Ava woke up in her bed, disoriented and unsettled. She was in California, but for some reason, she felt an inexplicable expectation to be somewhere else. The endless, meaningless dreams had kept her body on edge all night, leaving her exhausted. Her neck was stiff, and she winced as she turned her head to check the clock on the wall, it was 2 p.m. She wondered what day it was. Sunday, maybe? Or Monday? She’d slept far too long to be sure.

  Her phone was plugged in on the bedside table. She reached for it, noticing 6 missed calls and 3 messages from Logan and Viki.

  She realized something was off, and a wave of confusion washed over her. Then, she remembered Alessandro. He had been there with her, hadn’t he? Or was that just part of the dream? Had she really arrived from Italy yesterday, or had the entire thing been a hallucination, starting with the Ghull and ending with Alessandro? Had she drunk too much? Maybe she’d taken something by mistake? She wanted to stay in bed for a few more minutes, hoping that if she stayed still long enough, the fog in her mind would clear. Alessandro should have been there with her... if he wasn’t just a figment of her imagination.

  Ava got out of bed and wrapped her robe around her naked body. Although her mind was slow to return from the fog of dreamland, her body clearly remembered that Alessandro hadn’t just been with her, he had been around her, in her, on her, all over, the night before. He was probably already downstairs, making breakfast.

  Ava went to the bathroom to look at herself in the mirror. Her eyes were swollen from the long sleep. She decided a shower was the best way to clear her mind before seeing anyone. The slightly cool water helped bring her back to herself. Afterward, she quickly got dressed and left the bedroom. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a glass weight on the bedside table. What was it doing there? There was a piece of paper underneath it. Ava retraced her steps and picked up the letter. It was from Alessandro.

  “Dear Ava,

  I regret to be writing this letter to you. But I must leave.

  Please try to understand. It is the best both for you and for me.

  We belong to different worlds.

  I wish the best for you.

  Sincerely,

  Alessandro.”

  “Sincerely, the fuck?” Ava muttered, sinking onto the bed. If Alessandro had written this letter, this wouldn’t be what it said. So, who wrote it, and why? Her eyes darted around the room, searching for any signs of violence. The house looked tidier than it had the day before. His suitcase was gone, his things had vanished. He had left willingly. But why?

  They would talk and make a new beginning that day. Ava would tell him about the Ghull, and maybe, just maybe, he would tell her more about himself. He had said he was sick. But did he not believe that Ava could help him?

  She poured herself some coffee and nibbled on a piece of cookie, trying to steady her nerves. She decided not to panic and give herself some time to think. She dialed Viki’s number.

  “Hi, Viki!” she greeted.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  “Ava, where are you? Are you all right? I called you this morning,” Viki replied, concern in her voice.

  “Sorry, Viki, I wasn’t feeling well, but I’m all better now, thanks,” Ava said, trying to sound casual.

  “All right, good to hear. Listen, we need you to speak with the vendors and authorize the contracts for this month. When would be the best time for you?”

  “I can come right now. And I’ll need your help with another issue too.”

  “Sure, great! Let’s meet at the office.”

  Office work took longer than Ava had anticipated, but she was glad to have helped get some tasks done at the winery. She wasn’t sure what she would do without Viki around. Both Viki and Logan were keeping her afloat.

  “I remember we installed a security camera around the winery last year. Do you or Jake have access to the footage?” she asked.

  “I do, but to be honest, I haven’t checked anything since that raccoon incident.”

  “I don’t want to take up too much of your time, but could you send me the link and the passwords?”

  “Sure, is something going on?”

  “Not really,” Ava replied. “I thought I heard raccoons messing around with the trash bins again. Just want to make sure.”

  As soon as she got back home, Ava opened the security camera footage and started reviewing the footage from when Alessandro arrived the previous evening. She watched him getting out of the sports car, probably a rental, she thought. Then, she switched to the real-time camera to check if the car was still there. Bingo! He hadn't left driving his own car, someone had picked him up.

  She fast-forwarded the footage through the night, scanning the parking lot. No movement. She switched to another camera and checked again. Still nothing. Ava rewound the footage, starting from an earlier hour. Around 1 p.m., she noticed a glitch, something like a change in the lighting, but there was no movement.

  Then, as she checked the timestamps, she realized something was off. The footage between 1 and 2 p.m. was gone. The video jumped directly from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Someone had deleted a whole hour of the security footage.

  Ava heard the doorbell ring. “Oh no! I forgot to call Logan!”

  She quickly opened the door to find Logan standing there, her face serious and her arms crossed.

  “What the hell is going on, Ava?” Logan said, her tone sharp. “I called you five times. Are you sick?”

  “I’m so sorry, Logan,” Ava replied, her voice laced with frustration. “I don’t even know how to explain this.”

  Logan raised an eyebrow. “Why don’t you just be honest with me? Maybe I can understand, considering I’ve been your best friend for almost two decades.”

  “He was here yesterday,” Ava said softly, her voice laced with confusion. “But he left this morning. Just left this goodbye note.”

  “Oh dear!” Logan stepped into the house, snatching the note from Ava’s hand. “Sincerely? A sincere narcissist!” Logan slapped her palm on the table, her frustration palpable.

  Ava looked away, her voice quieter now. “I’m not sure if he left willingly.”

  “What do you mean?” Logan asked, her brow furrowing in concern.

  “His car, probably a rental, is still parked in the winery’s lot. And right before you knocked, I checked the security footage. From 1 AM to 2 AM, the footage was deleted.”

  “Oh shit! He’s a member of a vampire clan!” Logan said, then quickly added, “Sorry, sorry, that was a bad joke! But seriously, I don’t get how this makes sense. He might’ve just gotten a ride, and the security cameras could have glitched. They’re not always reliable. Is there anything else on the footage?”

  “No, nothing on the footage,” Ava said. “You’re right. I’m just trying to find a reason to convince myself he didn’t leave me. But he did.”

  “And that’s perfectly normal, sweetie,” Logan said. “Why don’t you call him and yell at him to go fuck himself? Would that make you feel better?”

  “His phone’s dead.”

  “Well, I figured as much.”

  “Logan, I need some time to pull myself together. Then, I’ll erase his name forever. Can you give me a couple of days to be by myself, please?” Ava asked.

  “Of course, sweetie,” Logan replied, though her voice was filled with concern. “Let me know if you need anything. Please… don’t drink yourself to death.”

  Logan left reluctantly her worry for Ava lingering.