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Aurelia motions to follow her round one side of the cave where amongst the prickly pears and cacti there is a rusty old table and a few stools lying on their sides. She turns them upright, brushes off the dirt and nods at us to sit down. Gratefully, I heave the weight of the babies off my front and back and look around for Isabel, who is sidling up to the two small children in curiosity.
    I sit down and wait for Aurelia to say something. When no words are forthcoming, I clear my throat.
    ‘¿ Cómo estás, Aurelia? ’
    She grunts indifferently as she beckons for one of the children to come to her. The little girl has a mass of black tangled curls and I think wistfully how I should like to take a comb to them, for her hair would doubtless look quite pretty if given a chance. Reluctantly she approaches and raises her hands above her head. Aurelia peels the child’s grubby vest from her body, picks up a pot beside her and scoops out a handful of what resembles thick grease and begins spreading it all over her granddaughter’s back and shoulders, pummelling it in with her callused hands.
    ‘ Manteca pal cuerpo ,’ Aurelia says as the little girl squirms. She turns the child round to face her so that she can repeat the same lathering on her chest and then once she has finished, does the same with each of the children who begrudgingly come forward.
    ‘What is it?’ I ask.
    ‘It’s lard. I put this on their bodies every day for health and luck.’
    ‘And…does it work?’ I ask hesitantly.
    Aurelia turns round and stares at me, her eyes wide and defiant. ‘What do my grandchildren look like to you? They’re healthy as fleas, each one of them.’ I avert my eyes from her gaze and look down.
    ‘And you, child?’ Aurelia continues. ‘I see that you have your hands full.’ She gestures towards the babies. María is sleeping and Joaquín has just woken up, rubbing his eyes groggily with his small fists.
    ‘ Sí . I…I…had twins.’
    Aurelia looks at me long and hard, then stands up and shuffles under the overhanging cloth protecting the mouth of the cave. A few minutes later she returns with a bowl of peeled higochumbres , the prickly pears that liberally dot the vega . As she pushes the bowl towards me, she looks me directly in the eye.
    ‘We both know you didn’t have twins.’
    I gulp. That same sensation I experienced the last time I was here tugs at me: unnerving yet enticing. Aurelia knows things about me that she oughtn’t logically know.
    The children have spotted the prickly pears and are approaching the table. Isabel returns to my side and gawks up at Aurelia who is smiling down upon her like an indulgent grandmother. Nudging me, Isabel points at the old gitana .
    ‘ Sí , little one,’ Aurelia intones. ‘You remember me, do you not?’
    My daughter beams and starts swinging on my skirt. Aurelia hands out higochumbres to the children and then places a large one in my hand. I cannot bring myself to eat; I am still reeling in shock from her earlier comment whilst she noisily sucks the juice from the fruit. Finally, I can contain my curiosity not a moment longer.
    ‘Do you know who this child is?’
    Aurelia emits a deep, throaty laugh that makes all the children titter and even produces an enormous smile in Joaquín’s little face.
    ‘Why, claro que sí . This is my grandson.’
    I feel all the blood slowly draining from my face. The higochumbre falls with a gentle thud to the floor and two dogs immediately hurry over and battle one another for the fruit. Isabel and the small children stare up at me as I push it aside with my foot to move the dogs away.
    ‘Sorry,’ I mumble. Aurelia looks unaffected by my reaction. When she has finished eating, she licks the juice from her fingers, a thin trickle dribbling down her chin.
    ‘In fact,’ Aurelia continues, once she has finished, ‘you shall meet his mother. She’ll be back any minute.’
    I stare at the old gitana , eyes wide open. ‘But…I