Tommy didn't raise his voice. That was always the most dangerous sign—when the anger compressed into cold, controlled fury that made even Arthur shift uncomfortably in his chair.
The family had gathered in the betting shop's back room, away from the soldiers and bookmakers who didn't need to know that Shelby operations had been compromised again.
"We have a security problem," Tommy said, cigarette smoke curling through the morning light. "Again."
Jimmy had spread newspapers across the table—three different publications from the past week, each containing information about Webb's campaign that shouldn't have been public. Specific policy positions, internal strategy discussions, even preliminary budget allocations that existed only in documents shared with the inner circle.
"It's not random speculation," Jimmy said. "These articles contain details from working drafts, numbers from internal memos, strategic positioning we haven't announced publicly. Someone with access to campaign materials is feeding information to journalists or opposition campaigns. Possibly both."
Polly stubbed out her cigarette. "Billy Kitchen situation all over again."
"Different pattern." Jimmy pulled out his notebook, where he'd been tracking leak timelines. "Kitchen was feeding general intelligence to Section D—troop movements, enforcement activities, betting operations. This is more targeted.
Specific campaign information going to specific recipients. And it's not going to government handlers. It's going to opposition candidates and newspapers sympathetic to them."
"How many people have access to these documents?" Tommy asked.
"Depends on which documents. Webb's position papers—five people. Budget information—three people. Strategic campaign planning—only myself, Dr. Foster, and Webb himself."
Arthur leaned forward. "So it's one of three people. Simple. We bring them in, ask questions, get answers the old way."
"No." Jimmy met Arthur's eyes. "If we start interrogating suspects, the leak goes underground. Better to identify them quietly, then decide how to handle it."
"You're saying let them keep leaking while you investigate?" Tommy's tone suggested this was not an acceptable option.
"I'm saying contain the damage while gathering evidence. Compartmentalize information so I can track which version leaks and identify the source. Classic counterintelligence—different people receive different versions of the same information.
Whoever's leaking reveals themselves through which version appears publicly."
Polly was watching Jimmy with the sharp assessment he'd learned to recognize as her measuring him against some internal standard. "That's spy work. You've done this before."
"I hunted Billy Kitchen using similar methods. Tracked who knew what when, eliminated suspects through systematic observation."
Jimmy didn't mention that the Kitchen investigation had nearly destroyed them before he solved it. No point dwelling on past near-disasters when facing current ones.
"And you think this is Section D again?" Tommy asked. "Government intelligence trying to undermine our political expansion?"
"Possibly. The sophistication suggests professional operation rather than amateur opposition research." Jimmy flipped through his notes. "Information isn't just leaking—it's being weaponized. Appearing in contexts designed to damage Webb's credibility or expose our strategic thinking. That requires coordination and skill."
"Fucking government spies," Arthur muttered. "Can't we just burn down their offices?"
"We don't know where their offices are," Jimmy said. "That's the problem with intelligence services—they operate from shadows. But if we identify their asset within our organization, we gain leverage. Can feed them false information, manipulate their understanding of our operations, turn their spy against them."
Tommy considered this, the calculations visible behind his eyes. "You want to run the campaign and hunt the traitor simultaneously?"
"I don't have a choice. The campaign can't stop—we're eight weeks from election day, and Webb's momentum requires constant management. But I can investigate while managing operations. It'll mean longer hours, more careful documentation, surveillance on people who should be allies."
"Including me," Polly said. Not a question.
"Including everyone with access to sensitive information. I eliminate suspects through evidence, not trust." Jimmy kept his voice neutral. "That means tracking your movements, monitoring your contacts, documenting what you knew when. Same for Arthur, John, Dr. Foster. Anyone who could be the leak."
"What about family loyalty?" Arthur's tone carried an edge. "We're supposed to be on the same side."
"We are. Which is why I'm finding whoever's betraying that side." Jimmy closed his notebook. "Loyalty means protecting the family from internal threats, not assuming threats don't exist because someone's related by blood."
Tommy nodded slowly. "Do it. Whatever surveillance and investigation you need—approved. Find the traitor, identify whether Section D is involved, determine how much damage has been done. You have full authority."
"I need resources. Walter Chen for document security and possibly forgery work. Access to communication records—who's been making telephone calls to journalists or Reform Club contacts. Authorization to conduct surveillance without explaining why to the people being watched."
"You have it." Tommy stood, signaling the meeting's end. "And Jimmy? This doesn't get solved the way Billy Kitchen did. We can't afford mercy if the traitor is actively working with government intelligence. Find them, but be prepared for what finding them means."
The implication was clear. Kitchen had been desperate father making bad choices—forgivable, salvageable. Someone working with Section D to undermine Shelby political operations would be something else entirely.
Something that required permanent solutions.
Jimmy gathered his papers, already planning the investigation's architecture. Compartmentalized information, systematic surveillance, methodical elimination of suspects.
He'd done this work before. He was very good at it.
What he wasn't prepared for was the possibility that the traitor might be someone he actually cared about.
---
Jimmy's office above Morrison's butcher shop had transformed over three hours of meticulous planning into something resembling a detective's evidence room. Papers covered every surface—campaign documents in three different versions, each with subtle variations that would identify which version leaked if information appeared publicly.
Color-coded folders organized suspects by access level and opportunity. A large sheet of paper pinned to the cork board mapped information flow through the campaign organization.
The blood seeping through the ceiling had become background noise. Jimmy barely noticed it anymore, his attention focused entirely on the architecture of deception he was constructing.
Three versions of Webb's upcoming position paper on housing reform:
Version A (For Ada and Reform Club contacts): Proposed fifteen percent increase in housing inspections, emphasis on tenant protections, specific mention of Digbeth overcrowding statistics.
Version B (For Dr. Foster and campaign staff): Proposed twelve percent increase in housing inspections, balanced approach between tenant protections and landlord cooperation, general overcrowding statistics without specific neighborhoods.
Version C (For Webb only): Proposed ten percent increase in housing inspections, market-incentive approach, no specific statistics.
If information from Version A appeared in newspapers or opposition campaign materials, Ada's networks were the source. If Version B leaked, Foster or campaign staff. If Version C leaked, Webb himself—unlikely but possible if he was less naive than he appeared.
Jimmy created similar variations for three other policy documents, each with distinctive markers that would identify the leak source. The work required hours of careful drafting, ensuring variations were subtle enough to avoid suspicion but distinctive enough to trace.
By evening, he had a complete system. Different versions stored in different locations, shared with different people at different times.
If the leak continued—and Jimmy expected it would—he'd know exactly where it originated.
The surveillance was harder to implement. Tracking family members meant operating without their knowledge, watching people who trusted him while documenting their movements and contacts.
It felt like betrayal, which was precisely why it was necessary. Trust without verification was vulnerability.
He'd started a log:
TOMMY: Away in London September 2-4. Leak occurred September 3 (newspaper article about Webb's education funding). Could not have been source for that specific leak. Eliminated for September 3 incident but not others.
POLLY: Attending family funeral in Small Heath September 1-2. Present for other leak dates. Access to campaign information through family meetings. Possible but seems unlikely—her loyalty to family is absolute, and leaks don't serve her interests.
ARTHUR: Present for all leak dates. But doesn't have access to detailed policy documents—his involvement is enforcement and muscle, not strategic planning. Sophistication of leaks suggests someone with political understanding Arthur lacks.
JOHN: Same analysis as Arthur. Present, but lacks access and sophistication.
FOSTER: Access to all campaign documents. Professional politician with connections to journalists. But no obvious motive—she believes in Webb's candidacy, and leaks undermine her own professional work.
The elimination process was ruthless and methodical. Jimmy documented everything, building evidence that cleared some suspects while others remained in the circle of possibility.
By midnight, his analysis had narrowed considerably. The traitor had access to detailed campaign information, sophistication to weaponize it effectively, and motivation to undermine Shelby interests while potentially helping alternative candidates.
That profile fit very few people. And one of them was Ada.
Jimmy stared at her name in his notes, wanting to eliminate her the way he'd eliminated Arthur and John. But the evidence wouldn't allow it.
Ada attended Reform Club meetings where opposition candidates organized. She had connections to journalists who'd published leaked information. She was politically sophisticated enough to understand how to use intelligence strategically.
And she'd been present for every leak, with access to information that had appeared publicly.
Jimmy set down his pen, rubbing his eyes. Three months ago, Ada had been his closest friend in the Shelby family—the person who'd advocated for his integration, who'd understood his intellectual approach to problems, who'd made him feel welcomed rather than merely tolerated.
Now she was a suspect in his investigation. Possibly the primary suspect.
He needed more evidence. The compartmentalized documents would help—if Version A leaked, Ada's guilt became mathematical certainty rather than uncomfortable suspicion.
But until then, Jimmy had to continue operating normally, maintaining their friendship while watching for signs of betrayal.
The work required emotional distance he wasn't entirely sure he possessed.
---
Ada's residence sat on the border between Small Heath and more respectable Birmingham neighborhoods—the geographical embodiment of her position between criminal family and legitimate society. Jimmy walked there on a mild September evening, carrying a bottle of wine and rehearsed casual conversation that masked careful intelligence gathering.
She answered the door with genuine warmth. "James! I wasn't expecting you."
"I was in the area, thought I'd stop by. Is this a bad time?"
"Not at all. Come in, I was just reading." She led him to her sitting room, where books and newspapers covered most surfaces. Progressive publications, political theory, Reform Club meeting minutes.
Ada's intellectual world made physical.
Jimmy settled into the comfortable chair she indicated while Ada fetched wineglasses from her kitchen. The room revealed character through careful observation—photographs of Shelby family on the mantle, showing Ada's loyalty despite her political differences with Tommy.
Bookshelf filled with Marxist theory and feminist literature, displaying her ideological commitments. Recent copy of the Birmingham Gazette open to an article about the election, with annotations in Ada's handwriting.
She returned with glasses and poured wine with practiced efficiency. "So what brings you to this part of Birmingham? Campaign business?"
"Partly. Webb's rally went well yesterday—two hundred attendees, good newspaper coverage. But I'm exhausted. Thought I'd take an evening away from strategy and talk to someone who doesn't need managing."
The lie came easily. Jimmy was here precisely to manage Ada, to gather intelligence while maintaining the friendship that made surveillance possible.
"That's sweet." Ada settled into her chair, genuinely relaxed. "How is Webb handling the pressure? He must be feeling overwhelmed."
"He's adapting. Learning faster than expected, actually. Asking sharp questions, noticing things I'd rather he didn't notice." Jimmy sipped his wine. "He wanted to meet campaign donors last week. Had to explain they prefer anonymity."
"Did he accept that?"
"Reluctantly. I think he's starting to understand that political organizing involves compromises he'd rather avoid." Jimmy watched Ada's reaction carefully. "He's also concerned about opposition research. Someone's been leaking campaign information, and Webb's worried about who might have access to internal documents."
Ada's expression showed concern but not guilt. "That's troubling. Do you know who?"
"Not yet. Could be opposition infiltration, could be someone with legitimate access who's more interested in other candidates." Jimmy set down his wine. "You've been attending Reform Club meetings. Has Catherine Winters mentioned anything about inside information on Webb's campaign?"
"Not directly. Though she's been surprisingly well-prepared to counter Webb's positions." Ada thought for a moment. "Actually, now that you mention it, she knew about Webb's teacher salary proposal before he announced it publicly. I assumed she'd made educated guesses based on his background."
"Could be. Or could be someone's feeding her information." Jimmy made mental notes while keeping his voice casual. "You know Winters fairly well?"
"We've spoken several times. She's impressive—genuinely committed to housing reform and worker protections. If Webb weren't running, I'd be supporting her campaign."
Ada's enthusiasm was completely genuine. "Birmingham's lucky to have two serious reform candidates instead of just Blackwood's conservative nonsense."
"Webb might disagree that Winters is doing Birmingham a favor by splitting the progressive vote."
"Competition makes both candidates better. Winters pushes Webb to be more specific about policies. Webb pushes Winters to be more accessible to working families."
Ada refilled their glasses. "Besides, they're not really competing for the same voters. Winters appeals to radical reformers and union organizers. Webb appeals to moderate progressives and respectable working class. Different constituencies."
Jimmy filed away every detail—Ada's knowledge of both campaigns, her positive assessment of Winters, her sophisticated understanding of voter demographics. This was information gathering disguised as friendly conversation, and Ada had no idea she was being interrogated.
"You seem distracted," Ada observed. "Is something wrong?"
"Just campaign stress. Managing Webb while tracking down the leak while keeping Shelby involvement hidden—it's a lot of moving parts." Jimmy allowed genuine exhaustion to show. The best cover was partial truth.
"You're doing brilliantly. Webb would have no chance against Blackwood without your strategic guidance." Ada's confidence in him was absolute, which made the surveillance feel particularly cruel. "Whatever leak is happening, you'll find it. You always solve these kinds of problems."
They talked for another hour about politics, family, Birmingham's endless factory smoke. Ada mentioned attending three Reform Club meetings in the past two weeks, including one where Winters discussed her housing reform proposal in detail.
She asked intelligent questions about campaign finance and voter targeting that revealed sophisticated political understanding.
Every word confirmed what Jimmy's investigation had already suggested. Ada had the access, the sophistication, the connections, and the ideological motivation to be leaking campaign information to Winters.
She believed in Winters' candidacy, attended meetings where strategy was discussed, and had the political intelligence to understand how to weaponize information effectively.
She was the perfect suspect. And Jimmy's closest friend in the family.
When he left near ten o'clock, Ada hugged him at the door. "Thanks for stopping by. It's nice to talk about something other than betting operations and enforcement territories. Sometimes I miss having intellectual conversations."
"We should do this more often," Jimmy said, returning the embrace while feeling like betrayer. "You're good company, Ada. Reminds me that not everything in Birmingham involves violence and manipulation."
He walked back toward Small Heath carrying evidence that damned her, wondering whether friendship and investigation could coexist or whether one necessarily destroyed the other.
The moon was hidden behind factory smoke. Birmingham's streets were quiet except for occasional late workers heading home. Jimmy passed the cemetery where Mary rested, the Garrison where lights still burned, the familiar landmarks of a city he'd learned to navigate through criminal operations and political manipulation.
Three months ago, he'd joined the Shelbys seeking revenge and found family. Now he was investigating that family, documenting evidence that might destroy someone he cared about.
Intelligence work required emotional distance. Jimmy was discovering he had less distance than he'd believed.
---
By the end of September's first week, Jimmy had eliminated most suspects through systematic surveillance and evidence analysis.
Tommy: Cleared. Multiple leaks occurred while he was away from Birmingham. No access to specific documents that leaked. No logical motive—leaks actively undermined his political interests.
Polly: Cleared. Leak occurred September 5th while she was visiting family in Wales. Impossible for her to have been source. Pattern of leaks doesn't match her interests or access.
Arthur: Cleared. Lacks access to detailed policy documents. Leaks require political sophistication Arthur doesn't possess. His confusion about campaign operations is genuine, not performance.
John: Cleared. Same reasoning as Arthur. Not sophisticated enough for this operation. Lacks necessary access to leaked materials.
Dr. Foster: Unlikely. Professional reputation depends on confidentiality. No obvious connection to opposition campaigns. Access is incomplete—some leaked information came from documents she never saw.
That left Ada as the only person with complete access, sophisticated understanding, and connections to opposition campaigns. Every leaked document had passed through her networks at some point.
Every opposition counter-strategy aligned with information she'd possessed.
The evidence was circumstantial but compelling. Jimmy needed definitive proof before making accusations. Which meant setting a trap.
He spent an evening in his office above Morrison's designing the test with meticulous care. The information had to be significant enough that Ada would feel compelled to share it if she was leaking, but false enough that it couldn't cause real damage when it inevitably appeared in opposition materials.
Finally, he settled on the perfect bait: a fabricated meeting between Webb and a supposedly corrupt businessman.
Jimmy drafted a memo describing Webb's planned private meeting with "Richard Ashton," a fictional Birmingham property developer with questionable connections. The meeting was supposedly scheduled for September 12th at the Crown Hotel, 3 PM, to discuss "mutual interests in housing development policy."
The memo was perfect bait. If it leaked to Winters' campaign, they'd publicize the meeting as evidence that Webb was compromised by business interests—exactly the kind of attack that would damage his reform credentials.
And when the meeting turned out to be fictional, Webb could claim opposition was inventing scandals through desperation.
But the real purpose wasn't campaign strategy. The real purpose was identifying the leak.
Jimmy created the memo with careful attention to detail, making it seem like legitimate internal communication. Then he shared it with exactly one person: Ada.
He visited her residence on September 9th, carrying campaign documents that included the fabricated meeting memo buried among legitimate materials.
"Could you review these before the next Reform Club meeting?" Jimmy asked, handing her the folder. "I value your perspective on Webb's positioning with progressive voters. The housing development memo particularly—I want to make sure we're balancing reform principles with practical coalition-building."
Ada took the folder without suspicion. "Of course. I'll read through everything tonight and give you feedback tomorrow."
"Appreciate it. And Ada?" Jimmy met her eyes directly. "These are internal strategy documents. Please keep them confidential. The opposition would love to know our planning."
"Obviously." She laughed, completely unaware of the test being administered. "I'm not going to hand our strategy to Catherine Winters, James."
"I know. Just being cautious. Too many leaks lately."
He left feeling sick. If the fabricated meeting appeared in opposition materials within the next three days, Ada's guilt would be mathematical certainty.
And then Jimmy would have to decide what to do about the woman who'd become his closest friend while betraying everyone else.
The test was set. Three days until he knew the answer he was increasingly certain he didn't want confirmed.
---
Meanwhile, Webb's education continued in fragments that revealed his growing perception.
Jimmy arrived at the school one afternoon to find Webb reviewing campaign finance records with the methodical attention of someone who'd spent years checking arithmetic tests for errors.
"Who's actually paying for all this?" Webb asked without preamble. "I've been adding up the numbers. Printing costs, advertisement space, Dr. Foster's salary, volunteer coordination—we're spending thousands of pounds. Your political action committee has been generous, but the donations don't match the expenditures."
"Creative accounting," Jimmy said. "Some costs are being absorbed by vendors who support your candidacy. Others are structured through delayed payment arrangements."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the answer you're going to get." Jimmy's tone hardened slightly. "You want to win this election or you want to understand every financial detail? Because one of those is achievable and the other isn't."
Webb was quiet for a moment, his expression troubled. "I'm becoming complicit in something I don't fully understand. That bothers me."
"You're becoming complicit in winning. The alternative is losing to Lawrence Blackwood and accomplishing nothing for Birmingham's working families."
Jimmy pulled out Webb's latest polling numbers. "You're at thirty-two percent. Blackwood's at thirty-five. Winters at twenty-eight. You're competitive because we've built professional campaign infrastructure. That infrastructure costs money. Where the money comes from matters less than what you do with the power it helps you win."
"That's a dangerous philosophy."
"That's reality. You can have clean hands and no influence, or you can have complicated finances and actual ability to help people. Choose."
Webb returned to his finance records without responding. But Jimmy noticed he stopped asking questions about funding sources.
The education was succeeding—Webb was learning that some knowledge was better avoided, that willful ignorance sometimes served noble purposes.
The corruption was subtle but real. Webb wasn't becoming dishonest. He was becoming strategically blind, learning not to look too closely at mechanisms that made his idealism possible.
Another lesson in practical politics. Another small death of innocence.
Jimmy left the school that evening feeling the weight of what he was building. Not just a political campaign, but a transformation. Webb was changing, and not always for better.
The question was whether the change served worthy ends or simply produced another corrupt politician who justified compromise through noble intentions.
That night, alone in his office with blood seeping through the ceiling, Jimmy reviewed his investigation notes one final time before the test results came in.
Three days. Then he'd know if Ada was the traitor.
Three days until friendship and duty potentially collided in ways he wasn't prepared to handle.
Three days to hope he was wrong while knowing he was probably right.
The work continued. The campaign advanced. The investigation proceeded with cold efficiency.
But walking home through Birmingham's smoke that night, Jimmy felt the isolation of his position more keenly than ever. He was hunting traitors among family, teaching corruption to idealists, manipulating everyone around him while telling himself it served greater goods.
Intelligence without empathy, Polly had warned. Eventually you become exactly what you're pretending to be.
Jimmy was starting to understand what she meant.
The test was set. The evidence would accumulate. The truth would emerge.
And then he'd have to live with whatever that truth required him to do.