Prompt Five: Law and Order

Prompt Five: Law and Order : Word count 533

On his journey home, Sej thought long and hard over his finding of David. He knew his friend well, and yet the mystery of his disappearing, and his cold reaction being found six years later was a knot he couldn't unravel. What had he done?

The measuring had taken longer than he realised. The sun was setting, and was already well below the skyline of slate roofs. The playing children had vanished, and the last remaining shoppers were hurrying home in the developing gloom of the dirty streets. Sej barely noticed as his thoughts swirled, and he walked on. David could have refused to serve him, or been rough with his measurements, but had instead been thoroughly professional. Therefore, whatever hard feelings he was brooding on, it couldn't be so heinous an act Sej had done. They'd played pranks on one another, had fallings out, and yet they always made up. The shut-down behaviour had never before been directed his way.

The darkness deepened, and the booming gongs of the cathedral's bells signalling the hour suddenly made Sej aware of his surroundings. Something wasn't right. His mind said the cathedral should be to the north of him, and yet the sound appeared to be coming from the west. He looked around. The street was empty, and the lamp lighters hadn't yet been round. He didn't recognise any of the closed up shops. A yip from a stray cur made Sej jump and notice just how on edge he was, but with a deep breath he gathered his wits and turned around. He simply had to retrace his steps until he found somewhere he was familiar with.

He saw a figure. It was a hundred paces down the street, peering through the windows of one of the shops. He had taken just one step to go ask him directions when he heard the shock of breaking glass. Sej froze. The man was putting an arm through the broken pane, reaching around. Suddenly he pulled back, and then with an air of satisfaction creaked open the door. Had he just strode in triumphantly Sej might have thought him the owner, having somehow locked himself out, but they opened it just a crack and peered inside first. Seemingly happy, they pushed the door further and stepped inside, closing it behind them.

The bells had finished, and the silence following them seemed out of place. Sej was still frozen, thoughts torn over a multitude of things he could be doing, should be doing, and unable to decide which were correct. Just retrace your steps as you planned. No, turn around and go the way you were going, you'll find somewhere familiar eventually. No, you should stay and raise the alarm. Along side such thoughts, some survival instinct was evaluating. Had he been seen? Did the man have a weapon? Ridiculously, a part of him was smiling at the possibilities for a story from this. Sej shook his head, vainly trying to make the most important thoughts come to the surface, and to shake away the rest. His body twitched and spasmed, filled with the danger-need of fight or flight, and yet doing neither. A small whimper escaped his lips.