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six
1921
A TALL HANDSOME MAN LIMPED HIS WAY DOWN CAMDEN TOWN. Beneath the three-piece suit and jacket, the stranger was in a rough state; his lip was split, and he was covered in bruises. His bloodshot eyes and dilated pupils gave away his lack of soberness; he was high as a kite off the snow that helped him walk off his limp on the cobbled streets of London.
'LET US BREAK BREAD TOGETHER.'
The short sentence circled around the man's head, as he kept his gaze straight forwards beneath his peaky hat. The message itself was vague and cryptic to anyone other than those involved in the war that brewed in the streets of Camden Town. The man in question, Thomas Shelby, was all but too familiar with the players of this particular battle; his wounds were the direct result of the beginning of his involvement.
Thomas halted in his steps as he finally reached his desired location. Before him stood the Jewish gangster Alfie Solomons's bakery. One of the big players in the gang war that plagued London. The building was large, built of bricks and definitely did not look like a bakery.
At the door three men were talking. Alfie's crew, Thomas presumed. They all wore similar garments, which consisted of slacks, an apron and white button ups with the sleeves rolled up with kippahs adorning the top of their heads. The shortest of the three noticed the man staring at them silently and elbowed the tallest, a lanky man that seemed to hold a position of higher authority over the others and nodded his head in Thomas's direction.
The tall man, who Thomas would eventually come to know as Ollie, made his way towards the Birmingham gangster.
"Oi! You Thomas Shelby?"
Thomas shot Ollie a look, well aware that his tone implied that the man knew who he was yet sighed audibly, resting his hands in his coat pockets.
"Aye."
Ollie nodded simply, shot a quick look around them and nodded towards the entrance.
"Follow me."
They entered the bakery. Thomas quickly concluded that from the inside it looked much more like the brewery it actually was. The gangster allowed himself to be patted down for weapons by the Jewish man.
Loud footsteps and a grumbly voice echoed his way. Thomas looked towards the newcomer, who happened to be the Jewish gangster himself, Alfie Solomons. He was robust, as tall as him, dressed in similar clothing as the others in the establishment with the exception of a sleeveless vest that rested on his shoulders.
As Ollie finished up patting down Thomas, Alfie reached the two men and gestured as he spoke gruffly.
"Put him down, Ollie." He halted briefly before them. "Put him down, mate. He's only little."
