“Hard truths can be dealt with, triumphed over, but lies will destroy your soul.”

“To make great art, you had to expose your soul, and some things should be left safely in the dark.”

“I can turn into a coyote," I said. "My mom tells me I must get it from my father."Calvin's jaw dropped, then his face froze. "Your mother was a white woman," he said urgently. "You can't turn into a coyote.""Can, too," I said indignantly. It was one thing for me to tell him he was lying--I knew I was right. It was an entirely different matter for him to tell me I was lying."Can't.""Can.""Can't""Can, too.""Mercy," Adam said with an exaggerated patience tinged with humor. He knew I was doing it on purpose. That was okay but he wasn't angry anymore."Cannot," said Calvin."Knock it off, both of you. Neither of you is five.”

“You can't cage an eagle for long without destroying it.”

“When we got to the moron who was sitting in the only path to the stairway, Adam caught my waist and lifted me over before stepping over the man himself.“Scott?” Adam said as we headed upstairs. “Yeah?”“Unless someone shoots you, skins you, and throws the results on the floor, I don’t want to see you lying in the walkway again.”“Yessir!”

“See you tomorrow,” he said, instead.“All right.” Then, impulsively, I asked, “Do you have a place to sleep tonight?”“Sure,” he said with a smile, and started off as if he had somewhere to be.I could have bitten off my tongue because I pushed him into a lie. Once he started lying to me, it would be harder to get him to trust me with the truth. I don’t know why it works that way, but it does—at least in my experience.”

“Some truths are truths, no matter who says them.”