𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟏

All Maeve could think about on the way to the Garrison was two things. It was way too fucking early for this and the fact that Thea had ditched her and Max to speak to the barmaid.

She couldn't peice it together.

Maeve pushed the heavy Garrison door open and walked to the bar, freezing in her spot when she saw the blonde barmaid with her ear up against the small window that separated the bar from the snug. Grace's eyes widened and she cleared her throat.

"Excuse me?" Maeve asked, sitting upon a stood. Grace looked away, ashamed that a Shelby member had caught her eavesdropping on Tommy. "He'd kill you if he found out, y'know." Maeve said, folding her arms.

Grace avoided her gaze. "Get me a whiskey, please." Maeve asked. "You're too young, sorry." Grace shook her head, continuing to wipe the counter.

"Whats your name? Grace is it? Well mines Maeve. And i'm gathering you don't know who I am." Maeve said cockily, "if it helps, it's my uncle who's conversation you've just been listening in on. And i'm sure he wouldn't be too happy to find out." She smiled.

Grace's lips parted and she quickly took a glass and filled it with whiskey. "Thank you, Grace." Maeve nodded, taking it and sipping the amber liquid.

"You won't tell him?" Grace asked. Maeve shook her head, "I won't tell him. Because i've got a theory that you might've just confirmed. So, thank you Grace." Maeve said, biting back her grin.

Tommy soon joined them at the bar, two men leaving before him, one who was completely mad. "I thought you only liked singing on a Saturday." Grace said.

"Whiskey is good proofing water, tells you who is real and who isn't." He shrugged, blowing smoke out from his cigarette. "And what did my country men want?" Grace questioned.

"Oh, they're nobodies. They drink at the Black Swan in Sparkbrook. They're only rebels cause they like the songs-" he glanced at his niece and frowned, "bit early for you to be drinking." He noticed.

"Well, it's five o'clock somewhere."

Tommy chuckled and turned back to Grace. "You have sympathies with them?" She asked another question. "I have no sympathies of any description."

"Their accents were so thick it's a wonder you could understand them. Next time I could translate." She suggested. Maeve had to stop herself from laughing. "You'd work for me?" Tommy asked.

"I thought i already was."

"So you are coming to the races. Two pounds ten shillings." He pointed, placing the money on the table. "Buy something red."

"Hold on a minute," Maeve snapped, quickly standing and following him out the pub, "you said you'd take me the races, that's why I got out of bed- so i could come talk to you about it!" She said, feeling genuinly upset. "Uncle Tom, you promised."

"Sorry Maeve, i've got business. Next time."

"Next time, next time. Always bloody next time. You said you'd take me but instead you're taking that slaggy barmaid. Uncle Tom, it's not fair!" She argued. Tommy threw his cigarette to the floor and sighed.

He came to a halt and so did she. "Maeve, listen. You're not coming with me cause you're going with ya dad and John. You've got a job to do-"

"Thought you didn't like me getting involved."

"Yeah, well things are changing and you're one of the only people i can trust to get the job done." He raised his eyebrows. "I also thought you didn't like me getting into fights."

"Well this time, you're allowed. My permission. But only if it's necessary." Tommy grew slightly frustrated with the girl and continued walking. "So you're using me?" she accused, infuriated by his decision to pick a barmaid over his own niece.

"You could say that."

"This is why nobody likes you, uncle Tom." She hissed, her eyes fixed onto the cobble. He scoffed, "thanks Maeve."

"You think i'm joking," she whispered.

"Are you seriously this upset, Maeve?" Tommy asked, unlocking the door to the betting den. She huffed, "of course i'm this upset. You always promise me things and then don't keep the promise, i'm sick of it. I'm sick of you!"

Tommy pursed his lips into a straight line and watched her storm into the den, shoving past everyone and going into Arthur's office.

"What've you done?" Polly asked, looking up from the books. "He's taking a whore to the races after he promised to take me!" Maeve shouted from the office before he could reply. Polly shook her head, "one day that girl is gonna kill you." Polly pointed a finger at him, "and you won't even see it coming."

-

Theadosia had been meeting Grace Burgess. Grace Burgess was an agent who worked for the crown. Ever since Thea came home from London, her one mission was to take down the Shelby family.

Why? She had no reason. Her reason was the anger and jealousy she had toward Maeve because she was in love with a boy. It was clear Thea was insane, it's just nobody had noticed yet. Thea was so unstable she felt that to have Maeve, she needed to destroy her family. And the second she heard about the stolen guns, she came back to Birmingham.

You see, her father had known a cavalry officer before he died. That cavalry officer just so happened to be Grace's father. And Theadosia's dad too worked in the police force and was friends with an Inspector Campbell. The same inspector that had been sent from Belfast to investigate Thomas Shelby.

Theadosia had somehow heard about this whole thing and took it upon herself to strike a deal with the barmaid that whatever information she could get from Maeve would go straight to her.

She knew what she was doing was wrong but quite frankly she didn't care. She envied Maeve Shelby for being able to have what she wanted with her, with a boy. Maeve had everything she ever wanted. The attention off boys, confidence, a dad. A good family.

Well maybe not a good family. But a family that cared for her.

So here she was, trying her best to destroy everything Maeve had ever known.

"Do you have anything?" Grace asked discreetly as she cleaned the glasses. Thea looked over her shoulder once more to ensure that Maeve or Max weren't around. "Unfortunately no, but the second i do, you'll be the first to know."

"We don't have time to wait, Theadosia, how do you not know anything yet?"

"Because neither does Maeve. When she knows something, she tells me. So trust me, soon enough something will happen and she'll tell me."

"If you're sure."

"I'm positive." Thea muttered, tapping her fingers on to the bar.

-

Maeve looked up from her newspaper when Tommy joined her and Polly in the kitchen. "All right," He said.

"Are you armed?" Polly asked. He took his hat off and stared at her, "no."

"Then i'll tell you," Polly looked at Maeve. "Ada and Freddie Thorne were married today, they defied your orders and haven't left the city."

Maeve placed the paper down and Tommy leaned over the table. "I'll deal with it. Thomas, i'll deal with it."

"Where are they?"

"Freddie's comrades have safe houses- why do you want to know?" Polly frowned. "I want to send them flowers- why do you think?" He scoffed.

"Would it be so bad if they stayed?" Maeve spoke up.

"I promised i'd run Freddie out of town." He whispered. "Promised who?" Polly asked. Tommy looked down at Maeve and she looked at them cluelessly. "What?" Maeve asked.

"Go find ya dad, tell him he needs to come home." Polly said calmly to the girl who rolled her eyes before leaving the betting den. "Ello Scudboat," she greeted the older man who sat doing the books.

"Ello, Maeve. How're you?" He asked, not looking up from the book. "I'm good, sick and tired of this family though. They're all treating me like a child," she took her coat off the hook.

"You'll get used to it." He assured her.

"Yeah, cause i want to get used to it." She scoffed, closing the door behind her and cringing at the way the cold stung her face.

She knew for a fact Arthur would be at the gym so that's where she went. But what she didn't expect to see was an empty gym, only a few men sat smoking. "D'ya know where me dad it?" She asked them.

"He didn't come in today," one said, sipping a flask. She bit her tongue and took one last look at the empty room before going to the second place he'd be. Church.

And to her surprise, by the time she'd got here, Tommy had beaten her to it. And instead of interrupting, she leaned against the wall and listened.

"People keep asking me questions I don't know the answer to," He began. He'd been crying. "Is it true your Ada got married? Say i don't know. Where's she living now? Dunno. Arthur, who killed the Paddy from the black swan. And i go what Paddy?" He paused.

Maeve watched sadly. "They say, is it you Peaky Blinders who stole the guns from the BSA." Arthur looked at Tommy, "what guns, Tommy."

"Arthur, after your beating i thought you needed a break."

"What bloody guns, Tommy!" Arthur shouted, his voice echoing and making Maeve jump. "I was gonna tell ya-"

"You was gonna tell me?"

"Arthur," Tommy grabbed him by his shirt, "listen to me. You've had a hard time these past few years, God knows you have. You deserve some rest. We had some luck, some bloody luck. It fell off a wagon into our laps and all you need to know is it is us that has the machine guns and them in the mud. All right?"

Arthur's breath was shaky and he looked away, holding onto the chair in front of him. "Come on, I have a surprise for you." Tommy stood, walking out and leaving him.

Maeve quickly stepped behind the shelf as they both walked past, making sure she wasn't seen. Guns, what guns? Tommy had stole guns and the BSA was after them.

-

Maeve sat in front of the fire, listening as the front door closed. It was dark outside, two in the morning and her dad was only just coming home. He stopped in his tracks at the sight of her and hesitantly placed his jacket on the hook.

"What're you still doing up?" He asked, clearly drunk. "Couldn't sleep without knowing if you were okay." She didn't look at him.

Arthur frowned. "What're you talking about, eh? I'm always alright, always come home."

"I was in the church..when you spoke to Tommy. I heard everything." Maeve finally looked at him. His heart dropped. "I heard about the guns, i also heard talk from a few of the peaky boys that's you're not alright." Her voice was quiet. "What guns, dad?"

Arthur looked away and blinked a few times. "Listen, Maeve. You er..you weren't supposed to hear that."

"I know. But i did. And i want to know what's happened. You usually tell me everything, what's different about this? You've changed recently."

"What d'ya mean i've changed?" he scoffed.

"You don't talk anymore! You drink, come home at fuck o'clock in the morning. Dad, i can't remember the last time you acted like my father." She sniffed, her eyes brimming with tears.

That sentence was like a knife in the chest. "Maeve.."

"And i know that'll hurt you to hear but it hurts me to say it. I have gone through so much to protect your name but yet you can't even tell me something that might harm our family?" She questioned him. "How many times have i gotten into a fight because somebody has spoken down on your name?"

Arthur thought for a moment. "I- I can't remember." His voice cracked as a lump gathered in his throat.

"Exactly, i can't count on both my hands how many times because it's more than that. That's how much you mean to me. Dad, you're all i have."

"Maeve- just listen, eh. There's gonna be trouble. Some people might get hurt but I know just as much as you do. Guns were stolen, something to do with Tom and a robbery that went wrong." Arthur said, wiping his mouth.

"I know theres going to be trouble because I can fucking feel it! I've felt it ever since that cooper arrived in Small Heath. Dad i feel it!"

Arthur listened carefully as her voice grew louder. He knew that it wasn't the right time to get angry with her because none of this was her fault. It was his.

"Maeve, i'm sorry- i am. But there's nothing you can do. I know hardly anything. I'm just Artha fuckin Shelby who's the last to hear everything! All right? Nothing any of us can do. You don't understand-"

"Don't understand?" She scoffed. "You've got to be kidding me. Out of everyone, I understand. I lay awake every night wondering what if dad doesn't come home. Or sometimes it's what if he's done something like Tommy. Because you and I know that fucking flask you hold in your hand everyday is the biggest trouble of all." She stood, her mood suddenly shifting as well as her eyes.

Arthur noticed the way her eyes changed. She was no longer calm or sympathetic. But instead angered.

"That flask contributes to the war up here," she tapped her head. "And it's only you that can end that war. Nobody else."

Maeve shoved past him, heading for the stairs. "Maeve." He stated. She ignored him, "Maeve Lillian Shelby don't you walk up them stairs."

"Not the full name." She said sarcastically, not turning and walking up to the top. "I'm not looking for an argument, dad. Just for you to stop drinking so much. I want my dad back."

╚══ஓ๑♡๑ஓ══╝