"He leaned back in the saddle and closed his eyes. “I’m alive, I’m alive, I’m alive.” Each time a bullet whizzed past his ear and ripped into someone else, he’d thanked God even as he grieved for the man beside him. It was impossible to feel truly sorry over another soul’s destiny when it was the result of your own good fortune. Yes, Andrew was dead -- but Grover was alive and he rejoiced."
"Jay’s erogenous zones tingled. Ara made flying in an airplane sound delicious -- like illicit sex. He thought about his conventional life with his conventional wife -- safe, solid and disappointing. It was easy to see why the Manakin brothers’ fortunes had diverged. Jim went after what he wanted -- Jay settled for what he could get. Jim was Key West. Jay was McKeesport."