Guilt and Blame Quotes in Mortal Engines

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #7

Valentine was the cause of all this! It was Valentine who had ruined [Tom's] life, and Hester's, and put an end to so much more. (29.5)

We're finally glad Tom is blaming someone other than himself for the world's problems. And you know, he might actually be right this time: Valentine has screwed up more than he can possibly imagine.

Quote #8

Valentine hung his head, angry, despairing, ashamed. (30.16)

Wow, we're pretty shocked to discover that even Valentine feels shame at what he's done. But why does he? Is it merely because his daughter now looks down on him, or does he truly feel guilty for all the pain he's caused?

Quote #9

It was [Tom's] fault! People must be dead down there. [...] He wished he had never fired those rockets. (35.2)

Once again, Tom finds himself in a kill-or-be-killed situation, and he feels bad for saving himself. To complicate matters here, however, innocent people died, too. Maybe Tom does bear a bit of the blame for this one. Did he have a choice?