#Don't Fear The Reaper

[dalekinapaintedparadise]

Huh, you just discovered what it takes to become a legend.

[brummiereader]

PREVIOUS PART MASTERLIST

Don't Fear The Reaper (Part Four/ Dark!Tommy)

Summary: In attempts to escape the continued teasing about your small mishap the previous day, and the unwarranted grand display of roses sent anonymously to you that morning, you find yourself down by the docks of Small Heath where you would attempt to escape not the playful banter from your colleagues but the heavy footsteps of a man following you, when an unexpected individual conveniently comes to your aid. Your boss, Tommy.

Warnings: Language, supernatural themes, visions, manipulation of time, angst, fluff, smut, stalking, controlling behaviour, dark romance, violence, manipulation, obsessiveness, dark!tommy (This is a dark fic, please read the warnings before continuing)

Word Count: 3577

"Early bird catches the worm" Polly said winking to you as she blew out the matchstick she had just used to light one of the many candles now scattered throughout the room whilst you walked through the offices early the next morning, Intent on making up for your tardiness from the previous day.

" Something like that" you smiled back, taking off the many layers of attire you had dressed yourself in an attempt to keep the bitter frost that had descended on the city from numbing every finger and toe you wished to keep intact. That, and a keen display to every resident of Small Heath you was adamant knew of your little mishap yesterday morning that you wasn't a woman that goes flaunting her bare legs willy-nilly to any Tom, Dick and Harry.

"Ladies" Ada said, walking through with a giggling Ethel and Betsy following behind her. "Save me from them" She whispered to you, thankful for your presence and the diversion you gave from Ethel's ever expanding list of profanities.

" Getting brutal out there already" Ethel commented, rubbing her hands together as everyone turned to face her, pleasantly surprised by the lack of artistic flare in her choice of words. " So cold it would make any fuckers bollocks shrink back up" she said, running over to the burning candle Polly had lit as she hovered her trembling hands over the warm orange flame. Never mind. "What?" Ethel asked, oblivious to everything but the four pairs of eyes now staring back at her.

" Two minutes..." Polly said pointing at Ethel who was now rolling her eyes at the Shelby matriarch and everyone else that was giving her disapproving shakes of their heads. "... I counted" Polly finished, placing a large washed out jar of Robertson's apricot jam on her desk with a thud. " Profanity pot. Has your name written on it, right there. Eth-el" Polly smiled, turning it to show her as Ethel opened her mouth to say something undoubtedly crude before she realised pay day was two weeks away and she'd never make it that far.

"I will be taking a vow of silence from this day forth" Ethel commented with her head held high, slowly pushing the glass jar out of sight behind a flower pot on her desk as Polly arched her brow." In thanks to the almighty, as the brides of Christ do" she said turning the document gracefully in front of her, a small dramatic sigh of reflection leaving her lips at her sudden founded faith, the same devotion that had seen her never step another foot in church since the day she got dunked by the priest on her baptism almost twenty five years ago.

" Bloody hell" Polly said, crossing her arms as Ethel cleared her throat, nodding to the pot that Polly was now wading through her pockets to find a shilling for.

"Oi oi!" John said as he strolled through the offices making a swift beeline for your desk, deliberately sitting on the pile of folders you intended on filing. " No show for us this morning Y/N?" he teased as you pulled the papers from under his rather plump bum. "Ay up" he winked, turning the tooth pick in his mouth as you rolled your eyes exceptionally high in response to his playful remarks.

"Alright darling?" Arthur commented, wrapping his arm around John's shoulders whilst he straightened his moustache out, a small smirk settling on the corner of his lips as you waited for him and everyone else to continue their badgering of you.

"Y/N" Michael sauntered over, cap in hand with a grin on his face like some over-zealous school boy. Oh, for fuck sake. Were they all waiting for you to go into a song and dance and finish off where things had ended the previous day? Diamond encrusted nipple pasties and feathers included?

"Delivery for Miss Y/L/N" came a small voice from behind the three gormless muppets in front of you.

" Yes, here" you said, parting Arthur and John to see a young boy standing with a bouquet of a dozen red roses in his hand, his eyes barely visible above the large arrangement of fresh flowers.

" Are you the girl that..." The young shop boy started to say before John put his hand over his mouth, muffling the rest of his sentence as your eyes narrowed in on the likely culprit behind all the stares you had received that morning on your way to work.

" John boy 'ere's got a big mouth, ain't that right John?" Arthur sniffed, patting his brother's shoulder as he turned to face him.

" That's not all I've got that's big love" the third in line to the Shelby throne said winking to you, a cheeky smile dimpling his rounded cheeks.

" Give over! I've seen your todger" Arthur laughed as an intense argument between them both as to the specifics of when, and if that event had even occurred ensued. Arthurs detailed description of John's preference to being stark naked from an early age solidifying the date said unfortunate event took place, resulting in the third-youngest brother to swear on each of his siblings lives that he was now, sizeably endowed.

"Thank you" you said with a sigh of relief at the welcome end to their bickering as you reached over the desk to take the bouquet from the poor boy whose mouth was still muffled by John's forgetful hand when your eyes shot up to see Tommy leaning against the doorway, a cigarette hanging loosely from the corner of his lips. Shit." No card?" You looked nervously at the boy who simply shook his head in response as Tommy's piercing stare heated your cheeks to an unfortunate shade of red. This was the last thing you needed, an unwarranted gesture sabotaging the understanding you had both come to the previous day in his office.

" Well that's not bloody fair!" Betsy huffed as Ethel bit her bottom lip in an attempt to desperately hold back her own thoughts on the extravagant gift and the vow of silence she was already close to breaking.

" Bit creepy, don't you think? No message, no idea who it's from" you said to the room whilst you abruptly stood up, smoothing down your dress before swiftly turning on your heel and marching over to the bin next to Tommy to discard of the large arrangement of flowers, intent on showing your boss exactly where you stood on the matter.

" Looks like you have a secret admirer love" Tommy smirked as he subtly tilted his head to get a better look at you as you bent down to pick up the scattered petals that had fallen at his feet in your dramatic display of loyalty. " Wonder who?" Tommy quietly mused to you looking over your shoulder, subtly jerking his head up to Michael's direction before strolling off to his office, hands casually placed in his trouser pockets as he winked to the young delivery boy. Michael. You thought to yourself, not missing the small gesture Tommy had sent his way as your head snapped to the man whose name kept coming up, the whole exchange also not going missed by Polly's watchful eye, who's feet found her charging over to Tommy's office to confront him about the little game she knew he was playing, and the flowers that were undoubtedly sent by him.

"Wait, hang on...wait. Who sent them? Fuck..." You said with your hand out to halt the delivery boy as he ran out the door. Your flustered state not quick enough to stop his speedy steps and avoidance of questions as the hustle of the office resumed and you stood there nervously watching the Shelby cousin in the corner of your eye. Was it Michael who sent you those flowers? Michael, who was watching you that night?

"Lucky posy for you me love?" an older lady dressed in ragged clothing asked with a small bouquet of heather bound with twine held out for you to take as you were about to turn the corner onto the docks. Some fresh air from the confines of the office had been your pathetic excuse to not join the others at the Garrison for drinks that afternoon, ultimately leading you to the very spot you were standing in that might as well have been the dodgiest back alley of downtown London after all of its unusual residents you had encountered on your little afternoon detour. In reality, you not only wanted peace from the worries that had begun to weigh heavy on your mind for the third time that week, but also from the constant bombardment of attention Michael had been giving you all that morning.

" No, thank you" you quietly replied as you walked under the bridge, clutching your coat around you from the drop in temperature a gust of wind tunneling through the overpass sent your way.

" Bad luck not to..." she pouted, her comment making you come to a sudden stop. Fuck. With a broken mirror, and a black cat adamant on popping up out of nowhere on a regular basis, you were in need of some good fortune.

" Ta love " she said, polishing the penny you had given her on the sleeve of her woolen coat before quickly pocketing it as her eyes scanned the darkened tunnel suspiciously for any chancers that wished to steal what was now rightfully hers." Good things be heading your way me love, I can feel it!" she called out as she waved you off. Good things. She had best be bloody right, you thought to yourself as you looked down at the small lilac bundle of flowers in your hand, a heavy feeling of unease settling in your stomach as your eyes darted up to the empty path with a row of narrowboats lined up against the embankment. Ten-minute walk max. That's all it would take for you to get to the end and back into the welcome bustle of Small Heath's main street. Why on God's green earth did you pick this bleeding path? You thought to yourself as you started walking dangerously close to the edge when you suddenly heard the distinguishable sound of someone's heavy footsteps behind you.

" Shit" you mumbled under your breath closing your eyes, every part of you wishing you had accepted your colleagues' offer to join them in the Garrison before you slowly turned your head, squinting through the settled fog to see a man in the distance walking your way. " Shit, shit shit!" you cursed yourself as your unhurried steps turned into a brisk, panicked pace.

" Hey!" He shouted, his low voice barely audible through the thick smog as he started to jog after you, you in turn frantically matching his speed as your eyes darted between a passage way mere feet away on your right, and the barge beside you to your left. Ever attentive to your surroundings, or more specifically, anything above eye level, your careless proximity to the water's edge had you tumbling over an iron pilling just as a hand reached out and grabbed hold of your arm before you fell into the icy water and, ultimately, to your death.

" Woah...careful there sweetheart. A bit cold for a swim, eh?"

" Tommy..." You cried, falling into his arms, hiding your head in his coat as your grip tightened at the sight of the man who had been chasing after you distance closed in. Unbeknownst to you, as you buried your head in your savior's chest, the very man you had feared had already come to a stop at the gulley, placing what could have only been your scarf that dreadful gust of wind blew off you as you entered the bridge only five minutes ago on a bricked wall before heading off, something you had yet to realise in your jittery state.

"Y/N? What's going on, eh?" Tommy said, holding you in front of him, the coolness from the leather of his gloved hand gently brushing a lone tear from your cheek." Hey...shhh, come on now" he hushed your sobs away, bringing you back into his strong arms as your cries overtook your mumbling attempts to explain what had you so frightened, the feeling of your body pressed firmly against his own sending a ripple of pleasure under his skin.

" I... I thought he was... Ethel and Betsy, they told me about this man..."

"Ethel and Betsy, eh?" Tommy cut you off with a chuckle as he held you firmly by your arms. " If they told me the sky was blue on a clear summer's day, I wouldn't believe them. Two of the biggest gossipers in the whole of Birmingham, no doubt told you a bunch of fibs, hm?" He said, his own little white lie leaving his lips so naturally, so calculated as you nodded your head in response looking down at the small bouquet in your hand. " Lucky Heather..." Tommy said with a playful smile as his fingers softly brushed over your hand, taking the good luck charm from you. " Not Superstitious are you Y/N?" Tommy questioned cocking a brow, twirling the stems of the flowers between his fingers before handing them back to you.

" Lately...yes" you exhaled as Tommy rested his hand on your lower back, gently gesturing you to walk with him.

" Lately eh?" Tommy said looking down at you as you met his playful stare with a smile. "Seems we've made quite the impression on you here in Small Heath Miss Y/L/N if you're stocking up on lucky posy's already hm?" He chuckled fishing in his pockets for a cigarette. His preferred Sweet Afton's, conveniently no longer his tobacco of choice.

" It's me, I'm just...getting used to it here" you said, reassuring yourself as you pushed your nagging worries away for the umpteenth time that day. " I thought you'd be at the Garrison?" You said changing the subject as you and Tommy came to a stop at the end of the path. Always so curious. Tommy thought to himself, a subtle laugh caught in his throat leaving his lips as he brushed his hand down his mouth.

" I like to come down here, to catch some quiet. Have a boat down here I check up on. "The January" he said coming to a stop, the exhale of smoke from his tobacco following the curves of your body as Tommy looked you over, measuring what it was you were really asking whilst your lips curved into a smile as you looked up at him through your dark lashes. Did you look at every man that way, or was your bashful innocence only his to enjoy? Tommy thought to himself, when his next words suddenly caught his calculated demeanor off guard. " There are plenty of quieter places in Birmingham, could take you there if you'd like. This evening?" He said waiting for your response, his fingers subtly pressing into your back at your unexpected lapse in reaction. Rejection was something Tommy had yet to experience, and in his hearts attempt to do something his mind would never contemplate, he was about to get a lesson in the very thing his dashing charm had evaded him from ever encountering.

" Oh...Perhaps, perhaps another time Tommy" you said, taken aback by his unexpected offer. He was your boss, and as much as he was both devilishly handsome and dazzlingly alluring, you had promised him to keep things professional, assuming that meant being with him too. You thought to yourself sending him a small smile before slowly walking ahead, your arms crossed in front of you as you mentally scolded yourself for refusing his offer. He had been nothing but gentlemanly to you. Had he not?

It had been an hour since you and Tommy had arrived at the Garrison to join the others for the drinks you had originally turned down, and an hour since your close encounter with what you believed to be the man that had been both watching, and following you since your arrival in Small Heath.

"Whisky or Gin?" Ada asked taking your glass as you nodded your head to the bottle of London Dry on the table that Tommy was sat across from, watching you, deciphering your every movement as a cloud of tobacco smoke from his lips briefly haltered the piercing stare he had been giving you since you both arrived. You hadn't lied to him, had you? Keeping a secret boyfriend he didn't know about? Now that would be naughty. Tommy thought to himself as he stubbed out his cigarette, determined to find out why you refused his offer down at the docks, his bitter jealously at the thought of any man being with you accept him making his usually stoic demeanor unnervingly menacing.

" Where have you been? Michael?" Polly asked as her son entered the snug, the bottom of his beige coat damp from the dewy mud-ridden cobblestones Small Heath seemed to permanently possess.

"Leave it mum" Michael responded sharply as he quickly poured himself a whisky, looking at you above the glass. What did have him so late? You thought to yourself as you looked down at the cuffs of his muddied trousers, splattered with soil like your own stockings from your frightening impromptu run along the embankment.

"That'll be my fault, Aunt Pol" Tommy said lighting another cigarette, tossing the box of matches on the chair next to him his cousin was about to sit on, the tension between the two family members heightening with each passing second." Sent Michael here on a little errand for me. Went for a run as well, I see..." Tommy said raising his brow as he looked down at his cousin's grubby dress shoes." Does anybody smell, shit?...Michael?" Tommy lent forward his nose turning up in his cousin's direction as he furrowed his brow in disgust before falling back into his chair taking a drag of cigarette as an amused laugh left his lips, Arthur and John quickly following suit at the blatant dig to the unwelcome newest member to the family.

" Fuck off Tommy. Get a delivery boy next time" Michael huffed, pushing through the crowded space with an irritated pout on his face as he made his way to the empty seat next to you.

"Alright, enough you two" Polly reprimanded them both, undoubtedly trying to diffuse the animosity they felt for one another and the sinister threats Tommy had made the previous day she knew he was capable of executing.

" You alright Y/N?" Michael said, turning to face you as you found yourself putting as much space as possible between you both, now practically sitting in Adas' lap. Why wouldn't he leave you alone? You thought to yourself, feeling increasingly uneasy with his continued attention aimed solely at you at any given moment he could steal. " I was wondering, maybe you and I could, could go out somewhere this weekend?" He said quietly, but not quiet enough as the snugs chatter suddenly diffused at the perfect moment, and everyone's heads snapped to the both of you, their ears pricking up at Michaels' offer.

" Think we've found your secret admirer Y/N" Betsy hiccuped with a giggle, her third glass of gin dulling her usually sensible attitude.

"Give it a rest Betsy" Michael said slouching back into his seat as your nervous fumbling with the hem of your dress caught Ada's attention, her hand coming to rest over your jittery fingers in reassurance.

"Whatever's the matter?" She said quietly turning to face you before sending Tommy a look of concern as the chatter of the room resumed and Michael was left there waiting for your response.

" I'm fine, honest. Too much gin" you said as Ada's brow furrowed, suspicious of her cousin's overly eager display and the clear discomfort it was causing you as you looked up to Tommy who was also waiting on your response to his cousin.

" How about it then?" Michael said, putting his arm around the back of your chair as Tommy's eyes narrowed in, his jaw tightening. Touch her, I dare you. Tommy seethed to himself, Michael's next move sealing his fate if he was willing to take the risk.

" Go on Y/N, go 'av some fun. Even if it is with bloody Michael" Arthur said belching into his drink giggling, so drunk he was seconds away from falling face down onto the hard wooden table as Polly sent her eldest nephew a formidable stare. "Sorry Polly, but..." he said gesturing his hands out laughing as he looked to Tommy who was unable to hold back his own laugh and the scoff hidden within it.

" Ok. I guess..." you said reluctantly, feeling forced to give into his request as Michael's satisfied smirk widened in accomplishment as he looked over to Tommy. Michael's juvenile attempts to get under his cousin's skin going completely ignored by the notorious gangster, whose glare and anger was now aimed directly at you, unforgivably, straight at...you. Tommy's amused smile that graced his face mere minutes ago had fallen into a stare even the Grim Reaper himself would recoil from, his eyes darkening with each burn of the ash forming at the end of his cigarette loosely resting between his fingers as his face kept still and indecipherable from the enragement bubbling furiously like the pits of hell under his skin.

Oh sweetheart, now why did you go and do that?

Next part coming soon!

Tag list: @mysticalbouquetwolf-posts @prettywhenicry4 @smayhem49-blog @pacifymebby @indierockgirrl @globetrotter28 @theshelbyclan @zablife @call-sign-shark @red-riding-wood @peakyswritings @everysage

[brokehorrorfan]

Stephen Graham Jones (My Heart is a Chainsaw, The Only Good Indians) will publish The Buffalo Hunter Hunter on Match 18 via Saga Press.

Set in the American west of 1912, the 496-page horror novel follows a Lutheran priest who transcribes the life of a vampire who haunts the fields of the Blackfeet reservation looking for justice.

A diary, written in 1912 by a Lutheran pastor is discovered within a wall. What it unveils is a slow massacre, a chain of events that go back to 217 Blackfeet dead in the snow. Told in transcribed interviews by a Blackfeet named Good Stab, who shares the narrative of his peculiar life over a series of confessional visits. This is an American Indian revenge story written by one of the new masters of horror, Stephen Graham Jones.

Pre-order The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones.

[jt1674]

[engrambug]

And she had no fear

There are many reasons why I love (Don't Fear) The Reaper, and none of them have to do with being a legend. Chasing glory will never get you far.

Friends get you far. Love does.

Most of those reasons have to do with how I roleplay my V and what makes more sense for her to choose at the end of it all. She knows that Panam would ride to hell and back with her, same as Rogue would for Johnny, but she'd rather not let anybody else die in her wake. A further reason (a bigger one) is that V doesn't want to surrender her body to Johnny for what could be her final hours. After all they've been through, however, she doesn't want to spend them without him either. They've been through hell and high water together. She had taken his hand, she had become like they are.

CDPR gave us many opportunities to bond with Johnny throughout the game, be it through casual (or not-so-casual) dialogue or by giving him closure with some of his friends and ex-lovers. None of that is enough to unlock this ending, though, and in my opinion that's one small, brilliant detail (among many) in how Johnny was written.

You see, this man had his own way with people for a long, long time. And when they realized what brand of asshole he was, they turned their back on him--which, hey, fair. Now there's this merc he screws over just as he did everybody else who cared about him, and she rightly gives him shit for it. V knows him better than anybody else at this point (Johnny is a literal witness to that knowledge), and yet, she finds it in her to give him another chance. The last one, sure. But nobody had done that before, knowing what she knows.

It's no wonder that the ending in which he trusts V enough to storm Arasaka tower with him, on their lonesome, is only possible when V shows Johnny she trusts him enough not to blow his last chance at friendship.

So yeah, there are a lot of reasons why I absolutely love this ending, and most of them are sappy. Sorry, this was meant to be a funny one. Let's get on with it: Did you know that the Arasaka guards at the HQ will get more scared the longer you fight hordes and hordes of them without going down? I've compiled most, if not all, of them.

They're fairly confident in the lobby. A random merc just strolled in like it was a supermarket, no biggy. Shit starts to get real when the random merc manages to make her way down to netrun operations control.

The sheer panic in their voice is conveyed even through text. Yelling about needing backup, covering fire--wondering how the fuck she's still standing against a building full of Arasaka soldiers. They're not just scared, they're bewildered.

By the time V reaches the tower's mainframe, they know they're not getting out of there alive. Some kind of demon has been unleashed in Arasaka HQ, and they're cannon fodder.

I have to give it to CDPR: They wrote one hell of an end for V's story--both the meaningful trigger and the mission itself, full of little details that make it feel viscerally real. The relic eating away at what's left of V's body while she's still in it; Johnny's help and support, for the first time letting go of the snarky façade; tasting the fear of your enemies in their voice as you perform a feat never seen before. There's no going back if you flatline--it's an all in. You, and the tech that was designed to replace you, fighting side by side against impossible odds.

We all know there are no happy endings in Night City, and Cyberpunk 2077 is a tragedy in three acts. But I would be lying if I said that there is no happiness at all in some of the choices we make, the causes we fight for, or the ways in which we say goodbye.

All in all, I'd say this is a pretty good one.

[wormwoodandhoney]

books read in 2023: the indian lake trilogy [my heart is a chainsaw & don't fear the reaper]

Jade [...] breathes all the corruption in her lungs out. Well, not the blackness, she supposes. Not the horror. Never that.

[dirtboy-merc]

saw this on the cyberpunk subreddit and it’s so true i love it. just a couple of chooms hanging out on a rooftop, staring at each other while actively dying in silence

[sgnl---lxst]

[murk--1]

don't fear the reaper

[grimalkintoes]

if stephen graham jones has a million fans, then i'm one of them. if stephen graham jones has one fan, then i'm THAT ONE. if stephen graham jones has no fans, that means i've died a horrific, slasher-worthy death.

[buildarocketboys]

Truly gonna have to make a post promoting/begging people to read the Indian Lake Trilogy when I've finished the final book, aren't I? Not enough (read: basically zero) people have read this book and they NEED to GOD I am DYING over here

[brummiereader]

PREVIOUS PART MASTERLIST

Don't Fear The Reaper (Part Two/ Dark!Tommy)

Summary: It's September 1923 and your first day working at Shelby Company Limited Offices. Hired by Ada Shelby after the unforseen departure of her brothers previous personal secretary you are yet to meet your new boss, the notorious gangster of Birmingham, Thomas Shelby. But with new beginnings comes new threats, one your colleagues warn you stalks the streets of Small Heath, his recently hushed prescenece still strong enough to keep the women of the towns fearful guard up. And fearful they should be, for he has set his sights on someone new.

Warnings: Language, angst, fluff, stalking, obsessive behaviour, supernatural themes, dark romance, manipulation of time, dark!tommy (This is a dark series with heavy potentially triggering undertones, please read the warnings before continuing)

September 1923...

" Thank you for this opportunity Mr Shelby. Fuck, right...Thank you for giving me this position in your...your..." You huffed losing your words as you walked down the cobbled streets in the direction of Shelby Company Limited Offices reciting under your breath what exactly it was you was going to say to the man that had given you a position as a secretary in his offices, the same man you had yet to meet. You couldn't believe your luck when a Miss Ada Shelby entered your granddad's blacksmith a few weeks back in search of his expertise to fix a unusually dented cast iron kettle that she had savaged at an auction, in tow offering you a new leap at life and an opportunity to pave your own way in the world of work. Not only was Miss Ada delightfully charming she was as equally curiously minded as yourself, occupying you with a plethora of questions as to how it was you ended up in Small Heath, or as she lovingly referred to it, a muddied dump of misfits and degenerates. After three cups of tea and a slice of soggy Victoria sponge cake you had made the previous day with more eggs than essentially necessary you both sat in the corner of your grandfather's forge as you nattered the time away, delving into each others lives as she waited for the indenting of her newly cherished kettle. Your own life seemed a far cry to Ada's exciting escapades. Yours being one in search of escape from the unhappy memories of the past and a new meaning to life after the death of most of your family during the war. You knew of the Shelby's through your granddad of course, albeit through the briefest of rundowns of information anyone could have possibly received having lived the majority of their life away from the smoke and factories of Birmingham. The sweetest if not the greatest grandparent life could have bestowed upon you, always concerned for your wellbeing. But a notorious man of very few words. And when he did speak it was in unintelligible riddles, not exactly the most ideal informant in a town as reputable as Small Heath. His exact words in regard to the Shelby's..."They've avoided more time in his majesty's pleasure as far as anyone north of John o' groat's" The gist of it, they're possibly the most hardened criminals in the country well overdue a lengthy stay in the local prison. But they were not just any criminals, they had amassed a wealth and power well beyond what anyone would consider possible. A true embodiment of rags to riches, all at the hands of one mastermind conspirator, Thomas Shelby Ada's brother. The very same brother that happened to be in need of a new secretary for his growing empire. " Thank you for this position as secretary in your Offices Mr Shelby" you said as you looked in the reflection of the buildings window as you straightened your dress out when you felt two hands suddenly rest on your shoulders, shocking you out of the silent ramblings that had taken up space in your overcrowded thoughts.

" No need to rehearse a speech, you've already got the job" Ada said as she spun you around to face her, a friendly smile welcoming you along with a playful wink.

" Shit Ada, you scared me" you replied holding your hand to your chest as you stood before the elegantly dressed Shelby sister.

" Stop fretting would you. Like I said, the jobs all yours, all you have to do now is turn up" she added as she pushed your locks over your shoulder, a smile creasing the corner of her mouth as she took in the endearing effort you had made to look sophisticated yet professional as you entered what was for all intents and purposes a man's world. As Ada once said..." You need a pair of balls and tough skin to work in this field, that and turn blind eye on a daily if now hourly basis. So it's a good thing we have a pair of them just as much as men do, if not a bigger pair"

" I'm not fretting, I just...I don't want to mess this opportunity up, and god knows I've perfected the art of that" you replied turning back to your reflection in the glass window as you pinched your cheeks in attempts to give them a rosier glow and not the washed out colour of little sleep they were currently exhibiting.

" Enough of that" she said swatting your hands away. " Anymore pruning and my brothers well, they'll...well you dont want to know" she trailed off not wanting her new friend getting caught up in their shenanigans. She knew you was serious about the job, and she was intent on you keeping your focus solely on that before one of her three older brothers took it upon themselves to show you the "Good life". " Ready?" she nodded her head to the door as you turned to look at your reflection one last time when something or rather someone caught your eye. Squinting further into the glass your eyes focused in on a woman behind you on the opposite side of the street silently watching you as a man dressed in black stood behind her, his hand cupping her shoulder as he whispered into her ear, both faces blurred by the weathered glass but familiar, eerily familiar. " Y/N?" Ada questioned as you turned around to see that the couple had all but vanished.

" I..I swear I could have just..." you stopped as you turned back to look in the glass, void of anyone else but your own reflection, suddenly feeling like you had been seeing things. Had you been seeing things? "...never mind" you relented as you recomposed yourself, turning your back on whatever tricks your exhausted mind was attempting to deceive you with.

" Come on nervous Nelly" she said with a smile as she opened the door to the offices. "Tommy was quite impressed with your lengthy experience of accounts and single handedly turning your granddad's chaotic paperwork and list of jobs into something more manageable in all but a few weeks" she remarked as you walked ahead of her down the dimly lit corridor, the clicking of your heels on the brick floor resonating through the cramped passage before you suddenly came to a halt at the door.

" Wait, Ada. Tommy, I refer to him as Mr Shelby, right?" You clarified worried you'd become the bumbling newcomer miss naming people before what would be considered socially acceptable.

" Yes, and by god it stays that way" she replied as she pushed the door open and ushered you forward.

"Stays that way? What do you mea..." You replied when Ada scooted behind you, holding you by the arms as she presented you to the three people now staring back at you.

" Alright ladies, this is Y/N. Tommy, Mr Shelby's new secretary" she announced to the room gently nudging you forward into a lion's den of three pairs of beady eyes watching your every move. " Betsy and Ethel" Ada introduced you as you slowly took a step forward feeling like the new kid in school that had been dragged up to the blackboard to recite their whole life in front of a sea of students gawking at you like you were the latest exposition at the circus. " And this is Polly" Ada finished as she perched herself on the edge of her Aunt's desk.

" So you're the new girl " Polly stated looking up from the paperwork in her hand as her eyes bored into you, curiosity further picking her interest as to what it was that brought you to Small Heath, not that she didn't already know everything about you.

" Well I'm glad we found someone new. Lizzie the last girl just upped and left the selfish mare" Ethel huffed as Polly stood up and showed you to your desk, her insistent stare softening into one of pity at your fumbling nervousness and shaky hands. Nobody wants to be the new girl.

" Alright ladies let's not bore her with past office politics" Ada said as she flicked through the file on Polly's desk, her eyes rolling at the mountain of work that had to be done since Lizzie's impromptu departure.

" Just saying, she could have given us the courtesy of letting us know in a timely manner she was leaving before dumping the shit tonne of bloody work on us she hadn't bothered to effing finish"

" My Ethel, for a moment there I thought you'd turned a page and stopped using every profanity known to man each time you opened your mouth to speak" Polly said arching her brow with a small smirk of amusement on the corner of her lips when the door opened at what you could only assume was your boss came storming through with two men following behind, the youngest eyeing you up with a tooth pick in his mouth that looked dangerously close to making it's way down his throat.

" Ethel" the youngest winked in her direction, a cheeky grin dimpling his face as you abruptly bolted up from your seat expecting to go through the formalities of greeting your new boss.

" Sit down love. He's not the king of England, as much as he'd like to think he is" Polly said gently pushing on your shoulder as your slumped back down into your seat, your face filling with embarrassment at your blundering display of readiness.

" New secretary ay?" Arthur said quietly to his brother as he strode beside him, one hand causally sitting in his trouser pocket jostling his loose change around as the other smoothed down the edges of his moustache.

" Good luck getting any work done with that distraction" John commented under his breath their way as he walked ahead, his brothers words enough to lure Tommy's attention and finally look in your direction. Don't fuck this up Y/N, don't fuck this up... you mentally mumbled to yourself as his stare lingered on you for an uncustomary amount of time before a hushed comment to his brothers left his lips and a burst of sniggers and laughter ensued from within the office as he closed the door. Fuck sake, did you have something on your face? Did you look like a child trying to play with the big boys? It was when you stood for attention like a complete idiot wasn't it? Shit.

" Don't mind twiddle dee, twiddle dum and god knows whatever John is" the matriarch to family quickly put your mind to rest as she nodded her head to Tommy's office. A pretty face had captured their attention and they were no doubt doing what men do best, being dicks, or rather thinking with their dicks... Polly thought to herself as she mentally took note to remind her three nephews to refrain themselves from looking like complete immature prats the next time they were in the presence of the fairer sex.

It had been an hour since the start of the working day and Polly had busied you with the back log of work that needed to be done. An easy task of copying and correcting copious amounts of files onto the typewriter. A tiresome but welcome distraction from the impending meeting you was yet to have with your new boss. That was until a loud voice sounded through the building capturing your otherwise distracted attention.

"Ada, bring the new girl in" Tommy called out from behind his desk.

" Does he have to shout like that?" She commented with an irritated huff as she turned back to her Aunt. " He does possess the ability to get off his royal ass once in a while before summoning us" she grumbled ignoring her brother as she turned her attention back to signing the document in front of her.

" Ada!"

" Jesus bloody Christ!" she huffed once again as she stood up, throwing her pen on her desk as she turned back to face you with a sympathetic smile at the one of many joyous personality traits of her brother you had just witnessed and undoubtedly would encounter again. Straightening the creases out of your dress you stood up in a hurry as your two giggling colleagues, Ethel and Betsy eyes followed your flustered state. " Hey" Ada said holding you by your elbow before you both entered the office. " If I was to tell you that when he was a boy he'd make Arthur religiously check for ghosts in his wardrobe every night before going to sleep would that make you less nervous?" She asked with a mischievous smile on the corner of her lips as your own face that had been taut with anxiety finally relaxed after hearing that despite his intimidating presence your new boss was human after all.

" Miss Y/L/N" Tommy greeted you as he stubbed his cigarette out into the glass ash tray on his sprawling wooden desk. " It is Miss, no?" He clarified as you nodded your head in response, the rolling of Ada's eyes not going unmissed by her brother as he strode towards you.

" It's a pleasure to meet you Mr Shelby"

" Tommy, you can call me Tommy. First name basis seems appropriate since we'll be working so closely together. Wouldn't you agree Y/N?" He said with a soft smile that caught the corner of his lips as Ada stood behind you shaking her head in disapproval at her brother's inability to keep things professional with anyone he had suddenly taken a liking to." Thank you Ada, you can leave"

" Not even one full bloody day" she mumbled under her breath crossing her arms as she sauntered out the room, hoping to high heavens that you had your wits about you.

" Please, take a seat " Tommy gestured to the chair in front of his desk as he hitched his trousers up and sat down, his elbow resting on the arm of the chair as he watched you pull nervously at the ends of your sleeved dress. It may have only been a mere two minutes, but the silence was deafening one he seemed comfortable with whereas you could barely stand it. Was he waiting for you to speak?... you thought to yourself as you brain scrambled to come up with something to say. " I was..."

"I want to thank you for..." you replied wide-eyed realising you had cut him off, your cheeks going an embarrassing shade of your less than favourite root vegetable, beetroot. " I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt"

" Go on, you was saying " he replied gesturing with his hand as he lent back into his chair, watching as you rolled your thumb along the inside collar of your dress, easing the pressure of its tightness from your heated skin and the sweat that had gathered there from the nervousness enveloping you.

" I want to thank you for this opportunity, Mr Shelby...Tommy. I'm a hard worker and I will do my up most to fulfill your every expectation of what a secretary should be" you said as you looked up from your fidgeting hands.

" I don't doubt you will" he replied as another small silence descended on the room and you watched as he ran the side of his forefinger across his bottom lip back and forth, his eyes remaining locked on you as your own darted to anything but him. God, was he always this intense? This was a test, wasn't it? He was trying to see if you'd crack under pressure, under the pressure this job would undoubtedly demand, right? "I was quite impressed with your resume" he suddenly remarked shocking you out of the endless questions ticking in your brain as he picked up your file and came to sit on the edge of the desk next to you, his knee pressed against your outer thigh as he flicked though the folder. " Five years working as an accountant and assistant for Lembroch and Co in North London" he said closing the folder, dropping it In front of you on the mahogany wood. " Now that is some endurance. Anyone who has spent working half a decade for that grumpy old bastard has my sympathy" he smiled to you as you welcomed the ease in tension with a small laugh and smile of you own. " But enough of that, tell me about yourself Y/N' he asked as he reached into his pocket pulling out a silver case of cigarettes and offering you one.

" I'm afraid there's not much to say" you smiled as your hand reached to pull out a neatly coiled cylinder of tobacco from within the case, the tips of your fingers briefly grazing against his as you made your choice.

" I dunno about that" he replied as he leaned down igniting the lighter, watching as the orange glow cast a shadow on your plump lips as you cupped the flame. " Try me" he said as he flicked the lid of the lighter down in one single snap, watching as you inhaled the fumes and your eyes relaxed with satisfaction at the welcome relief.

" Well..." You said as you rubbed you thumb over the filter, clearing your throat as your eyes darted between him and the wall behind him, completely unprepared for his question. Did he not trust you? Surely he already knew everything about you considering his line of work and the importance of hiring workers he could rely on? And he did, all but the smaller things only you yourself could tell him, things he now wanted to know since having met you, seen you. "I've lived most of my life in London, down by..." You continued telling your life story up until the present day as Tommy impatiently smoked his way down to the end of his cigarette already knowing everything you had told him, everything but what he really wanted to know. Only one small matter he needed to clear up...for his own peace of mind of course.

" And what do you do in your spare time, you have friends here, a boyfriend?" he questioned his eyes darting down to your lips parting in surprise at the casual tone in question.

" Oh erm no, I've haven't been in Birmingham long enough" you replied taking one last drag of the cigarette between your fingers before resting it on the edge of the ash tray in front of you.

" Don't have a sweetheart waiting for you back in London then?"

" No. I don't need any distractions" you replied confidently, convinced he was trying to gauge how serious you was about the job in hand.

" Distractions eh? Is that what you ladies are calling us these days. I beg to differ, I'd be more inclined to say it's the other way around" he chuckled raising his brows as he watched the corners of your lips crinkle into a smile. "Well, you'll soon make friends here. My sisters already pretty fond of you, and I'm sure we'll all quickly follow in her sentiments" he said standing from the desk as you followed.

" I won't let you down Tommy" you said opening the door as he nodded in acknowledgement, watching the bottom of your dress sway back and forth with each step you took as you walked away.

" Now that I can believe" he quietly commented under his breath as he shut the door and walked over to his desk, his head tilting mischievously at your cigarette still burning in the glass tray. Resting it between his fingers Tommy sat down in his chair, slouching back as he rubbed his thumb over the stain your lipstick had left from your full lips. Raising it to his mouth Tommy took a long drag as he closed his eyes, his head resting on the back of his leather upholstered chair as he welcomed his own satisfaction. Satisfaction from what, or rather in finding what?

" Jesus fuck, it's getting cold and dark again" Ethel said as she wrapped her coat around her body as you and Betsy huddled next to her hopping from one foot to the other as you passed the cigarette around between the three of you, hoping it would warm you even if it was for the briefest of seconds as you stood outside the offices at the end of the day.

" Ethel Davis! Polly's right, you'd give any sailor a run for his money with your potty mouth" she reprimanded as a small giggle escaped your lips at their constant playful ribbing of eachother" And you're no better" she said turning to face you as Ethel grinned with amusement." You need a trip to confession following the string of profanities that left your mouth after your encounter with that typewriter" she laughed as she looked down at your hands and the black ink dotted all over them.

" I hate those bloody things" you huffed at the unfortunate event or fortunate to those in the office that burst into a fit of laughter at your flustered state as you wrangled with the ink that needed changing in your typewriter earlier that day.

" Ladies" Tommy said fixing his peak cap on as he walked out the door passing the three of you huddled together from the change in season. "Y/N" he added sending you a small smile that you eagerly mirrored before quickly catching your self and reigning in your overly friendly pleasantries before your own ribbing from your two colleagues began.

" Tommy already is it?" Ethel giggled as you turned around to face them.

" Don't you call him Tommy?" You asked scrunching your brow as you passed the cigarette to her.

" Not after one bloody day!" Ethel laughed taking a drag as she shuffled on her feet.

" Even now after two years of working for him he still corrects me" Betsy added as she rolled her eyes at the already fully smoked cigarette handed to her. " Ethel! I only had two puffs"

" Owh I'm sorry, I'm just so buggering cold!" she apologised dramatically as she put her arm around her friend. " Think he might already have a soft spot for you babe, you poor thing" she grinned as she hugged further into her friends fur coat, both of them now smiling at you like two annoying Cheshire cats.

" He's just being nice is all" you shrugged pushing a stone into the muddied ground with the tip of your shoe.

" If you do cosy up to him can you persuade him to spare us poor workers some extra time off?" Ethel teased as you shook your head, a friendly laugh of disbelief on your part as you turned to leave for home.

" Y/ n wait. Don't..don't you want us to walk with you?" Betsy said grabbing your arm as she suddenly scanned the area and anybody nearby.

" I'll be ok, I'll see you two tomorrow" you replied sending her smile when her grip on your arm tightened, restricting you from leaving without her.

" Y/N! It's not safe" Betsy insisted as you watched a sudden wave of panic wash over her face.

" It's alright Betsy, there's been no talk of it for a while now" Ethel gently reassured her friend as she removed her hand from you.

" Talk of what?" You questioned as you watched Ethel hush Betsy's worries and the tears now streaking her frightened face.

" Fuck, you don't know do you? You won't catch a single woman in Small Heath walking by herself when it's dark out" Ethel replied, realising you had no knowledge of the dealings the women of Small Heath had endured for the past six months.

" But why?"

" There's been a man following..."

" Say it right Betsy. Stalking. He's been fucking stalking" Ethel corrected her as your eyes widened at the unexpected information.

" Nothings happened yet so don't go and worry yourself on it too much" Betsy dispelled your fears in response to your sudden reaction.

" Other than that girl that ended up in the cut a few months back" Ethel commented under her breath as Betsy's head snapped to her.

" She fell Ethel. Stop telling tales!" Betsy said in attempts to reassure everyone only in the end realising she was trying to ease her own fears.

" Either way, he won't be getting me" Ethel said in a hushed voice as she lifted up her skirt pulling a small knife from within her boot.

" Please, let us walk with you" Betsy pleaded one last time as she reached for your hand.

" My place is only around the corner and my granddad waits by the window until I'm safely inside. I'll be ok, I promise" you assured her, not fully convinced her concerns were enough to even fret over. You was from London, encountering the unwanted happened on a weekly If not daily occurrence. You was street wise, or at least you thought you was.

" Ok...but you scream bloody murder if anyone even dares approach you, alright? There's enough police surveying this dump to hear you and come running" she said giving you a quick hug before she huddled up to Ethel from the cold again as they both watched you walk into the night.

Was this the plight of the women of Small Heath? Living in fear at the simple act of walking home. They were of strong stock, endured and lived through so many hardships with a fearless attitude. But this, this scared them.

Ok so your place wasn't just around the corner. But it was pretty close. You just didn't want them to worry...you thought to yourself as you headed for one of the bridges that hovered over the street , an uneasy feeling suddenly settling in your stomach as you stopped yourself from stepping another foot forward whilst you eyed up the overpass. You was thinking too much about it, Ethel and Betsy's worries had found their way into the very corner of your brain you had kept under lock and key since the war. You had passed under the same bridge countless times before, even later at night than it currently was...you reasoned with yourself as you started walking toward the bricked archway, your eyes solely fixed on the opposite side were the welcome dim hue of a street light ushered you forward into safety. Just a few more feet you reassured yourself as you clutched your hand bag into your side when you came to a halt and your eyes frantically widened at the dark shadow being cast on the wall inside the bridge. " I'll...I'll scream" you said aloud rather than the action itself Betsy had encouraged you to do into the night, silent to the empty street but you and whoever was lurking behind the wall. " Please, I don't want no trouble" you sobbed quietly as your bottom lip wobbled in response to the sudden surge of fear overtaking your body, feeling like at any moment your legs would buckle and give out when the large shadow grew two fold. How could you have been so brazen to think you could handle the treacherous darkness of Small Heath alone?...you cried to yourself as you took a step back when the heal of your shoe kicked a stone into the gutter beside you, the shadow now overtaking the entire wall in response as you lost your balance and fell backwards. "Fuck!" You breathed heavily, your heart rapidly pounding in your chest as you looked up at the starry sky shaking your head not only in relief but amusement. " You bloody scared me, you know that?" you said catching your breath as you stood up wiping the grit from your palms, picking out the minute stones that had managed to wedge their way into your skin as you eyed up the black cat in your path. " Not the luckiest thing to come across are you?" you said as you knelt down to stroke his head as he brushed up against your leg " But Luckier than whatever my brain was conjuring up" you said with a small smile as you stood up heading for home, mentally remembering to not let yourself be fooled again by silly gossip that for all you knew could be the result of the very black cat you had just encountered.

" Good evening Mr Shelby" a older man said tipping his hat in Tommy's direction as the black coated gangster blew a cloud of smoke into the crisp air, briefly acknowledging the gentleman's presence before returning his gaze back to what had been his sole focus for the past half hour. Stood across the street in the shadow of the brick wall he watched the golden glow from the upstairs window dance in front of his view as the woman he had been watching walked back and forth within her bedroom, finally coming to a stop in front of the small mirror sitting on the edge of the windowsill. Tommy watched intently as she gracefully collected her hair to one side into one large lock, brushing her fingers through the ends as she leaned in closer to her reflection. She was not like the others, he mused as he watched the sleeve from her nightgown fall from the curve of her shoulder, his lips parting at the enticing movement that only exposed more of her delicate skin that was beckoning him to her. Why would she leave her curtains open if she didn't want him to see he smirked as he stepped further into the darkness shielding his statue as a group of young men passing a bottle of whisky around walked by, their drunken boisterousness capturing both his and her attention and all but ruining the moment he has lost himself in. Throwing his cigarette to the ground Tommy turned on the heel of his boot into the dark of the alley way as his coat glided around the brick wall back into the cover of night.

" Alright up there?" Your granddad called down from the bottom of the stairs at the sudden noise of your mirror that was precariously leaning against your window came crashing down onto the wooden floors, shattering into hundreds of shards at the brisk movement of you closing your curtains.

" Yes, everything... everything's fine. Just being clumsy as usual" you said sitting on the edge of your bed, your hands either side of the plump mattress steadying yourself as a surge of panic rapidly scrambled up your throat at not only the seven years of bad luck you had just brought upon yourself but what you was sure you just saw. It was only for the briefest of seconds but you saw him, his face masked by the darkness of the night but the glint of his signet ring captured by the moonlight like the spark of a flame as he turned the corner making his presence known. He'd been watching you. An innocent bystander, or at worst just a peeping Tom...you quickly reassured yourself turning your bed stand light off as hurried to be under the comfort of your warm bed, your only true comfort for the night. Just a peeping Tom. Oh how those very words would come back to haunt you. An unchangeable string of a events had started, threatening not only your life but your very soul.

NEXT PART

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Lydia Lunch & Clint Ruin - Don't Fear the Reaper

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Sertaline girl winter

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Blue Oyster Cult - (Don't Fear) The Reaper (Audio)