Page 15 of No Stone Unturned

I crossed my arms defensively against my chest. “Well, I had to do something.”

She kept looking at me, so a confession came tumbling out. “I miss Slash.”

“Oh, honey.” Basia came in, closed the door behind her. “Finn told me that Slash took off for Rome yesterday. I figured you could use some girl time, but I also wanted to share some good news with you.” She held up a bottle of wine.

Good news could mean anything to Basia. It could mean she’d found a fantastic pair of shoes on sale, the neighborhood café was serving triple espresso shot soy lattes or she’d got a raise. It was hard to anticipate. “What kind of good news?”

She hopped on her feet in excitement. “I’ve been dying to tell you. Xavier and I found a house. We put an offer on it, and this afternoon, it was accepted.”

That was pretty exciting news. “Really? Congratulations.”

“Thanks. Now ask me where the house is located.”

“Where’s it located?”

“Three blocks from here.” She clutched my arm and gave a little squeal. “We can walk to each other’s house. Isn’t that awesome?”

Wait, what?She and Xavier bought a home near ours?

“Your house is inourneighborhood?” I asked.

“Yes.” She beamed. “Xavier and I love this area so much, and we had the same issues you and Slash have with commuting. Now we’re neighbors.”

I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. On the one hand, I adored Basia and often needed her advice on things ranging from languages (of which she spoke several), to relationships to fashion. On the other hand, I wasn’t sure what it meant in terms of how many times a month/week/day/hour she’d be at my house. I already saw her every day at work. Now I’d have to run some calculations on a spreadsheet to determine how I should feel. For now, I decided to express cautious optimism.

“That’s definitely exciting, Basia.”

She hugged me. “I’m totally stoked. It’s a brand-new chapter in our lives, right?”

“Right.” After I reset the alarm, we went into the kitchen. I removed the cork and poured the wine while Basia grabbed some crackers and a block of cheese. We took everything into the living room and sat on the black leather couch.

“Here’s to being practically roommates again.” Basia lifted her wineglass. “Isn’t it funny how life comes full circle?”

Itwasinteresting and perhaps statistically significant that we had remained in such close proximity over the past several years. I raised my glass and offered a toast. “Here’s to being neighbors.”

We sipped our wine before Basia shifted on the couch, pulling her legs up beneath her. “Do you want to talk? Can you tell me why Slash dashed off so unexpectedly to Italy? Did it have anything to do with the fireworks at the party?”

“Partially.” I gave her a quick rundown of the entire situation, including my hack into the shipping company and my hopes I could trace the package back to the sender in Rome.

Her eyes widened. “Do you still have the statue? Can I see it?”

“I do.” I retrieved it from the box Slash had left on our entry table, then handed it to Basia who cradled it gingerly.

“Wow. That’s crazy scary. Why are there all these nails stuck in it?”

I gave her the rundown on the evil spirits and oath enforcement thing. She set it down carefully on the coffee table. “What does a statue from the Congo have to do with Italy and Slash?”

“I have no idea.”

She picked up her wineglass and took a sip while studying the statue. “But he obviously did. That statue worried him enough to return to Rome.”

“I know. Do you think that it’s symbolic of something?”

“Possibly. It’s an angle to explore. Has Slash ever been to the Congo?”

“I don’t know.” I stopped, looked at her in surprise. “Wait. Are you encouraging me to dig into this?”

She waved a hand. “Of course I’m encouraging you. Do I know you or do I know you? Why suggest prudence or caution when I know you’ll never act that way? So, I might as well offer to help.”

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