I traced the edge of the laptop casing with my fingernail.

Seventy-one thousand dollars was a huge amount of cash for a mechanic and a dental hygienist to save.

It had taken four years of grinding physical exhaustion and cramped hands to build that balance.

But farmland around Kearney was selling at record highs.

Out-of-state corporations were aggressively driving up the price of every local parcel.

Luke softly read the total out loud again.

I looked at the yellow sticky note on the wooden table.