Page 41 of Mistress of Hours

Evienne began to answer, but Aldith cut her off. “Don’t answer that. I have also heard reports of your nighttime escapades with Professor Doehlan. I take no issue with you seeking your pleasure, Evienne, especially when it is a means to an end. But see that your efforts produce the information we need. I will not have you keeping things from me. This will be your only warning.”

She turned to Léhiona then.

“Come, my love, we should prepare for this evening’s events,” Aldith said, taking Léhiona’s hand. Evienne noticed her absently running her thumb over Léhiona’s tattooed wedding band. A similar one marked Aldith’s left ring finger.

Evienne bowed to the queens as they took their leave, and asshe raised her head, she caught Léhiona looking back over her shoulder, worry lining her face.

Chapter Thirty

Orion sat inthe quiet of his luxurious room and stared at the flames in the hearth. These were more orange than the scarlet flames Evienne wielded. He preferred hers—more lovely and more deadly, just like her.

The searing pain in his shoulder and neck was starting to subside thanks to his magic; fast healing was one of the strongest gifts of the Tuanadair. He felt very grateful for it now.

The past weeks had been a whirlwind of discoveries and emotions, and Orion was glad to have a moment to himself to reflect on all that had happened. Their conversation with Cecelia in the library a few days ago weighed heavily on his mind now that there was no noise to distract him.

He had known the consorts had something to do with the magic disappearing, but it had just been conjecture. Without more information, it could be dismissed as a coincidence. Lining up the timeline of Ichorna’s technological progression with the depletion of Beitar’s magic was helpful in understanding the two to be connected, but it still wasn’t proof.

They needed to knowwhythe two timelines seemed connected. He assumed Ichorna was robbing Beitar of its magic to power its elaborate Rail system, but how could such a thing be possible?

To accomplish such a thing, Ichorna would have had to create some method of siphoning magic from others—he had never read of such a thing—and apply it on a massive scale. They would also have had to keep such a scandal secret for nearly two centuries.

Orion shifted in his seat and felt the stiffness of his muscles. Orion thought about going across the hall to check on Solon, but he was likely with the other dignitaries still. They had been summoned to a meeting to discuss the attack. Moments like this made Orion glad he was no politician—books and lectures would suffice for him.

An image drifted into Orion’s mind of the Gevaud that had attacked him that morning—and what Evienne had done to it. He had never seen anything like it. The creature had dried up and fallen to dust before him. It had been incredibly disturbing, and he doubted the image would ever truly leave his mind. To have such power was almost unthinkable.

The fire began to die down and Orion leaned his head back against his chair and closed his eyes. He was so tired and so worried about what the future might hold. He wanted to remain optimistic, but he was afraid. Afraid of what they might discover about Ichorna’s intentions, of what the consequences would be if their meddling was found out. He was most afraid of what would happen if they failed; things were not going well in Beitar.

The spirits of the Tuanadair were darkening the longer they were detached from their connection to Domhan na Rùin’s magic. He was afraid of watching their health fail, their hearts break. Something told him they were running out of time.

Chapter Thirty-One

That evening, Evienneexcused herself from the festivities, citing a need to recover after the attack in the afternoon. In truth, it was the conversation with the queens that had left her shaken. She had never felt such a distance from them in all her years of service. Even before they all stepped into their adult roles, she had never known such awkwardness with them as girls.

The sight of Léhiona’s worry as she had left the room hung in Evienne’s mind, and now that the adrenaline of the attack had worn off, she couldn’t help but ponder her conversation with Cecelia and Orion in the library with increasing anxiety.

There were too many coincidences in the timing to be meaningless. Determining how actively nefarious any connections were would be the real challenge.They needed to find out if anyone currently living in Ichorna knew something, but there was a reason this history—if there was one—was not common knowledge. It was likely if someone did know, they would not appreciate anyone poking around for insight.Evienne knew they had to continue their investigation, but she had a feeling they were about to stumble into a very dangerous game.

Her soul weary with all that had occurred that day, Evienne made her way to Orion’s chamber in the guest wing, stopping a maid in the hall to request that dinner be brought up.She rapped her knuckles on his door, and his rich, open voice answered.Evienne found him seated in the armchair by the fire, a book in hand, looking a bit paler than usual.

“How are you feeling?” She asked, curling up on the floor nextto his legs. The heat of the fire seeped into her hands; she hadn’t even noticed how cold she’d been.

“I’ve been better, but I am glad you’re here with me,” Orion answered, his hand stroking Evienne’s hair.

“We’ve had quite a day,” Evienne said with a sigh.

“Indeed, we have. I confess, charging into battle in my shifted form is not something I ever thought I would do. It was exhilarating and intense and…sort of awful,” he said, considering.

Evienne remembered what it had felt like the first time she had been in a real fight, and she didn’t blame Orion one bit for feeling the weight of it. She relished the rightness of wielding her magic, but she did not take joy in hurting other living things. She often pondered how her actions straddled the line between good and evil.

“I do not know if I am cut out for such violence. Perhaps I should leave it to you to be my fearless defender.” He smiled at her then. Evienne was so grateful, she realized, that Orion felt comfortable enough to share these musings with her.

“I will happily be your knight in shining armor, Orion,” Evienne said, smiling back at him.

“How are you doing?” He asked, giving her space to share her feelings. She looked up at him and saw in his face that he actually wanted to know, that he really cared.

“I’m…” she started, struggling to put words to her feelings. “I’m overwhelmed, I think.” Emotion clogged her throat.

“I certainly don’t blame you for that, love,” he said softly.

---