A Man Can Never Compete With A

Abe's Face Came Back Into Focus. "greetings, Zmey," I Said Weakly. Somehow, Him Being Here Didn't Surprise Me. "nice Of You To Slither On In." He Shook His Head, Wearing A Rueful Smile. "i Think You've Outdone Me When It Comes To Sneaking Around Dark Corners. I Thought You Were On Your Way Back To Montana." "next Time, Make Sure You Write A Few More Details Into Your Bargains. Or Just Pack Me Up And Send Me Back To The U. S. For Real." "oh," He Said, "that's Exactly What I Intend To Do." He Kept Smiling As He Said It, But Somehow, I Had A Feeling He Wasn't Joking.

A Year. We'd Known Each Other Only A Year, But We'd Lived A Lifetime In It.

Sometimes It's Worth Lingering On The Journey For A While Before Getting To The Destination.

I Pulled Out Box After Box, Setting Them Haphazardly Around The Room. My Organization Lacked Something - Like, Say, Organization.

When We Were Almost To The Other Campus, I Felt The Weird Nausea Hit Me. I Called A Warning To Christian, Just As A Strigoi Grabbed Him. But Christian Was Fast. Flames Wreathed The Strigoi's Head. He Screamed And Released Christian, Trying Frantically To Put The Flames Out. The Strigoi Never Saw Me Coming With The Stake. The Whole Thing Took Under A Minute. Christian And I Exchanged Looks. Yeah. We Were Badasses.