espionage. i thought of this one as well and thought that i should put it up here.
disclaimer: i don't own discworld or else i wouldn't be on here.
The assassin leaped, landing as lightly as a feather onto another roof. He seemed nothing more than a shadow amongst shadows. A ghost haunting the rooftops of ankh-morpork, which was actually more common than you thought.
The assassin slowed down and paused in the shadow of a chimney, letting himself blend in to the darkness and becoming, one would say, invisible. He waited patiently as another rooftop user passed, ignorant of his presence. Havelock waited a few more moments for the other person to get a distance away before continuing on his journey.
He had been sent by his aunt to, he really hated the word, Snoop around in the office of Sergeant-at-Arms John Keel. Apparently Madam didn't believe he was who he said he was. She was unsure whether Keel could be trusted. In times of revolution knowing who you could trust and who you couldn't was a matter of life and death. And of course Havelock got the task of investigating the man's personal belongings and various scraps of paperwork on his desk.
He didn't really mind that much though, he was getting paid as much as he would for inhuming someone.
Havelock believed that the sergeant was currently away from his office on patrol. He estimated that he had about ten to fifteen minutes in which to investigate, not including the ten it took to get there.
After leaping a few more gaps between buildings he found himself on a building in Treacle Mine Street, the watch station was only a few roofs away. While walking along the roof to the other side where he knew the offices were he slipped and fell heavily, a few tiles breaking away and sliding down to disappear over the edge of the roof. Regaining his footing, he trod slightly lighter. No doubt John Keel knew how to stop intruders as well as deal with mobs and every other challenge that came with being a copper, he'd survived for this long. Vetinari decided to leave the easy way.
Opening a window and slipping silently in, he found that he was in a bedroom. Or at least a room that had a bed in it, probably for wounded to lie on. Padding softly down the dark hallway he reached his destined location.
The office had only been used for a few days and as a result was quite bare. The desk however already had two empty coffee cups and a few forms and sheets of paper left on it. Even though there really was barely anything on it the desk seemed to look messy by default. Sergeant Keel, Vetinari concluded, was the type of man who preferred the physical side to the job and viewed the paperwork as an affliction that could be dealt with at a later time.
He moved around behind the desk and opened the top drawer. It was empty except for a broken pencil. He found the other drawers in a similar state of emptiness, finding a small piece of string in the bottom one. It would seem that all the paperwork the man had was on his desk.
He must either have nothing to hide or has any incriminating evidence hidden elsewhere. Vetinari didn't believe that Keel was stupid, therefore if he was doing something that was against the revolution or anything of the sort then he certainly wouldn't keep any correspondence or forms on his desk. Nevertheless he quick read a few and found them all to be Watch related.
He glanced down at his mechanical watch, five minutes had passed. Before exiting the office he quickly scanned the room to make sure everything was in the same position as when he saw it. Though Vetinari had never had any real knowledge of watchmen, he did know that they kept their things in lockers while out on patrol.
He decided to head downstairs, going past an office with an old man snoring at his desk. He eventually found the locker room down another flight of stone steps. The names of officers who had used the lockers before were crossed out and the current occupant had written above them.
Vetinari tried the door of Keel's locker and was pleased to find that it hadn't been locked. He didn't have time to pick locks. There was nothing in the locker except for a change of clothes which looked to be quite cheap, especially for someone who seemed to have once been a Commander. Keel probably had them to deflect suspicion but if anything they only served to make Havelock more curious. He decided that there was nothing he could learn from the man's few possessions that he didn't already know.
Suddenly he heard a noise from up above at the entrance to the building. Hearing heavy footsteps come down the stairs he quickly hid in the corner next to the door and made himself become one with the shadows. It was only when a young officer entered the room that he realised that he had left the locker door wide open and mentally kicked himself.
The young officer glanced up at the stairs before peering into the locker, seeming to be slightly disappointed at the mundane objects he saw inside. Havelock estimated that the watchman was no older than himself. Keel came down the stairs and seemed annoyed when he found his locker open. The other young officer obviously greatly respected the man, judging from his behaviour when Keel was around. The man's chest seemed to puff up a bit more.
"You left your locker open Sarge," the young officer pointed out.
Keel looked around the room, peering into the corners as well. When he looked into his corner Havelock believed that he knew someone was there and it took a fair bit of effort for him not to break cover and run to the hills, metaphorically of course.
"I must have forgotten to close it," Keel said absentmindedly.
"You should close and lock it all the time to get into the habit," the young officer recommended, "so you won't have any of your stuff stolen."
Havelock stayed calm, not moving a muscle and trusting his camouflage. He noticed that even though there were quite a few years difference between the men they looked remarkably similar. He thought for a moment whether Keel and the other younger man were related, possibly even father and son. The young officer rifled through his own locker for something.
"I'll keep that in mind," Keel responded.
The young officer extracted his clothes from the locker and left the room, wishing the sergeant a good night as he went. Keel stayed in the same spot for a few moments, seeming to consider something. Then he sighed and followed the young officer up the stairs.
Havelock waited a few moments, listening to the footsteps retreating up the stairs. He then cautiously climbed up them after almost a minute of silence. When he reached the top he found the door had been left slightly ajar, there was no light on in the next room. He slowly pushed it open wide enough for him to slip through.
But before he could take even a step he was tackled to the floor, hitting the side of his face quite hard. Assassins were actually quite poorly trained in unarmed combat, they were supposed to be so good with weapons that they were expected not to need it. However they did know a fair bit about pressure points and Havelock quickly slipped his hand down to the man's elbow and dug his fingers in. The man jerked back from the funny feeling that shot up his arm and Havelock was able to wriggle out of his grip. He then took advantage of his freedom and kicked the man hard in the stomach.
Virtually jumping to his feet, Havelock then dashed out the front door and up the street. So much for an easy exit, he thought. He wanted to get to the end of the street before taking to the rooftops. He didn't know how the man knew he was there but he knew that trying to hide again would not be wise.
Adrenaline was pumping through his veins and he couldn't feel any pain in the side of his face but he knew that there would be a bruise there the next day.
...
Vimes was slightly winded by the kick to the stomach. Rising to his feet as quickly as he could, he caught the door on its back swing. As he peered out into the street he spotted a faint shadow streak away and around a corner.
He knew it was an assassin. Everyone knew that Vetinari was once an assassin but he had to admit that he was far more invisible than the others. Vimes didn't know what he was doing. There was nothing in his locker and if the man wanted him dead then he would have done away with him in the locker room. Vimes believed that he was probably spying, searching for any clue about who John Keel really was. Though for whom Vimes had no idea.
Then a deadly thought arose up in his brain, what if he recognises you? He quickly dismissed it, figuring that the current… older one that is a Patrician, would have never allowed Vimes to reach Commander if he still held a grudge? Vimes decided to ignore it, he had paper work to do.
If Vetinari had played a part in the death of John Keel then Vimes would have remembered it.
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