“Chemical contamination?”
“No.”
“Mechanical failure?”
“No.”
“Glass source?”
“Mixed household bottles.”
Dana nodded.
“That's useful.”
Marcus looked toward the backyard.
“Why would she do this?”
Dana closed the folder.
“That's the wrong first question.”
“What is the right one?”
“What does she want?”
Marcus was silent.
He knew.
The answer was buried beneath months of arguments.
Victoria wanted him gone.
She had never said it directly.
But the signs were everywhere.
The first dispute had been about his fence.
Then the pool.
Then the landscaping.
Then his security cameras.
Then his driveway.
Then the fact that Lila sometimes stayed with him.
Each disagreement had followed the same pattern.
A complaint.
A warning.
A fine.
An appeal.
A hearing.
And Victoria appeared at every stage.
“She thinks I'm violating the neighborhood standards.”
Dana raised an eyebrow.
“Is that what she says?”
“Yes.”
“What do you think?”
Marcus looked at her.
“She wants control.”
Dana nodded.
“Then we need to determine how far that control goes.”
She pointed toward the backyard.
“Today's footage may answer that.”
The First Warning
Six months earlier, Marcus had received his first letter.
It was printed on official Crestmont Ridge HOA stationery.
NOTICE OF NONCOMPLIANCE.
The violation:
“Unapproved modification to rear property boundary.”
Marcus had stared at it for almost a minute.
He had installed the fence himself.
It was inside his property line.
He had obtained the necessary municipal permit.
The HOA had approved the design.
He had the approval in writing.
So he called the association.
Victoria answered.
“Marcus.”
“Victoria.”
“You received the notice.”
“Yes.”