The object was hard and narrow. Long like a tube. Plastic or metal, she could not immediately tell. She pulled her hand back and stood up.
She woke Mia gently and asked her to come sit in the living room.
Then Julia lifted the corner of the mattress fully.
Wedged between the mattress and the wooden frame was a narrow black plastic tube. Running from it was a thin cable that traveled down the side of the bed toward the floor, hidden against the bed leg where no one would notice it during a casual glance.
At the end of that cable was a small electronic recording device.
It had been taped to the underside of the bed frame.
Julia called the police.
Two officers arrived within thirty minutes. One carefully removed the device while the other began asking questions. Standard questions at first. Did Julia know anyone who might have access to the home without permission? Had anything seemed unusual in recent weeks?
Julia shook her head. She could not think of anyone.
