Gazing at her for a long moment with something like horror, as though he was seeing her for the first time, he spoke. “You are more dangerous than daybreak.” Before Tana could reply, he stepped into the lengthening shadows of morning and was gone.

There's a monster in our wood. She'll get you if you're not good. Drag you under leaves and sticks. Punish you for all your tricks. Anest of hair and gnawed bone. You are never, ever coming... home.

Val and Ruth had been friends forever, for so long that Val was used to being the overshadowed one, the "normal" one, the one who set up the witty one-liners, not the one who delivered them. She liked that role; it made her feel safe. Robin to Ruth's Batman. Chewbaca to her Han Solo.

Aidan pulled against his bonds. “They keep talking to him in a whole bunch of languages. A lot of French. Something about the Thorn of Istra. I think he’s in trouble.” “Are you?” Tana asked. “Not exactly,” said Gavriel.

Nothing can happen more beautiful than death - Walt Whitman

What got you chained up?” she asked the vampire. “I fell in with bad company,” he said, straight-faced, and for a moment she wasn’t sure if he was joking. It rattled her, the idea that he might have a sense of humor. “Be careful,” Aidan called from the bed. “You don’t know what he might do.” “We all know what you’d do, though, don’t we?” the vampire accused Aidan in his silky voice.

Maybe if we wrap some of those around you, then even if the blanket slips, you won’t burn. We can duct-tape it together. As long as you don’t mind looking ridiculous.” The vampire smiled a closemouthed smile.

Maybe like the bat in the birdcage, Gavriel had been waiting for dark, waiting to get out of the chains, drink Aidan’s blood, and escape. But when she showed up, he figured he could use them for a ride through daylight, so long as he seemed harmless enough to need saving. A chill crept up her spine.

It came to her, all of a sudden, the words he’d said to her in Lance’s house. If I’m hurt, you must be very careful. No, Tana, you must listen. You must be careful of me. He hadn’t been worried he was going to get hurt. He’d been worried that he was going to hurt someone else.