[There's a decidedly bitter edge to that sad little smile Richard gives in response. That's also why he won't eat anything that isn't prepared by someone he trusts, as Gilbert found out when he tried to coax Richard into eating some of Elliot's birthday cake.]
The less I ate, the smaller the chance of any poison I received being fatal.
[For Richard, food was always something to be viewed with suspicion, consumed only because it was necessary for life; even now, with no threat of poison, his appetite still remains very slight and mercurial as a result of years of (rightful) paranoia. It doesn't take much stress-wise to make him lose it entirely.]
[Action]
The less I ate, the smaller the chance of any poison I received being fatal.
[For Richard, food was always something to be viewed with suspicion, consumed only because it was necessary for life; even now, with no threat of poison, his appetite still remains very slight and mercurial as a result of years of (rightful) paranoia. It doesn't take much stress-wise to make him lose it entirely.]