Helen Russo’s House

Helen lives in an opulent, well-appointed house. Julia and Helen spend most of their time together here while they are friends. Helen has multiple sons, and one of them, Nathaniel, still lives at home. It is on the Russo estate that Julia meets Nathaniel and has a sexual relationship with him. Julia is away from the house for many years because of her agreement with Mark, but she returns on the day of Ben’s wedding. She notices dust has settled now that there are fewer people around. She also learns that Helen is selling the house to move into assisted living.

Chicago

Julia grows up in Chicago with her mother, Anita. Julia leaves the state to go away to college. She does this to get away from her mother. She eventually returns and meets Mark in the South Loop when she is short on...