Serena Killingsworth Quotes

“That night Serena dressed to meet Zahi. She used a metallic green eye shadow on the top lids and the outer half of the bottom lids so that her eyes looked like a jungle cat's. Two coats of black mascara completed them, and then she smudged a light gold gloss on her lips.
She took a red skirt from the closet. The material was snakelike, shimmering black, then red. She slipped it on and tied the black strings of a matching bib halter around her neck and waist. She painted red-and-black glittering flames on her legs and rubbed glossy shine on her arms and chest.
Finally, she took the necklace she had bought at the garage sale and fixed it in her hairline like the headache bands worn by flappers back in the 1920's. The jewels hung on her forehead, making her look like an exotic maharani.
She sat at her dressing table and painted her toenails and fingernails gold, then looked in the mirror. A thrill jolted through her as it always did. No matter how many times she saw her reflection after the transformation, her image always astonished her. She looked supernatural, a spectral creature, green eyes large, skin glowing, eyelashes longer, thicker. Everything about her was more forceful and elegant- an enchantress goddess. She couldn't pull away from her reflection. It was as if the warrior in her had claimed the night.”
― Lynne Ewing, Into the Cold Fire

“Serena and Jimena walked into the crowd, strides long and seductive. Jimena wore a silver bustier and capris with matching sandals. Her hair was rolled on top of her head with glitter and jewels. Curls bounced with each step. Her face gleamed; her full lips sparkled. The tattoos on her arms seemed iridescent. She whooped and squealed and gave Serena a high five.
Serena had moussed her hair so it stood on end. Streaks of orange glitter shot from her temples into her hair. She wore a yellow tulle skirt over a sheer, clingy red dress and looked like a walking flame.”
― Lynne Ewing, Goddess of the Night

“Serena Killingsworth walked toward them, carrying her cello in a brown case. Her short hair, currently colored Crayola-red, was twisted into bobby-pin curls. A nose ring glistened on the side of her nose. She wore purple lipstick, red-brown shadow around her green eyes, and a smile that seemed to hold a secret. She was new at school. Vanessa liked her look and especially admired the way she seemed so oblivious to what other people thought about her.”
― Lynne Ewing, Goddess of the Night

“She wore Hawaiian-print bell-bottoms and a pair of clogs painted fairy-tale red with blue flowers. She looked like a pixie, the way her hair was moussed with glitter on the ends.”
― Lynne Ewing, Goddess of the Night

“Serena walked off campus and when she was sure no one was watching, she headed down a side street, then ran over to La Brea.
Stanton's car was parked in from of Pink's hot dog stand. Its sleek black metal reflected the late afternoon sun. He glanced up and smiled in recognition. He walked up to her and wrapped his arms tenderly around her. She pressed against him, enjoying his gentle touch. Then he kissed the top of her head and she looked up at him, her eyes now unguarded.
"Ready?”
― Lynne Ewing, Into the Cold Fire

“The air inside her room was thick with the scent of eucalyptus and lemon. He materialized near her dresser. His hand automatically turned her alarm clock to face the wall, then brushed across a tray filled with Vicks, cough syrup, aspirin, and a thermometer. He tenderly touched the lemon slices near an empty teacup. Could a simple illness have filled him with so much fear that he had risked coming to see her?
A dim light from a purple Lava lamp cast an amber glow across the bed where Serena lay, the leopard-print sheets twisted in a knot beside her leg. Her long curly hair was half caught in a scrunchy that matched her flannel pajamas. The words Diamonds are a girl's best friend- they're sharper than knives curled around a dozen marching Marilyns in army fatigues on the blue fabric. Stanton had been with her when she bought the Sergeant Marilyn pajamas three months back.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Sacrifice

“That's when she noticed that Serena, Jimena, and Vanessa each wore matching silver charms.
Corrine caught what she was staring at.
"They never take them off," she whispered. "Not in P.E., not for dances. Never. They had another friend, Catty, who wore the same amulet, but she's gone now. Someday when we're alone, I'll tell you what happened to her."
Tianna looked at the face of the moon etched in the metal on the charms. Sparkling in the morning light, the charms didn't seem silver but more like a strange stone that reflected a rainbow of colors.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“Each of you has a special power to fight the Atrox. Jimena's premonitions will tell us when someone needs our help. Serena with her mind-reading will know when someone is being tempted by the Atrox. Vanessa's invisibility will enable her to go among the Followers unseen and tell us what they are planning. And Catty can travel into the past or future to confirm our suspicions so that the Followers cannot deceive us. Together you are an unstoppable force.”
― Lynne Ewing, Goddess of the Night

“After Jimena left, Serena sat in a chair and set her cello on the end pin between her knees. She loved the way she had to hug the cello when she played. She dreamed of meeting her idols some day in a master class or onstage, someone like Yo-Yo Ma or Han-Na Chang. She picked up her bow and began to play. The music flowed around her, sad and filled with longing.”
― Lynne Ewing, Into the Cold Fire

“Too many dangerous emotions swirled around her. She felt disgust with herself for wanting him so desperately. She tried to stop the aching need that spread through her body. It was her mission to protect people from Followers. From Stanton. She couldn't allow herself to like him.
She stopped abruptly and looked up at him.
"You can't fight it," Stanton said.
Did he too think she would betray her destiny? How could she trust him? In the past he had deceived and betrayed Vanessa.
Stanton looked at her and she knew he was reading her distrust.
"I appreciated the kindness Vanessa showed me, but I never felt the connection with her that I feel with you. I've liked you since the first time our minds met in combat. I've more than liked you, Serena." His hand touched her cheek.
She remembered that battle. How strange it had been. She had suspected even then that he had been teasing and playful, not really trying to destroy her.
She shook her head.
"I'm telling you the truth," he insisted.
She felt hot tears gather in her eyes. He was telling the truth. But their kind of relationship would always be forbidden.
"That night when we walked on the beach you told me you were willing to risk it. You promised to defy everyone to be with me.”
― Lynne Ewing, Into the Cold Fire

“She felt uncomfortably warm in her pink snakeskin jacket. The wooden platforms with the neon-green straps and rhinestones were already starting to cramp her toes.”
― Lynne Ewing, Into the Cold Fire

“Why aren't you afraid of the curse?"
He smiled bitterly. "Because I am already cursed."
The words chilled her. She almost felt sorry for him.
"My offer stands," he whispered and then he dissolved into shadow.
She stood in the darkness and wondered why he so desperately wanted the manuscript if not to give it to the Atrox. Still he didn't seem as bad as she had once thought. She could almost understand why Serena liked him so much.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Secret Scroll

“They were dressed in leather like biker chicks. Serena had on platform boots, a tight-fitting motorcycle jacket, and a mini. Jimena wore studded ankle boots, a bareback leather halter top, and a hip-hugging matching skirt.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Secret Scroll

“When they finished dressing, Jimena wore racy red hot pants, a silky blouse with a star-burst pattern, and crazy ankle boots with thin chains draped around her ankles.
"Too cool." Serena admired Jimena's outfit, then she twirled to show off her own shoulder-baring top that exposed her midriff. She had pasted a crystal in her belly button. Kendra's bell-bottoms had been too long, but when she stepped into a pair of gold 70's platform shoes the length became just right.
Catty wore a backless halter top and a pair of lacy bell-bottoms. She held up some stencils. "Kendra is going to start selling these at the shop. Anyone want to try one?" She had two dragons in one hand and a lacy snowflake pattern in the other.
Jimena and Serena started to examine them, when Vanessa walked into the room. She was wearing a pinstripe shirt unbuttoned over a black leather bra top. Kendra's mini-skirt was too big and the waist fell around Vanessa's hips. Her skin looked golden bronze and she had applied one of the snowflake stencils on her stomach.
"Wow," Serena said.
"Talk about going for the jugular," Jimena teased.
"You like it?" she asked and took off the shirt. "It's too hot to wear.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Secret Scroll

“I'm here to talk to Serena only," he said firmly.
Then the air filled with a sweet, musky fragrance and a delicate hand covered the face of Jimena's watch. He looked up into Serena's eyes. She leaned against Jimena, her arm around her friend, and smiled at Stanton. She was wearing tight jeans and a sheer long-sleeved pink shirt over a thin T. Her hair was curled and glistened in the sun. She looked more beautiful than ever.
He smiled, wondering why he hadn't sensed her approach. Maybe she had learned some new skill to hide her presence.
She gently probed his mind without trying to hide her happiness at seeing him.
"I need to talk to you," he said, interrupting her before she could probe too deep. He didn't want her to see how much he had missed her.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Sacrifice

“You're the key. The goddess who can change the balance between good and evil. I don't know the plan, but I know they will be coming for you."
As Serena considered what he was saying, he twisted inside her mind to read her thoughts. She had struggled between good and evil before, and knew the seductiveness of the Atrox. It had promised her the world, but once she had become pure evil she had only wanted to destroy with a hunger that even surpassed the one Stanton felt growing inside him now.
His hand rose to her chin and lifted her face to his. It would be so easy to take her now. She was too trusting. His evil side paced at the edge of his control. Then with a shock he realized that if he did something to Serena, he could destroy the balance. With rising dread, he wondered if it was possible that the Atrox had kidnapped him not to stop his father's crusade, but because it knew his love for Serena could one day be a catalyst for the transition.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Sacrifice

“He scanned the crowd for Serena. She stood next to Jimena in silver hip huggers and a frosty top. Rhinestones and crystals sparkled in her hair like stars. Jimena wore a sequin-covered purple velvet dress. Their bodies glowed. He wanted to see a sadness on Serena's face that matched his own. Some sign that she missed him the way he ached for her.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Sacrifice

“He felt her mind reaching into shadows, scanning the nightfall for danger.
He leaned back in the air and released his body, then blended into the darkness beneath the low-hanging branches of a tree. "I'm your only danger now," he whispered.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Sacrifice

“Stanton skimmed over the jagged path of black shadows beneath the palm trees until he was over her head. Abruptly he slid back into himself and landed on his feet in front of her.
She gasped.
He let an indolent smile creep over his face and breathed in the sweet smell of her fear as his hand shot out and grabbed her before she could turn and run.
Soon you'll have nothing to fear. He pushed the words into her mind and added a pledge of love to make her his for eternity.
Her eyes flashed back with a promise of her own. The warrior-goddess emerged. At first he thought she was going to battle him. He opened his mind with eager anticipation. He wanted her to fight.
Instead, she surprised him. She dropped her cello case. It thudded on the concrete and glass. Then she flung her books at him. He batted the books aside as she darted across the street. Her skirt flapped wildly about her legs and her shoes smacked hard on the pavement.
He ran after her, his heart excited by the chase. You can't escape me, he whispered into her mind.
That's what you think.
He loved her foolish bravery.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Sacrifice

“Her jagged breathing gave her away. She stood, a dark silhouette pressed against the trunk of a cottonwood tree. She was cornered in the yard. No place to go.
Sweet goddess, he traced across her mind. I've only come to seal our destiny. You shouldn't feel so afraid of me. And yet her fear was what he enjoyed. He savored it.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Sacrifice

“Stanton touched her lightly. He was no longer an invitus. He had gone freely to the Atrox, but he had never lost his love for Serena. He had kept that feeling safe inside him.
He spoke into her dreams. I will have you.
She murmured against her pillow and her amulet shot a barrage of rainbows across the room.
"So you can sense that I am a threat now." He smiled wickedly. "I'm not, sweet one." She would be so easy to take. The real danger had always been from him. And now he had marked her. No one else could harm her.
"Tu es dea, filia lunae," he whispered.
He could wait. Her gift only lasted until she was seventeen. Then she would be his.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Sacrifice

“Who's that other girl with Vanessa?" Tianna asked. "The one with the teardrops tattooed under her eye?"
"That's Jimena." Corrine spoke in a lower voice. "Don't mess with her. Everyone says she's been in a camp twice."
"Camp?" Tianna asked.
"Youth authority," Corrine muttered, as if Tianna ought to know. "I can't believe you didn't hear. It's all over school. She used to be in a gang."
"And the one staring daggers at me?"
"The one with the cello case is Serena," Corrine answered wistfully. "You should hear her play. I'm so jealous of her talent. She'll be famous someday."
Serena wore a fedora and a tie-dyed shirt with studded jeans. She had a beautiful face and compelling eyes.
"She can also tell your fortune with her tarot cards," Corrine whispered. "She read mine once, and it was spooky, everything she knew. I never went back for a second reading.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“Minutes later the waitress brought back a cup the size of a soup bowl filled with steaming chocolate-flavored coffee and topped with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. Tianna realized she hadn't eaten anything since the bite of muffin early in the morning.
She sipped the brew, enjoying the rich, sweet taste, and listened to Serena recite a poem about her demon lover. It made Tianna think more than ever that Serena was some kind of witch or worse. How could she know so much about temptation and choosing between good and evil? The words sent chills through Tianna.”
― Lynne Ewing, The Lost One

“Any other girl at La Brea High would have been flattered to have him pursue her. They found his laid-back scruffy look irresistible, even with his bad reputation as a heartbreaker. Serena had caught him staring at her in English class and had wondered what he wanted with her. She wasn't the glam type of girl he normally dated, not with her combat boots, black fishnet hose, and graffiti-painted nails. But it didn't take much to realize he had a huge crush on her. He always seemed to show up where she was.
At first Serena had been impressed that he wasn't the kind of guy who judged a girl by the way she dressed. She might have even dated him if she hadn't discovered the truth. He lied about the girls he had gone out with.
It wasn't as if Serena didn't know guys did that. She knew they exaggerated sometimes, but Jerome did more. She couldn't confront him or even tell others what she knew, though, because no one would believe her.”
― Lynne Ewing, Possession