Grace's eyes widened a little. She couldn't imagine having so many siblings; her household was always bustling and most of the year it was only Ford, Noble, Verity, and Mama there with her. "Are you one of the older or younger siblings?" she asked, trying to piece together Mr. Echelon-Arnost through these little clues. He was a good and kind man from her estimation. She hadn't figured out yet why he needed a cane, but she didn't want to ask. And then there was the other question—ward? But she felt it was rude to ask that, too, so she would wait and see what information he volunteered on his own accord. "I'm the second-youngest. My sister Clementine is still in school," she explained.
