I was off on vacation during the last week of August last year because my boss took the week off and closed the office. My plan was to clean the windows in the house. We have so many that I knew it would take me close to a week to get them all done.

Every morning of that week I went for a walk with you-know-who. We always passed Y and B’s house on our walks. Each morning we saw Y outside doing his stone work, and each morning we stopped by for 15-20 minutes to say hello. Y was always up early in the morning doing his stuff. B slept in until 11 or 12 each day.

Thursday morning was an extremely hot and humid morning and so when we passed by Y’s place I suggested we take the dogs for a swim in the brook that runs behind both of our houses. Y agreed and said that he would take the opportunity to show me some parts of his forest that he had already shown The Boy.

Down at the stream, the dogs ran and swam happily with each other, but I had to call an end to the fun eventually because I had to get back home to my window cleaning. Walking out of the forest, I noticed Y and B’s younger daughter sitting on their back porch with a friend of hers. The friend watched us as we emerged from the forest and whispered something to their daughter.

That weekend brought the usual visits from Y. He arrived on his own with his dog. We didn’t see B that weekend.

I was back to work the next week, but still did my daily morning dog-walks.

On Tuesday morning as we walked by Y’s place, he waved to us and I thought he was waving us to come over. We walked up to the house. This time B was awake and outside. As we approached both Y and B they both appeared agitated as though they had been arguing. Once I got to the house, B disappeared inside.

Me: Are you alright?

Y: I can’t talk now.

Obviously something strange was going on and I had mistaken his wave to me possibly as a warning not to come over? I felt a creepy sensation of being watched and turned around and saw B spying on me from the corner of one of the windows of the house.

Me: Um. I’d better go now…have to go to work.

The whole experience was so unsettling that I called The Boy to tell him about the situation and how uncomfortable it was.

That night as I arrived back home from work and turned onto our street, I saw B sitting in her car at the corner. Just waiting for something–or someone. I waved, but she looked angry and appeared to get even angrier as I passed by.

The next day was uneventful. But the night…Well that next night was when I came home and saw her car parked outside our house. She was not in it.

Next: The end of a relationship.