"Since he left, I've been paying off the mortgage; and since we never officially divorced, and he skipped town, I've also been paying off some of the debts that he had. That, and Dinky's schooling... well, that's why I'm always working. We barely break even each month. I'm... terrified, because if I so much as get hurt seriously, once, we're... done for. I can't afford that. Not the time, not the Bits. And Dinky doesn't deserve that." She continues, her voice quieter than before, trembling as she explains herself to me, opening her worries.