‘Who is Aunt Jean? Miss Lindsay? The lady who lives with your uncle and keeps house for him?’
‘Yes.’
‘She is a relation of your uncle’s, isn’t she?’
‘Oh yes; a cousin in some degree or other.’
‘Mr. Lindsay never married, I believe,’ said Miss Mowbray.
‘No; he has no relations nearer than’—‘nearer than I am,’ he was going to have said; but he stopped and substituted—‘nearer than nephews and nieces.’
‘And he has plenty of them, I suppose? All Scotch people seem to have so many relations; it is quite bewildering.’
‘Uncle James is my father’s uncle, you understand,’ said Alec; ‘and there are only two in our family, my sister and I; that is not so very many.’
‘No. But have you really a sister?’ exclaimed Laura, turning round so as to face her companion for an instant.
‘Yes, one sister: Margaret.’