"Captain Miller," a gruff voice answered on the second ring.
"Hey, Dave. It's Mark," he said, leaning back in his leather chair. "I need to report a 10-85. Grand Theft Auto."
"You're kidding," the local police captain laughed. "Who the hell is stupid enough to steal a ride from a Senior Special Agent?"
"My HOA President and her kid," Mark replied, his voice laced with dark amusement. "They walked right onto my driveway, claimed they were 'confiscating' it for a parking violation, and drove it away. I've got the whole thing on my 4K security cameras, complete with audio. They took it to their house three blocks over on Elm Street."
There was a pause on the line, followed by a heavy sigh. "Brenda Hastings. We get ten calls a week about her harassing people. So, she finally crossed the line from nuisance to felon?"
"Yep," Mark said. "I want the book thrown at them, Dave. No warnings. No special treatment."
"Copy that, Agent," Captain Miller replied, the humor gone from his voice. "I'll send three units. Meet us there in ten."
Three blocks away, inside a sprawling, meticulously clean garage, Tyler was sitting on the stolen ATV, revving the engine just to hear it roar. Brenda stood beside him, sipping a glass of iced tea, looking incredibly satisfied.
"I bet he's in his house crying right now," Tyler laughed, turning off the ignition. "Man, this thing is sweet. We shouldn't even give it back. I should take it to the dunes this weekend."
"Consider it community property now," Brenda agreed, waving her hand dismissively. "That man was incredibly rude. I'm going to draft a notice to the entire neighborhood tonight outlining his violations. It will set a perfect example."
They both felt completely invincible. In their minds, the HOA was the ultimate law of the land, and Brenda was its chief justice. They were untouchable. They could take what they wanted, fine who they wanted, and nobody could do a thing about it.