After some rummaging, the clerk explained that he was out of small cups.

That clerk and a co-worker would not explain why they considered the matter so funny.

"They gave him the back room," explained the clerk.

"It's why we didn't simply send it to your ship, Commander," the clerk explained.

"It's supposed to be a red, white and blue thing," an apologetic clerk explained.

But that, the clerk explained, was simply "a good start."

The clerk explained what he knew, which wasn't much.

"Something to do with the way an Engine handles messages," the clerk was explaining.

Unfortunately, the clerk didn't explain this part of the process until I showed up at the store the next day.

A clerk at the county courthouse in Annapolis explained why: the entire record is sealed.