Shackles — Alexis Hall

A Prosperity Story

Dear Mr. Dickens,

Since you was so kind as to publish my story in your magazine, lots of folks have been sending me lots of letters asking me about stuff what happened what I don't know about. Seems like they want to know how a priest what got himself chucked out the church, and the Arch Rogue of Gaslight, being only the prissiest motherswinker whatever held a knife to your throat, wound up in what I reckon ye might call love, or as near as passes for it.

Things is, I never did get the whirligigs to ask Ruben himself, but I done some asking round, and I think I got the shape of it.

'Cos it's Ruben's story, I tried to write it all proper and inkhornish like he'd like it, and Byron Kae has checked all the spellings for me, so you don't have to ask that nice Mr. Collins this time.

I ain't so sure about the commas.

Piccadilly

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NOTE: This title is included in the Liberty & Other Stories collection.

Word count: 16,300; page count: 72