She produced a folder packed with letters.

A disputed fence alteration had begun with a $125 HOA fine. When Marlene appealed, the fine acquired administrative fees. Then came a collection charge. Then a storage and removal expense for a gardening trailer that had never left her property. By the time she sought legal advice, the claimed balance had climbed to several thousand dollars.

“My husband handled the paperwork before he died,” Marlene said. “I thought if I paid the original bill, they would leave me alone. Then they told me I had missed a hearing I never knew about.”

She had eventually borrowed money from her sister to settle the matter.

“Why didn’t you sue?” Elijah asked, immediately regretting the question.

Marlene looked at him over her tea.

“With which money, Mr. Grant? The money I used to fix my furnace or the money I needed for groceries?”

He apologized.

She shook her head. “No need. I’m glad someone finally asked.”

Sandra laid a second folder on the table. Another resident’s car had been removed by Sterling Asset Recovery. There was a signed authorization by the HOA and a $1,900 storage charge after only a few days. A third homeowner, after challenging a parking violation, had received a letter from a law office offering a “confidential settlement” if he agreed not to discuss the dispute publicly.

The letterhead read *Hartman Legal Services*.

Elijah looked up.

“Gregory’s office?”

Sandra nodded. “I checked the address. Same building.”

They did not conclude that Gregory had committed a crime. Lawyers could represent HOAs; towing companies could operate legally; homeowners could lose administrative disputes without any grand conspiracy. But the repeated timing and overlapping businesses were serious enough to document.

Marlene slid one final envelope across the table.

“This came last year,” she said. “I kept it because I thought it was a mistake.”

Inside was a notice stating that her property might be transferred to a related holding company if the unpaid balance continued. The holding company’s name was Lakeview Collector Holdings.

Elijah felt his skin tighten.

The same name that had applied for a replacement title to his father’s Mustang.