I asked whether it came from the bags Vivian threw into the water.

Tess said it could have, but its position suggested that somebody had placed it near the suction opening after the earlier cleaning.

She showed me the strip without pulling it apart.

It carried a partial shipping label and the words HOME CARE SUPPLIES.

I photographed it before Tess sealed it in a spare service bag.

She emphasized that a label could not identify who had handled the package.

I agreed.

Still, the pool had become a collection point for materials associated with the house next door.

I remembered the hospital bracelet and disposable bed pad fragments.

Vivian had not simply thrown household garbage.

She had thrown items that might have exposed what was happening in her unlicensed residence.

The thought suggested an explanation I had overlooked.

She wanted the water filthy enough to make me appear negligent, but she also wanted certain objects out of her house.

The pool allowed her to convert evidence from inside into trash from outside.

If anyone later found the materials in my filter, they would look like debris collected by an irresponsible homeowner.

I told Tess about the possibility without claiming to know it was true.

She shook her head.

“I would need more than a label to conclude that,” she said.

I appreciated her refusal to be impressed by my theory.

I took the bag to Morse and told him precisely where Tess had found it.

He asked whether the filter housing could be secured so that further material could not be introduced without leaving visible signs.

Tess recommended a lockable protective enclosure that would still allow safe maintenance access.

I authorized the installation.

For the next week, the pool remained clean.

Then someone threw a brick through the outside light fixture near my garage.

The impact woke me at one forty in the morning.

I checked the security monitors before opening any door.

The footage showed a figure in a hooded sweatshirt running away from my driveway.

The face was not visible, and I refused to identify the person from a gait or a silhouette.

I called the police and remained inside.

The responding officer found broken glass and a folded note beneath the brick.

The note read KEEP YOUR CHILD AWAY FROM OUR BUSINESS.

The officer photographed the scene and collected the paper.

I spent the rest of the night sitting on the living room sofa with the lights on.