What have I earned from you, Valek? Loyalty? Respect? Trust?" "You have my attention. But give me what I want, and you can have everything.

I did what any good rat would do. I bit down on the guard's hand until I tasted blood.

You can't let the past ruin your future.

"How did you - " "Fool your guards? They're not very good. They forgot to check the ceiling for spiders." Valek grinned. His angular face softened.

Did she just-" "Yes." "But I don't-" "Yes you do. We both stink." "Well, I'm not-" "Yes. You are." He huffed. "You wont let-" "No. No complaining. Let's go." I grabbed a clean shirt and pants from my saddlebags. "Well, she could have handled it better," he grumped. "No. She couldn't." He settled into a sulky silence as we visited the bathhouse.

Everyone makes choices in life. Some bad, some good. It's called living, and if you want to bow out, then go right ahead. But don't do it halfway. Don't linger in whiner's limbo.

The others had taken Valek's return in stride, although Janco made a comment about Valek's lack of hair. "You ever notice how couples start to look alike?" he asked. In a deadpan, Valek replied, "Yes. In fact I was just thinking how much you and Topaz resemble each other. It's uncanny.