Amanda V. King > Quotes

“All day I had tried to act unaffected, like his kindness meant nothing and I didn't care for the renewed life in his eyes.
My hard shell was cracking.
"You don't need to fuss over it," I said, relieved when my voice came out steady.
"But I like fussing over you." He said it with such openness, such casualness, as though of course he liked fussing over me, for what better thing was there to do?”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“Be grateful, I told myself. Be grateful for this time. For Trudi and Hugo, and that one crazy trader who winks at you. For jam sandwiches and the colour green.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“You shouldn't talk with your mouth full, darling." he said as I tried to bite his fingers.
He held me gently, lips caressing the shell of my ear, and poured sweet little venomous nothings into me.
Something about it only being a fright.
Just a little fun.
And the praises for coming with him, for playing along. About the colour yellow and how much he preferred it to gold. The slick barrage of meaningless words scraped indents between my ears. I had to stop listening eventually, had to stop fighting.
It was on the tip of my tongue to say no.
I should have said no.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“He whispered, "The night suits you."
The world stood still. I didn't think either of us was breathing.
I stayed very still, telling myself that it was pure fondness that spurred his words. Like I was his younger sister or a stray cat he'd taken in.
"That's because you haven't seen me in the sun," I replied, trying for levity.
"No, I don't think so." He smoothed the back of his fingers down my cheek, and I tried not to rear back. "Look at you. So lovely. So hungry. I could sate that hunger if you'd let me."
That is not how you speak to your sister, I thought.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“He wouldn't let me go now. He would hunt me down as he had tonight, find me wherever I tried to hide.
It didn't scare me like it should have. In the end, he wouldn't be able to follow to where I would go. And perhaps that was the saddest thing of all. Everything was doomed from the start, whether I was healthy, whether he was a decent person or not.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“Because then we'd be the same. Kindred spirits. You've been watching me or days. You're so desperate, it's embarrassing."
A pause. "You see too much and I dislike it."
I laughed. "I think that makes us equal."
He tapped me on the nose. "Every word of yours cuts me to the bone, and yet I am a dog begging for scraps. Any sign of affection, of approval, of desire, I would lose my soul all over again for them. So, no. I would not call any piece of this relationship equal.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“He broke.
Shattered into fragments at my feet and begged me to put him back together as he buried his face in my neck, wrapped his arms around my waist. Trembling, he held me like I was a deity to bring salvation.
He was the devil come to worship.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“I needed to be sure, because I refused to be only a footnote in the annals of his long life.
I would be everything to him or I would be nothing.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“She took his hand, and it did not matter where she intended to take him. He was so used to leading, but only by her did he want to be led. Because if this was to be their eternity together- her skin against his, the taste of her in his mouth- it would never be long enough.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“But I would not shut my eyes.
I would not rest. Not for the peace it might bring, not for the Dawn Lord, not even to see my mother again. I would not die tonight. Not for anything.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“He placed the small candle back in it's wrapping and stood. Offered his hand. It no longer reminded me of the marks around my neck. I could no longer feel them.
"Come with me. Please." The words were ragged.
"Where?" I asked.
"Anywhere."
I took his hand.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“He cupped my neck, saying "It would be painless. A shallow bite and a few mouthfuls of blood. You wouldn't even feel it when I snapped your neck."
My eyes slipped shut. "Are you trying to scare me?"
"You should be scared. Death is no respecter of persons. But I would make even Death fear to touch you if you'd let me." His fingers tightened, and I wondered if there would be a bruise there in the morning. "Think, Lena. I would be your maker, your beloved, your savior. You would live forever. All you would have to do is stay with me, and I would be yours to command."
"An eternity is a long time to be chained to someone," I said.
"And yet, with you, it would not be enough.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“His pupils were dilated, his lips parted. "Have I ever told you how exquisite you are?"
I shook my head. "You could start now."
He laughed but it sounded pained. "Did you know you hum when you work? Or that you make faces when deep in thought? And sometimes when you think I can't see, you stare at me as though you understand. Like you want to tear my head free from my neck and discover how the blood drips before you sew it back on. You are agonizing and pulsing and iridescent."
He said it with the kind of fervor I associated with religious zealots. And though none of his words sounded like a compliment to me, I had to blink a couple of times to clear the haze from my mind.
He panted. "Will you do something for me?"
"What?"
"Will you run?"
I frowned, a hundred questions on the tip of my tongue.
"Run," he said, fangs glinting in the moonlight, "so that I can catch you.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“Do not die," he begged, holding my face between his hands, "for I cannot follow to where you will go.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“You should never have touched her, Rene. You should never have thought yourself worthy to lay eyes on her.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn

“His fingers fluttered across my collarbone. "Hurting for you was my pleasure."
The words made me shiver.”
― Amanda V. King, Death of the Dawn