Page 45 of Conquer the Highlander

Titus was listening to the conversation, a conversation he would have ignored under normal circumstances because things like clans and families and children meant nothing to him. He agreed that the Ludus Caledonia was his clan, as Cam said, because they were more of a family to him than those of his blood who had long abandoned him.

“One doesna need tae be related by blood in order tae be family,” he said after a moment. “I’ve learned that.”

Cam and Brody looked at him. “That is true,” Cam said. “We all have our backgrounds, our families that we’ve left behind.”

Titus looked over at them. “Ye never asked me what my background was or if I have family I’ve left behind.”

Cam and Brody continued to look at him, wondering why he should make such a statement, especially at this moment. They’d just finished training, something lighthearted but serious, and were preparing to move on with their day. But this statement was something unexpected, and would have been unexpected at any time, because it was a statement with an answer Titus had always kept closely guarded. It seemed like an odd time to bring it up.

But perhaps Titus didn’t feel that way.

Cam finally shrugged.

“Does it matter?” he said. “If ye want us tae know, ye’ll tell us, but ye’ve made it clear that ye dunna want tae speak of yer past. We respect that.”

Titus didn’t say anything for a moment. His gaze returned to the little boy playing in the dirt as his thoughts turned to the past he never spoke of. He’d done very well at forgetting it until he saw Lady Ayr in the apothecary’s shop.

Now, it was heavy on his mind. Speaking of it to Esme had done something to him – it had been a cathartic moment, more than he realized it would be, and she had been kind and interested in his origins. She hadn’t passed judgment. Perhaps that’s what he had always been afraid of – men passing judgment.

But he had come to know Cam and Brody very well over the past several months, ever since he had been brought to the Ludus Caledonia. He knew all about their backgrounds, the tragedies and triumphs, but they knew nothing about his. They were all close friends, but he knew they could never be truly close unless they knew all about him. For the first time since knowing them, he felt like lowering his guard.

Perhaps letting friends in on his past was a good thing.

“Ye’ve not heard about me and my background, then?” he finally asked. “If ye have, ye can say so. I willna be angry.”

Cam and Brody both shook their heads. “We know ye came from Glasgow,” Cam said. “That’s all I’ve ever heard.”

Titus was still looking at the boy as he spoke. “My father is the Duke of Kintyre and Lorne,” he said quietly. Then, he turned to see their reactions. “My father is the youngest brother of the King of Scotland. James is my uncle.”

Cam and Brody were staring at him as if waiting for him to admit he was lying. But Titus simply nodded his head.

“It is true,” he said. “I wouldna lie tae ye about such a thing. I know we spend a good deal of time playing tricks on one another, but this isna one of those times. I may be a prideful lad, but I dunna need tae lie tae my friends in order tae impress them. My father really is a duke and my uncle really is the king.”

Cam’s eyebrows lifted in astonishment. “Then what in the hell are ye doing here?” he asked the obvious. “Titus, ye should be living in a fine house with yer own army. Ye’re of royal blood, lad.”

“I’m also a bastard,” Titus said quietly. “My mother was a lady-in-waiting for the duchess, and I was raised by my mother’s family as an infant and then given over as a hostage tae my father’s cousin. That was where I spent my entire life until seven years ago when I was released. Being directionless, with a father who wouldna accept me and a mother I dinna want tae burden, I learned tae fight at the Ludus Antonine. If ye wanted tae know the truth, now ye do. When I said one doesna need tae be related by blood tae be a family, I meant it. Ye’re the only family I have.”

It was a sad statement, though Titus wasn’t looking for pity. It was simply a statement of fact, but it explained why Titus was such a prideful man. He needed that reassurance that he was good enough, that he was accepted and loved for who he was. He would always be that discarded bastard, but at the Ludus Caledonia, none of that mattered. Cam and Brody immediately went to him and Cam reached out, putting a hand on Titus’ broad shoulder.

“’Tis their loss, lad,” he said softly, warmly. “I’ll take a duke’s bastard as my brother and be the richer for it.”

Titus smiled weakly, perhaps a little uncomfortably. He wasn’t used to such sentiment. “It seems we have something in common,” he said. “Ye told me once that yer father was a Norse king who loved yer mother. It seems we’re both royal bastards, from different paths in life.”

“And I’m a bloody peasant,” Brody snorted, breaking the spell of the warm moment as Titus and Cam chuckled. “’Tis true! I’m no better than a weed growing out of the dirt compared tae the two of ye.”

“At least ye have yer beauteous looks,” Cam said. “Ye were able tae attract a wife with that face even if ye have nothing else tae offer her. Speaking of attracting a wife, what’s this I hear, Titus? Ye have a woman living with ye now?”

Titus cleared his throat as the focus swung back on him. The subject changed and he wasn’t sure he was prepared to discuss it. How could he discuss something he didn’t fully understand himself?

“Aye,” he said after a moment. “I told Clegg about her, and he has given permission for her tae remain with me.”

Cam and Brody were expecting more of an answer. “And?” Cam said. “Tell us more about her. My wife says she’s Spanish.”

“She is,” Titus said. He paused a moment before continuing. “I told ye that I was held a hostage for many years. She was a hostage, also, but she escaped and came tae me for help. I couldna deny her.”

“A hostage with the same captor?” Cam asked, puzzled.

Titus nodded. “I dinna tell Clegg any of this, so keep it tae yerself,” he said, lowering his voice. “I was the captive of Ambrose Stewart, Duke of Ayr, for many years. He kept me at Culroy Castle as insurance against my father doing anything… foolish. My father has known a contentious relationship with his brother and was constantly in a state of rebellion. Esme was at Culroy Castle, also. Only in her case, the duke held her against her will and planned tae marry her tae his son, who is a vile excuse for a man. She escaped and has asked me tae help her earn money for passage back tae Navarre.”