“Damen Trent pushed his fat fingers between the blinds, peering across the street. Sure enough, all the windows of the Mekinet News building were in darkness.”

“Damen could tell that there was something not right about the whole thing, and he knew that his brother was at the bottom of it. One thousand credits could do a whole lot to help a man forget what he knew.”

“From the dark forest that bordered the soft ploughed fields, came a low cry that did not belong to any animal. It was accompanied by the sound of branches bending and snapping, and the splintering of wood as trees were crushed or toppled onto their sides.”

“Too many questions had been left unanswered. Every day there were new rumours saying that the Kamari numbers were growing. Nick wondered why so many people were joining them.”

“It's all good, apart from the raisins.”

“He was suspicious, distrustful and greedy, as only a brother could be.”

“The Walker towered over him like a half-built skyscraper with a bad attitude. Its bulbous silver head was home to so many weapons that Nick couldn't even count them. He couldn't even name half of them.”