Above the Board

Water lapped against the stone border as Karen’s chin dipped toward the surface. Her grip on the coping slackened, knuckles whitening as her shoulders sank an inch lower.

“Director?” Karen’s voice was thin, stripped of its brassy ring. “She’s a tenant. She’s non-compliant.”

Officer Miller did not glance down. His hand rested on his utility belt, two inches from his sidearm.

“Ms. Bennett approved the master deed, Mrs. Whitmore,” Miller said. “She oversees compliance.”

A soaked sheet of citation paper drifted near Karen’s elbow, ink bleeding into gray ribbons across the chlorinated pool. She reached out, but the paper tore between her wet fingers. The sodden scrap sank beneath the blue ripple.

“I have board authority,” she stammered. “I filed an emergency inspection order.”

“You called dispatch three minutes ago,” Miller said. “You requested a witness for an eviction.”

“The board operates under regional charter,” Miller added, his voice flat. “Your credentials do not override corporate oversight.”

Alicia shifted her stance on the warm stone. The red outline of four fingers stood out on her bare arm. She touched the skin with two fingers, testing the welt without looking away from the water.

“She recorded her own breach,” Alicia said.

Miller’s jaw tightened. He looked at the red marks on Alicia’s skin, then down at the woman treading water by the rim.

“Yes, ma’am. The dispatch log went straight to central security.”

Karen tried to push upward against the edge, but her wet trousers dragged her down. Her plastered hair fell in slick ropes across her forehead. The arrogance drained from her eyes, leaving her face pale beneath streaked mascara.

“It was a misunderstanding,” Karen gasped. “An administrative error. Alicia—Director Bennett—let me climb out.”

“The time for discussion passed when you unlatched my gate,” Alicia said.

The garden breeze rustled the lemon trees along the cedar fence. Midday sun beat down on the puddle spreading across the patio.

Alicia turned toward Miller.

“Officer Miller.”

“Yes, Director?”

“Use your radio to call the township police.”

Miller reached for the black radio clipped to his shoulder strap. His thumb clicked the side switch, the static burst cutting through the hot garden silence.

“Report criminal trespass and physical battery,” Alicia said. “Request two squad cars.”