Lucifer leans against his car, tapping his foot to the anxious beat of his heart. It was probably up somewhere at one hundred beats per minute, and his leg was almost feeling numb at the extent that his foot hadn't stopped in minutes on end. Detective Douche is taking awfully long to get here, Lucifer's brain keeps telling him. The thoughts in his head were also allowing him to fantasize about what he was going to do to that sick bastard Thomas. Killing him would be too easy, he had to rip him limb from limb. Curl his fingers around that throat until he the man turned blue in the face, then only let go long enough to catch a couple breaths before repeating the action over and over again. Cutting off various extremities, in hopes that each one hurts like..well...hell. Only when Lucifer had finished with him, would he be welcomed into hell with open arms, and blazing fire-
A cars tires screech as they spin around the corner. The brakes squeak so loud it causes Lucifer's right eye to flutter in place of the pain in his ears. Another squeak as the springs in the door open, and Lucifer can't take any more noise from this piece of shit car Dan drives. Thankfully the door shuts quickly and Dan runs out. His pajama bottoms are long, and he looks like he just threw on a jacket and drove. Even if he had, it still took too much time for him to get here. The clock was still ticking, and Lucifer wondered quickly if Chloe was okay.
"I'm here. What are we looking at?" Dan asks frantically.
"There is a large amount of glass on the pavement, and blood. The blood sweeps into tire marks and then nothing," Lucifer explains.
"From the looks of all the other windows, I think there must have been a confrontation between Chloe and her attacker, Somehow in struggle, they fell with enough force to shatter the glass. The blood could be from a number of things, and seeing as how there are two piles, I would guess it is from both parties. We need swabs to make sure before we continue with the investigation, otherwise anything we do after this could wind up up in court," Dan explains, pulling two swabs out of his pocket. "Any indication as to who the attacker was?"
"Thomas," Lucifer answers. "We were investigating what was almost like a serial killer, and we finally cracked it. Or Chloe did-"
"Where were you?" Dan accuses.
"Chloe told me to go back to the club, and that she would finish the scan herself. But when I went away, I felt like I needed to come back. I went to lab and the results were complete and she left me a clue as to where she was, so I came here to find this gruesome sight."
"As her partner, why did you leave in the first place?" Dan smiled slyly. He was looking at Lucifer with all the hate Lucifer could guess the man could conjure. What makes this man so superior to me? I'm the damned Devil for crying out loud! Lucifer's own stops weren't stopping, and it was too late to stop his horrible reply.
"As her devoted partner, why did you hit her like she was a punching bag?" Lucifer knew he shouldn't have said it. But he did, and there was no turning back now.
Dan's eyes bulged larger than that of insects, and in Lucifer's mind that was exactly what this man was. An insect, vermin, something he held deep hatred for. Dan raises his finger as if to make his argument, but only breaths come out in huffs. Speech is something that seems incapable. He finally lowers his hand, and turns around. Running his other hand down his long face, he hears the man whisper, "I never intended to hurt her. I never thought I would be that kind of man. Consumed with rage once intoxicated, unable to control my actions. It's like the devil himself found his way within me-"
"Oh hell no," Lucifer stops him. "Don't blame me for your incompetence and weakness. I may be Satan, but even I know there is a fine line you shouldn't cross. Hitting a lady, especially one so wonderful as Chloe, is worse than any sin. And hitting a child, is even worse. Men like you deserve to burn forever-"
"Live in your metaphor or not," Dan throws back, still disbelieving as he cuts Lucifer off. "I know I did wrong, because I lost the only things that mattered to me. Chloe and myself will never be together again. I am forever sorry for that."
Lucifer rolls his eyes so hard, he feels like they could almost be felt at the back of his head. "You never deserved her in the first place."
There is a moment of silence that hangs between them, before Dan shatters it all with only simple words. "And what makes you think the 'devil' deserves her? What makes you think she wants you?"
Lucifer is caught off guard. He hadn't thought a lot about this. Blinded by his love for Chloe, did she even feel the same way? There had been that moment where he had saved her life when she was shot, and she looked at him and smiled even for only a second. At that moment, she had probably accepted death had come for her, not knowing this stranger she had just met would save her. Since then there had been many moments where she had saved him, making Lucifer feel connected to her in some way, shape, or form. That night in the club only hours ago, they had almost shared a passionate kiss. Doesn't she feel the same way? How could she ever love such a beast like himself?
But was that what really mattered here? Even if she doesn't return Lucifer's feelings, he still has the obligation to save her. There is no reason not to, and it would be a right move in a long book of wrongs.
"Let's just focus on the case Detective Douche," Lucifer snarks.
"If that is how you want to play it," Dan replies. "We can't further our investigation until we test both samples. This could be anyone's blood, we need to confirm it is Chloe's and Thomas'-"
"That could take as long as the first scan!" Lucifer cries.
"There is liability issues if we take anything further action without taking this step first. We have to wait for the results." Detective Douche continues, but Lucifer is done listening.
"Chloe could be dead right now!" He screams. "She could be being tortured, raped, or being set on fire like the last three victims, there is no time to waste anymore!"
"We need to-"
"We need to go get Chloe," Lucifer shouts, cutting Dan off one last time. He is already turning and walking away from the man, his hand waving in the air at his side. "I'm going to go find her. If I find anything I'll text you the detail to bring police backup."
"Lucifer!" Dan screams. "You can't just do things like this!"
Lucifer stops in his tracks, his back still straight as he only turns his head ninety degrees while enunciating his threat. "Watch me."
Eventually Lucifer find his way past his steaming thoughts and red blazed eyes back to the lab. Dan won't be here for a little while longer, and Lucifer takes the opportunity to slouch in the very small chair Chloe herself sat in the last time he laid eyes on her. The last place he may ever see her was in this very chair.
Enough with the negativity Lucifer, it is getting you no where, Lucifer tells himself. He places his feet up on the desk, and stares at the ceiling. When Chloe is stuck on a case, what does she do? What does she do? She...she...
Then it hits him like an oncoming train, the realization he needs to start again. Right from scratch, back to that Friday morning. When they first met Thomas, what did he do again? He couldn't remember that of a job. He had mentioned that Royal was a law student and the reason they hadn't worked was because he was trying to become a doctor. That story was obviously fake...wasn't it?
Thomas' profile was still on the computer, and Lucifer did some searching. It turns out he was a student, but was thrown out of the program. Why? During every practical exam he couldn't make it through the procedure without modifying the steps. However, the modifications would inflict a large amount of pain on the patients. He did more to hurt them than to fix them. He was kicked out of the Los Angeles Institute of Knowledge, and hasn't been allowed back in since. However, through a long claim against the school causing his financial bankruptcy, the school agreed to put him up in one of their residences. Thomas was still on campus.
Lucifer digs further into the school, and realizes the school is five levels but was originally built to have six until the basement became flooded after a spring storm. The basement was now just a part of the school's foundation, and was discontinued as a part of the building in use due to the gigantic amount of water damage.
Lucifer can easily place two and two together. Maybe all probability is against him, and Chloe won't even be there. But Lucifer is having yet another gut feeling that Thomas is keeping Chloe in the Institute's old basement. This was one hunch he intended to follow.
***This may get slightly graphic, I am sorry if it makes you uncomfortable but that is why I am placing the warning here***
I will not scream. Not for this asshole's benefit. Not today. Not now.
If Chloe thought she was sweating before, she was completely drenched now. It felt like her whole body was shuddering, or seizing. Her breath couldn't seem to catch up to her bodies jumps and jitters. Her head is turned away, her eyes wide and her mouth frozen open. She begs her body to stop shaking and twitching, but it won't. Blood is dripping everywhere, mostly around her abdomen. Her once small gash, now gaping open on the table. Thomas had given her no anesthesia, or warning as he shoved his fingers into the hole in her stomach left there by the glass from their confrontation earlier.
I will not scream.
At first she almost screamed, but it became more like a gasp of surprise and world-shattering pain. After he pulled his fingers out, he put one hand in, and pulled to the side. That was when Chloe shed more than one tear, and her breathing began to increase. Then he pulled out this medical device used in surgeries, meant to hold open a section of skin so that surgeons don't have to worry about the skin while working on the inside. He placed the cold metal on either side of the wound, and stretched it open again. The wound must have been three inches long by now two inches wide. Chloe could feel blood pouring out of the wound and onto either side of her torso.
I will not scream, she repeated to herself.
"Your organs look lovely from this angle. It's still a small opening, but I just wanted to see what we had to work with at this point," Thomas explained, and that was when Chloe had to turn away. Her lower half still numb and bleeding as her upper half lay in her own tears. It was at this point the reality hit her that she might not make it out of here alive. She was going to die on this table, at the hands of a maniac. She opened her mouth to scream, and all that came out was a sob. Chloe was not feeling strong right now, she was feeling worthless and like she was already dead. Her body was still shaking from the pain, both what she could feel and what she couldn't.
I will not scream.
"I haven't had a real chance to get this far with any of them. With my previous victims I worked on bone structure, and blood work. Now? The next step to greatness is organs," Thomas continued. "Let's see, which vessel should I cut first? Which organ do you want to loose?"
I will not scream.
Thomas walks forward towards Chloe, his gloves soaked in blood. He reaches across her to the table full of instruments, and grabs a pair of small scissors. Lowering himself to her level, his face morphs into something that looked less creepy on the Joker. "Are you ready for this Detective? It's going to hurt like hell. But don't worry, I know you'll relieve yourself with your voice, and Lucifer will be tortured forever by it. When you pass out, I'll burn your body beyond recognition. Only this time, they will never find the body. No one will ever know the truth, until your skeleton is found a hundred years from now. No one will remember you, or at least in a brave way. Your scream will make local news as the last remnant of you, a final bow of sorts."
I will not scream.
Chloe's body shudders again against her will, and she uses the momentum she gains from the jump to spit out her saliva in Thomas' face. He stands up and wipes his sleeve over is face, "That is going to cost you," he spits the words like Chloe's saliva, and his hands become fists. The scissors make their way into Chloe's interior, and what they snip takes every control from Chloe away.
She screams like she has never screamed before. There was no way to hold it in anymore. The pain spread everywhere, she could feel it from the back of her neck down to her torso, and everywhere across and around. As she closed her eyes her voice screamed on, and on. She could only hope in some way she was alerting someone, hoping her scream was shattering glass and eardrums. The pain was worse than anything she had ever felt, rendering her defenseless. Her voice derailed down to a whisper and her eyes re-opened her vision was blurring.
"That was impressive Chloe. I am very proud," Thomas congratulated her. "However, we are only just beginning."
