“My wrist.”
She rubbed it.
Of course.
The same wrist the Homeowner had touched while removing her grip.
The Officer turned toward him.
“Sir, I need your version.”
The Homeowner nodded.
“She climbed over the fence.”
The Neighbor Woman immediately said:
“That is not what happened.”
The Officer held up one hand.
“Ma’am, you had your turn.”
She stopped.
The Homeowner continued.
“The gate was locked. She climbed the back fence. She walked over here, argued about my pool pump, then grabbed my shirt.”
The Officer looked toward the tall fence.
“She climbed that?”
“Yes.”
The Neighbor Woman laughed nervously.
“I used the gate.”
The Homeowner stared at her.
The Officer looked toward the side gate.
“Was it locked?”
“Yes.”
The Homeowner pointed.
“Inside latch.”
The Officer walked over.
Examined it.
The latch was still engaged.
He looked back.
The Neighbor Woman quickly said:
“Maybe it closed after me.”
The Homeowner said nothing.
The Officer returned.
“And then?”
“She grabbed the front of my shirt.”
The Homeowner showed the stretched fabric near the collar.
“I removed her hand.”
The Neighbor Woman shook her head.
“He grabbed me first.”
The Officer looked between them.
Neither spoke.
Then the Neighbor Woman said something that changed the Homeowner’s mood completely.
“He has always frightened me.”
The Homeowner looked at her.
That accusation reached beyond one afternoon.
This was not simply an argument anymore.
She was creating a history.
The Officer asked:
“Have there been previous incidents?”
“Yes.”
the Neighbor Woman answered immediately.
The Homeowner frowned.
“Like what?”
The Officer again raised his hand.
“Sir.”
The Neighbor Woman continued.
“He stares at me.”
The Homeowner blinked.
“From where?”
She ignored him.
“He has yelled across the fence.”
“Once.”
The Homeowner said.
The Officer looked at him.
He explained:
“She was spraying weed killer through the fence onto my garden.”
The Neighbor Woman shouted:
“That is a lie.”
The Officer’s expression tightened.
“Everybody stop.”
Silence.
A second police car pulled up outside.
The Officer glanced toward the gate.
Then looked back at the Homeowner.
“Any cameras?”
The Homeowner answered immediately.
“Yes.”
The Neighbor Woman’s face changed.
Only slightly.
The Officer noticed.
“Where?”
The Homeowner did not point at first.
He simply looked upward.
The Officer followed his gaze.
Under the patio roof, near the corner facing the pool and fence, sat a small security camera.
A green recording light blinked.
The Neighbor Woman stared at it.