Thud! (Discworld 34)

insofar as it was possible to pull a troll anywhere.

"Okay, what do you know about Slide?" he said.

The troll"s red eyes gleamed. "I bin hearin" rumours:

"Head to Treacle Mine Road and put a heavy squad together. Go

to Turn Again Lane, behind the Scours. There"s a wedding-cake

maker up there, I think. You"ve got a nose for drugs. Poke it around,

sergeant."

"Right!" said Detritus. "You bin told somethin, sir?"

"Let"s just say I think it"s an earnest of good intent, shall we?" "Dat"s good, sir," said the troll. "Ernest who?"

"Er, someone we know wants to show us what a good citizen he

is. Get to it, okay?"

Detritus slung his crossbow over his shoulder for ease of carriage

and knuckled off at high speed. Vimes leaned against the wall. This

was going to be a long day. And now he -

On the wall, just a little above head height, a troll had scored a

rough sketch of a cut diamond. You could tell troll graffiti easily -

they did it with a fingernail and it was usually an inch deep in the

masonry.

Next to the diamond was scored: SHINE.

"Ahem," said a small voice in his pocket. Vimes sighed

and pulled out the Gooseberry while he still stared at the

word.

"Yes?"

"You said you didn"t want to be interrupted. .: said the imp

defensively.

"Well? What have you got to say?"

"It"s eleven minutes to six, Insert Name Here," said the imp meekly.

"Good grief! Why didn"t you tell me!"

"Because you said you didn"t want to be interrupted!" the imp quavered.

"Yes, but not " Vimes stopped. Eleven minutes. He couldn"t run it, not at this time of day. "Six o"clock is ... important."