“Not. Your. Fault."I nodded again, holding onto his words like they were redemption.”

“Words were her plague and words were her redemption.”

“When a people holds onto its language, it holds onto a semblance of freedom, like a man who holds onto his independence when he retains his own way of thinking. Language is the thought of a people.”

“Rose. Listen to me. Run. Run as fast and as hard as you can back to your dorm. Tell the guardians."I nodded. There was no questioning here.Reaching out, he gripped my upper arm, gaze locked on me to make sure I understood his next words. "Do not stop," he said. "No matter what you hear, no matter what you see, do not stop. Not until you've warned the others. Don't stop unless you're directly confronted. Do you understand?"I nodded again. He released his hold."Tell them buria."I nodded again."Run.”

“He's holding onto me, but this time it feels like he's holding onto me because his earth has shifted off its axis, and I'm his core.”

“You told me one time that . . . I was your compass. I gave you direction when you were lost,” Ty said, nearly choking on the words. He glanced up, eyes reflecting like liquid in the low light. “Well, you were my anchor. You were something solid for me to hold onto. I wanted you to remember that.”