CHAPTERTWENTY-SIX
“Ijust wanted tae see ye again before dinner. I think that ye should sit with us then, and we can discuss it. As a family. It will do us all good, and then we can move on from it.” Her mother looked determined, even though Lorna could tell that she’d been crying.
Lorna didn’t sit, but she stood next to her mother’s bed, hands clasped in front of her. “Father willnae like it.”
“Well, he has had his way of things long enough, I think,” her mother said snappishly, her eyes darkening. Lorna could tell that her mother was not angry with her but her father. “Will ye tell him?”
“Aye, I suppose.” She breathed out. “It would feel good tae have it all out at long last. Then perhaps I could move forward, and me family could finally think of me as a young woman, nae as some creature tae be kept in a cage.”
“Och, Lorna, it is nae that way at all,” her mother said, shaking her head. Sighing, she added, “But I see how ye could think that. Aye, I think the revelation of the secret could be good for all.”
Lorna nodded. “Good, then. I will mention it. But for now, I will leave ye tae rest.”
She left the room, not allowing her mother to make any more reply, and she returned to her chamber. She poured herself a glass of wine, and then she slid into bed. It would do her well to rest until dinnertime. She couldn’t bear to stay awake any longer, and the fatigue from the day she’d already had was weighing on her.
As her eyes closed, she realized that they were very close to solving the mystery of the murders. Perhaps there was some light at the end of all this darkness.
* * *
During dinner, her father and Athol spoke mostly of farming and crops, and she kept silent. She wasn’t sure that she was ready yet for the wrath that would come when she told them she knew everything. It was not for her own sake, but for Bryce’s. If they found out that he was the one who told her, then they might never agree to see him as a potential son-in-law. For that was what she wanted: to be married to him, even though he had hurt her deeply. But he was honest at least, and the guilt behind his eyes showed his desire to make things up to her. And deep down, she was touched by the fact that he wanted to protect her from her family.
At least he didnae keep the secret for years like the rest of me family.
She still loved him, and it would take time for her to fully trust him again after he kept those secrets, but she couldn’t imagine her life without him. She would have to fight for him if she wanted to keep him. Athol left after the meal was over, claiming that he was tired and needed to rest. Thus, she was left with her father on her own, and they were drinking their wine silently.
Eventually, she found the courage and took a breath, plunging into the topic. “Father, I have heard something that ye willnae like. I think that ye will be angry, but it doesnae matter. It needed tae be said, and I am glad that I ken it. Although I am angry that ye didnae tell me.”
He paused as he was putting his wine glass on the table. It hung in the air, and he eventually sighed and put it down. “Ye will have tae tell me what ye mean, Lorna. What have ye heard?”
She clenched her fists, trying to gather all her strength. Again, she said, “I heard something, and if ye donnae believe me, Mother confirmed it. Ye kept me parentage from me, and ye havenae told me for twenty years. Why, why did ye keep it from me?”
His expression darkened, and he said, “I cannae believe that ye have found out about this at last. It was a secret meant tae be taken tae the grave. Who told ye?”
She hesitated, afraid that this was the point when Bryce would no longer be an option for her to marry. Instead, she said, “It doesnae matter. I ken now, and Mother has confirmed it, like I said. Why, Father, or rather Grandfather, did ye keep this from me for so long? Do ye think that I didnae deserve tae ken who me real mother was?”
Tears pricked at her eyes, but she bit her tongue to keep them at bay. This was her chance to show her grandfather she was a strong woman, and she would not weaken before him and give him more reasons not to think she could handle things.
He rubbed his chin, and eventually he spoke. “It was me decision. I should say that right now. Yer mother was nae agreed tae it in the beginning. I daresay she is nae happy about it now, having ye confront her with it. But I did it for ye. Tae protect yer future reputation since yer mother’s reputation was in shambles. I didnae want yer life tae be ruined because of another’s mistake.”
He leaned forward, and to her surprise, he picked up her hand and looked earnestly into her eyes. “But there is one thing that ye must ken. I love ye dearly, as if ye were me own. I wanted ye tae have a good life, and the fact that ye are me granddaughter and nae me daughter makes nae difference tae me.”
Lorna knew that she had to react to that. Even though she was angry, she did have to agree that her grandfather had done what he could as she’d grown up. He was loving and kind in his own way. He had given her free rein over the library, after all. And he’d allowed her to learn to fight even though Athol had been against it when she’d first begun.
“But why have ye been so frustrated with me actions? Ye have never trusted me for one moment! And when I handled the situation with Watt, ye seemed tae think it was the most embarrassing thing tae happen tae ye.”
“Aye, aye. It was all because I wanted tae protect ye from yer mother’s fate. I kenned for a long time that Watt didnae feel the same way, and I didnae want ye tae find yerself in a similar situation as Siusan. He is a man, and even if he didnae love ye or wish tae marry ye, it didnae mean that he wouldnae wish tae bed ye.” Her grandfather looked uncomfortable, and his eyes were dark.
Lorna shuddered. She understood her grandfather’s concern in some ways, but she was sickened at the thought that Watt would take advantage of her that way. Clearly, her father didn’t know the man very well at all.
“I can try tae understand ye, but ye have made me a life that made me think that I could do nothing without anyone’s permission.”
He nodded, but he said nothing.
“Grandfather, I want a different life. I ken now about me mother, and I shouldnae say that I donnae care, but me problem is that ye kept it from me for so long. I think I deserve tae ken about me past.” She was growing stronger now, and even though she was heartbroken by the truth, she was glad that finally her grandfather was subdued, and he looked genuinely sorry for his actions.
He sighed and squeezed her hand again. “I ken. Ye do deserve the truth. Just ken that it was all for ye. It was tae protect ye. I will always protect ye, Lorna. Even after ye choose a man and get married, I will still endeavor tae help and protect ye. Ye are a part of the family, nae matter the past or what happened with Siusan.”
Lorna was tempted to remain solid and not give in to her grandfather’s sadness. She had remained strong with her grandmother, but the fact that she’d forgiven Bryce had made her feel guilty that she couldn’t yet give the same forgiveness to her family.
