The Slayer and the Blinder

by StoryQueen2

Maddie is 2020's current chosen one: The vampire slayer. Until she is pulled through time to 1924 and the world of the infamous Peaky Blinders. Years and dates are an estimation so don't judge me too harshly! Initial slow burn romance with some eventual regular smut so read at own risk.

14. Maintaining Equilibrium

Why do I hurt all over?

This was the first thought that travelled across Maddie's mind as she started to awaken. She kept her eyes closed at first, still not able to open them as feeling and recognition of her body and limbs began to return to her. Her skin tingled and throbbed painfully, so she remained still as she tried to understand these sensations. She felt warm and more or less comfortable and as her consciousness began to return further, she could feel the weight of something on her chest and of something lying next to her.

Maddie allowed herself to breathe for a few moments, coming back to Earth by listening to the sound of air entering and exiting her lungs slowly. She listened to other sounds around her as well and could only hear the faint ticking of a clock and also identified the sound of someone else breathing to the same tempo as her. Making her first movement, she swallowed in response to feeling the dryness of her mouth, the action feeling incredibly sore and more difficult than it should have been. She winced at the pain and decided it was time to open her eyes and address whatever situation she was in. Maddie lifted her eyelids slowly at first, only enough to squint into the dim room which she recognised at Tommy's bedroom by the fancy chandelier that hung from the ceiling above the bed. I don't remember going to sleep, she thought as she forced her eyes open further. Her eyelids fluttered a bit as she fought off the remaining grogginess as she bravely instructed her fingers to move. She wiggled her fingers on both hands and could feel that they were by her sides on the silky sheets of the bed and a sense of safety spread through her as the soft fibres caressed her fingertips.

This prompted Maddie to finally open her eyes fully and move her gaze around to take in the scene. The room was dim and shadowy, but she could tell it was daytime as she could see streaks of light on the ceiling and walls that were streaming in from gaps in the curtains. How long had she been asleep for? She then looked to her left and saw where the breathing was coming from. Tommy was lying next to her, his head facing her with his eyes closed as he dozed by her side. She blinked silently at him as she took in his face. He was asleep, but only barely. Taught lines decorated his already angular features, his eyebrows looking like they were being knitted together and dark purple circles shaded his undereye giving him a distinct look of exhaustion and stress. His whole body carried this tense posture, like he was ready to awaken and uncoil like a spring with the smallest stimulus. Maddie realised then that it was Tommy's hand that was on her chest, a protective weight that had guarded her through the night and the events of what had led to that point began to return to her.

The image of the vampires, and their leader Juliet appeared in her mind soon followed by the violent, and admittedly difficult battle they had engaged in. The last memory Maddie could muster was lying on the dining room table in horrific pain with Tommy watching over her. What the hell happened to me? Shelifted her right arm slowly, it felt distinctively sore but thankfully still operational. She reached across her body to lightly brush her fingertips to Tommy's cheek.

'Tommy?'

Her fingers had barely been in contact with his skin for a fraction of a second when his eyes snapped open. Maddie was looking into the infinite blue of Tommy's iris's as his worried gaze searched her face, a mix between a sigh and a gasp escaping his mouth before his palm was on her cheek. The contact hurt slightly but felt mostly warm and comforting as she withered under his now loving expression which was mixed with no small amount of relief.

'Maddie,' he said, his voice sounding concerningly tired as he sat up slightly to look down at her. 'You're awake.'

She crunched her eyebrows at him, not understanding why her being awake was something that needed to be made into a statement. Then she remembered her injury from the fight and assumed that she must have been asleep for a considerable amount of time to cause concern.

'Yeah, I'm awake. Shouldn't I be?' asked Maddie with a small smile, even though the act of speaking was causing pain in her jaw.

She had wanted Tommy to stop looking at her like she was going to disappear in front of his eyes but she ended up regretting saying these words however as he choked out a laugh before leaning his head down to rest his forehead against hers with his eyes closed. He remained still for a moment before his shoulders began to shake and the sound of sobs escaped his lips. Was he crying? Surely, he can't be crying!? The sound was the most awful thing Maddie had ever heard and she was quick to try and stop it.

'No, no, no don't cry!' she pleaded as she grabbed his face and forced him to look at her. 'You're Tommy Shelby, you don't cry!'

Maddie hastily wiped a tear that was sitting on Tommy's cheek away as he swallowed back his sobs for her and sighed a long shaky sigh.

'I thought I was going to lose you, Maddie,' he whispered, as if the words would come true if they were heard by anyone else.

Maddie blinked once in disbelief. Had it come that close or was Tommy just being paranoid? She had survived a lot over the years, too much to die at the hands of a vampire, even one as powerful and as skilled as Juliet was. But then she finally recalled the injury that caused her black out and realised that she must have put him through the worst night of his life. Again.

'I'm still here. I'm fine,' said Maddie although the second statement was said with very little conviction.

Maddie had gradually become more aware of the aches and pains that stabbed at her body as she had woken up properly and knew that 'fine' wasn't the right word to describe her current condition. Tommy evidently thought this too as his eyes betrayed a disbelieving look before he glanced down at her body doubtfully.

'How do you feel?' he asked, piercing her with his stare in a way that demanded a truthful answer, not that it worked.

'Fine,' she repeated with a roll of her eyes.

Maddie drew her hands up and attempted to sit herself up to illustrate her point but as soon as she began to lift her head and chest up, pain radiated through her torso causing her to pause. She winced and hissed at the pain, the further reality of her condition dawning on her.

'No, lie down love. You need to rest,' said Tommy, stroking Maddie's face soothingly.

'I've rested long enough,' she grumbled, ignoring him as she took another breath before pushing herself up agonisingly and leaning back against the headboard. 'What time is it anyway?'

Tommy sighed defeatedly and craned his neck over his shoulder to check the clock on the bedside table.

'Half two.'

'In the afternoon?!' exclaimed Maddie.

It had only been a little after seven when they got home from the office yesterday, at least Maddie hoped she had only been out one night, meaning she must have been unconscious for more than twelve hours. She was suddenly reminded of the story she was told about one of her predecessors, Faith, and how she had been in a coma for several months after a particularly bad head injury. Maddie wondered if that was what had happened to her, some sort of magical slayer healing coma but since there was luckily no brain trauma, she had only been out for nineteen hours. Then she realised that from the state of Tommy that he must have been watching her that whole time and guilt wracked her system.

'I'm sorry, Tommy,' she mumbled.

Tommy looked at Maddie with confusion before shaking his head. 'Don't say that Maddie. You saved us all.'

Maddie nodded and smiled meekly, not knowing how else to reply. Twice she had made Tommy stay up all night with worry, even if the second time wasn't because of a selfish choice she'd made, and now she couldn't help the crushing feeling of guilt that overwhelmed her. He noticed her inner conflict as he gazed at her and sat up to pull her gently into his arms. She could sense the trepidation in his touch, like the slightest amount of pressure would cause her to crumble away, and she hated it. Either way she let herself melt into him and rested her head on his shoulder for a few minutes in silence before looking down to inspect herself properly for the first time. She was wearing a long nightie that covered most of her skin so she couldn't tell what she looked like, but she could tell she was clean. She ran her hand, which she saw was cut and bruised, over her abdomen and could feel something wrapped securely around her stomach and figured it must have been for the wound. Had Tommy done all of this?

'Did you -?' asked Maddie, looking up at Tommy as he watched her inspect herself.

'Yeah,' he nodded, his eyes glossing over, and she knew the memory of the previous night was painting an unwanted image in his mind.

Maddie's heart swelled at the thought of Tommy fixing, cleaning, and watching her all night, not used to the feeling of having someone love her that much to go that far to care for her. She smiled as she brought her hand up to his face and brought her lips to his to kiss him. Her lips felt bruised, but she still tried to put more force into the kiss when she felt him hesitate in kissing her back. However, he pulled back, their lips breaking apart as he brushed her cheek with his thumb.

'I should get up and sort myself out,' said Maddie feeling rejected, avoiding Tommy's glacier eyes as she turned her head away.

She knew she was beat up but that didn't mean she was too fragile for a simple kiss and felt a little annoyed at him for seeing her that way despite all he'd seen her do. Maddie turned away from him and went to slide herself to the end of the bed but stopped as a shooting pain electrified her skin originating not from the cut but from her ribs on the other side. She recognised the pain immediately and knew that she had broken a rib; she had broken at least ten since becoming a slayer and had become familiar with the pain.

'Ah, fuck,' she hissed, clutching at her side and closing her eyes to will the pain away. 'I think I've broken a rib.'

Tommy was there in an instant, placing his hand gently in her shoulders and helping to support her weight. The adrenaline of the previous night had masked even more than Maddie could have realised but it was hardly surprising that she'd broken something with the number of times she was kicked and thrown about.

'Hey, come and lie back down, stay in bed and rest a while longer,' said Tommy.

Maddie continued to grasp at her ribs but shook her head at him, pushing him away before persisting to try and get her legs over the edge of the bed.

'No, I'm fine Tommy please –,' she insisted stubbornly, although she was cut short by more pain and only just managed to stifle a whimper.

Tommy put his finger under Maddie's chin and forced her to look at him. His eyes were laced with fear and concern and she found she couldn't stand the sight, but she met his gaze anyway as he began to speak.

'Please, Maddie. Rest a little longer, for me eh?'

Maddie sighed and pursed her lips together as she considered him and eventually decided that resisting him was unfair after what he'd done for her. She had put him though enough that pleasing him for now might make him feel better and her less guilty. So, she nodded defeatedly but grinned when the corners of Tommy's lips lifted in a thankful smile. Besides, she could feel her stomach begin to grumble and realised that her tummy would be less than empty by now, a ravenous hunger beginning scratch away at her. Maddie settled herself back against the soft pillows again with a humorous smile playing at her lips.

'I'm starving,' she said followed by a chuckle when Tommy laughed, nodded his head and… did he just roll his eyes at me?

Maddie fought the urge to shove him playfully as she waited for him to ring for Frances before remembering that the house's staff had been given two days off whilst the Shelby's were at the house for their little holiday, which in hindsight was fortunate for everyone involved. Shit, the party! She suddenly remembered that they were all supposed to be having a great time getting drunk for the next two days, a plan that was now ruined.

'I'll go and get you something,' said Tommy eventually, getting out of bed. 'The others will be glad to hear that your awake. Promise me you'll stay in bed until I get back.'

Maddie smiled at Tommy and nodded but under the bedsheet she crossed her fingers. It was only a little white lie; she'd be back in bed before he got back, and he would be none the wiser. He hesitated, as if sensing her plans but decided not to challenge her. He put on his undershirt and trousers, pulling the suspenders over his shoulders before making to leave the room. Before he shut the door behind him, he looked back at Maddie with a semi-serious expression.

'Just so you know, I'll be able to tell if you've gotten out of that bed when I get back,' he warned before closing the door softly.

Yeah right, Maddie thought, he's just saying that to keep me here. She scoffed quietly to herself but remained in bed for about a minute in case Tommy was planning on coming back to catch her in the act. When she was satisfied that he had definitely gone downstairs, she threw the sheet off her and gingerly got herself to the edge of the bed. It felt as though her whole skeleton was bruised, like it was creaking and groaning under her weight. She felt the carpet with her toes before easing herself onto her feet, balancing her weight on her legs like a child walking for the first time. She took a deep breath as she felt all her muscles ache at being used, anticipating more pain once she started to walk. She put her foot in front of her and took her first step. The motion caused pain from her rib and the cut on her side as well as several other places but she managed to get into a steady rhythm and slowly paced toward the bathroom door. Once inside she spotted the tall freestanding mirror in the corner of the room and began to shuffle towards it. A couple of steps in, Maddie stepped on a pile of fabric that she hadn't noticed as she walked in and looked down at it inquisitively. It took her a second to realise what they were her clothes from the previous day, only they were tattered and bloodied. They were long since dry, but Maddie could tell that that had been saturated with blood, her blood. She swallowed thickly and looked away from the clothes before carrying on toward the mirror.

Maddie stopped in front of it but looked down at the floor, wanting to prepare herself before she saw her reflection. Slowly, she raised her head to look directly in the mirror and gasped when she saw her reflection looking back at her. No wonder Tommy had been acting like she was a fine piece of china that would have cracked at any moment, making her feel more guilty for being mad at him about it. Her face and neck were almost entirely purple from bruising, which explained why her jaw and neck had been so sore. She recalled being kicked in the face by Juliet and was thankful that it hadn't been as painful at the time as it should have been. The edges of the bruise were only just beginning to yellow and Maddie figured that the blood loss meant her healing had be hindered because of it. She prodded her face with her fingers and felt the familiar discomfort on her skin as she did so. Her skin was clean but as she looked at her hair, she could tell it needed washing. She ran her fingers through it and felt the dried blood that was embedded in it. Maddie located the cut at the back of her head that had been the source and winced again at the memory of her head smashing the car window. She decided she would try to convince Tommy to let her have a shower later to wash her hair properly. As she was covered by a long nightie, she hadn't yet seen the extent of the damage to the rest of her body, but going off the state of her face, she knew it wouldn't be much better. She began to lift her nightie up her legs, seeing yet more purple bruises and grazes when she heard the sound of several footsteps and loud talking from the other side of the wall and could tell they were coming up the stairs toward the bedroom.

Maddie hurried as best she could back into the bedroom, stumbling over to the bed and narrowly managing to pull the sheets back over herself before the door opened and what looked like all the Shelby's piled into the room.

'Mads! You are awake!' shouted John who had barged into the room first.

John ran over to the bed and pulled Maddie into a hug, causing pain to shoot over her body as he embraced her.

'Yeah, I'm awake. And also in pain,' chuckled Maddie.

'Oh, yeah, sorry,' he laughed withdrawing from the hug.

'You look like shit,' said Arthur who was stood at the foot of the bed, with a smile and a twinkling look in his eye.

'Yeah, I know,' replied Maddie.

All the Shelby's came over one by one to hug her and express their happiness that she was awake. Ada stayed sat next to her on the bed and held her hand as the group launched into a retelling of the previous night from their point of view. They complimented Maddie on her skill and how in awe they had been at watching her fight as Tommy returned, carrying a tray with food and orange juice on it. He looked at her and at her audience before coming to place the tray on the bed next to her.

'Why did they come after you Maddie?' asked Michael suddenly, Polly and the others turning to look at him.

'I'm not sure,' she replied. 'Probably because I killed a load of their friends a couple of weeks ago and they decided they wanted to try and kill the slayer. A feat like that tends to earn vampires a lot of popularity.'

Maddie could see Polly's mind clicking pieces together from the way she was regarding her and wasn't surprised when she quickly followed with another question.

'Or maybe those watchers sent them?' she asked.

Maddie blinked as she considered this possibility but eventually shook her head.

'I doubt it. The watchers are capable of bad things but sending vampires after people isn't their style,' she replied with confidence.

'Do you think there will be more of them?' asked Finn nervously, everyone turning to face him.

Maddie recalled how he had invited the vampires in accidentally and gave him an encouraging smile to convey that she wasn't mad at him. It was an easy mistake to make, one that she herself and many of her friends had made in the past and she could tell it had shaken him and affected his confidence.

'I – I don't know but hopefully not. I doubt Juliet would have spread it around. She wouldn't have wanted anyone else competing with her for the kill.'

The group seemed happy with her answer but still she could tell that the night had shaken them. The real experience of Maddie's world had evidently been a shock to them, and she knew they would need time to rationalise and come to terms with what they saw.

'I'm sorry everyone,' said Maddie apologetically. 'I must have scared you all half to death.'

They all looked at her confused before they all shook their heads unanimously, dismissing her apology.

'We've seen a lot of bad things Mads,' said Arthur. 'And that won't be the last.'

Maddie nodded her understanding, of course, they're gangsters, blood and violence are hardly anything new to them. Maybe they will be able to take the whole experience on the chin for the most part. John opened his mouth to ask another question but was stopped abruptly by Tommy who stood up from where he had been sat listening on the bed, clearing his throat as he usually did before he gave and order.

'Alright, that's enough for now,' he ordered, looking at his family to instruct them to leave Maddie be.

Maddie smiled apologetically at Ada who gave her an exasperated look in response to Tommy's command, but Maddie nodded that it was okay. She waved her visitors off as they all left and sighed with relief, thankful that Tommy had suspended the inquisition. She didn't hold it against them, but to be honest she didn't know the answers to the questions they were asking. The reality that being a slayer and being around people you love didn't always end well dawned on her. She had been through this before with her friends back home once before; them learning and eventually adapting to the scary dangerous world where the slayer resided. The Shelby's were going to have to go through the same thing she realised, and Maddie hoped that none of them would get hurt in the process.

Maybe I should leave, she thought. But the idea stung her heart and she knew that it would hurt her and Tommy too much for that to be an option. She would need to make sure they would all be safe some other way.

'Hey,' said Tommy softly, pulling her out of her deep train of thought. 'Aren't you going to eat?'

Maddie suddenly felt the ravenous hunger return and she smiled and shook off her gloomy thoughts as she snatched up the sandwich on the tray. Even chewing hurt with her jaw being so bruised but she ignored the pain, determine to not to let it show on her face as she ate. Once finished, she rested back on the bed, now feeling a little better, some of her energy beginning to return.

'Were you expecting yourself to look that bad?'

Maddie turned to Tommy in shock. How did he know I had gotten out of bed? She tried to restore a nonchalant expression to her face but failed, huffing before shaking her head at him.

'No, I didn't expect that,' she said. 'Sorry I broke my promise.'

Tommy shrugged, evidently not bothered by her predictable actions. 'I'm just happy that you're going to be alright.'

It was going to take a couple of days at least but Maddie knew she would heal back to full health as she always did. She knew she had come uncomfortably close to death, and probably would have died if it weren't for Tommy and his family. It was an unwanted reminder that her days as a slayer were numbered, and she thought that this had likely already occurred to him whist she had been asleep. Maddie shuffled over to Tommy and rested her head in the crook of his neck and breathed in his warm scent. He reciprocated and rested his head on hers and rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. She let herself rest into him, the idea of letting him watch over her more appealing now she'd seen her reflection and come face to face with her own mortality.

Maddie managed to rest patiently with Tommy by her side for about an hour before the sedentary feeling of lying in bed began to make her fidget like a toddler. He had managed to entertain her for while by reading a book that he had fished out of his bedside drawer but now that she was awake, she could feel her ususal energy and strength returning and she was gradually being taken over by the need to move.

'This is no use!' huffed Maddie, throwing her hands up in frustration. 'I'm going to have a shower.'

Maddie shuffled away from Tommy and sat on the edge of the bed before he could protest, and she heard him sigh behind her and drag himself out of bed as she prepared to stand up again. The pain was significantly better than it had been when she had first stood up and she smiled thankfully to herself as she began to pad over to the bathroom. He came up close behind to follow her and he placed his hands protectively on her upper arms; she placed one of her hands over his and gripped it as they came to stand in front of the mirror.

Faced with her reflection again, Maddie winced and sighed before she noticed Tommy's expression reflected in the mirror above hers. His jaw was tensed, his eyes cool and glassy as their eyes met in the mirror before he looked her up and down without saying a word. She swallowed and looked away to finally pull her nightgown up and over her head to see the extent of the damage to the rest of her body.

'Oh boy,' Maddie muttered as the nightie hit the floor next to her.

She may as well have been a plum with how purple she looked, the darkest areas being around her ribcage which complimented where her broken rib was. The tight bandaging around her waist was still secure and surprisingly clean considering what was under them. Maddie tried her best to ignore Tommy's piercing gaze as she began to unravel the bandaging.

'Slowly,' uttered Tommy as he apprehensively watched her gather up the bandages with more haste, eager to see what she looked like.

Maddie ignored him and quickly managed to rid herself of the wrappings leaving only some gauze stuck to her side. She peeled back the fabric gently to reveal the stitched-up wound on her side. She immediately heard Tommy let out a breath of disbelief as they both stared at the wound. The long cut had sealed on the surface and was in the early stages of healing, a long pink line that stretched from near Maddie's naval to a quarter of the way across her back. The stitches that he had done were uniform and neat and she let out a relieved chuckle with the knowledge that she would be able to cut them out in a couple of days. She felt his hand touch her back softly before he ran it down her side to trace the wound with a look of disbelief on his face.

'How does it feel?' he asked.

'Not that bad actually,' replied Maddie as she turned to appraise herself further before she eventually turned to face Tommy, placing her hands on his chest and smiling up at him. 'Thank you.'

He let a small smile lift up his lips before she went on tiptoe to kiss them softly. This time he returned the kiss, even if it was gentler than usual and she hoped that his usual rough passion would return once she recovered.

'I'll leave you to your shower, eh' said Tommy once they broke apart, his hands still cupping her face softly.

'Mmm-hmm,' nodded Maddie. 'And then we can go downstairs and join everyone else.'

Tommy looked at her a moment as if he was deciding whether or not to disagree and insist that she rest until tomorrow but thankfully decided against it as he nodded in defeat.

'Alright.'

He kissed her on the forehead before leaving her alone in the bathroom and she wasted no time in firing up the shower. She turned it on to the hottest setting she could, just how she liked it and eagerly stepped under the steaming stream of water. She revelled in the feeling of the scorching hot water soothing her bruised body and rinsing her hair of the dried blood. The wound on her side stung as the hot water ran over it but it was a pleasant pain that signified that it was healing fast. Maddie washed and scrubbed her body, as if the action would remove the bruises like they were dirt so that when she stepped out of the shower and caught her reflection again she felt slightly disappointed that it hadn't returned to normal.

Maddie got dressed in her favourite pair of jodhpurs and blouse, the clothes which she found the most comfortable which Tommy had fetched from her room. The dressing process was painful, but she let none of it show on her face in front of Tommy, the feeling of fitted fabric encasing her skin making her bruises throb and ache. As she attempted to make herself look more presentable in the mirror, she saw him lingering in the room smoking the first cigarette she'd seen him smoke that day as he waited for her. He was already dressed and groomed, looking pristine and it was making her shuffle uncomfortably under his gaze.

'Why don't I meet you downstairs? I might take a while,' said Maddie, giving Tommy a reassuring smile.

She could tell he wasn't keen on the idea but he eventually nodded and left her alone in the room and she let out a huff of a sigh once he'd gone. There was something off between them as a result of the fight which she couldn't quite place and had no idea how to rectify. Maybe it will all go back to normal once I'm healed, she hoped. But Maddie knew this wouldn't be that last time she would be in danger or be seriously injured and thought it likely that that was what was currently going through Tommy's mind and she knew his instinct would be to try and prevent it. All be it in vain.

Maddie managed to brush her now clean wet hair and made it look somewhat nice although her purple face was a lost cause entirely. Residing that it was the best she could do, she got up and trudged out of the bedroom for the first time since Tommy had carried her there last night. Glad to be out of the confines of just four walls, she felt a surge of rejuvenated energy and excitement at spending the time she was supposed to with the Shelby's. She took her time to descend the stairs but managed it with less pain than she expected before starting to make her way to the dining room but ended up pausing in the middle of the foyer. She spotted a discoloured patch on the wooden floorboards where they had been scrubbed and she swallowed as she realised that it was her blood that had been cleaned from the spot. As she stared at the floor, a soft breeze brushed her face and Maddie looked up at the open door that lead out to the driveway. It was as if the fresh air was beckoning her and she looked left and right to see if anyone was watching her before making her way outside.

The cool air was soothing but the sight of last night's battle wasn't. The stake and sword had been collected but otherwise the scene was as Maddie left it. She spotted the little mounds of dust of all the vamps she's slayed dotted around as she came to stand next to the ruined fountain, all the grey stone slabs littered over the gravel. She forced herself to look over at Tommy's car next, which looked like it hadn't been touched at all that day. Maddie winced; she would have to apologise to him later as she was certain the car was now undriveable. She walked over to the bonnet of the car and groaned at the Maddie shaped dent and the gauge that had been made by the sword which looked like it had damaged the engine. Walking to the side of the car, her boots crunching over shattered glass, she saw the other large dent made by her in the door and shook her head despairingly.

'Great, now I owe him for the car as well as the table,' she grumbled to herself as she heard footsteps crunching over the gravel toward her.

Maddie turned to see Ada walking across the driveway and she smiled awkwardly as she approached.

'You alright?' she asked.

Maddie nodded and laughed off her shock at the mess she had made. 'Yeah, I'm fine. Just wanted some… fresh air.'

Ada nodded knowingly before inspecting the scene around her.

'This should have all been tidied up by now so you wouldn't have to see it, but we wanted to find people who wouldn't ask any questions.'

'Good luck with that,' Maddie chuckled, Ada laughing along.

'We'd better get back. I said I'd check on you after Tommy started pacing around when you hadn't appeared yet. If he knew you were out here, he'd have kittens.'

Maddie rolled her eyes, and Ada gave her and understanding look. Part of her was happy to have Tommy be so concerned and protective of her; but the other half, the slayer half, was beginning to find it suffocating. They returned indoors together and joined the Shelby's in the dining room who all looked exceptionally happy to see her up and about. Tommy seemed to relax when Maddie settled down to dinner and happily engaged with the light-hearted conversation of the group. Everyone seemed to have forgotten and moved on from the nights events and the conversation didn't seem forced and flowed with as much banter and frivolity as it usually did. Maddie herself even forgot about how she looked and any discomfort she was in at a couple of moments but was quickly reminded of it when she laughed hysterically at John and Arthur scuffling together, although it didn't deter her from laughing more to the point where she had to wrap her arm around her midriff with the pain. Thankfully, Tommy didn't notice, and she was spared any concerned gazes he would have given her.

As the night drew in, Maddie was settled into the sofa next to Tommy, his arm around her shoulder and his hand gently caressing her arm as he sipped at a glass of whiskey. She was watching John and Esme dance around the room, chuckling at them as the she got the urge to join in with them. She sat up and leaned forward, as if about to stand but felt Tommy's hand grip her waist, not wanting her to leave his side and it made her pause before deciding to sit back against him again. She had decided to give him tonight and tomorrow to please him by doing as he wished and taking it slow to let herself heal. After that however, Maddie was adamant she would get back to how she was living her life as she had before, no matter how much Tommy might protest.

The next day, Maddie awoke feeling remarkably better. Her cracked rib was tender but by no means as much of a hinderance as it had been and the cut was healed enough for Tommy to remove the stiches, which wasn't painful at all. The bruises were yellowing and shrinking at a good pace and overall, her soreness was at a minimum. Still, she behaved herself and took the day slowly as she had decided she would for Tommy's sake; the most strenuous activity she did that day was to walk around the stables and the large garden in the warm sunshine. She and the Shelby's enjoyed a picnic on the lawn, an unusually bright and happy occasion for the end of April and they ended the night inside with card games after dinner.

Tommy sat next to Maddie as she joined in a game of poker, not joining in himself but watching over her shoulder at her cards and whispering what she should do in her ear. She blushed each time he did this, partly embarrassed that he'd noticed that she had no idea what she was doing but also because his voice had a flirtatious undertone and his hot breath tickled her skin and made her tingle all the way down her spine to between her legs. It made her lose her concentration more than once and she lost round after round much to her competitor's amusement, and also Tommy's who chuckled for the first time in two days.

This new amorous tension that had stirred between them gave her hope that they would finally fuck for the first time in what felt like an eternity. Any time that she had tried to be intimate with Tommy over the past two days, he had reciprocated but only with love and not with lust. Lust that Maddie was now desperately craving.

'How does anybody win money at this game!?' huffed Maddie, throwing her hand of cards onto the table.

'By keeping a straight face and not blushing every time you make a bet,' said John, sniggering at her frustration.

Now in a sulk, her arms folder over her chest, she huffed before thinking of another game she knew she always won.

'Can we play snap?'

John, Michael, Arthur and Tommy all looked at each other in amusement.

'Isn't that a child's game?' asked Michael with an ounce of teasing.

'What, afraid I'll beat you?' taunted Maddie.

John snorted and Arthur smiled and nodded.

'Alright, let's see if Mads is as good as she thinks she is,' he said before dealing the cards out equally, including to Tommy who decided to join in.

Five minutes later, Maddie had cheered up considerably as she held the entire pack of cards in her hands in victory. Despite not being at her best, her speed was far superior to theirs and she'd snapped up (pun intended) all the cards before the rest of them had even had chance to react. John found this exceedingly funny, making a loud announcement to the room.

'Let it be known that Mads, even though she's fucking shit at poker, is unbeatable at snap!'

With this comedic announcement, the night came to a natural end and everyone retired relatively early in preparation for their return to the office the next day, their little holiday, which had almost been ruined, now over. Maddie could feel her excitement and nerves building as she and Tommy made their way into the bedroom, as if they were about to sleep together for the first time, even though it was far from that. She stripped down to her underwear without looking at him which had the effect she was aiming for. She soon felt his arms snake around her waist and his warm lips press against the nape of her neck. Maddie tilted her head to the side and Tommy responded by kissing along her neck making her rest her head on his shoulder with her eyes closed and sigh blissfully. God, she had missed this.

'Maddie' he whispered into her ear.

'Hmm?'

'I love you.'

Maddie spun around in Tommy's arms to look up at him smiling, wrapping her arms around his neck and planting a kiss on his lips.

'I love you too.'

Tommy met her eyes and he caressed her face softly before speaking again.

'Take the rest of the week off.'

Maddie blinked at the sudden change of subject and immediately felt deflated, letting her arms drop to her sides.

'Wha- why?' she protested, now feeling anger stir up inside her. Here she was thinking Tommy had gotten over her injuries, but it turned out she had been naïve.

'Maddie, your face is still bruised,' he said. 'It's going to cause a lot of questions.'

Maddie stuttered with her mouth open, wanting to protest before huffing defeatedly. Tommy annoyingly was right, the questions and looks she would get at the office she could do without so staying at Arrow House was a sensible idea. She quickly realised that she could take advantage of this and do what she wanted when he was at the office without fear of him fretting over her. One thing for sure, she wasn't going to let this ruin her mood or put a stopper in her arousal.

'Okay Tommy,' she said with a provocative glint in her eye. 'In that case maybe we should tire you out so you get a good night's sleep before a hard day at work tomorrow?'

Tommy smirked as Maddie bit her lip before kissing him and pushing him backwards over to the bed until the backs of his legs hit it and he dropped down to sit on the edge. She followed by straddling his legs to sit on his lap whilst continuing to kiss him more forcefully, running her fingers through his hair. He gripped onto her hips roughly and a deep growl escaped him as she began to move her attention to his neck and earlobe; she smiled victoriously as Tommy's hands began to wander to her ass and to her waist in reaction to her assault. The warm skin of his palms skated over her skin, sending pins and needles rippling over her flesh. At least it did, until his fingers came into contact with the still raised scar that stretched around her left side. It didn't hurt anymore but Maddie felt her skin twitch instinctively with the touch to the weak spot.

He halted his movements and she heard his intake of breath, but she was determined not to let the moment pass her by and continued to nibble at his neck. It was no use however, Tommy soon grasped Maddie's shoulders and tried to push her back to look at him.

'Maddie,' he coaxed when she initially resisted him. 'Not tonight love.'

She finally sat back with a huff, looking down at Tommy with annoyance who met her eyes unblinkingly but with softness.

'I'm fine Tommy, you don't need to wrap me in cotton wool.'

A flash of irritation flickered across Tommy's eyes before he shut them and sighed before looking back at Maddie and putting her face in his hands.

'It's not that I don't want to, I just don't want your injuries to get in the way, eh?'

Maddie sighed and rolled her eyes in a display of disagreement although her mind started racing with other possible reasons for Tommy's reluctance to have sex with her. Is he not attracted to me anymore because he thinks I'm weaker? Does he think I'm ugly because of the bruises? She looked into his eyes a moment to search for any evidence of these thoughts being true but saw nothing but affection looking back at her. Maybe she was being too harsh. It had been hard for him to see her get beaten so badly and her appearance was a constant reminder of that, which she admitted wouldn't really put him in the mood and decided to cut him some slack. Reluctantly, Maddie gave Tommy a meek smile and a little nod of agreement before he kissed her lips softly and pulled her into a warm embrace.

They soon settled into bed next to each other once again, Maddie resting her head on Tommy's chest and listening to his heartbeat as he fell asleep before her. She however, had to fight off the niggling feeling that he wasn't going to put her almost defeat behind them as easily as she wanted him to.

Maddie sat at breakfast tapping her foot impatiently as she eagerly awaited the minute that Tommy and the rest of the Shelby's would leave for the office. Frances and the rest of the house's staff had returned early that morning and had been waiting for them when they all awoke. Arthur had managed to get some of the Blinders to come and tow Tommy's car away the previous day and the driveway had been made presentable again so thankfully it wasn't obvious at first sight that anything untoward had happened over the last few days. However, when Frances laid eyes on Maddie, she gasped in shock but quickly swallowed her questions under Tommy's icy stare; the old bat had learned not to ask too many questions in his house if she wanted to keep her eyes. Frances didn't ask any questions about his missing car or the odd little bits of damage to the dining table and floor either, although she looked significantly more stressed when she noticed them.

When Tommy and the others were ready to leave, Maddie struggled but just about managed to hide her excitement. As soon as their cars disappeared at the end of the driveway, she would be able to start her plans for the day, of which she had many. Shehugged Ada tightly as they stood on the front steps. She was heading back to London after stopping by at the office and Maddie had regretted that her visit hadn't been better spent.

'You'll be back again soon?' asked Maddie hopefully.

'Of course,' replied Ada. 'We'll try and get away from the men next time eh?'

Laughing, Maddie waved Ada to her car which she got into and started the engine as she felt Tommy's hand grasp hers as he came to stand beside her, and she looked up at him with a smile.

'Rest up well today,' he said, kissing her on the forehead before looking at her expectantly for an answer.

Maddie felt angered rebellion boiling in her tummy already but kept her smile sweet and innocent as she met Tommy's stern eyes. She crossed her fingers of her other hand behind her back as she replied confidently with a little smirk.

'I will.'

Tommy gave her a small quirk of his lips in return before planting a soft kiss to her lips. The horn of John's car caused them to break apart and she giggled as he sighed in irritation and finally turned away and climbed into the car next to John. She waved them off as the car turned on the gravel and sped off down the driveway, staying rooted to the spot until the car disappeared through the treeline.

Maddie immediately turned on her heel and marched back into the house and up the stairs to her room, a room which she only now used to keep her clothes in, the bed being left untouched for three weeks. She pulled off her dress and stockings, the clothes she'd put on as a ruse to help convince Tommy that she wasn't planning on leaving the clean, dry confines of the house. Her body now had no pain, even if some of the bruises remained, although they were now mostly yellow. Maddie pulled out her outdoor gear and dressed rapidly as if the sun would set quicker with every second she spent indoors, followed shortly by the return of Tommy. She pinned her hair back out of her face before lacing her boots on securely, snatching up a small satchel and dashing out of the door again.

She stopped by the kitchen, which was luckily empty, and hastily made herself a sandwich which she packed into her satchel with an assortment of other snacks to keep her going for most of the day. She was determined not to waste any of the precious time she had that day, and she quickly ran out into the warm spring air and headed to the stable as the time approached eight o'clock. Maddie was glad to see that Eric didn't seem to have started for the day yet, as much as she would have enjoyed a chat with him, she didn't want anything to delay her getting on her way. She saddled up Luna before leaving a note for Eric to say that she'd taken her so as not to worry him. After stepping up onto the saddle, Maddie left the stable at a gallop, heading straight over the field towards the gate she knew that lead deeper into the Warwickshire countryside where she could get lost. She took Luna over the fields and along the stream for a few miles until she reached the thick forest she had discovered on one of her many adventures. She hadn't been inside the forest yet, having previously always decided to turn back rather than press on; but this time was different.

Without slowing down, Maddie steered Luna through a gap through the trees into the dark shaded forest. Beams of sunlight streaked through the branches as she veered left and right between the large trunks of the trees, ducking and dodging the low hanging limbs of the huge oaks and firs that quickly surrounded her and Luna. It was exhilarating, being outside and darting through the forest like a nymph. As ridiculous as she knew it sounded, the last three days had made her feel so much less than herself, like she wasn't the slayer anymore. It was mostly because of her injuries, although she had dealt with debilitating injuries before. The other reason was Tommy, who had made her feel so delicate and vulnerable in a way that she wasn't used to, even if it was unintentional on his part. Even so, the joy she now felt was due in part to the voluntary rebellion against him and his insistence she stay safe indoors.

Maddie eventually brought Luna down to a trot and continued through the trees until she found a stream, possibly another stretch of the same stream she rode along earlier. There next to the water was a huge oak tree, with boughs that stretched out in all directions. She dismounted Luna and lead the mare to the water where she eagerly drank after the hard work that Maddie put her through. Maddie put her satchel down on the grass next to the tree before coming to stand next to its huge trunk. Looking up at the towering tree, she grinned before slotting her foot into a knot in the trees bark and grasping another knot with her hand to begin scaling the old oak. She made light work of the tree, hopping up its branches with ease. It was a good test to see if she had healed fully, which she was now confident she had. Her core muscles felt strong; indeed, all her muscles did as she lifted her weight all the way up to the topmost branches to finally balance on one of the top boughs to look out over the top of the forest.

Maddie chuckled to herself at the thought of what Tommy would do if he saw her up the tree. Probably give me more grief than it's worth, she thought. She could understand why he had become so protective of her, he loved her. Watching Grace die and almost watching her die was bound to make him react that way, but that didn't mean that she was happy about it, which ironically, she consequently felt guilty for. She even felt a little guilt for going out and climbing trees, part of her not comfortable about lying to the man she loved and doing things behind his back. Nevertheless, the stubborn part of her was determined not to be couped up like bird in a cage and would demonstrate that fact to Tommy.

After a few minutes on her perch, Maddie climbed back down the oak and sat on the grass leant up against its trunk, pulling her sandwich out of her satchel. As she sat munching on her lunch, she cast her mind back to the fight with Juliet and her stooges. She analysed her technique and tried to pick out any mistakes or flaws that lead to the whole battle being such a close shave but found none. It was one of those fights that had been decided by Maddie's will to win. Her need to win. She had people to defend, to keep safe, which is why she ultimately won. It was an uncomfortable feeling, winning not on skill but on conviction, but one she was familiar with as a slayer. Usually, after a fight like that, Maddie would go back out patrolling as soon as she could stand, needing to get back on the horse for fear of letting the forces of evil gain an advantage. Something which she had been stopped from doing this time and before she knew it, another risky idea began to form in her head. I should go patrolling tonight.

Maddie leapt up from the ground and ran over to Luna, mounting her again and set off through the trees back towards Arrow House. She had planned on staying out all day, but her new plan meant she needed to make arrangements whilst the Shelby's were still at the office. She made it back to the stables in good time, even though she nearly tired poor Luna out again. She dismounted outside the stable door as Eric appeared and gave his greeting to Maddie who handed over Luna's reigns to him.

'Sorry, can't stay to chat!' called Maddie as Eric opened his mouth to say something before marching off toward the house.

Once inside, she had no trouble finding Frances, who was bustling through the corridors and barking orders at the maids. Two days absence meant there was a lot of work to be done before Tommy returned home and it was evidently causing her a considerable amount of stress.

'Frances!' called Maddie after her before she disappeared down one of the corridors.

Frances halted on the spot and turned to see who was calling her. Once she realised who it was, she tried her best to hide her sour expression as Maddie caught up with her.

'Ah, Maddie. You're back. What can I help you with?'

'I need to make a phone call,' she said. 'How do I ring Arthur's phone in his office?'

Frances regarded her for a moment before replying. 'Ask for Arthur Shelby's office after giving the address to the operator.'

Maddie nodded, hoping that would be enough for her to get it right. It was weird that they had no phone numbers in the 1920's and she prayed she didn't accidentally get put through to Tommy's office.

Thanking Frances, she made her way to Tommy's office, closing the large door behind her to be sure she wouldn't be overheard by one of the staff. Maddie picked up the earpiece of the phone and held it to her ear but heard nothing but the dial tone. She then remembered Tommy clicking the off-hook twice whenever he used the phone to call anyone; she mimicked his actions and soon heard the voice of the operator on the end of the line.

'How may I connect your call?' came the high-pitched voice of the operator.

'Er… Shelby Company Offices, Small Health, Arthur Shelby's office please,' said Maddie nervously, unsure if she'd said it right.

'One moment please.'

The line went silent for a moment before it started to ring. It rang twice before Maddie heard a crackle followed by the sound of Arthur's voice.

'Arthur Shelby,' his gruff voice said.

'Arthur, it's Maddie.'

'Maddie? You alright? Has something happened?' asked Arthur, sounding slightly panicked.

'No, no! I'm fine,' replied Maddie, realising that calling a Shelby at the office in the middle of the day would probably arouse their suspicion. 'I'm calling you for a favour.'

'A favour? Do you want me to get Tommy?'

'No, don't!' she blurted, causing Arthur to pause on the other side of the line. 'I actually want to keep Tommy in the dark on this. At least for now.'

She heard Arthur take a few breaths on the other side of the line and she imagined that he probably had an unsure expression on his face right about now.

'I don't like the sound of this Mads,' he said with trepidation.

No doubt asking for a favour that was to be kept secret from Tommy was ringing alarm bells to Arthur and Maddie needed to reassure him if she wanted his help.

'It's nothing serious Arthur,' she chuckled, attempting to sound nonchalant. 'Can you come and pick me up before Tommy gets home and drive me back into Birmingham?'

'Why?' he asked after another pause.

'I er… want to go out patrolling and the cemetery in the village won't exactly be rich in vampires.'

Maddie waited with her fingers crossed for Arthur to reply. She could practically hear the cogs in his brain calculating how angry Tommy would be if he found out he had helped her go behind his back to go slaying vampires.

'I don't think that's such a good idea Mads,' said Arthur. 'How are you going to get back?'

'Please Arthur! I'll leave Tommy a note to tell him where I'm going, I'm sure he'll drive right over in his shiny new car once he reads it. And don't worry I won't tell him you helped me,' she begged.

Arthur huffed a sigh of defeat on the other end of the line and Maddie smiled in victory before he even spoke.

'Alright. I'll pick you up at five. That way we won't pass Tommy on the way back to Birmingham.'

'Thank you, Arthur! I owe you one.'

'Bloody right,' grumbled Arthur before hanging up the phone.

Maddie ran her hand over her assortment of weapons as she tried to make up her mind which one to take with her. She had spent the rest of her afternoon in the training room, brushing up on her aim and her combat, which thankfully hadn't suffered at all at the hands of her injuries. Much to her surprise, five o'clock had quickly approached and shewas expecting Arthur outside in five minutes.

'I think we'll keep it basic,' she said to herself, plucking a stake from the cabinet along with the crossbow and a handful of bolts.

Maddie tucked the stake into the inside pocket of her jacket and threw the strap of the crossbow over her head before turning to hurry out of the basement to meet Arthur on the driveway. Fortunately, Frances and the house's staff were nowhere to be seen so she was able to slip out unnoticed. As she got out onto the driveway, she saw the headlights of Arthur's car appear in the distance. Dusk had fallen over the countryside, a not-quite darkness making the shadows dark and gloomy whilst the sky was still a medium shade of blue. The low rumble of the car's engine got louder as it pulled up to where she was waiting in the middle of the drive, coming to a low hum as he stopped the car next to her. Maddie hastily opened the car door and climbed into the dark cabin next to Arthur, slamming the door shut excitedly.

'Thank you, Arthur,' she said as she sat back on the seat. 'I won't forget this favour.'

Through the darkness of the cabin came the distinct sound of someone clearing their throat and it was only then that she first realised that it wasn't Arthur behind the wheel. Maddie snapped her head around to finally look at the driver whose icy blue eyes seemed to glow in the dim light as they pierced her. She couldn't help but gulp with the anticipation of what was going to come next, she should have known that Arthur would have told on her.

Tommy was smoking a cigarette, letting the silence linger for a few seconds as the smoke filled the car and surrounded them in a spooky mist. Maddie bit her lip awkwardly, not sure as to whether he was expecting her to speak first and after a few seconds decided she needed to break the silence.

'Did Arthur tell you?' she asked.

'Not deliberately. I overheard your phone call. He tried to make an excuse for your sake,' replied Tommy, dragging further on his cigarette.

Maddie winced at her bad luck, she hadn't wanted to go behind Tommy's back, but she thought that this would be a good way to show that he didn't need to be so worried about her. Although, she had overlooked the matter of him losing his trust in her as a consequence. Despite this revelation, she began to feel anger towards him for not letting her make her own decisions, especially when it came to her slaying which he technically had no say in. Silence fell between them again and this time Maddie was determined not to say anything, she didn't know if he was expecting an apology, but she certainly wasn't going to give him one. He's the one who's ruined my night, she thought.

Eventually, Tommy grew tired of the quiet and stubbed his cigarette out in the ashtray before turning to face Maddie with an irritated huff. She met his eyes steadily, which she could only just see through the shadow his cap was casting over his face. He flexed his jaw and pursed his lips together and she readied herself for whatever lecture she was about to receive.

'Why are you so desperate to go out and get yourself killed?' asked Tommy tersely.

Maddie could hear his temper already building even though they hadn't said more than a few words. However, her temper was also beginning to rise dangerously. It was like he didn't understand her at all, like all that he'd learned about her since they'd met had fallen out of his ears. He knew her better than that.

'I'm not trying to get myself killed Tommy,' she replied in frustration.

Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose, looking as though he was already at his wits end.

'Then why are you sneaking out in the middle of the night behind my back?!' he retorted, his voice rising now, making Maddie's heckles rise. 'And after nearly dying a few days ago!?'

'I kept trying to tell you that I'm fine!' she shouted back, unable to hold in her composure but sighed to calm herself before speaking again. 'But you wanted me to rest, so I rested.'

Tommy shook his head in disbelief and took his cap off before running his hands over his face. He took a couple of deep breaths as Maddie regarded him furiously, trying to gather his composure.

'I don't understand why you feel like you have to go out there and fight and possibly be killed.'

Is he serious? Talk about pot calling kettle black, she thought. Maddie now knew that Tommy hadn't learnt what being a slayer meant, or if he had, he had decided to either fight it or ignore it. Either way, the rejection of this part of her hurt, and she could feel tears stinging the back of her eyes. This is what happens when slayers fall in love. It happened to Buffy and probably many other slayers before her. Their duty as a slayer will always get in the way.

'Because I have to,' stated Maddie flatly, turning her gaze away from Tommy.

'That's not an answer Maddie!'

This was enough to push her over the edge. Years of frustration was coming to a boiling point. She had made so many sacrifices, mainly the prospect of a normal life, since becoming the slayer and now the emotions that went along with that were coming to a head.

'You don't get it do you?!' Maddie spat with frustration staring daggers back at Tommy which was enough to make him blink and recoil slightly. 'I'm the slayer. Me. I would have thought you would understand what that meant by now. It's my duty, my calling.' She paused, squeezing her eyes shut as tears stung the back of them. 'You think I want this? To put myself in danger all the time? I don't get to walk away. Ever. The other night wasn't the first time I've come close to dying, Tommy, and it won't be the last either. Most slayers die before their eighteen. I survived this long back home because I had help and people to care for, now I have you and your family for that.'

Maddie stopped her rant, gasping for breath as Tommy looked at her coldly as he had done during her entire speech. She felt the tears finally spill down her cheeks and she hastily brushed them away and sniffed before speaking again.

'This is who I am Tommy. It's what I have to do whether you like it or not.' She looked into his eyes and saw him battling himself in his head. He continued to look at her as she waited for him to respond.

'I just don't want to lose you, Maddie,' he said, his voice now soft, any evidence of anger gone.

Maddie squeezed her eyes shut again, she didn't want to lose him either, much less die. He should be the first one to admit that his life wasn't exactly the safest, their lives weren't too dissimilar in that respect but she supposed that he had found something he wanted to keep safe amidst all that, but that was something she couldn't promise him.

'I know, I don't want to lose you either. But I can't promise you that Tommy. I'm sorry.'

With that, Maddie opened the door and got out of the car and left Tommy alone. She needed to cool down, to clear her head. She walked back inside and didn't hear him get out of the car after her, deciding he must also want some time alone to think. She headed back to the training room and discarded her weapons in the cabinet again before picking up a set of throwing knives. She shed herself of her coat and began to lob the knives at the target aggressively.

Her mind span with thoughts of what this argument meant for her life. Would Tommy still want her around? Maybe it would be better for everyone if she went at it alone. Then again, maybe she was just blowing it out of proportion. He must understand where she was coming from with the sort of life he lead. Maddie could feel herself getting a headache as her mind went in circles, so she eventually just let her mind go blank and focussed on throwing the knives at the target. She soon went and received the knives from the target once she threw them all and returned to her spot and started throwing them again. She repeated this cycle several times before she heard footsteps approaching the door which was soon opened and she turned to see Tommy walk in, still in his coat and cap which she thought was odd.

Not knowing what to say, Maddie avoided his gaze and continued to throw her knives. However, Tommy didn't stop by the door and approached her and she soon felt his hand on her shoulder. She stopped what she was doing with a sigh and turned to look up at Tommy whose expression was unreadable as usual.

'I'm sorry Maddie,' he said after a pause.

Maddie blinked in astonishment, not expecting an apology from him. She had been anticipating an ultimatum, that she either stop slaying or leave.

'I know who you are and what drives you, it's the same need that drives me, and my family often don't understand why I risk my life for what we do. Seeing you like that, it scared me. And I'm terrified of seeing you like that again, and part of me will always try to protect you. But I trust you, and I'm sorry that I doubted your judgement.'

She listened to his apology and a smile gradually painted her face, it was weird hearing such sensitive words leave his mouth and humorous when his face stayed in its usual stony expression the entire time. She reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck, planting a small kiss to his lips.

'I'm sorry too. I should have been honest with you. I was beginning to feel trapped and I was worried that you thought I was like some fragile baby bird that you didn't want to touch for fear of breaking. It made me kinda grumpy,' Maddie sighed.

Tommy furrowed his brow at her. 'I always want to touch you Maddie, never think that I don't.'

Maddie breathed a deep sigh of relief. In the end, all it took was honesty and communication. Tommy had said that part of him would always struggle to accept that she will always be in danger, and she realised that wasn't such a bad thing. Maybe having someone to stop her from running headlong into a battle she couldn't win was exactly what she needed.

This was the second argument they'd had in the space of a week and Maddie found it more reassuring than concerning. She and Tommy had faced a couple of hurdles, one of them a pretty serious hurdle, and come out the other side the stronger for it. They chuckled together for a minute; the tension of the past few days finally being released before he stepped out of her arms.

'Now get your stuff, I'll drive us back to Birmingham,' he said.

Maddie looked at him gobsmacked, not quite registering what he'd said at first.

'Wait, you mean I can go patrolling tonight?' she asked once the penny dropped.

Tommy smirked at her and nodded, pulling out his cigarettes and putting one between his lips and lighting it before speaking again with it hanging from his mouth.

'I have some work to finish at the office and Arthur is waiting there for me to bring his car back.'

A devious and devilish thought crossed Maddie's mind as she admired the garment, if you could call it that, in the window of the women's wear shop. It was a lingerie set made of the lightest and most delicate looking pink lace and silk she'd ever seen; it subtly radiated elegance and innocence but at the same time depravity and sensuality. She was sure it would be expensive, but she had saved an admirable amount of money over the past three weeks from her more than adequate wages. Not needing to use it on rent or food meant that Maddie had very little need for her money other than to spend it on herself and as a result she seriously began to play with the idea of spending it all on the underwear in the window.

She had hitched a lift into Birmingham that morning with Tommy, although she wasn't spending the day in the office as her face was still slightly bruised to avoid being noticed. Instead Maddie had decided to walk around the city, spending time exploring the areas she had yet to see and learning what areas the Peaky Blinders had influence and she counted very few areas where they didn't. She'd recognised a few of the men from the gang and had smiled and acknowledged them when they tipped her hats to her in greeting, being sure to keep her face shielded by the hat she was wearing to avoid any unwanted questions. She'd decided to walk through the centre of the city and go window shopping, or at least she had until now.

The previous night had gone so smoothly, Maddie had concluded that her slaying had in fact gotten better as a result of her injuries. She had spent a few hours patrolling a few of the graveyards around Small Heath and the surrounding areas before she met Tommy back at Watery Lane. She noticed the slightly relieved look he gave when he saw her in one piece and smiling from ear to ear. She imagined it had been the visual reassurance he needed to know that she could still take care of herself.

'Ready to go home?' he asked, brushing a sweaty strand of hair out of Maddie's face.

'Yep,' she responded with a sigh. 'A much-needed shower is in order.'

On the drive home, Maddie had joked about the possibility of Tommy and his brothers joining her on a patrol one night so she could teach them a few things. He laughed at the thought but didn't completely reject idea which prompted her to picture him stabbing a vampire in the chest with a stake. The image brought a smile to her face as she imagined the two of them fighting vampires together. She knew Tommy had the skill to do it, he'd already slayed a vamp with a crossbow which wasn't an easy feat and his calm level-headed personality would make it easier for him.

Once they were home, Maddie leapt into the hot shower without hesitation, washing away the vamp dust from her hair with relief. She could get used to this routine, she thought, working all day, patrolling at night and coming home to a hot shower and a warm bed next to Tommy. This thought caused her to bite her lip mischievously and hastily get out of the shower. She quickly towelled off and scurried back to the bedroom excitedly where she stopped and sighed in irritation when she saw that Tommy was already asleep in bed, his body obviously still needing to catch up on sleep from earlier in the week. What do I have to do to get any action around here? This question crossed her mind as she dressed in a silk nightie and slumped into the bed next to him.

This memory was the cause for Maddie's sudden interest in the lingerie that was displayed in the shop window. There was no way that Tommy would leave her alone if he knew she was wearing that. Hell, he'd probably leave a meeting with some important minister or other to get his hands on her in that gorgeous silk. Besides, after all the ups and downs the two of them had been through, surprising him with this would be a fun way to bring some passion into their relationship. Anextremelyfun way.

Her mind now made up, Maddie entered the shop confidently, her heels clopping loudly on the wooden floor as she stepped inside. An attractive young woman sat behind the counter looked up from the ledger she was writing in to look at her and gave her a welcoming smile before hopping off her stool to approach her.

'Good afternoon,' she said sweetly. 'What can I do for you today?'

The woman had a warm and welcoming tone the elicited an easy return smile from Maddie who took off her hat and smoothed down her hair. The woman's eyes flicked around her face at seeing her bruises but was gracious enough not to react any other way. She realised that a woman with a bruised face was likely a common site and unfortunately people were expected not to acknowledge it. This fact angered Maddie, but in her case, it was better that strangers didn't ask her questions about her injuries. However, she lamented for the women who needed someone to show concern for them.

'Yeah, I'd like to buy the items you have in the window,' replied Maddie.

The woman looked momentarily shocked but soon regained her composure.

'Certainly Miss, it should be a perfect fit on you,' she said, eying Maddie up and down to gauge her measurements.

Maddie smiled excitedly, a giddy feeling she usually got from shopping and buying unnecessary things making her shudder as the woman went over to the window display to retrieve the garments. Wait, she'd better make sure that she could afford it first.

'How much is it?' Maddie asked, trying her best not to look worried.

'Nine pounds and ten shillings,' said the woman with another warm smile.

Was that it? Maddie kept forgetting that mere pounds would be considered very expensive in the 1920's. She got her small purse out of her pocket and quickly checked how much was in there. More than enough it seemed. Thankfully, after she had started working for Tommy, he'd graciously explained to her how the money system worked; twenty shillings to a pound, twelve pennies to a shilling. The Shelby's insistence on paying her a more than substantial five pounds a week meant that she had plenty to pay for the high-quality silk. Her first big purchase with her own money! She couldn't wait to put it on, so much so that she doubted she could wait until she got home.

'Could I use your changing room to change into it straight away?' asked Maddie eagerly as the woman was neatly folding the pieces on the counter, realising she wouldn't have another chance to put it on before she went to meet Tommy at the office later

The woman looked over at her and laughed, giving her a knowing look. 'Wanting to surprise someone?'

'You could say that.'

Maddie handed over the money for the lingerie before the woman handed them to her and pointed her in the direction of the changing room. The fabric was so unbelievably light that it almost felt like she wasn't holding anything in her hands. The same was true when she put the lace and silk on her body, feeling naked despite the fabric covering up the sensitive parts of her body. The woman was right, it fit her perfectly. The lace of the waistband of the knickers and the back of the bra hugged Maddie's skin smoothly and the silk sections accentuated her curves and muscles in the light making her look exposed whist being covered up at the same time. The colour was a muted rose shade that brought out her freckles and the blue of her eyes well and she admired herself in the mirror. I'd definitely fuck myself, she thought as she pulled up the matching garters and strapped them to her stockings. Giving herself one last twirl, she put her dress back on over the new lingerie and packed the ones she had worn into the shop into a paper bag the woman had given her before leaving the changing room. Maddie thanked the woman who reciprocated graciously, looking more than pleased at the sale she had made.

For the rest of the afternoon, Maddie struggled to entertain herself in the city. The feeling of the feather light material of her new lingerie brushing against her skin was painfully distracting and was turning her on something chronic. The anticipation of showing Tommy and seeing his reaction was only making it worse as she strolled through Garrison Lane Park, trying her best to kill time in the warm sunshine. She could feel her nipples harden causing the delicate silk to strain against them and white-hot arousal began to spread across her skin. Huffing in frustration, Maddie sat on an empty bench before closing her eyes and attempting to think of anything other than sex. It was a losing battle however, and she soon found herself picturing various scenarios of Tommy discovering her little surprise. She pictured herself sneaking into his office and just throwing off her dress, but that method lacked any sense of intrigue. The second idea took the form of her waiting until they got home and treating him to a strip tease, but she knew she wouldn't be able to keep it a complete secret until then. She wanted to tease Tommy, frustrate him, create some sense of mystery and anticipation before the reveal. He'd made her wait this long and she wasn't going to give him the goods just like that without putting him through the same torture he'd put her through over the past two weeks. Maddie started giggling to herself as her ideas gradually became more promiscuous and sordid. Tommy was going to be beside himself with desperation by the time he sees it, she thought, which will be all the better for me. Passers-by were giving her funny looks as she sat there sniggering alone, but she couldn't have cared less and continued to plot deviously for a good hour.

When the clock finally ticked up to five o'clock and the sun had nearly sunk over the horizon, Maddie sprung up from her bench and began her route back to Watery Lane. She passed the Garrison Pub on her way back and heard a pair of footsteps hurrying to catch up with her as she continued past it. She turned to see Isiah running to catch up with her and greeted him with a smile.

'Hey, Mads!' he called as he came to walk alongside her. 'Where you been the past few days?'

'Didn't Tommy or Finn tell you?' asked Maddie, surprised to hear that one of the Peaky Blinder's most trusted members hadn't been filled in on what happened.

'You must be joking right, they don't tell me anything,' he snorted humorously just as he looked at her face and noticed the remains of her bruise. 'Fuckin' ell', what happened to you?'

'The reason why I've not been about,' grumbled Maddie before sighing. 'We were attacked by vampires the other night. At Tommy's house.'

Isiah evidently wasn't expecting this and was momentarily speechless, his expression disbelieving as he tried to keep up with her fast pace.

'Seriously?' he asked.

'Yep. Don't go telling too many people, we're planning on keeping it out of common knowledge.'

Isiah nodded before replying. 'No problem. Need company back to the office?'

'Sure,' smiled Maddie.

Maddie was fond of Isiah; he was easy to talk to and was pleasant company to keep. He reminded her a lot of the Shelby boys, but he had his own air of quiet confidence that made him either comforting or intimidating to be around depending on who you were. It took them ten minutes to reach the office where Isiah bade his goodbye to her, carrying on to the end of the street and out of sight whilst she leant on Tommy's new car, which was identical to the old one, that was parked across the street from the office. She tapped her foot impatiently as she waited, which only proved to make the time progress slower. She watched a few stragglers, including Lizzie, exit the office and head in the direction of home signalling that Tommy would soon appear. Then she suddenly remembered the bag she was still carrying with her old underwear in it and panicked when she realised it would prompt Tommy to question her about it. She looked around hastily but failed to find anywhere to hide the bag.

'Fuck!' Maddie hissed as she saw the lights in the office start to be switched off one by one.

Then, as if her prayers were answered, a small girl caught Maddie's attention who was skipping up the street towards her. Making sure that Tommy wasn't going to walk out the door, she waved the child down.

'Hey kid, come here!' she hissed in a loud whisper, beckoning the kid over who looked at her sceptically.

'Yes miss?' she said nervously as she approached.

'Be a good girl and throw this in the bin when you get home, eh?' said Maddie, thrusting the paper bag with her underwear in it into the girl's hands.

'Okay… what is it?' she asked innocently.

'Never you mind,' said Maddie, shooing the girl along who carried on her skipping up the street.

The little girl made it a few yards away from Maddie when the door to the Shelby's office opened and Tommy finally emerged, cigarette hanging from his mouth. He locked the door behind him before marching toward her and the car. She gave him a friendly smile as he approached but failed to hide her excitement and shuffled on the spot like an excited kid. He didn't fail to notice this odd behaviour and looked at her questioningly as he stubbed his cigarette out with his shoe.

'What's going on?' he asked suspiciously, inspecting Maddie's guilty smirk which she was struggling to mask.

'I don't know what you mean,' she replied with a forced tone of innocence, biting her lip for good measure. 'Come on, let's get off.'

Maddie turned away from Tommy and got into the car, leaving him stood watching her with a bewildered look in his eye before he climbed into the driver's seat next to her. He started the engine of the car before turning his body toward her and bored into her with his icy eyes. He knows I'm up to something, she realised. But that didn't mean she was going to spill the beans just yet.

'What?' she asked, fluttering her eyelids at Tommy and watched his jaw flex as a result.

An almost imperceptible smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he took his cap off and leant in toward Maddie. His face was an inch from hers, his eyes flitting down to watch her lips as she licked them in anticipation.

'Tell me what you're up to Maddie,' he breathed, a sensual warning tone in his voice that sent a shudder up her spine.

She felt her stomach flip with nervousness as Tommy glared at her menacingly, trying to coax her devious plan out of her. To stop herself from telling him everything, she quickly closed the space between them and connected her lips to his aggressively. She pried his lips apart and drew his bottom lip into her mouth eliciting a sigh from his lungs. Holding the back of his head, she shuffled toward him and sat herself on his lap, squeezing his sides gently with her knees as she continued to kiss him.

Maddie could tell he was fighting between stopping her and letting her carry on, both trying to hold her back whilst kissing her just a forcefully. Eventually he must have decided to go with it, as he began to claw at her waist and explore her body as if for the first time. He put his hands over her breasts and grasped them roughly before moving his hands down to drag his hands up her thighs under her skirt, just as she wanted him to. She grinned against Tommy's lips as his fingers reached her new silken garters, only a second passing before his fingers paused their course and felt the soft fabric under his fingers. One hand moved up and inspected the lace hem of Maddie's knickers, their kissing becoming less co-ordinated as he cottoned on to the change. Tommy had become more than familiar with her underwear collection since they began sleeping together, having admired and stripped her of every set she owned, which wasn't many to begin with. As a result, he no doubt immediately recognised the unfamiliar texture, his perceptiveness serving her ends perfectly. He soon ceased his reciprocation of her kissing and broke their lips apart, Maddie pulling her head back to look into Tommy's eyes with amusement.

'Been shopping, have we?' he whispered huskily, his eyebrow quirking up seductively.

'No,' said Maddie, painting on a look of confusion worthy of an Oscar as she sat back onto Tommy's knees. 'Don't know where you got that idea from.'

His face was stoic, but his eyes burned with desire as Maddie met them unblinkingly, a devilish smirk on her lips. Tommy, for once, was first to break eye contact and moved his gaze down to her lap and attempted to lift her skirt up to peek underneath. Not having it, she quickly grasped his chin and tilted his head back up to look her in the eye as an annoyed huff escaped his nostrils.

'It's getting late. We don't want to piss Frances off,' she said, her voice low and seductive.

Tommy's eyes flashed angrily but his expression remained unperturbed as Maddie paused there for a second before getting off his lap and sitting back down on her seat next to him. He glared at her silently which she could see out of the corner of her eye as she looked straight ahead out of the windscreen. She manged to suppress a smirk and pretend that nothing was wrong as she waited for him to finally turn back to the road and put the car into gear.

During the journey, Maddie tormented Tommy further by strategically fiddling with her skirt, lifting it high enough to barely cover her garters, alternating the crossing of her legs every other minute to draw his gaze to the sliver of pink silk that was peeking out from under the hem of her skirt. She was reminded of her first day in 1924 where on the same drive she had sat in the same position in a skirt that barely covered her arse as Tommy stole gazes here and there. Only this time, his looks were ravenous, Maddie catching glimpses of his hungry expression every now and then. She also didn't fail to notice that he was driving a lot faster than ususal, the car's engine roaring loudly as he pushed it to its limit. She figured that he probably didn't even realise he was doing it, his mind preoccupied with only one thing.

Maddie pursed her lips in a smile as Arrow House appeared at the end of the driveway, preparing herself for phase two of the driving Tommy mad plan. He pulled the car up at speed, the car skidding on the gravel as he braked harshly. As soon as the car was stationary, she didn't hesitate and swiftly opened the door and climbed out without saying anything as he attempted to reach for her at the same time. She didn't see his reaction, but she faintly caught the sound of Tommy cursing just before she slammed the door shut making her giggle under her breath. He was quick to exit the car himself as Maddie walked calmly up to the front door of the house, his footsteps pacing aggressively after her in her wake. He wasn't fast enough however, and she stepped into the foyer just as he caught up to be greeted by Frances who offered her ususal greeting. She took their coats as ususal, Tommy practically throwing his at her which took the old maid aback considerably.

'Is dinner ready?' asked Maddie as normally as possible.

'Yes, will you be taking it straight away?' responded Frances, looking to Tommy then her for an answer.

Maddie began to fear for her life at that point, Tommy's composure was beginning to waver, his irritation becoming evident on his features. He really was quite easy to wind up with the right bait, she thought, thoroughly enjoying stringing him along like getting a cat to chase a length of wool.

'It seems so,' said Tommy with a dangerous tone of impatience, providing Frances with her answer.

Maddie smiled politely at Frances before going into the dining room with Tommy in tow. She sat herself down at her seat and looked innocently up at him as he removed his jacket, rolling his shirt sleeves up before sitting down at his place at the head of the table. He pulled his cigarettes out of his pocket and lit one before dragging on it desperately, looking a bit calmer as a result and after a couple of breaths turned and leaned toward her with his textbook lack of emotion restored.

'You're in a lot of trouble,' he said, barely above a whisper.

The sound of Tommy's threat lit a scorching fire under Maddie's skin unlike one she'd ever felt before, the way he said it making her feel desperate to know what he was going to do. Her lips parted slightly, and a hazy gasp escaped which made him smirk with satisfaction. No, no, no, Maddie! You're the one who's supposed to be stringing him along, not the other way around!

She quickly closed her mouth and made herself look as unthreatened as possible and was thankfully saved by the distraction of dinner being placed in front of them. Maddie used the meal as a distraction to stop herself from looking at Tommy who in stark contrast to her was ignoring his food and was watching her intently. She didn't let his gaze perturb her and she ate her food at a reasonable pace, behaving as if it was the most normal evening in the world. After five minutes of this however, as she began to smirk to herself for her genius plan, he suddenly stood up from the table and marched off toward the door without a word. Maddie stopped chewing and watched Tommy as he left the room with a creased brow. What was that all about? She waited to see if he was going to return but when he didn't, she shrugged to herself and finished her dinner on her own.

Maddie sat at the table alone with a glass of wine that the maid had fetched her and sipped at it for a short while waiting for Tommy to come back. However, he still didn't return, and she began to worry that her games had frustrated him so much that he had gone to sulk in in office without eating. Downing the rest of the wine, she got up and decided to go and search for him, expecting him to be in his office making himself busy.

When she walked out of the dining room, closing the door softly behind her, Maddie was met by an eerie silence in the dimly lit cavern of the corridor. I swear it wasn't this dark when we came in, she thought. That was when the hairs of the back of her arms stood up and the sense that she was being stalked caused her to freeze on the spot. Maybe she was imagining it, but she couldn't shake the feeling off; being a slayer rarely meant that her instincts were wrong. Realising that Tommy had decided to play his own games, Maddie started down the corridor towards the foyer with light steps, a giddy excitement taking her over at the idea of hunting him down. He was probably thinking he had the upper hand, but he'd obviously forgotten that tracking things in the silent darkness was kind of her specialty and she was confident she would find him before he found her.

Despite her light footing, Maddie's heels were annoyingly loud on the hard floor, so she stopped just before the foyer to remove them. The foyer ahead of her looked even darker than the corridor and she chuckled to herself at the amount of effort Tommy had gone to. Her senses were heightening rapidly, needing the added perception in the isolation of the now sinister house. Padding across the foyer silently, she listened for any giveaway signs to where he was hiding but heard none. Perhaps he's better at this than I thought… As this revelation occurred to her, she felt her heard skip a little in her chest, a seed of doubt sprouting in the pit of her stomach. Walking faster toward Tommy's office, Maddie ignored her doubtful thoughts as they would only lead to her humiliating defeat in this little game of hide and seek. She made it to the door of his office and opened it quietly, peering through a small gap to see it was well lit inside before sliding through the gap and shutting the door behind her. Tommy was nowhere to be seen. There were no cupboards or crevices for him to hide in and after checking behind his desk Maddie knew he wasn't there. Sighing, she made her way back to the exit and went back out into the corridor. As she stepped out of the room and let the office door close behind her, she became engulfed in total darkness, the few lamps that had been lit had been switched off and she squinted to try and make her eyes adjust.

'Shit!' she hissed to herself quietly, instinctively crouching slightly and listening acutely for any indication that Tommy was in the corridor.

He'd led her to his office, she realised, he'd wanted her to go in so he could set this all up. Maddie cursed herself for falling for something so obvious but decided she needed to keep moving if she wanted to stay uncaught. She creeped along the corridor back to foyer, which was now also virtually pitch black and closed her eyes to listen intently. Nothing.

What the fuck?! She thought loudly in her head, since when did he become so stealthy? And where the hell have all the staff gone? She needed to think fast before Tommy found her, maybe he was watching her right now, waiting for her to search the whole house before making his presence known. Think, Maddie, for fucks sake! Where would he want me to go? Considering her cruel teasing she'd subjected him too, she realised he would probably want her to look for him upstairs in the bedroom so that's where she was going to avoid.

Turning to her left, Maddie sneaked down the corridor that lead to one of the sitting rooms and various other small rooms where she figured she could hide and wait for Tommy to show himself; if he wanted to play the waiting game then she would beat him at it. She passed a few doors before slinking into one that was ajar that belonged to a small library type room; she pushed the door closed behind her, leaving a tiny gap to look through. Maddie let herself sigh, breathing deeply as she settled into a position next to the door, squinting into the corridor to see if Tommy was looking for her. She had stood there for a couple of minutes when she heard it, a tiny noise from within the room behind her that sounded like fabric rustling against fabric. She spun around to face the darkness and saw the shadow come out of it a millisecond too late. It grabbed her wrists and pinned her to the door which slammed shut as she was pushed against it.

'AH!' Maddie yelped.

She looked up at her attacker and was met by Tommy's blue eyes glowing in the darkness, dark shadows shading his angular face menacingly making Maddie take a shaky breath in freight. How the hell did he do that?! She had picked the exact room he had been hiding in, and he'd watched her find his hiding place and waited until she'd relaxed before jumping out. He really was more dangerous than she had given him credit for. Taking a deep breath, she let out a shaky laugh as Tommy remained silent, still pinning her arms above her head.

'Well done,' she said, fluttering her eyelashes up at Tommy, not sure if he was even able to see them.

Maddie felt him shift his grip so he could hold both her wrists in one hand before he reached over to flick the light switch on the wall. Luckily the bulb in the room wasn't very bright so she didn't have to blink to allow her eyes to adjust, it just filled the room with a warm glow like from an oil lamp, enough for them to see each other clearly but created a seductive atmosphere at the same time.

'I said you were in trouble,' said Tommy, looking back down at Maddie with dangerously piercing eyes.

He continued to grip her wrists tightly, treating her more roughly than he had ever done before, and Maddie pursed her lips together when she realised he was trying to play the dominance card. Their sex life so far had very much been like a tug-of-war, the two of them fighting to be in charge but neither openly acknowledging it to each other. Usually, she had won in the end, her superior strength and stamina besting his; was he really trying to dominate her now? She blew a humoured puff of air out of her nose before raising an eyebrow at him questioningly.

'You really want to play this game Tommy?' she asked in a whisper, grinning with a bite of her lip.

Maddie, who had let Tommy overpower her up till now, began to bring her arms down slowly as he continued to grip them, trying to counteract her movement but failing. She maintained eye contact with him as she opposed him, watching his nostrils flare as he tried to regain control helplessly. She let herself smile victoriously, which caused Tommy's eyes to flash angrily before he spoke again.

'Let me.'

Maddie stopped smiling and stared back at Tommy blankly; let him what? She looked at him confused for a few seconds before the penny dropped as to what he meant. He wanted her to let him take control. The idea made her heart flutter and moisture begin to stir between her legs, making her shift her weight from foot to foot. This was a new concept to her; her entire sexually active life had been spent being the dominant one so letting someone else do it would be a challenge, but it certainly intrigued her all the same. Maddie bit her lip as she silently debated his proposal before eventually giving a timid nod. She relaxed the muscles in her arms and let Tommy pin them back above her head as an infuriating smirk played on his lips. He brought his body closer to her and pressed himself up against her as he ducked his head down into her neck to kiss and bite it softly. She began to breath heavily and shut her eyes as she let him hold her against the door, one of his hands sliding down her arm to her chest to grip her breast. Maddie gasped, her mouth falling open as Tommy's hand moved down further over her waist and around to her ass.

'I don't like it when you keep something that I want from me,' he whispered into her ear, his lips brushing against the sensitive skin under her jaw. 'Even less when you flaunt what I want in front of me.'

Tommy brought his face up to look at Maddie again as she began to feel her nipples harden and pussy start to make her brand-new underwear wet. This was a turn of events she didn't expect, she'd been planning on making him wait to see and touch her new underwear, but that plan had been turned on its head. It now sounded like he was going to take what he wanted, dashing her hard thought out plans into the dirt. The anticipation of what Tommy was going to do was making Maddie so aroused that her eyes were beginning to roll back under her eyelids. He hitched her dress up her legs to her waist and gently ran his hand over her knickers, finally feeling the fine silk in his hands properly as she heard him exhale lustily. He moved the hand around to her abdomen and ducked it down between her legs, finally making her moan. When he felt the dampness there, Tommy growled and planted an aggressive kiss to Maddie's lips as he pressed the heel of his hand into her clit and her moaning got louder.

'Keep your hands up,' said Tommy, a seductively dangerous undertone in his voice.

Maddie opened her eyes to look at him and swallowed, nodding her head obediently. This could be an opportunity to regain control, but she found that she was enjoying this immensely, letting Tommy take control was proving to be freeing and opening erotic doors that she had never experienced. He glared at her warningly, keeping a hold of her hands a second longer before releasing them. As she'd said she would, she kept her arms above her head as he took half a step back from her, dragging his gaze hungrily up and down her body. Seeing Tommy look at her like that, with pure lust a desire, made Maddie's skin tingle more than it already was to the point that her pussy was beginning to throb desperately.

Then, he suddenly grasped the hem of her dress and began to lift it. Her vision was momentarily obscured as the dress was dragged up and over her head before it was thrown to the floor. Maddie looked up to see Tommy's reaction to the lingerie and somehow, he managed to look even hungrier than he had a moment ago, his eyes becoming heavy lidded as he admired her silk and lace clad body.

'Tsk, tsk. Spending all of your wages on expensive underwear, eh?' he said with a smirk.

She had to hand it to him, the man knew quality when he saw it. Maddie gave him a sultry smile and nodded guilty, her arms still above her head. Tommy stepped forward again and placed his hand on her waist, no longer bothered by the scar there, before caressing her body and the silk that covered it, humming his approval as she withered under his touch. Without thinking about it, she brought her hands down to touch the back of his head where she usually did. As quick as lightning, Tommy's hand suddenly grasped Maddie's face, his fingers digging into her cheeks as he tilted her head up to look him in the eye.

'Did I say you could put your hands down?' he asked menacingly.

'No,' she squeaked.

Tommy considered her for a moment before bringing his face towards hers and brushing his lips against hers tantalisingly.

'I think you need to be punished,' he breathed hotly against her lips, causing a heady haze to pass over Maddie at his words.

She wanted to reply but all that came out was a pleasured whimper which was all the conformation that Tommy needed. He grabbed a handful of her hair in his fist before leading her over to a small table that was in the middle of the room. He moved himself to stand behind her and pushed her forward so her hip bones pressed against the edge of the table. He tried to push her body downwards, but she initially resisted, wanting to show a little bit of rebellion in the hope it would make him treat her even rougher. She got her wish and he pushed the back of her head harder and she submitted, bending over forward to lie on the surface of the table, resting her cheek on the cold wood. She felt Tommy press his pelvis against her ass, feeling his marble hard cock through the fabric of his trousers as he dug his fingers into her hips. She listened to his heavy breathing as he began to squeeze and grip different parts of her body. Maddie initially had her hands flat on the table on either side of her but before too long, Tommy had her wrists in his grip again and he pulled them behind her and crossed them over at the small of he back. He held them there whilst she heard the sound of him removing his tie and her heart began to beat even faster to the point where she could hear it through the wood of the table.

Tommy tied Maddie's wrists together with his tie, knotting it tightly so that the fabric pinched her skin. She gasped with arousal as he fastened the last knot. The bindings were tight and would be more than enough to restrain a normal woman, but she knew she could easily rip the tie and escape if she wanted to. But she didn't want to, she wanted to let Tommy dominate her, so she let herself be bound in this position with pleasure. Maddie lifted herself onto tiptoe instinctively in readiness for what she knew was coming, her ass rising up into his crotch and making him growl.

Then, with a loud crack, Maddie felt Tommy's hand connect with her ass cheek over the delicate pink silk and she huffed out breath of air in an attempt to not moan in pleasure. The slap was hard enough to make her skin sting deliciously which rippled up her spine making her shudder with ecstasy. Who knew that being spanked was so erotic? He quickly followed with several more slaps across her backside, each one becoming gradually harder than the last. She finally let out a breathy moan with his last spank and she heard him sigh with satisfaction before leaning over her to bring his lips to her ear and kissing her neck softly.

'Do you think you've learnt your lesson?'

Maddie pursed her lips together in a smirk although Tommy was too close to her to see. No, she hadn't learnt her lesson. She would keep on misbehaving vehemently if this was what she got for it. Every inch of her skin was on fire as her heart pumped hot blood into her skin, making her skin flush pink and sweat begin to bead on her forehead from the effort of withstanding her arousal. Her clit was throbbing pleadingly and she new it would only be a matter of time before she would be begging him to make her cum. However, that didn't mean she was going to let him know that just yet.

'No,' mumbled Maddie in reply, biting her lip to stifle a giggle.

An unsurprised hum rumbled out of Tommy's chest in response to this, like he had been expecting her answer. Then Maddie felt her head being pulled back by her hair to be lifted back up to standing before he spun her on the spot to face him. A possessive but calm expression faced her as his darkened eyes roamed her face before looking down to admire her body. He took a moment to feel her curves again, pinching her nipples through the silk as he glided his hands over her breasts. Maddie was rooted to the spot as she let him fondle her, wanting to do the same to Tommy but her hands were still annoyingly tied behind her back.

Eventually, he ceased his massaging and moved his hands to his vest buttons which he undid, dropping it to the floor as she watched curiously. As he shrugged his suspenders off his shoulders, a dark but seductive smirk grew on his lips and she felt a wave of pins and needles ripple across her body. He looked at her silently like this for a second, making her desperate to find out what he was thinking which she thankfully didn't have to wait long for as he pinched her chin with his thumb and index finger.

'Get on your knees.'

Maddie gazed back at Tommy for a moment as she struggled to control her arousal, pressing her thighs together to put some kind of pressure on her clit. She licked her lips at the thought of getting on her knees in front of him and he watched her tongue drag itself across her bottom lip with expectant eyes. Of course, over the past few weeks she had given him oral sex several times but never in this position, preferring to pleasure him as he lay on the bed. This position would put Tommy in the more dominant position, which of course was the point, and Maddie found she was excited to do it for him. Keeping eye contact with him, she lowered herself to her knees in front of him, sitting on her heels as she looked up at him through her eyelashes. Tommy's expression remained the same, completely unreadable as he gazed down at her. He cupped her face with one hand, running his thumb over her lip as he began to unbutton his trousers with the other. She couldn't stop herself from flitting her gaze down excitedly, waiting impatiently for his cock to appear in front of her.

It felt as thought Tommy was torturing her, which he probably was, but when he finally freed himself from his trousers Maddie took in a deep breath and automatically moved her head forward and opened her lips to take his hard cock into her mouth. However, he quickly got a grip of her hair again and stopped her, holding her head still causing her to look up at him questioningly. He shook his head at her slowly, looking devilish as he stared down at her. She could only imagine what she looked like; gazing up at Tommy with glassy half lidded eyes, hands tied behind her back and pushing her ass and breasts out in a way that was making her blush. She knew that he was liking what he was seeing because his cock seemed to grow harder in front of her eyes.

'Keep your mouth open,' ordered Tommy in a deep husky voice, making wetness drip between Maddie's legs.

Maddie did just that and kept her lips apart, eagerly waiting for Tommy to push the head of his cock past them. She fluttered her eyelids up at him hazily in hope that he wouldn't be able to resist her inviting open mouth any longer, but he continued to hold his cock less than an inch away from her lips. She twisted her wrists around in their bindings, tempted to rip them apart and take matters into her own hands but Tommy, noticing her impatience, smiled and pushed the head of his cock into her mouth. Her pussy throbbed as he pressed his cock down onto her tongue, pushing it further to the back of her throat, a low husky moan erupting from him. Maddie closed her lips around him and closed her eyes in pleasure, moaning around it as it touched the back of her throat. She tried to control her gag reflex for as long as possible, but it didn't take long before she gagged around his cock making him hiss and grip her hair even tighter.

Tommy began to move his cock in and out of Maddie's mouth at a steady pace and her eyes quickly began to water. She was desperate to touch her clit and her pussy, it was now practically dripping and soaking her new underwear. She rolled her hips to try and create some friction, but it was no use and she groaned despairingly around him. She looked up at him in silent request and he looked back at her, his mouth slightly open with hedonism.

'Touch yourself,' he whispered.

Maddie's eyes widened in gratification before twisting her arms about to indicate her bound hands to Tommy who nodded his assent for her to break them. She didn't hesitate in pulling her hands apart, ripping the tie easily to finally free her hands again. He watched as she reached her hand down the front of her underwear and connected her fingers to her aching clit with a relieved sigh. She began rubbing circles around her clit, the wetness from her pussy covering her fingers as it quivered at her touch. The sensation of Tommy's member in her mouth and her fingers on her clit quickly began to make her breath deepen, her whole body feeling like it was throbbing with pleasure. Every now and then, she looked up at him to see him looking back at her with eyes as black as jet, his face beginning to crease with the effort to not cum. Soon, Maddie could tell her orgasm was imminent and she began to moan uncontrollably around him.

Tommy must have noticed her imminent orgasm as he quickly removed his cock from her mouth, making her gasp, before kneeling down in front of Maddie and grabbing her forearm to remove her hand from her knickers. She wanted to resist but let him move her hand away, wanting to let him keep control as it was proving to be an exceptionally beneficial to her so far. He brought his face close to hers and looked her straight in the eye.

'Not yet,' he said softly as Maddie panted helplessly in response to her lost climax.

She gave Tommy a withering look which he ignored before suddenly flipping her around and down onto her stomach on the floor. She let out a huff as she hit the floor, her cheek resting on the soft carpet as she felt him run his hands over her ass to her hips before pulling them up in the air slightly so her back was arched. His hands hovered over the buttons to her knickers as if he was going to undo them, but instead he moved down to her crotch to pull them to one side.

'They're too beautiful to take off,' he said before he began to tease her exposed pussy with his fingers.

Maddie whimpered into the carpet and shut her eyes at the intimate touch, her whimpers progressing to moans as he slowly dragged his fingers down to her clit. Tommy's touch was tactical and measured in a way that ensured pleasure but fell short of building her back up to her climax. She tried to move herself against his fingers, but when she did, he simply moved his hand away making her sigh with frustration. She was ready to beg Tommy to fuck her, to give her what she wanted and as she peered back him she noticed he was looking back at her expectantly and she realised that was in fact what he wanted her to do. She licked her lips and took a breath to ready herself to say the words she would never usually say.

'Please Tommy.'

A small smug grin appeared on Tommy's features as he gazed down at her.

'Please what?'

Maddie huffed and gritted her teeth together. Of course, the bastard wanted her to say exactly what it was she wanted, even though it was obvious. She swallowed the last of her pride before responding.

'I want you to fuck me Tommy. I want you to make me cum, please,' she begged helplessly.

Tommy hummed and continued what he was doing for a few seconds more, making Maddie believe that her begging had been in vain when finally, his fingers stopped and the feeling of his cock being pushed inside her replaced them. He grunted as he entered at the same time as she gasped at the feeling of him filling her up. He was quick to pick up a steady pace however and soon she found her mind spinning with each thrust he made, calling his name and swearing involuntarily. He started to mumble Romani curses before too long as well and she could sense their orgasms approaching fast. Tommy, sensing this as well, resumed his caressing of Maddie's clit like before which caused her to arch her back even more and her blood thud angrily in her ears.

'Cum for me,' she heard him whisper, the strain evident in his voice.

Hearing those word was enough for Maddie to tumble over the precipice and her orgasm exploded through her, lighting up her muscles with electricity that made stars sparkle behind her eyelids. She was unable to control the volume of her voice as she wailed uncontrollably as her body began to shudder. Tommy's climax occurred simultaneously, and his thrusts became irregular and eventually slowed as he gripped her hips painfully, his cock throbbing inside her.

The two of them collapsed onto the floor gasping for air, Maddie staring up at the ceiling as she became aware of her lingerie sticking to her like tissue paper with how much she had been sweating. Once she'd caught her breath, she turned her head to Tommy and kissed him tenderly before beginning to trace his cheekbones as he looked back at her with a satisfied smile.

'You should go shopping more often,' he said with a smirk, which earned him a harsh jab in the ribs from her as a result.

Maddie returned to the office on Monday looking completely bruise free and with a new-found motivation. The equilibrium between her and Tommy had been restored after a rough week and as she got back into her work routine, she began to feel for the first time like she belonged there. It didn't matter that she was born in a different era, the people around her saw her as one of them and valued her and that was all she needed to consider this place her home.

That week Maddie was swept up in a variety of jobs, varying from the mundane office type to tagging along with the Blinders to a couple races to help out on the betting pitches. She settled into a routine of waking up, going to the office which may or may not involve Blinder related business, possibly going to The Garrison after work with the Shelby's and/or going on a quick patrol around Birmingham, going home and finally going to bed. Sex with Tommy of course was thrown in amongst that list at various stages, her new lingerie making frequent appearances, and she found the set-up provided her with a sense of stability she had never had before. Of course, in the back of her mind she knew that something unexpected would appear out of nowhere and upset this balance as it always did, her being the slayer and all. But nevertheless, she was grateful to have it even if it wasn't going to last forever. In fact, she had no idea that by the end of the week, that would be exactly the case. Although, this time it wasn't vampires that would be involved.

On the Friday of that week, Tommy's mood shifted out of the blue. He became more on edge and snappy, even more so than ususal and when Maddie asked him what was wrong that afternoon, he reminded her of what was supposed to be happening that Sunday which she had completely forgotten about.

'The priest. I'm assassinating him on Sunday,' said Tommy with a disturbing lack of emotion.

Oh shit, thought Maddie. When Tommy had asked her to help him on this mission, she hadn't been keen on the idea until he'd provided enough description of Father Hughes for her to conclude that he was a cunt. She then realised that Tommy hadn't actually told her what was going to happen or the specifics of her role, so she approached his desk and sat on the corner of it as he stared off into space with a blank expression.

'What do you want me to do?' she asked cautiously.

Tommy cleared his throat and looked up at Maddie in a brief moment of thought before putting his hand around her calf to massage it tenderly.

'You'll be my backup and help with the getaway. I can't risk anyone seeing you and learning about your powers. I'll take care of Father Hughes.'

Maddie creased her eyebrows at him but nodded her agreement. He was right, putting her in a situation where she would need to use her powers wasn't a good idea unless it was absolutely necessary. Not just that, but she was glad that he'd decided not to get her to closely involved with the actual killing. Tommy then outlined the details of the plan, including what times down to the minute when everything needed to happen. He mentioned that he expected Maddie to drive his car from one spot to another to allow him an easy escape and she held her hand up to stop him speaking and looked at him nervously.

'I don't know how to drive these old cars Tommy,' she said, looking slightly embarrassed.

Tommy took a breath and nodded before offering her an encouraging smile. 'I'll show you how tomorrow. You only need to be good enough to drive it down a couple of streets.'

Evidently, Tommy had been expecting Maddie's basic driving skills to be better than what they were because by the next day, during their driving lesson on the driveway of Arrow House, his demeanour had quickly become terse. She knew how to drive back home, but she hadn't actually driven since she'd passed her test and that fact was obvious once she tried to get his huge car too move forward. After briefing her on how to put the car in gear, he must have expected her to be able to get the thing moving straight away but the clutch was so heavy and stiff that as she lifted her foot of it, revving the engine as he told her, she missed the bite and the car lurched forward violently before stalling with clunk. This happened several times before she managed to get the wheels rolling only to stall after a couple of feet, which at least was progress. Tommy's expression however did not convey confidence and Maddie looked at him apologetically.

'Sorry, I guess this is one thing I'm not good at,' she apologised as he pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation.

'It's alright. Try again,' he said tersely.

After and hour of stopping and starting which was beginning to make Maddie seasick with the constant rocking, she finally managed to drive the car in a circle around the driveway before successfully bringing it to a stop without stalling. Another hour passed and she had progressed up to third gear and was looking very pleased with herself, even if the engine sounded like it was screaming with her poor gear changes. Maybe slayers just weren't meant to drive cars, she thought.

'That will have to do,' stated Tommy as Maddie brought the car to a stop again. He looked as though he was at his wits end and she hoped that she was good enough to not draw attention to herself tomorrow, that was the last thing they wanted.

That night, she and Tommy both struggled to sleep. She could hear him tossing and turning next to her as she tried her best to let her mind go blank, but all she could think about was how tomorrow could go wrong. She had rehearsed the sequence of events in her head over and over, reaffirming everything with him so she knew every eventuality.

'What do we do if you fail?' Maddie had asked that evening, eliciting a stern look from Tommy. She didn't want to imply that he was incapable, but even the best thought out plans went wrong sometimes. If anyone knew that it was her. She needed to know what to do if he didn't meet her at the right time.

'Wait at the meeting point until I come back, you'll know if I've been successful or not.'

'But what if you don't meet me Tommy?'

Tommy regarded her for a moment before shaking his head confidently.

'I will meet you Maddie, I promise.'

Tommy drove the car down the quaint street in the village where the fair was being held. Maddie could see the stalls, streamers and children running around excitedly from the window as he parked up on the opposite side of the street. The two of them looked out at the crowd, Tommy searching for his target which he eventually found.

'There, by the ticket stand,' he said, and Maddie soon spotted the man he was referring to, dressed in a long black priest's robe.

Even from that distance Maddie could see his shifty beady eyes and a chill went up her spine. They watched Father Hughes smile and interact with the fair goers before walking off further into the crowd. Tommy turned to her and looked at her stoically.

'You remember what you need to do?' he asked, pulling his pistol out of his holster to inspect it before returning it again.

'Yeah,' replied Maddie confidently, her valuable slayer focus now kicking in. 'I'll meet you around the corner in ten minutes.'

Tommy nodded before leaning down to kiss her swiftly and before she knew it, he opened the car door and got out, slamming the door shut behind him and marching off toward the fair. Maddie slid herself over to the driver's seat and watched him disappear into the crowd before swallowing away her nerves. He'll be fine, she thought, a priest is hardly a threatening target.

Maddie watched the clock on the car's dashboard intently, the ten minutes seeming to pass infinitely slowly, the ticking echoing in her skull. When nine minutes had passed, she started up the car and cautiously pulled it away, concentrating hard on changing gear properly so as not to draw attention. She drove to the end of the street, turning right and right again to park the car on the opposite side of the green bang on the ten-minute mark as Tommy had instructed. All she needed to do now was wait.

Maddie couldn't help but watch for signs of Tommy, not yet worrying as he had said that he could be a few minutes later than predicted. However, these minutes quickly evaporated, and her heart began to beat faster. She took a shaky breath to calm herself; he's fine, she thought, he probably had to take a different route so he wouldn't be caught. She tapped her finger on the steering wheel anxiously as she watched and waited before looking at the clock to see that nearly fifteen minutes had passed and there was still no sign of Tommy.

'Shit,' she muttered to herself, now beginning to panic.

Every instinct in her was telling her to get out and look for him but Tommy had explicitly told her not to under any circumstances. Did those circumstances include him not coming back at all? Maddie remembered his promise to her last night and felt panicked tears threatening to make an appearance. He'll come back to me, she thought, he has to.

It soon became clear that something had gone wrong as the half an hour mark passed and Maddie was now beside herself with worry. She cursed Tommy for not considering this eventuality. Here she was on her own with no way to contact anyone, no idea where she was or how to get home. Only she, Tommy and Polly knew about the plan so the likelihood of someone coming to find them anytime soon was narrow so all she could do was continue to wait in the car and hope for him to appear. Hours began to pass and Maddie was now close to hysterical, the doubtful part of her mind thinking the worst. The fair had long since ended and the evening had begun to roll in, the sun setting over the tops of the cottages leaving her in a lonely gloom. She wrung her hands together and shut her eyes, wracking her brains and trying to decide what to do. If I leave and try to get back to Birmingham to get John or Arthur, we could be back here quicker to find him. But if I leave and he comes back, then he's stuck here. If I do leave, I may never find my way home anyway!

Maddie huffed and slumped back into her seat and finally began to cry, terrified sobs escaping her as she cursed herself for agreeing to this plan. There was a distinct possibility that Tommy was now lying dead somewhere, and she couldn't help but feel responsible. She'd fallen in love and had become so happy, only to have it all be crushed in the space of an afternoon. She should have known that this would happen. That she would have her heart broken like this. What did she expect from falling in love with Thomas Shelby? She sat and wallowed like this in despair as the sky turned black. She tried her best to pull herself together and managed to calm herself enough to think optimistically. It wasn't over until she knew for certain, he may have been captured and still be alive. Maddie shook off her foolishness and instead decided to be more practical and made the decision to go and find a payphone when a truck drove past the car from behind, stopping a hundred or so feet away.

The rear doors of the truck swung open and Maddie ducked down behind the steering wheel so as not to be seen, peering over it to watch a man jump down from the wagon. He was soon followed by two other men who dragged another figure in their arms out of the truck. She squinted through the darkness and immediately recognised the coat and suit and realised the man they were dragging was Tommy. The two men threw him onto the cobbled street where he lay unmoving and she had to use all her willpower not to scream out to him. She took a shaky breath as the three men immediately jumped back into the truck before it began to drive off. Maddie waited until it turned the corner ahead before leaping out of the car.

'Tommy!' Maddie yelled as she sprinted over to him, not caring if she was drawing attention to herself.

She came to a skidding stop next to Tommy and collapsed to her knees next to him. He moved his hand up to his head and groaned and she breathed in relief knowing that he was alive. Maddie moved his hand away from his face and saw the large cut which was bleeding down his face as well as the lump and bruise on his head. His eyes were half closed, looking as though he was barely conscious, and she felt herself begin to shake.

'Oh my god, Tommy! Fuck! Wh-what do I do?' stammered Maddie.

'Maddie…' mumbled Tommy, turning his body toward her and trying to sit up.

Maddie grasped Tommy's arms and tried to steady him as he attempted to roll onto his knees, groaning as he did so. Realising she needed to get him out of the street before someone noticed them, she lifted him onto his feet easily and threw his arm over her shoulder to walk him to the car. She opened the passenger door and dropped him onto the seat before shutting the door and running around to the driver's side. Once in the car, she switched on the little cabin light and knelt next to Tommy to inspect his wound more closely. The cut was minor, but his head looked worryingly bruised and Maddie gently ran her fingers over the area and swore she could feel a dent in his skull. Swallowing down the sticky bitter saliva in her mouth, she tried to get Tommy to open his eyes further which he thankfully did before he grabbed he forearm tightly.

'Maddie… take me home,' he said with difficulty.

Maddie looked at him gobsmacked, he must be confused or concussed, she thought.

'No Tommy, I'm taking you to a hospital!' she said before trying to turn to switch the engine on, but Tommy stopped her, holding her arm fast.

'Please Maddie… do as I ask,' he said with as much authority as he could.

Maddie looked at him in disbelief and paused, conflicted before sighing and nodding reluctantly. She started the engine to the car and pulled away. The drive home was the longest and most agonising she had ever experienced. She fought back tears as she struggled to get the car into a fast speed as well as shaking Tommy to make sure he was conscious and to ask him which way to go. Despite significant setbacks including her stalling the car several times and getting lost more than once, she managed to get them back to Arrow House, but the journey had taken all night. She felt exhausted, tiredness tugging at her and begging for her to sleep but she knew that wouldn't be a possibility.

Tommy managed to open the car door and get out himself but stumbled to his knees when he tried to walk a step. Maddie rushed to help him, lifting him and walking him into the house. Frances was there to meet them and looked horrified as they walked in.

'Shall I call a doctor?' she asked shakily, following Maddie who was guiding Tommy to the small snug outside his office where the nearest sofa was.

'No, there's no need,' huffed Tommy, dismissing Frances with a wave of his hand.

Maddie got Tommy to the sofa where he collapsed, grunting and screwing up his face in pain. She stroked his face gently, blinking back anymore tears as he looked back up at her with distant eyes.

'What the hell happened Tommy?' she asked.

'They… they knew,' he managed to say before his eyes shut, moaning quietly.

Maddie rubbed her face with her hands to calm herself. Tommy was in a bad state, he needed a hospital, but he had stalwartly refused all the way home for her to take him there. But if he didn't get help soon, she feared that his head injury could become much worse. If his skull was cracked, there was a chance that he had a brain injury, and that was something that her rudimentary first aid skills couldn't fix. Looking at his face though, Maddie knew she could at least do something about the cut.

'Wait here, don't move,' she whispered to Tommy, kissing him on the cheek before getting up and running out the room.

She went to Tommy's bedroom and gathered various items to clean his cut before hurrying back down the stairs again. When she returned to the sofa, he wasn't there, and she looked around panicked before she noticed his office door was open. As she marched in, she spotted Tommy sat next to his desk on the phone just in time to see him hang it up before leaning over the surface of his desk. It was then Maddie spotted the white powder on the desktop and leapt forward to try and stop him. She wasn't fast enough however, and he snorted the cocaine before she could stop him.

'Tommy what the hell are you doing?!' she yelled, dropping to her knees next to him and tilting his head to face her.

She only had time to see Tommy's pupils constrict to pinpricks before he pushed her aside to stand up and stumble behind his desk where he proceeded to vomit on the floor. Maddie followed him to help him back into the chair, narrowly stopping herself from gipping at the sight of the vomit.

'I'm taking you to the hospital,' she stated angrily.

'No… you need to take me to… London,' said Tommy shakily.

Maddie shook her head desperately at him, wondering what the hell must be going through his head, but he insisted and refused to let he call anyone. She wondered why she was doing as he asked, she was the bloody slayer for god's sake. But considering the events that led up to this point, she could jeopardise them more if she didn't listen to him. So, she begrudgingly helped him upstairs to change his clothes. As she helped him, she could tell his condition was gradually worsening. The cocaine had given him the energy to stand, barely, but his skin was beginning to lose its pallor and had developed a sheen of sweat that she had to keep wiping away with a cloth. Maddie noticed that her hands had begun to shake, mostly from the fear but also from exhaustion.

As soon as he was dressed, they left the house straight away and got back into the car. Tommy, now more awake was able to direct Maddie to their destination more efficiently. He passed out a couple of times, Maddie shaking him awake again and almost failed in slapping the small bottle of cocaine he had brought with him out of his hand before he could sniff it. She didn't realise what their destination was until they got there, pulling up outside the miniature mansion on the grounds of Hampton Court with bewilderment.

'Wait here… I won't be long,' stuttered Tommy.

Maddie tried to argue but Tommy threw her an angry look, a look he'd never give her before which made her shut her mouth and nod, sitting back in her seat reluctantly. What the hell is going on? This was all she could think as she sat there helplessly, not knowing or understanding enough about what was going on, making her feel stupid and helpless. She watched him get out of the car and shuffle down the pathway towards the house, disappearing through the front door which was opened for him by a butler. Thankfully, this time Tommy was true to his word and reappeared five minutes later, staggering over to the car and climbing back in. He'd only been gone five minutes, but he looked considerably worse than he had when he got out the car. His skin was pale and clammy to the touch, his lips had lost their pinkness and he was now sweating to the point that it was dripping off his skin.

'Tommy, you need to go to hospital,' begged Maddie, removing his cap so she could wipe his forehead.

'Ada's…' Tommy grunted with effort. 'We need to… go to Ada's.'

Maddie sighed in exasperation and looked at him pleadingly, but he nudged her back over to the steering wheel, panting painfully as he struggled to sit himself upright.

'Go on,' he huffed, and Maddie wiped away a frightened tear on her cheek as she started the engine again.

Maddie knew her driving had improved by the time she had made it to Ada's as she sped around corners in a rush to get Tommy there, hopefully Ada would talk some sense into him. Hestumbled to get out of the car and began up the steps to Ada's front door as Maddie supported him to make sure he didn't fall down them. Ada answered the door a couple of seconds after they knocked, and her face dropped as soon as she laid eyes on Tommy as they walked in.

'Tommy? Jesus Christ are you alright?' she asked with concern before looking at Maddie. 'What happened?'

Before Maddie had chance to answer Tommy spoke up, his voice now barely audible and his ability to say more than a couple of words at a time had gone.

'They here?'

Ada looked baffled for a second before replying. 'Yes they're upstairs but –,' she said before being interrupted by Tommy pushing past her.

Who are they talking about? Maddie had no idea what was going on and found herself getting increasingly angry with Tommy for not sharing what was going on. She and Ada followed him upstairs to a formal looking room where two men were waiting. He sat himself at the table and Ada and Maddie sat on either side of him, Maddie not taking her eyes off him as he began to shake violently, bile rising up her throat.

Ada introduced the two men as representatives from the Soviet Embassy and Tommy quickly started talking to the two men, one who spoke Russian, the other translating. He kept his head bent over as he explained to them a plot for the Economic League to provoke a violent act on British soil that would lead to Britain cutting off alliances with Russia and how his family would be sacrificed to carry out the explosion. Maddie could barely concentrate on what he was saying as all she could focus on was his trembling hands and how much he was struggling to force out words. Finally, as the conversation came to an end, he turned his body toward Maddie, grasping her hands tightly.

'We want to know who you are,' said the translator as terrified tears began to stream down Maddie's face.

'He's Tommy Shelby, you can take his word,' said Ada.

'Maddie… Ada…' stammered Tommy as he tried to stand.

Maddie lifted him to his feet and could feel that he was barely holding his weight. She and Ada guided him out of the room to the stairs, Ada looking considerably shaken as the two of them tried to get him down the steps. However, halfway down the stairs Tommy's legs gave way under him and he collapsed, Maddie catching him as they came to rest on the stairs, sobbing helplessly as she held him.

'Tommy?' Ada choked as she crouched next to them.

'Ada… call an ambulance. Maddie, if I'm not conscious when they get here tell them… I have a concussion and a fractured skull… I think – I think I might be haemorrhaging,' said Tommy.

Maddie chocked out a strained sob but nodded frantically, holding onto Tommy as he rested his head back on her chest.

'Hurry up Ada… I can't see. I can't fucking see,' he ordered.

'Okay,' sobbed Ada, getting up and rushing away to the telephone.

No, please, begged Maddie in her head, please, please, please. She supported his weight on her chest and squeezed his hand, kissing the top of his head as he stared blankly ahead of him.

'Except for you dad, I can see you,' Tommy muttered, Maddie looking down at him in hysterical confusion as his eyes closed and he slumped unconscious into her arms.