Tarass’s silence gave Twilla permission to speak.

“Fay and Winton, Tarass’s da, were good friends, but it wasn’t Winton she loved. It was another man and Winton helped her hide it, since the man was one of Winton’s warriors, certainly not an appropriate husband for the daughter of a noble.”

“Fay would never—”

“Love doesn’t distinguish between nobles and peasants,” Twilla snapped at Polwarth. “Fay didn’t plan on falling in love with this warrior. It caught them both off guard and both tried to deny it, but love is impossible to ignore.”

“Abbot Bennett told me it was Winton my sister snuck off to meet,” Polwarth said, looking perplexed.

Twilla looked to the Abbot. “He lied.”

“Fay never mentioned a name,” Abbot Bennett said in defense of himself.

“Another lie,” Twilla accused.

“You dare call me a liar,” Abbot Bennett snapped.

“I think Fay’s own words prove it since she begged to confess her sins. Isn’t that right, Lord Polwarth?”

“Aye, she did, begged me with tears in her eyes to save her soul,” Polwarth confirmed.

“Fay feared dying with a sin on her soul, never allowing her to join the warrior she loved when she died.”

“The warrior’s dead?” Snow asked, her heart aching for the poor lass.

“Fay came here as soon as Winton had arrived with his new wife along with his warriors who had accompanied him. While it was a joyous occasion for him, it was also a heartbreaking one. He had to tell Fay that the warrior she loved had died in an accident. Fay returned home distraught not over Winton’s new wife, but over losing the man she loved. She kept the bairn a secret until it was a secret no more. Losing the bairn he had left her with was like losing her love all over again and she gave up. Fay wanted to die. She felt there was nothing left in this life for her.”

“That is a ridiculous tale you concocted,” Abbot Bennett accused. “You have no way of knowing the truth.”

Twilla wiped at the tear that hung at the corner of her eye. “But I do know. I know because the warrior Fay loved was my son.”

Chapter 29

Lord Polwarth stood speechless, tears glistening in his eyes. No one else spoke either, Twilla having stunned them all silent.