“Sometimes, sitting here in the dark, slowly slowly creating strategy, she wondered if she was only fooling herself to think her plans were clever.”

“She must protect herself. There would be no one to do it for her. A plan started to prick up its ears inside her, slowly, but getting stronger.”

“She slowly turned her head and looked at him. At his attractive, open face that could turn dark and reserved within seconds. The curve of his lips. The green eyes that looked into her a little too far and that she couldn’t defend herself against.”

“She had a wild imagination, and sometimes she could fool herself.”

“She knew herself, how she had slowly, over years, become a cat, a wolf, a snake, anything but a girl. How she had wrung out her girlhood like death.”

“Aiden already knew he should say his last prayers now. Lex was going to kill him. Slowly.***She was going to kill him. Slowly. Lex sat on the sidelines watching the last game of the night. She hated sitting out, but she had to take her turn.”