The Darkness Shines

After his Olympic debut, where he won a gold medal for the team and a silver medal in individual show jumping, Thomas returns home determined to prepare for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Between his demanding training schedule, his work with large-animal veterinarians, and his growing collection of horses, he has plenty to keep him busy. But Thomas and Casey have not forgotten their darker side. After a period without taking care of any "trash," they discover a man who has burned two of his own horses for insurance money and attempted to poison another. What begins as an investigation soon becomes another deadly chapter in Thomas and Casey's secret life. And when another of Casey's rapists crosses their path, the two men once again decide that justice is something they must handle themselves. Meanwhile, Thomas's personal life is changing rapidly. Dan moves in with Thomas, and before long Thomas buys a house for the three of them. Casey also finds a new love interest someone he believes might finally be the real thing. Unfortunately, there is a complication: Thomas has had a longtime crush on the same man. What begins as an exciting new relationship threatens to create tension between the people closest to Thomas. Then Thomas's parents arrive for his twenty-fourth birthday and stay for five days. His relationship with his father is tested when the two clash over Frank's drinking, bringing family tensions to the surface. Thomas's world continues to expand as he acquires two new Thoroughbred mares. One is a large mare he hopes will become a future show horse. The other is pregnant, and Thomas plans to breed her to MC once she has her foal, hoping to create the next generation of horses for his future in competition. At the veterinary clinic, Thomas is also learning more than ever as he works alongside large-animal veterinarians and gains experience with horses, cattle, and other animals. Then an unexpected new companion enters his life: a macaw that belonged to an elderly woman who has passed away. Through it all, Thomas continues trying to balance his ambitions, relationships, family, animals, and the dangerous secret life he shares with Casey. The Darkness Shines is another emotional journey through Thomas's life—a story of love, friendship, family conflict, horses, veterinary medicine, murder, and the complicated choices that come with living a life that is anything but ordinary.