"I consider that very practical, Mrs. Fry," Fr Verdoux rejoined with approval. It seemed that he had, by his very manner of dress, been expected to lead. His hand slipped back into his pocket, giving the rosary a feel, just for comfort's sake.
"There seem to be eleven of us, unless someone else has had the misfortune of falling into this trap." Fr Verdoux's face was stern and serious. He found the situation to be unenviable at the very least. "Groups of two or three would be preferable, I suspect."
There were three women total in the crowd and he wanted to make sure that they were not left alone with questionable personages. Further, he suspected it would be a good idea to separate the oddly aggressive Mr. Alderdice from the company of Mr. Abbott.