Emily finds Chess in the kitchen listening to a playlist she had made for a 20^th anniversary party of their friendship. Emily reminds Chess there was no party, and they discuss what was going on in their lives at that time and how it interfered with their friendship. Emily had written two of her mysteries around that time. Her husband Matt had been strongly expressing his desire to have children. Chess’s two books—Things My Mama Never Taught Me and The Powered Path—had made her famous, and she appeared on Oprah’s talk show. Emily remembers that Matt had not warmed up to Chess right away, appearing annoyed with her at their wedding reception.

While they reminisce, Chess heats up food cooked by Giulia, a local resident of Orvieto who comes in to help at the Villa. Giulia is a relative of the helper who worked at the house during the summer of 1974 when Pierce was killed. After they eat, Chess and Emily move to a smaller parlor, where the gothic-like atmosphere of the house becomes apparent. They look at a copy of Aestas, the album Lara wrote at the villa, and the source of the villa’s new name (since that summer).