Five days later, Vanessa emailed the tree contractor.
“Proceed with the twelve marked pines. HOA authorization attached.”
The contractor asked one question before accepting.
“Please confirm Silver Ridge owns or controls the work area.”
Vanessa replied with one word.
“Confirmed.”
One word.
That word did more damage to her position than anything I could have said.
She could no longer claim nobody raised the ownership issue.
They did.
She could not claim she relied on legal advice.
Legal advice told her to stop.
She could not argue the contractor misunderstood the scope.
The work order said twelve trees.
She could not claim the purpose was safety.
The work order said lake view.
She had been warned.
She proceeded anyway.
Martin called an emergency HOA meeting.
Nearly forty residents attended.
I sat in the second row beside Paul.
Vanessa sat at the board table.
The red blazer was back.
So was the leather folder.
But something had changed.
For the first time since I had met her, the folder no longer made her look authoritative.
It looked like something she was hiding behind.
Vanessa opened the meeting.
“This session has been called to address the retaliatory industrial structure Mr. Mercer has erected along the Silver Ridge boundary.”
Martin interrupted.
“No.”
Vanessa looked at him.
“No?”
“This meeting is about unauthorized tree removal and association liability.”
“They are directly connected.”
“Yes.”
Martin nodded.
“They are.”