Cold rain was falling in thin lines across the asphalt as I stepped out into the chilly air.

Ashley came out onto the concrete landing behind me, holding her phone high over her head.

Ashley walked off with her phone held high, recording me standing by myself.

At 8:30 a.m., Captain Miller opened the thick blue file folder on his metal desk in the base legal assistance office.

“The lien on your mother’s Birch Street house was recorded at the county courthouse on October fourteen,” Miller said, sliding the certified land registry copy across the desk.

I reached down and straightened the top brass button on my service dress jacket.