The blast of his whistle was piercing, the sound ricocheting off the hard vertical walls of the shops. It was the call to arms to any constable in hearing distance, officer needs assistance. Now! His comrades knew the alleys and streets well enough to respond. "Hey! Stop! Police!" Bert bellowed at the disappearing figure. Because the arrest was going to be that simple... at the word of command, the person of criminal intent would stop, raise their hands, and confess their misdeeds. 

Not bloody likely.... 

Bert leapt into action. his boots pounded the pavement hard, his equipment jangling, his coat flapping. "Police!" he shouted again before re-blowing his whistle. A high pitched wail. Enough to set dogs off for sure.  Who was near him?  Sargent Cook was on walkabout today, maybe. Who else? He had to admit a small part of him loved this part of the job though.

The youngest looking constable of them all was loitering about, picking his nose. He looked over with a bored look to Constable Hailey, finger still knuckle-deep.