Cynful: Halle Shifters, Book 2 (29 page)

All he saw was that Cyn was on the ground, and she was bleeding.

It didn’t matter that he was naked, that he’d never completed the shift. Her blood poured out from her chest and onto the ground. She was already unconscious, her eyelashes dark against her pale cheeks. He was going to take every ounce of strength he had to heal her, and it might not be enough.

If her soul fled her body, he would follow.

Julian dug deep, tapping into areas he’d never dared touch before, dancing further down the spiral of the healing path than he’d ever been. What he was doing should have been impossible, and would most likely cost him his life, but it was something that he would gladly give up to save her. Ancient prayers repeated over and over in his mind as he begged for the power to do what needed to be done. He battled death itself, and this time there was no one there to lend him strength, no one to save him from himself.

Beneath his hands torn muscles knit back together. Blood vessels repaired themselves seamlessly. The fragments of her shattered ribs drew together, whole once more. The bullet had been large caliber, bouncing around inside her rib cage before exiting and doing far more damage than he’d ever been forced to fix before. Her heart was nicked, forcing it to beat erratically. He mended the damage, making sure it beat properly once more. He moved next to her lungs, doing his best to be clinical and detached, and failing miserably. He wanted to scream at what had been done to his beautiful mate.

The damage was extensive. Cyn’s right lung was practically torn in half. He knitted it back together piece by piece, repairing torn and inflamed bronchi. The pleural cavity had been breached, causing the fluid within to burst forth. He delicately repaired both the parietal pleura along her rib cage and the visceral pleura on the surface of her lungs, rerouting the pleural fluid in between the membranes back to where it belonged as he went.

He was beginning to tire, slowly losing contact with his body. He wasn’t going to survive.

“Julian.”

There was a minor risk of infection, but he boosted her immune system in preparation for that.

“Julian. You need to stop now.”

But he wasn’t done yet. He needed to repair the damage to the bones and muscles of her shoulder where the bullet had exited. If he wasn’t careful, she would never again be able to use her right arm the way she had before. Her career, the living art she lived and breathed for, would be over.

“All right. I’ll try and help, but if I cry I’m so haunting your ass.”

Energy poured into him, feminine energy that was unlike anything he’d felt before.
“Chloe?”

“That’s me. Hang tight, Julian. I promise, you’re not going anywhere.”

It was just enough. He was going to be able to complete his work. He’d hurt, and hurt badly, but thanks to Chloe and their connection he’d live through it.

He’d just have to see if he’d live through what Cyn would do to him when she found out how far he’d gone. She wouldn’t be too mad, right?

“You keep telling yourself that.”

From somewhere far away he could hear the sounds of someone pleading with him to stop, but that was the last thing he planned to do. He was almost done. Her shoulder was almost completely repaired. All that was left to do was to repair the skin, make sure that not a single scar was left behind.

The only mark that should mar her skin was the mating one he’d given her.

“Jules.”

Cyn’s bleeding had become sluggish, almost nonexistent. No internal bleeding remained. Chloe withdrew with a quick, psychic hug, leaving him to his weariness and the last of Cyn’s scrapes and bruises.

“Knock it off, Super Bear. I think I can put a Band-Aid on the rest of it.”

Part of him recognized that voice, but he couldn’t respond to it. It had gone dark where he was. He could no longer remember which way was up and out, and which way was down and in. The flesh between his hands was still knitting; he needed to hold on just a little bit longer.

He was going to sleep for a week when he was done.

“Gabe, knock his ass out.”

What? No—

Cyn was going to kill him.

Okay, maybe not
kill
him. He was so good at trying to die all on his own. He certainly didn’t need any help on that front.

“Thanks.” Cyn took the spare clothes and, uncaring who saw, changed out of the shredded, bloody shirt she’d been wearing into the T-shirt.

“You’re welcome.” Sarah sat next to her and held her hand. “You’re really angry.”

Damn straight, she was. He could have stopped when he knew she’d live. Instead, he’d insisted on trying to heal everything down to the smallest scratch.

“Gabe risks his life every day, and not just as a Hunter. He’s Marshall’s Second, and a cop. I worry every time he walks out the door that it will be the last time I see him.”

Oh hell. Another Dr. Phil moment was coming on. Cyn could feel it. “I understand Julian’s obsession with healing. Hell, I encourage it.” She shot Sarah a wry glance. “Mostly. It’s when he pushes beyond what he should do that I want to tie him up and lock him in the closet.”

Sarah laughed softly, not wanting to disturb the members of the Pride currently sleeping. It seemed all of the Pumas had arrived at the hospital to rally around Julian, ready and willing to lend a helping hand.

Emma, the tough Curana, was currently curled up on Max’s lap, sound asleep. She looked young and innocent, and Max watched her with the same loving focus that Julian lavished on Cyn.

Becky was nibbling on some fruit Simon handed her, her eyes red-rimmed from either tears or lack of sleep. Possibly both. Simon barely looked away from his conversation with Adrian, until she stopped eating. Then he turned and frowned at her, pointing to the fruit, ignoring everything around her until she rolled her eyes and once again began to nibble.

Adrian was stroking Sheri’s hair, her head pillowed in his lap, her dark glasses protecting her sensitive eyes.

Gabe was pacing, his gaze glued to a subdued looking Ryan. Ryan was staring at his hands as if he’d never seen them before, a haunted look on his face. Occasionally he would rub them together, a washing motion that made her wince in sympathy. He wouldn’t be forgetting how he’d torn a man apart any time soon, no matter how justified he’d been. Gabe had told Cyn he wouldn’t be arresting Ryan for defending her, but he was going to keep an eye on the Grizzly to see if he showed signs of going feral.

Cyn hoped not. As much as Glory protested, she would be devastated if anything happened to Ryan.

William and Barbara Bunsun, Alex’s parents, had both gone into Julian’s room to help his healing along. They’d both come out white-faced and exhausted. She still didn’t know if they’d been able to help, but she was grateful nonetheless.

“Cynthia Reyes?”

Cyn stood as the doctor entered the room. With Jamie still out of commission, there was no longer a Pride doctor in the hospital. The very human doc smiled at Cyn and waved her over.

“How is he?”

“He’ll be fine. He’s exhausted and dehydrated. We’ve got him on a drip and a sedative for now. He keeps fighting us, wanting to get up and find you.”

“Can I see him?” She clenched her hands to keep from wringing them like some weepy romance heroine. She wanted to see him so badly she was ready to burst into tears.

“Yes, but make it brief. He needs his rest more than anything right now.”

“Thanks, doc.” She practically ran into the room Julian was in, stopping dead at the sight of her mate hooked up to tubes and wires again.

This shit had to stop. She was ready to set up a bedroom in the hospital, she was here so damn much.

Julian whimpered, twisting in his sheets, fighting the medication that kept him unconscious. Cyn placed her hand over his, careful of the IV strapped to the back, and watched in astonishment as he immediately settled down.

It seemed Super Bear was still trying to save her, whether she needed it or not.

She settled in the bedside chair, prepared to fight to stay by her mate’s side. If Julian needed her presence in order to rest, then she wasn’t going anywhere, hospital regulations be damned.

It was hours before Julian stirred. Cyn had a cramp in her lower back, her arm was partially asleep from reaching for his hand, and her eyes were dry from lack of sleep. But when those beautiful brown-flecked silver eyes opened and focused on her, she smiled. “Hey, Jules.” She swallowed around tears she refused to shed. “I love you. Moron.”

He was too weak to say it back, but that was okay. He was alive. Nothing else mattered.

“No.”

“Yes.”

“No, damn it.” Cyn’s hands were fisted on her hips. Her foot tapped out an annoyed tattoo on the floor. “Fuck this, no.”

Julian sighed and adjusted the flash he was hanging on the wall. In its new thick, black frame it stood out against the pearly gray walls of her new shop. “It’s the best solution for everyone, Cyn.”

Cyn set the box of ink she’d been carrying into the back room on the floor and growled. “You are not going to medical school, Jules.” No fucking way. If he went back and became a doctor he’d have to do a residency in a hospital for at least three years. What the hell was he thinking? He’d kill himself! He’d been out of the hospital a month and now he wanted to go back? “Max and Rick are working on a solution. Let them deal with the shifter doc, please.”

Julian made a face. “I just wish…”

She stroked his arm as he looked away, his expression one of guilt and regret. “I know, Jules.” Saving Jamie hadn’t been a blessing. The man had finally woken up, but he had become cold, and angry at the world. She’d never seen someone do such a personality one-eighty before in her life. She wouldn’t be surprised if he turned into a serial killer.

Everyone agreed that if Jamie ever decided to take vengeance on Jules for saving him he would go after Cyn first. Even his family had told them to keep away from the former doctor, fearing that the sight of Cyn and Julian would trigger a need to kill in him. Gabe was keeping a watchful eye on him to see if he came out of the current funk or turned rogue.

He’d told her in private he was worried. Needless to say, she was keeping her distance, and making sure Julian did too.

“What do I do? There are people who aren’t getting help because Jamie has his head up his ass.” Jules flopped down in the turquoise chair by the window and watched the cars go by.

They’d kept the old chairs but had them reupholstered to match the new gray, turquoise and black color scheme. She liked the new color scheme even more than the aqua color of her old shop. It was soothing, yet modern. Tabby had talked them into buying a totally awesome chaise lounge in smoky gray that Glory had declared hers and a lighter gray sofa that Cyn had fallen into and in love with all at the same moment. The curtains at the window were white and black, in a modern floral print that Cyn wanted in her house.

Hell, even the floors here were nicer, a gorgeous dark oak that had sold her on the shop even without the added incentive of an awesome landlady.

“You’re a Spirit Bear. If the Pride or Pack needs help, they can come to you. Otherwise, let the humans find a new human doc to deal with.” Jamie’s practice had been closed by the Howard family shortly before he woke up. He’d been in the coma for six weeks before waking up, raging and crying. He’d torn up his hospital room before being sedated. There was no way he was in any condition to deal with patients. “We could also have the shifters go to Doc Woods.”

He rolled his eyes. “Jim Woods is a veterinarian, not a doctor.”

“See? Perfect.”

He snorted out a laugh, but it didn’t last long. Julian looked pensive, never a good thing with her mate. He worried far too much in her estimation. “What do I do? If Immigration finds out I’m not working I could be deported back to Canada.”

Cyn shrugged. “If that happens, I’ll open a parlor in Manitoba.”

“British Columbia.” He turned and stared at her, stunned. “You’d go back with me?”

Was he really that stupid? “I can’t believe you just asked me that.” She’d follow her mate to hell. It was an odd feeling for someone who’d never wanted to be tied down to someone else’s whims, but the knowledge that her mate valued her happiness above all else made the decision easy.

“Your family is here. All your friends.” He stood and crossed over to her, caressing her cheek. “I can’t ask you to give that up for me.”

“Then marry me.” Really, it was a no-brainer. Even if it took three years to get his green card, he’d be able to find a job and update his visa, she was sure of it. If not, she’d see if Gabe couldn’t pull some strings with the shifter Senate and get Jules a permanent residency in the good ole US of A. Having one of the rare, elusive Spirit Bears on American soil should go a long way to getting Jules his citizenship, legally or not.

He laughed. “That sounds oddly familiar. Aren’t you the one who asked me to mate you?”

“Because you take too long to get this stuff done.” She wiggled her fingers in his face. “Make with the ring, Share Bear.” She knew he already had one. Her Jules was thorough that way.