More likely he used Loghain's paranoia to further his own ends. That partnership would only have lasted for as long as Howe could benefit.

[He had known the man more by reputation than getting personally close. For all of his lauds gained during the rebellion, he had seemed nothing more than a grubbing opportunist. He had known enough like him on the streets to smell it from a league away.]

Loghain allowed his own daughter to be locked away? He must have worried what she might say about Cailan, or that she could keep enough of his popularity alive that the Banns wouldn't fall easily into line. He underestimated them, or he overestimated his own popularity. One cannot rest on a former reputation forever, not when one is actively ruining it in the present.

[He took a slow sip of his tea and set the cup back down with a soft clack.]

I'm glad to hear that about the younger Howe. Also glad to hear that Fergus lives. I was going to get around to asking you about him soon.

[Rather than seeming alarmed or disapproving of her description of the mage, he seems quietly impressed.] Good for him. [A soft murmur.]

Many of my friends in the Wardens through the years have been mages. They're wasted in the circles more often than not.