The deal had not been mine to ruin.

The truth was not a mistake.

PART 5

By noon I had a room in a modest extended-stay hotel and a new bank account containing money Elaine helped me trace to a small inheritance my grandmother had left in my individual name.

I had kept it in a separate credit union account years ago.

Dennis knew the account existed but had never bothered with it because he considered the amount too small to matter.

Small was relative.