The Supreme Soldier in the City

James Brown and Helen Wilson were sitting in a big truck, with a driver at the wheel, while the two of them squeezed into the adjacent seat. The truck was already on the highway by now, speeding smoothly.

At this moment, Helen Wilson could hardly believe that they had managed to transport the goods out so safely and smoothly. She had expected the other side to have many people and a very strict inspection.

In fact, this was Helen Wilson’s first real encounter with smuggling. Although smuggling involved extensive connections, when it comes down to it, it’s still a business. Those engaged in business can’t be as extremely cautious as those trafficking drugs or arms; after all, getting caught for those could lead to execution, while being caught for smuggling would at most result in a few years behind bars.

Moreover, what matters most to smuggling rings is the initial vetting. James Brown and Helen Wilson’s thorough preparation in the early stages had lessened their vigilance, allowing this deal to go through.

But Helen Wilson wasn’t particularly thrilled. Although they now had some evidence of smuggling, these pieces of evidence couldn’t really do much— at most, they could arrest Uncle James Collins, but capturing only him would be akin to startling the snake in the grass, and they would never get an opportunity like this to arrest the others involved.

The driver responsible for transporting the goods was clearly one of the group themselves, so at this moment, Helen Wilson still had to continue the act with James Brown, coquettishly discussing what she wanted him to buy for her with the money they earned, and where they would go for fun.

The driver was an experienced hand, likely used to driving through the night. After several hours, he only stopped to eat a little with James Brown and her, then continued driving. By this point, Helen Wilson was feeling tired, plus it would seem unnatural for her not to sleep, so she dozed off resting on James Brown’s lap.

James Brown chatted casually with the driver, attempting to pry some information out of him, but the driver was very sly and tight-lipped. Insisting he was just a driver, he professed ignorance about anything else, and eventually, James Brown had to give up. Asking too much would give himself away, so he decided to shut his eyes and get some sleep as well.

At dawn the next day, the truck finally reached its destination. James Brown arranged to offload the goods into a small warehouse, and then the big truck left.

"Is this place yours?" Helen Wilson asked, looking at James Brown with confusion.

James Brown laughed: "I don’t have any storage space; this was lent to me by a friend."