On the Edge (The Edge, #1)

by Ilona Andrews

“Yes. I’m too mad to punish you right now. We’ll talk about it when we get home. Go brush your teeth, comb your hair, put on dry clothes, and get the guns. We’re going to Wal-Mart.”

There’s something intensely American about the line “… get the guns. We’re going to Walmart.” Set in sci-fi as it is, the reasoning becomes clear. Still… such a very American thought.

Part of her pointed out that something was better than nothing. But if she ended up with the wrong something, she’d regret it for the rest of her life. Once bitten, twice shy. Living in your dreams meant bitter disappointment when you woke up.

“Life is so precious because it’s short,” she said. “Even the most resilient people are fragile. Life isn’t about dying or not dying. It’s about living well, George. Living so you can be proud and happy.”

“We could be friends,” she said. “Friends make the world bearable. It’s an honor of sorts. Of all the people that a person knows, they pick you to be their friend, and you try to be worthy of that friendship. Or at least I try. I don’t really know you, but I feel we could become friends if we had more time.”