She had been dressed up and sipping on white wine in anticipation for about two hours when the knock on her door finally came. She heard Mina open it like the dutiful little maid she was supposed to be and the voice of a man recited with authority:

"Good evening, miss, I am sub lieutenant Julian Byron and I am here to serve a warrant of inspection. I have the approval of the governor and I am acting under the authority of the law" the voice became louder and louder as he came closer and closer, strutting his boots all over her floors.

"Other officers are inspecting miss Elisabeth Durand's other locations, comprising of the pawn shop on Bakers' street and the tavern in the Discovery Square"

The man's voice stopped and she could hear more men coming in, as the stomps of their boots felt like a choir of invaders in the intimacy of her home. She could remember facing at least one similar inspection back in her good days, yet this one beared the feeling that it was the final one. In the continuous and low rumbling conflict between her and the law, the law was the only side that could truly win, like a game of cat and mouse, where the mouse can only evade its predator and slip into its little hiding hole, over and over again.

She finally saw the officer through the open door of her office, a man with blue eyes and a richly coloured blond beard. He sarcastically smiled at her, then stepped in, followed by the red coats under his command.

The pirates who owed her money were gone. Jack, the only pirate who was supposed to collect her debts from those pirates, was also nowhere to be found. The men she had employed on land were not only powerless against authority, but would leave her if they ever saw her arrested and with her wares confiscated. All the power she had was reduced to her friendship with Max, who had promised her that somehow she would not let her die.

Apart from the chance that Max could have pulled some strings for her, there were, of course, many more chances at evading the noose. First of all, the people who could testify against her were not of the best repute. Second of all, and most important, even if some drunk sailor's accusations was something that a judge would take seriously, it would have been humiliating for anybody to actually come forward with the truth. What would they to say? "I borrowed a hundred pounds from Betty to pay my other debt at the tavern"? "I took a small loan from her to pamper my favourite whore, and when I didn't pay back she had someone beat me stupid and left me in a ditch"?. Yet regardless of how all of this would play out, she'd have to go through the spectacle of inspection. Those soldiers in front of her would enjoy each and every moment of going through her things and there weren't many options to temper their enjoyment.

All the books and paperwork had been laid out on her desk and all her reserves had been unlocked, with the lids open, also saving her a headache. Besides, there was no use in hiding much more than she had already hidden and anything even remotely suspicious would have only attracted more eyes on her. She made sure to put away a secret stash away for Mina, so she could afford running away the moment she'd find herself without protection, but trying to pull even more strings and make any further arrangements had the potential to turn out badly. It all bore a gruesome resemblance to the way in which old folks prepare everything for their own funeral.

The men did an accounting of her liquidities, weighing all the gold bars and coins they could find in the chests and went over her books with scrutiny. She did not look at them, she did not speak to them and most of them seemed to not acknowledge her presence, apart from that one officer. Oh, he was the one enjoying this the most. He looked young, so he was probably eager to prove himself, or perhaps he had had some debts in the past, making him hateful of any creditors, or maybe he was one of those who simply hates the rich.

"Miss Durand?" he finally spoke, after what must have been about an hour of silent work.

She did not reply, but merely turned her face to look at him.

"There are eleven pounds and eight ounces worth of gold jewelry along with fifty gems that seem to not be in their initial state" he inquired

"They are not. I take them apart and I sell them to a jewel maker" she absently explained

"I have reason to suspect that is not the real reason for their dismantling"

"Hm" she absently groaned, raising her shoulders

"I have reason to believe you deal with stolen goods." the officer continued, smiling at her misfortune "Will I find the missing items in your other locations or have those items been truly dismantled?"

"They have been dismantled" she admitted, to his delight

"Miss, that constitutes enough reason for your arrest" he declared, smiling

"Hm" she raised her shoulders again

"Needless to say, the goods that cannot be legally accounted for will be confiscated"

"Some lords giveth … " she said, as she was chained and taken away " Some lords taketh … "

She had been praying that her arrest wouldn't happen in broad daylight, yet it did. They didn't even bother with a carriage, so they walked her in her chains, for all to see, all the way to the building where she had heard that the famous Guthries once lived, which had been turned into an improvised prison. She tried to keep her head up and proud and her gaze forward on the long walk, barely holding back the tears of self-pity.

"I bet you're not enjoying this" said Byron

She was embarrassed towards herself and her situation, to a point where she let her rage get through her head.

"And I bet your mother's cunt is a red as your coat!"

"Ohoooh" the man puffed in offense and amusement "Then yours must be as black as your dress!"

The iron door closed on her, leaving her alone in the dark.