More stalking!
The elf had done something to the security pad that normally kept the door to the back of the mall closed. Timmy remembered that they could do stuff like that. Elves didn’t like electricity and iron, and those two things didn’t like them right back; but when it came to electric gadgets elves messed that stuff up, instead of being messed up by them. The power would come back on, but until then the door opened with a touch.
Behind was basically boring adult stuff. Timmy had been hoping for rows of shelves and crates, just like that old movie; what he got instead was a hallway with an old carpet and lights that were either too bright, or too flickery. The rooms here looked like offices, now closed because it was after dark, and if there were any cleaning ladies it was between shifts.
That would work. The elf was probably crouched in one of the offices, waiting to see if, ha, somebody was following it before it made a break for the door to the outside at the opposite end. Which was dumb, Timmy thought. If you need to run, run. That’s what he’d do. That’s what he’d done. But dumb was helping him, so Timmy stepped forward…
…and stopped at the question suddenly hissed behind him. “Hey! Are you supposed to be here?”