Page 37 of The Unraveling of Julia

Just then her phone pinged with a text. It was from Piero.

OK?Piero texted.

Yes, she texted back, then sent him the name of the library.

15, Piero texted, which she assumed meant fifteen minutes.

Gianluca emerged with glasses of lemonade, setting one in front of her and sitting opposite. “Here we go.”

“Thank you.” Julia took a sip, which tasted great. “Delicious.”

“Good. So perhaps Florentines who follow a beautiful woman can be forgotten. I hope your husband would agree with me.”

Julia paused. “My husband… passed away.”

Gianluca grimaced. “Oh no, I’m so sorry. Please, forgive my rudeness.”

“It wasn’t rude, it’s okay.” Julia realized it was because of her rings, but didn’t know when she’d ever take them off.

“Are you in Florence alone then?”

“Yes.”

“How long for?”

“A week or so.”

“On business?”

“No.” Julia wasn’t sure how much to tell him. “Long story short, I’ve inherited some property.”

“Where?”

“Outside of Croce.”

“A small village, very pretty. But I’m sorry about your loss.”

“Oh, thank you.” Julia realized he meant whoever had left her the inheritance, but she decided to be honest. Talking with him felt familiar because he sounded American, and she could use a friend. “Weirdly, I don’t know if I’m related to the woman I inherited from because I’m adopted. I have to figure it out.”

Gianluca lifted a dark eyebrow. “That’s mysterious.”

“I met with an investigator to do a family search, but I need to find a better one.”

“I can help.”

“How?” Julia asked, surprised. “Do you have a directory or something?”

“Librarianship is about information, not books.” Gianluca slid his phone from his pocket and started thumbing. “Tell me about your benefactor.”

“Well, her name was Emilia Rossi and she claimed to be a descendant of Caterina Sforza.”

“Amazing!” Gianluca’s eyes flared as he scrolled. “Caterina’s one of my favorite characters in history.”

“You know about her?”

“Of course. She’s a rock star.” Gianluca spoke without looking up, typing into his phone. “Caterina was called avirago, which means a ‘churlish woman.’ Bold, brave, but ungovernable. She was the only woman ruler during the Renaissance, and very beautiful. The Borgias tried to kill her, so did the Medicis. Men were crazy for her when they weren’t trying to conquer her.” Gianluca smiled crookedly. “Some things never change, eh?”

Julia smiled, liking his sense of humor.

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