“The concession was wrung from me at the boy’s birth. My father was in concurrence, for ’twas either that or they would make war on us, which he could ill afford at the time.”
“But you were so young,” Reina said. “Surely they expected you to marry and have legitimate children.”
“Aye, but in either case, I was still to provide for the lady’s son. That kept them from having to do so, and unofficially allied our families, which in fact delighted my father. For that reason he may have wanted Ranulf’s existence kept from me, and from Lady Ella’s family.”
“Ella?” Reina looked sharply at Ranulf. “Ella?” His scowl made her burst into laughter.
Hugh did not see the jest. “Do you know the lady?” he asked Reina.
“Nay, my lord, though I am well acquainted with her namesake.” A low rumble from her husband wiped the grin from her lips. “But that has naught to do with this. Why would your father finally tell you about Ranulf?”
“I was home that summer after several years’ absence. The court was traveling, and my wife thought she was with child, so I was in no hurry to leave. Ranulf had reached an age where I would only have to see him to know he was mine.”
“So your father feared you were like to discover him for yourself, and possibly suspect that he had already known and deliberately kept it from you? Telling you and swearing he was as surprised as you would effectively put your suspicions to rest ere they even formed.”
“So I must assume.”
“But why keep you apart after you knew of him?”
“Again I can only guess, lady, that he wanted no bond to form.”
“Did you form a bond with your other son?”
“Nay.” Hugh sighed. “Ella’s family raised him and he is nothing like me. Sometimes I even wonder if he is truly mine. And yet he is closer to me than Ranulf, for Ranulf has never let me get close to him.”
“Can you blame him? As I understand it, my lord, this is only the third time in his life he has ever spoken with you. For the first nine years of his life, he thinks you do not want him. For all the years of his fostering, you never sent for him or visited. Considering that, I can see why he doubts your sincerity. I doubt it myself.”
She got a frown from both of them this time. Well, that was just too bad. She did not hear Ranulf asking his own questions. And she had yet to hear anything to truly support what Hugh had told her earlier. If he really cared about this son of his, he would have ended their estrangement years ago.
“I happen to know, lady, that Clydon has been under your control these past several years,” Hugh said defensively. “Tell me how often you found the time to travel for your own pleasure.”
She had the grace to blush. “In truth, not once.”
“Neither did I. My father had never been one to delegate his power to others, and in those first years that I took over his duties, I had not yet found men I trusted enough to share the burden with. I think now that he had a lot to do with that, but I have no proof. But I do know that he discouraged me from interfering with Ranulf’s training. And since I was being given regular reports on his progress, and was kept so busy anyway…but that is no excuse. I was wrong, and readily admit it. I should never have let so much time pass before seeing him again, nor left communication to letters.”
“What letters?” Ranulf finally broke his silence to demand. “I received but two from you, and those after I had left Montfort.”
“Nay, you must have had others. I wrote to you at least a half-dozen times each year the entire time you were at Montfort. I did not expect replies. I knew how grueling a squire’s training could be from my own experience. I simply wanted you to know you were not forgotten.”
Reina nearly cried out at the look of anguish on her husband’s face as he shouted, “I tell you I had no letters from you there!”
Hugh was also shaken by Ranulf’s obvious pain. “Then my father must have intercepted them.”
“Or Lord Montfort,” Reina said quietly. “Did you not say he was a friend of your father’s?”
Hugh did not answer or look at her. He stepped closer to Ranulf. Reina had the feeling he desperately wanted to embrace him. She wanted to herself. But Ranulf had his emotions under control again, and his expression did not invite any overtures of that sort just then.
“I did write you, Ranulf,” Hugh insisted. “I swear to you I did. I also sent for you four times, but each time I had back from Montfort excuses why it was not a good time to release you. I suppose you were never told that either?”
For answer, Ranulf merely scowled. Reina hesitated to interfere again. Ranulf obviously did not believe everything he was hearing. But then why should he? He had only his father’s word, and that word could be false. Still, they were not getting close to a reconciliation, and if that was to come about, there bad to be something to support Hugh’s word.
“You claim to have had reports on Ranulf while he was at Montfort, Lord Hugh, even if he did not write to you himself. What I do not understand is how you could know so much about his doings after he left Montfort.”
For a moment she thought he would not reply. He seemed more than just hesitant to do so, more embarrassed.
“One of Ranulf’s men is actually my man.”
“A common man-at-arms who can write?” Reina scoffed.
