Chapter 13
August 1956 - Montalcino, Italy
As they wound through the rolling hills of the Tuscan countryside under a bright cerulean sky, Caterina was curiously drawn to the mountain vineyards they passed. This was the land of her ancestry. Marisa pressed her palms on the window as they drove, her head bobbing in excitement.
The driver pointed to a high mountaintop. “There’s the village of Montalcino. Your destination is on the northeast slope. At the top is a medieval fortress. The first walls were built in 1361.”
Caterina craned her neck to see it. The imposing stone structure was punctuated with Roman turrets overlooking the verdant valley below.
The driver wheeled into a long gravel driveway, at the end of which stood a large villa built in the Tuscan tradition. The stucco walls w
