“More than most, I know the pain of surviving.”

“What they don’t know is, no matter how they decide, they can’t penalize me more than I’m already punishing myself.”

“Through the damp fabric of my coverall, bundled in my blanket, I feel naked. Raw. He sees more than I want, more than I can bear. It’s like standing before him ... while he stares at my scars, pitiless and unmoved.”

“The strong survive.”

“He’s worth fighting for, but I won’t change who I am for any man. No more than he should alter himself to suit me.”

“Survival feels like cowardice.”

“I think my head's a minefield strewn with triggers, and maybe if I survive each explosion, what emerges from the wreckage will be me, really, truly me.”