Chapter 1

I got up and at 6 in the morning and got myself cleaned up and went about my usual routine. The telescope on the first floor to spy on the secret cooking class Mrs. Jones was preparing for. The Black family had returned after visiting their in-laws. The Peters were officially divorced so they were moving out. The husband couldn't afford the alimony so he sold the house. The neighbor was a mystery. Nobody knew anything about him and they were buzzing with rumors about him. The family has a criminal that they were hiding. The family is hiding from insurance fraud, he is an identity thief. He is a police officer. They had many hypotheses about this guy but it felt that no one was close to explaining who this guy was.

The repair guy came in to fix the roof, the leaky faucet, and the busted washer. He quietly finished his work and left. He sends a few pictures to dad and texted the bill. Dad transferred the money and gave me a call. He wanted to know when my therapy session is. He asked me if Greta came to clean the house and asked what new recipes I had discovered and tried lately. He is bringing his new wife to see me. She is a police officer that works in the city. She 5ft 7inches, shoulder-length blonde hair. Wears a suit minus the tie. Has the most loving persona I have ever met. If you see her you would love her. She asked me how I was feeling. Also asked me if I needed company. I told the local story regarding the new arrival and she chuckled, "I met the man that is moving in. He is an only child, is ex-military and has a sense of humor you will like. His uncle works with me in this precinct. He was a fireman before he joined the Army. He suffers from PTSD" I interrupted her, "He will wake the entire neighborhood with his screams. They will definitely call the police. I promise to call the paramedics." She seemed to appreciate my input. We were going to chat but one of her lieutenants asked for her. She promised to stop by for dinner and hung up.

I reached the library and picked up a cookbook on Indian Street food. I decided I should try making potato burgers (Vada Pav) it wasn't that hard to make. I made three and kept one in the fridge for later. My tortoise Egzy was upside down looking at me with interest so I picked him up. I strapped him to a paintbrush and poured paint into the hole of the brush. And Egzy lazily walked left and right. He has done so many abstract paintings that I had to turn one of the rooms into a storage unit. I sat down with my burger and watched the Finch family. The husband was trying to decide what color to paint the living room with. While the wife wants to throw away a few things like the Lazy Boy Mr. Finch sits on. This caused an uproar and the husband promised to systematically throw away her belongings. This went on for an hour before they called a truce.

I watched the movers come and park in front of my house. The new neighbor has sent his things ahead of time. It included Gym equipment like a punching bag, Weights and a mystery box. There were the usual boxes marked as clothes, books, CDs and electronics. I never saw the guy's face because he wore his hoodie, a pair of glasses and a mask. If Rihanna was here she would be drooling all over the place. Unfortunately she died the day I lost the use of my legs. I turned to the mini-fridge to get Fanta.