I lifted out the clear plastic sleeve holding the two-dollar lottery ticket from the Shell station counter.

The thermal paper was still crisp and clean inside its clear cover.

The printed numbers matched the official state grand prize results line by line: seventy-three million dollars.

I took my phone out of my coat pocket with my free hand.

I turned the plastic sleeve over to read the small black print along the bottom margin of the ticket.

An official state lottery legal helpline number was printed right next to the state seal and the barcode.