“She might scream when the nightmares found her, but not by choice, not when she was awake.”

“Right now the nightmares were in her waking hours so she needed to stay asleep. She was broken. Shattered. Devastated. Crushed. There was nothing left of the woman she had been. She could see it in her eyes. When she was awake she had to acknowledge her brokenness. She had to admit to herself that she might never be fixed. It was too much to think about. Her boy had to come back and, until he did, she needed to stay in her dreams.”

“She wishes nightmares were all that kept her awake. She cannot tell which disturbs here more, the future or the past.”

“When had she moved so close? Her brain screamed at her to back away. She would regret this. She already regretted this.”

“But Kate was wide awake, chased by the same demon that haunted her regularly, especially when she was trying to forget it.”

“She is not a musical girl nor, intrinsically, a joyful girl; but the music of the four Swedes shook something awake inside her, and when she heard it she felt airborne and strong.”