Delilah arrived at ten exactly. She wore a pale designer blazer, immaculate trousers, and a gold bracelet that caught the fluorescent light every time she moved her wrist. She carried her leather clipboard, of course. I had begun to suspect she would carry it into a burning building before she carried a fire extinguisher.
She paused when she saw the crowd. For a second I thought she might turn around and leave. Then she raised her chin, walked to the front, and placed her folder on the table as though she had come to inspect a room she still owned.
"Ladies and gentlemen," she began, "I understand there have been complaints from a small number of dissatisfied residents. We are here to restore order and address a malicious campaign being conducted against the association."
Several people protested at once. Ethel raised one hand, waited until they quieted, and stood without raising her voice. She had brought a binder of her own, thicker than Delilah's clipboard and much less decorative.
"Before we discuss personalities," Ethel said, "I would like the treasurer to confirm whether the association has produced the contracts supporting payments to Thornwick Property Solutions."
The treasurer, a nervous accountant named Brandon Pike, looked down at his notes. "We have invoices and some correspondence. The independent reviewer requested supporting work records and approval minutes, but those items remain incomplete."
"And the amount identified for further review?" Ethel asked.
Brandon swallowed. "Fifty-two thousand, three hundred forty-seven dollars and eighty-three cents."
The room changed. People who had been whispering stopped. Even Delilah's expression shifted, though only for a moment, before she arranged it into a smile of practiced injury.
"That number has been taken out of context," she said. "Consulting services are not free, Ethel. My company has saved this community thousands in property-management expenses."
"Then the services should be easy to document," Ethel replied. "What work was delivered under the invoice dated March fifteenth?"
Delilah glanced toward the screen. "I don't have every invoice memorized."
"Neither do I," Ethel said. "That's why I brought the records."
Jerome displayed the March invoice, followed by the work schedule produced by the contracted landscaping company. The invoice described a site evaluation supposedly performed on a day when the landscaping company had been closed for a weather emergency. A later invoice charged again for an evaluation bearing the same language and photographs.
Delilah said the duplication was an administrative error. Patricia, who had remained seated, murmured that an error was possible and that the audience should not jump to a conclusion about intent. Ethel repeated that caution aloud before continuing with the next document.
The next section concerned the reserve fund. Brandon explained that the account had been reported as healthy in the annual budget, yet transfers had reduced the balance below the amount the board expected to have available for repairs. Several owners asked whether that explained deferred drainage work and roof repairs.