Someone was dead!
Once Edwin confirmed that Brody, president of the Brody Chamber of Commerce, was dead, an uproar erupted inside 6 Whitebird Street.
"What?"
"Dead?"
"How could someone have died?"
Amid the clamor, the crowd inevitably began to panic.
In the face of death, ordinary people and wealthy merchants were no different.
If anything, the latter were even more afraid.
They simply had too much to lose.
And panic was contagious. Those who had remained relatively calm began to lose their composure when they saw everyone around them panicking.
People crowded and shoved one another. Just as more tragedy threatened to unfold-
Bang!
Malinda Julius Caesar stood in the second-floor corridor, holding a flintlock high and firing into the air. In the flash of gunpowder, the crystals on her blue-and-white gown glittered even brighter.
The crowd instantly fell silent.
They instinctively looked toward Malinda and the flintlock in her hand.
Then the lady spoke in a clear, carrying voice.
"Gentlemen, ladies, please maintain your composure."
"Your good manners should keep you from panicking so much at the sight of a corpse. Of course, if someone has ulterior motives, that is another matter entirely."
Praise followed by a warning swiftly restored quiet to 6 Whitebird Street.
Taking this opportunity, the lady returned the flintlock to Arthur, gratitude filling her eyes.
Naturally, Arthur had just handed her the weapon.
She would not ask why Arthur had brought a flintlock. All she knew was that the one he had handed her had saved her considerable trouble.
"I owe you one."
Malinda spoke softly.
"Just pay me. This is a fair exchange."
Arthur continued to smile.
"All right!"
Malinda gave a solemn nod, then turned her gaze toward two men in the crowd: Coste of the Coste Chamber of Commerce and Emond of