To my Renaissance Man
Then I looked, and behold, in the firmament that was over the head of the cherubim there appeared above them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne.
And the sound of the wings of the cherubim was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of God Almighty when he speaketh.
And I looked, and behold, four wheels beside the cherubim, one wheel beside one cherub, and another wheel beside another cherub; and the appearance of the wheels was like unto a beryl stone.
As for the wheels, they were called in my hearing, the whirling wheels. And everyone had four faces: the first face was the face of the cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third face the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle.
And when the cherubim went, the wheels went beside them; and when the cherubim lifted up their wings to mount up from the earth, the wheels also turned not from beside them.
— Ezekiel 10: 1, 5, 9, 13–14, 16
Many thanks to:
My Renaissance Man, for encouragement and the right word at the right time. Kim, for support, for friendship, for making three great suggestions, and for tea breaks. Mary, Fazelle and Nova, and Kipper, for the stones and the great time "prospecting." Ben, for the martial arts stuff. Matthew, for keeping my Enclave bearable. Ken and Don Waldroup at Peoples Furniture and John Wellborn in Spruce Pine, NC.
My agents: Lucienne Diver, for believing in me and in this bizarre world I created, and for saying, "This is the sexiest book…" Jeff Gerecke, for guiding me in the right direction.
Finally and profoundly, to my editor, Liz Scheier, for making me think—and write—darker, faster, and leaner. This has been the most FUN!