“I"ve had a letter and a phone call from my cousin in Vancouver,” Mr. Monty said.
“Is something wrong?” Nathan said, worried now that perhaps the cousin was backing out of the arrangements and that he"d be stuck in Westburn.
Mr. Monty"s cousin wished to make a lengthy journey to Israel; he was thinking of retiring there. He had two questions for Mr. Monty: would he consider managing the business while he was away and once Nathan was settled in. And in the longer term, how would he feel about taking over the business and settling in Vancouver?
“I wouldn"t want you to feel crowded, Nathan. What do you think? We"d be partners.”
At sixty-three Mr. Monty, isolated in an affluent Glasgow suburb, dreaded the prospect of loneliness: he had no family left in Scotland and when Ma died a strong l
