James stared at the leather. Henry had ordered it made years earlier, when Storm was younger and his muscular development had been different.
"Was it unsuitable when my brother rode in it?" he asked.
"Not necessarily," Pritchard replied. "A saddle may fit well at one time and poorly later. Wear, changes in the horse's shape, and alterations to the stuffing can all matter."
James rubbed a hand across his mouth. "And someone should have noticed."
"Someone should have examined it when the horse began objecting," Bell said. "That is the practical matter."
Emma watched James's expression. The accusation he directed toward himself was evident in the way his shoulders had gone rigid.
"You cannot change what happened before you understood it," she said quietly. "But you can decide what happens now."
He looked at her. "That sounds remarkably like forgiveness."
"It isn't," she answered gently. "It's responsibility."
Pritchard agreed to prepare a written assessment and repair estimate, but Bell advised against fitting any saddle until Storm's back had fully recovered and the replacement or repaired equipment could be assessed on him. James accepted the decision without argument.
Once the others departed, he asked Thomas to bring the training records into the office. Emma sat opposite him at the narrow desk while rain tapped against the window. James opened the book to the earliest reports of resistance.
"Thomas says he mentioned Storm's discomfort last Thursday," he said. "Peter noticed the padding three weeks ago, but the first difficult behavior was recorded months before either warning."
Emma examined the dates. "Then the problem may have developed gradually."
"Look here." James indicated an entry describing Storm refusing to stand for mounting. Two days later, another entry recorded a violent sideways movement; neither included an examination or any change in training.
"Who wrote these?" Emma asked.
"Vale."
"Does he normally keep such brief records?"
"Apparently." James turned several pages; the entries became increasingly irregular.
Emma rested her pencil beside the book. "These omissions don't prove he knew the saddle was causing pain."