“I’m sitting in the lounge before my finance seminar.”

Through the phone, I could hear the quick, steady tapping of his dress shoe on a hard floor.

“Did Mom talk to you yesterday morning?” I asked.

“She called around eight,” he said.

“She was double-checking the wire transfer for my housing deposit.”

“She canceled her flight to West Point,” I said.

“She told me the family budget couldn’t handle the travel expense this month.”

Derek let out a short, dry laugh that crackled through the car speaker.