Julie Chan Is Dead

Julie and Isla explore the island together; it is beautiful and well-maintained, and the staff seem very happy to work there. The island has been owned by Bella Marie’s family, the Melniburgs, for generations. Julie chats with a staff member named Viktor. She also sees a portrait of one of Bella Marie’s ancestors, a man named Nikolai who first began accruing wealth for the family. Nikolai is missing one eye, and Bella Marie alludes to a legend that he traded it for his good fortune to gain wealth and status.

As Julie and Isla settle in, they are torn between enjoying the beautiful setting and feeling trapped. They are both distressed by their lack of internet access since they typically lead such online and documented lives, and Isla is increasingly disgusted by the evidence that Bella Marie’s family likely accumulated their vast wealth by exploiting others, including through enslavement, for generations.

As Julie spends more time with the other influencers, one of them indicates that Chloe sometimes spoke affectionately about Julie and seemed to care about her sister. This is contrary to what Julie thought, but she reflects that she will never know how Chloe truly felt about her.