“There was nothing physical she could do to stop Mario from carrying out whatever he wished. She shivered at the thought of what that sleazy, other world leftover might do should she launch an attack on him.”

“The wolf turned to Rachel. She was afraid to run, afraid fleeing would make it chase her. Somewhere in the stored files of her mind, she remembered one should not look directly at a menacing dog, but she couldn’t take her eyes from it.”

“True artists must be determined not to shy away from what they might find. She remembered a quote from Nietzche, Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it: Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.”

“Allow the power to flow through you. Don’t try to capture it. You wish only to borrow it.”

“Remember the Duomo," he said. "Bruneschelli just proceeded brick by brick. He never knew what he would do from one day to the next. He worked in faith, and according to the legend he never doubted that the next step to creating the world's first dome would be given to him in the moment that he needed it. He never saw the end from the beginning. None of us do.”

“So, what do you think they'll do to him?" I ask. Prim sounds about a thousand years old when she speaks. "Whatever it takes to break you.”

“It's always seemed to me that flirtation is a man's device for avoiding responsibility. He can say whatever he wants and knows he won't be taken seriously.”