I spent $480,000 building my parents a mountain ho…

.

“That won’t be necessary.”

The agent didn’t look at him. “I think it might be.”

He stepped to one side of the porch, thumb moving over the screen. In the yard, the wind stirred the sign once, brochure box tapping lightly against the post like a knuckle on glass.

I knew that sound. I had picked that exact sign hardware because it looked better in mountain developments than the cheap plastic frames most agencies used. That was the first insult, really.

Not that they were selling the house. That they were selling it with good staging. The agent loaded the county parcel summary, then the deed image.

His expression changed in increments. First concentration. Then confusion.