"And sent contractors to remove the generator."
"I know that, too."
"Why no complaint?"
"Because I can document what she did. I cannot document what she believed."
Reeves was quiet. "That's a fair distinction."
"It matters."
He placed the theft complaint on hold pending further review. Before hanging up, he asked the same question I had been asking myself: "Did the HOA ever own a generator like yours?"
"I don't know yet."
That afternoon, I called the regional equipment dealer named on several early service receipts. The company had changed names twice, but its archive system still indexed older equipment by manufacturer serial. I gave them DSB7419KC.
The service manager put me on hold. When he came back, I could hear keyboard clicks in the background. "We have records."
"How far back?"
"Roughly twenty-one years. Customer: early entries under your father, later under Cole Ranch."
That was consistent with everything on my table. I asked whether the earliest dealer record predated the insurance schedule.
"It does," he said. "There's an intake entry shortly after the development closeout."
"What kind of entry?"
"Initial inspection and battery service."
"Customer name?"
"Your father."
The date fell less than a month after the delivery receipt. Another piece landed exactly where it should.
Then he added, "There's another generator in the archive with almost the same model designation."
I picked up my pen. "Same serial?"
"No."
"Same manufacturer?"
"Yes."
"Similar output?"
"Very close."