Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Peaky Blinder's characters, only the ones I created.

CHAPTER 6

"Where have you been?" I asked Daniel stopping midway in taking a bite from my apple as he strolled into the pub.

I hadn't seen him since the incident with Grace – I figured he had just locked himself in his room to be alone.

He threw a bag of coins on the table I was sitting at and grinned. "Collecting our winnings from the Kempton races, of course."

My face fell. "Why didn't you ask me to come?"

He motioned to Harry for a drink before sitting down. He frowned. "Does it matter?"

I bit my lip. The truth was I was looking forward to going there today and getting a glimpse of the head of the Peaky Blinders.

I had even put in a little more effort in the way I looked this morning, but I wasn't about to admit that to Daniel though.

I still hadn't told him about what had happened between Thomas Shelby and me – the deal we'd made, but now that I thought of it, was it really a deal?

All we agreed upon was that maybe we could help each other out in getting Kimber's attention.

"Guess what I found out today," Daniel said, accepting the glass from Harry and pulling me out of my thoughts.

He shook his hair out of his face which badly needed a cut and he grinned. "So, we know Billy Kimber's head of the Birmingham Boy's and runs most legal tracks outside of London, right?"

I nodded rolling around the apple in my hands and added: "We found out he controlled some of the races at Kempton, but wasn't gonna be there."

"Right, well, I found out where he is gonna be," Daniel said, stealing the apple from my hands and taking a bite.

I raised an eyebrow. "Well, where?"

"Cheltenham Races. His assistant made a reservation for a table with explicit requests for Kimber. We should go there and try to get him alone and then we strike."

My heart hammered inside my chest. We were so close.

"There's just one thing," Daniel said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"We need to find a way in. Apparently, it's invites only, but we'll figure it out."

He stood and flashed me his teeth. "I'm gonna go pack."

I felt the smile drop from my face. "What? Why? The races aren't for another week."

He gave me an incredulous look. "We should move closer to Cheltenham, Kara. We'll be able to check out the site and it's just easier. Besides, I figured you'd be happy to leave this shit town."

I only offered him a weak smile as he ruffled my hair and left for the stairs.

~.~.~.~

I hadn't packed yet, even though I had told Daniel I had. I knew I was being silly. Daniel and I had come to England for one thing, and one thing only. That was to get revenge.

I shouldn't feel sad about leaving Small Heath behind – who in their right mind would want to stay in this crime-ridden, poor town?

I stared at the bleak and chipped wallpaper across my bed.

I shouldn't feel sad about leaving, but I was.

And if I was being honest with myself it wasn't the town or this room, it was Thomas Shelby. He triggered something inside me, a feeling I didn't know I could still feel.

It was a sort of connection I had with him. When I stared into his eyes, I could see my own pain reflected there and knew he understood.

I'd lie if I said I also wouldn't feel the tiniest regret of never seeing his brothers again either – they had made me laugh in a way I hadn't done in years.

With a sigh I snatched my cigarettes off my bedside table, fluffed up my hair and left the room.

Without bothering to answer Harry's question as to where I was going, I left the pub and let my legs take me away.

It was dark, but not that late yet so there were still a lot of people around.

I didn't notice the small bubble of excitement that hung in the air or see the smoke rising up from the next street over.

So when I turned the corner I was surprised to see a sort of bonfire in the middle of the street.

I paused a few feet away stopping a young lad walking towards it.

"What's going on here?" I asked him.

The young boy looked somewhat familiar to me as his blue eyes glanced up at my face – he looked a little shocked, almost as if he had been caught in the act of doing something bad, but upon realizing I wasn't an authority figure, he relaxed.

"We're burning pictures of the King," he said as if that explained it all, gesturing to the large frame he held in his hands.

I raised an eyebrow about to ask something else when I was interrupted.

"What's the hold-up, Finn?" Thomas Shelby asked, laying a hand on the boy's shoulder, making me realize the two were related.

Another Shelby brother?

Thomas regarded me with an amused glance – I must have looked rather bewildered.

"Go on, put that with the rest, will ya?" He clapped the boy on his shoulder, urging him to his other brothers.

Arthur waved at me and I gave a small wave back.

"What's this all about then?" I asked when the boy was gone. Thomas's eyes hadn't strayed from my face.

He sighed. "We're having a bit 'o trouble with that Irish copper." He took a drag from the cigarette I hadn't seen him holding and I nudged his shoulder.

"It seems to me that this will only add more fuel to that trouble."

He raised an eyebrow at me.

Dammit, not even a little smile?

I rolled my eyes and watched for a while as more pictures were added to the fire. People cheered and some passed around a flask.

I sneaked another look at him and could tell there really was something on his mind, I could tell by the small crease between his brows and the tension in his jaws.

"We're leaving tomorrow," the words left my mouth without me meaning them to.

Thomas turned towards me. He took the cigarette from his mouth and blew out a line of smoke. His expression was unreadable.

"Pick out a nice dress. I want to take you to the races."

I blinked at him. "Didn't you just hear me?"

He sighed impatiently and stepped closer. "Billy Kimber's going to be at the Cheltenham Races and I'm taking you with me," he clarified.

"I thought we'd agreed to help each other, Ms. Kelly. This is me helping you."

I bit my lip and tried to hide the surprise on my face – it seemed that he had his sources as well – and also the joy I felt at him asking me to go with him.

It wasn't just that I was happy he had asked me, this would also solve our problem of getting into the races in the first place.

I just didn't think Daniel would like having to stay behind while I go.

"How would I help you?" I asked uncertainly as the thought struck my mind. I had a feeling Thomas wouldn't be asking me just for the company.

His brought his hand up and pushed a lock of my hair behind my ear – his touch almost made me shiver. His gaze was intense, but his smile was teasing.

"Wear something red, Ms. Kelly."

I blinked at him, my heart hammering inside my chest as his hand lingered near my cheek.

"I heard Kimber can't resist a woman in red."
_

A/N: Thanks for reading! I'm really trying to make it a slow burn between Thomas and Kara, but I was wondering if this is something you'd like to read about as well? Also, I'll try to stick to the main story with a few alterations!

Guest: Thanks! I'm glad the prologue got you hooked! I hope you'll like the rest too!

Guest: How they learned about the powder trick is explained in chapter 1! Someone told them who witnessed the powder trick done on the horse by a Chinese girl :) And thanks so much!