Puren was nowhere to be seen. Francis finished his statement and walked away with Regina, resisting the urge to cross the distance and demand an explanation. He had learned that confrontation was exactly the kind of event Mason could transform into another allegation.
That evening, the anonymous neighborhood post reappeared in several new discussions. People who had not watched the videos now repeated that a review board had cleared Mason. Some used that outcome to argue Francis had invented the entire incident. Regina tried responding with a link to her footage, then stopped after strangers began mocking her fear. Francis took the phone from her only long enough to suggest a break.
"Let them argue with a screen," he said. "We know what happened." She looked exhausted. "I want them to know too."
Near eleven, Regina went outside to lock the front door and retrieve a small package from the porch. When she lifted the welcome mat, a folded piece of paper lay beneath it. She picked it up, expecting an advertisement or a neighbor's note. There was no envelope and no signature.
Only four words in dark ink: "Drop it. Last warning." For a moment she could not move. Then she went inside and placed the note on the kitchen table in front of Francis.
He read it once and did not touch it again until he had photographed its position and appearance. Regina sat opposite him, visibly shaking. "Somebody came to our door," she whispered. "While we were here."
Francis nodded. He did not pretend the note was harmless, and he did not claim to know who wrote it. He checked the locks, reviewed the doorbell's limited recordings, and contacted the appropriate authorities through a channel separate from Mason's patrol unit. The message transformed the dispute from professional misconduct into a possible threat against their household.
"I think we should leave for a while," Regina said. Francis looked at her. "Where?" "My sister's.
A hotel. Anywhere somebody can't come to our front door while we're asleep." Her voice broke. "I'm not asking you to give up the complaint.
I'm asking you to understand I'm frightened." Francis moved around the table and knelt beside her chair. The most painful part of the entire experience was realizing he had begun to consider risk in terms of files and witnesses while Regina was considering whether she could sleep safely in her own bedroom.