Lucifer

Amenadiel slowly made his way from the balcony to the form standing in the middle of his brother's penthouse. He leisurely circled the being, taking in the fierce stance. Arms folded across the chest, weight thrown into the right hip; face scrunched in a way to rival ever scowl ever glared. He nodded slowly as he stepped behind the form to take place over the shoulder, smiled smugly as his eyes followed the piercing gaze to the bedroom, to the blonde-haired woman asleep beneath the black silk sheets of Lucifer's bed.

"Ah, Lucifer's favorite and most trusted demon," he started with a gentle taunt. "Hell's most ferocious and brutal torturer, reduced to babysitting a human. You should be proud of yourself, Maze." The dark-haired demon turned and slowly lifted her eyes to the angel.

"I am not babysitting," she bit through clenched teeth. He held his hand to his chest.

"You're not?" he asked with feigned surprise. "If you're not babysitting then what are…" He smiled widely. "Oh, I get it. You can't torture humans here on Earth so you…" He shrugged lightly. "You stare at them? Dream of pleasures past?"

"Lucifer asked for my help," she started, turning back to the bedroom. "So I'm helping."

"By babysitting a human."

"I am not babysitting," she sneered. "He asked me to watch her for a couple of hours, to ensure her safety while he's away."

"Why?"

"Because he's an idiot," Maze answered, turning back to Amenadiel. "Because for some reason this stupid human is important to him and…" She walked away and released an exasperated sigh. "It's ridiculous. Did he tell you what happened?" she asked with a quiet bitterness. "Did he tell you that she shot him?"

"No, he did not." Amenadiel frowned. "So she knows?" He stepped forward as the concern began to wash over his face. "Chloe knows Lucifer is the devil?"

"Nope." She offered a spiteful smile. "Chloe Decker doesn't have a damn clue. Why? Because when she shot him, he bled."

"What? Lucifer is immortal; human weapons cannot hurt him."

"Yeah, well, surprise!" she cheered with feigned enthusiasm.

"How is that possible?"

"I don't know. Neither does Lucifer." Maze moved back to stand in front of Amenadiel. "What I do know is that it hasn't done a single thing to keep Lucifer away from her or from being reckless."

"Well, this is an interesting development." He folded his arms across his chest as they both returned their attention to Chloe. "Interesting indeed."

Lucifer

"Look." Dan perched on the corner of his desk and ran a hand over his tired features. "It's been a really long night, a really long last couple of days, okay? I just want to question Gwen and get this case closed. Got it?" Lucifer nodded slowly.

"Of course." He crinkled his brow and folded his arms in front of his chest. "Tell me again why you haven't already started questioning her."

"I already told you."

"Yes, but it was such a wonderful story. I want to hear it one more time," he said as he smiled widely. Dan rolled his eyes. "Oh, come now, Detective Douche. It's not every day that something positive about my involvement with the LAPD comes out of your mouth."

"I didn't say anything positive. I just said that Gwen won't talk to anyone except for you and Chloe." Lucifer bounced on his heels as he dropped his arms and slid his hands into his pockets.

"It's funny, isn't it? You didn't want my help, very reluctantly decided to ask for it, and then…" He laughed lowly. "Well, turns out there was no way around this for you."

"Don't get cocky. She probably thinks she can use this to her advantage somehow; asking to speak with the two of you because you were on the case."

"'Were' being the operative word. You are the one on the case now." He tsked. "Look at you, a crooked cop even the criminals don't trust."

"I'm not…" Dan looked around and lowered his voice. "I'm not a crooked cop," he said. "I was just…in the wrong place at the wrong time and now I'm the one helping to catch the actual crooked cops." Lucifer held up his hands in concession.

"You're right; I'm sorry. Look at you, a cop pretending to be a crooked cop that even the criminals don't trust. Doesn't say much about your acting ability, does it?"

"You can rub it in my face all you want, Lucifer, but I'm doing what needs to be done to protect the officers that are on the right side of the fence."

"My intention isn't simply to salt the wound, Daniel. Maybe you should take the lesson in hand to heart." He stepped closer to Dan. "Learn to appreciate those around you and the assistance they may offer, even if it isn't always apparent."

"You're talking about Chloe."

"I knew you were a quick learner. She's had quite the inkling this entire time that there was more to this case than meets the eye. Yet you were instrumental in shutting down anything she had to say."

"I had to, Lucifer." Dan stood and paced a few steps in front of the devil. "This goes so deep. I don't want my wife or my daughter caught in the middle."

"Yes. Yet your ex-wife ended up there anyway. You don't do a very good job of protecting the ones you supposedly love."

"Can we just, I don't know, get on with the questioning please?" Dan asked with a wide sweep of his arms. "I realize that I got in way over my head. I should have told Chloe what was going on before it got that bad. But I can't change the past, Lucifer. All I can do now is make sure this part of the situation is handled. Gwen won't talk to me; she won't talk to any of the other detectives. She only wants to speak with you and Chloe. And since Chloe can't be here and you're…" He sighed and motioned towards Lucifer with his hands. "You're here, pissing me off more than normal, let's just get this over with, okay?" Lucifer nodded. "Ask Gwen about the things we discussed and I'll figure it out from there."

"You're seriously going in there with me?" he asked as the detective brushed past him and started towards the interrogation room.

"Of course I am."

"Miss Tanner doesn't want to talk to you."

"There is no way in hell," he started, turning back to Lucifer, "that I'm letting you go in there unsupervised."

"Watch from the other room," he offered.

"I don't think so, pal. I'm going in there with you." Lucifer rolled his eyes.

"Very well," he muttered. "Though we will do things my way," he stated. "None of your silly questions. We are simply going to let Miss Tanner tell us her story."

"If Gwen is guilty, like we believe she is, she's going to lie to you. So how, exactly, is letting her tell her story going to be productive?"

"You'll just have to see for yourself," Lucifer said with a wide smile.

"Whatever," Dan mumbled. He placed his hands around the knob and opened the door to the interrogation room.

"No," Gwen started adamantly as he crossed the threshold. "I'm not talking to you."

"Relax," Dan started. "Lucifer's here." The devil closed the door and turned to the woman.

"Ta-da," he said with a smile as he spread his arms.

"I'm not saying anything with him in the room," she stated, pointing towards Dan.

"Well, unfortunately," Lucifer started, "that's not how this is going to work." He took a seat across the table from Gwen as Dan leaned into the far corner of the room. "He's a buzzkill, I know, but I'm afraid he isn't so easy to shake. Believe me, I've tried many, many times."

"No, he's part of the problem," she stated.

"Detective Douche a problem?" he asked with feigned surprise. "Do tell." Leaning forward, he rested his elbows and his entwined fingers on the table. Gwen leaned forward as Lucifer did.

"He's one of the bad cops," she whispered. "He's one of the people working with Henry."

"No, that isn't possible. Why do you think that?" he whispered in return.

"It's in the journal. The journal you and Detective Decker were looking for."

"Well, this just keeps getting more interesting. Please, continue." She looked nervously towards Dan. "Detective Espinoza," he started, not taking his eyes off Gwen. "Perhaps our guest would be more comfortable with you on the other side of the door."

"Lucifer," Dan warned. Lucifer turned towards Dan and simply raised an expectant eyebrow. "You're unbelievable." Dan pushed off the wall and left the room.

"Is it just me or did the mood lighten tremendously?" Lucifer chuckled gently, briefly, before his expression sobered. "I'll give you one chance to tell me the truth, Miss Tanner," he started. "One." Gwen dug in the knitted bag hanging from the back of her chair and pulled out the journal.

"I wanted to give this to you and Detective Decker," she said as she slid the journal across the table. "But Henry was always around. Here, and at my office. There wasn't a safe time to hand it over. I was…I was worried that Henry would kill me like he killed Katrina." Lucifer narrowed his eyes slightly but did not voice the truths he knew as he reached for the journal.

"So, somewhere in here is written Detective Espinoza is a bad cop, eh?"

"Yeah." Gwen nodded. "There are so many of them. Cops, lawyers, judges. Pick a rank, any position and you'll find the corruption."

"Interesting." He folded his arms over the journal and leaned forward. "Tell me more."

*L*

As the door closed behind him with a loud click, Dan closed his eyes and ran a hand over his face. Everything was on the line, dependent upon the information Gwen chose to share. And Lucifer, he was certain, was going to screw up all of it. He was going to say the wrong thing, ask the wrong questions, and negate any charges they could possibly pin on Gwen and Henry. He turned to his right and stared at the doorway to the observation room. He needed to find a way to get back into Interrogation, to supervise and lead the entire conversation from the reflective side of the one-way mirror.

"Detective?" Dan turned again and eyed a young, uniformed officer standing several feet from him. "I, uh, I need you to fill out this part of the form and, uh, sign it." He held out a brown clipboard with a light blue piece of paper secured under the metal clip. Dan moved towards him and reached for the object.

"What is it?"

"Transfer papers for Henry Lloyd. I'm supposed to take him out of holding and get him to lock-up."

"Right," Dan said as he nodded. As he took the board, the officer offered a pen. "You're new, right?"

"Yes, Sir," he answered. Dan's eyes searched the uniform top for a name badge.

"How long have you been here, Officer Erickson?"

"Five weeks." Dan nodded as he began to fill in the blank spaces on the paper, the scratch of the pen loud in the quietness of the squad room.

*L*

"Henry wasn't exactly quiet about the things he was doing," Gwen explained. "He talked to Katrina quite often about it. Cases thrown, evidence fabricated or conveniently lost; the bad people. Everything he told her is in that journal."

"How did it end up in your possession?"

"Katrina gave it to me for safekeeping. She didn't want Henry finding it so I hid it in my office at the museum."

"I see." Lucifer nodded slowly as his fingers traced the edges of the pages. "Despite your efforts to keep it a secret, Henry still found out about it."

"He did. He heard Katrina's side of the conversation while she was on the phone talking to Maggie about it." Her eyes fell. "He approached me not long after that." Her attention returned to Lucifer. "He thought Maggie had the journal and he said if I didn't find a way to get it from her…he threatened me, said he'd kill me."

"You could have given it to him," he stated. "Why continue to hide it?"

"Because I knew what Henry was capable of doing; Katrina told me what was going on when she asked me to hide the journal. I-I didn't want to be responsible for more people being hurt. Besides," Gwen started with a sigh, "Katrina was going to turn in Henry. It was the right thing to do and I wanted her to succeed. But she didn't know who at the precinct she could trust. It took too long and Henry…" She drew a shaky breath. "Henry struck first." Lucifer released a quiet, slow breath as he curled his fingers around the journal. He pulled it into his lap as he leaned back in his chair.

*L*

"Is this your first transfer?"

"First on my own, Sir. Officer Jenkins has been working with me."

"Okay." Dan nodded again. "Get Lloyd into lock-up right away, okay? Now, he's slick, knows exactly what to say to get people to do what he wants. He's probably going to give you a bunch of lawyer speak, you know, big, important sounding words to convince you that you're violating his rights," he explained. "Don't listen to anything he says to you."

*L*

"I gave you fair warning," Lucifer stated. "One chance to tell me the truth."

"I did," Gwen defended. "I am."

"No, you're not. Indulge me for a moment," he started as he held up a finger. "Let me tell you how I believe the story goes. Mrs. Lloyd kept track of all the women with whom Henry had an affair. All of them. Except one. One woman for whom she did not have a name. Detective Decker and I were led to believe that woman was Maggie Pierson. But that's not the case, is it?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, don't be so modest. Of course you do. You were that woman. Stealthy in your indiscretions, as I truly believe Katrina had no idea you were sleeping with her husband."

"I-I wasn't."

"Yes, you were. Katrina was the only one at the museum friendly to you, wasn't she?" Gwen nodded. "When Henry found out about the journal…" He left the journal on his lap as he shook his head and sat forward to rest his arms on the table. "Which, by the way, is the only part of your story that's truthful. I believe he did find out about the journal by hearing Katrina's phone conversation. So, when he found out, he told you. Then you proceeded to use your relationship with Katrina to exploit her fears, to gain her trust and possession of the journal."

"That's ridiculous."

"It really is; though that doesn't make it any less true." He took a slow breath. "You and Henry had the journal, but his secrets were not yet safe. You needed Katrina out of the way. So you killed her."

"What? Henry killed Katrina; not me." Lucifer nodded in concession.

"But it was your idea, wasn't it?"

"No. I-I would never…" She shook her head.

"Let's make this quick, yes? Look at me," Lucifer ordered. "Gwen, look at me." She reluctantly met his eyes. "There we are." He smiled as the connection between them solidified. "You were the one having an affair with Henry, weren't you?"

"Y-yes," she answered slowly.

"And you used Katrina's trust, misled her so you and Henry would have the journal."

"Yes."

"And then you killed her."

"No. Henry killed Katrina. I didn't do it." Lucifer nodded.

"I believe you. It was your idea?"

"Yes. Henry was going to leave Katrina; he was going to marry me," she explained. "I just didn't want her in the way anymore." Lucifer tapped his fingers on the table.

"Gwen, Gwen, Gwen." He leaned back in his chair again. "You know, Maggie is the only part of the puzzle I cannot place," he admitted. "Why kill her? What threat was she to Henry?" He narrowed his eyes as he studied Gwen. "Did she really know enough to be a problem?"

"You know Henry's reputation," she started.

"So she was having an affair with Henry?"

"No. She was having an affair with Katrina. Framing Maggie, making her look like Henry's jilted lover…" She shrugged gently. "It was just easier that way. Made enough sense to keep the suspicion off us." Lucifer raised an expectant eyebrow. "Yes," she sighed. "I killed Maggie." Her shoulders dropped as her eyes closed. "And that cop. I wasn't expecting him to take Maggie home. He was just…collateral damage."

*L*

"Yes, Sir. Understood." Erickson nodded as he accepted the clipboard and the pen.

"You sure?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Okay." Dan clapped a friendly hand over the officer's shoulder. "You've got this, no problem."

"Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir." He nodded and walked away.

"Make sure he stays cuffed," Dan called out.

"No problem, Sir!" Dan placed his hands on his hips and stared at the interrogation room's door. Too much time had passed with Lucifer free to run the questioning on his own. How was he going to unravel all the mistakes to so-called consultant was no doubt making?

*L*

"Collateral damage." Lucifer shook his head as his features hardened. "I think you know what comes next, Gwen."

"What?"

"You need to confess your sins to Detective Douche."

"No. I'm not confessing anything to the police. I don't know who you think you are," she started as she leaned forward, "but you are not a cop."

"I am the civilian consultant," he answered as he smiled.

"Right. So not a cop. Which means everything we've discussed here?" She tapped a stern finger on the table. "None of it counts." She crossed her arms in front of her chest with an air of defiance as she sat back in her chair. "It's your word against mine. And nothing in that journal, nothing ties me to anything that's happened." A smirk pulled at the corner of Lucifer's mouth.

"You will tell Detective Espinoza the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, because that is how this story ends, Miss Tanner." The dark color of his eyes gave way to a glowing red, his perfect skin to charred flesh.

*L*

"A plan," Dan mumbled as he started towards the observation room. He took two steps before freezing as a woman's scream pierced the air. He rushed towards the interrogation room, followed by another near-by uniformed officer, and roughly pushed through the doorway.

"Lucifer?" he called out in a panic. "What's going on?" Lucifer looked at Dan from his relaxed position in his chair.

"Detective Douche," he said as he smiled. "What perfect timing. Miss Tanner has something she would like to tell you." He motioned towards the woman. "Isn't that right, Gwenie?" She nodded.

"I did it," she said between sobs. "I killed Maggie. And Office Johnson."

"And?" Lucifer prompted.

"And it was my idea to kill Katrina. Henry killed Katrina," she stated pointedly. "But it was my idea. The whole thing." Dan slowly shook his head in disbelief.

"R-really?"

"Really," she answered.

"I…" Dan ran a hand over his face. "I don't understand." Lucifer motioned towards Gwen again.

"Katrina knew all about the corruption in the police department, in the courtroom. She was going to turn in Henry. After Henry found out, I tricked Katrina into giving me the journal. Then we killed…he killed Katrina, I killed Maggie. Made it look like Maggie was the one responsible." She cautiously looked at Lucifer.

"Mr. Lloyd turned himself in," Lucifer supplied, "and ruined the plans he and Miss Tanner had made for their future. Now she's here," he stated as he looked at Dan, "trying to weasel her way out of her misdeeds by lying about her involvement." Dan turned a questioning gaze towards Gwen. She nodded in response.

"Clements," Dan gently called over his shoulder as he motioned the officer forward into the room. "Arrest her." Clements nodded and moved to Gwen's side.

"Book 'em, Danno," Lucifer said as the officer helped her to a standing position.

"Why couldn't you let it go?" Gwen spat as she stared at Lucifer. "You and that stupid partner of yours. Both of you are stupid!"

"Now, now," he started, sitting forward as he rested a forearm on the table. "Remember who you're calling 'stupid'," he warned gently. For a brief moment, fear flickered through her eyes, dissipating as the soft click of the handcuffs bounced around the room.

"I had everything worked out!" she whined. "You ruined it all!" Clements nodded at Lucifer and Dan as he dragged Gwen from the room. Lucifer smiled widely and adjusted the cuffs of his shirt.

"You humans," he scolded with a shake of head. "You make everything so complicated with your rules. Imagine the solve rate I could give you if you'd simply let me be the first to talk to your suspects."

"That's not going to happen, pal. Do you have it?"

"Oh, this?" He stood and held the sought-after journal towards Dan. He smiled and slipped his hands into his pockets as the detective paged through the book.

"How…"

"Miss Tanner was more than happy to hand it over. Her confession was a little harder to obtain, though, in all honesty, it didn't take that much convincing."

"She screamed. I heard her scream. I hope you didn't threaten her."

"I did no such thing," he said as he offered a curt nod. "I simply told her she was to tell you the truth. And now, we have it. Inside the writings of Katrina Lloyd, you will find a list of the cops and detectives, lawyers and judges that Henry was working with. You will also find a tale of missing evidence and thrown cases."

"This is incredible," Dan mumbled as he stared at the journal's cover. "Thank you." Lucifer nodded. "Okay, I need all of the details, everything that Gwen said to you." He motioned for Lucifer to follow him out of the room.

"What's the next move?" he asked as they crossed the floor. "Now that you have the journal."

"I need to make sure one of the lawyers in this journal picks up Gwen's case."

"That's a bit counter-productive, isn't it?" Lucifer laughed incredulously. "Won't she just use her knowledge of this information against the lawyer? She'll never be convicted of the murders she's committed," he stated as they reached Dan's desk. Dan bit his lip and looked away. "Oh," Lucifer breathed as understanding washed over him. "Miss Tanner will not be making it to court, will she?"

"No," he answered quietly.

"You're willing to let her die at the hands of the people you want brought to justice?"

"If she starts spewing information during the trial, we'll lose everything we've worked for. The people we need to take down will disappear. We'll never have justice. And more innocent people will be in the line of fire."

"I see," Lucifer stated somberly. "And Henry Lloyd?"

"Same." Dan scratched at the back of his head. "I'll make a copy of the information, give it to the higher-ups I know I can trust. At least one of the lawyers in this book needs to see this though," he stated, holding up the journal for show. "Then I need to burn it, in front of said lawyer. It's not what I want to do," he defended. "It's just…I can save more lives this way."

"I didn't realize this web was quite so tangled. Curious," Lucifer started, "how did you get caught up in all of this?"

"Malcolm Graham," he answered with a sigh. "Chloe was…on this kick that he was into something shady. I didn't believe her at first—"

"Surprise, surprise."

"At first," he repeated with a little more force, "because she was so hyped up over the whole thing. Her thoughts were erratic and didn't make any sense. I mean, I'd been involved in a few…questionable things with Malcolm but nothing on the level Chloe was suggesting." He placed the journal on the table and leaned a leg into the table's edge. "When she finally got to a point where she could coherently put things together, when it started to make some sense, I started looking into it. Quietly."

"And found out that she was correct in what she suspected." Dan nodded.

"The more I learned about Malcolm, the more I realized just how dangerous he was. I was worried about Chloe, worried that he would kill her if she kept pushing the issue. Worried that he would go after Trixie. I tried to talk her down, tried to poke holes in her theories. That only worked once," he said with a gentle laugh. "But she's stubborn, you know?" Lucifer lifted an eyebrow and nodded his head. "She wasn't willing to put it down and she came back twice as strong. Because I partnered with Malcolm from time to time, I had a better view of what was happening, and I started to see the connections he had in the department, the lawyers and the judges that were on the payroll. I had proof. So I went to Lieutenant Monroe."

"And now you're stuck in the middle." Dan nodded again. Lucifer frowned. "So you did care about the detective," he said, the surprise heavy in his voice.

"Of course I cared. I still care."

"Something changed though, something that majorly altered your marriage. If it wasn't Malcom and his merry band of malcontents…Oh." He nodded and offered a gentle sigh. "Right. Julia." Dan huffed and shook his head as he looked down at his fidgeting fingers.

"I was gone. A lot. Trying to maintain appearances while I worked to report the dirty cops. They owned my ass. I couldn't say no because I needed to be in the loop. I needed them to trust me, to know they could call on me. The time I was at home, I spent trying to warn Chloe off Malcolm's trail. I didn't support anything she told Monroe. I made her look like a fool in front of the lieutenant, in front of the other detectives." He looked up, his gaze focusing absently on the wall across the room. "She was angry and frustrated; I was angry and frustrated. Our marriage started to fall apart. I came home late one night to find Julia there with Trixie. Chloe had just been called for a case. Julia and I…it just…happened." He shrugged. "A week later, it happened again. That's when Chloe found out." He shook his head and straightened his stance. "Chloe thought the affair was the reason I had been so distant. It was easier to let her believe that than to tell her the truth about Malcolm. I thought I could keep her safe that way."

"You really know how to dig a hole, don't you?"

"Yeah. I guess I do."

"If you would have told Detective Decker the truth about Malcolm straightaway, you could have avoided most if not all of that. She could have helped you take down the department's baddies," Lucifer pointed out. "There would have been no secrets to cause the stress; no Julia to cause the distrust."

"Yeah, well, like I said before, I can't change the past." He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I don't know why you care anyway," he started. "You wouldn't be moving in on Chloe had things gone differently between us."

"Mm, debatable," Lucifer said with a smile and gentle tip of his head. "And I really don't care. I was just curious. At any rate, you're right. You cannot change the past, but this little situation you hope to remedy is not the only one in need of repair." Dan looked away. "You owe the detective the truth."

"How am I supposed to tell her when she'll just run right into investigating Malcolm full force?"

"I would wager she wouldn't, especially if she knew staying out of it would protect her daughter." Dan ran a hand over the back of his head. "Tell me I'm wrong."

"You're not. Probably," he added with a shrug. "She's a fierce mother; she'd do anything to protect our little girl. But you didn't see her, Lucifer; you didn't see her when she first started looking into Malcolm. She was not taking 'no' for an answer."

"If only she had a partner who could help her keep things in perspective." He clasped his hands behind his back and offered a wide smile.

"This is serious, Lucifer."

"I'm being serious."

"You couldn't even keep her from going after Henry."

"I said I would try and try I did. I'll make you a deal. I will keep her from going after Malcolm, no looking into it, no researching or interviewing people," he explained. "I will be the voice of reason, reminding her of the innocent child that needs protecting." Dan rolled his eyes.

"And in return?"

"You tell Detective Decker the truth." Dan sighed heavily and closed his eyes. "Hearing the details from you will only aid me in keeping her on the sidelines." Lucifer stepped forward. "She deserves the truth," he added quietly.

"Fine," he conceded after a moment of thought. "Fine. Deal."

"Splendid."

"No! No!" The two turned, curious about the sudden commotion. "No! Please, no!"

"Erickson," Dan started as he stepped forward, "what the hell is the problem?" The officer held his hands out to his sides, trying to steady his balance as a taller, heavier-set man dropped to the floor and scrambled on hands and knees to get behind him.

"I don't know," Erickson answered as the man grabbed the back of his calf. "I was just taking Mr. Lloyd to lock-up like you wanted." Lucifer smiled and slipped his hands into his pockets.

"Please, don't hurt me!" Henry yelled. "I'm sorry! I turned myself in!" His body folded uneasily as he tried to make himself smaller, tried to hide fully behind Erickson. "I've told them everything I know! D-don't hurt me!" Dan slowly turned his head and pinned Lucifer with a stern look.

"Wanna explain what that's all about?" he asked, pointing to the crying man.

"What makes you think I know?"

"Henry did a lot of talking while I was questioning him; some about the murders and the journal. Most about keeping you the hell away from him."

"Well, that's interesting, isn't it?"

"Erickson," Dan called. "Just get him out of here."

"I'm sorry," Henry blubbered as another office helped Erickson pull the lawyer from the floor. "I'm sorry." He lifted his cuffed wrists and used his hands to cover his face, to shield his view of the devil. "I'm sorry," he cried.

"Mr. Lloyd and Miss Tanner are in custody," Lucifer started, turning his attention back to Dan. "And you have the journal of your dreams. I believe I have fulfilled my end of that particular deal. So, Detective Douche." He moved a step closer as his eyes took on a very serious darkness. "About that favor."

Lucifer

Lucifer stepped out of the elevator and into his penthouse, sporting a proud smile. He chuckled to himself as he replayed his time with Gwen Tanner. The lies she had tried to spew, the story she had concocted, nice and tidy, and wrapped in a brilliant, glittery bow for the police. There had been one hole, however; one the human woman never could have predicted, the devil himself. Her anger and her spite, her willingness to do whatever necessary to feed her selfish little heart had completely consumed her soul. Her limited control had been non-existent. One timely placed connection of their gazes, one simple little mental suggestion, and the truth had spilled so easily from her lips.

"Piece of cake," he said to himself as he began to cross the floor.

"Piece of cake?" a voice echoed. Lucifer immediately stopped moving, his smile falling quickly. "What has the devil gotten himself into this time?"

"Amenadiel," Lucifer greeted tightly. "What an unpleasant surprise."

"Yes, always a pleasure, Lucifer."

"Where's Maze?" He shrugged out of his suitcoat and draped it over the top of the closed piano. He looked towards the bedroom as he rounded the instrument. "You haven't woken the detective, have you?"

"I let Maze have a break," he answered as he stood. "And, no, I did not wake Chloe."

"She needs her rest," Lucifer stated firmly. "I left very strict orders not to disturb her."

"Relax, Brother. She's sleeping soundly. Has been the entire time you've been gone."

"Why are you here?"

"You and I need to talk about something."

"Great." Lucifer faked a smile and started towards the bar.

"I'm serious, Lucifer. When were you going to tell me that Chloe shot you, and that you bled?"

"I'm sorry," he started, looking over his shoulder at Amenadiel. "I didn't realize I needed to run every little detail of my life past you, Big Brother."

"This isn't a little detail, Lucifer. This is incredibly significant. You're immortal," he started as he moved across the room. "How could her weapon, a human weapon, possibly injure you?"

"Well I don't know," he answered as he finished pouring a drink. "And I don't much care."

"Maybe you should start caring. You're running around with a detective that could find herself in a dangerous situation in any given moment of her day. What if you're shot again? What if you're shot somewhere much more threatening than your leg?"

"I healed rather quickly," Lucifer started as he turned to face his brother. "I'm not worried."

"Hmm." Amenadiel nodded as he moved closer. "What if you're shot while Chloe is around and she finds out that you're really the devil?"

"So what?" he replied with a laugh. "It's not as though I've been secretive about my identity."

"Humans are not supposed to know about—"

"Divinity," he interrupted as he rolled his eyes. "Yada yada yada. I'm not exactly divine, Brother. Lost my grace long ago," he stated as he lifted the glass to his lips.

"I realize I cannot change your mind, about anything, but I pray our father will show you the way."

"Pray all you'd like; I doubt Father would be amenable to showing me anything but the door."

"This is going to bite you in the backside, Lucifer."

"Don't threaten me with a good time, Amenadiel." The older angel clenched his jaw and slowly shook his head.

"I will be back," he promised. "And we will discuss this." His eyes flicked towards the bedroom. "One way or another." Amenadiel's black wings emerged and stretched to their full, menacing appearance before quickly folding forwards, leaving a harsh breeze in wake as he took his leave. Lucifer's shoulders dropped, releasing a degree of tension he didn't realize he was holding, and he quickly downed the last of his drink. After placing the empty glass on the bar top, he moved towards the bedroom and slowly took the stairs.

Lucifer leaned his left shoulder against the wall as he took a moment to study his detective's sleeping form. Her body was twisted awkwardly, her legs turned towards her left, her upper body towards her right, as in slumber she no doubt sought a position that didn't place undue pressure on her injuries. He focused on the bit of fabric peeking through the tangled mess of blonde hair and smiled softly. He had packed a couple of Chloe's loose-fitting shirts and zippered hoodies, something he thought would be comfortable for her to wear, yet she had chosen to remain clothed in the dress shirt he had loaned her at the hospital. Even after waking very early that morning, she had refused to change, leaving the garment on backwards. He had been able to convince her to replace the pair of his pajama pants she was wearing with a pair of her own after she had nearly tripped on the long legs of fabric on her way to the bathroom, but the dress shirt remained non-negotiable.

I'm comfortable, she had said.

Comfortable.

Funny, Lucifer thought, that something he was certain best for Chloe, something as simple as her own shirt, was not what she truly wanted. His gentle smile faded as he recalled the conversation he had shared with Dan. Dan, too, had done things, had taken measures he believed best for Chloe. And all of his actions had ended in deception and distrust. Humans just couldn't keep themselves from lying, fearing the truth would hurt the ones they loved, not understanding the lies hurt tenfold.

"Lucifer?" Chloe mumbled sleepily as she rolled to her left.

"Well, hello there, Sleeping Beauty," he greeted quietly, a soft smile returning to his face. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore," she admitted reluctantly. "How long have I been asleep?"

"Quite a while," he answered as she gingerly pulled herself into a sitting position. "It's nearly noon." He sat on the edge of the mattress, tipping his head as he studied her. "You slept much longer after this last dose of medication that you have between previous doses."

"Must have needed it," she said as she carefully lifted an arm to run her hand through her unruly hair.

"Indeed. Turn around," he instructed gently. "Let's have a look, shall we?" Chloe did as asked, turning her back to him slowly. He gathered her hair over her right shoulder and then unfastened the three buttons that had not dislodged during the time she had slept. "Nothing is bleeding through," he observed as he parted the pieces of fabric.

"Shouldn't be," she stated. "You changed the bandages this morning after I woke up. I haven't gotten into enough trouble since then to cause any damage." Lucifer laughed gently.

"I suppose not. This one," he started, carefully pulling the bandage from her left shoulder, "looks remarkably well compared to how it looked yesterday."

"It feels better," she said. "Achy, but better." He replaced the bandage and gently rubbed his fingers around the perimeter of the cloth. She released a sigh as she closed her eyes.

"Am I hurting you?"

"No," she answered quietly. "Feels good." He gently rubbed around her shoulder for a few minutes before expanding his fingers' path across her back, carefully working around the dark bruises still forming below the surface of her skin. Her head fell forward, her shoulders slumped; her body relaxed almost completely beneath his touch. "You're good at that," she mumbled as he moved to her lower back.

"I've had lots of practice." Her shoulders bounced with a bit of a chuckle.

"Please don't share any details," she said jokingly.

"You're not fun, Detective." He laughed lightly and shifted the positions of his hands to settle over her hips. She moaned quietly, contently as his thumbs gently dug into her muscles of her lower back. "Speaking of fun," he started, "you missed the excitement at the station this morning."

"What are you talking about?"

"Gwen Tanner was taken into custody," he offered.

"What?" She turned her head to talk over her left shoulder. "When?"

"A few hours ago."

"How do you know that?"

"I was at the precinct, knee-deep in her interrogation." She pulled away and turned to face him fully. "Don't worry," he added quickly. "I did not leave you alone. Maze was here to watch you in my absence. As was my brother for a bit," he stated as he rolled his eyes.

"How did…who found Gwen?"

"She turned herself in. Well, kind of," he said as he smirked. "She may have had a bit of help from yours truly. Though rest assured, Detective, everything was handled on the up and up. Daniel was with me nearly every step of the way. Unfortunately," he mumbled.

"Well, huh. You and Dan…" She flipped a finger in his direction. "You worked…togeth— Okay. I have so many questions about that, but let's start with the ones I have about Gwen."

"Right." He nodded. "Well, before I make a long story short, turn again, if you would." Chloe turned slightly, allowing Lucifer access to continue rubbing her back yet leaving herself able to see his face. He watched her features carefully as he recanted the details, the facts, the truth of the murders they had been investigating. Her eyes narrowed, her gaze became distant, focusing absently across the room. The wheels were turning, he knew, skipping ahead to put together the events before he had opportunity to mention them. Dangerous territory, he thought.

"She admitted all of this to you?" Lucifer nodded. "How…did you…" She lifted a hand and circled a finger in front of her face. "Did you do your voodoo eye thingy?" His hand fell from her back, landing on the mattress with a soft thud.

"It's not voodoo, Detective."

"So that's a 'yes'." Chloe looked away and bit at the corner of her bottom lip. "So Katrina catalogued everything," she whispered. "In the journal we were looking for?" He nodded. "And Gwen gave it to you." He nodded again. She hummed and nodded gently. "So," she started slowly as she shifted to face him again, "what, exactly, was in the journal, Lucifer?"

"Right. About that." He straightened his back and released a quiet breath. "I won't tell you unless you promise me you will not…" He motioned towards her. "Flip out."

"What?" she asked incredulously. "No. You can't say that and then expect me not to flip out, Lucifer."

"Promise, Detective, or I will not say."

"I have other ways of finding out," she stated defiantly. "People I can call and talk to."

"I'm certain you do," he said as he nodded. "People such as Detective Douche?" Chloe looked away. "If anyone at the station knows just how out of commission you are, it is Daniel Espinoza, so good luck getting any information from him. So, would you like to waste time making phone calls or would you simply like to know right now?"

"Ugh," she grumbled. "Fine."

"Say the words."

"I promise not to flip out. Okay? Happy?"

"Quite," he answered briskly. "As I said, Katrina catalogued the information she received from Henry. Information that outlines his misdeeds within his law firm and within the LAPD. That includes a list of crooked cops. Detective," he said carefully, "Malcolm Graham is on that list."

"Lucifer," she breathed. "That's…that's wonderful." She smiled. "The journal…we have proof now."

"We do not have anything. Dan has the journal."

"Then we need to talk to Dan." She pushed the blankets from her legs as she started to scoot towards the edge of the mattress. "We need to read over everything and—" He placed a gentle yet firm hand on her arm.

"No."

"I'm sorry." She tipped her head. "It sounded like you said 'no'."

"I did, in fact, say 'no'."

"Lucifer, this is—"

"No longer on your plate, Detective." He dropped his eyes as he took her hand in his. "Dan will not give you the journal, you know that. I promise you will have the answers you desire soon enough, though, for now, and this part is important," he stressed as he locked their gazes, "you will not involve yourself with Malcolm nor Henry, nor anyone or anything related to their wrongdoings."

"I can't just sit here and not—"

"You can," he interrupted. "I have never lied to you, Detective, and I never will. So trust me when I say the right people are taking care of it. Justice will be served where due. The best thing you can do, the most important thing you can do is take a step back and think about your safety. And that of your daughter," he added.

"Trixie's in danger?"

"Not at the moment, but she very well could be if you continue to poke around." She nodded slowly. "It goes well beyond the destructive wake of one wayward detective."

"Lucifer," she sighed. Closing her eyes, she let her shoulders drop. "You're sure whoever these people are…you're sure they're the right people?"

"I am." She opened her eyes and shot a soft yet accusing glare in his direction.

"You said I'll have answers soon. You know more than you're telling me."

"It's not my place to tell the rest of the story."

"Whose is it?"

"That honor belongs to Detective Douche," he replied.

"Really?" She laughed. "You've had nothing nice to say about Dan, like ever. You constantly berate him for the way he treats me over my cases, and now you're working with him and trusting the things…" Her features sobered. "He knew all of this already, didn't he?" He offered a small nod. "No," she breathed as tears began to glaze her eyes. "Lucifer, no. Please tell me Dan isn't…"

"He's not involved. Not in the way you're thinking, at least. And I can't believe I'm going to say this, he's not one of the bad guys." She offered a sigh of disbelief and he took her hand in his a second time. "Detective, I…I don't want to see you hurt again. And true, children are not my most favorite of things, but I don't desire to see the innocent spawn caught in the middle." She nodded as she registered the seriousness in his eyes.

"You're right," she whispered. "You're right. Trixie's safety is my top priority."

"Personal feelings aside, I do believe Daniel is a good detective. And I know he's trying to do the right thing."

"Because he told you so? How do you know he isn't lying?"

"Bit of an expert on that," he said. "I know he isn't lying."

"It's a lot to take in, Lucifer," she started as her gaze dropped to their hands. "I have so many questions."

"I know you do. And as I said, you shall have your answers. For now, I think it wise to stop digging into Palmetto and Henry Lloyd. And no pursuing leads should you happen upon another cog in the wheel. Agreed?" His fingers tightened gently around her hand. "If nothing else but for your daughter's safety," he added when she remained silent.

"Okay," she whispered.

"Splendid. Then it's settled," he remarked as he smiled. "Now, you are due for another round of medication."

"No, no more medication. I'll take the anti-biotics, but the other two?" She shook her head. "I don't want to sleep anymore, Lucifer. Not like this."

"Very well." He nodded. "The moment you feel pain beyond your control, though…"

"I will take the meds then. I promise," she said. "I'd really like to take a shower."

"By all means. You need to keep the stitched areas dry. The shower head detaches, if that helps."

"Yeah, that'll work." He reached forward and tugged on the hem of the dress shirt. "You are welcome to whatever you find in my closet that fits your needs. Your bag is in there if you'd rather have your own clothing." Chloe offered a cheeky smile.

"We'll see."

"Oh, interesting," Lucifer stated as he matched her smile. Standing, he offered his hand. "Right. Up with you then."