James Patterson: Likeness (page 2)

“I led the way toward the crowd, trying to look casual, like, Fly? Me? Nah.”

“I want to be able to see stuff," Iggy said. "Like I used to, when I was little. And I want to be able to totally kick Jeb's butt.”

“You love him so much it feels like you can't go on without him. You feel like you might die without him.”

“I need wings," said Total, still sniffling. "I need mywings. Then things like that wouldn't happen."
Yeah, that was all I needed. Atalking mutant dog.”

“Sometimes he seems like a droid--or a drone. Fang of Nine. Fang2-D2.”

“Max?” said the Gasman. “Are those, um, rats?”
Lovely. “Yes, those do appear to be either rats or mice on steroids,” I said briskly, trying not to shriek and climb the walls like a girly-girl.”

“Then, Holden, the little Fang gang kid, came out of nowhere with an apparent death wish. He raced directly toward the maniac with the gun shrieking something that sounded like”

“We probably looked like starving orphan children. Hey! We were starving orphan children.”

“Iggy’s spine tightened, his face like ice. When he’d been at the School, they’d tried to surgically enhance his night vision. Now he was blind forever. Oops.”

“Flying monkeys?" the Gasman called out a guess. "Like in the Wizard of Oz?"
It dawned on me then. "No," I said tersely "Worse.”

“It’s, like, a safety bomb.”
-Iggy”

“The receptionist looked us over, then went back to typing something incredibly urgent—like her résumé́ for another job.”

“I want to know about my mom. And other stuff. I want to know the whole story, good or bad.”
“Me, too,” said Gazzy. “I want to find my parents so I can tell’m what total scuzzes they are. Like, ‘Hi, mom and dad, you’re such scum!”

“It gets so tiring, this strong-picking-on-the-weak stuff. It was the story of my life -literally- and it seemed to be a big part of the outside world too. I was sick of it, sick of guys like these, stupid and bullying.”

“Maybe he was a good a good whitecoat—like Jeb. And maybe the moon was made of cream cheese.”

“I still felt like I might hurl, and I thought about how awful that would be in midair.”

“Fair isn't fair, Dean. Like I'm supposed to help you because fair is fair? Try I need you to help me so I wont rip out your spine and beat you with it. I might respond to that, maybe.”

“Plus her mom was so awesome. She was strict about some things—don’t leave your socks lying around—but so not strict about other things, like calling the cops about my bullet wound.”

“What are you guys doing? If you anted me to take a shower, all you had to do was pay me ten bucks, like you usually do”