Will came over to Ren and Dominic. “Thank you for not bamboozling my paying helpers by telling them you’re sure there has to be a body somewhere. Or a dildo.”
“What? Me?” Ren made sure he looked suitably horrified.
“That or a find to do with cannibalism.”
“Hey! There were definitely cuts on those bones.”
“Because we were excavating a medieval battle site.” Will turned to Dominic. “As a matter of interest, what would indicate cannibalism to you?”
“Maybe marks on both human and animal bones that pointed to smashing, cutting or burning. Something that showed humans and animals had been dealt with in the same way.”
“See!” Will said to Ren. “Common sense.”
“Yes, but he’s read every book in the entire world.”
“Don’t exaggerate,” Will said.
“It’s almost every book,” Dominic added.
The three of them laughed.
“Can I have a private word?” Ren asked his brother.
“Okay. Want to go to the tent?”
Ren nodded, then turned to Dominic. “I’m going to keep Will in the loop.”
“All right.”
Neither Will nor Ren spoke until they were alone.
“I’m assuming this has to do with calling him Nic.”
Ren wasn’t sure how much to tell him. All of it? Part of it?
“Just tell me,” Will said.
Ren hesitated.
“How bad can it be?”
“It’s bad.”
Will paled. “Tell me.”
“Don’t judge, okay?”
Will huffed.
By the time Ren had done, his brother was grim-faced.
“You know you should walk away,” Will said.
“No.”
“What the fuck, Ren? Don’t you have enough issues of your own? Not that you’ve told us the truth. Not all of it anyway. I know you’re trying to protect Mum and Dad, but you could tell me.”
“I left my problems two and half thousand miles away.”