The Sentry Quotes

“Daniel saw dancing lights, and thought they were Cleo, but the lights raced toward him, right up to his face, then tromboned away fast as a gunshot, then snapped into hyper-sharp focus. Daniel saw branches. Branches, pine needles, twisted gnarled deformed warped scrub oak branches like arthritic fingers with leaves. Tobey cried, “Daniel?” Cleo whimpered, “Daniel?” Daniel felt himself shrinking, like the world was growing larger and he was getting smaller, and Tobey and Cleo were farther away. Daniel said, “Guys?” Tobey said, “We’re looking, dude, where are you?” Cleo said, “Daniel, aniel?” Daniel struggled to get up. He fought like a werewolf with a zombie eating its neck, but the zombie was winning. “Tobey? Cleo? Where are you, you, you?” Daniel tried to keep his eyes open, but the light grew so bright it turned black. Tobey screamed, “Daniel, come back!” Cleo shrieked, “Where is he, is he, is he?” Daniel tried to answer, but could not, and knew the boys heard only silence. Tobey said, “Cleo?” Cleo said, “Tobey?” “Going?” “Gone.” “. . .” “. . .” Daniel no longer felt his body, or the earth beneath him, or the air that kissed his skin. He felt like nothing within nothing, and knew he would miss the guys, Cleo and Tobey, his only true and dear friends.”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Pike jogged back across Mulholland, and found Rose Platt squatting beside Rainey. He tried to understand what he felt about her, but he mostly felt nothing. Rose stood when she saw him, and Pike slowed to a walk. She still had the eyes. Smart, and complicated, and completely alive. Maybe that’s what drew him to her. The life in her eyes. She”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Vincent said, “You never answered my question.” “What question was that?” “Down south. You think we faced off before?” “No.” “How you know that for sure?” “You’d be dead.” “That’s funny. The boys told me the same thing about you.” Pike”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“The rocks and rotten branches cut into Daniel’s back. He took a tentative breath, and heard a wet popping in his chest. He coughed, but all that came out was aborted vomit. Daniel”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“You see the van?” “Yeah, we’re almost there. Don’t worry.” The criminal with a Bolivian cartel after him telling Cole not to worry. Perfect. “Make”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Daniel hoped they were right. The arrow dude might be some kinda bad-ass mercenary, but if he had a hard-on for the waitress, he was way past the money stage. Men stayed sharp when it came to money. Men got stupid when it came to women. Daniel”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Sit down, Nancy.” “Did I do something wrong?” Her eyes were dark as black forest chocolate, but wide as demitasse saucers. She probably thought he was going to chew her out, which he did, often, but now he wanted to teach her. “No,”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Pike didn’t know what he would find or if he would find anything, but the Malibu’s back seat was filled with their duffels and sleeping bags. Pike checked to make sure no one was watching, then used a jiggler key to open the car. Pike”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“More overblown, effusive praise for Daniel’s efforts. “Thank”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Can you talk?” “Absolutely. What did you find out?” “I’m going to put you on speaker. Terry’s here.” The sound qual ity went from crisp to hollow when she put him on speaker. “Hey,”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“When the light changed, the arrow dude crossed with the crowd, walking along Sunset like he was normal. Daniel clocked the dude as he passed. Big guy, hard, but he moved as if he was floating. Nasty hands, though, with big, coarse knuckles and veins wrapped under his skin like vines. Daniel”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“I spoke with Steve Brown today, the man who owns Smith’s house, and I had another talk with Jared. I have to tell you some things, and you’re not going to like it. I don’t think Dru has been honest with you.” Cole paused for Pike to react, but Pike gave him no more reaction than a department store mannequin. The cat left the edge of the deck, twined once through Pike’s legs, then sat, its eyes narrow and watchful.”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Being a friend is hard.” “If it was easy, anyone could do it.” “I love smart women.” “Smart women love you.” “I’d better go.” “Call me later.”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“The cold grew until Cole felt numb. He stared at Steve Brown’s house, and wondered who these people were and if everything the woman told Pike was lies. Cole”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Button’s face was blank as Pike approached, but a deep line cut Futardo’s brow. Pike wondered what she was thinking. Button’s jacket was already off in anticipation of the coming heat, and his hands were in his pockets. He didn’t take them out to shake. Instead, he nodded toward the canal. “There you go.” Pike looked, and in that moment he realized all his assumptions were wrong.”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Streetlamps and security lights blazed hot in the confined lane, giving the mist a purple-blue glow. Pike stopped outside Dru’s house. A few windows glowed dull ocher in the surrounding houses, but most were dark and all were quiet. No one was awake. Even Jared’s window was dark. Pike”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“A dog barked further inland somewhere in Ghost Town, and Pike heard vehicles on nearby Pacific Boulevard, but here the houses slept. The smell of the sea was strong. The largest canal—Grand Canal—ran to the ocean through Marina del Rey, and fed the five inland canals with life. Small fish swam in the shallow water, and sea plants grew in wavy clumps. Pike”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Darkness towered above Joe Pike like an ominous black cloud. He did not know when or where he was, or how he came to be trapped here with this awful thing. He only knew the giant shadow would smother him with a darkness he could not escape. The shadow fell over him with the delicate grace of fog, but held him with the awful weight of concrete, a rising pool of blackness that would fill his mouth and nose and ears. Pike fought desperately to scramble away, but his arms and legs would not move. He strained to break free, grunting, hissing, spit and tears flying as his head whipped side to side. Pike did not know what it was, this shadow. He did not understand how it held him, or why he could not escape. It rose from the dark as always, and one day it would kill him . . . as he feared it had killed him before.”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“The front door was a standard wood entry, stained dark to match the house. A Master deadbolt was set in the frame above the knob lock. Cole pulled on a pair of vinyl gloves, selected a pick and a tension wrench from his pick kit, and went to work. Two minutes for the deadbolt, one for the knob. On-the-job training courtesy of the United States Army. Cole”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Pike stepped into the first bay and spotted the man from the Monte Carlo in an office at the rear of the building. He was in front of a television with his back to the door. The Dodgers were playing a day game. Pike checked to see that the other two men were still struggling with the fender, then slipped toward the office as silently as a fish gliding through water. On”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“The two men shook hands, then the cowboy walked through the main gate to an anonymous Buick and drove away. Watching”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Pike moved along the side of the house, looking into each window he passed, and checking for signs of tampering. The first room appeared to be a guest bedroom, and the next was the kitchen. The bedroom appeared undisturbed, but Pike’s view was limited. He saw dirty dishes, three empty beer bottles, and a cutting board on the kitchen counter. Pike told himself the dishes indicated Wilson and Dru planned to return home, but the goat heads and flies hung over him like battlefield smoke. After”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Behind him, McIntosh whispered. “What if it’s people?” “It’s not.” “I know these are animal heads, but this could be human blood. These organs could be from people.” “They aren’t. Butchered people smell different.” McIntosh studied Pike as if wondering how Pike knew that, then pointed out the wall behind the counter. “Check”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“When Pike reached home, he stretched in the parking lot to cool, then peeled off his sweatshirt, deactivated the alarms, and let himself in. His condo was austere and functional with little in the way of decoration. Dining room set off the kitchen; couch, chair, and coffee table in the living room; a flat-screen television for sports and news. A black stone meditation fountain burbled in the corner. Pike found peace in the natural sound, as if he were alone in the forest. Pike”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Wilson said, “It was the same two cops as yesterday, the Mexican gal, what’s her name?” Dru frowned. “Officer Hydeck probably wouldn’t appreciate being called a Mexican. Or a gal.” “She’s supposed to tell the detectives, for all the good that’s gonna do. I said, you know what, do me a favor, don’t. You shoulda seen those idiots who came to the hospital.” Wilson stopped sweeping to squint at Pike. “What’s with all the questions about you? They were more interested in you than me. They’re not gonna find the asshat who did this.” Dru glanced up at Pike. “It”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Pike was focused on Dru. She had thrown on shorts and a faded T-shirt in her rush to the shop, and now her hair was mussed and her feet were smudged with green. Pike thought the smart eyes seemed worried this morning, but he couldn’t stop looking at her—as if she were a book he wanted to read. “You”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“They climbed out of their car as Pike pulled in, and were waiting with their badges when he stepped from the Jeep. The man was in his fifties, with a fleshy face, thinning red hair, and a blue summer-weight sport coat. The woman was fifteen years younger, with raven hair, black eyes, and a navy pants suit that hung as if she had recently lost weight. Her gun dimpled the coat at her waist, and she stood with her hand floating close as if she might have to draw. Nervous. Pike wondered what she had heard about him that left her so afraid. The”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“His hair was a quarter-inch short, his skin was cooked dark, and his knuckles were scarred and coarse. Hydeck”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Pike dug his thumb into the side of the man’s neck where the C3 nerve root emerged from the third vertebra, crushing the root into the bone. This caused the man’s shoulder and chest to go numb with a sharp flash of pain. His diaphragm locked and his breathing stopped mid-breath. The C3 nerve controlled the diaphragm. “If you get up, I’ll do this again. It will hurt worse.” Pike released the pressure, and knew the man’s shoulder and arm now burned as if they had been flushed with napalm. “We”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry

“Pike dug his thumb into the side of the man’s neck where the C3 nerve root emerged from the third vertebra, crushing the root into the bone. This caused the man’s shoulder and chest to go numb with a sharp flash of pain. His diaphragm locked and his breathing stopped mid-breath. The C3 nerve controlled the diaphragm. “If”
― Robert Crais, The Sentry