Lynx Northern Shifters 3

Jonah that the longer his lynx stayed leashed within his human, the more of a split personality he felt. And it pleased Jonah that Horton didn’t understand the first thing about him.
“You’re an odd duck,” said Horton. “I can’t see what Trey ever saw in you, though maybe you were different a few years ago.”
“Maybe,” Jonah said vaguely.
Horton had brought a computer with him, which was a change of pace. Jonah found his interest picked up, and he wondered if this had the long-promised math texts on it.
Not that Jonah understood computers very well, so that would be a problem. But he understood that textbooks could be on computers.
“Math?” he asked, because his questions about math, while sincere, convinced Horton that Jonah was touched, not quite right, and completely not a threat.
The latter was important, that Horton didn’t perceive Jonah to be a threat.
“No,” said Horton briskly. “No math at all. Nevertheless I think it will be something that interests you.”
Jonah eyed Horton then, realizing the man was acting differently today. There was an edge to his manner and speech, as if something important was happening. His lynx perked right up, looking for an opportunity to attack and Jonah had to get a grip on himself, keep control. He looked up into Horton’s eyes, searching for clues as to what was going on.
Horton gave the slow smile he often delivered before a put-down, when he thought he was inflicting something however minor upon Jonah. But it was a question Horton asked. “Would you like to talk to Trey Walters?”
Jonah’s body, weaker than he’d realized, seized and it became hard to breathe. His gaze widened as he stared at Horton, trying to see and smell truth.
Truth was there in the man, and Jonah gave it back to him.
“I want to talk to Trey, yes.”
“First, I have to bind you to the bed.”
Jonah paused, his cat protesting, yowling deep within him because he couldn’t withstand another layer to this imprisonment.
Ultimately though, he had to talk to Trey. But he must have been looking at Horton as if the man was prey, because Horton backed up and said warningly, “Understand this. If you don’t do as I say, this conversation with Trey will not happen. Unless you know the passwords required and the protocol to get online with him.”
Jonah considered. It might be possible to leap at Horton now, hurt and threaten him enough to put him through to Trey. Or he might still refuse. Or Jonah’s cat might lose control and kill him anyway.
Jonah wanted to see Trey and alert him to the dangers Horton posed to shapeshifters. He’d waited a long time to do both things. They had become his purpose in life. He wasn’t going to throw it away now.
So he went to the bed and allowed Horton to shackle him, when he hadn’t been shackled since he’d awoken from his drugged state. He didn’t allow his mind to dwell on the imprisoned wrist and ankle, but rather focused on the computer Horton now held on his lap as he keyed in different words and numbers.
Jonah couldn’t rip his gaze away from that screen, even if it was angled away from him and difficult to see. His entire life was telescoping into this moment. His lynx was straining too. The combination of his prey being so close, of his body being bound, of his one chance to warn Trey before Jonah acted… His lynx was pushing to shift and it was the strangest sensation he’d ever experienced, as if the cat was just beneath his skin. Jonah’s teeth seemed to sharpen, lengthen.
The presence of the cat so close to the surface should have been distracting, but given what Jonah wanted to accomplish, it wasn’t.
The screen filled with Trey’s face, and Jonah’s throat squeezed tight. He couldn’t speak in that moment.
“Dan, where is he?” Trey’s voice, and it was a demand, not a question. Trey was asking about Jonah, couldn’t yet see Jonah given the way Horton held the screen.
“Patience,” said Horton, though there was none of the smugness Jonah associated with him. Horton respected Trey, unlike Jonah. “He’s here. As a precaution, he’s been restrained for this interview. Normally, he’s free to move around. He can tell you that himself.”
Jonah couldn’t see Trey all that clearly from this side view of the screen, but he heard Trey say, “Put him on.”
The voice was different, whether due to the computer, due to the years that had passed, or due to the situation and Jonah’s unstable body.
The reasons were