Laura Lyons, née Frankland, is the daughter of Mr Frankland of Lafter Hall. She married a traveling artist named Lyons against the wishes of her father, but he soon abandoned her. Thanks to the generosity of Sir Charles Baskerville, she was able to move to the town of Coombe Tracey near Grimpen, where she managed to get a job as a typist and made friends with Jack Stapleton. She was later a person of interest in Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson's investigation into Sir Charles' death, largely because the nature of her relationship and dealings with Sir Charles had been kept secret.