“Two hours. More than enough time to kidnap a man. Or to slice his throat, bury him in the forest, and steal his magic project. How the hell did de Harven fit into it? Did he surprise the thieves? Of course, Adam Kamen could've killed his uber-bodyguard and bolted with the goods. Because he was secretly a ninja, adept at mortal combat and vanishing into thin air. Yes, that was it. Case solved.”

“Andrea, in less than twelve hours, Atlanta will be full of demons. They will kill, feed, and release more demons. What emergency is more important than this one?She hesitated. "I'm not supposed to disclose this. There's a man. His name is Roland..."I almost punched the wall. "What is he doing that's so damn crucial? What, is he building another tower? It will fall like all his other ones. Or did his eye finally grow back and he decided to have a battle to celebrate?”

“She surveyed the carnage behind him. "Did you have fun?"He showed her his teeth. "Yes.”

“How is it different?"He rolled his head back, sable hair falling down on his shoulders. "With Rose I knew what to say. I could take a step back and talk to her. I remembered all the crap from the magaznies. It was easy.""And with me, it's hard?" Why? Because she was a swamp girl? And how did the magazines fit into it?William looked away from her. "I don't like it when you're away. If I don't see you, I can't settle down. If I see you talking with another man, I want to claw his throat out. And none of the things you're supposed to say fit."Oh, this had to be good. "What sort of things?"He sighed. "The lines. Like, 'You're my everything,' or 'Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?”

“The sound of my name in his voice stopped me in midturn. I don't know how the hell he did it, but whenever he said my name, it cut through all other distractions and made me pause, as if he'd clenched me to him and kissed me.”

“Who are you, what are you doing here, who is Hood, why does he want Julie, and where is Julie's mother?""Is that all!" He wiped the red smudge off his lip with the back of his hand."Yes. No. Why is the cauldron important, where did it go, how is Morrigan involved, where do you go when you disappear, and why do you keep stealing the maps? Okay, now that's everything.”

“Grigorii spared a single glance in his brother’s direction. If looks were daggers, that one would’vesliced straight through the volhv’s heart. “Here it comes. ‘My oldest son . . .’”“Is a doctor,” Evdokia finished in a singsong voice. “And my daughter is an attorney.”Vasiliy raised his chin. “Jealousy is bad for you. Poisons the heart.”“Aha!” Evdokia slapped the table. “How about your youngest, the musician? How is he doing?”“Yes, what is Vyacheslav doing lately?” Grigorii asked. “Didn’t I see him with a black eye yesterday?Did he whistle a tree onto himself?”Oh boy.Curran opened his mouth. Next to him Jim shook his head. His expression looked suspiciously likefear.“He is young,” Vasiliy said.“He is spoiled rotten,” Evdokia barked. “He spends all his time trying to kill my cat. One child is adoctor, the other is an attorney, the third is a serial killer in training.”