Even though he can't see Raju well in the low light, he can sense well enough the change in tension. It's only more clear in the quality of Raju's voice, and then the sudden, strange motion; James isn't sure if he actually saw a flash of something or it's just his eyes, but either way, it's clear this line of questioning is hitting some sort of nerve.
He'd feel a little bad about that, but they do need to get to something meaningful to get out of here. Besides, even if he'd apologized for it, Raju had done a lot of prying before; James can justify to himself being the one to hold control of the conversation and ask questions, at least for now.
"You didn't ask me who I was." James counters, his own tone mostly even, but slightly challenging. "The only question you asked of me was how long I'd been there, and I knew I had no answer that would satisfy you; I couldn't remember how long it had been, and any guess I made would've been likely obvious." Even if he'd guessed relatively correctly, it would've surely been clear he was guessing. "I didn't believe that anything I said would convince you, and in my much of my previous experience, people who make threats before shooting are typically very hesitant to shoot at all."
So no, it didn't make him sound more honest, and he can admit that. But he had called the bluff thinking Raju would still err on the side of caution, with James perhaps being suspicious but not enough so to warrant being outright shot, so he feels his original, unstated question still stands: why had Raju decided it was worth the risk?
no subject
He'd feel a little bad about that, but they do need to get to something meaningful to get out of here. Besides, even if he'd apologized for it, Raju had done a lot of prying before; James can justify to himself being the one to hold control of the conversation and ask questions, at least for now.
"You didn't ask me who I was." James counters, his own tone mostly even, but slightly challenging. "The only question you asked of me was how long I'd been there, and I knew I had no answer that would satisfy you; I couldn't remember how long it had been, and any guess I made would've been likely obvious." Even if he'd guessed relatively correctly, it would've surely been clear he was guessing. "I didn't believe that anything I said would convince you, and in my much of my previous experience, people who make threats before shooting are typically very hesitant to shoot at all."
So no, it didn't make him sound more honest, and he can admit that. But he had called the bluff thinking Raju would still err on the side of caution, with James perhaps being suspicious but not enough so to warrant being outright shot, so he feels his original, unstated question still stands: why had Raju decided it was worth the risk?