The Tyrants have cleaned out most of the highway brigands. Just a matter of protecting their own interests. They want to make sure no one else robs u… - Guy Gavriel Kay

Words were power, words tried to change you, to shape bridges of longing that no one could ever really cross.

Ned found that if he thought about things like that too much, the accident of it all, his mind started down unsettling paths.…
Could you make a pattern out of any of this? Stitch together the seeming randomness into something that had meaning? Is that what life was about, he wondered: trying to make that pattern, to have things make sense?

“But why would they attack us? What have you been doing here, Ned?”
“Why would who attack us?”
“Wolves.”
“What? No way. Wolves are mostly vegetarian. I learned that in school last year.”
“Then tell these to go find the salad bar,” said Aunt Kim, grimly.