His hands were shaking.
Detective Jared Wells approached.
"You said the men were from the HOA?"
Allison looked up.
"No."
Her voice was quiet.
"They were wearing tactical gear. They weren't police."
Wells wrote something in his notebook.
"HOAs aren't law enforcement."
Nick turned.
"They threw a brick at my son."
"I understand."
"No," Nick said. "You don't."
He walked closer.
"They didn't make a mistake. They came to our house. They brought a weapon. They threw it through our window."
Wells sighed.
"We'll investigate."
Nick looked at him.
"Will you?"
The detective didn't answer.
If the City Won't Do It
At 4:12 the next morning, Nick sat alone in the hospital cafeteria.
His laptop was open.
He had barely slept.
His hands moved across the keyboard.
The HOA's public website was poorly secured.
Nick knew computers.
He knew systems.
He knew how careless organizations could become when they believed nobody was watching.