“I got it.”
“Keep recording.”
“Already am.”
Another black garbage bag appeared above the fence.
It slipped.
Dropped.
Then rose again.
Whoever was lifting it was struggling.
Marcus walked toward the side gate.
Danielle caught his forearm.
“Marcus.”
He looked at her.
“I’m not touching anybody.”
“Promise me.”
“I promise.”
He opened the gate.
Evelyn Whitmore stood in her backyard holding the clipboard.
Chase stood beside the green garbage bin.
A black trash bag rested against his chest.
There was no misunderstanding possible.
No explanation about wind.
No confusion about whose garbage had landed where.
Chase smiled.
Evelyn did not.
“You need to return to your property.”
Marcus looked at the bag.
“Did you throw garbage into my yard?”
Chase shrugged.
Evelyn answered for him.
“You were notified about excessive outdoor activity.”
Marcus stared at her.
“What?”
“The association has received complaints.”
“About a family cookout?”
“About noise.”
Marcus listened.
The music in his backyard was barely audible from where they stood.
He looked back at her.
“Who complained?”
“That’s confidential.”
“How many?”
“That’s not your concern.”
Marcus pointed toward Chase.
“Did he throw garbage into my yard?”
Evelyn’s mouth tightened.
“You were asked to lower the music.”
“No, I wasn’t.”
“I called over the fence.”
“You shouted something while my mother was talking.”
“I told you the gathering was becoming disruptive.”
Marcus nodded.
“And that gave your son permission to throw trash?”
Chase laughed.
“Man, it's garbage. Pick it up.”
Marcus looked at him.
Then at Evelyn.
Behind Marcus, Leon had moved to the gate.
His phone remained pointed toward them.
Evelyn noticed.
“Turn that off.”
Leon smiled.
“No.”
“This is private property.”
“He’s standing on Marcus’s property.”
“You are recording me without permission.”
Leon shrugged.
“We're in Virginia. One-party consent.”
Evelyn’s face changed slightly.
Marcus almost smiled.
Leon worked as an insurance adjuster.
He knew weird things.
Chase dropped the bag beside the trash cart.
“So what are you going to do?”
Marcus studied him.
The young man wanted a reaction.
That was obvious.
He wanted Marcus to shout.
Step closer.
Put a hand on him.
Anything that could be cut into a different story afterward.
Marcus took one step backward.
Then another.
“Nothing.”
Chase laughed.
“That’s what I thought.”
Marcus nodded.
“We’ll see.”
He closed the gate.
CHAPTER 2: THE NOTICE
The police arrived twenty-three minutes later.
Marcus had not called them.
Danielle had.
She did it after one of the children started crying again while watching the adults throw contaminated food into garbage bags.
Marcus did not object.
By then, nobody was eating.
Loretta had gone inside.
Nicole was cleaning soda from the patio.
Devin stood near the grill looking toward the fence with the expression he normally wore at structure fires when somebody ignored an evacuation order.
A patrol officer walked through the gate.
Officer Raymond Ellis was in his late thirties, white, calm, and looked tired enough that Marcus guessed he was near the end of a shift.
“What happened?”
Marcus pointed toward the patio.
“Neighbor’s son threw garbage over the fence.”
“How much?”
“Two bags. Plus plates and drinks.”
Ellis looked at the mess.