Seeing the Light - Chapter 13

Saying their goodbyes Otto and Lily made their way back towards Bluffwilder Street. It was dark now, even with the street lamps, but Lily felt a lot safer with her companion. It had been a lovely evening all told but it had also hit home how much the Black Ribboners and Otto specifically had to work to 'live not in vein'. She admired them greatly.

It was all smiles on their walk back until Otto stopped dead in his tracks.

"What is it?" Lily asked, concerned.

"Somezink is wronk," he could hear a lot of shouting and breaking of glass, and spat out a curse in Uberwaldean before insisting, "Ve must run!"

They ran towards the shop which was several streets away, shortly Lily could hear the commotion too, "Not...the killer…" she said breathlessly. Why were they running towards the action?

As they rounded the corner they could see that she was right, it wasn't the killer, it was the shop and they could also see two members of the Watch running towards them from the opposite direction. The front window was completely smashed, there was smoke coming out from inside but no obvious fire. And yelling, there was an awful lot of yelling.

I

The yelling was coming from a spread-eagled man laying on the middle of the shop's parquet floor. A goblin was sat upon his head yanking at his hair, another on each limb and the sixth, jumping up and down repeatedly on his...well, that explained the high-pitched quality of the yells. "We gots the bugger, we did!" 'The Scent of the Rain' triumphantly announced between bounces, "We don't likes Borogravia cocktails! We puts them out quick smart!" The other goblins giggled.

"Oh no..." Lily broke down into tears, consoled by Otto who was in turn consumed by anger.

Sergeants Angua and Littlebottom surveyed the scene, the latter moving in with cuffs. "No book and not the man we're looking for," she told Angua, "But it's not like we haven't seen you before, Shiftless Dave, is it? Who put you up to it?" Dave was in no position to answer even with the goblins moving aside for the law.

"Have you any idea who might want to do this?" Angua asked of Lily and Otto, "A disgruntled customer?"

"Oh my vord yes," Otto fairly growled, "Ve know exactly who."

I

Statements were taken, pictures were taken and Shiftless Dave was taken away in the hurry-up wagon. Lily insisted on cleaning up the mess, the goblins insisted on helping and Otto insisted on staying the night. Once everything was as clean as it could be, he sent Lily to bed and he settled down to nap with one ear open in the dark room. There was no activity until the morning when all awoke to set up for Saturday trade.

"Business as usual," a determined Lily told the rest of them. She placed a sign saying as such in the now open front window. Mr Dulling sent an urgent Clacks to the glaziers and when they opened at 9am they were ready for their customers regardless.

Sacharissa arrived 30 minutes later, word had got out fast, "I just heard, are you all alright? Was it the killer?"

Otto stepped in, "Ve are fine, it vas nuzzink to do viz the Rainbow Murders but zis stays out of zer press."

"No Otto," his partner corrected, "it doesn't. I will be very happy to talk to you," Lily addressed the reporter, "let everyone know that we will continue to trade no matter what. We won't be bullied." she took Sacharissa up to the kitchen to talk over tea and a toasted scone.

They closed over lunch so that the window could be fitted and shortly after that they were visited by none other than Commander Vimes himself. Having heard from Angua and Littlebottom he felt the personal touch was required. The vampire had done the Watch a lot of good turns over the years, his crime scene iconography had led to many successful arrests. The personal touch also extended to a long and productive chat with Shiftless Dave who had sung like the proverbial canary after taking a truth serum.

Dulling and the goblins kept shop and yet again the kitchen was in use. As they sat round the table Vimes explained, "I had a little word with Shiftless who, as they say, saw the light. Gave me a name. Larry Prosper."

"Your fiancé!" Otto blurted out.

"He's not my fiancé!" Lily responded with reproach, then to the Commander, "My brother wanted to set up an arranged marriage, which I certainly didn't consent to."

"Well, we got in touch with the Watch up at Ohulan who are escorting him to the Railway as we speak. I'll be questioning him myself by the evening."

"Larry wouldn't have done this without Neville's say so," Lily insisted.

"I'm sure the truth will out Ms Flach," Vimes went on to run back over their statements before taking his leave. He believed their stories, it was just another one of those upper class dramas of inheritance and deviousness that would play itself out. As long as it didn't cause any more disruption in his City that was all. Right now they all had enough to contend with.

"I should go to zer Times." Otto suggested, "vill you be alright here?"

She nodded, giving him a quick hug and kiss before he went, "The goblins will jump on any would-be attackers privates before they knew what hit them."

They laughed then Otto looked back at her, pausing at the top of the stairs, expression more earnest, "I luff you, Lily. No harm vill ever come to you, I promise."

Surprised but very touched she answered, "Love you too," then he was gone.

I

Lily was about to get ready for bed when she heard a knocking at the shop door. She hurried down the stairs expecting Otto but her heart began to hammer, much like the door, when she saw it was the Watch.

Unlocking the bolts she let in Sergeant Angua who sniffed and barely hid her grimace. The scent of goblins was thick and sticky to her werewolf nose now that the smell of burning was absent.

"Has...has...something happened to Otto?" please let him be safe, Lily thought.

"He's in custody Miss Flach," Angua answered, "I've been sent to fetch you to the station."

"Custody?" Lily grabbed a shawl, making ready to leave, "What has he done?"

"There's been a murder." she said simply.