The Lynx Who Claimed the Sun Read Free Page B

believed him, since he had excellent reports from the tutors he hired for his kits. “All right, then. Playtime!”
    He grabbed both his sons and draped them over his shoulder.
    Lynx kits loved to play, and Garth made it his business to spend time with them as much as possible.
    Later that evening, after the kits were worn out and in bed, Garth retreated to his own room. He hadn’t brought up the issue with Gina again. It could wait. Nicolas, however, couldn’t. The kits’ reaction encouraged him, and he thought that maybe, with time, they would come to accept Nicolas.
    But before that could happen, Garth still had a lot of problems to deal with. Sighing, he collapsed on his four-poster facedown and fell asleep as soon as he hit the pillow. That night, he dreamt about Nicolas’s dark eyes, so full of mystery and sensuality. And when he did wake, it was with renewed decision. He would not lose his mate, and his chance at happiness. He would make Nicolas see how good they could be together. There was simply no other alternative, because Garth wasn’t willing to live without Nicolas.

    20
    Scarlet Hyacinth

Chapter Two
The next day

    Garth sat on the benches outside the emergency room in the agency hospital, his heart beating a million miles an hour. By his side, Soren fidgeted, looking as nervous as Garth felt. Garth couldn’t blame the werewolf. Their plan to catch Heathcliff Cunningham had gone to shit. While Soren and Garth had been away trying to find Byron, the damn shark attacked Skylar, Nicolas, and Daniel and nearly killed them. In fact, if not for Byron’s opportune intervention, they would probably be dead, and Garth and Soren would have joined them.
    Garth and Soren had been at the club, waiting to meet Byron, when Soren’s connection with Daniel had notified them off the danger. They’d rushed to rescue the three men, but arrived too late to prevent the ensuing car accident and the shot that had Skylar struggling between life and death. In the end, Byron intervened to save them, but they weren’t out of the woods yet.
    Together with Soren, Garth had taken the three men to the hospital. They were there now waiting for news on their two mates and Skylar. It seemed to take forever until at last, a medic appeared.
    “Mr. Gardner-Boyd isn’t in any danger,” he explained. “He was very lucky. His broken ribs didn’t pierce his lungs, and the mild concussion from the car accident is being healed as we speak, courtesy of his shape-shifter powers. Mr. Shields can go home immediately, since his injuries were very light and have already disappeared.”

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    Garth immediately felt much better when he heard Nicolas was unharmed. Soren seemed similarly relieved upon finding out Daniel would be all right. However, it didn’t escape Garth’s notice that the doctor hadn’t mentioned Skylar. “What about Mr. Pierce?” he asked, keeping his tone formal. In the end, Skylar was not only his friend, but also his boss.
    “Mr. Pierce was shot with a special bullet, and it caused a lot of damage to his system,” the doctor said.
    Soren looked surprised. “Silver?” he asked.
    “The bullet was indeed made out of silver,” the doctor confirmed,
    “but the precious metal didn’t actually hurt Mr. Piece. The projectile seems to have been embedded with a substance extracted from sea anemones. Smaller species of shifters, and especially sea animals like Mr. Pierce, are very vulnerable to such venoms.”
    Garth cursed. “How typical of Heathcliff. Will Skylar be all right?” He slipped into familiarity, but the doctor didn’t seem to notice or didn’t care.
    “We’ve managed to eliminate the substance from his system,” the man said. “Sea horses are actually quite sturdy in case of blunt trauma, but penetrative injuries allow bacteria in the system, something they are sensitive to. They heal slower than other shape-shifters from such wounds. Still, Mr. Pierce’s condition has