There's some hesitation. It has little to do with Archie himself - Archie Valerian has always been a nice man - but Dougal DeWitt himself had always been highly suspicious of the Valerian enterprises. Alasdair wasn't ever sure why, and he grew away from his father as he grew up, so he never asked for an explanation.

There aren't that many options, though. Not for this, whatever it may be exactly.

"I'll talk to her about it," he says. "Hopefully I can catch her receptive."

Soon enough Catherine would have to be receptive, and Alasdair would have to be the one making more decisions, but none of them knew that yet.