Page 46 of Mistress of Hours

“The Contrapensae…from the folktales?”

Hestia nodded.“The very same. Other Contrapensae have positioned themselves closer to the leadership of their respective nations; it seems keeping my distance has been my greatestmistake. I’ve been unable to truly investigate because of how tight a grip Aldith keeps on everything, and I thought we had more time,” Hestia finished, leaning back in her seat.

“Hestia,” Evienne said, a bit exasperated. “Are you trying to tell me thatyouare a Contrapensa?”

“Well, yes, Dove.”

Evienne stared at her, truly beyond words now.

“You, Evienne Elodie D’Auclaire, have been elected to take my spot on the Council of Contrapensae. Before you go asking what that is, I’m going to explain it all to you, so just relax and try to take it all in.”

Evienne nodded again.

“Good. The Council of Contrapensae was established ten thousand years ago by the now forgotten gods of this land. It is a group of nine immortals—one from each magical territory—that are tasked with maintaining balance between the magical forces in our world. We have several tools at our disposal to accomplish this task. One of them is glancing. Another is the memory walking you’ve experienced. We can discuss all of your abilities later, but suffice it to say, all of the non-blood magic you’ve been experiencing is a result of your election to the Council ten years ago.

“We select new members about a decade before their training begins. Sometimes the gifts manifest early in times of heightened emotions, but yours seem to be stronger than usual. We will sort it out during your training. You should also know that I nominated you, but the entire Council voted to select you. We choose successors from each territory based on their competence and integrity, and, as immortals, we have the luxury of time to wait until the right person comes along.”

Evienne just stared at her mentor and found herself fighting the urge to laugh. But no, Hestia was not the sort to makesomething like this up as a joke. So Evienne paused, reviewing the facts that had just been laid before her.

“So you’re truly a Contrapensa?” She asked.

Hestia nodded.

“And I’ve been… elected… to be one too?”

“To replace me one day, yes,” Hestia answered.

“What happens to you when I replace you?”

“Then I am finally allowed to fade from this world knowing I have done right by its magic for the last thousand years,” Hestia said, not missing a beat.

“You’re a thousand years old? Wait, you’re going todiewhen I replace you?!” Evienne couldn’t keep the tinge of panic out of her voice.

“In a sense, yes, but it will be a relief after so many years of life, Dove. I am looking forward to retirement,” Hestia said, a gleam in her dark eyes.

“The Gevaud are yours?!” Evienne asked as it sank in.

“No, they’re not ours, they’re like our…cousins. Sent by the same gods for the same purpose should we fail in our duty,” Hestia said.

“Well if they’re here, then what’s wrong? Why haven’t you all fixed whatever imbalance is at play?” Evienne asked.

“As I said, we don’t know what it is. We can tell there’s something wrong, but we’ve not been able to identify the cause. We know something is off with the Tuanadair’s magic, but our efforts to correct the imbalance have been…unsuccessful,” Hestia answered with a sigh.

“I think I may be of some help on that front,” Evienne said slowly, her brow furrowed as she rose and began to pace.

•

Hestiainsisted on making a pot of tea before she would hear what Evienne had to say. It left her with a moment to herself to figure out what, exactly, had just happened.

One moment, she had been in Aldith’s mind, Léhiona’s unconscious face before her; the next she was hearing about forgotten gods and balance-keeping immortals, of which she was now one, apparently. This was not how she had expected today to go.

But the lack of balance, the presence of the Gevaud over the years, and everything Hestia had told her about the Contrapensae made sense when combined with what she had seen in Dominique and Aldith’s minds.

If Ichorna was truly responsible for the loss of the Tuanadair’s magic, that would certainly throw things out of balance.What Evienne still couldn’t comprehend iswhy.Why would Ichorna want to steal Beitar’s magic?

When Hestia returned, Evienne tried to start explaining what she had seen, but again Hestia silenced her, saying, “Please, Dove, calm yourself and have a cup of tea first. At least pour it before you start, just to humor me.”

Evienne poured her tea, the earthy floral scented steam kissing her nose as she took a sip.

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