“If the wise men mounted their camels now, they could escape, no question. But Balthazar hadn’t ridden into Bethlehem to run. He’d come to kill every last one of them, or die trying.”
“Leo could run pretty fast when someone was trying to kill him. Sadly, he’d had a lot of practice.”
“Could I tell them I was sorry their loved one was dead, when he’d tried to kill me? There was no rule of etiquette for this; even my grandmother would have been stymied.”
“His name escaped her lips as a whisper: Balthazar”
“And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,Slouches toward Bethlehem to be born?”
“Have your vote. But know this: if you come to remove me, come in force, because if you try to separate me from him, I will kill every single one of you. My hand won't shake. My aim won't falter. My face will be the last thing you'll see before you die.”