Damn Norbert Karel.
Tilia gritted her teeth, looking at the workspace next to her, untouched for many days and now covered in dust.
He never gives anyone a moment's peace to think.
If he was going to quit, he should have at least applied. Does the fact that his grandfather is the Minister of Foreign Affairs make him superior to everyone else? What decent adult quits his job like that...?
Norbert Karel, who had not shown up for work for a week, was eventually found to be absent without leave.
Their boss, who seemed willing to turn a blind eye to this for several days, finally, after a week, reported him to higher management, and the immediate response was to vacate his desk.
This part was ok. In fact, it was a relief not to see that annoying face anymore.
Until the work of a colleague who was fired for negligence became her problem.
- Clerk Ambrose! Still haven't found the document Fynskilde's office is asking for?
- Sorry. This was not part of my original assignments, so it is difficult for me to understand where it is...
- I told you to check everywhere he might be! The office said that the deadline expires today, how long will you wait?!
Yes, yes. Swallowing a curse, Tilia put aside the documents her boss had just called the most urgent and began rummaging through Norbert's desk.
In cases of unexpected layoffs, finding a replacement usually takes about three months. If the work is really urgent, someone may be temporarily assigned for a month or even a week, but the boss would never go to such trouble for her sake.
Maybe I really should go to Acansis.
Just the thought of three months of continuous chaos made her shudder, and, as if on cue, one face appeared in her memory.
At the same moment, Tilia's hand froze. Despite her hard work, the dreams that had kept her awake the last few nights began to haunt her again.
Trembling. Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and she didn't even notice it.
If I go to Acansis, then...
- Clerk Ambrose!
- I'm looking for him.
But these dreams did not last as long as her sleepless nights. Brought back to reality by her boss's scream, Tilia responded in a frighteningly calm tone and continued rummaging through Norbert Karel's desk.
But...
"Where the hell is he?"
His desk was littered with trash. The document her boss had been shouting about was nowhere to be seen.
“Did this idiot even work?”
Having reached the limit of her irritation, Tilia crumpled up a piece of paper covered in meaningless scribbles and muttered something under her breath.
- Is he really not there?
It must have been urgent after all. Alma Martin, with a tense face, approached the table that Tilia was searching.
- This document must be submitted by three. Keep looking. Are you sure it's not there?
- I've already checked several times. Looks like he's not here. Are you absolutely sure that Clerk Karel had it?
- Certainly! Do you dare doubt me now?
- No, sorry, ma'am. I just thought I'd check with you before going through his locker. Since he left without warning, his locker appears to be locked. Is it possible to hack it to find the document?
- Do what you want! He left without permission - let him sue if he wants, but it will only harm him!
The head of the department, who had once angrily demanded documents from the wrong person, lost her temper again and stormed off.
Tilia took a deep breath and headed towards the lockers at the back of the office.
Breaking into the locker with his name on it was not difficult. It was enough to call the guard and ask him to cut the lock with a suitable tool.
- Wow, what a thick castle. Looks like whoever left without permission was hiding something important.
The guard, who tried several times to start a friendly conversation, left with a sullen expression, and Tilia looked into the locker with an impassive face.
Did a bomb go off here?
She sighed again, staring at the pile of junk as if a thief had broken into it. She then reached out and began to pull things out one by one.
Not this document. Not this folder. And certainly not this copy of a foreigner's ID card with chewing gum stuck to it, or a strange document covered from top to bottom in Akan script.
The deeper she dug into the trash heap, the more disgusted her face became, until finally she noticed a small box stuck in the very back of the closet and took it out.
Looks like it's a personal thing. It's not worth digging into it, right?
But she had already emptied the entire closet, and the document was never found.
Having no other choice, Tilia opened the box.
She didn't even want to know what was inside. With an exhausted face, Tilia opened the lid of the box and took a quick look at its contents.
"…What is this?"
But the moment she recognized what was inside, her green eyes, dulled by routine, widened. Seeing the familiar handwriting, Tilia's gaze trembled.
- Clerk Ambrose?
- Yes, ma'am. I'm looking now.
Tilia hastily responded to the department head's voice coming from the other end of the room, with trembling hands she took the letters out of the box and quickly slammed the lid.
- No need to look for this document. It turns out that he was with clerk Gardner. Come here and begin the task I gave you earlier.
In contrast to the harsh tone from an hour ago, the department head now gave orders in a bored voice.
-...Yes, ma'am.
But Tilia had neither the strength nor the time to be angry with her, she simply stood up, hugging the box she found in Norbert Karel's locker.
***
At lunchtime the office, empty as if at low tide, was quiet.
Tilia, citing poor health, skipped lunch and sat staring blankly at the open box.
She checked several times - there was no more room for denial.
Inside were her letters, which she thought were sent to Akansis.
The stern, firm handwriting, carefully written addresses and contents were all hers.
Why the hell were they in Norbert Karel's locker!?
Without realizing it, Tilia pulled one of her letters out of the box again to make sure and bit her lip.
The letters, clearly postmarked with a date, were addressed to more than just Ilex Davenport. Among them were those she sent to her friend Judy Wells, from whom she also received no response and eventually stopped writing.
“Both of you... I just thought you were disappointed in me and decided not to answer.”
After moving to Ontario, Tilia wrote letters to only two people.
Ilex Davenport and Judy Wells. A man and a woman, each of whom had a huge impact on her life.
To her shame, Tilia began putting stamps on envelopes with her friend's home address much later than she began writing letters to Ilex.
To justify herself - because her thoughts were completely out of order. But in fact, she only wanted to write after she got a job at the consulate.
Judy always looked at her as if she saw a great man. Tilia wanted to appear before her not as someone who had failed the interview test, but as someone who had passed—proudly having passed. Here's why. That's it.
But perhaps that just sounded like an excuse to Judy.
Of course it was. She understood everything. Who wouldn't be upset with a friend who didn't say a word for four years at the academy and then suddenly left for Ontario without saying a word?
So when Tilia didn't receive an answer, she was upset, but she understood. She tried to send several more letters full of apologies, but since these also went unanswered, she stopped writing long letters and began sending only short birthday greetings.
She acted like it was nothing at the time, but honestly, it devastated her. She felt very lonely.
And now all the letters she had written to explain why she had to leave so suddenly were all here.
Not a single letter was lost. All the letters she sent from Ontario were in this not so big box.
Heh. She let out a weak, startled laugh.
Who, pray tell, have I been writing to all this time? What was I waiting for, anxiously hoping for answers that would never come?
And most importantly... why didn't these two, who were probably looking forward to her letters just as much, receive the feelings she sent them?
Why? Who? For what purpose? When she finally put it all together, her head started to burn.
Get it together, Tilia Ambrose.
But she pushed her emotions aside and forced herself to think rationally.
Think. Who benefited from doing this to me?
Her sharp green eyes turned to Norbert Karel's desk, still littered with papers.
Most likely, the answer was from Norbert Karel, who disappeared without a trace.
Tilia's eyes grew cold, she closed them, opened them again and stood up to return to her desk.