1 July 1919

The cell door opened with a bang. Eliza jumped, startled by the sudden intrusion and looked up to see the Inspector. He slung a folder at her with a snarl and slammed the door shut behind him. He was clearly irritated.

"I don't need to read the file-"

"Read the file!" He turned on her, yelling loud enough that a vein on his temple began to pulse dangerously, "Read it!"

She picked it up slowly and opened it. It was the same as it always was. The photograph of Tommy leaving the house in Manchester, the case against him, the desired punishment. She sighed.

"Inspector I-"

"Did you not hear me?"

"Inspector I agree to your deal!" She shouted, raising her voice so she could be heard over him.

A look of confusion passed momentarily across his face, clearly not expecting this from her. It was gone as soon as it had arrived, however, replaced with the gloating look she new she'd have to face. Eliza was already regretting her decision.

"You agree?"

"Yes," she muttered irritably, "I was ready to tell you days ago, actually, but you haven't come to see me in a week."

"I've been dealing with things," he replied with a smile, pointing at the folder, "look through it properly, there's something that should interest you."

"I get it!" She snapped, "I've looked through it enough times to know it off by heart. I've agreed to spy for you, is that not fucking enough? I'm sick of this!"

He sighed in frustration, walking up to her and leafing through the file himself. Half way through he stopped, shoving it back into her grip and tapping on a photo.

"This is Stanley Chapman. His address was given to us by Mr Shelby and we took him in for questioning. Unfortunately, before we could get any information from the man, someone found his way into Chapman's holding cell and killed him. It's believed to be Mr Shelby. At least-" he paused and crossed his arms, looking Eliza up and down, "-that's the story I gave to my fellow officers. Mr Shelby's arrest warrant now consists of two murders. It was meant to help compel you to agree, but you came to that decision by yourself it seems. Now, I hope, it will compel you to remain silent."

Eliza couldn't wait to leave this behind her. Just as he had done with her, Campbell had again placed the blame of a murder on someone who he knew was innocent- of that crime at least. It made no difference now, of which he was aware, but he still seemed intent on making the most of it. He was a lying, murderous villain, and she was looking forward to the day he would pay for his own crimes.

"You don't need to worry about my silence, Inspector. I know what will happen if I tell someone."

"Still, allow me to explain Miss Scott," he threatened, leaning in close. "I will know if you tell anyone, believe me. And if you do, I won't bother with a trial, or playing fair, Instead I'll just drag you and Thomas and every other Shelby back into these cells, where I will question you as sharply as I questioned Stanley Chapman. You will be pleading for mercy when I am done, and yet no one will save you- no one will even hear you. And after I am finished you will all meet exactly the same fate as he did, hanging lifeless from a ceiling. Do I make myself clear?"

"Of course, Inspector." Eliza replied, smiling back at him.

Watery Lane had never looked more heavenly then when Eliza walked down it today. The afternoon sun was hidden behind clouds, but the weather was still pleasant, and she couldn't help but close her eyes briefly and breathe in the air. It was thick with smoke and made up of a mixture of foul smells, as it always was, but still so preferable to the stale stench of her cell. It felt sweet to be free.

She hadn't come straight to Watery Lane, however. The first thing she'd done upon release was go back to her flat. They'd given her back her bag, which they'd taken from her- the one with the gun- and so luckily she was able to let herself in. More even than seeing the Shelby's, what she wanted was a hot bath. Two weeks of wearing the same clothes, eating the same awful food and being forced to use a chamber pot had made her feel more like an animal than a person at times.

She needed to clean, change, and try to brush her wild hair before she could even think about presenting herself to any decent person. Whilst turning up looking like she'd crawled through a forest for two weeks might make for a dramatic entrance, it would likely leave an unfavourable memory- and a pungent once. Eliza had made good work of herself, and felt much better once she'd scrubbed clean and put on something fresh, more like herself.

Eliza opened her eyes to sound of loud voices coming from the betting shop. She crossed the street and pushed through the excited crowd that was emerging from the doors and making their way to the Garrison.

"All drinks on the Peaky fuckin-" Arthur froze as he came out the door, the smile falling from his face and then breaking out into an even larger grin, all in one clean motion.

She'd pushed herself through two particularly boisterous men to come face to face with Arthur as he was emerging from the shop. He began to laugh once he saw her, striding to meet Eliza and lifting her up in an engulfing hug. Once he let her back down again, he swung his arm across her shoulder and led her back into the shop, where the rest of the family were chatting lively as they prepared to leave.

"Look who's back!" Arthur cheered, drawing their attention.

Eliza would have liked to explain their reactions as purely excitement over seeing her returned, but it was obvious something had already elated their moods, and caused the liveliness she'd witnessed outside the betting shop. Polly cried out in excitement, clasping her hands as she ran over to Eliza and then pulling her into a hug.

"How did you get out?" She exclaimed, releasing the girl and cupping her face in her hands. "Oh never mind now, let's go celebrate!"

Polly shook her hands as she brushed of her own question, moving out the way to open the door and walk into the street. Eliza received a hug from John and Finn as they both followed their aunt out onto the street, and Arthur squeezed her shoulder before trailing after them, cheering loudly.

"We're the Peaky-fucking-Blinders!" She could hear him shouting, turning back around to look at the only person left in the building.

Tommy and Eliza smiled at each other. He approached rather gingerly, but pulled her in for a tight hug once he got near enough.

"It's good to see you." He spoke softly into her ear.

"And you." She responded as he pulled away.

Tommy gestured for her to leave the shop first, so she stepped back out into the street, waiting as he locked the door behind them. They walked side by side down the street, both smiling at the sight in front of them. Shelbys and Blinders alike were filtering into the Garrison, shouting, laughing and pushing each other around, all drunk off high spirits.

"What's the celebration for?" Eliza asked as she accepted Tommy's offer of a cigarette, before adding jokingly, "besides me of course."

"Billy Kimber came by today," Tommy lit her cigarette and she took a moment to breath in her first mouthful of tobacco in weeks. It felt good. "He delivered us our first ever legal betting license."

She turned her head sharply to look at him, gasping quietly and grinning. She didn't need to check he was telling the truth, Tommy's response of a genuine look of happiness, and a warm smile to match, was enough to confirm it.

"Our first ever legal betting license," Eliza repeated the words, testing them on her tongue, "that sounds right."

"It does, doesn't it?"

"And it certainly calls for a celebration."

"As does your return."

Tommy tilted his head towards her in acknowledgment, his hand resting on the small of her back as he opened the Garrison door and guided her in.

Eliza collapsed heavily onto a chair in her flat, drawing one of her feet towards her in an attempt to wrestle of her shoe. It took longer than it should have, but thankfully she had the gin to blame for that.

Arthur had tasked himself with getting her home, the two of them too drunk to even walk straight, arm in arm for support. Eliza had thanked him before hauling herself up the stairs, into her flat and then finally into the chair she was currently seeking refugee in. The night had definitely been a celebration, and one to rival any that came before. There was singing and dancing and far too much alcohol involved, though mostly because it was Arthur who'd claimed the spot behind the bar. She'd always had a talent for taking her liquor well, but no one could match the Shelbys, and one drinking game with John had been enough to confine her to a chair for the rest of the evening. She wouldn't complain though, Finn had kept her company and the boy was as joyful as anyone else.

It had been strange at first, to enter the pub and think about Harry. She wasn't sure how to deal with that side of her arrest, and was thankful when Polly had insisted she'd be helping her manage the books from now on, and wouldn't have to put a foot back inside the pub if she didn't want to. With a final push, Eliza had both shoes off, and sunk down in her chair with a huff. She dropped her head into her hands and tried desperately to escape the thoughts of Harry's betrayal that had crept into her mind. A knock at the door saved her.

Using the table to pull herself up, Eliza got up and walked over to the door, unlocking it and opening it. It was Tommy standing in front of her.

"Hello?" She queried, confused. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," he mumbled back, scratching his head. "Drunk."

She hummed in agreement and stood to the side to let him in. She hadn't really meant to, and maybe it was the alcohol, but allowing Tommy inside felt right in that moment. He looked around as he walked in, placing his balled-up hat on the table and turning back to face her.

"This might help?" Eliza said lightly, holding up the bottle of rum on her counter with a grin. "It can't hurt at least, right?"

"Why not." Tommy agreed, letting her pour out two glasses and hand him one.

The drank in silence, making eye contact every now and then, but mostly just existing in each other's company. Eliza sat back down into her chair, watching as he surveyed the room around her, giving him a small smile when their gaze met. It didn't take long for them to finish the rum, the earlier drinking allowing it to go down easy, and she felt compelled to be the first one to break the silence.

"Why are you here Tommy? Do you need something?"

"I-" for once he seemed lost for words, clearing his throat as he tried to speak, "I wanted to tell you that- fuck!"

He exclaimed loudly, enough to make Eliza startle slightly, before he slumped down in a chair opposite her and ran a hand over his face. She wasn't very sure on how to react, it wasn't exactly often that Tommy Shelby allowed his emotions to get the better of him like this. She put it down to the drink- a lot was being put down to the drink.

"I shouldn't have drunk so fucking much," he cursed, looking at her in appeal.

"I don't know what you're thinking Tommy, I can't help you." She lent forward, resting her elbows on the table and speaking softly. "I can't read your mind."

"I wish you fucking could tonight." He murmured.

"Just tell me."

He stared at her, his blue eyes piercing hers, and he nodded once. At her words he seemed to have made a decision, clearing his throat and sitting up straighter. Eliza wished she could have been more prepared for what he said next.

A few chapters to make up for how long it's been, and one on the way either tomorrow or the day after, so that i don't leave you on a cliff-hanger for too long. i've realised that i'm really incapable of finding a healthy balance between lots of text and lots of speech- its literally only ever one or the other and for that i'm sorry. At some point i'm going to rewrite/edit all of this story because i'm not very happy with a lot of it any more, and i'll try to address that issue then, but i think i'll leave it for now, at least until i manage to finish this thing. anyway, i hope you enjoyed!

e x

(20/02/2021)