“I understand,” Graham replied softly. “I just... thought you should know.”
Aida nodded, though she knew he couldn’t see her. The line was silent for a moment before she found her voice again. “Take care, Graham.”
“Of course,” he replied. “Take care of yourself.”
Aida ended the call and sat in stunned silence, the phone slipping from her hand onto the desk. Her mind swirled with disbelief, memories of Erin flashing in and out of focus. In a sudden burst of frustration, she grabbed the phone and hurled it across the room. It hit the bookcase with a dull thud, knocking several books to the floor.
Moments later, Pippa appeared in the doorway. “Aida, what happened?”
Aida didn’t look up, her body trembling as the tears came. Then Pippa was by her side, arms wrapped around her, holding her tightly. Somewhere amid her anger and grief, she understood that Pippa had waved off Ilario and Dante, and maybeeven Trista, who had surely also come to see what had happened. The sous-chef held her until she soothed.
Erin’s death wasn’t just the loss of a friend—it was the end of a chapter, a piece of her past she hadn’t truly confronted. Erin had taken so much with her. The friendship and happy childhood memories. The relationship with Graham that Aida had thought was unshakable, destroyed by someone she had trusted.
For what?Aida thought bitterly, her chest tightening again. For a fling? A brief moment of selfishness?
She had loved Erin. Hated her. She wasn’t sure which was more painful now.
The following morning, she met up with Yumi at the Torre Argentina Cat Sanctuary, an open-air archaeological site in the city center, not far from the Roman Ghetto. It was a place Aida hoped she’d never have to catalog because she loved coming to spot the cats that lived among the ruins of the Largo di Torre Argentina, where Julius Caesar had been murdered two thousand years before. As Aida began to tell her friend about Erin, it wasn’t long before she was sobbing, and Yumi broke the two-meter distance rule to fold Aida into her arms.
Yumi held her tight, letting Aida wet the wool collar of her coat. After several long minutes, Aida pulled away, wiping at her eyes. She began to fumble in her coat pocket for a new mask to replace the wet one on her face. Before either of them could speak, a sharp voice cut through the quiet of the archaeological site.
“Signore!Distanza!Manteneteladistanza!” A carabiniere was walking in their direction. He pointed sternly at them, his gloved hand gesturing to the two-meter rule. Aida and Yumi immediately took a step apart, guilt and tension written across their faces as they nodded in apology. The officer glared at them for a moment longer before moving on.
Yumi sighed, her breath still heavy with the weight of Aida’s grief. “Well, at least we’re still following some rules,” she muttered under her breath.
Aida leaned against the railing, her gaze following a sleek calico cat as it stretched and padded away across the ruins. The reprieve gave her a moment to steady herself, but her mind was still reeling. “I can’t stop thinking about what Fran said.” Aida’s voice was tight. “About consequences for our actions—almost like a warning.”
Yumi knitted her brow, waiting for her to continue.
Aida’s fingers gripped the railing as if to anchor herself. “Do you think...” She hesitated, swallowing hard. “Do you think MODA had anything to do with Erin’s death?”
“I wouldn’t put it past them. They destroyed the Colosseum, after all. How many people died in that event?”
“But lots of people have caught the virus... maybe...”
Yumi shook her head. “Um, Aida, the virus was their fault.”
Aida sighed. “Yeah. Plus, it’s just... the timing, everything. Erin suddenly came back into my life right before I moved here and then she hooked up with Graham...” She could hardly say his name aloud without the anger returning, fresh and burning.
Yumi’s expression darkened, her mind clearly racing to the same conclusions. “Maybe they pushed you toward Rome. Maybe MODA orchestrated the whole thing—bringing Erin back, forcing your decision. And knowing your emotions were all twisted up about her and Graham, it was a fitting punishment to get rid of her.”
A chill ran through Aida. The idea that she was a pawn in MODA’s grand scheme made her feel trapped, like her every move had been orchestrated. It wasn’t just Erin’s death haunting her now—it was the thought that nothing in her life had truly been hers.
“We have to find Effie,” she said for the hundredth time. “We have to.”
“We will, Aida. We will.”
Aida hoped so, because even with Sophie’s aegis, she didn’t know how she could stand in front of Fran again for another quarterly meeting.
27
December 2020–January 2021
As Christmas approached, the usual excitement and preparations were noticeably subdued. The vibrant markets and festive decorations that typically adorned the streets were scarce, replaced instead by masked pedestrians hurriedly collecting necessities before returning to the safety of their homes.
Aida was deeply lonely: grieving for Erin; missing Luciano, who was only across the city center yet still so far away; and yearning for the company of Yumi and Felix, who she could no longer meet freely. As the year drew to a close, Aida clung to what little hope she had, her fingers often rubbing the spot where Pandora had kissed her forehead. The world was grappling with an unprecedented crisis, but amid it all were moments of kindness, resilience, and the unyielding human spirit. She clung to the promise of a new year, a fresh start, and the faint yet persistent hope that they would find Euphrosyne and fulfill Pandora’s request, unlocking the happiness the world desperately needed.
On Capodanno—New Year’s Eve—Dante brought up what he said were some of the best wines in the cellar. He set the case on the bar counter and pulled out a bottle. “This one is Trista’s favorite,” he said, waving it in the air.
