“If I soured the cream in that coffee, as bòcan are wont to do, it is not on a whim, but because you would have, to use Liv’s colorful vernacular, pissed me off. I am not disagreeing about the importance of her vision. But she did not stumble over sluagh in the real world, so where her vision occurred is unimportant.”

“I beg to differ and don’t see why I can’t ask the question.”

Because it happened in Cainsville, and Patrick didn’t want Ioan to know that.

“The vision took me into an old house,” I said.

Ioan’s mouth opened as if to say that wasn’t what he meant, but I pushed on, leading him through the vision and ending with, “It was getting dark and Gabriel said we had to turn on the lights and close the shutters, starting from the west. I think that’s significant.”

“It is,” Ioan said. “That’s the traditional way to fight the sluagh.”

“Good call,” Patrick said to Gabriel.

“It’s just hereditary memory,” Ioan said.

“Moving right along,” I said. “We shut the windows. One was glass, so we could see out. A swarm of birds started flying around the cottage. Dark red birds, the size of sparrows, with white eyes and teeth. Gabriel managed to banish them. Then something else came and the cottage exploded. That’s when we snapped out of the vision.”

“How did you banish the harbingers?” Patrick asked.

“He didn’t,” Ioan said. “The melltithiwyd withdrew in advance of the sluagh.”

“Mellti—”

“It means the cursed, the damned. It’s our name for the harbinger birds.”

“Is that what they usually do?” I asked. “Withdraw when the sluagh come?”

“Well, no, but—”

“Gabriel put his hand on the window. He told them—in Welsh—to go away. When he demanded it, they left.”

Patrick nodded. “Given who you are, Gabriel, that would work. With the melltithiwyd, though. Not the actual sluagh.”

“Because the melltithiwyd are harbingers,” I said. “They foretell the coming of the sluagh.”

“Exactly,” Patrick said. “They are, in their way, the parallel to the Tylwyth Teg’s owls and Cŵn Annwn’s ravens. Avian spies. However, our owls and ravens are relatively harmless. They will attack each other, as you saw when one of Ioan’s black scavengers came snooping around Cainsville.”

“That was shortly after Liv’s arrival,” Ioan said. “Under the circumstances, you can’t blame us. And may I point out that owls are as likely to scavenge as ravens?”

“But the melltithiwyd are not harmless?” Gabriel cut in.

“Definitely not.” Ioan turned to me. “If you ever see them, even in a vision, do what Gabriel did. Hopefully, it will frighten them off.”

“Otherwise…?” I said.

“You mentioned the teeth,” Patrick said. “Did they remind you of anything? Another beast that normally lacks dentition?”

“Piranha,” I said.

“Exactly. A single one won’t do more than nip. But in a swarm?”