The Darkness Within Us (The Shadows Between Us, #2)

by Tricia Levenseller

THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS A BAD IDEA, JUST POORLY EXECUTED AWESOME ONES.

And what men want most, I’ve discovered, is someone they think they can control. So I pretend to be docile. I pretend to be obedient. When men think they can control you, they don’t watch you as closely. When they think you’re stupid, they’re not so careful about the things they’ll say in front of you.

“No, but I’m the center of my world, which is why I have to look after myself. No one else will.”

Men are the most sensitive individuals I have ever met, yet they claim it is women who are always close to hysterics.

“Hate is not love.” “Of course not,” Tekla says, “but it’s remarkable how often the two coincide.”

“When you hate someone so fiercely, they have to be worthy of that hatred. You wouldn’t ardently hate someone who was beneath your notice or someone who didn’t compare to you in wits or charisma. You have to be on equal grounds to hate someone so much. And that level of hate inherently comes with a level of respect. You’re recognizing that they’re an actual threat. That they compare to you.”

“And when that level of hatred comes with that level of respect, it’s all too easy for that passion to turn from one form to another.”

“It’s always the bloody furniture with you.”

“I’m hardly a saint. More than that, though, the first time I met you, I saw something I recognized. I understand a willingness to do whatever it takes to get what you need to survive. There’s something about you that draws me in. I don’t care what you’ve done.”

I let the laws of men dictate me. I thought it was the only way I could win. But choosing myself has been more freeing than anything else.”