“This happiness rendered absurd men's desire to dominate, to kill, to possess, thought Volsky. For neither Mila nor he possessed anything. Their joy came from the things one does not possess, from what other people had abandoned or scorned. But, above all, this sunset, this scent of warm bark, these clouds above the young trees in the graveyard, these belonged to everybody!”

“Service which is rendered without joy helps neither the servant nor the served. But all other pleasures and possessions pale into nothingness before service which is rendered in a spirit of joy.”

“And even knowing that to possess that scent he must pay the terrible price of losing itagain, the very possession and the loss seemed to him more desirable than a prosaicrenunciation of both. For he had renounced things all his life. But never once had hepossessed and lost.”

“He let his mouth linger on mine, neither possessively nor sweetly... like his mouth just belonged there on mine. And he was right. It did. It always had.”

“Love gives nothing but itself, and takes nothing but from itself. Love does not possess, nor would it be possessed. And do not think that you can direct the course of love, for love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course. Love has no other desire but to fulfill itself.”

“I think you use people's reactions as a test...And it is unfair."Unfair! The man had no diea what the word meant. He possessed his limbs and all his senses. He had a beautiful life,friends,and family. Ranulf neither sought nor wanted pity, for life could have issued a much harsher sentence to be endured,but neither did he need the scorn and antipathy that came from people's unreasonable fear. And if boldly displaying his injury kept people away,the better. "A test that you might have prematurely passed," Ranulf gritted out.”