Peaky Blinders

The air inside The Garrison is so thick you could almost cut it with a razor. The glare from the gas lamps bounces off the etched mirrors and the amber glass bottles lined up behind the bar. Outside, the Birmingham rain beats against the windows with a monotonous insistence, but inside, the only sound that matters is the scrape of leather soles on the sawdust floor.

At the bar, John Shelby cleans a fingernail with the tip of a small knife, his gaze fixed on the front door. Beside him, Finn, still too young for the weight of the pistol on his belt, tries not to look nervous as he keeps watch at the side entrance.

At the table in the background, Tommy slowly slides a pocket watch across the varnished wood. The ticking is the only sound. In front of him is a small stack of new banknotes and a blurry photograph of a man in a Metropolitan Police uniform. Arthur enters from the backyard, shaking the rain off his coat.