The blue ink showed thirty dollars paid on the twelfth of November.

“What was the thirty-dollar fee for, Clara?” I asked.

“A duplicate title search and reissue application,” Clara said, her fingers lining up two yellow highlighters side by side on the counter ledge.

“Who filed that application?” Daniel asked, leaning over my shoulder to look at the receipt number written in the corner.

“Your father,” Clara said, looking straight into my eyes.

“He signed an official affidavit claiming the original property deed was destroyed in a house fire back in 2011.”