“Is he crazy? Of course he is, he's in a mental institution. I'm probably crazy too. The people in the hallway are definitely crazy, which is why only a crazy person would go out there.”

“Thomas is ‘crazy as a sprayed roach’ when you make him mad, but he has a heart as big as Texas too.”

“He was as much a victim of hope as I had been.”

“What was that bit about fish sticks?” he asked, climbing back into the SUV.“Oh, pretty clever of her actually, though I thought it ridiculous at the time. Sometimes Mom gets paranoid, thinks people might be out to get her, out to get me.” I laughed nervously at how close that hit to home. “Anyway, one night she was really freaked out and came up with a code. If I was everkidnapped or something, she would say something about me liking fish sticks. If I said I wanted fish sticks, that meant I was in danger and needed help, no matter what else I’d said to her that I was fine.” “So by you saying you hate fish sticks…”“She knows I’m fine and she doesn’t need to further involve the police. Who says bipolar disorder can’t be useful?”

“He gave the tiniest of smiles and it made me want to think of ways to see it more often.”

“people always let you down. It was just part of the human condition. Look at Kat and Callie. One had tried to kill me; the other had almost gotten me killed. Neither intentionally, but did it matter? My mother never meant to hurt me and she'd all but ruined my life. It didn't matter what people meant, it mattered what they did.”

“We have much to beg forgiveness for,” Annys said. For once her expression was soft, her hawk-like eyes downcast.“We all do,” I said, “if not for this, than something else.”“That's very… Zen of you,” Master Dogan said. I laughed. “Don't get used to it. I'm pretty sure it's a near-death thing and will pass, but let's enjoy it while we can.”