Grandma was still asleep when I finally realized the hour, so I decided to get a couple hours of sleep myself before getting up and preparing breakfast for the both of us. I really would have to pick up quite a bit when I went to the market. There was some fruit left that oddly enough was still edible. A neighbor must have brought it right before I arrived.

After setting out the plates, I walked to my grandmother's bedroom, where she had only gotten dressed. "Sorry, Nonna. Did I wake you?"

I helped her into the kitchen, where we sat and began to eat. "You're going to meet that kind lady today, are you?"

"Yes, Nonna. She wanted me to come by to pick up a few things. I shouldn't be gone long, but Signora Bellini will be by later to check in on you. You remember her from the clinic, don't you?"

"Oh, yes. Such a nice woman."

"That's right, Nonna. She'll be looking after you while I'm away. Signora Schiavone moved to Florence last week with her new husband, so she won't be seeing you any longer."

My grandmother looked at me for a moment in confusion before remembering. "Paulo. Yes, I remember him. She brought him by. Such a sweet boy."

Once we finished eating, I cleaned the table and helped set my grandmother up in the front room, where she found contentment reading an old newspaper, for some reason, a favorite past time. I then went back down the hall and changed into some different clothes before brushing my teeth and going through the motions of preparing myself for the day. When I re-entered the front room, grandma had already closed her eyes.

I gently kissed her on the forehead. "I'll see you later, Nonna." She murmured an agreement, and I left the house.

Instead of driving, given Volterra's very narrow roads, I grabbed my cousin's old bike that she left when she went away to school and rode towards the city center. This form of transportation did not take as long as traffic was already slow from drivers coming into and leaving for work. When I did get to the commune, I parked the bike on the side and locked it up before entering the main door in the center of the piazza.

The Palazzo Dei Priori had been the city hall of Volterra for centuries. I remembered it from when I was a child. My grandfather often brought me by, but I was told I could never go wandering off. He didn't want anything bad to happen to me if I'd get lost. I told him I was a big girl and could find my way back. I was quite a curious child and wanted to explore, but I promised him that I would never go past the main lobby to the elevators or into the second wing, which was accessible only outside of his office.

I followed the directions I was given and walked down the hall into the main lobby, where a woman was sitting at her desk, ready to offer answers to any questions a visitor may have. This was also the site for marriage registrations and sometimes weddings. Most offices had moved to the other building in the piazza some decades ago, but this building had remained for the counsel and Office of Mayor.

The woman asked what I was looking for, so I told her. "Buongiorno. I'm Lia, Piero's granddaughter. I was supposed to meet Chelsea here to pick up the rest of his things from his office."

"Of course. Let me call her."

The secretary picked up the phone and spoke only for a moment, a quick page I supposed to wherever Chelsea worked. I heard the elevator doors open from down the hall, and Chelsea eventually appeared in that direction.

"Thank you for coming. If you follow me, I can walk you through what was left."

I smiled at her politely and did as I was told. Her appearance was unbelievably stunning. She could have been a model for all I knew. The thing that stood out the most was the fact that she must not get much sun. Her skin was as pale as an albino and seemed to glow in the light from the ceiling. She walked gracefully, almost like she was floating, and I admired her for it. Knowing my grandfather, I was sure he had put on his charm with her on more than one occasion. The whole family knew how flirtatious he could be when he wanted, all in good humor, of course, and with respect.

We walked into his old office, and I immediately was flooded with memories. Not much had changed besides the bookshelves, which were now mostly cleared. The desk looked exactly as it always had, trinkets, photographs, and all. Even the computer had yet to be updated, which was slightly depressing.

"I also have your grandfather's will. He kept it locked in his desk. It has already been filed with an attorney, and one should be contacting you soon. It looks as if Piero left you just about everything he owned."

"What?" This was immediately a shock. Why would Nonno do that? Why leave it to me? How did he know I would come? I knew about the falling out with most of the rest of the family. Some cousins never appeared. My father was an only child, but why me? Should it not go to his son?

"He talked about you quite often. He said you were his joy in life."

That sounded like something Nonno would say, but the news was still stunning. What was I supposed to do with all of this? That would mean that Nonna's home would be transferred to my name eventually as well. I looked over the copy of the will that Chelsea had removed. At least that was the only major thing on the list. Most other listed items were books and his savings, which I would use to keep the bills paid, and I always loved his old books, even if I didn't necessarily like reading historical accounts. The books held many memories.

"Thank you for this, although I'm not sure yet what I plan to do with it. He left me his house." I shook my head in slight disbelief. "Nonna isn't in great health anyway, so he must have seen this coming. I suppose I'll be on my way out then." I grabbed the last few items from his desk, which I placed in a small box that had been provided, and Chelsea led me back down the hall to the lobby.

"How much longer do you plan to stay in Volterra?"

"I'm not sure. I'll be with Nonna until, well, until she no longer needs me. I actually thought about staying here," I said with a shrug. "I was born here, and I miss it. I don't think my parents will care too much. I'll already have a place to stay, and I still know a few of the locals to find a job later on."

"It is a lovely city," Chelsea answered. "Perhaps we'll meet again someday."

After she spoke, she continued down the hall back from whence she came. I said my goodbyes to the secretary I spoke to previously before heading back out to the piazza. The square was now full of people. As I was walking towards where I had locked up the bike, I bumped into someone. I quickly apologized before noticing his face. "Emilio."

"Lia! It's good to see you again. I thought you'd be taking off after the funeral," He replied.

"Nonna will need me for a while, so I'll be around. I'm thinking of actually moving back, now that I can."

"That's good to hear. We should catch up sometime."

Emilio had been a good friend growing up, more than a good friend. He was my protector, proclaiming himself to be my boyfriend when I was only five years old and he was eight. He never let me out of his sight. When we moved, he was the one person besides my grandparents that I missed the most. We had stayed in contact over the years by letter and eventually by email when the internet became more available, but in the last few, as he went off to college, we lost contact. It had been twelve years since I had seen him in person.

"Yes, absolutely. You should stop by sometime and say hello to Nonna."

"I'll be heading back to Siena tomorrow, but perhaps the next time I'm in town. We could have dinner or something."

I smiled at him, excited that he was reappearing in my life. Although I had never considered him a boyfriend as he considered me his girlfriend, I definitely could picture him as that now. He had grown tall and ever so handsome. His dark hair was messy, the new look all the young men seemed to have nowadays, his big, brown eyes ever so alluring. I began to wonder if he was already dating someone.

"I would love that."

He winked. "Excellent. It's a date."

The whole ride back to my grandmother's, I chided myself for such thoughts. We had only just begun to reacquaint. We shouldn't push anything too soon. Besides, did I really have time for a relationship right now? Nothing else was going on in my life, so perhaps I did. At least that's what I thought.

The next morning when I went to the market, everything changed.