Velvet Haven

box of condoms, Mairi thought. Then she chastised herself. It was obvious her one- night stand with Bran was just that—one night. He wasn’t coming back. Hell, they hadn’t even exchanged last names. Would it hurt to be nice to Sanchez?
    Putting the lid back on the saucepan, she fixed her hair in the reflection of the microwave oven door and sauntered out to the living room. Sanchez was standing by her end table. The lamp was on and he was holding something up.
    “Whatcha got there, Sanchez?”
    He turned; then a slow smile crept across his mouth. Mairi found herself stepping back. Her skin felt like tiny bugs were crawling all over her. She shook herself, clearing her thoughts.
    “Come here.” He motioned her over beside him. “Most women would want flowers and chocolate, but you”—he gave her a lethal wink—“I knew you’d want something much more special.”
    He reached for a large brown envelope and pulled a black plastic film from it. “I took these from Radiology. Don’t tell on me, okay?”
    “Rowan’s MRI?”
    He nodded and held it up to the light. “This is the one from the other night, when she presented with the seizure.” He gave it to Mairi to hold and then pulled another film out of the envelope. “This one was taken a month ago.”
    “The tumor has grown.”
    “Big-time,” Sanchez murmured. “It’s gone behind the periocular orbit; that’s probably why her vision has been a bit off. Not to mention the frontal headaches and the violent seizures.”
    But the position didn’t explain Rowan’s weird visions, which her neurologist described as auras. Auras were things like smelling burned toast or hearing a sound. Not full-fledged hallucinations of other worlds.
    “I’m not sure it’s going to be operable, Mairi. It’s grown so much and it’s intertwined with major nerves and blood vessels. I wouldn’t be surprised if your friend gets a call with the news her surgery is canceled.”
    Closing her eyes, Mairi strived for composure. All along she had tried to prepare herself for the worst, but nothing could prepare her for this, this sick, hopeless feeling in her gut. She couldn’t lose Rowan. Hell, it was like losing a piece of herself.
    Opening her eyes, she looked again at the latest MRI, amazed at the rapid growth the tumor had taken, as well as the shape. Quickly Mairi compared it to the previous scan. The first showed an oval growth, delineated edges, and little encroachment on nerves or blood supply. But in the latest one, it was more of a circle, with a septum in the middle divided into thirds.
    Peering closer, Mairi held the film up higher to the lamplight in order to illuminate the tumor. Jesus!
    The film dropped from her hold. She was going crazy, she had to be.
    “Mairi?”
    Pushing away from Sanchez, she glanced down at the scan. Even without the light illuminating it, the tumor still resembled the triscale in the book she had taken from the library.
    And so shall come the divine trinity . . .
    What she was thinking was absurd, but Mairi could not shake it. The Scribe of Annwyn had written the diary. She described a world of trees and sacred groves. Woods where magic prevailed and nature was worshipped. Where the Sidhe ruled by her side.
    Rowan had described such a world. A world of peace and enchantment. Had Rowan seen Annwyn? Was Rowan part of this divine trinity, and the prophecy that had been written about it?
    “Is there something wrong? You seem . . . shocked.”
    Mairi shook her head, still staring at the film.
    “You know, I really despise liars.”
    Mairi looked up in time to see Sanchez toss the MRI film onto the carpet.
    “Tell me where the book is.”
    “What book?” she asked, laughing nervously. “Sanchez, you’re crazy.”
    “The prophecy,” he sneered. “ That book.”
    She refused to allow her gaze to stray to the bookshelf where she’d hidden the book behind her stereo.
    “I’ll tear this place apart, Mairi, and you’ll have a hell of a mess to clean up.”
    “You’ve lost it,” she muttered, pulling away. “Get out of my house.”
    He followed her, tracking her down as if she were an animal and he the hunter. “I want the book. Tell me where you’ve taken it.”
    “I don’t know what book you’re talking about.”
    “The one with the spells, the one that tells of the flame and the amulet and the way to destroy both worlds.”
    She managed to hold back her fear. Somehow he had known about the book she’d taken. It had