Chapter 674: Persuasion

After the meeting, everyone took a break. Breakfast prepared by the restaurant had already been brought over by carriage.

As it was a bit early, there wasn't enough time to make things like beef burgers, so it was mostly ham and egg sandwiches, along with a large pot of coffee.

In those days, ordinary people in America weren't particular about coffee. Western cowboys would brew a large pot of bitter water every day, not caring about the quality of the beans or adding anything else. It was simply their daily pick-me-up, and they were lucky to even have that.

The restaurant had tried its best to cater to Wayne's taste, even adding some milk and sugar, but unfortunately, it still wasn't great. It was drinkable, but don't ask if it tasted good.

Almost immediately after breakfast arrived, James Damody, the man who collected debts for the bank, showed up.

His purpose in coming to see Wayne was simple: to get people out.

Wayne ate his breakfast while chatting with him, and he had Doug get a portion for James Damody as well, though James Damody only touched the coffee.

After hearing his request, Wayne was straightforward: "We will hand these people over to the police for processing. As for bail, you should go to the Police Station to arrange that."

James Damody was clearly stunned for a moment: "Mr. Wayne, jointly fighting the Aierlan Gang was something everyone agreed upon. Some gang members arrived at my place before dawn, just waiting for me to ask you to release their people."

Wayne retorted: "I said from the very beginning that we couldn't equate the Aierlan people in the community with members of the Ireland Violent Group. They agreed then that our Detective Agency would be responsible for identifying targets first. Did they do that during their actions last night? Is a ten-year-old boy also a member of the Ireland Violent Group?"

James Damody quickly composed himself, his expression becoming calm again. "If that's your answer, then they will likely have opinions about you, Mr. Wayne. At that point, your people probably won't be able to move freely throughout the Dock Area and receive cooperation as they do now."

"Before they have opinions, I suggest they think clearly about one thing. The reason City Hall authorized our Detective Agency to collect taxes from the gangs in the Dock Area is because our Detective Agency was not previously part of the Dock Area, making us sufficiently neutral in our stance."

Wayne raised his head, "The nominal target of our Detective Agency's actions last night was saboteurs attempting to disrupt the tax collection. There are also members of the Ireland Violent Group among those arrested. If I release all the other gang members, then if the Secretary of State sends people to find me, should they also be released? So many things happened last night, and the Police Chief and several police officers were there the whole time. What do you think I can do?"

This reason was something Wayne came up with on the spot. The Ireland Violent Group's actions last night were directed at other gangs. Following Wayne's philosophy of not interfering in 'gang-on-gang' conflicts, the number of their members arrested was actually small.

Instead, it was the remaining gangs, eager to take advantage of the situation to retaliate against the previously numerous Ireland Violent Group, who were more prone to harming innocent people. Some Aierlan people who were out at night were also caught up in the conflict.

However, Inessa's side arrested whoever caused trouble, so some members of the Ireland Violent Group were indeed apprehended.

Well, in that case, there's no excuse. Since they were caught in the act, and their violence was generally more severe, and they've already been arrested, Wayne had no reason to release them, lest he tarnish the Detective Agency's reputation for assisting in solving cases.

They could only blame their own bad luck for not encountering Wayne or Lina last night.

Wayne understood the reasons for the existence of gangs in the Dock Area and was willing to negotiate with them normally, but this did not mean Wayne liked them.

James Damody thought for a moment, his attitude softening slightly: "Is there no other compromise?"

"It's difficult." Wayne recalled the groups of people he encountered last night. "Tell them to go back and ask around; many people should have encountered me last night. For anyone who could be released directly, I wouldn't have obstructed them at all. As for those who were arrested, I believe they need to find the reason within themselves—they didn't listen to what I said from the very beginning."

"I've heard some things about the situation last night. Some people did see you then. However, your not obstructing them doesn't mean your other subordinates didn't obstruct them either."

James Damody still didn't give up, "They all did pretty much the same things. Since those from last night could be released, can't some of those who were caught also be released?"

This time it was Wayne's turn to show a cold face: "You don't seem to realize what the arrested people actually did. Not to mention some of them harmed innocent civilians, do you know that one of our Detective Agency's partners was almost attacked by them last night?"

"Ah?!" James Damody was shocked.

In fact, when Wayne first learned about this, he was also quite surprised—not just Wayne, but almost everyone in the Detective Agency couldn't help but be a little shocked after hearing about the situation at the time.

Several gang members were stopped by a team from the Detective Agency in an alley near the scene of the shootout.

Then, seeing that the Agents were either tall and strong or agile and capable, they decisively chose Inessa, who seemed the most delicate and fragile, as their breakthrough point...

It is said that Slingshot's team almost went crazy then. On one hand, Inessa was a partner of the Detective Agency, and her distance from the other party was too close at the time. Even if she was accidentally scratched, it would be a shameful thing for the Agents present.

On the other hand, many Agents had seen Inessa use her extraordinary abilities, or at least heard rumors about it. The alley was so narrow; if Inessa had a stress-induced outburst, Slingshot and the others were worried they might also turn into a pile of minced meat.

Thus, those few gang members ended up being the ones most brutally beaten during the entire arrest process last night...

This also served as a good reason for Wayne to use: "Our people wore Red Armbands on their arms during the operation and should have been easily recognizable. Just from this detail, I can't help but suspect that, besides the Sailor Gang and the Ireland Violent Group, there might be other gangs in the Dock Area that are hostile towards our Detective Agency.

"So, for both emotional and rational reasons, none of those arrested will be directly released. I will hand them over to the police according to the rules. As for whether those people can get out, it will depend on whether their gangs and the gentlemen behind their gangs are willing to exert effort. Our Detective Agency also needs to protect itself; this is not something we can decide on our own."

James Damody was truly speechless now. He rubbed his hands, "I understand your difficulties now, Mr. Wayne, but if I go back like this, I probably won't be able to convince them either..."

"That's easy." Wayne pondered for a moment, "Notify all the gang leaders you can contact. Hmm... it's not very convenient here right now. How about everyone gathers at your place this afternoon? I'll go personally to explain to them then."

James Damody seemed a little worried: "There won't be any accidents then, will there?"

Wayne had roughly assessed the situation. The leader of the Ireland Violent Group was not home, the leader of the Rabbit Gang was currently sleeping on the second floor, and the Tuto Gang was considered an ally. If they didn't object, there weren't many other gangs in the Dock Area with the right to speak, at least not among the gangs that caused trouble last night.

He nodded very confidently, "There won't be any accidents. I'll try to persuade them and also discuss the precautions for this period with them."