Judas Kiss Quotes

“Thalia is such a pretty name. Is it Greek?” The girl looked at her in surprise. “Very good, Lieutenant. My mother is from Athens. Thalia was the Muse of Comedy. She also worked part-time as one of the Graces—Thalia the Flowering. It’s a nice history. I’d like to think that I inspired some creativity at some point in my life. I’d like to teach art, so perhaps it was prophetic of my mother.” They had moved through the nave of the church now, and Thalia pointed to a door.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Tell her not to do something, tell her she couldn't do something, & she'd do it just to spite you.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“We have a problem, Lieutenant.” Taylor started to sit, and Delores tsk’ed at her. Taylor raised an eyebrow and sat anyway, crossing her arms across her chest. The Oompa was still forced to look up at her, maliciousness sparking in her eyes. Power hungry bitch, Taylor thought. “And what problem would that be?” “I’ve been looking over the reports on the Harris suicide. According to the EMT report on Michelle Harris, there was a chance her life could have been saved. Instead, you and your boyfriend interrogated the suspect, allowed her to continue drinking. Is this true?” “Let me see. Yes, we interrogated her. It’s called solving a case. As for whether she would have died or not, only God can tell us that.” “So you’ve imbued yourself with the power of God now?” “Captain Norris, what do you want? I’m tired. The cases are closed. Satisfactorily to all involved, I must say.” “I have a choice to make, Lieutenant. Seeing as there is yet another complaint against you, I could suspend you pending the outcome of the investigation into your actions.” “You’re kidding me. I’ve done nothing wrong.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Michelle had lit a fire and looked to be having some sort of celebration. Takeout containers and an open bottle of wine sat on the coffee table in the den. This time, Taylor did take a moment to look around, and was struck by the incongruity of the scene. Anderson was a foul creature, profited from the basest of people’s emotions, yet his home was as warm and inviting as Taylor’s own. It made a chill go down her spine.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“A soft knocking made her look up. Baldwin stood in the door, Lincoln behind him. “Come on in,” she said. “I’m ready, I was just putting a couple of notes in the files so I don’t forget. I could use a Guinness, I’ll tell you that.” “We might have to hold off on that a moment.” Lincoln had that look, that “I found something you’ve got to see” look that he only got when he had something explosive to tell her.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“When the door shut behind her, she let out the breath she wasn’t aware she was holding. She went two doors down the hall. “Did we get enough?” she asked the rest of her team, who’d crowded into the observation/printer room to watch the interrogation. Baldwin was the one who answered. “Yep. Like you said, he openly admitted to seeing your tapes. The voice prints should be perfect, you captured a range of emotions. This will seal the deal with the videotape of you and David Martin, the voice on the tape can be digitally matched to the spliced voice and we’ve got yet another charge to hang on him, and another example of how your good name was falsely besmirched.” “Besmirched. I like that word.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Michelle met Taylor’s gaze without flinching. “Yes, I am sure. I’d like to see Henry now,” she answered. She might as well have been sucking on ice cubes, the words were so cold.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Out in the yard, Baldwin ran his hands through his hair, making it stand on end. Taylor saw a glint of silver deep in the black, a precursor to the more salt than pepper look he’d obviously have in a few years. He had a few strands starting in his temples already; this streak was new.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“The inside of the house was stifling. A broken fan sat on a milk crate in front of a rump sprung couch, ashtrays and empty beer cans spilled over the edge of what Taylor assumed was a kitchen counter.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“The girl squinted at Taylor. Her teeth were showing, small and crooked, pointed inward as if they were recoiling in horror from the life their owner had chosen. Without a word, she walked away from the door.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Within minutes, they pulled up to the address on record for Henry Anderson. It would be generous to call the domicile a house—it was little more than a shack, the roof sagging, the windows boarded with cardboard. They could see muffled bits of the Cumberland River beyond the property. The likes of Anderson wouldn’t be accepted in a neighborhood that had expectation. Anderson wasn’t living large. The money he was pulling in from the pornography obviously went toward something else, Taylor speculated. Drugs, perhaps. The house looked like it could double as a meth lab. Baldwin had gotten quiet as they pulled up. She put the car into park and raised an eyebrow at him. “This place is a dump,” he said. “Surely a criminal mastermind isn’t living in this hell. What’s he doing with his money?” “Funny, you read my thoughts. Let’s go see.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“They caravanned over to 51st Avenue in northwestern Nashville, a small section of town aptly named the Nations. It was across Interstate 40 from Sylvan Park, the mirror image of the state street routes Taylor and Sam used to trace with their parents on pilgrimages to Bobby’s Dairy Dip. The Nations was an upstanding industrial area which quickly gave way to squalor. It was another one of those bizarre Nashville disunions, a forgotten zone in the midst of splendor and plenty. A five-block area dedicated to crime. The police presence was heavy, trying to quell the rampant drug and sex trade. They were losing the battle. Here in this little molecular oasis of misery, the residents operated in the land time forgot. Pay phones outnumbered cell phones and were still prevalent on every street corner, graffiti-painted and piss-filled. Teenagers wandered in baggy pants and cornrows, holding forty-ounce beer cans wrapped in brown paper bags. Crime, negligence, fear, all the horrors of life seeped in under the cracks of their doors in the middle of the night, carrying away their faith in humanity. These people didn’t just distrust the police, they didn’t acknowledge their existence. Justice was meted out behind gas stations and in dirty alleyways, business conducted under broken street lamps and in fetid, unair-conditioned living rooms.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“I hope this means you’re getting a new lab?” “I don’t know, T. I gotta run, we’ve got Aiden’s autopsy done and I need to write up some notes. By the way, tell Baldwin the crime scene techs found Aiden’s clothes in a bin behind the McDonald’s on West End. We’ll get that sent to his lab, if he’d like.” Baldwin said, “Yes, please, Sam. Did you find an ID?” “There was a wallet and a passport, both with ID in the name of Jasper Lohan. High-end stuff, they look legitimate.” “Jasper Lohan. I don’t recognize that name for him. No wonder we lost him in St. Louis. Cunning bastard.” He wrote a quick note, then said, “Okay. Thanks.” They hung up with promises to have dinner over the weekend. The banality of the arrangements made Taylor long for some peace and quiet, reminded her that she wasn’t like everyone else. Making plans was a luxury, a formality. In most cases, either she or Sam, or Baldwin, or Sam’s husband Simon, would be called to work a case. They lived in twenty-four-hour-a-day jobs, their lives cordoned off at the whim of a criminal.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Promise of a signature finally secured, Taylor hung up the phone and looked at Baldwin’s grinning visage.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Wow. Lincoln, this is fantastic work!” “Aww, it wasn’t just me. Marcus did some of it.” “Gracious of you,” Marcus said. “Think nothing of it,” Lincoln jibed back. Taylor tuned out their banter. The tendrils of Wolff’s multiple illegalities would have serious ramifications. They needed to talk to the press, to get the word out. Which also meant rolling up the Selectnet shop. Even though the site had been pulled from the Internet, they still needed to bring in the ringleaders. For that, she needed Baldwin’s help.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Wow. Lincoln, this is fantastic work!” “Aww, it wasn’t just me. Marcus did some of it.” “Gracious of you,” Marcus said. “Think nothing of it,” Lincoln jibed back.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“You mean when they come up for air?” Taylor said, making all of them laugh. “Yeah. Then. So in the meantime, we’ve been looking at Todd Wolff’s files. We’ve confirmed he wasn’t in Savannah when he said he was. He used his gas card to fill up the day before the murder, Sunday, in Crossville. So Wolff was definitely in the state of Tennessee at least one day after the murder.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“I agree. We can’t afford anything happening to you, LT. Lincoln and I will start looking for more clues with the Pretender case. We’ll find the bastard. In the meantime, we need to keep you off his radar,” Marcus said. “I can take care of myself,” she grumbled, but when faced with four glowering men, all intent on keeping her out of harm’s way, she decided discretion was the better part of valor and acquiesced. For the time being.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“He grimaced. “My Italian, and other languages. It was part of why they wanted me.” “Other languages? What, like German and French?” He was getting visibly uncomfortable. “More than those three?” “Uh, yeah.” “Jeez, Baldwin, how many languages do you speak?” “Thirteen.” She caught her jaw before it hit her chest. She thought back a few moments. Honesty. Omissions weren’t lies, were they? Creative lies, white lies that were meant to protect, those didn’t count, right? She shoved that thought away. He was telling her now. Lord knows she’d held a few things back about her past.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“The urban spread became Vanderbilt University, a sedate greenness signaled they had arrived. Taylor had always relished the dichotomy that was Nashville; there was something so joyous in downtown’s diversity from block to block. Vandy was always a favorite destination. The hopes of the guileless college students, the ornate buildings teeming with knowledge. Before she could get reflective for her own lost years, Baldwin took a fast right into Centennial Park, narrowly missing the ubiquitous jogger panting down the sidewalk.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Thalia left the tears unchecked, shook Taylor’s hand with a firm grasp. “God gives us challenges, Lieutenant. It’s how we deal with them that matters.” Seventeen, and already imbued with the wisdom of the world. Taylor felt strangely empty when she left the girl behind.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Thalia’s voice was cracking, bitter tears spilling from her eyes. Taylor knew it was time to stop.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“When I dropped out, they ostracized me. I stopped going to school, got my GED, and started working here. I needed to find a new path, forge a future that I could live with. To find some forgiveness for my stupidity.” She waved a hand in the air, swatting away the memories.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Taylor followed her out into a small garden, fully enclosed by the surrounding buildings. A pebble path wound through small patches of grass. A few carved statues sat unobtrusively in the four corners, a stone bench sat next to a burbling fountain. They took a seat, Thalia with her back straight and the same beatific smile she’d had on for the past five minutes. “This is my favorite place. It’s easy to think here.” A calm had stolen over Taylor, similar to the feeling she’d had inside the church. “I can understand why. Can you teach art if you’re a nun?” “Of course. Especially in our fast-paced world, where people don’t take time to read. Art can play a huge role in communication, especially to the young. There are certainly centuries of religious works to study.” They sat in silence for a few moments, then Thalia spoke again, her voiced tinged with sadness. “Jasmine called me. She told me to answer your questions. I don’t know everything about the secret society, but I know some. I’ll help in any way that I can.” “I appreciate that. Jasmine told me that there is a club of girls who are making sex tapes to be posted on the Internet. What can you tell me about them?” Thalia contemplated her hands, which were nestled in her lap. “It’s not what they make it out to be, for starters. It’s supposed to be this glamorous, exciting club that everyone wants to be a part of, and only the most beautiful and popular are tapped. You know what being tapped is, right?” “Yes. You’re chosen by the group, have to go through some awful ritual, then you’re a pledge of sorts.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Lieutenant Jackson, I presume?” “I, uh, how, um, yes.” Impressive elocution there, Taylor. She cleared her throat. “How did you know?” “I saw the news,” Thalia said simply, nonjudgmental. “Lovely.” “I wouldn’t worry about it. No one in their right mind will believe that you killed someone without reason. It’s in your eyes. You’re a guardian, not an avenger.” Oddly pleased, Taylor smiled at the girl. “Some would disagree with you. You’re Thalia Abbott, I presume?” “And you aren’t Catholic, I’d presume.” “You’re right. I was raised Episcopal. My dad was Catholic, though. How did you know?” “You don’t have that guilty look on your face. Though you crossed and blessed yourself, you walked right past the confessional without a second glance. Most nonpracticing Catholics couldn’t do that.” She smiled, and Taylor felt herself smiling back. This was not what she’d expected from her morning. Grace from a seventeen-year-old ex-porn star. “Let’s walk,” Thalia said. She guided Taylor out of the sanctuary, into the sacristy. She held a cloth in her hands, Taylor realized she was dusting as they went.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“The bright morning sun created a glare off the midtown skyscrapers. Lost in thought, shielding her eyes, Taylor didn’t see the dark-haired man watching her from across the street.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Would there need to be a catalyst? Something that would send a person like this over the edge, make them do things they otherwise wouldn’t?” “Yes, I believe you could say that. A life-changing event.” Ricard spoke pointedly, and Taylor began to understand.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Ah, sadly, Lieutenant, since we are only discussing a hypothetical situation, I can’t answer that. But someone with this level of need for stability might have a past that saw some sort of abuse, self-inflicted or external. With many young phenoms, their manifestation comes out in their talent. Once that talent is taken away, even something as simple as a parent telling the child he or she must go to bed now instead of studying their art could send a child of extreme gifts into a tailspin. They use their talent for control, just like an anorexic child uses starvation to whittle away her body. It’s all perception.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Was there something in Corinne’s life that presaged this need for control?”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss

“Think of the difficulties facing an exceptionally talented child. A completely controlled existence, a world structured around said child’s genius. Constant work, attention, adulation and expectation. Until the one day the child wakes up, literally and figuratively, and decides she doesn’t want to be a prodigy. She doesn’t want to work so hard to live her life. She sees the people around her taking the easy road, sleeping in on the weekends, having plenty of time to date and do homework, and suddenly, she decides that is the life she wants. Someone who is so driven might actually pursue that simple life with the dogged determination that made her such a gifted athlete.”
― J.T. Ellison, Judas Kiss