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Tristan looked at Julia and said, “Babe, this place is awesome! The renovated kitchen has a wine fridge, and the living room has an amazing view of the Golden Gate Bridge.”
Julia’s eyes lit up, but she asked, “What’s the catch?”
The guys shook their heads, and Tristan said, “There isn’t any.”
“There’s got to be something. I mean, it’s out of our budget, right?” Julia asked, pressing to see if there was a loophole.
“No, it’s not. It’s exactly the same rent as my current apartment,” Tristan said.
At his response, Julia looked even more suspicious and said, “But, it’ll probably increase every six months.” She let out an exasperated sigh at the high cost of living in the Bay Area.
“That’s the best part,” Tristan said, grinning broadly. “It’s a rent-controlled apartment!”
“And, can we bring Grumpy?” Julia asked cautiously, not wanting to believe their luck.
“Yes, the building is pet-friendly. However, we need to sign the lease as soon as we can because a beautifully renovated apartment like this with a view—and not to mention that it’s rent-controlled—won’t stay on the market for long.”
“Let’s do it!” Julia said and threw her arms around Tristan. I was happy that they found a great place, but I was sad that I would be losing my furry roommate soon. I had gotten used to his presence around the apartment. Whether it was sleeping on the couch or following me from room to room, it would feel weird to have Julia’s apartment to myself.
While Tristan and Julia were celebrating their lucky find, a yawn escaped from my tired body. “I could use an afternoon coffee,” I said, rolling my shoulders. The lack of sleep was catching up to me, and the disturbing morning drained my caffeine reserve.
“There’s a great coffee shop a few blocks from here. It’ll only take a few minutes to walk there,” Will said and pointed in the direction of the shop.
“Great! I could use the fresh air,” I said and gestured for him to show us the way.
“So, what did you guys find at Annisa’s apartment?” Tristan asked, deflating his wife’s sunny demeanor.
“You won’t believe what Claire and I found,” Julia said, grabbing onto Tristan’s arm for emphasis.
She retold Tristan and Will about the designer goods and the scuba diving equipment we found in the two closets. Tristan seemed shocked by the news, but Will’s face tightened up.
“What’s wrong?” I asked him when neither Julia nor Tristan saw Will’s expression change.
He didn’t answer me. Instead, he faced his friends. This time, Julia and Tristan saw Will’s serious expression.
“What’s going on?” Tristan asked.
Julia asked, “Is it something I said?”
He sighed. “I don’t want to formally question you. If I did that, I would have to bring you into the office.”
“Hey, man, which one of us are you talking to?” Tristan’s face darkened.
Will jerked his head toward Julia.
“I would like you to answer some questions,” he said with a sharp but professional tone.
Tristan looked taken back at his friend’s change in demeanor and said, “This isn’t cool!” Why does my wife need to answer some questions?”
Will realized that his tone was brusque, so he said more gently, “I don’t mean to scare you, but my office is working on a case of stolen black-market goods. I think you guys stumbled onto some of those items.”
We stopped walking and spun around to look at Will. He might as well have said that aliens were going to invade San Francisco, and we had twenty-four hours to leave the city.
Chapter Twenty
Will looked at our stunned faces and said, “Let’s get our coffee, and I’ll explain.” By now, we had reached the coffee shop, and he was looking at the people sitting around the small wrought iron tables.
Although they were engrossed in their own conversations, I got his message and said, “Good idea.”
