"It's probably a good thing you're in his corner, then." Her description of Isaac doesn't track to Dan's mentality exactly, but it overlaps enough to be a little uncomfortable. Not like being seen in the spotlight, but like being caught in a highbeam while running into the darkness, a flash of recognition. "Guilt, though..."

Guilt is a bullet Dan mercifully dodged in most of his life, except for the way his kid died. He could have survivor's guilt to the gills over being the only member of his family to avoid slaughter, but thank God he knew, somehow, that he was doing the best he could, that his best was so limited by being a young person who couldn't read and had no documentation or money. Recognizing what he was up against made it easy to forgive himself for things he could have carried his whole life.

"Guilt's a tricky one. That ain't nothing you can force anyone to work through. They got to have that epiphany moment on their own." He finishes another line of the stitches along her back. "When I'm done with this, do you want me to help with the ones on your arms and legs? Just the hard to reach ones."