James nodded.
"Did they hit you?"
Samuel looked away.
"One of them pushed me into the truck."
James became still.
"Which one?"
"The tall one."
James knew that man.
Derek Voss.
Former private security contractor.
He had no police certification.
No arrest authority.
But Cynthia had given him a badge.
James asked:
"Did anyone record it?"
Samuel shook his head.
"No."
James stood.
"Then we need to start recording."
Samuel looked at him.
"You think they'll stop?"
"No."
"Then what do we do?"
James looked through the window toward the clubhouse.
"We document everything."
That night, James installed additional cameras around his home.
Not because he expected trouble.
Because he had learned long ago that evidence mattered most before someone realized they were being investigated.
He also contacted a former colleague.
Special Agent Laura Bennett.
She was still with the Bureau.
James didn't tell her everything.
He simply said:
"I think something is happening in my neighborhood."
Laura answered:
"What kind of something?"
"Private citizens pretending to have public authority."
There was silence.
Then Laura said:
"Document it."
James smiled.
"That's what I planned to do."
What Cynthia didn't know was that James's cameras were not ordinary security cameras.
One of them was linked to an encrypted archival system.
Another pointed toward the street.
A third covered the driveway.
A fourth covered the backyard.
And a fifth camera was hidden inside an old birdhouse.
James had installed the system years earlier.
He had used similar equipment during federal investigations.
Every recording automatically uploaded to a secure server.
Even if someone destroyed the cameras, the footage remained.
But James had never expected to use it against an HOA.
Then the threats began.
A violation notice.
Then another.
Then a warning about his fence.
Then a letter claiming his workshop violated community standards.
James appealed every notice.
Every appeal was denied.
Finally, Cynthia sent him a final warning.
REMOVE THE STRUCTURE WITHIN SEVEN DAYS.
James stared at it.
The structure was a small wooden shed.
It had existed before Cynthia became president.
It was permitted.
And the county had approved it.
James called the HOA office.
Cynthia answered.
"Mr. Carter."
"Why are you targeting my shed?"
"We're enforcing standards."
"The county approved it."
"Our standards are stricter."
"That's not how property law works."
There was silence.
Then Cynthia said:
"You should consider cooperating."
James leaned back.
"Is that a threat?"
"No."
"Good."
He ended the call.
Then he opened his evidence folder.
At the top, he wrote:
CYNTHIA MALLORY — PATTERN OF CONDUCT.
The first break-in happened at 1:17 a.m.
Three men entered the neighborhood.
They wore the same navy uniforms.
They walked toward James's backyard.
One carried bolt cutters.
Another carried a flashlight.
The third carried a radio.
James watched from inside.