She glanced away, resettling herself. This was the last thing she wanted to talk about. “Bad luck?” he repeated, but in a tone that shouted disbelief. “Really bad. One disaster after another.” He blinked and said, “Hit me with it.” She smiled despite herself. At least he could make her laugh. “Okay, medical school cost me a lot. Like, a couple hundred thousand. I borrowed most of it from the bank, but my parents had money saved up, so they contributed, too. I was working in Chicago and paying it off fairly quickly. Things were good until the car accident.” She took a breath and braced herself mentally. Her next words composed a simple sentence that was never easy to say. “My parents were killed and my brother was severely injured.” Alex sipped his tea before asking, “Did they have insurance?” “Enough to cover the funeral costs and about a couple of weeks’ worth of my brother’s medical bills.”
