Mists of Velvet

was never allowed to be spoken. Daegan forbade it.”
    Then it must be bad news, Rhys thought. Great. What else was happening that he didn’t have a fucking clue about?
    “An adbertos is a sacrifice,” Keir explained. “It is not something to be done lightly.”
    “No,” he said, shaking his head. “No way.” What the hell had Bronwnn been thinking? What was she sacrificing? Herself ? Oh, hell no! He’d haul his mortal ass before the Supreme Goddess and kill himself before he allowed Bronwnn to do such a thing.
    “You had better get yourself under control, MacDonald, before Cailleach arrives,” Bran ordered. “Your life expectancy is getting perilously shorter, and this mood of yours will not ingratiate you with the goddess.”
    “Nothing could, because I’m Daegan’s descendant. She already hates me.”
    “When one lives as long as a goddess does, revenge always comes at last.”
    Rhys whirled around to find Cailleach standing beside Bronwnn, who was dressed in a hideous gray gown. Their gazes met, and she glanced down, away from him. He wanted to go to her; to ask what had happened; to see if she was okay. But Keir stood beside him, blocking his way.
    “My handmaiden has offered me an adbertos , which I have accepted. As her wish is to speak with the mortal in private, we will first talk of the mage, and what you know. Then, you may speak to my handmaiden. Do you agree, mortal?”
    Bran shot him a glare, and so did Keir. He was raging inside and only wanted to take Bronwnn aside and ask her what the hell she had offered the witch.
    “Do you agree, Rhys MacDonald?” Cailleach asked.
    “Yes.” But he ignored her look of warning when he strode over to his mate and hauled her into his side.
    “Are you all right?” he whispered. She trembled but looked up at him and nodded.
    “Now then, you have seen the mage,” Cailleach prompted.
    Rhys dragged his gaze away from Bronwnn’s face, which suddenly looked so sad. “I have. He dwells beneath Velvet Haven, in the Cave of Cruachan.”
    Everyone in the room sucked in a simultaneous breath. “And how the hell did you find your way into the cave?” Bran demanded.
    Rhys stole a look at Keir. “Cliodna brought me to the door. Keir went through, and I followed.”
    “That fucking bird,” Sayer snarled.
    “Watch your mouth,” both Bran and Keir demanded. Then Keir spoke to him. “I thought you were still in your study. I didn’t feel you behind me.” Keir’s gaze then found Rowan, who was seated by the fire. “I’ve been distracted lately.”
    Rhys took pity on his wraith. “ Later ,” he mentally told him. “I’m alive, and there’re no hard feelings . ” Keir’s eyes met his, but Rhys saw there was a new darkness in them. His wraith was consumed with Rowan and her impending death. Nothing could penetrate that wall, not even Rhys.
    “And then what?” Cailleach demanded as she took an empty chair beside Bran. Rhys looked away from Keir and settled his gaze upon Cailleach.
    “When I was young, Daegan told me stories of Annwyn, and how, if I were to ever find myself there, I should head directly to the reflecting pool where your powers do not immediately reach. He said the reflection of the water acts as a shield and temporarily weakens you.”
    Cailleach’s expression turned murderous, but Rhys carried on, not particularly caring if he was spilling the goddess’ weaknesses to everyone in the room.
    “He told me how to get to the veil and how to find the pool. So, when I went into the cave and didn’t see Keir, I followed the lit corridor to Annwyn. But then, I was stopped.”
    As if by magic, the adder suddenly slithered beneath the oak door and snaked its way into the middle of the room. Everyone quieted as the beady black eyes fixed on Rhys.
    “You know this animal?” Keir asked wonderingly.
    “I do. He stopped me in the corridor. It allowed the mage to hit me over the head and drag me to his underground crypt.”
    “Kill it,” Mairi squealed as she jumped onto a chair. “Oh my God, it’s huge. Bran!” she shouted as the snake started to sway.
    “Muirnin,” Bran murmured as he took his queen into his arms. “The adder is a sacred animal. It represents wisdom and reincarnation.”
    “I don’t care if it marks the coming of God! Someone get rid of it.”
    Rhys bent to his knees, and the snake slithered over to him, climbed up the length of his arm, and wrapped around his bicep. When he glanced up, Keir’s eyes were