And then, once I was there, and only then, he let it close.

Patricia handled the legal documentation, fully, while I saw to the funeral.

We held a small, dignified service — his old comrades from the Marines, who came in their pressed uniforms and stood very straight; two neighbors, including Mrs.

Abigail; his attorney; and several representatives from the veterans’ association that was about to become the great beneficiary of everything he had built.

It was not large.

It was full of the right people, which is a different and better thing.