Chapter 10

After finding herself running through the streets of Camden, she had finally arrived at Ada's front door. The note in Alfie's drawer told her everything she needed to know. There was a price on Thomas Shelby's head and she knew she had to warn him. Despite it meaning her going against her boss, she knew she didn't have a choice. Ada hadn't been able to provide her with much information to Tommy's whereabouts that day. All she knew was he was heading to Epsom the coming Wednesday as his horse was one of the runners.

Being unable to locate him prior to May 31st, she knew her only hope was to follow him to Epsom. Now, sitting on the train, her heart was pounding faster with each mile she grew closer to the racetrack, part of it racing for the worry she felt and the other – the thought of seeing Tommy again. She hadn't seen him since that fateful night and now, knowing what she knew, she wished she could take it back. She wished she could go back to that night and relive it and this time, she wouldn't push him away, she wouldn't let him go. She would allow him to do everything to her that she knew he wanted to do. She had been living in hell ever since that day and despite telling herself that she loved James, she knew she wasn't in love with him. And if she was honest with herself, she doubted she ever had been. It had been a marriage of convenience. Two of the most well-respected families in New York coming together was ideal, a match made in heaven. She couldn't deny James had been good to her, but he wasn't the man for her, and his behaviour over the last few weeks just further confirmed her suspicions. He had barely spoken to her, other than when they were out in public, and even then, it was strained. When he did finally speak to her, there was anger in his voice. Gone was the quiet, soft spoken man she married, and in his place was an angry, egotistical tyrant. She found most nights, she was crying herself to sleep but James, being in such a drunken stupor, never noticed anyway.

Now, she glanced around as she made her way through the crowds, drawing attention from the men she passed. She stood apart from many of the other women in her turquoise satin beaded dress. The dropped hemline suited her figure perfectly and her nude heels elongated her toned legs. Her blonde hair was curled tightly, grazing the tops of her shoulders and covered with a large black hat. Despite it almost being June, there was a slight chill in the air and she pulled the fur lapels of her long coat closer to her body. She made her way inside the bar, trying not to draw any additional attention to herself, her eyes scanned the room, desperately trying to locate him.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"She threw a shoe coming out of the box."

Tommy walked towards the horse, reaching his hand out to gently graze her neck, his ever present cigarette hanging from his lips.

"Hey." He spoke softly to her. "She looks in fine shape." He called to no one in particular. Making his way around to the front, his voice dropped again as he whispered to the animal.

"Go and drink. Enjoy the day, I'll come and find you when the race is done." Tommy moved to May's side, both watching the horse until his eyes finally fell on the dress she had hanging up.

"That's nice, is it yours?" He asked.

She turned to face him. "My mother wore it to the derby in 1895. She was presented to Queen Victoria."

She offered to come and meet him after the race to which he agreed. But to her, his eyes deceived him.

"You don't want me to join you. Its fine, ill sit down here in the mud." Trying to inject some humour into the situation, she turned away from him.

He twisted his body towards her and pulled her in for a kiss, despite knowing he couldn't be involved with her again. He recognised he may not make it out alive today and wanted them to part on the right terms.

"Whatever happens today, it was good."

Promising to find her later, he left her in the stable and made his way back upstairs to the bar.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

She examined every face as it entered, desperately trying to get a glimpse of anyone who could be Tommy. Watching the entrance intently, her breath caught in her throat as a familiar figure appeared. Sabini. She quickly turned her body away, knowing he would likely recognise her should his eyes land on her. Glancing out from under her hat, she breathed a sigh of relief as she watched him and his entourage disappear from sight. She turned back to the bar and ordered another drink, almost taking it in one as soon as the barman put it down in front of her. Looking over to her right, a tall gentleman stood, in full military uniform. He removed his hat and lit a cigarette and she could see him gazing over to a table on the other side of the room. A young woman sat, alone. Smiling to herself, she turned back round, finished her drink and walked towards the door. As she appeared outside, she felt the sun start to heat up and the earlier chilliness had disappeared. Letting her coat fall slightly open, she took in a deep breath, closing her eyes as the music playing from the grounds soothed her. Letting her eyelashes flutter open, she began making her way down the staircase. As she reached the bottom, a man passed by a few steps in front of her. As if on autopilot, her body betrayed her, refusing to make any further steps until her eyes had taken in his full figure. Long black coat, strong jaw line, high cheekbones, striking blue eyes and the trademark black peaked cap.

Tommy.

Finally, her brain connected with her legs, and she pushed her way through the crowd towards him. Without saying a word, her gloved hand reached out and grasped his. Startled, he spun around towards her. There was a look in his eyes she didn't recognise. Anger? Fear? She wasn't sure which. All she knew was the relief she felt at finally finding him.

"Sara? What are you doing here?" He spoke quickly.

Her hand gripped his tighter, entwining her fingers through his. "I have to talk to you."

"Can it wait?" he pleaded.

"No. Its about Alfie. And Sabini. Its urgent. I have to speak with you." She was almost begging now.

He looked around quicky before tightening his fingers around hers and pulling her behind the staircase, out of sight.

"What's wrong?" He asked, still not releasing her hand.

"He plans to betray you. I found papers. Solomons and Sabini. They're out to get you. Here." Sara stuttered out each word, her breath hitching in her throat each time she opened her mouth.

"What are you talking about?" He looked confused, trying to understand what she was saying.

She lifted her other hand up and rested it on his chest. "Alfie had a meeting with Sabini a few weeks ago. They made a deal."

Realisation finally hitting him, Tommy drew her closer to him, his voice low. "I know."

Looking up at him, her eyes bore into his. "What are you talking about Tommy?"

"It's all alright, I swear to you Sara. I knew about it. But I met with Solomons this morning and a further deal was made. Sabini went back on his word. Not a good thing to do to a man like Alfie Solomons. Wait a second….how do you know this?"

She took a breath. "I work for him Tommy. I do his books. Have done since I arrived. I had no idea you were involved with the Peaky Blinders. When I heard them talking, I knew I had to try and find out what they were planning. So I…went through Alfie's things, to try and find anything I could which would help" She admitted.

Tommy clenched his jaw, trying to work out how he felt about this information. True, they hadn't had much time to get to know each other in the few times they had met but he was still surprised to hear she was working for a man like Solomons. He was even more surprised that Sara had put herself at risk like this for him. He could only imagine how Alfie would have reacted, knowing she had been going through his things. Lifting his hand up to graze her cheek with his fingers, he let a rare smile creep onto his lips. "Have you come all this way to tell me that?"

She nodded, her eyes closed and her head tilted to the side, relishing the feeling of his touch. "I was so worried. I thought something was going to happen to you. I had to warn you."

He looked around again, satisfied that no eyes were on them, and pulled her to him. Her body was flush against his and he could feel the softness of her breasts pressing up against him. He released her hand and rested both of his palms against her cheeks. Her eyelids slowly opened as she finally met his gaze. He stared down at her for what felt like hours before gently pulling her face towards his and letting his lips claim hers. Thinking back to the night they had spent together, something was different this time. Something in her kiss felt different. There was an urgency, a passion, fire within her and he felt it when her hands slipped under his coat and onto his waist. Finally letting her go, he moved to the side of her head, his lips parallel with her earrings.

"I will find you. Once the race is over. I will come looking for you. But I have to deal with something right now." He pulled away, not before leaving one final kiss on her lips, and made his way back towards the bar.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

She stood within the betting room, leaning up against one of the windows. She felt like she had waited for ever for him. People came and went and the room started to quieten down. She could hear commotion coming from outside and smoke was billowing up into the sky. She couldn't help but think that perhaps Tommy had something to do with it. She glanced around until her eyes fell upon a beautiful woman wandering into the room. She was dressed in a striking red dress and her hair was pinned loosely away from her face. She watched as the woman crossed her path and stood a few feet away from her. Her eyes were glancing around the room, similar to her own. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a man entering and making his way to the woman on her left.

"Mrs Carleton."

"Mr Shelby. Do you have any idea where your brother is?" The woman asked.

Sara's ear pricked up at the sound of the name. She glanced over the man and realised he was wearing similar clothes to Tommy. Similar coat and peaked hat. The brother reference made sense.

"Haven't seen 'im. Although he was dealing with some business. If you see 'im before me, let 'im know me an' Arthur are looking for 'im." He grinned, the toothpick rolling around his lip. "So, you and Tommy a thing now?"

"I'm not about to discuss my relationship with your brother with you, Mr Shelby." She sighed lightly and turned away from him, making her way back in the direction she had come from.

Sara's stomach wretched at the thought. She let out a small, almost inaudible gasp, but enough for John to lift his eyes over her. Seemingly satisfied with what he saw, he gave her a small smile and a wink before making his way out of the room. She watched as the woman disappeared from view and argued with herself as to whether she should go after her. The exchange between the two had indicated that this woman and Tommy had had some kind of relationship. Suddenly, the realisation hit her. Remembering back to the conversation she'd had with Ada, she recalled her mentioning Tommy's horse trainer and how they had been seen getting close. Her stubbornness stopped her from following Mrs Carleton, knowing that if she did, the response she would get would likely destroy her. Looking around once more, accepting that Thomas wasn't coming, she pulled her coat closer to her body and made her way outside, determined she wouldn't wait any longer.

A/N – Thank you everyone who has taken the time to leave me a review. There's a few on there and I really appreciate them. This fic was only following season 2 and as I have no Grace, I am going to leave the storyline from the show now. There may still be mentions of the Russians etc but I'm no longer going to be following the normal storyline. Please let me know how you think it's going and if there's anything in particular you'd like to see. I'm trying to make this more my own story rather than just the shows so I'm open to suggestions! Thanks again