“Wow," Liv said, when I dropped the mallet back into the drawer. "That looked like fun. I call dibs on the next over-the-top destruction of evidence.”

“The other three incoming calls were from his building superintendent, his pharmacy and a telephone survey company." "Bastards. They always call during dinner."Liv laughed as I slid the sliced steak onto a platter and topped it with sautéed vegetables. "Forget crime lords and corrupt politicians - telemarketers are the root of all evil.""Now you're getting it.”

“Maybe I won't look so bad when you're not standing next to me.”

“You've been shot, Liv."Oh. How the hell had I missed that?”

“Wow. You guys are like a broken record. Don't you ever get tired of the whole 'knock 'em our and drag 'em back to the cave' routine? 'Cause I swear, Cro-Magnons were more subtle.”

“Wow. What would you do if I said I was angry?''I would make fire rain from the heavens to smite your enemies with the flames of our shared rage.”

“Over the past six years, living and working in this city had turned the funny, charismatic girl I´d loved with every cell of my body into a jaded, hard-edged loner I still couldn´t look at without catching my breath. I´d never felt more alive, watching Liv to prepare to charm-or maybe force- her way into some stranger´s apartment. Olivia was a wire wound too tight, always about to snap, but she lived on excitement and thrived under pressure. Being with her was like holding a bomb in both hands, watching the numbers tick back toward zero. I knew she´d eventually explode, and this time it might kill me.But it was hard to care about the potential for collateral damage when just being near her again felt so good.”