“And why would you do that, Dean?”

“I just want to be sure you never have to worry about bills again, Clara.”

He reached into his leather coat and took out a long cream-colored envelope.

He didn’t give it to me right away.

He slid it across the linoleum until it bumped my coffee cup.

“Think of it as a gift,” he said.

“Family takes care of family.”

“What’s in the envelope?”