Aldous would not do his brother the disservice of drawing attention to the obvious, and so looked pointedly away, lips tightening into a hard line. This was too much. Aldous was happy willing to deal with a great many things as head of the household—a title he should not have held for another fifteen years at least!—but the crumbling of a brother's marriage, and quite possibly sense of self, had never been on the list of subjects first-born sons were briefed and ready for. Aldous Crouch struggled to suitably comfort even his sister; he had not a clue what to do for his brother.

Instead, he rose and moved to refill his glass with brandy. Rather than sit back down with it, however, he held it silently out to Reuben. A token of something, though damned if he knew what.