Alice Borchardt

"Love doesn’t go away because we want it to, but remains even when it becomes a searing pain, leaving the heart a desert of bitter remorse and grief for joy, a happiness that once has been and now never could return. There had been a time when simply to touch this little bit of linen he held now so casually brought every aching moment of that love back. The sense of desolate pain-drenched loss traveled up his arm, enclosing his heart like a set of icy fingers. A time when to look upon what it held was unbearable"

"Have I your word?” “yes, you have my word. But, you don’t believe me.” “no, men’s promises to women are easily made and even more easily broken.”"

"He knew he should be furious, but he couldn’t sustain a decent rage around her. She had too much about her of the ferocious kitten. Something small and fuzzy, just learning it had claws and how to use them"

"She knew he was telling his soul what it needed to hear so that he could gather his courage to go and go what he must"

"Do you hate me so much?” “no, I can’t hate you. I wish I could, but I can’t”"

"Elin wondered, sitting in the sweat bath, what that had to do with passion or desire, and decided – nothing. It was justification. They had murdered the men and must prove, on the helpless bodies of the women, that they were truly stronger. Prove it to exhaustion… not even pleasure was in it for them"

"I like a man willing to pay the price of his pleasures"

"I was angry with you about him, furious that he so much as set eyes on you. I would rather kill you than see you lie in his arms.” “is that love then? A thing that leads to murder?” “I don’t know. In all honesty, I don’t know. You’re mine. What’s mine I keep, I rule, and give my body over to defend. I offer you my honor, and my life. That’s not an easy thing. Its within your power to break my pride, and take that life, insignificant though it is.” “you put it very simply.” “its not. Such a gift rouses strange passions, fears of treachery, and deep distrust. I’m not immune to them.” “no one told me it would be like this. Perhaps it won't go into words, what I feel for you. Its not desire, yet I love your touch, the warm softness of your flesh against mine.”"

"So easily can we destroy those things we love. Had his moment of wounded pride, his stupid frenzy, snuffed out that fragile courage? Would the strong spirit that survived so much anguish be ended as easily as this?"

"The eyes were too intense, tortured almost. He was tall, but the body was wiry rather than powerful. Nature had gifted him with a cat’s grace and lethal swiftness, rather than the raw power of a bull"

"There’s no sense crying over what can’t be changed” “that’s what people cry over, things they can’t change”"

"Women are weak, easily swayed by passion, driven by desire, lust. He lit a fire in her body, a fire that still burned, even in his absence"

"Its easier to forget a thing without a name. I’ve learned to guard my affections.” “I know, you’ve never asked mine.”"

"Know you, boy, women are like cats and must explore any new place until they are satisfied. If they don’t they become weak and vain, fretful and ill"

"One who forced another was beneath contempt. One who needed to was despised"

"Some of the captured women killed themselves. I didn’t. others yielded and learned to love their captors. I wouldn’t do either one. I knew I would escape. Death is forever; to learn to love the hand that crushes you is a shame not to be borne. Pain and slavery will pass. I believed this and it kept me alive"

"You should leave that place, my girl” “you know me better than that.” “yes, I do. Too brave for your own good. Too brave now, I think.” “would you have me any less?” “I’m sorry. No, I wouldn’t have you less.”"

"Pleasure wouldn’t exist without the sharp bite of pain. Even the brief flash of orgasm is too intense to be absolutely pleasurable"

"A hint of ‘I’m so pleased that you strong, handsome, stalwart men are going to stand between my flower-like beauty and danger,’ wouldn’t hurt either"

"I know love is eternal, so also are folly, lies and roses."

"You’re frightening me” “be frightened. Sometimes its very intelligent to be afraid”"

"Desire was only another weapon, like hunger, loneliness, and cold arrayed against him by his tormentors"

"For when women take revenge, it is with all their hearts and souls, not to mention considerable inventiveness and ingenuity"

"He is tremendously strong, she thought, and liked the idea, even as she had feared that strength when she first met him"

"He smiled at her, and she felt uncomfortable as she always did when he showed her affection as opposed to lust. Lust she expected from a man but not affection. The men in her life, her brothers and father, had not been affectionate; and lust would have been inappropriate, though she saw them direct that at other women, usually women of low rank, ripe to be used and cast aside"

"He was magnificent, and I will never forget that in that moment, I first loved him. And I never stopped loving him. I do now and always will. No one ever brought me more sorrow or pain or joy than he did. No, nothing, not even my sons, has ever outweighed the love I feel and still feel for him. And I believe – had I known what the future held for us: all the trouble, torment, battle, and grief of our lives – I still believe that I would have yielded my heart into his keeping as I did then"

"Love is important, and woman being shrewd bargainers probably know fame is not worth much. I’d much rather have something I can spend, eat, or love, thank you very much"

"She was afraid of men, with good reason, but she need not fear all of them. Cai loved her and somehow always would. But above all, she could trust him, because dishonesty wasn’t in him. Not always a good trait but a part of his nature. He kept faith without thinking about it at all. He couldn’t imagine not doing so"

"Then he turned and walked away, and I gazed after him in sorrow. “Don’t look so, girl. He’s the first to fall at your feet; he will not be the last”"

"And then he remembered that the other function of sex is punishment – men use it to humiliate women. And since turnabout is fair play, women often use it to humiliate men"

"I am no ordinary woman, and born to a different fate. I would not go whimpering."

"It is human, I think, when we encounter the marvelous to try and bring away some of it with us"

"You, why do you let me say such things when and where I shouldn’t?” “the problem is not ordering the course of your speech. Its shutting you up in the first place”"

"Good practical intelligence. Why screech when there is no one to comfort you?"

"One day she would be a formidable female, a creature to be reckoned with"

"Don’t flaunt your ignorance or try to insult me. I don’t suffer fools gladly and insults irritate me"

"I apologize.” “you aren’t sorry and don’t apologize.”"

"I wish. I don’t know what I wish. That you were less I were more, perhaps. Yes, just possibly that’s it"

"You are very lovely now and soon you will be beautiful. Ant not in an ordinary way. Youth is always beautiful, but you are like some creatures of fairy born to bring ill to mortals. Only trouble can follow such gifts"

"I saw he was now and always would be his own man"

"[he] was handsome. Just the sight of him stirred strange longings in me"

"Till we meet again, my heart awaits you.” “till we meet again, you will trouble my dreams”"

"Some men know from birth that they are expendable… they fought to won. If you did not win, you did not run either"

"the little death. What would or could be left of a human being after such an experience?"

"God, to breathe. Air. You don’t know what it means until you cannot take a breath"

"For what is a flower but life’s expressed passion for itself. Sudden and brief, but certain and eternal at the same time"

"At worst, they were vile creatures who needed to be wiped from the face of the earth. At best, such behavior shows a dangerous lack of self-control. The first business of a warrior is self-restraint"

"He said truth has a taste, and this had the taste of truth. A wolf would put it that way, but I agree it does. Some things just don’t hang together, but others do. And a lot of times when you encounter it, you say, “I don’t want this to be right, but it probably is, even though it brings me to grief.”"

"Shes direct enough"

"He was conscious that something in [his] personality bolstered his confidence and allowed him to rest, to seek peace and find it. He never game a name to it, and never spoke of it. And never, never would he have allowed himself or anyone to call it – love"