"This place is under new management by order of the Peaky Blinders,"

That was what Arthur had said after the bust up in the Eden club, announcing that the Italian gangs would soon lose power and strength in the area.

Your act had been due to start when the fight had begun, but yet you found yourself captivated as Arthur took to the stage and slit a man's throat while declaring his power and intentions.

Weeks had passed since the takeover, and everything seemed relatively smooth, you were still employed, thank God, but you saw far more of the Shelby's than you'd rather, though you got used to it, John liked to hide around corners and scare the dancers backstage, earning him shrieks and slaps which he delighted in, Tommy was like a ghost, or smoke, you hadn't decided yet, and Arthur.. Arthur.

As foolish as it sounded, he was your favourite, he always attended the club on nights you were due to perform, under the guise of "surveying the audience for attendance and behaviour, poppet."

Always a kind word and a warm hand, you never understood the tales that followed him, animal, beastly, violent, trigger happy, unhinged.. it simply didn't make sense.

You'd once asked him about those rumours, the words you'd heard following him like a shadow.

"That's none of your concern, pet. Just you sing those lovely songs for your old Arthur and the world'll be a better place, if only for a few minutes. You sing right to me, y'hear?"

You'd nodded mutely, unable to say no to him, something about him telling you that it might just be true, that everything would be better if you just did as he said.

You peeked out from behind the curtain that led backstage, taking a glance at the large club, catching Arthur in his usual spot, he caught your eye and sent you a wink, less of a wink, more a twitch of his cheek as he smiled before going back to looking around the room.