
Chapter one all finished. It is long but be warned each chapter will be a different length depending on the episode.
I'm so excited to write this fanfic, I love Cillian Murphy and his character Tommy Shelby. I hope you guys can love and support it also!