Her mouth tightened into a thin line, not from anger at him, but his situation, that he was put through such agony and disgrace and that there had been no one there to protect him. She had had to threaten Lintlaf to keep his hands off Gwladus, but he had done it and Hild would have done worse if need had arisen. Someone should have been there.

"He told you nothing. You could not have known." She used her kind but royal tone, a tone to reassure and to quell argument. "You did only what you could do. Damen is kind and good. He will not judge you. He has not judged you, has he?"