The envelope contained a photograph of Evelyn standing beside our maple tree.
Someone had taken the photograph from an old public memorial page.
A message was written across the back in black ink.
The message said that some memories were not worth keeping.
I sat on the stairs for a long time with the photograph in my hand.
My first impulse was to walk next door and demand an explanation.
My second impulse was to call Sophie and tell her I was coming to Portland.
Instead, I placed the photograph in a clean sleeve and called Clara.
She came after her shift ended with another deputy.
I gave them the envelope and explained where I had found it.
Clara studied my face before she asked whether I was frightened.
I told her I was angry enough to make a mistake.
She said recognizing that danger was a good reason to keep my distance.
I asked whether the department could increase patrols on the street.
She said she would request attention to the recent incidents without promising constant coverage.
After the deputies left, I sat at the kitchen table and looked at the empty frame where Evelyn’s photograph had fallen.
I cleaned the remaining glass from the counter.
I set the photograph back in its place.
Then I called Sophie and told her everything.
She listened until I finished.
She said she was coming home for the weekend.
I told her she did not need to put herself in the middle of the trouble.
She said she was not coming to fight Karen.
She was coming because I should not have to eat dinner alone in a house full of threats.
I had no answer to that.
On Thursday morning, the security company sent me a notification that the rear camera had briefly lost its connection.
The local recorder continued working during the interruption.
I reviewed the footage and saw a man standing near the utility box behind my garage.
He wore a blue work jacket with a patch on the chest.
He looked toward the camera before stepping behind the fence.
The patch resembled the logo on the dark sedan’s windshield permit.
I saved the clip and called the utility company.
The dispatcher confirmed that no crew had been assigned to my address.
I sent the information to Clara.
She asked me not to confront the man if he returned.
I promised I would not.
That afternoon, a certified arborist inspected the maple tree.
