The cat door locks, so Kanoko doesn’t go out unless I’m outside with him, and every time I let him out, I check the terrace. The people in crazy-lady’s building have already warned her that I won’t take her shit, telling her that I did indeed go to the police. She’s made a great show of angrily slamming closed her shutters on my evening arrival every day since then :) (I pretend she doesn’t exist!) She’s threatened all the animals in their building too (but so far has never gone through with the threats…).

Nathanael, oh, I know nothing will be done if Kanoko is poisoned. The main idea is to bring a harassment suit against her, since according to the people in her building, it’s been going on for years. Probably won’t be very effective either, but who knows…

And she’s German, not French, plus she doesn’t even know I’m foreign (I can pass for French so long as I don’t get into philosophical discussions where my English accent and phrasing inevitably come through). As I mentioned above, I’ve only ever spoken to her once. As far as I’m concerned, so long as I’ve done nothing wrong, I’ll enjoy my home on my terms and have nothing to do with abusive people. (But I sure as hell will tell the police.)

I’ve had at least some experience dealing with crazy people like that, and of course, I don’t want to scare you, but yes, she could do something like that and probably not face too many consequences for it (a neighbor in the U.S. poisoned and killed one of my cats, so yes, it is a real threat, to be taken completely seriously).

You would receive a lot of sympathy, but I don’t think the police would do a thing.

And, as a foreigner, this crazy woman could perceive you as a weak link in her twisted world. So I would take whatever precautions you can to protect your kitten. I would not try to debate this woman or try to reason with her. The mere fact of doing that, especially in this country with Latin roots, can make you seem weak. And that will make you more vulnerable. My advice is to be as “French” as possible when dealing with her, to treat her as much as you can in the same way as your French neighbors do, i.e., be casually dismissive as many French do. Shrug. Tell her to go her screw herself. Not in any agressive way, but in the passive, indifferent, condescending way that the French seem to have mastered.

Anyone who says what she has said is completely capable of carrying out her threat. I’m sorry that you have to deal with that.

What is the possibility she had something to do with Malo’ demise?