Night Hawk Trilogy (Night Hawk Series)

by J. E. Taylor

  I should have listened to what she said because pain bloomed in my temple. The bastard had a knife in one hand and a hammer in the other. I stumbled from the blow, but was able to react quickly enough to deflect the knife from my chest. It cut through the layers of the coat and seared my arm.

  A chain wrapped around my neck, burning my skin as the second demon pulled me against his chest, holding me in place as the one I attacked stepped closer. My gaze flicked from the knife to Naomi and both fear and wild fury filled her features.

  She launched at the demon, screaming like a banshee, but something happened halfway through the leap. The demon was so intent on running me through with the knife that he ignored Naomi’s war cry. When the white tiger hit him, it knocked him on his side and the hammer shot from his hand, but he still had the knife.

  A shot of adrenaline ran through me and I yanked the chain forward, bringing the demon’s hand into view. With no hesitation, I sank my fangs into the meat of his thumb and he yelped, dropping the chain, and I used the surprise to flip him over my head and onto the ground with my teeth still embedded in his hand. As much as I hated demon blood, I still drew a mouthful in and swallowed before I released. Instead of going in for a more lethal bite, I drew the gun and flipped off the safety, planting a bullet into the bastard’s brain.

  The shot stunned both Naomi and the second demon enough so I had a second to train the gun on the demon, but he rolled away, putting Naomi in the way. His attempt to swipe the knife across her abdomen missed doing the damage he’d hoped, but it did break through the skin under her fur and the smell of her sweet blood filled the air. She didn’t yelp, instead, she roared and her teeth caught his wrist, snapping it. The knife tumbled away and he punched Naomi with his free hand. She snarled and yanked at the wrist her teeth were embedded in.

  I still didn’t have a clear shot and the demon’s punches were connecting with her torso hard enough for me to hear the bone on bone connections.

  “Naomi, off!” I yelled, praying she would listen and for once, my prayers were answered. She moved to the right and the demon lunged to the left, reaching for the knife. He never made it. The bullet shattered the back of his skull, exploding out the front of his face, leaving him unrecognizable.

  I flipped the safety on the gun and turned toward Naomi. She lay on her back in human form with her hands clutching her stomach. A trickle of blood flowed through her fingers, igniting my hunger as well as the fear in my soul. I tucked the gun inside the pocket and ran toward her, transitioning and wrapping my talons around her. I took flight, ignoring the burn of her blood against my talons.

  As the crow flies, I had less than a mile back to the house and I made it to the back yard within minutes, setting her down on the frozen ground before transitioning back into human form. I scooped her up, carrying her to the door, kicking it and waiting for someone to open it up.

  Valerie opened the door, shuffling us both inside. I placed Naomi on the couch and stepped back, letting Valerie take over inspecting her wounds.

  “What happened?” Michael asked as he took the space next to me.

  I looked down at my blistered hands before returning my gaze to Naomi. “She was attacked by a couple of demons,” I said and shifted. “I got there just in time.”

  “If you hadn’t...” she started and winced as Valerie swabbed the cut on her abdomen.

  “Well, if you hadn’t been dumb enough to go jogging alone, they wouldn’t have known you were here,” I snapped before she could continue. “The only thing I confirmed was that I was in the garage. Not you. Do you really think I’m that much of an idiot?

  Her lips pursed and my fists clenched in response despite the pain.

  “Val, are you going to be able to get any more blood this week?” I asked.

  She shook her head without looking my way and I inhaled. I’d have to hunt to heal my wounds and I turned away from them. I stripped the coat and the hat, tossing it on a kitchen chair before heading toward the back door.

  “Where do you think you’re going?”

  “Hunting. I’m ravenous.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine - Damian

  The door slammed and I took flight before anyone could stop me. I wanted to hunt for human blood, but I knew better. Right now I needed to lay low and even taking flight was risky, but the distance to the meadow was far enough to drive me to the air.

  I was rewarded with a herd of deer and I didn’t hesitate. Swooping down, I plucked one from the midst before the others knew what happened and turned back into the woods. I landed far enough away not to spook the herd and before the animal got its bearings, I sank my teeth into his throat, relishing the hot pulse of blood.

  Hunger still sang in my veins and I took flight, repeating the ritual until I had half a dozen carcasses at my feet and the blisters on my hands were healed. I wiped my face and turned back toward the house, opting to walk instead of fly. I needed the time to plot out our next move and as much as I didn’t want to leave, that was probably the best for all of us.

  Lucifer would assume Naomi went where I did, and I had the opportunity to draw his attention away from the three of them.

  It took me a couple of hours to navigate the thick winter woods, even without snow cover. I stepped out of the woods twenty feet from the fence line. Naomi stood with her fingers looped into the fence.

  “We need to leave,” she announced.

  “I need to leave,” I corrected after I covered half the distance.

  Her face transitioned to that hard stubborn stare I knew too well and I knew if I went inside the fence to our underground escape, I wouldn’t get out of there without her. Movement behind her caught my attention and I met Michael’s worried gaze.

  I offered him a half-hearted shrug and took a step backwards.

  “This is the way it has to be,” I whispered. “My presence is lethal. I can’t bring that down on everyone.” Another step back and the panic formed in her eyes. She had no idea how much strength it took not to give in to her. An invisible hand reached into my chest and squeezed my heart to the point tears sprung from my eyes.

  “Don’t you dare leave me,” she begged but my mind was made up the moment I rounded the corner and saw the demons playing with her like they were poking sticks at a caged animal.

  I took another few paces backwards, sensing the edge of the woods within a couple of feet now. “I have to.”

  “Bull shit!” she screamed.

  “I love you, baby,” I said and went to turn. A sharp pain shot through my leg and I stumbled, not understanding what had just happened. My gaze snapped to my thigh. To the blade sticking out of my flesh. Hands grabbed me, but I fought. Unfortunately, I wasn’t hungry enough to override the platinum and change into my shadow form, but I was able to slip from their grasp and I bolted toward the fence.

  I had no idea what the plan was as I limped forward. Scaling the fence wouldn’t work but I might be able to jump it if I got enough speed. Naomi was going bat-shit on the other side of the platinum barrier, but Michael held onto her, keeping her from climbing out.

  I only got a few steps before a crack filled my head and then nothing.

  Chapter Thirty - Naomi

  “Damian!” I screamed and laced my fingers into the fence. I could scale this in a matter of seconds and I got my foothold when Michael’s arms grabbed me around the waist.

  “You can’t help him right now,” he said, but I struggled.

  I refused to let him pull me away, to stop me from trying to save my husband; but it was futile. Michael’s grip was as strong as iron and the clan that blindsided Damian dragged him into the woods and out of my line of sight.

  I let out a wail of distress that sounded more like the cry of a child than a grown woman and released the fence, collapsing in Michael’s grip. Numbness settled over me, right down to the core. Damian was now in Lucifer’s hands and there wasn’t a thing I could do to save him this time.

  Michael carried me back to the house,
but I didn’t care. The man I loved was as good as dead. Despair crept in over the numbness, cramping my muscles and forcing sobs from my throat. Nothing on earth could take this pain away.

  “Naomi,” Valerie whispered and I turned my face into my hands, unwilling to acknowledge anyone. I just wanted Damian back. As hard as the last few days of not touching was on us, we were still together. I began to understand how crippling it was to lose your soul mate.

  Was this what Damian endured when Athena was slain in front of him?

  God, how did he survive all those years with this emptiness as big as a fathomless gorge?

  The questions circled through my brain, drowning out the people in the room and I curled tighter in a ball, trying to escape from this pain.

  Damian’s stupid email today probably set the vultures in motion.

  I sat up like I had suddenly been reanimated and before anyone could ask what was going on in my head, I bolted downstairs. They followed, like a posse of body guards protecting me from falling to a million pieces.

  “What are you doing?” Michael asked when I propped open Damian’s laptop.

  “Nothing. I’ll be up in a few minutes.” I didn’t want Michael to know what I was doing. I didn’t want to argue or explain myself. I just wanted to find out what Damian said to Lucifer.

  When no one moved, I looked up. “I’m not going to do anything stupid. I just want to find out where Lucifer’s emails came from.”

  They still didn’t move.

  “I promise, I will not engage him or do anything foolish or stupid.” I focused on Ted. “Whatever you’re cooking smells wonderful. I’d love to have some when I’m through here,” I added for good measure. Valerie and Ted nodded and traded a glance before heading upstairs.

  Michael’s lips pressed together and his gaze bounced between the computer and me like there was something on the computer I shouldn’t see. He crossed his arms and waited.

  “I promise I’ll be fine,” I said and he met my gaze. “All I’m going to do is open the last email and run a trace.”

  Whether he realized it or not, relief softened his features. “Fine, but if you’re not back upstairs in five minutes, I’m coming to get you.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Tracers take a little longer than five minutes.” Besides, five minutes wasn’t enough time for me to look through the other emails from the same address. Michael sparked my interest whether he wanted to or not.

  “Ten minutes,” he said and pointed at me.

  “Fifteen would probably be better,” I said and he crossed his arms again. “I have to analyze the ping,” I added even though I had no clue how someone traced email, Michael didn’t know that and he nodded.

  “I’ll check in fifteen,” he agreed and headed upstairs, leaving me to a bogus task.

  I opened up Damian’s email account and stared at the latest message. It was unopened and the subject line sent ice through my blood.

  “If you want to see him alive...”

  Instead of opening the email, I sorted on the sender and filtered through the messages to the one that set Damian off in the cave. Each message was short and chilling, but one in particular outlined Lucifer’s twisted plans for me including a demon fuck-fest just for Damian’s benefit. The nauseatingly detailed scenario ended with Lucifer ripping my heart from my chest and draining it at sunrise. Long enough for Damian to feel the loss just before the sun cooked him to oblivion.

  I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. The outlined scenario gave me a glimmer of hope. Lucifer didn’t know that I could produce a trinity, and it also didn’t give an indication that he knew what Damian was either. I could work with that.

  I glanced at my watch and exhaled. I had five more minutes and I opened the latest email.

  The directive along with the address set me in motion. I snapped the laptop closed and bolted down the hall toward the garage. It was time to plan a full out rescue mission, starting with a hijacking.

  Chapter Thirty-One - Naomi

  I rummaged around in the dark of the garage, looking for the fucking control panel and getting more frustrated by the minute. Lucifer gave me twenty-four hours to make a decision. If I didn’t show up at the address he specified within twenty-four hours, Damian would suffer a great deal before the following sunrise and Lucifer would send me Damian’s ashes.

  And then he’d come after me and everyone living in the house. He knew it was vampire-proof and angel-proof and suspected it was probably demon-proof, but he promised we didn’t account for the things he’d send and there was no known defense against them.

  I shivered at the thought of what type of mutant monster that would be.

  Shuffling behind me caught my attention and I stiffened.

  “Where the hell do you think you’re going?” Michael’s voice penetrated the darkness.

  “I’m going after him,” I said just as my fingertips found the box I was looking for. I turned on my phone and punched in the familiar numbers. When the hand pad lit up, I put my palm to the glass and held my breath.

  I’d never felt as alive as I did the moment the scanner finished and the lights flooded the garage. Platinum plates shifted, disappeared into the flooring with one exception. A panel as wide as the underground tunnel slid to the ceiling and clasped into place.

  I turned and scanned the vehicles. Not one was in working condition and my heart sank. Michael hadn’t said a word but his scan of the collection revealed an appreciation in his eyes and he sighed when he brought his gaze back to me.

  “I need help getting one of these vehicles back in shape. Did Ted pick up what Damian asked?” I shot the question at Michael and I received a blank stare.

  “Damian’s list that was on the table.” Even I could hear the near hysterical note in my voice.

  When he didn’t answer, I huffed and climbed back down the stairs. Nothing was going to stop me from getting to Damian. Not now that I had a location and if I couldn’t get us free, at least we’d die together, but I’d make sure it was on our terms and not what Lucifer’s sick fantasy dictated.

  As I navigated the dark tunnels, I couldn’t help but shrink away from imagined creatures in every shadow. The itchy, uncomfortable sensation of spiders crawling on my skin overcame me and I shuddered, picking up the pace. When I stepped into the brightly lit hallway, I sighed with relief, rubbing my arms and then the back of my neck.

  I glanced over my shoulder, and met Michael’s gaze.

  “You have no idea how much the paintings down here meant to Damian,” I said. “Especially the path of sunshine in the bedroom.” I didn’t wait for a response, instead I headed right to the kitchen where Ted and Valerie sat eating meatloaf with potatoes and carrots. I glanced at my plate. My stomach growled and I cursed the needs of my human body.

  Instead of following through on my questions, I sat down at the table as a sign of respect. “Thank you,” I said.

  “You’re welcome,” Ted said and offered me the bottle of ketchup.

  Even with my pulse ticking off the wasted seconds, I ate without much conversation. After taking the last bite, I set my silverware down and wiped my lips.

  “Did you happen to pick up the things on the list I left on the table?”

  “Not yet, but...” He glanced at his watch. “I might be able to make it to the auto store in Torrington before it closes.”

  A wave of relief hit.

  “I will clean up the kitchen if you pick up what he has listed for the Aston Martin.” That was by far the fastest car in the garage and I know it was one of the top ones on Damian’s list. He wiped his hands and pulled out the sheet, scanning the list before he nodded.

  “Is it safe out there?” Ted asked, but he looked beyond me to Michael.

  “Yes,” I said, not knowing if Lucifer was bluffing or not, but he was explicit with his directions and while he promised Damian would suffer, he also promised that he would leave the occupants of the adjoining property alone for the duration of the twenty-four h
ours.

  I didn’t want to take either of their vehicles. It was bad enough they were targets, but Lucifer didn’t know Valerie lived her. He knew about Uncle Ted and the inheritance of the land from Valerie’s deceased family. He assumed he was alone and if I showed up with one of their cars, their identity could be compromised.

  “You’re going after Damian?” Valerie asked after her uncle left.

  “Yeah, assuming I can get one of the cars started.”

  “I could understand why you would do that before, especially with the tiger thing, but now you’re just human. You’re no match for demons.”

  I leveled a sarcastic smile in her direction, remembering some of the conversations I had with my grandfather over the years. All his warnings about the darkness in the world, stories about demons and bloodsuckers and the pending war. And most of all, his description of the savior, the one who makes the darkness flee.

  A tiger born of pure blood.

  A trinity.

  I had no idea those stories were reality until Mark sold me to Lucifer. All my assumptions about vampires were based on those stories, and Damian certainly hadn’t fit any of the cold-dead-blood-thirsty fiends my grandfather described, but then again, he was born of a pure bloodline too.

  “I seem to still be able to turn into the tiger,” I said and both Valerie and Michael froze in place, staring at me like I sprouted another head.

  “What?” their voices rang in unison.

  “When they were attacking Damian,” I started and ran my hand over my stomach. The skin was still sensitive where the knife had tore flesh. “I guess I got angry and attacked and my fur protected me from the knife.” I offered a shrug and collected the dinner plates, heading into the kitchen to let them digest both their food and that little nugget of information.

  * * * *

  It took the four of us the better part of the night to get the Aston Martin to turn over and even then the engine sounded sluggish and unreliable. I just needed it to last an hour on the road at best. I wasn’t going as far as New York this time. I was going south to Candlewood Lake in New Fairfield, and I was going alone.