Karissa

“we must always be vigilant, because power comes infected with the only disease left to us: the virus called human nature.”
― Neal Shusterman, Scythe

“Resting beside her, he seemed to Ildiko a living statue, carved from dark granite into a form of supple elegance and power. He was beautiful, and the tremor change in her perception of him robbed her lungs of air.
He opened both eyes suddenly, making her jump. Two shimmering gold coins stared at her unblinking. "Good evening, wife," he said in a voice raspy with the remnants of sleep. A closed-lip smile curved his mouth upward and deepened the tiny lines that fanned from the corners of his eyes. "You're staring. Do I have a fly on my nose?"
Fighting down a blush at being caught gawking at her own husband, Ildiko lightly tapped the tip of his nose with one finger. "I was trying to find a way to kill it without punching you in the face. Lucky for you, it flew away.”
― Grace Draven, Radiance

“Will you be that for me, Ildiko,” he said. “That beacon in the void?”
― Grace Draven, Radiance

“People like us are not victims. We’re someone’s nightmare.”
― Laura Thalassa, Rhapsodic