Quicksand | A Peaky Blinders Fanfiction

Prologue

Elaine pushed the door to the Shelby household open, not bothering to knock. They knew she was coming; they were the ones calling her over after all. In the kitchen, she was met with familiar faces and an uncomfortable atmosphere.

"So, what's going on?" she asked instead of a greeting and was surprised when no one reprimanded her for it. She shot John –the one most likely to quip a comment her way - a questioning glance. His unsure smile directed her forth to Polly. And when Elaine glanced over, she also met the eyes of a young man she hadn't noticed before. He was the only one sitting on one of the chairs; John, Arthur and Finn had decided to stand around, leaning against the walls or nearby furniture, Polly was standing behind the boy, a hand on her hip.

"I called you over, dear, because I wanted you to meet someone," the older woman said merrily and stepped closer behind the chair, resting her hands on the boys' broad shoulders. "This is Michael... my son." Her broad smile clearly indicated that she was hoping for a specific reaction, but Elaine had no idea what to do. Silence.

"Well, this is awkward," she finally said, causing Polly's smile to falter.

"Why?"

"Because," Elaine began slowly, rummaging through the coat she was still wearing until she pulled out what she was looking for, "I may have nicked his wallet earlier."

The silence continued.

Unsure of what to do, Elaine stepped forward and slid the object in question over the table and towards its original owner. Then she stepped back. Polly closed her eyes for a moment, maybe to pray, maybe to keep herself from murdering a girl in front of her newfound son. "You did what," she said, dragging out every single word.

"I didn't know he was your son!" Elaine defended herself, "To me he just was some new kid in town." This caused a reaction from Michael, who, until now, had just sat there with shifty eyes, not sure what to do with himself. Now his eyes shot up to her and she could see the anger behind them. Was it because of the theft? No, he had only glanced up at her when she called him a new kid. Interesting.

"He is about your age," Polly stated dryly. She had clearly imagined the family reunion a little differently. She sighed. "Michael, I'm sorry. This is Elaine. A... friend of the family."

"She's not related?" he asked surprised.

Arthur chuckled, walking over to the young girl and wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Might as well be," he laughed, "Always around anyway and we've known her since she was a baby." Elaine rolled her eyes at that and swatted at his arm. He didn't care.

"That's why I wanted you to meet her, Michael," Polly explained, still a bit annoyed, "You will see her around anyways and she's one of us ... despite her ... antics." Her warning glance shot like daggers through the air, but Elaine evaded them easily.

"Eh, those antics saved your asses more than a couple times," she waved off, grinning. You could practically see Michael's ears perk up. "What do you mean?" he asked. Polly's glance intensified, if that was even possible. It looked like she had left out anything regarding the family business entirely until now and Elaine couldn't really blame her. Michael didn't seem like he knew that kind of life. Throwing the fact that his actual family consisted of gangsters and criminals in his face wouldn't have been her number one priority either. She shrugged in an attempt to wave the topic off and no one made the effort to answer the question properly.

"Anyway," Elaine began, "I think I better be off now. Things to do, y'know."

"Tommy wants to see you," Polly told her on her way out. The older women knew Elaine was fleeing from the situation but couldn't help but agree that it was for the best. Elaine left with an acknowledging grunt.