What is the conflict between call for the duty and love in "After Twenty Years?"

After Twenty Years derives much of its impact from the way
in which it is told, and notably from the author's ability to fuse several points of
view and to join tales from periods years apart into a single narrative with its own
internal logic.

The style, while often richly descriptive
and evocative, is terse, and the mannerisms of the two protagonists who tell their own
tales blend imperceptibly with the narrator's anecdotal approach which would not have
been possible but for the point of view, hence the
importance.

Jimmy is portrayed as the protagonist of the
plot. He has been shown as somebody who is torn between his affection for his friend and
the call of duty.  In a roundabout way, he has been given the subtle role of the
antagonist of the plot as well. Because the only "evil thing" of the plot, so to say,
was the arrest of the "friend" who came to visit an old pal his. Jimmy proved to be a
person of mettle in the end  who preferred duty to
friend.

However, Jimmy's actions are justified in the
narrative as "Silky Bob" turned out to be a thief. But, as "Silky Bob" too kept his
promise, he too, has been shown in a positive light, notwithstanding his profession.