After they returned to Jaspers's house Jaspers tried to draw Heidegger out, remarking that surely his friend could not agree with Nazis on the Jewish question. Heidegger: But there is a dangerous international network of Jews. Jaspers: How can such an uncultivated man like Adolf Hitler govern Germany? Heidegger: Culture doesn't matter. Just look at his marvelous hands? Heidegger left early and never saw his old friend again.

Jaspers was stunned. Nothing Heidegger ever said had prepared him for this rapid political engagement with Nazism…

I have the question regarding the Past perfect used in the second paragraph of the above excerpt. I presume that this usage is OK but I tend to write this sentence this way: Nothing Heidegger had ever said prepared him for this rapid political engagement with Nazism. My "logic" for this usage is as follows: 1. Heidegger's unutterd words are located before the conversation which is quoted at the end of the first paragraph. 2. The things must be firstly told and than it is possible to be prepared for them. – Could you tell me where my "logic" fails?