Had he done so, we'd not need to ask. Clues such as this may vex me, owing to the differences in speech between you two and myself, so I've no intent of promising answers to all.

[Possibly putting it mildly; the differences truly stand out at times, and she has on occasion wondered what lies beneath the divergence in pattern and words.]

For all we're aware, the writer is thinking of a word unbeknownst to any of us.