“But I can tell you this, Mr. James, I refuse to be treated with disrespect.""Disrespect?" Burnett growled.And then everything went to hell.Burnett and Hayden exchanged colourful verbal blows. According to Hayden, Burnett was a prick, and according to Burnett, Hayden was an overconfident jerk who had lied.She didn't know if she felt confident the tension wouldn't elevate to physical blows, or if she was simply too tired to care anymore. If they broke each other's noses, so be it.”

“Burnett fidgeted. She had never seen Burnett like this. He looked like a kid who needed to go to the bathroom.”

“You are the politest man I know, Jake Burnett." "Had politeness beat into me.”

“So tell us," says Connor, "in The World According to Hayden, when do we start to live?"A long silence from Hayden, and then he says quietly, uneasily, "I don't know."Emby razzes him. "That's not an answer."But Connor reaches out and grabs Emby's arm, to shut him up- because Emby's wrong. Even though Connor can't see Hayden's face, he can hear the truth of it in his voice. There was no hint of evasion in Hayden's words. This was raw honesty, void of Hayden's usual flip attitude. It was perhaps the first truly honest thing Connor had ever heard him say. "Yes, it is an answer," Connor says. "Maybe it's the best answer of all. If more people could admit they really don't know, maybe there never would have been a Heartland War.”

“Burnett wasn't fooled, that was aparent by his expression, but he didn't argue, either. Well, as long as one didn't call slamming the door an argument."Jerk" Holiday muttered."I can hear you" he retorted from the other side of the wall.”

“Hey," says Hayden, "I'm Switzerland; neutral as can be, and also with great chocolate.""Get lost," Roland tells him."Already am." And Hayden strolls away.”