“Damn straight, but… It’s different for him. He directs it all to himself, thinking that if he could just be better somehow, the girl of his love wouldn’t have ended up with that fat cat. The more he dwelled on that thought, the more he hung his head and just… couldn’t straighten his spine and look ahead no more.”

Pity colored Deirdre’s eyes.

“Money is the Devil, ain’t it? You can do whatever you like when you’re rich, but live by your shoestrings if you don’t have ‘em.”

Mrs. Cox continued.