When everything settled, the campaign was short. By $740, I stared at the number. A week earlier, we'd been 12 people selling ribs. Now we were $740 away from completing the entire equipment campaign. Marcus leaned back.
We'll get it probably. You sound disappointed. I'm not and I wasn't. Then I looked at my old smoker. Faint watermark still showed on one side and I remembered the reimbursement request I'd filed for the food and supplies Denise ruined.
It wasn't $740, but it was close. Marcus saw my face. "What?" Nothing. That wasn't a nothing smile.
I just remembered Denise still owes me for the first barbecue. He looked at the total then at me. Oh, don't. "I didn't say anything." "You were thinking loudly."
Monday afternoon, Howard stopped by my house. The board met. "How'd that go?" He considered the question loudly. That was about as close as Howard came to gossip.
Then he gave me the part that mattered. "Denise is no longer president." I looked at him. "She resigned?" "No."
The board had removed her from the presidency and revoked her access to the president account and board directory. She was still on the board for the moment. There would be further review. I didn't need the details. Denise had spent the week using one phrase over and over.
The HOA. Now she could no longer use the title to make her personal decision sound official. She'd lost the exact thing she'd abused. Howard pulled out another page. "Your reimbursement request."
The ruined ribs, charcoal, disposable supplies, a few other things hit by the hose. Total. She disputed it at first. Howard said. "What changed?"
"We watched the video." "Fair." "She'll reimburse you." I looked at the number again. $760. The rescue squad needed $740.
Howard followed my eyes. Then he understood. For the first time since I'd met him, he laughed out loud. It lasted maybe 2 seconds. "You're going to donate it."
"I was thinking about it." "All of it?" "I wasn't planning to celebrate by buying $768 worth of ribs." Howard nodded. "$500 would be reasonable." I stared at him.
He started walking away. "Howard." He raised one hand without turning around. I still don't know whether he was joking. Denise came outside later that evening.
No cobalt blue blazer. Just "Denise." "Howard spoke to you?" Yeah, "I assume you're pleased." "I think the board made its decision."
"You turned the neighborhood against me." I shook my head. "I cooked lunch." "You brought 50 bikers here." "They parked at Frank's."
"That isn't the point." There it was again. The point that moved every time the last one stopped working. Denise you sprayed my fundraiser with a garden hose. "You refused to shut down the grill."
"I moved it." "The smoke continued because wind continued." "You could have avoided all of this." I looked at her. She still believed every decision she'd made had been forced by somebody else's refusal to obey.
There wasn't much I could do with that, so I didn't try. "You'll get the reimbursement this week," she said. Okay, "I want this finished." "So do I." She started toward her house, then stopped, and there will not be another event like Saturday.