The Neighbor Woman whipped around.
“What?”
The Homeowner looked at the Officer.
“Yes.”
Her face changed.
“We are neighbors.”
“That is why you should know where the property line is.”
She stepped toward him.
The Officer moved between them.
“Ma’am.”
She stopped.
The Officer explained the trespass warning.
She was not to enter the property without explicit permission.
Not through the gate.
Not over the fence.
Not through the driveway.
The Neighbor Woman stared at the Homeowner the entire time.
When the Officer finished, she asked:
“And if I need to discuss a neighborhood issue?”
The Officer said:
“Use normal communication.”
“He blocks me.”
“Then he does not want to communicate.”
“That’s unreasonable.”
“It’s legal.”
She looked stunned.
The second Officer escorted her toward the gate.
Before leaving, she turned.
“This isn’t over.”
The first Officer immediately said:
“Ma’am.”
She stopped.
He looked at her.
“I would strongly recommend you not make that sentence mean anything.”
She left.
The side gate closed.
The Homeowner exhaled.
The Officer stayed.
“You okay?”
“Yes.”
“Any injury?”
“No.”
“Want medical?”
“No.”
The Officer nodded.
Then looked toward the camera.
“Save that footage.”
“Already cloud backed up.”
“Good.”
The Homeowner hesitated.
“Can I ask something?”
“Sure.”
“If the camera wasn’t there?”
The Officer considered carefully.
“I would have interviewed both of you.”
“Looked for physical evidence.”
“Witnesses.”
“Consistency.”
The Homeowner nodded.
“But?”
The Officer looked toward the fence.
“But video makes arguments shorter.”
That sentence stayed with him.
The incident should have ended there.
It did not.
Three days later, the Homeowner received a certified letter.
Not from the Neighbor Woman.
From an attorney.
The letter accused him of harassment.
Intimidation.
Selective video recording.
Hostile conduct.
The Homeowner read it twice.
Then called his own attorney.
The attorney asked:
“Do you still have the footage?”
“Yes.”
“Police report?”
“Yes.”
“Any prior messages?”
The Homeowner opened his email.
“Hundreds.”
The attorney became quiet.
“Hundreds?”
“Maybe not literally.”
He searched.
Two hundred seventeen emails in six months.
The attorney laughed softly.