“Thought you were--''--Raphael said--''I said, no way in hell--''Damn straight--''--and Ransom was ready to come--''--woke up and I had wings!”

“He has a fascination with mortals.Raphael had said that to her before she'd woken with wings of midnight and dawn."Why are you starting at me, Ellie?" Illium said without taking his eyes from the blade dancing around his fingers.The words were instinctive, something she might as easily have said to rib Ransom. "You're so pretty, it's difficult to resist."A flashing grin, a hint of that aristocratic English accent in his response. "It's hard to be me, it's true.”

“Morgan said that his mother said that Miss Kildaire is sitting on a shelf."Zach had to think about that one for a few seconds. "He said she's on the shelf?""Uh-huh." An emphatic nod. "I don't know why Miss Kildaire would sit on a shelf, but that's what Morgan said.""I'm guessing there's more.""And then Morgan said that his mother said that Miss Kildaire was too fat to get a man."What a load of horseshit, Zach thought. Morgan's mother was probably some shriveled-up jealous twit. "I see.""And then Morgan said she was a cripple."Zach had a sudden urge to punch out the little rat himself.”

“Ransom really looked at the other man for the first time, shook his head, stared again. “Holy hell, your eyes are like a fucking viper’s.”Venom raised an eyebrow. “You have hair prettier than one of Astaad’s concubines.”Ransom gave the vampire the finger.Venom grinned.”

“No self-respecting wolf would eat a rodent - though we might've been able to use your teeth as decorations," Andrew said with a straight face.Teijan hissed out a very unratlike snarl. "Why the hell do I bother to talk to you?""Hawke thinks I give you cheese." He pulled a small, foil-wrapped wedge out of his pocket. "Here you go""*** you" But the Rat alpha was laughing.”

“llium snorted. “I look like a damned duck.” His words weren’t far off the mark. The feathers that had grown over the injured section were soft, white, and delicately … fluffy. “I hope to hell these baby feathers fall off and get replaced by real ones. They will, won’t they?” He sounded worried.”

“You don't fear me," he said now.She wasn't stupid enough to lie. "I'm petrified. But I figure you didn't make me come all this way just so you could push me off the roof.”