Perhaps it is better this way. [In lieu of sympathy, Chilton offered opportunity. Such was his manner.] Different enough for starling analyses. A fresh intellectual courtship.

[Alloying the mind with the heart, it was a bit cheeky on Chilton's part. But he wasn't about to undersell the value of a nemesis, now when he had his own experiences with Hannibal Lecter. His dislike and sense of betrayal fueled his projects that had followed Hannibal's wake, after all.]

I wouldn't expect you to be forthright about your intentions with him, but...

[But Chilton was asking anyway.]