Page 72 of The Forsaken
“I think we should speak in private,” Joan replied.
“Speak now. I’ve no patience for games, and they’ll all find out the truth anyhow.” Hugh jutted his chin toward Guy, Kate and Eleanor, indicating who he meant.
“All right.” Joan sighed. “Aileen was with child. About six months gone, I’d say. I found seeds of rue in her pocket. They are poisonous, so she would have died quickly. I think she brought them along in case she couldn’t find the strength to throw herself off the tower.”
“Who’s the father of her bastard?” Hugh roared, his face turning puce with anger.
His vehemence surprised Kate. Hugh had barely noticed Aileen, at least in Kate’s presence, but she quickly realized the reason for Hugh’s fierce reaction had nothing to do with the loss of a young girl. They were a small household, and there were only three people who could have gotten Aileen with child. As master, Hugh would have to find out who was responsible and mete out thepunishment—something he wouldn’t relish, given his relationship to the possible miscreants.
“Excuse me,” Kate said and left the room. She grabbed her cloak and walked out to the stables.
Walter was sitting on a bale of hay, his head resting against the wooden planks of the wall and his eyes closed. His cheeks were wet with tears and his lower lip was bitten to the quick. His eyes flew open in surprise when he heard Kate enter the stables, and he angrily wiped his cheeks with the back of his hand.
“Walter, are you all right?” Kate asked as she drew closer to the boy.
Walter shook his head. His face contorted with anguish and his hands balled into fists. “How could she do it? How could she commit a mortal sin? She’ll never be at peace now. She’ll burn in Hell for eternity. Didn’t she know that?”
“Walter, did you lie with Aileen?” Kate asked, deciding to be blunt. If Walter was the father, Hugh would skin him alive, but he was the likeliest candidate.
Walter shook his head again. “We were friends; that was all. I never touched her.”
“She was a comely girl, and I think she had feelings for you,” Kate persisted in the hope that he would tell her the truth.
“Aye, she was comely, and she did have feelings for me, but I had no wish to hurt her. I could never offer her a future. I must marry where my family chooses when the time comes.”
“Many men marry where they are told, but that doesn’t stop them from satisfying their needs elsewhere before they do.”
“I never touched her, I told you,” Walter spat out. “I cared about her.”
“Then help me figure out who did this to her. Aileen was with child.”
Walter sniffled and wiped his nose on his sleeve, but he showed no surprise at Kate’s revelation.
“You know who the father is, don’t you?” she asked.
“There’s only one person it could be,” he replied bitterly.
“Who?” Kate’s stomach contracted with fear. If Walter said that Hugh had forced himself on Aileen, she wouldn’t be able to remain a wife to him. She didn’t know what she’d do, since Hugh owned her, but she’d find a way. She wouldn’t stay at Castle de Rosel a moment longer. Kate stared down Walter, waiting, but he seemed reluctant to name the father, despite his loyalty to Aileen.
“Walter, please, you must tell me who did this to her,” Kate persisted.
“He didn’t do anything to her, at least nothing she hadn’t wanted done,” Walter replied stubbornly. “She wanted it. She told me so herself.”
“Was she not afraid of the consequences?”
“She thought he’d look after her.”
“Who was it?” Kate held her breath. She couldn’t bear for the father to be Hugh, but if Walter named Guy she’d feel even more broken. She had no right to blame Guy for desiring a bit of affection. He didn’t belong to her, nor did he owe her anything at all, but if he had lain with Aileen, it would still feel like a terrible betrayal, especially since Aileen would have been at his mercy and in no position to deny him. Kate didn’t believe Guy capable of taking advantage of a vulnerable disabled girl, at least not the Guy she knew, but people had a way of hurting each other in ways that weren’t always planned.
“It was Emmett Walsh,” Walter finally said.
Kate released her breath in a rush.Thank you, Father, she thought.Thank you. Thank you. It wasn’t until that moment that she realized how little she trusted Hugh, and how desperately sheloved Guy and needed him to be innocent of using Aileen, even if she had been a willing participant.
“Who is Emmett Walsh?” she asked, dragging her errant thoughts back to the issue at hand. She’d never heard of the man.
“Emmett is the lad who brings the hay,” Walter explained. “For the horses,” he added, seeing Kate’s puzzled look. “We don’t make our own hay. We get it from the farmers on the estate.”
“Oh, of course.” She’d never given much thought to the horses and their dietary needs.
