Not irritation.
Not arrogance.
Fear.
Hannah returned home shortly after noon.
I'd called her as soon as the officers secured the area.
She arrived with Lucy, who'd spent the previous hour at her aunt's house.
Hannah stepped out of the car.
Her eyes moved toward the ladder.
The broken camera.
And the police vehicles.
Then she looked at me.
For several seconds, she didn't speak.
I walked toward her.
"I'm okay."
She embraced me.
Then pulled back.
"Ryan, what happened?"
I explained.
The hammer.
The bat.
The police.
And the blue case behind the shed.
Hannah stared.
For a moment, she seemed unable to understand.
"She put something behind our garage?"
I nodded.
"That's what the evidence suggests."
Her eyes filled.
"Why?"
I looked toward the officers.
For a moment, I felt exhausted.
"Because she wanted people to believe I stole HOA records."
Hannah covered her mouth.
Then looked toward Lucy.
Our daughter was sitting in the car, watching us.
Hannah lowered her voice.
"She was going to frame you?"
I took a breath.
"That's what I'm afraid of."
For several seconds, we stood together.
Then Hannah looked toward the broken camera.
She shook her head.
"All this because you asked where the property line is?"
I looked toward the greenbelt beyond our fence.
The orange flags.
The trees.
And the land Crestline wanted to develop.
For a moment, I couldn't answer.
Then I said quietly.
"I don't think it's just about the property line anymore."
By Monday morning, the damaged camera had been removed as evidence.
The ladder was back in the garage.
And the blue case had been taken for examination through the appropriate process.
I had given a detailed statement about my own actions, including striking the ladder.
The officers explained that the incident would be reviewed as a whole and that they couldn't promise how every allegation would be resolved.
I accepted that.
My attorney, Allison, was direct when we spoke.
"Ryan, I'm glad nobody fell. But you cannot let anger put someone in danger, even if that person is destroying your property."
I nodded.
"I know."
She continued.
"Be truthful about what you did. Don't try to minimize it."
"I won't."
Then she asked whether the remaining recordings were preserved.
I confirmed that they were.
The cameras stored footage through a system separate from the outdoor units, and the relevant files had already been retained before Judith destroyed the dome.
The garage camera provided another angle.