Quotes from Robert Crais

Jack met Kwan's eyes, glanced away, then looked back. Jack nodded once, kind of like saying hi, but Kwan did not respond. His lean face was all planes and angles, and as warm as a granite mask. He also had a split lip and a heavy purple bruise on his cheek from the guards. Jack

They spent the next hour going over their plan and setting up their equipment. Stone loaded his software onto Carlos's laptop, then fit locators on Pike and Cole, one in Cole's hair, and the other on the back of Pike's belt buckle. Both Walsh and Hurwitz made multiple calls, coordinating the tactical SRT team and six additional Special Agents. At

Scott let Maggie out the rear, clipped her lead, and hurried to catch up as Sims and another Fugitive dick brought out Estelle Rolley. Rolley looked like a walking skeleton. Street officers called this "the meth diet." Cowly

Button's face was blank as Pike approached, but a deep line cut Futardo's brow. Pike wondered what she was thinking. Button's jacket was already off in anticipation of the coming heat, and his hands were in his pockets. He didn't take them out to shake. Instead, he nodded toward the canal. "There you go." Pike looked, and in that moment he realized all his assumptions were wrong.

novel True Grit by Charles Portis

Carly said, "What are you doing?" "Thinking. Impressive, isn't it?" "Is this what detective work looks like?" "Only when I'm showing off." "You're funny." "A national treasure.

second voice spoke, young and uncertain. "This is Ilan. Can you hear me?" Their voices had the hollow, faraway quality that came with being on speaker. "I

Scott turned away with Maggie at his side. He felt like an idiot for believing he had discovered a glaring discrepancy when top-cop detectives like Orso and Cowly knew the case inside and out. Scott wasn't an idiot, but three more days would pass before he understood.

Waiters and busboys flowed in and out of the kitchen, and walked on tightropes between the tables.

the lobby pay phone, and called her. She answered on the second ring.

Ted Kemp lived in a residential development six blocks west of the highway. The homes were small, set close, and identical, as if the developer's plan had been to cap the land with beige stucco, clay tile, and anonymity

Stepping into the apartment was like entering a furnace. Pike began sweating. They were in a cramped living room. As

sometimes not quitting was all you had left.

The Los Angeles Police Department was surrounding their neighborhood like a gathering thunderstorm. A

Stone tried to sound noncommittal. He knew Koreatown well. Liked the women. Liked karaoke. The Koreans were big on noraebang. "I

Air dogs excelled at tracking scent in the air. Ground dogs like bloodhounds and beagles worked best tracking scent particles close to or on the ground. Scott

You good with Arabic?" Bam! Out of left field, and now Stone was smiling. There were many Arabic dialects, from Moroccan Arabic with Berber words which often did not even sound Arabic, to the aristocratic Arabic spoken by the Saudi royal family, which was different from the Arabic spoken in the streets.

Pollard took a breath. First Maria Juarez had disappeared, and now her tape had been destroyed, the same tape Maria claimed as her husband's alibi. Pollard found herself smiling, though without any humor. A hot breeze had picked up, but felt good on her face. She liked being on the summit. Pollard

So Pike and his guys set up, dug in, and waited, night-vision goggles, commo buds in their ears, weapons locked and hot, good to go.

Two attendants were on duty in the parking lot. Scott parked across their entrance, and got out. The older attendant was a Latin man in his fifties with short black hair and a red vest. He hurried over when he saw Scott block their drive, but pulled up short when he saw Scott's uniform. This was the cop effect. He said, "You wan' to park?" Scott let Maggie out. The man saw her, and took a step back. This was the German shepherd effect. Scott

WHEN COLE CUT HIM FREE, Jon amscrayed back to West Hollywood. He hadn't been home long enough to heat his pool, but Jon stripped as he walked through his house, and hit the water like a naked lawn dart. The

I put the Corvette in its spot in the parking garage and rode up in the elevator and went into my office and closed the door. There was a message on my answering machine from someone looking for Bob, but that was probably a wrong number. Or maybe it wasn't a wrong number. Maybe I was in the wrong office. Maybe I was in the wrong life.

Pike and his guys were hard-core professionals. Combat discipline was sacrosanct.

Terry Ito had said Eddie Tang was on his way up. Maybe Eddie figured taking advantage of Mimi Warren and stealing the Hagakure were the keys to ascendancy.