Sally’s colour rose becomingly.

“Wilfrid, she is not my aunt! She is your mother’s cousin, and that is all there is about it!”

He moved his head in a slight negative gesture.

“I am not talking about cousins, I am talking about aunts. If a helpless girl finds shelter with an elderly female, the elderly female automatically becomes an aunt and is so addressed. It is what is known as a courtesy title. You would not be discourteous to Paulina? Anyhow this is no time for idle badinage. As I started out by saying, I have a Grievance, and I wish to enlist your support in getting it removed. Are you any good at sabotage?”

“Now, Wilfrid-”

The hand flapped again.

“Don’t hurry me. It weakens the system, depletes the energies, and makes me come all over a doodah. As you may have guessed, the grievance concerns the attic. Why should Paulina have allowed David Moray to intrude himself into her top floor? It has an excellent north light. If she was prepared to let it as a studio, why in the name of the tables of kindred and affinity should she let a stranger have it rather than her own cousin’s son?”

“What on earth are the tables of kindred and affinity?”

Wilfrid opened his hazel eyes sufficiently to allow a reproachful glance to travel in her direction.

“Ah-you weren’t brought up in the bosom of the Church like I was!”

“No. What are they?”

“A compendious list of all the people you mustn’t marry and no one in their senses would want to. In the Book of Common Prayer.” He closed his eyes again and intoned, “ ‘A Man may not marry his Grandmother-’ But we digress. At least you do. I return to the point, which is Pressure to be brought on Paulina. By you.”

Sally’s eyes widened in the way which had in the past caused a good many young men to be emotionally disturbed.