went down the river."
"Why?"
He jerked his chin up the road. "He was teaching at the school--"
"They've got a school?"
"Yeah, a Molly Hootch, new three years ago. Chistona petitioned for eligibility when the population in the area started growing and the state came in and built it."
"I didn't see it."
"It's off the road, about halfway to Tanada. They wanted it as central to the population as possible, there's homesteads scattered all over the place, you know how it is. Anyway, there was some hoorah about what Daniel was teaching, and his father took exception, and got the whole congregation into it with him, and Daniel split."
"Just left?"
"Yeah."
"Without even telling his son?"
His eyes met hers. "That's what everybody said, Pastor Seabolt and all the churchy people." He paused, letting her think about that for a while. "They say he left in August, just before the school year started.
I figure he thought he'd better get out on his own before they ran him out on a rail, tarred and feathered." Startled, Kate said, "What the hell was he teaching? Devil worship?"
"Close enough. Dinosaurs, evolution, radical stuff like that."
Kate remembered Sally Gillespie's white face, and her T. Rex son, and the cold, vigilant presence of Pastor Seabolt in the doorway of the church.
Brad Burns added, "Dan told me once he was going up to Fairbanks, to arrange a tour of the museum there, or maybe get one of their fossilologists or whatever they call them to come down and give a talk.
I think the Jesus freakers put a stop to it." He drank tea. "There was something about reading assignments, too, some of the parents wanted to ban some books from the school library."
"Which ones?"
He shrugged. "I don't remember exactly. I don't have kids myself, so I didn't pay much attention. Probably the usual suspects, works by those well known American subversives Mark Twain and J.D. Salinger."
He eyed her over the rim of his mug. "Wouldn't mind a couple rug rats around the place, though. How about you?" She smiled and shook her head, waving a hand at Mutt, who had her chin on her paws and looked bored.
"Got a roommate." She finished her tea and rose to her feet. "Thanks.
I'd better be getting back, my friends will be wondering where I am." He tried to get her to stay for dinner, but she refused, as kindly as she could in the face of his disappointment. Company was hard to come by in the bush, and only reluctantly surrendered.
"Come back anytime," he called after her, and she turned to wave. He stood, silhouetted in the door of his tiny cabin, the Kanuyaq, gray with glacial silt, flowing behind him.
"Well?" Dinah said when Kate reappeared in camp.
"Bill and Hilary Clinton are New Age heretics, America is a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were right, Matthew Seabolt is a choirboy."
She held out a hand. "Got your Bible?"
"Sure." Dinah pulled it out and handed it over, and watched Kate thumb through the pages. "What are you looking for?"
"There's a story about Lot the pastor quoted from. I wanted to look it up. You know where it is?"
"What, the one about his wife turning into a pillar of salt? Everybody knows that story, even devout pagans. Maybe especially devout pagans."
Dinah's brow puckered. "What was her name, anyway? You ever notice how a lot of biblical women never have their own names?"
"No, not that story, the one where Lot lived in Sodom where all the men were homosexuals and when two angels showed up for dinner the men of Sodom gathered outside Lot's house and demanded they be turned over for a gang-bang."
Dinah blinked. "What?" "That's what Seabolt told us."
"Whew. No, I don't know where that is. I must have missed that story in Sunday school." "Me, too," Kate said, still searching for the passage without success.
"You never went to Sunday school in your life," Bobby growled, and plucked the book from Kate's hands. He turned to the front of the book and found the page without hesitation. "Genesis, Chapter 19." He
"Why?"
He jerked his chin up the road. "He was teaching at the school--"
"They've got a school?"
"Yeah, a Molly Hootch, new three years ago. Chistona petitioned for eligibility when the population in the area started growing and the state came in and built it."
"I didn't see it."
"It's off the road, about halfway to Tanada. They wanted it as central to the population as possible, there's homesteads scattered all over the place, you know how it is. Anyway, there was some hoorah about what Daniel was teaching, and his father took exception, and got the whole congregation into it with him, and Daniel split."
"Just left?"
"Yeah."
"Without even telling his son?"
His eyes met hers. "That's what everybody said, Pastor Seabolt and all the churchy people." He paused, letting her think about that for a while. "They say he left in August, just before the school year started.
I figure he thought he'd better get out on his own before they ran him out on a rail, tarred and feathered." Startled, Kate said, "What the hell was he teaching? Devil worship?"
"Close enough. Dinosaurs, evolution, radical stuff like that."
Kate remembered Sally Gillespie's white face, and her T. Rex son, and the cold, vigilant presence of Pastor Seabolt in the doorway of the church.
Brad Burns added, "Dan told me once he was going up to Fairbanks, to arrange a tour of the museum there, or maybe get one of their fossilologists or whatever they call them to come down and give a talk.
I think the Jesus freakers put a stop to it." He drank tea. "There was something about reading assignments, too, some of the parents wanted to ban some books from the school library."
"Which ones?"
He shrugged. "I don't remember exactly. I don't have kids myself, so I didn't pay much attention. Probably the usual suspects, works by those well known American subversives Mark Twain and J.D. Salinger."
He eyed her over the rim of his mug. "Wouldn't mind a couple rug rats around the place, though. How about you?" She smiled and shook her head, waving a hand at Mutt, who had her chin on her paws and looked bored.
"Got a roommate." She finished her tea and rose to her feet. "Thanks.
I'd better be getting back, my friends will be wondering where I am." He tried to get her to stay for dinner, but she refused, as kindly as she could in the face of his disappointment. Company was hard to come by in the bush, and only reluctantly surrendered.
"Come back anytime," he called after her, and she turned to wave. He stood, silhouetted in the door of his tiny cabin, the Kanuyaq, gray with glacial silt, flowing behind him.
"Well?" Dinah said when Kate reappeared in camp.
"Bill and Hilary Clinton are New Age heretics, America is a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were right, Matthew Seabolt is a choirboy."
She held out a hand. "Got your Bible?"
"Sure." Dinah pulled it out and handed it over, and watched Kate thumb through the pages. "What are you looking for?"
"There's a story about Lot the pastor quoted from. I wanted to look it up. You know where it is?"
"What, the one about his wife turning into a pillar of salt? Everybody knows that story, even devout pagans. Maybe especially devout pagans."
Dinah's brow puckered. "What was her name, anyway? You ever notice how a lot of biblical women never have their own names?"
"No, not that story, the one where Lot lived in Sodom where all the men were homosexuals and when two angels showed up for dinner the men of Sodom gathered outside Lot's house and demanded they be turned over for a gang-bang."
Dinah blinked. "What?" "That's what Seabolt told us."
"Whew. No, I don't know where that is. I must have missed that story in Sunday school." "Me, too," Kate said, still searching for the passage without success.
"You never went to Sunday school in your life," Bobby growled, and plucked the book from Kate's hands. He turned to the front of the book and found the page without hesitation. "Genesis, Chapter 19." He
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