Sarah Blakley-Cartwright

“How strange to have a sister, Valarie thought. Someone you might have been.”

“Though Valerie and Peter were dancing differently, their bodies moving in different ways, they were both doing the same dance. It was a jealousy dance, old as the human race”

“If you're the wolf, though, I'll chop off your head and piss down the hole”

“The wolf lives right here. In this village". He looked at the villages. "Among you. It is one of you.”

“He had held out shakily, like a tree that had been hacked down to its breaking point. But that kiss was the last swing, the final impact, and he gave in finally, felled.”

“His leaving had been like snipping off the end of a rope - leaving two unraveling strands.”

“Peter had stolen a knife. We were seven years old, and we'd caught a rabbit in a trap. We looked at each other darkly, a look I'll never forget, one of a shared savage thrill, like young wolves taking down their first kill.A spill of blood issued from the rabbits neck, a quick red streak across pristine white fur, slow enough to be cruel. I hadn't cut deep enough. Had I wanted to spare its life or prolong its misery? I've never wanted to know the answer.”

“I am going to save your daughter. And then I intend to marry her. I would like your blessing in this, but I can live without it.”

“If the innocent are unjust, I'd rather be counted among the guilty."-Valerie”

“Valerie stood with the other women, watching the men go. She couldn't help bristling at this division of the sexes. Her fingers itched to hold a weapon, too, to do something, to kill something with her anger.”

“She didn't want to be considered a woman yet, wasn't ready to be the recipient of jewelry from men.”