by J. E. Taylor
JET-Fueled Fiction
Night Hawk Trilogy© 2013 J.E. Taylor
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Night Hawk Trilogy
by
J.E. Taylor
Night Hawk
Book One
Chapter One - Naomi
I still remember the first night.
The full moon illuminated the landscape and I could see for miles from my perch. The eighty-floor drop left me dizzy and I stepped farther back into the wall. My heart thundered in my chest and the adrenaline warmed my skin against the frigid air.
“There’s nowhere for you to go.”
His growl yanked my gaze from the busy city street below to his dark and crazed eyes.
My tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth, dry as desert sand and I shook my head. I didn’t want to fall, and I reconsidered my situation. Maybe going inside was a much better alternative, no matter how horrifying death at his hands promised to be. The fear of dying by terminal velocity was even greater and it cemented my feet to that small ledge.
“I can wait.” His evil laugh hung on the air, chilling whatever heat I had left right out of my bones and I clamped my jaw tight against the tears that threatened, leaving my vision warped.
I slid farther away from the open window and the glistening blade in his hand. He ran it slowly along the brick, creating a screaming sound that made my teeth ache.
Either way, I was screwed. A flare of anger shot through the fear, adding to the tremor in my skin. Damn you, Mark, why did you turn me over to these vultures?
Demon boy looked up at me and chuckled as if he heard my silent question. His shaded gaze flashed red before it sank back to the sharp blade. “It was the only way my boss would honor his deal,” he muttered and glanced back at me. “His soul and your life and your boyfriend will have all the fame and fortune he could ever envision.”
“But why me?”
“Your life force is quite a delicacy.” The knife scraped against the brick again. “My boss has waited for millenniums to taste the beating heart of a child of the light.”
“Fuck you,” I said, my voice shook with the flare of anger and I took another step away, however a gale caught me off guard and I teetered on the edge trying to grasp at the brick wall; but my hands were too cold to gain the purchase necessary to catch my balance. All it took was another wind gust and I slipped, the scream barreling out of my mouth at the sudden weightless freefall.
I had a moment of satisfaction when the demon’s expression transitioned into fear-tinted shock at losing what his master coveted.
Gravity pulled and my hair whipped across my face, blinding me to anything but streaks of light. I thought my heart would catapult out of my chest, it beat so hard, and I drew in a breath waiting for the impact that would turn out the lights for good.
Pain bit around my waist and I was yanked from the descent by a strong grasp. A sharp cry ripped from my throat, and the sound of beating wings filled my world. Before I could focus on what had saved me from certain death, I was tumbling through space again, this time, the hard asphalt of a nearby roof bit into my skin and I rolled away.
When I got my bearings, I brushed the hair from my face in time to see a human form at the edge of the roof. A man in a dark overcoat stepped from the shadows, his intense glare fell on me and he licked his lips, revealing a sharp set of canines.
“Who are you?” I whispered and climbed to my feet. My legs shook under my weight, barely able to hold me up.
He smiled and stepped into the light.
“I’ve been watching you.”
The mere thought of a fiend like him studying me from afar gave me the creeps. The movies always made it quite romantic to be the object of a vampire’s affection, but in reality all they wanted was an entertaining meal.
“Why?” I asked fumbling for the knife clasped to my belt. When my hand came up empty, he laughed, dangling the weapon from his fingers.
“You really think your little dagger will stop me?” He tossed the knife to the edge of the rooftop and stepped toward me.
Being a demon’s meal was bad, but being this bastard’s chew toy was worse. I would rather have been splattered on the pavement. I took another shaking step backwards, too aware of my near frozen condition.
“You didn’t answer my question,” I said, trying to stall him until I could maneuver close enough to dive for my weapon.
He stared me down with hard black eyes. Eyes no more distinct than the shadow he stepped out of.
“Why?” he replied. “Because I swore I’d destroy anything that bastard wants and you are at the top of that list. I’m sure he’s gutting his little lackey right now for not being more subtle. He’ll be even more pissed when he finds out I’m the one that stole his dessert.”
The bitterness in his voice nearly quelled the fight in me, but when he stepped closer, my survival instinct flared and I ducked under his reach, swinging my fist, hoping to get a shot in, but my knuckles only grazed his hard cheek.
His vice-like grip clamped on my throat, pulling me close. The burn of his bite seized my muscles, his poison saturating my entire form with exquisite pain. Each beat of my heart hurt, and I screamed. He pulled away from my neck and stared into my eyes.
“My god, you are delicious,” he whispered, his voice laced with rough desire and before I could pull another breath in, his teeth ripped at my throat again.
My fading gaze landed on the arch of his neck and my scream morphed into a growl. I sank my dull human teeth through his skin and was rewarded with a gasp and the gush of black blood filling my mouth. He pressed me closer, still drinking from my throat and pressing my mouth to his neck. I tried to wiggle out of his grasp but he clamped down hard enough so I had no choice but to ingest his blood.
A wave of dizziness hit and he loosened his grip, stepping away from me. I crumpled to the ground, heaving the blood from my stomach, but I knew it was too late. I had already swallowed too much of the vile poison and no matter how much I threw up, I couldn’t stop the infection.
“I bet you never saw that coming,” I whispered and sent a glare in his direction.
He no longer held that smug look, instead his handsome face transformed into a mask of horror and his hand clamped his neck, the blood flowing freely over his fingertips.
As the infection spread, it crystallized my cells into a hard shell and transformed my senses into acute hunting weapons. The pain that had gripped me moments ago faded and I stood with a ravenous need. I ran my tongue over my teeth and winced at the cutting edges that would puncture steel if I so desired.
The human soul inside me cried at the injustice. I should be dead, but instead, I was n
ow one of the undead, all because the bastard before me decided to pluck the demon’s meal out of the sky.
I stepped toward him with a growl and his eyes widened, reflecting a blue as crisp as the fall sky, and I stopped.
“You bit me,” he whispered, his voice unsteady and shaking.
“Did you think I’d just let you drain me dry without a fight?”
His hand dropped from his throat and he stared at the wet blood covering it before raising his gaze to me. “No one has ever bitten me before,” he said.
I crossed my arms and studied him. “Sucks, doesn’t it,” I said. I couldn’t help it, the disbelief in his face made me want to laugh but I kept a check on my chuckle.
He blinked and then the smile that spread over his lips sent a shiver through me. Laughter followed, rich and full and as hypnotizing as his smile.
“Yes. It does,” he finally said and wiped at his neck again. The flow of blood stopped and he glanced at me.
“You aren’t such a badass after all,” I said.
The menacing shadow was gone, replaced by a man barely out of his teens. I studied him, taking note of the uncomfortable shift along with his worried scan of the night around us. It took a minute to understand the hesitation in his gaze.
He glanced back at me, and I knew. This kid was scared shitless, but I wasn’t sure if it was me or something else.
“Why do I get the feeling you’re in trouble,” I said.
He laughed and caught my gaze, moving faster than I could blink and I found myself pressed to the wall by his incredibly hard body. His intense stare left me breathless, but this time, it wasn’t food he hungered for and he leaned in to kiss me.
I swept his feet out from under him and he landed on his back with a thud, surprise plastered across his face.
“Not going to happen.” I pointed at him. “You may have turned me into a monster, but that doesn’t give you the right to screw me any time you please.” I didn’t want to rely on any man, never mind a blood-crazed vamp, no matter how good looking he was.
I swallowed, suddenly thirsty and my gaze dropped to the dried blood on his collar. I knew soon enough the thirst would overwhelm me, but in that moment I swore I’d never become a shadow dwelling killer.
He climbed to his feet, brushing the roof grit from his jacket. “You’re mine now,” he said, trying to exude authority.
I laughed and crossed to the knife, picking it up and hesitating. The silver glinted in the moonlight and I sighed, running a fingertip down the length. The metal created a warm glow on my skin unlike anything I had seen before, but it didn’t penetrate and draw blood like it should have.
I understood his mocking of my weapons now and glanced over my shoulder at him. “No one owns me.” I sheathed the blade and turned toward him, ready for battle.
Chapter Two - Damian
I stared at her.
Her transformation took seconds, not hours like mine had, one minute she was human and the next, her beauty transcended anything I’d ever witnessed. I had seen a couple of transformations in the last two millenniums, but none of them survived the first pangs of thirst after the sun rose. They burst out of the dark caverns into the burning sun and were reduced to a pile of smoking ash.
I prayed she’d be able to resist, to survive the remainder of the change.
I vaguely recalled that need, but I had been so close to death, I didn’t have the strength to pull myself out from under the pile of slaughtered vampires until the next sunset. Lucifer tossed me in that pit, never expecting me to survive, but I fought, just like this vixen before me, sacrificing my soul for vengeance.
I survived the initial bout of thirst by feeding on dead vampires and because of that horrid experience, my taste for humans wasn’t as acute as the rest of my shadow kin.
My thirst thrived on the destruction of anything Lucifer coveted.
And Lucifer coveted this beauty.
I stalked her from the shadows, harboring a hatred that clouded my judgment. If I had taken a closer look, I might have seen the hypnotic power of the life light shining in her heart. That first burst of her blood was sweeter and more soul affirming than any human I had ever tasted and I lost my focus long enough to let my guard down.
Long enough for her bite to puncture my skin.
I let my gaze travel from her dark locks over her lovely curves all the way to the killer cowboy boots and sighed. Lust was normal for me, but this was beyond lust, I wanted to protect her, to never let her leave my sight.
I was ensnared and there was no escape.
“What’s your name?” I asked, hoping to diffuse some of the anger radiating from her.
Her lips thinned and her eyes narrowed. “What?”
I should have expected her hostile response. Hell, when I was in her shoes, I tore the monsters limb from limb, relishing their death, so I don’t know why her fury surprised me.
Gulping my unease, I tried again. “I’m Damian,” I said and looked at the ground. Unsure if I should offer her my hand or my throat as a peace offering, I shoved my hands into my pockets and did neither.
“So?” Her hands found her hips and I met her stark glare.
“We need to get out of here,” I said, casting a glance at the sky again. Light was just piercing the horizon and the sun would make an appearance within the next hour.
Her gaze followed mine and then snapped back in my direction.
“I refuse to live in the shadows,” she snapped.
“And I refuse to let you become a pile of ash,” I said and willed myself to morph as I charged toward her. Wrapping my arms around her waist, I jumped from the roof, feeling the change and relishing her gasp as my mighty wings took us higher in the air.
While the subway systems seemed like the most logical place for me to take her, I knew that would be the first place Lucifer would search for us. By now, he knew I screwed up his plans and if he found us during the day, there would be no defense against his strength or fury.
Instead, I turned, heading into the northwest hills of Connecticut, to one of the few places of mine that Lucifer hadn’t tracked down. I landed in the back yard just as the sun’s rays lit up the horizon. With her in my arms, I swung the door open and rushed her down to the windowless basement, setting her down on the plush couch.
Before I was out of her reach, her palm stung my cheek, sending me back a few steps.
“What makes you think I want to live like this?”
“Maybe you’d like the same shot at vengeance that’s kept me alive all these years.” I didn’t mean for the bitterness to sneak into my tone, but there it was; just as loud as a bull horn.
My words struck her silent and she studied me.
Silence descended and I turned, flipping the switch that filtered the soft glow of fluorescents through the room. I didn’t know what else to say so I took the chair opposite her and fiddled with my hands, folding and unfolding them before shifting in the chair.
“Naomi,” her soft voice caught my attention and I met her gaze.
“My name is Naomi. Naomi Hawk.”
My eyebrows rose at the irony.
She allowed a half smile. “I’m hungry,” she whispered and her gaze landed on my throat again.
“You can’t go out, yet,” I said hoping she’d understand. “The sun…” I shrugged and stood. “I’m going to clean up. You’re welcome to do the same.”
For the first time since I attacked her, she looked down at her blood soaked shirt. When her gaze lifted, I saw the spark of ravenous hunger.
Chapter Three - Naomi
Blood.
The coppery scent wafted from my shirt and my focus clouded.
Need.
I had never understood what need was until that moment and my gaze jumped to his. He stepped back, putting distance between us but it wasn’t enough. I could smell the mixture of fear and lust in him along with the tainted blood that soaked his collar and I wanted to lick it off his skin.
I bl
inked at the carnal thoughts flooding my mind and glanced at my surroundings again. I had crossed half the distance between the couch and where he stood without knowledge of moving.
He closed the distance with apprehension and took my hand.
“I think we both need to clean up before you get too far gone.”
My gaze dropped to our clasped hand and I felt the electrical flow it produced through my cells. While I wanted to remain distant and pissed off, this sensation was new and overwhelming. I followed the tight muscles in his arm to his shoulder and stopped at the blackened stain.
Hunger and lust and anger all mixed into a potent concoction and I snapped my gaze to his.
“You did this to me,” I whispered.
He held my gaze and shook his head. “No. I had every intention of killing you.”
I yanked my hand from his and stepped back, allowing a fraction of space between us.
“Why didn’t you?”
“Because you taste like summer rain,” he whispered and reached for me. His fingers fluttered across my cheek and into my hair and before I knew it, his mouth was on mine, his tongue playing with me in a kiss that should have been forbidden.
The burn of it caught me off guard and I pulled away.
“Damn. You still taste like summer rain.” His blue eyes flashed and he stepped closer, crowding me.
I planted my hand on his chest, forgetting about the hunger that throbbed in my teeth. “Maybe we should take a cold shower,” I said, trying to diffuse the growing tension between us.
“Together?”
The hope in his eyes made me laugh. “No.”
His features fell into a sulk and for a moment, I almost took back my answer, but the stubborn part of me reared up and I stood my ground.
He gave me a nod and turned, leading the way to a large bathroom that piqued my interest. Grey marble covered the room from ceiling to floor and in the corner across from the beautiful walk in shower was a gas fireplace. The claw-foot tub shined against the gray tiles and a large floor to ceiling mirror was broken with a fine white pedestal sink.