He had to remind himself that the six neighboring houses were not characters in his story.
They were people with different stakes and their own voices.
At dinner Miguel showed Walter how to mark changes on a PDF without altering the underlying file.
Walter told him about inspecting railway track records before computers became standard.
They spent an hour comparing methods, laughing at each other’s assumptions.
By the time Miguel left, the group had a functioning record system and a plan for hearings that did not rely on Walter attending every session.
The practical work felt unglamorous.
It was also the first sign that the neighbors might build something useful beyond defeating Brenda.
Harrow Ridge sent a new representative to Cedar Glen two weeks before the preliminary planning review.
Her name was Celeste Rowan, and she introduced herself as a project manager rather than a lawyer.
She requested a meeting with the affected homeowners to discuss access conditions.
Nina attended with Walter and four neighbors, while the other two joined by telephone.
Celeste began by acknowledging that the company had been told the association represented the entire street.
She said the developer had relied on recorded documents and a support letter when preparing its application.
The homeowners challenged that reliance because their consent was disputed.
Celeste did not dismiss them.
She asked each owner to describe the specific problems with the instruments.
Evelyn explained the volunteer sheet and the signature that did not resemble her handwriting.
Sofia described the impossible signing date.
Miriam showed the drawing passing through her tree.
Theodore asked why real estate agents had approached him with warnings about losing value.
Celeste took notes and said she would review the company’s marketing instructions.
Walter watched her expression when Nina produced the two versions of Schedule B.
Celeste had clearly seen the wider corridor.
She said the company had been told it represented a revised engineering proposal approved through the association.
Martin Kroll’s notebook suggested the relevant vote had never occurred.
That meant Celeste’s original assumption might have been based on bad information.
Walter was tempted to accuse the developer of knowing from the start.
He held the accusation back.
Nina asked whether Harrow Ridge would voluntarily suspend reliance on the disputed instruments while the matter was investigated.
Celeste said she lacked authority to make that commitment immediately.
She agreed to take the request to company counsel and to pause new outreach offers to the six households in the meantime.
