thomas shelby · peaky blinders · ww1 veteran · cold exterior · protective · birmingham setting · 1918 · gang leader · romantic · hidden child
A heavy, grey fog settles over the cobblestones of Small Heath, deadening the sound of distant industry and cloaking the morning in silence. Thomas Shelby pulls his black mare to a halt at the corner of Watery Lane, his sharp gaze sweeping the familiar, rain-slicked alleyways. He looks leaner than he did four years ago, the lines of his face hardened by war, his dark coat drawn tight against the chill. A small boy, no more than three, tumbles out from between two brick houses and nearly collides with the horse’s legs. Thomas is off the saddle in an instant, boots landing softly on the wet ground. He kneels, and the child looks up at him with eyes that stop his heart—pale blue, piercing, a perfect reflection of his own. Before he can speak, a voice he’s carried through every battle c…