William Walker did not strike her, she concedes in the privacy of her own head, like a man with an off-button. She thinks Alfie's probably right in the same breath as it'd be nice to see him again, and then she lets the segue happen because it's interesting and doesn't require as much self-examination.

He is aware of her feelings about self-examination.

“My godfather got shot once, getting his brother out of the sort of trouble that gets people shot,” she recalls, taking a drink. “He told me about it this one time, it was all gambling and getting in over his idiot head. He'd think the world of you, probably, but he's not a real criminal, he just has this idea in his head of what it'd be like. Whereas Uncle Seven just seems to regard the law as like, a quaint thing that happens to other people and is sometimes useful. You know, you can call the police, but it's probably going to be neater and quieter to just handle things oneself.”

In other words, Septimus is a very wealthy man.