At 64, Eleanor had spent years keeping the peace with her neighbors. But when her electricity bill suddenly reached $227, nearly double its usual amount, she knew something was wrong. After checking her appliances and meter, she eventually discovered the reason: her neighbor Monica had been secretly charging her Tesla using an outlet attached to Eleanor’s garage.
Eleanor confronted Monica one night and asked her to unplug the cable. Monica showed little remorse, arguing that Eleanor lived alone and couldn’t possibly need that much electricity. She even offered ten dollars and called Eleanor greedy. Instead of arguing, Eleanor quietly went back inside and decided she was finished tolerating Monica’s behavior.
It wasn’t the first time Monica had crossed a boundary. Months earlier, Eleanor’s garden gnome disappeared and later appeared in Monica’s yard with a fresh coat of blue paint. A lawn mower had also mysteriously disappeared and returned a week later damaged and empty of fuel. Eleanor had always stayed silent, telling herself that keeping the peace was easier.
