She asked whether the lady in the green robe had gone somewhere safe.
I told her that people who knew how to help had spoken with her.
Lucy considered that.
“Does she get to look out the window now?”
I swallowed.
“I hope so.”
The next morning, a local reporter left a message asking whether I would discuss the investigation.
She said several people had told her the dispute began over a swimming pool.
I declined an interview while the case was active.
I did not want the faces of vulnerable adults turned into evidence for my side of a neighborhood argument.
Later that day, I received an unsigned envelope containing a photograph of my home taken from across the street.
Someone had drawn a thick red circle around Lucy’s bedroom window.
There was no explicit threat written on the paper.
The image was threatening enough.
I called the police immediately and arranged for Lucy to remain with Denise until we understood who had sent it.
Morse collected the envelope and explained that the photograph would be examined with the other materials.
He advised me to report any direct approach to Lucy’s school or Denise’s residence.
For the first time, I considered moving away temporarily.
I was not afraid of Vivian alone.
I was afraid of someone I had never met who thought protecting her business justified intimidating my child.
I packed a small overnight bag and stayed with Denise for two nights.
The house felt abandoned when I returned to check it during the day.
My pool cover lay smooth and dark beneath the late summer sun.
No garbage had appeared since the county visit.
The silence should have been comforting.
Instead, it made me wonder what had changed behind the other side of the fence.
I called Tess to schedule another inspection before anyone used the water again.
She told me she could come Friday.
Then she asked whether I was doing all right.
I stared at the empty chairs beside the patio.
“I don’t know yet,” I said.
Friday’s inspection began with Tess kneeling beside the pump housing and frowning at the filter pressure.
She had replaced the damaged impeller, but the circulation was still weaker than she expected.
She shut off the system and removed the filter basket.
A thin strip of clear packaging tape had wound itself around the center spindle.
The tape was covered in small black printed letters.
