Outside Lucifer's apartment a storm was raging which perfectly reflected the internal conflict building within the club owner. Hunting and punishing those responsible for murder was always a pleasurable experience for Lucifer but now that there was a possibility one of his siblings was responsible he couldn't help but feel nausous thinking he'd personally have to add to their suffering. Hadn't they had enough based on what Raphael had told them the night before? What would another push do to them? Would further punishment drive them into an unescapable sea of madness that would lead to their destruction? The current state of things had lead Uriel over the edge and now he was nothing but a memory after being stabbed with Azrael's blade. He had just been dealing with the fallout from Lucifer's banishment and the ceaselessness of his responsiblies of welcoming dead mortals to heaven. Anyone would find saying the same thing for thousands of years to be maddening. 'Never again...' Lucifer told himself as he took a sip of his beverage and recalled what it felt like to have his innocent brother die in his arms. Even if it meant forcibly sending them back to heaven, Lucifer had no desire to rip apart everything they had built for themselves on Earth. Like himself they had created their own little world and were in a sense free of their Father's control for once. Taking that away from them would make him no better than the being he was trying so hard not to become.
Lucifer leaned back in his chair and appeared rather thoughtful as he mentally reexamined all of the deals of the case. Diego and Javier had been killed early in the morning by an individual who had expert knowledge about the human body as well as the use of a blade. Azrael had revealed that the two men had a rather intense encounter with Michael and that they sought treatment through the facility that Raphael held his position as a doctor. Prior to their death they had indicated that they were going to target an individual known as Azzy who Lucifer determined was in fact Azrael. Given all those facts there was no denying that both of his angelic siblings had motive to kill but were they both willing to break Father's most sacred rule to all angel kind? Even if some event in the heavens had changed both of them to some degree Lucifer couldn't see it. If Raphael was the one responsible, why would he have waited to kill them? Given his position and his advanced knowledge regarding everything medical he could have made it appear to be a harmless heartattack that claimed their lives and none would be any the wiser.
Quickly he mentally wiped those ideas from his head. There was no point coming up with theories until he heard more about what had happened in heaven. Carefully he placed his half empty glass on the table beside him and brought his hands together to pray. For the fallen angel it was the quickest way to get in contact with his siblings who still had their wings and could come and go as they pleased. A few moments passed by and the air around the apartment drew slightly colder as his beloved sister made her appearance know. "Who ever said the devil doesn't pray never meet you brother."
Lucifer pulls himself up from his seated position and turns to find his sister standing feet away from the bar. He hadn't seen her since the start of the investigation but needless to say he was relieved to find her unharmed. The one thing he had noticed was that her attire this time around was slightly more scandalous as before which made him raise an eyebrow. The female angel instantly took notice of how her brother was eying her and let out a small sigh. "I know right!? This totally isn't my style. I mean the whole tight leather... skin showing thing... is more your suited for your little demon." The expression on Lucifer's features asked her to go on and explain how this happened and Azrael let out a small laugh. "Gabriel is what happened... he wouldn't let it go. He said I needed to work on my devilish charm. What would a trickster know about charm but whatever he does have a point. I am the new she-devil in town and I need to start acting like it."
A defeated sigh escaped Lucifer's throat when his sister reminded him of the deal she had made with their Father. He still wasn't too pleased with her having to take over his place in hell. She was perfect just as she was and this whole ordeal was starting to affect her as well. "You don't have to go changing who you are Azzy. Being death is scary enough for those tainted souls. Give that a try before you try subjecting yourself to my lifestyle choices."
As always Lucifer was looking after his little sister and she was happy that he hadn't let her decision to run hell destroy what he had on Earth. Maintaining his happiness allowed for her to deal with all the difficulities of being surrounded by torment day in and day out. The screams were the worst. At the very least it was good to get away for that for a few hours. Based on the state of his body language Azrael could tell that wasn't why he had called her. "Something is bothering you brother, what is it?"
"The evidence of the case is implicating both Raphael and Michael and I find it hard to believe either of them would fall so far as to purposefully take a human life regardless of how corrupted their soul was. Without a shadow of a doubt I need to know if that's really what you saw when you examined those two men."
Lightly Azrael laughed when she heard her brother suggest that Raphael of all angels would be part of the reason for the two individual deaths. "My visions are never wrong brother. I know what their souls revealed to me. That being said I never said that Raphael had anything to do with it. How did this conclusion come about Lucifer?"
"You recall that you suggested we speak with the Napoli crime family. Through our conversation we learned that Raphael had come to their residence to threaten them to stay away from you, darling sister."
Another laugh escaped the Angel of Death's throat. "Brother, have you forgotten who I am? I'm the bloody Angel of Death. No one with the exception of family can touch me unless I will it so. Even if they had they wouldn't have survived the encounter. Ever since the whole incident with Michael... Raphael has been overly protective but just because he threatened some scumbag doesn't make him a killer."
"Then give me something Azrael... something that can help me understand. I also confronted Michael about the murders and he adamently denied taking their lives also. Unless my lie detector is on the fritz there is no foreable way for either of our sibling to be the responsible party. Who else has that closeness with you Azrael?"
Lucifer never lied but Azrael found it hard to believe that someone else could have been responsible for the double homicide. Even if that was possible why hadn't she had seen that when she searched their souls? All death was an open book to Azrael and every detail was revealed even if the deceased individual wasn't aware of them. "No one. I've spent my life avoiding all kinds of outside contact. And even if there WAS someone else I would have seen it."
The club owner thought about it for a moment and then thought about his own problem with his immortality when he was around Chloe. Was it possible that something was effecting Azrael's gifts as well? Instead of them not working, could certain people close enough to her create a blindspot in her visions. When she first arrived she had mentioned she had no idea who was coming after him. There was no denying the strength of their sibling bond so proof of this blindspot existed. "Perhaps not. You know how Father manipulates things. Think Azzy... there has to be someone else in your life."
The female angel couldn't argue with her brother's logic. Instead of arguing with him over the improbability of it all she began to think of all the people she interacted with throughout her Earthly existance. Most people she meet as the corpse whisper were families of one crime or another. After a few moments of wracking her brain a name came to mind. "Alex Burke... he's one of Raphael's fellow doctors at the hospital. Recently he has been trying to get closer to me for some reason but it's nothing serious."
Lucifer didn't seem so convinced of that considering everything he had seen within the doctor's behavior during their short interview. The man seemed uneasy about the topic and it was pretty clear he was hiding something. "That would make sense... as a doctor he would have the knowledge necessary. Guess I have to have another chat with Raphael about the good doctor." Before Azrael could say another word Lucifer had placed down his empty glass on the table outside the path of the elevator and began his decent from his penthouse apartment. Once again Azrael had that uneasy feeling in her gut that told her something bad was going to occur.
Before heading off toward the hospital where Lucifer presumed his younger brother would be he recalled that Raphael had placed something in his pocket the night before. Carefully he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a business card, which had all of his hospital details on the front. Lucifer turned it around to find his brother's handwriting on the back and on the card was his home address. Like always Raphael seemed to be prepared for many things and even though he had been interpted last night by their mother he was ready to talk things over with Lucifer in the privacy of his own residence. He took the address to memory and then got into his convertable and drove off.
When he arrived he had to say he was impressed at the majesty of his younger brother's home. Apparently what humans said about doctors was true. The did amass a great deal of wealth but Lucifer couldn't believe that he would actually own a structure so showy. Raphael was a simple man deep down who just wanted to help people. Then again he was reminded of what Azrael had implied days before. Had whatever gone on in heaven changed Raphael as well in ways that he had yet come to realize. Lucifer had pushed those lingering thoughts out of his mind as he walked up the groomed lawn to the front door. Instead of knocking he decided to ring the doorbell. At first he hadn't expected an answer considering it was the middle of the day. Surely his brother was still hard at work in the hospital. He did seem like the type to work himself to the bone. Just as he was going to turn away he heard the woosh of the door open behind him. He turned around to come face to face with Eve. A slightly puzzled expression flashed on his features as he tried to understand why his brother's assistant was present in his home.
A look of recall appeared on Eve's features when she came eye to eye with the fallen angel. "You were with that detective. Is there something I can help you with?"
Lucifer gazed around her for a minute and then turned his attention back to her. "Raphael, is he home?"
With a slight nod she moved aside and welcomed him in. She turned to the body of the house and called out, "Raphael... that detective is here to see you." Apparently she didn't know exactly who he was which was understandable since they hadn't been formally introduced.
Footsteps echoed through the house as Raphael's soles made contact with the wooden floors below them. He walked into the entry way with two glasses in his hand. "Hello brother. I was wondering when you'd pay me a visit."
Eve blinked a few times as she looked at Lucifer and then back at Raphael. "Wait... he's your brother?" She quickly looked back at the fallen angel who didn't try to deny it. A small nervous laugh escaped Raphael's throat when he realized that he'd have to let the cat out of the bag. "So... which one is he?"
Lucifer rose an eyebrow at Raphael. Apparently this Eve was more aware of things then she had previously let on. The angelic healer placed down the glasses for a moment and then let out a small breath. "Eve... this is my brother Lucifer. Lucifer... this is my wife Eve." At the same time both individuals looked rather shocked to learn about their respected relationships with Raphael.
Eve spun around and looked like she was having trouble finding the words. "Lucifer... as in that Lucifer?"
Raphael let out another breath and nodded. "The very same."
Eve then turned her attention back to the fallen angel and simply gazed at him with awe. Needless to say that wasn't the reaction he had expected from the young woman. Many had either turned and ran away or were trying to get into his pants. However, Eve seemed perfectly in control of her libdo. "I wasn't expecting him to be so...soo"
"Handsome." Raphael finished her thought with a raised eyebrow. "He gets that... a lot. I think you were picturing his darker side. Trust me you don't want to see that. It gives me the heebie-jeebies and I'm an Archangel."
Eve let out a small laugh as she walked back over to Raphael's side. "Don't worry you know I'd never." He simply nodded and beamed down a loving gaze at his wife. She lightly touched him on the arm and said, "I'll leave you two to talk." before she started toward the upper floors of the house where they lived.
Lucifer watched as the young woman left their presence and then gave his brother a somewhat judgie glance. Angels weren't suppose to reveal to humanity about the existance of divinity and it appeared as though Raphael had already broken that one. "Don't give me that look brother. I'm sure you revealed yourself to quite a few humans since you arrived." The fallen angel couldn't argue with that as he graciously took the glass from his brother.
Instead of questioning his brother's reasons for not only revealing himself but marrying a human Lucifer turned his focus back on the fact he was home instead at his work place. "Thought you were a workaholic Raphael. What are you doing home so early in the day?"
An slightly annoyed breath escaped his throat as he headed back down the hall with Lucifer behind him. "I hadn't planned on it but I was overruled. The hospital board forced me to take a little vacation saying I was going to make myself sick if I worked much longer without a break. Which is ridiculous but then again they don't about my status like Eve does." Raphael paused and instantly saw that troubled expression hidden within his brother's dark orbs. "That isn't what you came to discuss is it? What's on your mind Lucifer?"
For a moment Lucifer hesistated to reveal the whole truth to his brother considering the fact he was also technically a suspect. "Alex Burke. Can you tell me a little about him?"
Raphael slightly raised an eyebrow wondering what interest Lucifer could possibly have with his best friend and coworker. "Alex is an exceptional doctor. In fact he's one of the best I've come across since I've arrived on Earth. He's also the only other human I interact with on a daily basis that knows my true identity. I've taken him under my wing and shared my knowledge with him to help humanity advance in terms of medical science."
Lucifer nodded as Raphael provided some historical information that helped put everything else into context. "Since he knows about you is it safe to assume he also knows about Michael and Azrael?"
Raphael nodded once more. "The most interesting thing about Alex's relationship with Azrael is he doesn't see her as the Angel of Death. He just sees her as the world's most renouned forensic scientist. No one in the history of time has seen her as anything other than what she was created to be. Recently he even asked my advice about how to court our darling sister. His relationship with Michael isn't so clear cut. The two meet because all of our love interests are contected by friendship. Eve, Natalie and Bianca (Gabriel's girlfriend) are friends with Azzy and so on and so forth." The healer narrowed his eyes slightly wondering where all this interest was coming from all of a sudden. "You don't think Alex had something to do with this do you?"
The fallen angel let out a small defeated sigh before nodding. "When I talked with him today he seemed on edge when I brought up the murders. He's clearly hiding something but he didn't stay long enough for me to find out what."
The younger brother took a minute to consider everything that was just said and almost seconds afterward the answer came to him. "Bloody hell... I figured out how all this connects." Lucifer slightly rose an eyebrow in interest. "Diego and Javier were talking about targetting Azzy... Alex must have overheard and like any boyfriend he wanted to protect what was important to him. Michael must have figured out the same pattern considering both of our lovers had been targetted and decided to go after them again before they got to Azrael. After that I can only speculate, but Alex must have done this to not only protect Azzy but to...to protect me."
"Protect you?" Lucifer questioned.
"A lot has happened to me since you were cast out of heaven brother. I'm not the same as I was and needless to say I would have gone after them myself. Alex must have wanted to protect my image knowing how important my work is." Raphael rubbed his temples and muttered, "...Father why are you doing this to me?" Instead of waiting for an answer he simply sighed as he turned to his backyard at found Michael standing there to his surprise. Nothing was more true at that moment than the saying, 'When it rains it pours.'
To be continued...
Hello my fellow Lucifans! At last Lucifer knows who is responsible for the murders. Punishment will have to wait since there is a whole new crisis about to unfold. The brothers are going to meet once more. Will Michael try to kill Lucifer now that Chloe isn't around or will they all come to some understanding before blood is shead? Not going to reveal that yet. You'll have to wait till the next chapter to learn what happens. All I will say is I'm excited to write this chapter. Hope you all enjoyed chapter 10 and I'll see you all again soon.