The castle above belonged to his cousin, the Duke of Raven, a man he had never met. His father had spoken about Raven Castle, but sparingly. He’d wanted to forget about England and what he’d left behind, so had not shared any of his childhood with his sons.
“I am not coming into the church with you, Ash. I will wait outside with the horses.”
“Very well.” Ash wanted to rub his belly as the acid swirled.
“All will go well. Gus is your brother; he will want to see you.”
“I doubt that.”
“You will explain everything and then reforge your bonds.”
“I am not here to do that. I am here to tell my brother that his father betrayed him. I owe him that much.”
He looked at the man who rode at his side. Baron was possibly the only friend he had. Once his younger brother had been that and more. Now they were strangers. And it was to find that stranger he now rode toward.
“You did not travel many miles to just tell your brother that, no matter the lies you tell yourself.”
He ignored those words, because deep inside he knew they were the truth.
“Perhaps your cousin is marrying?”
“They did not say it was the duke, and I would have thought he’d be wed by now.”
“You English marry old, and usually to younger women.”
“True,” Ash grunted. He hunched down into the thick overcoat he’d purchased in London.
He just wanted this done. Wanted to find his brother and tell him what he must. He would check he was well and leave. Gus had nearly died because of him and likely loathed him, which wasn’t anything new. A lot of people loathed Ash, including himself.
“Your thigh is aching?”
“It is not.” Ash clenched his fist to stop massaging the ache.
“It’s the cold.” Baron’s words were muffled, as he was talking through his scarf. “I will fix something for it later.”
“I need nothing.”
“Stubborn-headed fool is what you are.”
“You say that like this was something you didn’t already know.”
“I have a faint hope that one day you’ll change.”
“I highly doubt it.”
“It’s my hope you meet your family with something other than a scowl on your face, especially as more than just your brother is likely waiting for you above us.”
“There is nothing waiting for me up there.”
“You may tell yourself that, but you do not believe it.”
Ash didn’t reply.
He was here because he needed to tell Gus about their father. He owed him that much, even if he doubted his brother wanted to see his face.
They rode on in silence, climbing steadily. He looked at the gray waters below. He’d spent years sailing in seas just like that. Years believing his brother was better off without him, and likely would have stayed away had he not learned what he had. Gus needed to hear it from him.
He wanted to deny that he’d carried a gnawing ache inside him for the man he’d loved above all others, and that too had brought him to England. That and the knowledge that their father had betrayed them.
