Laurence was sitting under one of the canopies raised in their small camp behind Rio, eating breakfast and trying not to look at Granby. His former lieutenant was putting on his coat and neckcloth, both of which he had discarded before going to sleep the night before. It was not an easy task for a man who had only recently had his left hand replaced by a steel hook and there was a steady stream of curses coming from Granby's corner of the camp. The close quarters did not offer much in the way of privacy and Laurence was not the only one who had noticed Granby's struggles. At one point his first lieutenant had made a move to help him, which Granby had stopped with one fierce look.
Several painful minutes later Granby had managed to put his coat on without his hook getting caught in the sleeve and he moved on to the neckcloth. This turned out to be an even bigger challenge, however, and the cursing was replaced by a determined silence.
The silence made Laurence's attempts to ignore Granby's awkwardness much easier and as he neared the end of his breakfast he had almost forgotten that he was pretending not to notice something. A sudden outburst of "Damn it all to Hell!" that almost caused him to choke on his coffee quickly reminded him, however, and he turned involuntarily to look at Granby. The rather sharp point of the hook had got caught in the neckcloth and was now threatening to tear the fabric as Granby rather violently worked to get it loose, his left arm stuck at an awkward angle.
Laurence got up and swiftly walked over to Granby, ignoring the latter's angry looks, and started untangling the hook. Thinking it best not to risk further harm to the neckcloth, Laurence proceeded to tie it for Granby, to the other man's great embarrassment.
"Perhaps you should think about hiring a valet?" Laurence suggested as he straightened Granby's coat.
Granby looked rather uncomfortable at the notion.
"No, I'll manage," he said, in tones that suggested he was trying to convince himself as much as anyone else.
Laurence's scepticism must have shown on his face, because Granby sighed despondently and added
"Or I'll just never take off my neckcloth again."