The Shadow of Great Britain

98: Chapter 58: The Fog Clears 98: Chapter 58: The Fog Clears The gang leader raised his hands and knelt on the ground.

He wanted to show Arthur that he meant no disrespect, but with the barrel of a gun in his mouth, he dared not utter a word and could only nod slightly to show his respect.

Seeing his submission, Arthur then pulled the gun out of his mouth.

However, as he had just withdrawn the gun, he felt something press against his back.

From behind him came Fiona’s angry, slightly hysterical scream, “You think you’re the only one with a gun?

I’ve nearly stripped off, and you’ve looked me over completely.

Can you really walk away without leaving any money?”

Red Devil, seeing this, leaned against the wall and mocked, “Arthur, see, I told you to tie her up tight, but you just wouldn’t listen.

Now look, she’s got your life in her hands.”

The gang member exhaled in relief seeing his partner not only escape but also overpower Arthur.

“Fiona, you’re really something!

We don’t even need to come rescue you.”

Fiona glared at them and scolded, “Relying on you spineless losers, I would have been cleaned out and killed, then dumped in the Thames River long ago.

So, relying on a man is worse than relying on myself, I knew that one day the blade hidden in my bra would come in handy.”

“What the hell are you guys standing around for?

Tie this jerk up now, do I have to teach you everything?”

Usually, the gang members would have retorted after being scolded by Fiona, but today they really had no ground to stand on, so they obediently followed her orders.

The men quickly snatched the pistol from Arthur’s hands, and took out a cloth that they had prepared earlier, binding his hands behind his back, wrapping them round and round.

Fiona walked around to the front of Arthur, holding a bedsheet to cover her body in one hand and a gun against Arthur’s chin in the other.

“Big boy, I was going to let you off for just robbing you since you entertained me well, and considering your strong physique, I might have even thought about taking your business exclusively.

But you’ve shown no gentlemanly manners at all, you not only pulled a gun on a lady but also had me tied up backwards on a bed, not even sparing a blanket to cover me.

I was only wearing a corset, what if I caught cold?

How would you compensate me for this gorgeous body that drives bevies of idiots to willingly give me their money?”

Arthur looked at her calmly and said, “But you told me before that you only charge a shilling at a time, I’ve always known cheap things aren’t good.”

Upon hearing this, Fiona became furiously embarrassed, and bursting in anger she shouted, “A shilling was your chance to feel lucky!

If I’m not willing, even if you offer ten thousand pounds, you wouldn’t get to touch my skirt!

You ungrateful brat, I’ve changed my mind.

Not only am I going to rob you, but I’m also going to sell you to Fred’s ship!”

“Fred’s ship?”

Upon hearing this, Arthur suddenly became very interested and countered, “Madam, you can see from my clothes that I used to make a living on a ship, the sea means nothing to me to be afraid of.”

“Oh!

Really!

Tough guy, you talk tough!”

Fiona, her face pale as freshly painted walls, now flushed with anger: “Once you’re on that ship, you won’t be so tough anymore!

You think you’ll still play with women then?

Heh, the ship will be packed with young slaves being sent to North America.

You, being tall and handsome, I’m sure those with no way to vent will like you a lot!

And that’s just the beginning of the days on the ship.

The best is yet to come.

Once you reach America, you’ll know what real hell is.

Seven to nine years of labor, those plantation owners won’t cherish you like I do.

By then, you will probably be treated worse than a black slave, as they are their lifelong property and you’ll have a day when your contract ends, so they will for sure make the most out of you!”

“Oh, and a strong man like you might even be used to breed with the black female slaves, and the children born will still be shackled to serve them.”

“This is your fate, you brought this upon yourself, you idiot from India!”

Arthur nodded slightly and said, “Thank you for your enthusiastic help, madam.

The words you just said match up to several months of my research.

To show my gratitude, let me share with you a scientific theory I’ve researched.”

“Scientific theory?” Fiona scoffed, “You, a vulgar sailor, understand scientific theories?

Well, tell me then, if I enjoy what you say, maybe I’ll reward you before I sell you off.”

“Of course,” Arthur smiled, “Though I’m dressed as a sailor, I’m not like those who squat on Royal Navy ships just drawing maps.

To be honest, last month I even published a paper in the journal of the Royal Society.

Do you know about Hastings Force?”

Fiona furrowed her brow and asked, “What is Hastings Force?”

Arthur turned his back and gestured for her to look at his bound hands.

“The so-called Hastings Force means that if you have enough strength, you can perform miracles!”

With a loud snap, the strip of cloth fiercely broke in two, and Arthur’s bound hands were instantly freed.

Fiona’s mouth slightly opened, but before she could cry out in shock, she realized that the handgun she had been holding was now in Arthur’s hands.

Arthur’s arm, strong as iron pincers, locked her in his embrace while the handgun was promptly pressed against her temple.

He lowered his head to glance at the gun, a model he was all too familiar with—it was the same type used by Scotland Yard, supposedly part of the batch secretly transported after Wilcox’s supposed ‘resurrection’.

He chuckled softly, “It seems everything is clear now.

Was this gun also sold to you by Fred?”

A thug named James saw this and hurriedly raised the handgun he had snatched from Arthur, aiming it at him.

Their voices strained with tension as they shouted, “Don’t make a move, or I swear I’ll kill you!”

However, Arthur, unafraid of their actions, smiled and nodded, “If it makes you happy, feel free to pull the trigger.

That’s my gun.

I know better than you whether it’s loaded.”

Thinking Arthur was bluffing, the thug angrily pulled the trigger, but instead of firing bullets, it only elicited Fiona’s screams.

“James, you bastard, are you trying to kill me!

I knew it, you asshole.

You proclaim your love daily just to trick me into bed with you.

Lucky for me, I didn’t fall for it.

You damn cur, I better not see you again, or I’ll stab your eyes out with an umbrella!”

With the situation evolving to this point, Arthur had little to worry about; without their guns, these thugs were not a threat.

He was about to find an opportunity to take them down one by one when suddenly rapid footsteps echoed from the stairs.

It was the belated arrival of Tom and Tony, along with a group of plainclothes officers from the Greenwich District wielding police batons.

“Nobody move, police!”

Under the officers’ intimidation, the once arrogant thugs instantly lost their nerve; at the officers’ command, they raised their hands and pressed against the wall.

A sweaty Tony ran up to Arthur, panting, “Arthur, you…

you’re okay, right?”

Arthur responded indifferently, “Fine, you could have been even slower.”

Relieved by the response, Tony sighed, “Oh, good…

good…”

Hearing this, Arthur added, “At worst, it would have cost me my life.”

“What?!”

The officers looked at each other in consternation, and Tom quickly came forward to explain, “Arthur, it’s not that we lost track, we were thinking…

thinking…”

Tony hurriedly whispered a reminder, “Thinking to make it fun for you?”

A realization dawned on Tom, and he clapped his hands, “Yes, exactly!

We thought you needed some fun!

Everyone felt you were under a lot of stress and deserved a break.”

Arthur exhaled sharply, “So, I should thank you?”

Tom, blushing and stumbling over his words, said, “Well…

that’s not really necessary.”

Arthur asked, “What’s subsection a of Chapter 3, Article 5 of the Scotland Yard internal regulations?”

Tom, almost instinctively standing at attention and saluting, reported, “Sir, police are not permitted to engage in drunkenness, brawling, gambling, or prostitution!”

Arthur pushed Fiona toward Tom, “Take them and cuff them all.

Additionally, Tom, although you haven’t engaged in prostitution, you were holding a woman, so I suspect you might be involved in an extramarital affair.

I will report the details of this matter according to the managerial regulations and the professional ethics of a police officer to Mrs.

Tom.”