Trinity Rising: Night Hawk Series, #3

Trinity Rising© 20241 J.E. Taylor

2nd Edition

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TRINITY RISING

Plans for a bright future disintegrate when Lucifer comes to claim Damian and Naomi’s trinity child.

Mornings are a challenge, with Damian being mortal. He instinctively dives for the floor when dawn's light illuminates the bed. The scald of whiskey, and the way Naomi feels, are the only constants which haven't changed. However, his mortal world shines when fatherhood hits his horizon.

Plans for a bright future disintegrate when Lucifer comes to claim their Trinity child, playing dirty by framing Damian for murder. Now, Damian and Naomi are on the run from both Lucifer and the law. They find an ally in a most unlikely source, ex-FBI agent Steve Williams and his family; a family with enough psychic energy to wage a war and realign the universe.

With their new friends as part of the dynamic, Damian and Naomi are desperate for victory against the devil. One wrong step and they could trigger Armageddon, or worse, the hope for our future could fall into Lucifer's greedy grip.

Trinity Rising Chapter 1

Damian

SUNSHINE.

I rolled onto the floor with my heart in my throat and panic gripping my muscles. It wasn’t until I was on my hands and knees that I realized I had done it again. Naomi’s chuckle from the bed immediately set the irritation switch in my head, and I glared over the edge of the mattress at her amused smile.

That’s never going to get old, she said and rolled on her side, propping her cheek in her palm.

I could have said something crude, but the humor in her eyes soothed the nasty comments right out of my vocabulary. Being human sucked much more than I remembered. The only thing that remained the same was the burn of a shot of whiskey and the way Naomi felt when we made love.

Everything else was a constant challenge, including taming my conditioned response to sunlight. You’d think after a little over a month, I wouldn’t be throwing myself for cover when the sun hit the bed, but apparently, twenty-five-hundred years of fearing the fiery orb really did a job on my head.

I’m glad I could amuse you, I said, opting to slip under the covers again for just a little longer before I had to crack open my computer to work on a few coding jobs thrown my way. Now that I was mortal, I didn’t need to save like I had in the past. Because of my frugal nature, I had amassed more money than we could ever hope to spend in one lifetime, but even with the ridiculous sum in my bank account, I couldn’t just sit on my ass doing nothing.

Naomi started writing. I think it’s a form of therapy for her, especially considering the hell she’s been through since she met me. Her purging of dark things onto the pages of a book seemed to quiet the nightmares.

I reached for her, pushing a strand of her dark hair behind her ear before giving her a quick morning kiss. When I pulled away, the soft smile on her lips morphed into a grimace and her hand shot over her mouth. Before I knew what was happening, she was out of the bed and running for the bathroom.

Retching sounds came from the half-closed door and I slid out of bed, crossing the distance.

Sick? I asked, even though the answer was obvious.

She nodded, wiping her mouth with a tissue before flushing the bile away. I crossed and put my wrist to her forehead. Cool skin met mine.

You don’t feel like you’ve got a fever.

She climbed to her feet and stepped to the sink, brushing her teeth and spitting before she dignified my comment with an answer.

My stomach has been queasy for a couple of days.

Maybe Val can look at you, I offered and grabbed my toothbrush, washing my morning breath away.

I’m feeling better now; maybe it was just something I ate.

I turned toward her, raising a brow. Are you complaining about my cooking already?

No. Her light laugh filled the bathroom.

The music of her laugh set me in motion and I caught her by the waist, pulling her close.

You don’t want to catch this, she said, arching away from me.

I don’t really care. I kept my grip on her waist, holding her against me and letting my hands wander to the edge of the baby-doll nightgown. She wiggled in my grasp and all I could do was smile at the color filling her cheeks.

Come on, she whispered, but this time she was less resistant and trying to suppress a smile.

I dipped my mouth to the side of her neck, nibbling my way from her ear to her shoulder. Are you sure I can’t interest you in a nice, long, hot shower? I asked and worked my way back up the same line to her earlobe. She didn’t object, and her sigh of concurrence brought a grin to my lips. I knew I probably should let her go back to bed and rest, but my appetite for her had grown since my transition from immortal to human and I couldn’t seem to get enough.

What little clothing we had fell onto the floor and I navigated her into the shower. The water seemed to rejuvenate Naomi, and she was the one to push me against the wall, covering my mouth with the kind of kiss that made me want to sink to my knees in worship.

She knew how to make me forget everything with a touch—forgetting millennia and all that came before her. She erased it all and I could only fathom the moment. Making love to her was a slice of heaven, a dance of rhythms and movement in such unity that I swear this is what fate had planned for me all along.

Music blasted in the living room, and I chuckled against Naomi’s neck.

I think we disrupted Valerie’s studies again, I whispered and kissed her exposed throat.

Naomi purred in that erotic way that made my skin tingle and I pulled away, studying her flushed features and the dripping mane of hair, running my hands through the silky strands before covering her mouth in an all-consuming kiss.

Trinity Rising Chapter 2

Damian

NAOMI STEPPED INTO MY office holding something plastic in her hand. The way she bit her lip as she stared at the thing pulled my full attention. I hated that worried look; it plagued my mind and brought up unpleasant memories of life on the run.

What?

She turned the front of what she held towards me and I stared at the little plus in the middle of the plastic before bringing my gaze to hers. I had seen enough commercials over the years to have an idea of what I was looking at, but I wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of emotion that little plus sign sent parading through my bloodstream.

Is that what I think it is?

She nodded, and joy burst from the center of my being. I had no memory of crossing the distance, but when I came back to reality, I had her in my arms, twirling in a circle, and my smile actually made my cheeks ache.

Are you sure? I asked, setting her down.

Yes. Valerie made me do the test twice.

Naomi was more subdued than I would have expected and I put my enthusiasm in check, lifting her chin so she met my gaze.

Aren’t you excited?

She bit her lip again, and I dialed it in completely as a new worry bit under my skin. We’d never talked about children. Ever.

Even after we were both cured of the shadow virus, so maybe my assumptions that she wanted the same thing I did was flawed.

Did you... want children? I asked. I tried to keep the strained hesitation out of my voice, but I didn’t do a very good job.

The tension in her body loosened. Yes, I want to have children with you, it’s just... she trailed off, and the conflict danced over her features, twitching her eyelids as she tried to articulate all that was going on under the surface.

You’re afraid, I finished, understanding her fears. Hell, I had them too, but mine were more about what sort of child we would produce as opposed to what Lucifer would do when he found out.

Her nod confirmed my statement. If he ever got his hands on my child... Naomi couldn’t finish, and she pulled me into a fierce hug. I don’t know what I’d do.

I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her temple. I have a feeling that’ll be the least of our worries.

She glanced up. The seriousness in her steady gaze told me she didn’t quite understand my point.

I’m not sure what’s involved in raising a trinity, I said. Especially if our child has some of the same... gifts that you have. For a moment, I envisioned being cornered by an angry tiger cub and couldn’t help grinning.

What’s with that look?

What if the baby can change forms at will? I opted to ask the question as opposed to sharing my little imagery.

Naomi sighed. What if she can’t?

She?

Her lips pressed together, and I refocused on what she asked.

"Well, then she would be normal."

Her eyes rolled, and she laughed for the first time since she gave me the news. You really think we’re capable of having a normal child?

I answered with an almost imperceptible lift of my shoulders, along with a grin. As long as the child is healthy, who the hell cares if she’s normal or not?

Her cheeks dimpled and laugh lines appeared at the corner of her eyes. Any worry that had been there a few minutes ago seemed to evaporate in her budding glow.

Have I told you I loved you lately?

She beamed and nodded, pulling me into another hug. I love you, too, she said and unwrapped her arms. Naomi literally bounced out of the room and I imagined she continued that flighty step all the way to the family room upstairs.

I stared after her, and my smile slowly faded. She had every right to be afraid and so did I. If Lucifer got wind of this, regardless of whatever condition he was in, he’d crawl out of hell to stop it. God only knows what would happen then.

I closed my eyes, and my chin dropped to my chest. I’ve never been a praying man, but right now, we needed all the protection the angels in heaven could provide.

Michael, she’s pregnant, I whispered, knowing damn well he couldn’t hear me from within our sanctuary. Just saying it aloud sent a jolt of excitement along with a profound stab of fear through my body, tingling through my cells and producing a rash of gooseflesh.

I shivered and saved my work, shutting down my computer before putting on an appropriate smile and heading upstairs into the loud music and laughter.

AFTER DINNER, NAOMI BEGGED off early, looking every bit as tired as she said she was. I gave her a goodnight peck and settled into the couch with the remote. I must have clicked through the channels twice before Valerie cleared her throat. I glanced in her direction.

Feel like a game of chess? Valerie asked, closing her medical books.

Sure. I hadn’t played a game with her since we came back from Colorado and now that both Naomi and I were back in what Valerie dubbed healthy-land, I figured I could go without a night of aimless television and I turned it off.

She retrieved the beautifully carved chess set I had given her for her birthday and sat down on the couch next to me. I took the black marble pieces and set them up opposite her light set. I caught her glancing toward the hallway and cocked my head, sending her a silent question. She shook her head and tapped her watch.

What’s up?

Not yet, she whispered and picked up the remote for the stereo, turning it on low.

Okay, I said and nodded toward the board. It’s your move.

She smirked and dropped her gaze to the board. For the first time since we got back, I took a moment to study her. The resemblance to Michael came through in the thick, wavy hair and the perfectly proportioned facial features, both qualities that also resonated in my wife, but unlike Naomi, Valerie didn’t have a hint of Native American in her complexion or raven-black hair.

She made her first move and leaned back into the cushions, meeting my gaze.

Are you checking me out?

I chuckled and glanced at the chessboard. I never noticed just how much you look like Naomi, I said and countered her move without much thought.

A dimple appeared in her cheek and she pressed her lips into a tight smile.

I crossed my arms and leaned back, challenging her to say what was behind that look. When she said nothing, I smiled. Wasn’t it a couple of months ago that you were checking me out?

So you were checking me out. Her arms tightened across her chest, closing me off with non-verbal cues.

No, I was studying you a little closer, noticing similarities and differences between you and Naomi. At least I was looking at your face and not your ass. I had to