"To make it certain that you will obey me on the given day... I needed also the power of life an' death over your family, an' that I now have. Your brother, your cousin... and your sister."

At the mention of Ada, his eyes bore into the inspector. "I've known her address in Primrose Hill since the day she moved in... I know Ms. Cardone lives with her, and how she has kept an eye on Mr. Solomons for you... Now, they are safe... but only for as long as I want them to be. I've been ahead of you every step of the way."

His base in London was suddenly in shambles. Both Arthur and Michael were imprisoned under false charges, Polly was livid beyond measure, and now Ada and Evie were being threatened. This Inspector Campbell was becoming a larger pain in his side with every passing day. Not only that, but now he had control in places Tommy couldn't overpower him in as easily as he wanted to. It was infuriating. Ten of the men they put in Camden town were arrested, their vans were impounded, the warehouses locked, even the Eden Club along with all their others were handed back to Sabini and Solomons. Something had to be done about it, quickly. He knew that more than any of them because Campbell not only threatened his family, but went back on their deal. The bets were off. He wasn't going to play games anymore. But for right now, tonight, he would wait for Grace to come knocking.

Not even a day after Tommy's visit did they receive a phone call from another Shelby brother.

"Hello hello." the Brummie accent of the eldest brother ran loud and clear in her ear. A smile appeared on her face once recognizing the voice she heard. "Arthur! To what do I owe this pleasure?"

Arthur had, of course, asked how she, Ada, and Karl were, but soon began to boast about how they almost effortlessly swiped the Eden Club out of Sabini's grasp, then ironically switching to a less thrilled tone after he finished talking about his successes. He admitted to having trouble managing himself while also managing the club he was given ownership over. Evie, feeling unusually ambitious as she was that night, offered to help him run the place as he attempted to regain control of his substance use; something she actually scolded him for. It sounded impractical, yes, but she wasn't one to be overzealous, and she wouldn't offer if she didn't think she could do it. Evie knew what it took to run a social den such as the Eden. It was how her father met her mother, as well as something she grew up around in her early years. Elizabeth Macintyre-Cardone ran one of the classiest clubs in Stirling, Scotland for years, and when Evie was born, she carried her firstborn around like the proudest mother anyone had ever seen. It was only when her younger siblings the twins, Amelia and Charlie, were born that Evie stopped coming along with her mother. Granted, the Eden club wasn't nearly as refined as her mother's, but the same basic principles were there.

Although nearly a week later, as she had the papers she was given by Arthur to sign, they received another phone call. Tommy was struggling to keep his voice from sounding frantic, but nevertheless, he spoke hurriedly. Without reason, he demanded that she, Ada, and Karl come back to Birmingham immediately. However his sister managed to get the answer out of him after Evie handed the phone over to her. The Eden was no longer in Arthur's possession. He, along with Michael, were in prison awaiting two different punishments. It seemed London and Birmingham had switched roles, because now she and Ada stayed comfortably in Polly's home until further notice. And Tommy, with their granted permission, was now waiting in their home for a familiar Irish friend.

When she heard the door open it had been well past late. Evie didn't bother moving for about half an hour, until she remembered how long Polly had been out beforehand. With a huff she rose from the comfortable position on her bed, heading down the stairs to the main room. Once opening the door she saw Polly, but she was in a bath rather than her earlier clothes as Evie had expected.

"Where've you been?" She asked, walking over to the couch to curl up. Polly looked over to her with a hazy gaze. "I went to the Spotted Dog in Digbeth," She said, slowly pushing a wet piece of hair away from her face, "for a glass or two of rum."

"Was it one or two?"

"Three." She admitted. "Where's Ada and the baby?"

"They're both asleep. Ada ended up singing herself to sleep after finally getting Karl to drift off," Evie answered, slightly smiling as she noticed Polly's phased out movements. "Looks more like five."

Polly hummed, slowly bringing her arm over the edge of the tub to rest her chin on top. "It was more like six." She let out a short, breathy laugh before reaching for the cigarette placed on a little table next to her. "Have you met the maid?"

Evie nodded. "Yes... Ada began talking politics and practically bored the poor thing to death. So she went to bed as well."

Polly hazily laughed at what she heard, taking another drag of her cigarette. Evie cleared her throat slightly. "I phoned James a while ago... He said he'd take Arthur's case for free..." She paused noticing Polly's continuously growing far off look. "Pol are you sure you're alright? I can get you somethin' if you need it."

"Christ you sound exactly like your mother." She mumbled lightheartedly.

Evie's gaze softened. "I do, do I?"

"Mm... when we were neighbors she'd never hesitate to let me know I could come to her for anything."

"Well you can with me as well." She assured her with a small smile, staying silent for a moment until she remembered what she was originally going to tell her. "Since James agreed to take Arthur's case for free, we don't need Tommy's help. He can get Michael free for us too, I know it."

"There's no need. They let 'im out in the morning." Polly said, nearly interrupting her. Evie was taken aback by how quickly she responded, suddenly broken out of the haze she was in a second ago before melting right back into it. "If the baby needs anything in the night just ring the bell by your bed and tell 'er to go to Ada. She gets paid to work twenty-four hours, that girl, she's getting lazy... well... takes advantage if you're nice, anyway."

Evie turned her gaze down to the floor. "Pol... when I say you can come to me with anything I mean it. Even if I don't understand some things."

Polly turned her head slowly over to look at her again. She smiled fondly. "Sweet girl... I know." She said quietly.

Evie gave her a half smile, slowly standing from the couch to head back upstairs. She was tired, and Polly looked that way too. Although Evie knew her well enough to leave her be. There was something more than the six glasses of rum affecting her, or at least she thought, but it wasn't something she wanted to push at. Polly was more reserved than she and Tommy combined, and her outbursts were worse. She never thought holding things in was wise, even if she did it herself sometimes, but there were moments when that was the best choice. Evie assumed this was one of them.

"I don't like this Tommy."

She could hear him scoff on the other end of the telephone. "When 'ave you ever liked one of my plans?" He asked. She blinked. "Good point... anyway how do you know you'll even get Alfie to agree to this?"

"With my persuasive skills of course." He deadpanned.

"Right, I'd like to see you do that."

"You will, cus you're gonna be there with me."

It wasn't long before the end of May approached and the Blinders plans were finally put out. Derby day was here, and all of Hell's devils were attending with them. Evie was, thankfully, not going, but her nerves were wrecked regardless of where she would be. This was one of the times she actually agreed with the Shelby brothers protectiveness and complied to stay home. Her part to play involved convincing Alfie to side with them again, and that was it. She and Tommy would part ways for the day once it was done.

"For the next fifteen minutes, you don't do or say anything I 'aven't told ya, alright? Evie's comin' in after us." Silence. "Alright?"

He pushed, regaining James's attention with a chorus of yeses as they approached the doors of Alfie's warehouse. "Hello Ollie." He greeted rather cheerfully, walking right past him.

At his acknowledgment, Ollie looked up, not wavered by the sight of Tommy but taken aback by the company he brought with him. "Hang on." He called out, stopping Tommy in his tracks. "Just you yeah? He stays out here."

Tommy nodded curtly. "You stay out here." He repeated to James, following Ollie inside.

The walk to Alfie's office was lengthy as per usual, but it wasn't long before he sat across from the man in silence until the phone on his desk rang. "That'll probably be for you, won't it." Alfie stated rather than questioned, never looking up from his papers. With a sigh Tommy stood, taking the telephone from its stand and pressing it to his ear. As expected, Arthur's voice could be heard on the other side. Their conversation was brief, the only words he spoke confirmed that his brother was out of jail, and soon the phone was back in its place.

"Right, so that'll be your side o' the street swept up won't it?" Alfie began, tapping the newspaper in his hand. "Where's mine?... What you got for me?"

"Before we begin that, I'd like to wait til my associate arrives."

"An' 'ow long before this associate gets here, cos I 'aven't got all day mate."

Tommy gave him a small smile. "Any minute now... Ollie, why don't you go meet them outside?"

The other man stiffened, looking to Alfie for an answer, however his boss simply stroked his beard in thought, eventually waving him off to do as Tommy suggested.

"Evie I swear if you don't tell me what my brother's dragged James into—"

Ada was pressed, nagging her friend about the 'cause' James mentioned before leaving with Tommy without a moments notice. "Ada calm down! Honestly, he's only making James stand there. Now I have to go, I'll explain everything later, alright?"

She didn't give Ada enough time to respond, because by then she was already out the door. The warehouse was within walking distance, but with Campbell's flaunting of his newly gained authority, Evie was forced to take a car. And when she arrived, James was outside like expected, with Ollie standing just in front of the doors.

"Hello Ollie." She said cheerfully, soon raising her brow. "I assume Tommy told you he was expecting me?"

The man narrowed his eyes, letting his mouth open slightly. "Um, yes... in fact not even three minutes ago."

James peaked up from his gaze on the ground momentarily to smirk at the situation. Evie fleetingly looked over to her lodger, letting a happy, closed smile come across her face. "Good! I'll follow you then."

He blinked, shaking his head slightly in confusion. "Alright." He mumbled, waving her along. The pair walked through the bakery in a leisurely manner, neither hurrying or being sluggish until Evie felt a tug under her shoe. The ones she chose to wear were laced, therefore difficult to keep on. She huffed in annoyance, kneeling close to a barrel to retie it quickly before standing again to continue their walk. Once approaching Alfie's office, Ollie opened the door for her to enter.

"There they are." She announced, catching the attention of both gangsters.

Alfie rubbed his beard, suddenly finding irony in the situation. "Fuckin 'ell." He mumbled. "This one's the associate you were talkin' about?"

Tommy ignored his question, breaking his stare away from the man across the desk once Evie came to stand beside him. "You got it?"

Evie nodded, taking a folded piece of paper from her coat and handing it down to him. Tommy unfolded the contract, soon handing it over to Alfie while explaining the fine print. They had been well aware of how he had struck a deal with Sabini for a while now, and knew getting him back on their side was crucial if the plan for Epsom was going to work. Transferring over twenty percent of the Shelby business was a large part of this, and agreeing to it was what assured them he would come back over to their favor. However, after explaining everything on the contract, Alfie was bold enough to reveal another document, ensuring the entirety of Tommy's business went over to him rather than just twenty percent. Tommy was equally bold at that moment, calling the information he just received 'funny', even though it was clear in his expression that he was angered.

"Yeah," Alfie confirmed, feeling much more serious about the whole thing.

"Why?"

Almost like a reflex, Ollie raised his arm, pointing a gun directly towards Tommy's head. Evie raised her brow, but stared at him blankly, somewhat expecting him to do so after noticing his nervous manner. Alfie was surprisingly taken aback a bit by his right hand's sudden actions. "Ollie no, no no.." He said, bringing the man's armed hand down. "Put that down. He understands, he understands."

Alfie then proceeded to take the gun away, plopping it onto his desk. "He's a big boy, he knows the road. Now look it's just non-fuckin' negotiable. That is all you need to know, so all you 'ave to do is sign the fucking contract. Right there."

"Just sign 'ere?"

"With ya pen."

"I understand."

"Good. Get on with it."

"Well, I 'ave another associate waiting for me at the door." Tommy began, shifting his hands over the papers. "I know he looks like a choir boy but, he is actually an anarchist... from Kentish Town."

Evie hummed. "Lovely boy, but he does like to raise a little disorder now an' again."

"Tommy, I am going to fuckin' shoot you, right?" He deadpanned, looking over to Evie. "Not you though, love. Ya too pretty for that."

Tommy narrowed his eyes. "Now when you came in Evie, you stopped to tie your shoelace. Am I right?"

"How'd you fuckin' know that when she came in 'ere a while after you?"

Evie nodded, ignoring Alfie's question. "I did. Little buggers these lace-up shoes are... Isn't that a fact Ollie? I stopped to tie my shoelace." All she got in response was silence as Ollie opened his mouth in confusion. "And while I was doing it," She continued, "I laid a hand grenade under one of your barrels."

Now it was Tommy's turn to nod. "You see, my friend upstairs is like one of those anarchists that blew up Wall Street, you know? He's a professional, and he's in charge of the wire." He paused, letting his words sink in. "To put it plainly Mr. Solomons, if we don't walk out that door by the stroke of seven, our friend will trigger the grenade... an' your very combustible rum will blow us all to hell... and I don't care, cos I'm already dead."

Alfie began stroking his beard once again, turning his gaze over to Evie. "An' you don't care that you'll be dead?"

She stared at him blankly. "Do you think I'd be here if I did?"

Ollie began to show his panic. "She tied her lace Aflie, and there is a kid at the door."

"From a good family too, Ollie. It's shocking what they become—"

"What were you doin' when this 'appened?" Alfie asked his right hand, but only received the same answer, so he asked again. Ollie hesitated. "Marking the runners in the paper."

Tommy pulled out his pocket watch, checking the time as the gun on the desk was taken back. Alfie handed over the weapon to Ollie, ordering him to go shoot James outside. Evie's stare hardened. "If anyone walks through that door except the two of us, he blows the grenade." She said, only causing Ollie to stress more, confirming again that she did, in fact, tie her lace.

Alfie took the gun away from his grasp once more. "I bet, a hundred to one, that you're fuckin' lyin' love. That's my money."

"Well, see, you've failed to consider the form... I did blow up my own pub. For the insurance." Tommy interjected.

The atmosphere of the room shifted for the worse, pushing Alfie to drop his offer down to sixty-five percent. Tommy rejected it. Now Ollie was panicking, swearing he saw Evie tie her lace and that she must've planted a grenade. "Alfie he's Tommy fucking Shelby—"

Now he had enough. Alfie stood to his feet, slapping Ollie in the face before grabbing at his shirt. "You are behavin' like a fuckin' child. This is a man's world... Now take that apron off an' sit in the corner like a little boy. Fuck off, now."

Evie sighed. "The chalk mark on the barrel said 'Hamilton Christmas'. I took out the pin and put it on the wire." Her hand slipped into her coat once again, pulling out the very pin she was talking about and handing it over to Alfie. He stared at her for a moment, but then took the pin which hanged from her finger, inspecting it.

"Based on this... forty-five percent."

"Thirty."

"Oh fuck off Tommy, that's far too little."

"In France Mr. Solomons, when I was a tunneller— a clay kicker, a one-seventy-nine —I blew up Schwaben Hole... Same kit I'm using today."

"I do know the one-seventy-nine, and I 'eard they all got buried."

"Three of us dug ourselves out."

"Like you're diggin' yourself out now?"

Tommy nodded. The expression on Alfie's face shifted, and eventually, he agreed to thirty-five percent.

Once stepping out of the bakery doors, Evie patted James's shoulder, bringing him out of his daydream. The lodger followed suit, looking at both of them with a questionable stare as they walked along. "Right," Tommy halted in his tracks, "You go with 'er back to Ada's." He said, pointing over to James. "I don't want either of you taking any chances. Your jobs are done for the day."

Evie smirked. "Tell Arthur we better get our club back after all this's over." She joked.

Tom huffed in amusement. "Go get in your car. I don't pay the man over-time."

She smiled, pushing James along as Tommy went in the opposite direction, wherever John, Arthur, and the boys were waiting for him. The car was parked exactly where she left it, however the driver seemed to have fallen asleep as his cap was covering his eyes and his head was tilted down. Evie sighed, opening the door to slip into the front passenger seat while James climbed in the back. "We don't pay you to sleep, now wake up love." She said, without looking towards the driver.

Silence. "Hey, c'mon. My friend is expectin—" She was startled by the sight. No, the driver was not asleep, but dead in his seat with a strangle mark along his neck. Before either her or James could register what was going on, the car doors opened from the back. Evie heard a grunt, then suddenly felt a sharp sting against the side of her neck, like she had been stuck with a needle. A rough arm was wrapped around her shoulders, but that was all she could think of clearly before drifting, soon falling unconscious.

His telephone was suddenly ringing in a rather annoyingly loud manner. Who the fuck is callin' me at this hour? He thought. With a grunt, Alfie roughly threw down the paper he was reading to reach for the contraption. Before he could even register a greeting, a high, loud voice rang clearly through his ear. "Where the fuck are they?" The woman demanded rather than asked.

Alfie blinked dramatically, not liking the amount of noise that just went into his ear. "I'm sorry I couldn't understand what you were sayin' on account of your rather loud greetin' miss."

"Mr. Solomons, I'm Ada Shelby— my brother is Thomas Shelby. My friend Evie left our house this morning to meet him at your bakery and she hasn't returned since. Our lodger, James, came with my brother as well and he has yet to come back either. Now I know your business with Tommy isn't the friendliest but if you've done something with either of them as payback I swear I—"

"Now now now, 'old on, sweetheart, don't get in a fuss." Alfie interrupted, feeling overwhelmed by the amount of talking going on. "Yes Ms. Cardone an' that little man did come along with ya brother earlier today. In a rather unexpectedly threatening manner I must say, but the last time I saw any of 'em was when they all left my bakery together in one piece."

He could hear a frustrated huff on the other side of the telephone. "Well, do you have any idea where they might be?"

"I'm afraid I don't." He said in a matter-of-factly manner.

"Alright. Sorry to bother you Mr. Solomons." Before he could even answer, the line went dead. Alfie stared at the telephone in confusion, wondering why Tommy Shelby's sister would want to call him first. She probably had no other option, He thought. He began stroking his beard again, a habit he had recently formed, before looking back down at the contract which still rested on his desk. Tommy had mentioned the Epsom Derby at one point, so he knew he would be there today. But where would Evie an' that other little man be?

He didn't like the bad feeling that started forming in the pit of his stomach, knowing he was probably overthinking the situation. But if they had other business then that Shelby girl would've known, right? She knew about his meeting with them so if there was anything else they had to do, they were bound to have told her. Alfie sighed in frustration. "I'm gonna fuckin' regret this." He mumbled, standing from his desk. "Ollie!" He bellowed, causing the younger man to open his office door within seconds.

"What is it Alfie?"

"Grab ya gun. We're goin' on a little day trip." He said, striding over to the door.

Ollie narrowed his eyes. "To do what?"

"To find a Scot."