Sean said, “Ye ken, mother, I hae long heard it, ye ought tae tell me the truth.”
“Must it be tonight? We had a lovely night planned with dancing?—”
“We dinna plan the night, ye arrived unannounced,” said Magnus.
“What I mean is we could go tae the kingdom, get comfortable, and then I could tell ye, with the distance I think twould be a good thing…?”
Sean was pacing beside our chairs, he exhaled loudly, obviously irritated.
She said, “Nae?”
Lizbeth said, “Seems as if ye ought tae tell us what ye mean tae say, and ye hae come here tae finish everything up in yer past, as if ye can just cut all ties tae yer ancestors and yer homeland, ye plan tae dig up yer valuables and clean out yer walls, ye might as well divulge yer hidden secrets as well.”
Lady Mairead said, her voice catching in a sign of weakness that none of us were used to. “Yet I am not sure how tae tell it.”
Magnus said, “If ye tell it quicker, tis easier.”
She sighed and looked directly at Sean. “The man ye believed tae be yer father, the man who gave ye yer name, was not who ye thought… Yer real father was Fionn. He was the son of a farmer, a good farmer, with some land, but he wasna titled, or even important. All could see he wasna fit tae be my husband.” She bit her lips and took a staggered breath. “He was a great love of mine, though. I cared for him deeply.” She lifted the wine glass to her lips and sipped, and placed the glass down and continued, “We met in secrecy and meant tae be married, we had declared our intention tae marry each other, he was tae be mine, and I was tae be his. And then my brother found us. His men took Fionn and beat him mercilessly. I was held locked in my chambers for days. I dinna get tae see my Fionn before he passed.”
Lizbeth said, “Och nae, Mother, tis dreadful!”
“I ken,” she patted the side of her hair. Then went back to looking at Sean. “Twas soon after that my mother realized I was with child, I was young, she noticed before even I did. She and the Earl made hasty arrangements for my marriage tae the much older man, Lord Arran Campbell of Lowden. He had sons tae pass down his title, but he was willing tae marry me because of my youth and beauty. The Earl gave him a great deal of land. He was a tyrant and treated me horribly. I hated Lord Lowden, but had nae say in the matter.” She raised her chin.
Sean said quietly, “Lord Lowden wasna my father?”
“Nae. But now ye hae been told, I daena want tae speak on it more. Others might hear and yer reputation would be harmed if they knew.”
Sean clenched his jaw. “How could ye keep it from me for all these years?”
“Lord Lowden believed ye were his son, tis my shame and mine alone, there is nae reason for ye tae ken of yer mother’s shame, it does ye nae good.”
Wilfred said, “Sean, Lizbeth, the only reason I felt it was important for you both to know this background is so that you might understand why your mother refrained from returning to Balloch.”
“Twas never my children I dinna want tae see, twas my brother. But I had nae where else tae put ye tae keep ye safe. I daena give one thought for myself,”
Lizbeth scoffed.
Lady Mairead said, “Tis true! I haena given one thought tae it, daughter. I thought I would keep the story tae my grave, but now I hae done it, told the sordid tale, the only reason I told ye is so ye would understand thatI have sufferedhaving tae see him whenever I wanted tae see ye. I am relieved that ye are going tae move so it winna be an issue.” She sighed. “And now, though I dread it, he is here, on the morrow I must go up tae pay my respects?—”
Sean ran a hand through his hair. “I am verra grateful ye waited until Maggie left the room tae tell it, she daena deserve the shame of bein’ married tae a bastard.”
She raised her chin. “Ye arna a bastard, yer father, Lord Lowden, gave you his name. Och nae, ye are being over dramatic, Sean, this inna about yer pedigree but aboutmylife.”
“I just daena understand how ye could keep it from me, I hae lived m’whole life in service tae the man who murdered my?—”
“He ordered the killing, he dinna strike the blows?—”
“Twas brutal?”
“Aye, I still see it in my mind.”
Sean said, “I hae been serving the man who ordered the killin’ of m’father. How could ye allow it tae happen?”
“Sean, my son, twas not for me tae decide. I was at the mercy of powerful men, I had tae make many choices tae keep ye safe and protected.”
Sean looked at Magnus. “Ye hear it, m’mother has been ‘protecting me’.”
“I hear it.”
