“You don’t really think that’s going to happen, though,” Alfred said confidently.

“No, I don’t,” Allison admitted. “On the other hand, I’ve been wrong before, on very rare occasions in my life, and I’d just as soon not find out if this is one of them.”

“I can see that.” Alfred rubbed Nelson, and then chuckled as Samantha decided the men had been getting too much of the attention. She stood and stalked over to wedge herself down between the two Harringtons, flowing into the space between them like modeling clay and patting Allison’s thigh imperiously with one true-hand until the hand Jason hadn’t captured came around to pet her.

But then Alfred’s chuckle oozed off into a thoughtful silence, and Allison looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

“You know,” he said slowly, “I think I’ve just had an idea.”

“What kind?” she demanded.

“Well, your main concern is over the religious dimension, right? About how the more conservative elements of the Church are likely to react?” She nodded, and he shrugged. “In that case, why not go to the very top? From something Mac said this morning, I understand Reverend Sullivan is going to be here in Harrington in a couple of weeks.”

“Rev—?” Allison frowned, furrowing her brow as she thought. “I’d considered that myself earlier, very briefly,” she admitted after a moment. “But I chickened out. From all I’ve seen of him, he’s a lot… fiercer than Reverend Hanks was. What if that means he’s narrower minded or more authoritarian? What if he tries to force me to suppress my findings?”

“What if you’re borrowing trouble?” Alfred countered. “I agree he’s not very much like Honor described Reverend Hanks to us—or, at least, his public persona isn’t. But from what I’ve seen of the Graysons, I don’t think their Sacristy would have been likely to select an idiot or a zealot as Reverend. For that matter, didn’t Honor tell us Hanks himself had more or less handpicked Sullivan as Second Elder and groomed him as his successor?”

Allison nodded, and he twitched his left shoulder in another shrug.

“In that case, I’d say you’ve got at least a better than even chance he’ll react reasonably. And even if he doesn’t, that’s a bridge you’re going to have to cross eventually anyway. I mean, you wouldn’t really let him stop you from publishing in the unlikely event that he did try to suppress your findings, would you?” She shook her head. “Well, there it is, then. You might as well find out now as later, and going to him first will give you a better chance of enlisting his active support if it’s looking iffy. And however individual Graysons may react, there’s certainly no one on this entire planet who could give you a better read on the Church’s probable official reaction!”

“That’s true enough, anyway,” Allison agreed. She thought about it for several seconds, then nodded against his chest. “I think you’re probably right,” she said, “You always did have a better sense than me of how to work a hierarchy.”