Chapter 3

It took very little time for Evelyn to become aquainted with the ins and outs of life in Small Heath. October had turned into a cold stormy November. Her students always bought in tales from the mundane to the horrific. It seemed the bloodier the tale the more details they had to share. Slowly Evelyn was learning not to be too mortified by the experiences some of the children had at home. One thing was for certain; no matter how big or small the tale the name Shelby was always involved somewhere.

Finn was always the first to share a story where his family were concerned. Evelyn suspected he included the occasional embellishment not that she could ever be one hundred percent sure. From what she gathered they were not a family to be messed with. Since Finn had been delivered to the school yard on her first morning Evelyn hadn't encountered any other Shelby's. As far as she was concerned it could stay that way.

Evelyn was sweeping the floor of her school room having dismissed the children several hours ago. It was routine she had settled into with ease. After dismissing the children she would plan her lessons for the next day and sort out any off jobs that needed doing well past night fall. She mindlessly brushed away the dirt and grime from muddy boots as she hummed a tune to herself. Sweeping under desks she noticed a light grey cap resting against a chair leg. It was Finn's desk. She rested her broom against the battered wooden table ignoring its clatter to the hard wood floor as it slipped and hastily snatched up the abandoned cap. "Ouch!" she dropped it instantly and cradled her hand. An inch long cut had opened up in the palm of her hand. She raised it up and cradled it for a moment. She wasn't quite sure what had just happened. Wincing she inspected the wound that oozed rich scarlet blood. Evelyn pulled a tissue from her sleeve and clenched her bleeding hand around it. She bent down and carefully picked up the hat with her good hand. Glinting in the light was a small blade stitched beneath the small peak of the cap, "What on earth?" she mumbled to herself. How had she not noticed that when he arrived that morning?

Evelyn felt sick to her stomach as her thoughts drifted to a rumour she had heard about a notorious gang based in Small Heath. The very gang that Finn was always chattering on about. The Peaky Blinders. Evelyn had thought the blades in the peaks of their caps was just a rumour, well, that was clearly not the case. From what she could gather from overheard conversations in the school and within the local community Arthur Shelby was the leader of the Peaky Blinders. Finn's elder brother. It was a name she often heard but had yet to put a face to. Evelyn's heart plummeted at the thought of Finn caught up with the Peaky Blinders. It wasn't right.

Abandoning her sweeping Evelyn located the small box of medical supplied belonging to the school. The cut had mostly stopped bleeding but she cleaned it anyway. Luckily it wasn't deep. She wrapped a bandage around it to keep it clean and gathered her things. The sweeping could wait until morning.

Going through the motions of tending to her hand gave Evelyn time to think and allow professional judgement to take over. It wasn't right for Finn to be involved with a gang, not at his age. Evelyn wasn't stupid she knew she couldn't fix all of Small Heath but she could sure as hell try. She'd never forgive herself if something was to happen to one of the children she taught. She resigned herself to visiting the Shelby residence. Locking the door she made the short walk to the next street over, Watery Lane.

Evelyn was a woman on a mission to protect the youngest Shelby from harm as the clack of her heels echoed on the street. It was no surprise to her that Finn's home was the very same building the unsavoury characters were stood outside of upon her arrival in Small Heath. Maybe one of them had been Finn's brother, Tommy? Evelyn shook her head at that thought. Why should it matter?

Evelyn apprehensively knocked on the imposing door of the Shelby's with her good hand. At first no one answered. She took a steadying breath and knocked again with more force. The door swung open revealing a woman, "Can I help you?"

"Miss Trevellick, Finn's teacher," Evelyn introduced herself.

"So you are," she replied looking her up and down, "What's 'e done now?"

"Well, you see," Evelyn stumbled over her words as she tried to decide how best to inform the woman of what she'd found. She really hadn't thought this far ahead. "Finn left his cap in school," She took the hat from her bag and held it out for the woman who looked at the hat and then at Evelyn.

"You could have given it 'im tomorrow," the woman spoke with a heavy Birmingham accent. She took the hat and went to close the door. Evelyn reached out with her good hand to hold the door open.

"Wait. There's more," she pleaded.

"Always is. Best come in then, hadn't yer?" the woman stepped aside allowing Evelyn to pass.

As Evelyn sat in a wood chair around a small kitchen chair with the smell of the coal stove thick in the air she took stock of the room around her. It wasn't large but was filled with dark wood furniture and a dull green paintwork. A large dark wood dresser stood against the far wall filled with blue willow pattern china. A small stove sat in the corner and a fire flickered in the fire place. Various nick knack's adorned a shelf. "Spit it out then," the woman wasn't giving Evelyn much time to find out much about Finn's home life.

"Are you Finn's mother?" Evelyn asked.

"Polly, his Aunt," the woman set the cap on the table, "His mother's dead."

Evelyn sympathised with Finn for a moment. She knew what that was like, "I'm sorry t' hear that. I won't take too much of your time I just wanted t' inform you there's blades in Finn's hat," that hadn't sounded so bad had it? "I know what they mean," she added in the hope that Polly would see the gravity of the situation.

"Do you now?" the woman challenged, "Then I wonder why you've even bothered coming." Polly scrutinised the teacher.

"Look, I've not come here to tell you how t' run your family. I'm just doing my job," Evelyn countered.

"And a noble job it is," a different voice spoke from behind her. She whipped her head round to see Tommy. Evelyn hadn't heard him enter through floor to ceiling forest green curtains. She tried to look round him to see what was through the curtains but it was no use. Instead she turned her attention back to Tommy. Unlike the first time she met him he wasn't wearing his hat but instead sported the same haircut as Finn but that wasn't what captured Evelyn's attention. That went to his eyes. The eyes that stared straight at her. It took a second or two for Evelyn to realised she'd been caught staring. It wasn't about attraction, no, definitely not she asserted to herself. It was curiosity. That was all.

Polly picked the cap up from the table and tossed it towards Tommy, "Finn's cap." Tommy caught it and inspected it before folding it up and putting it in his coat pocket. Evelyn watched him looking for a reaction. She was disappointed when she didn't get one.

"I'll deal with it," Tommy took out a cigarette and placed it between his lips, "Miss Trevellick," he dismissed her.

Before leaving Evelyn made one last attempt at stressing the importance of the situation, "Don't let it happen again, please. It won't be my hand next time," both Tommy and Polly looked to her raised hand, "What if It was one of the other children?"

"I'll deal with it," Tommy repeated with a mumble around his cigarette and opened the door.

"If Tommy says 'e will deal with it then you can take his word for it," Polly assured Evelyn as she left.

Evelyn took her leave and stepped from the house. What she hadn't expected was for Tommy to follow her out. "You shouldn't be walking alone this time of night. Not here."

A refusal was on the tip of her tongue but she knew he was right. They walked side by side in silence until Evelyn spoke, "Finn needs to know how serious this is. I know who you are and who you belong with."

"Who am I?" he responded lighting his cigarette.

Evelyn stopped in her tracks and rounded on Tommy, her accent broadening as she fought to get her point across, "Don't play dumb. You're wi' t' Peaky Blinders. Finn talks about you all the time. He looks up to you, all of you. He sees what you're doing."

Tommy took a long drag of his cigarette, "Take a good look around you Miss Trevellick."

"Evelyn, please, I'm not in the school room anymore," she as he'd asked and saw the same street she'd seen on her first morning. The same dark brick terraces and grubby windows. The same damp cobbled street and lingering smog from the factory. She wasn't quite sure what Tommy was wanting her to see.

"Are you sure you belong 'ere?" he pulled his cigarette from his lips and gestured around, "If you're 'ere on some mission to do good then you're in the wrong place."

"If that is your attempt at scaring me off then I'm afraid t' disappoint you but it's not going t'work. I'm not 'ere t' do good. I'm 'ere t' do my job," Evelyn walked on ahead leaving Tommy to catch up.

"Finn is kept out of business," he placated the woman. It was the truth. Tommy had no idea until Evelyn had bought it to his attention the Finn had sewn the small razor blades into his peaked cap. He had known it was going to happen eventually as Finn grew up.

"Might I suggest you try harder," she adjusted her bag on her shoulder as she walked on leaving Tommy to smoke his cigarette. Neither Evelyn nor Tommy said anything else as they turned onto Green Lane and walked down past the school. She stopped outside the door of her end terrace adjacent to the school. "Good night Tommy," she wiggled her key to get it in the rusted lock.

"Good night, Evelyn," he replied as he waited for her to close her door and the distinct turn of the key in the lock. Tommy turned back the way he came and set his mind on business for the evening.


Any mistakes are mine. I'm working two jobs at the moment so I'm super tired.

Thank you for all your lovely reviews and as always feedback is appreciated :)