New Gods of North America.

Chapter 666 Collection
After giving the warning to the Erlan rioters...
Wayne went along the way to ask the other "Red Armband" members about what they had learned during their recent patrols in the dock area, and then visited a branch of the Mongoose Gang for a while.

Meerkats, also known as mongooses, resemble weasels in Wayne's memory, but they are not native to the United States at all.

It is said that the Mongoose Gang originally wanted to choose a totem for their gang, which was actually a kind of mink, but due to their limited education, they copied the wrong word from the newspaper from the very beginning, so the later members could only accept the mistake.

According to Wayne's version of the story, the founders of the meerkats initially planned to find nicknames based on the animals' habits.
The animal they were looking for needed to have several characteristics: it should be nocturnal, live in small groups, not be domesticated, and be different from a "rat".

By working backward from these characteristics, it's not hard to guess the composition of the Mongoose Gang—simply put, it's a loose alliance of full-time, but primarily part-time, thieves and pickpockets in the dock area.
They usually live in small groups of one or two or three people, with equal status and no subordinate to each other. Their communication mainly relies on some very broad consensus, such as exchanging information, helping each other to give false testimony as strangers, and if a member is targeted by a gang, the others will also assist in carrying out limited retaliation.

Because of their unwillingness to be exploited by various gangs, they gathered together to "stick together for warmth." In a sense, the Mongoose Gang is more like a thieves' association in the dock area. There is no unified organizational structure inside. There are "veteran members," but no one is the "boss" of the gang.

As for why Wayne went to a branch of the Mongoose Gang, it's because this small group is now considered relatively large and professional within the gang.
There's no universally acknowledged "leader" within the Mongoose Gang, but there can be one in smaller, independent groups. The current de facto leader of this group is named Wagsena, and his codename in the detective agency is "Softening." He seems to have recently taken a liking to a rather pretty mixed-race female slave, but it looks like seduction is currently hopeless...

In short, this is now a covert team secretly recruited by the detective agency's intelligence unit.
She was directly managed by "softening" but had no contact with other members of the intelligence team to avoid being traced.

With funding from an intelligence unit, the members of this small gang were "softened" and recruited, essentially becoming semi-reformed.

Their main job now is to help gather information, and what they are currently busy with is collecting information on Wayne's bounty for clues about the gang's tax evasion.

The low-rise houses were located in a small alley, and the young man who opened the door was quite wary of strangers.

After Wayne introduced himself, the guy lowered his guard a little, looking Wayne up and down while whistling flippantly, "Oh, so it's the great detective. Come in, our boss is home."

The door was only slightly ajar, and the guy was still standing in the doorway. Wayne and Sanders squeezed past him one after the other, and then Sanders quickly twisted one of his wrists behind his back, pinning him against the wall by the back of his neck.
Wayne and the "softened" guy who came out of the room were immediately drawn to their commotion. Sanders then loosened his grip slightly and, while pushing the guy away, explained, "He was trying to take something off me."

"Soften" sighed slightly and looked at the man: "Mr. Wayne is our customer, Jack, you need to be very polite to them."

"Understood, boss." The young man, though young, already looked quite shrewd. "I just want them to see how the dock area is different from other places."

He wouldn't dare to "soften" Wayne and Sanders like that; he instructed the young man to continue guarding the door, and then quickly ushered the two into the room.

The atmosphere in the room became slightly awkward at this point.
"Softened" hesitated, then said, "Um..."

Wayne waved his hand casually. "No need to explain. I'm just here to understand the situation. I can understand."

According to Lina, these peripheral people didn't even know her, so it wasn't surprising that they would treat the other members of the detective agency as strangers.
Wayne was now willing to respect the "softened" status of the "leader" among them, since no one could be as cheeky as Liam.

The rooms inside had no doors, so those outside might have overheard what was being said. Some things were best left unsaid.

Seeing that Wayne didn't mind, the "softening" approach went straight to the point:
"We are still collecting the clues you offered for a reward. So far, we have the most clues about the Rabbit Gang. Their illegal liquor trafficking is semi-public knowledge in Richmond. Some of the pretty but poor girls in the dock area did not initially go to 'work' with them entirely voluntarily."

"Details regarding the Sailors' Gang's smuggling activities haven't been confirmed yet. No suspicious cargo ships have docked at their pier in the past few days, but we already have people monitoring them, and we'll notify you immediately if anything happens. As for the Ellan Gang, their community is extremely xenophobic, making it difficult for our people to directly inquire with them. However, we are trying to confirm things through other channels and hope to obtain valuable leads as soon as possible."

The "we" mentioned in "softening" refers only to the people in this small group, not the entire intelligence team.
In fact, the "slingshot" team was originally a sales group, but now they are the "red armband" team members. They are also collecting clues for the detective agency. Their part is the open secret. After being collected, it will first be handed over to the intelligence team for fact-checking in batches. Finally, the clues, both overt and covert, will be initially confirmed before being handed over to the partners.

Wayne nodded slightly, then asked, "How many people are there in total?"

"Soften" understood exactly what Wayne was asking and quickly replied, "Including me, there are seven of us, all experienced and skilled. Well... actually, compared to some of the people in your detective agency, we might not be considered particularly professional. But at least we are all quite familiar with the dock area."

"You haven't been in the dock area for very long. Do they all trust you enough?" Wayne asked casually to confirm.

"Softening" is confident in this regard: "I also have my own expertise, and there is a reason why I can become the leader of the team. Mr. Wayne, you can rest assured about our professionalism."

Fine.

I feel this place isn't very convenient for talking, but the current work situation is okay.

Wayne didn't rush to talk to him about the little black girl; he'd wait and see how it went.

When Wayne asked Lena about the intelligence team's latest situation that evening, he realized he had underestimated the blonde's abilities:

"What?! Your intelligence team is actually making a profit? How did you do that?"

Lina said it as a matter of course, "The intelligence team has been staying in the dock area lately, so I had them take the opportunity to find out about the spending habits of some gentlemen at the Rabbit Gang's bars and strip clubs, in order to balance the intelligence team's income and expenditure. Some of the ladies don't mind spending money on this."

So, part of the reason you went to socialize with Miss Harley was because of this?
Wayne seized the opportunity to chime in, "So are you helping them investigate infidelity, or are you helping them assess the character of their fiancés or something?"

Lina seemed a bit troubled: "When it comes to investigating extramarital affairs, some men don't actually come to the dock area, and the clubs in the city are difficult to investigate. And those who do come... their wives might not be able to afford much money."

"As for the ladies, some of them are not concerned about the men's character, but rather want to know their actual economic capabilities from the side—some middle-class men are not as wealthy as they seem on the surface."

“I see.” Wayne didn’t want to comment on other people’s love lives, so he quickly turned his attention back to his own. “For now, let them keep an eye on the docks. I’m worried that if we mess with the Ellan gang this time, those gangs will all go into chaos. In order to prevent certain people from coming over to put pressure on us, we have to nip those signs in the bud.”

“Don’t worry,” Lina patted her side, mimicking Wayne’s gesture. “I know what’s more important.”

Looking at this seemingly familiar scene,
Although Lina's skills were certainly trustworthy, Wayne felt increasingly uneasy...

(End of this chapter)