"He doesn’t yet have a string of codependents that he can swap out as they catch on. The older and more savvy he gets, the easier that part becomes."
Oh Cynical One...I have been one of many on a string...so true that as time goes by the manipulation grows. My denial finally fell away when I witnessed the "shell game" my addict used with his large circle of enablers that he has collected after twenty years!
Nip it in the bud Windblown!! Don't succumb...be strong! If you don't he is learning how to hook an enabler by methods that worked with you!