Page 111 of The Unraveling of Julia

Julia realized that Courtney was checking the car for cameras, which made sense given the cameras in the house. Julia should’ve thought of it herself, but she’d been too preoccupied. Courtney motioned to her to keep talking, but Julia got a better idea.

“Court, I have to use the bathroom. I’m going back inside.”

“No problem.” Courtney finished the dashboard and started running her fingers along the seam at the roof.

Julia got out of the car, closed the door, and went to the back of the car to see if it had a tracker. She felt underneath the bumper, starting on the right and moving to the middle. She didn’t feel anything. She kept going to the driver’s side.

There.Julia felt something hard and plastic. She slid her phone out of her jeans, tucked it underneath the bumper, and took a few pictures. She pulled the phone out and checked the photos.

Damn.There was a black plastic square under the bumper, and it looked new.

Courtney got out of the car, closed the door, and came toward her with a frown. “I found a microphone near the visor. A bug, not a camera.”

Julia held up the picture. “Is this a tracker?”

Courtney nodded. “Fuck these guys.”

“My thoughts exactly.” Julia’s mind raced. “The tracker is newand that means it was put in recently. In other words, Rossi didn’t do this. My guess is the bug in the car and the cameras in the house were installed by the conspiracy. We know Anna Mattia and Piero would’ve let them in.”

Courtney pursed her lips. “So we can’t talk in the car anymore.”

“Right, and we can’t talk in the house, either. How will we live if we can’t talk? We’re us.”

Courtney smiled. “Did you just joke about a life-and-death situation?”

Julia smiled back. “I think so.”

“You’re not afraid?”

“Oh, I’m afraid, but I’m not stopping.” Julia felt a new determination, deep inside. “I didn’t come this far just to come this far.”

Courtney grinned. “That’s my girl! You’re back, baby!”

Julia burst into laughter, hugging her. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. Hey, it’s lunchtime, isn’t it? I’m hungry.”

“Me, too. Let’s go eat our feelings.”

“With fries.”

“I don’t think they have fries in Tuscany.”

“They better. You know what I miss?”

“Paul?”

“No, ketchup.”

61

Julia and Courtney followed a cobblestone walkway lined with charming stone rowhouses with shutters in dark green, light blue, and mauve. Magenta bougainvillea climbed their facades, and fragrant wisteria dripped from wrought iron balconies.

Courtney began taking pictures. “I want a garden.”

“Me, too.”

“You have a vineyard.”