I could see him struggling with the realization that his signature might have helped finance something he never intended.
Simone asked the board to preserve its accounting records and refer the matter to independent counsel.
She did not ask the members to decide Patricia’s guilt.
A resident near the front said she had found a strange network device behind a bookshelf after her own inspection.
Another said his router had displayed an unfamiliar connection for weeks.
The room erupted into overlapping accusations.
The board president struck the table and reminded everyone that allegations were not evidence.
He announced a temporary suspension of the inspection program pending an outside review.
Then he asked residents to avoid destroying suspicious devices before documenting them and contacting the appropriate authorities.
I felt the warning land on me as surely as if he had spoken my name.
When my turn came, I admitted that I had smashed my father’s clock in a moment of fear and anger.
I said I wished I had handled the discovery differently.
I also said nobody should have to wonder whether a neighborhood volunteer was recording private conversations in a living room.
The room grew quiet.
I did not ask anyone to choose a side.
I asked them to protect their own privacy and let the investigation establish what had happened.
Afterward, the treasurer approached me with trembling hands.
He said one Harbor Signal invoice had been approved on the same day Northstar announced its winning library bid.
He had brought a copy because the coincidence had begun to trouble him.
The invoice listed an installation location using a code rather than an address.
The code ended with the last four digits of my house number.
Chapter 21: The Room Behind the Repair Shop
The Harbor Signal address led to a narrow commercial strip behind a tire warehouse.
I did not go there alone or attempt to confront anyone.
Simone arranged for a licensed investigator named Malcolm Reed to visit during business hours and document what could be seen from public areas.
Malcolm returned with photographs of a storefront that appeared almost empty.
A faded sign advertised home networking and security repairs.
Inside, he had seen shelving, cardboard boxes, and a counter covered with returned electronics.
The employee at the desk said the owner worked by appointment.
Malcolm purchased a basic cable adapter and obtained a receipt showing the business name and tax identification number.
Simone compared those details with public filings.
Harbor Signal had been formed three years earlier by a registered agent who also handled paperwork for several Northstar affiliates.
The connection was legal by itself, but it gave investigators another path to follow.
