Marissa reached for him immediately. "Gareth, thank God. This has been blown completely out of proportion. We have federal marshals everywhere because Duncan apparently works for them, and now the county is treating a civil enforcement action like a burglary."
Gareth's eyes shifted toward Duncan, who stood beside the laptop with red marks still visible around his wrists. Then he looked at the forced office door, the association boxes stacked in the bay, and the federal vehicle outside where Trent Barlo now sat in custody.
"What enforcement action?" Gareth asked.
"The possession notice."
"What possession notice?"
Marissa's face changed.
Ruiz noticed. So did Duncan.
"The one based on the easement and lien process," Marissa said more carefully.
Gareth held out his hand. "Show me what you used."
She pulled the disputed packet from the folder and passed it to him.
Gareth read the first page standing up. His eyes moved once from the heading to the signature block, then back to the top. He turned to the second page, then returned to the first. Less than thirty seconds had passed when his face went pale.
"Where did this come from?"
"Our records package."
"That is not what I asked."
"It was prepared based on the enforcement file."
Gareth lifted the page. "Marissa, this is not a court order."
"It is a notice of possession."
"No. It is a draft notice I prepared weeks ago for discussion. Someone altered the formatting, inserted a judicial signature block, and attached a certification page that did not exist in my draft."
The loading bay went very quiet.
Ruiz took one step closer. "Are you saying this document was altered after you prepared it?"
Gareth looked at her. "I am saying I never signed this, I never filed this, and no judge authorized it through my office."
"Do you recognize the signature block?"
"The judge's name appears to have been copied from an unrelated county filing."
Marissa's voice sharpened. "That is not fair. Staff assembled the packet from several records."
"Which staff?"