“Of course it won’t. Why would you say that?”
“Because your mother was pregnant when I married her.”
War’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “Ah,” he said, thinking that was all there was to the secret. “I see. Well, it does not matter. You loved Mother and she loved you. There is no shame in conceiving a child before you were married because you demonstrated that love.”
Edmund shook his head. “Nay, lad,” he whispered. “You misunderstand.”
“What do I misunderstand?”
“I was not the one who impregnated her.”
That wasn’t what War had expected to hear. Not in the least. It took him a moment to realize what Edmund was saying and when it finally sank in, his eyes widened and he dropped the old man’s hand.
“What?” he hissed, bolting to his feet. “What are you telling me?”
Edmund’s eyes were full of sorrow. “I am telling you that although you are my son, I did not father you,” he said. “You aremy son in name and in my heart and soul, but you are not the son of my body.”
War’s mouth popped open in utter shock. He could hardly believe what he was hearing. “Who… who told you this?” he said in disbelief. “Did Mother tell you this?”
“She did.”
“She was wrong!”
Edmund shook his head. “Nay, lad, she wasnotwrong,” he said quietly. “You see, she loved another man before me, very much. She wanted to marry him but her father would not permit it. Your mother was a de Percy; you know this. The House of de Percy is an important house in the north and your mother was expected to marry well. She was not expected, nor was she permitted, to marry a man of her choosing. That is not the way such families do things, as you know.”
War put a hand over his mouth as if to hold back the shock but, sadly, what his father said made perfect sense. Families like his mother’s did not let emotions rule the day when it came to a proper marriage. As it all began to sink in, he lowered himself back to the chair.
“My God,” he muttered. “So Mother was in love with another man before she married you?”
Edmund nodded faintly. “Aye,” he said. “You must not blame her, War. Your mother was a loving and giving woman. She loved you very much.”
War nodded quickly. “I know,” he said. “You do not have to defend my mother’s character to me. But this man…?”
“He was your father.”
There it was. The confirmation yet again. War let out a long, painful breath. “I do not even know what to say,” he said. “This is all so… astonishing.”
Edmund wasn’t unsympathetic. “I know,” he said quietly. “Your mother was not permitted to marry the man of herchoosing and your grandfather immediately sought out a betrothal with me. As Baron Herringthorpe, I had more to offer her than a mere knight.”
“A knight was her lover?”
“He was the man she wanted to marry.”
“Did you know she was pregnant when you married her?”
Edmund shook his head. “Nay,” he said. “I thought you were mine until you were born six months into our marriage, an enormous and healthy child. At that point, she had no choice but to confess because you were not an early birth.”
War stared at the man. “And you did not spurn me?” he said, incredulous. “You could have sent me to a foundling home at the very least, or you could have smashed my head on the wall. But you did not do that.”
Edmund waved him off. “Of course not,” he said. “I loved your mother. I loved you, too, the moment I saw you. What happened with your mother… it was not her fault. She was in love. And I loved her, so there was never any question that I would claim you as my son because you were. You still are.”
Now that the initial shock was wearing off, War felt weak and drained. And so very, very distraught. He sank back against the chair, struggling to come to terms with what his father had told him.
“But you were tricked into marriage,” he finally said. “By Mother and by Grandfather. They tricked you into marrying her, knowing she was pregnant with another man’s child.”
Edmund shrugged. “It was of little consequence,” he said. “I got what I wanted– your mother, three healthy sons, and an excellent dowry. Your grandfather made me very rich when I married your mother though I thought it was an excessive dowry at the time.”
“And you found out why.”
