01c. 1976 ADI felt the fangs against my neck and knew I was going to die. It was horrible. I wanted to live so, so badly...but this was how it would end. With my last moments, I started to yell at Christian to run, but then the Strigoi above my suddenly lit up like a torch. He jerked back, and I rolled out from underneath him.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I turned to Christian, who was crouched on the ground. "Wow," I said, helping him up. Obviously, he was the one who had saved me. "No shit," he said. "Didn't know I had that much power.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
02c. 1976 ADShe heard Adrian say to Christian, ʺYou know, your shirtʹs kind of grungy-looking. Seems like you could put in a little more effort since youʹre dating a princess.ʺRichelle Mead / quote ↗
03c. 1976 ADYou know, Aunt Tasha makes jokes about how youʹd actually be a better queen than the others, except sometimes . . . I donʹt think sheʹs joking.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
05c. 1976 ADAs much as I hated to admit it, I kind of looked forward to seeing him. It made no sense, but something about his infuriating nature made me forget about my other worries. Weirdly, I felt like I could relax around him.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
06c. 1976 ADNo matter how long or how difficult, we will undo whatever that Moroi boy has done toRichelle Mead / quote ↗
08c. 1976 ADBut all I could see was her. No skill of mine, no artist anywhere, could’ve immortalized how gorgeous she was. It was impossible to believe she’d ever had any doubts about her body. The firelight shone on her skin, golden and perfect, making her look like some radiant goddess of legend. I wanted to kneel before her and offer eternal obedience.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
09c. 1976 ADMy hands tightened on her, and I again tried to memorize every part of this moment. There was such perfection in the way our bodies were wrapped together. It didn’t seem possible that outside the sanctity of this moonlit car was a world we had to hide from, a world that wanted to tear us apart. The thought of what surrounded us made what was between us seem that much more fragile.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
10c. 1976 ADSomething in me didnt believe that. I read it again, trying to make sense of the old-fashioned language. Mason watched me curiously, looking like he very much wanted to help."Maybe they were hooking up," he suggRichelle Mead / quote ↗
11c. 1976 ADAnd then . . . we’re going to get in my car.”I waited for him to elaborate on a destination. “And?”He gently kissed the nape of my neck. “What do you think?”I couldn’t help a small gasp of delight. “Oh, wow.”“I know, right? I was racking my brain for the best present ever, and then I realized that nothing was going to rock your world more than you and me in your favorite place in the entire world.”I swallowed. “I’m kind of embarrassed at how excited I am about that.” Never had I guessed my love of cars would play a role in my sex life. Eddie was right. Something had happened to me.“It’s okay, Sage. We’ve all got our turn-ons.”“You kind of ruined the surprise, though.”“Nah. It’s part of the gift: you getting to think about it for the next three days.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
12c. 1976 ADExcept, now that I don’t have a car, I can’t really make good on my birthday promise.” Sydney thought about it for several moments. “Well. I’ve got a car.”An hour later, I vowed I’d never make fun of that Mazda again.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
14c. 1976 ADSo...Mason, Eddie, and Mia went to Spokane to hunt Strigoi?""Yes.""Holy shit. Why didn't you go with them? Seems like something you'd do."I resisted the urge to smack him. "Because I'm not insane! But I'm going to go get them before they do something even stupider.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
15c. 1976 ADI used to think you were weak and just didn't fight back ... but now, honestly, I think you're actually pretty tough. It takes a hell of a lot of strength to not complain and lash out.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
16c. 1976 ADIn this one terrified moment, my mind couldn’t focus on any of it. “I’ve forgotten everything.”“No, you haven’t.” His voice in the darkness was calm and reassuring. He smoothed back my hair and pressed one of those half kisses to my forehead. “Just relax and focus." “His reasonable words centered me and allowed the gears of logic that ran my life to take over again.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
17c. 1976 ADThe best jury of your peers that you’ll ever find is…well, you. Only you know what you’re capable of and what you want to be.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
18c. 1976 ADI also had to come tonight to apologize. If you need to go to Mexico to finish this process off, then I understand. I was wrong to criticize you for it or even imply that I had some kind of say in it. One of the greatest things about you is that in the end, you always make smart decisions. Can’t always say the same for myself. Whatever you need to do, I’ll support you.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
19c. 1976 ADWe fell into silence, both of us keeping our own secrets of what we'd suffered in the other's absence. I wondered if we were trying to protect each other or simply didn't want to admit to our own fears and weaknesses.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
20c. 1976 ADBut with Dimitri, I never felt like I had to be anything more what I already was. I didn't have to entertain him or think up jokes or even flirt. It was enough to just be together, to be completely comfortable in each other's presence..Richelle Mead / quote ↗
21c. 1976 ADIt’s a tricky art, working with them in their purest form,” she mused. “Simultaneously simple yet infinitely complex.” It sounded like my relationship with Adrian.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
23c. 1976 ADI've lost someone, too; someone I loved. I know how you feel."- Does it get easier?"Yes. But you'll never be the same again.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
24c. 1976 ADI managed to ask a question that had been burning inside me. “Do you still love her? Rose?” Along with not knowing what it felt like to be in love, I also didn’t know how long it took to recover from love.Adrian’s smile faded. His gaze turned inward. “Yes. No. It’s hard to get over someone like that. She had a huge effect on me, both good and bad. That’s hard to move past. I try not to think about her much in terms of love and hate. Mostly I’m trying to get on with my life. With mixed results, unfortunately.Richelle Mead / quote ↗
