Girl of Iron and Magic

36.

36.
2.5 YEARS BEFORE THE WAR

Two men with a van came to collect Lotte's boxes from the flat. Poe's things were left untouched.

"Now, dear, if you could wait in the car," Mrs. Herbert said, looking at her watch. "His...er...acquaintances should be here in ten minutes."

Mrs. Herbert looked so flustered when she said the word 'acquaintances' that Lotte instantly decided that she did not wish to be obedient. She went into Mrs. Herbert's red car where she left her messenger bag and dug out a wooden crocodile hair clip, pinching back the front of her long brown hair.

It was one of many hair clips which she enchanted, designed to divert attention from her. She put two smaller clips on either side of her forehead. One would make her steps noiseless and the other would help her hear and see better.

Then she snuck out of the car and down the street, up a side alley, and down the parallel street, where she unlocked the back door to the building, treading silently across the courtyard and up the back stairwell to the fourth floor.

With the door to the flat in sight, she stood there in the shadows of the stairway and waited.

Eventually, she heard footsteps on the main stairs. Three elves accompanied Mrs. Herbert. Lotte couldn't see their faces clearly, but the two loitering behind were conversing in elvish. They mainly made comments about the human architectures, laughing at the narrow steps and low passageways.
They disappeared into the flat, and Lotte strained her ears, trying to make out the words being said.

There was a lot of busy shuffling and moving, and not much talk.

"I knew it," said one of the elves inside. "He was living with a human."

"Don't tell me that, I'd lose my appetite."

"He did it for revenge, I'm sure of it."

"How could he? With a human."

"Some humans aren't that bad," said the third elf, the one Lotte hadn't heard speaking. This one had a woman's voice. "The women. They smell nice and are so...soft."

"Speaking from experience, Xan?"

"Why? Are you jealous that I don't run the risk of ending up with a Lotte?"

Nothing important was being said, but oddly enough, elves weren't as different from humans as Lotte thought.

"Well, now," Mrs. Herbert said in a high pitched voice. "I can leave you to it then?"

"We will notify...after completed," said one of the men causing one of his colleagues to snort.

"What? Did I say it wrong?"

"Why don't you leave handling the humans to Xan..."

"Very well," Mrs. Hebert said in a high pitched voice, oblivious to their banter in elvish. "I'll await your telephone."

Lotte didn't hear the rest of what was being said because she was already dashing down the stairs, across the courtyard and back to the front of the building where the car was parked.

Mrs. Herbert was already waiting for her there. Lotte pulled out the clips from her hair, making it fall in long heavy locks all about her shoulders.

"He's never coming back again," she whispered, startling Mrs. Herbert.

"I don't know, love," she said, recovering quite quickly from her surprise. "Come, we deserve a nice lunch." She shot a glance towards the building they just left. Lotte thought that expression meant that she didn't want to be there when the elves came out.