they came early in the morning
faceless black shadows
they broke the entrance door
and searched meticulously
every inch of the house

they turned everything upside down
cut the back of the paintings
tore the books
looked under beds
moved the furniture
took the windows out of the hinges
and threw all the things on the floor

for unknown reasons
they lingered in the basement
for a couple of hours
perhaps thinking they'd find
buried treasures
but you knew better

in the end
they left empty-handed
and step by step melted
into the late afternoon