“I asked you where I’m sleeping tonight,” I said.

Richard turned to face me, his face hardening into the set line he used to run school board meetings.

“You can set up your gear down in the unfinished basement for now,” Richard said.

“Or you can drive back to Maryland and stay in the barracks at Fort Meade until your next deployment orders come in.”

“The unfinished basement?” I repeated.

“The concrete side by the furnace is bone dry,” Richard said, tapping his signet ring against the metal back of the patio chair.