I cleared my throat gently in the quiet garden.

I folded Dad’s handwritten letter carefully into my dress pocket while looking out over the quiet backyard.

Three weeks later, Samuel Price unbuckled his leather briefcase and set three thick legal documents on the oak desk in Dad’s study.

The morning sun came through the window, lighting up the gold county seals stamped at the bottom of each page.

Samuel tapped his silver ballpoint pen against his leather ledger before uncapping it.

“This is the clean deed of conveyance for the Elm Street property, Elena,” Samuel said.