Ava opened her eyes to the thick darkness of her bedroom. She couldn’t move her head, her arms, her legs, nothing. Her body was completely still, locked in place, except for her eyes, which she could move with effort. She squeezed them shut, then opened them again, as if trying to wake up from a nightmare. But no matter how hard she tried, her body remained paralyzed, as if trapped in an invisible slab of cement.

  She could breathe, but it was shallow, labored. Panic crept into her chest, but she fought it down. She closed her eyes again, willing herself to drift back into sleep, hoping that if she could just fall asleep, she would wake up from this torturous state.

  Then she heard it, a voice, distant but unmistakable. Her grandmother's voice, low and soothing, drifting through the darkness:

  “Do not fear the Ghull, my dear. Do not fear. Touch the soil, my dear.”

  It was early morning when Ava opened her eyes again. Her consciousness needed a few seconds to realize she was back in Paso Robles. The cozy feeling of her bed didn’t give her any relieve from the dream she saw last light. It was not even a dream. It was more like a sleep paralysis while she heard her grandma’s voice.

  The box that Grandma had given her called for Ava’s attention from its spot in the storage beneath the stairs. Ava felt an urge to see the old pictures of grandma and her father. Strange that she travelled so close to where they had been buried, but didn’t even think of visiting their cemetery. The small village once she lived as a child was probably much bigger after more than twenty years. It might have taken Ava days to find her grandmother's and father's burial site, but she could at least try, if not for her father, then for her grandmother who still visited Ava in her dreams.

  Ava took out the green box decorated with red poppies. She gently held and looked at the photos. She realized she really looks like grandma as she gets older. Maybe a little bit of her father’s eyes and mother’s nose. As she looked at the photos her loneliness surrounded her like the dust in the air. She was all alone after her mother passed away. She had no siblings or cousins. She wished she didn’t take out the old box, wanted to put it back but it was too late. She remembered grandma saying, “touch the soil when you feel lost.” She dug her hand in the soil in the bag. It felt relaxing like walking barefoot on the grass. She always liked the touch of nature on her skin. Her hand suddenly felt something buried in the soil. She dug and took out a wood matchstick. Its head was almost totally worn out. Ava remembered she needed three matches to summon the Ghull. She dug for more matches in the soil, and she took out two more match sticks.

  Her heart was racing. She felt protected, as if Grandma were watching over her, but at the same time, she was scared. She placed the matches between her thumbs and index fingers, feeling like a seven-year-old again, unaware of what the future would bring.

  “Ghull, are you here?” she asked, her voice trembling and her tears streaming down her cheeks. She barely saw the matches move inward to indicate a 'yes.' She could feel the movement of the matches between her fingers.

  “Oh my God! Am I going to die alone?" she asked, her voice louder, her tears ending in fear. The matches moved outward to indicate a 'no.' Ava took deep breaths, trying her best to keep the matches steady between her trembling fingers.

  “Should I fear you?” she asked remembering her grandma’s voice in her dream. The matches moved inward to a ‘no.’

  “Am I going to see Alessandro again?” Ava was expecting a ‘no,’ but the matches moved inward again.

  “Is he good for me?” The matches quickly moved to a ‘yes.’ Ava’s eyes opened wide open, and a surge of confidence crept into her heart, like a child who had just been praised for a job well done.

  "Can I see you?" she asked her heart pounding. The matches moved to a 'yes.'

  That was too much! Why would she ask such a thing? Ava dropped the matches from her hand and ran out of the house in fear, rushing to the veranda. She could hear the winery employees opening the shop to prepare for the weekly bottle deliveries. She ran to the shop in her pajamas and slippers, her hair messy and all in different directions as if they’ve just seen a ghost.

  "Ava! Hi, good morning! We weren't expecting to see you yet. How was Italy?" asked Victoria in her cheerful, morning-person voice. She took a closer look at Ava's face as she approached and asked, "Are you okay?"

  "Hi... hi, Viki! Yeah, sure, I’m fine. Good morning, ah, ah, ah, great to see you actually! I just arrived yesterday, so I’m still jet-lagged," said Ava, trying to act normal. "Listen, I saw a snake in the house. Can someone help me?"

  Oh no! Not again. How big was it? Did you see its colors?"

  "No, no, it wasn't really big, probably a juvenile gopher snake. But it would be great if someone could look around, though."

  "Yes, sure. Let me see if Jake is around. He's great with critters.

  As Ava was cooling down, Victoria found Jake, who was working weekends at the winery. He was an exceptionally talented and hardworking college student.

  “Hi, Jake, thanks for helping out.”

  “Sure, Ms. L’Ambert.”

  “Call me Ava.”

  “Ava, how big was the snake again?”

  “Not that big. Just have a look around and see if you can find it. No worries if you can’t.”

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  “Let’s see,” said Jake, his eyes scanning the floor as he entered the house.

  Ava walked in after Jake and cleared the photos and soil bag from the table. She looked around for anything unusual. She was relieved to have someone else in the house, even if only for a few minutes. She went to the kitchen to make coffee, waiting five minutes for it to brew. She missed her good old filtered coffee. Afterward, she poured two cups, one for herself and one for Jake. Poor Jake was still searching for a snake that didn’t even exist. It was just a lie Ava made up just to have someone around her in the house for a while. Then, Ava heard Jake yelling:

  “I found it, Ms. L’Ambert! I found it!”

  “What?”

  “I found the snake! Oh, look, it’s really a juvenile gopher.”

  Ava stood in the kitchen for a moment, her hands holding the coffee cups. It was possible that there had been a snake in the house all along, after days of sitting empty. They might even find another one if they kept looking. Ava wasn’t afraid of snakes. They were the misunderstood, beautiful creatures of Mother Nature.

  She set down the coffee cups and walked to the living room. Jake was holding a twenty-inch-long, harmless gopher snake.

  “Should I take it to the bushes out back?” Jake asked.

  “Yes, please. Thank you, Jake,” Ava said.

  She went back to the kitchen for her coffee and drank both cups. The first one black, and the second with some milk and sugar.

  Ava didn’t want to think about anything further that morning. All she wanted was to return to her life as she knew it. It was too early to show up at the restaurant. A better plan for a Saturday morning would be to ride her horse. She could chat with the familiar faces at the barn and have a relaxing time grooming Collins. She slipped into her riding pants and pulled on her boots. Just as she was heading out, her phone rang. It was Logan calling and Ava was determined not to cause any more drama around her.

  “Surprise, surprise!” Ava cheered, acting a little more forcefully than usual to sound normal.

  “You little escape artist!” Logan yelled. “Who are you and what did you do with my sweet Ava?”

  “Missed you too, Logan,” Ava said.

  “When were you planning to let me know you were back?”

  “Honestly, I was taking my time thinking about what lies I should tell you instead of the shitshow of the last couple of days.”

  “Oh, you’ll tell me everything about that shitshow, sweetie! Coffee, right now!”

  “Can we meet for lunch at L’Uva?”

  “You’re going to see Collins, aren’t you?” Logan asked. “All right, all right, go see him. I’ll see you at lunch. Don’t be late and relax! Nobody gets judged in our restaurant!”

  “Thank you, I’ll see you!”

  Seriously, Ava had no idea if she wanted to tell Logan the details of her adventure. She already knew about the Italian stallion, but the rest of it was sort of unbelievable and hard to explain.

  Collins was happy to see Ava. He devoured the carrot in her hand and did his happy dance, shaking his head.

  “You’re the only boy I need in my life, Collins. Yes, you are! Yes, you are!” Ava spoke to her horse. “I promise I’ll see you more often.”

  After her ride, Ava felt much better and headed home to clean up and get ready for lunch. She took a shower, struggling to keep her eyes open, and got dressed as quickly as possible. The uncomfortable feeling of being watched still lingered in the depths of her thoughts.

  Logan was waiting for her at L’Uva. She gave Ava a tight hug.

  “Welcome home, sweetie! Missed avocado?”

  “I’d kill for some guacamole, chips, and a spicy margarita!” Ava said, craving some Mexican comfort food.

  “Let’s spice it up!” Logan grinned. “I’ve got great news for you, but you go first, tell me what you’ve been up to.”

  “The wine academy was amazing, much better than I expected. You know who I met?”

  “Let’s skip to the good part,” Logan interrupted. “I know all about the wine academy. We talked every day, and then you disappeared on the last day.”

  “I know. I’m sorry if I caused you any trouble.”

  “What? No, relax. Everything is the same here. Tell me all about it, starting from the last day. Who is he? How did you meet?”

  “Are you sure you want to hear about him?” Ava hesitated to talk about her love life with Logan.

  “You don’t have to tell me all the details. I don’t want to hear about his dolce banana!” Logan laughed and reached for her margarita, her shiny, long nails gleaming in the light.

  Ava sensed something different about Logan. She seemed more relaxed and confident now. The invisible shadow of the notorious, unreturned kiss between them seemed to have finally faded away after all those years.

  “We met at a gallery, we talked, we spent the night together at his place, and that should be all. A one-night glam, just as agreed. The next day, I went to the airport to come home. I even checked in for my flight. And boom! There he was at the airport. I don’t know how he does it, but he’s like on and off. There he was, begging like a Romeo.”

  “And he just picked you up from the airport to go to Cappadocia with him?”

  “Yes, I know it wasn’t smart, but I accepted,” Ava said. “And it was great in Cappadocia. The place itself is magical, a fairy tale landscape.”

  “Well, don’t do that again. But why didn’t you stay longer?” Logan asked.

  “That’s the problem. He’s on and off. He’s a Romeo one minute, then a dark shadow takes over, like he regrets everything,” Ava said.

  “Commitment issues!” Logan stated confidently.

  “Probably,” Ava said. “He doesn’t want anything tying him down. He travels, a free spirit, does whatever he wants. There’s a dark side to him I can’t explain.”

  “And that makes him even more attractive. The one who runs away is always chased.”

  “I didn’t chase him,” Ava said. “Not even a step. He was always the one leading the way. Maybe that’s what I did wrong. I was too submissive and didn’t do anything to make things work.”

  “You barely know the guy. What more could you have done?” Logan asked.

  “I don’t know. There’s no point in thinking about it anymore,” Ava said. “Tell me about you! I see a different sparkle in your eyes. You said you have good news.”

  “Well, yes. You know my father was here with investors last week. They’re from a private investment firm, and they want to invest in our business. We’ll be seeing them more often over the next couple of months. ‘L’uva’ could expand to Los Angeles and New York.”

  “Oh my gosh! Logan, that is... that is...” Ava stammered. “I don’t know what to say.”

  “Just don’t say anything right now. We have time to think about it. We don’t have to do anything we don’t want to.”

  “I think I need some time to think.”

  “Yeah, sure. I’m sorry I bombarded you. I’ll tell you about the sweet stuff now.”

  “What sweet stuff?”

  “I met someone.”

  “I knew it!” Ava cheered. “Tell me all about it!”

  Ava got home late, as she always did on a busy Saturday night. She could barely stay awake; her jetlag was hitting her hard. Before going to bed, she sent a voice message to Alessandro.

  “I can walk into your darkness. I’m not afraid…” she said.