What if he refuses?
Brenda:
Make him understand refusal has consequences.
Another exchange came the night before.
Darren:
Do you want me armed?
Brenda:
You always patrol armed.
Darren:
That isn’t an answer.
Brenda:
I want compliance. Do what you need to do without creating a mess.
Then a voice message.
Brenda’s voice.
I heard it weeks later through my attorney.
“He thinks he’s untouchable because he reads every rule. He’s making the board look weak. Go there tomorrow, get the key, and make an example out of him. Once Arthur complies, everyone else will stop questioning us.”
Make an example.
That was what this had always been.
I was not targeted because Brenda desperately needed access to my house.
She needed my surrender.
Every resident who complied increased her authority.
One public refusal threatened it.
The key was symbolic.
My obedience was the actual goal.
