The Falling Man

Chapter 34

Tommy POV

I sit in Ada's home writing quite possibly the last words I could ever write. Today there was a race at the Epsom racecourse, my horse that May has been training will be racing. In attendance, the new men we recruited specifically for the expansion, John, Polly, Johnny Dogs, Arthur, who will shortly be released from the hold of The Squad with Alfies help, and soldiers of the Peaky Blinders. It was a full house and for a very specific reason. Today was a day of mighty importance and it could very well be my last. I also found out the entire Switzer family and soldiers of The Squad will be attending the race today, which only adds to the stress. I debated in my mind whether to visit Ethel, one last time, to say my goodbyes, to tell her the reason I chose not to see her anymore, to tell her how hard it has been for me to not see her, but ultimately I decided against it.

"Do you want tea?" Ada asks me as I continue to write the letter in case of the happenings of my death by the end of today. I don't respond, rather keep writing. "Did you one anyway, you ignorant git." She states to me sitting a glass of tea besides me. She turns to walk away, "Ada, sit down here for a minute." I tell her. My sister turns around and sits across from myself as I fold the papers neatly, stuffing them into an envelope and sealing it, "Ada, if anything happens to me today......I need you to post this letter. Stamps already on. Don't ask any questions, it's...to do with insurance." I puff on my cigarette as she picks up the envelope examining it.

"Look, Tommy, whatever it is you're involved in, just tell us...God, you never let anybody in...We love you, Tom." Ada tells me as her new boyfriend comes trudging through the living room door. "What are you doing up at six 'o clock in the morning?" I stand up as he puts his coat on. "Ready?" I ask him. "What the bloody hell is going on?" Ada demands. "Little errand." He tells her. "What errand?" She asks now standing up walking over to us. "He just has to stand there, Ada." I tell her simply, shrugging on my coat and grabbing my briefcase. "Stand where?" She demands once again.

"Let's go, come on." I tell him walking to the door. "James, what's going on? Don't listen to him, James. He'll get you killed...What errand?" Ada asks rushing after us. "For the cause, Ada...The good old cause." He tells her as we depart the house.

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The pair of us approach Alfies warehouse. "The next ten minutes, you don't do or say anything I haven't told you. All right?" I ask him. He doesn't respond, "All right?" I ask him again impatiently. "Yeah." He responds nervously. We turn a corner, "Hello, Ollie." I say to Alfies assistant walking past him towards the front doors. "Oye, hang on. Just you, yeah? He stays out here." He says pointing to James. "You stay here." I tell the man. Me and Ollie make our way into the warehouse. I halt my walking for a minute to fake tie my lace next to barrel, before getting up and continuing the walk to Alfies office.

I take a seat at the chair across from Alfies desk as he sits with his glasses over his nose, feet propped up on the table, seemingly doing a game of some kind in the paper. The phone on his desk rings. "That will probably be for you, won't it?" He asks me. I stand up slowly and answer the ringing device. "Hello. Arthur? You're out?" I ask before hanging up the phone and returning to my seat. "Right, so that will be your side of the street swept up, won't it? Where is mine? What have you got for me?" Alfie asks me setting down his paper, removing his glasses and leaning forward on his desk.

I take a paper out of my coat and hand it to him. "Signed by the leader of the Peaky Blinders himself." I tell him. "Yeah? Yeah." He says examining the paper once again glasses on the nose. "Which means that you, I, and The Squad will be in a three way partnership." I say turning to look at Ollie who peers over Alfies shoulder to get a look at the paper himself. This was an agreement I had come to simply because I couldnt take the extra risk of having the Switzer men as my enemy. They had taken Arthur and Michael and threatened Ada's life, I couldn't risk all of their lives just to not see the Switzer sister; that would be stupid and childish of me. "You know what? I'm not even going to have my lawyer look at that." Mr. Solomon's tells me. "No, it's all legal." I state to him. "You know what? Mate, I trust you. That's that. Done. So, whisky." He says sighing leaning down to grab a bottle from the side of his desk.