Chapter 18

"So, what do you want to do tonight?" Ella asked Eve from the couch. She flipped channels absently, searching for something to watch. Boring, boring, seen it, boring, infomercial, politics, boring...

"There's this new movie out that I really wanna see, and then I was thinking-shoe shopping!" Eve said excitedly.

"Shoe shopping!" Ella did a little dance down the hallway. "Great idea. I'm sure I need shoes for something." She cranked the volume on the Latin pop streaming from her phone and tugged the closet door open. The back wall was lined with shoeboxes, neatly stacked with Polaroids of their contents taped to the front. They towered almost to the ceiling, and Ella eyed the stack uncertainly. She nodded after a moment. "Yep, I'm sure I could fit 6 or 7 more pairs in here. Do you have a good pair of going-to-the-movies shoes?" She called back to Eve.

"Well, probably, but you can never have too many, right?" Eve sat at the bathroom vanity and critically examined her face. "And you know what else I need? Makeup."

"Makeup!" Ella sighed in agreement. "Girl, yes! I'm putting on my shoe-shopping shoes right now." She groaned in protest as the extra-spicy version of "Despacito" she'd been singing along with was interrupted by the shrill ring tone reserved for the tribe. Peeking at the caller ID, she sighed. "It's Linda," she told Eve as she answered. "Linda, what's up?"

"Ella, oh my God, Trixie... Dan showed up and, and I'm at Linda's. I need your help...you have to help me! He's not answering!"

"Chloe? Whoa, girl, slow down. Dan's missing?" She could hear Decker take a deep breath.

"That's what I'm trying to tell you. He showed up at Linda's while Amenadiel and I were down visiting Lucifer, and he told her he was supposed to pick Trixie up. He's been acting really weird lately, and now he won't answer his phone even though I've called him ten times."

"OK, Decker. We're on our way over." Ella was about to sign off, but she thought of something-or rather, someone-else. "Did you call Maze? We could really use a bounty hunter right now."

"Maze," she answered, and it sounded oddly like a prayer. "Of course. I'll call her right away. 'Bye Ella." Shaking her hands a bit to steady them, Chloe re-focused on the phone. Time to dial a demon-and if Dan has done anything to hurt Trixie, I'm giving her permission to go full torturer on his ass.

Maze answered on the first ring. "Linda. Whatcha need?"

"I need you to find Dan. He disappeared and he isn't answering his cell."

"Well, he's been a real ass lately, so I say good riddance."

"Maze—he took Trixie!"

"Shit, Decker, why didn't you say so!" Maze muttered something in her demon language and then asked, "Where are you?"

"At Linda's. Amenadiel and I just got back from visiting Lucifer, and Dan's gone. Linda said he acted weird...I was trying to get him to talk to somebody, but he blew me off. Oh God, this is all my fault. I should have tried harder, focused more on making sure he was OK after Charlotte died..."

"He's a big boy, Decker. Should be able to figure it out himself." She paused, calculating her travel distance. "I'll be there in five minutes."

"Thanks," Chloe said to empty air as Maze hung up. Rolling her eyes, she sat on Linda's front step, still somewhat warm from the day's heat even as the sun began to sink. Clasping both hands around her phone, she propped her elbows on her knees and lowered her head until it rested on her fists. If I start crying now, I'm never going to stop. How did everything go so wrong? Linda came out and sat beside her, offering a glass of water.

"I've got wine if you want something stronger."

Chloe looked up and shook her head. "Thanks," she said dully. She checked the time again. Where is everyone?

"Chloe, I'm so sorry. I had no idea—I mean, I really thought Dan was just helping out, you know? I called the police, an officer should be here soon."

"It's not your fault. He's her father, of course you thought it was OK. And I didn't tell you how...unstable he'd been the past couple of weeks." She sighed and passed her friend's phone back. "I did mention to him that he should talk to somebody, and he almost went off on me. The boss showed up just in time."

"I can't believe you're sitting here so calmly. When Charlie went missing I was an absolute wreck! The only think that kept me going was knowing that you all were out there looking." Linda settled next to Chloe and leaned her head against her shoulder. "It was so hard, though. You're a strong woman, Chloe. And we're going to help you find Trixie, I promise."

"I know." Chloe tried a half-smile. "Ella and Eve are on the way over, and Maze should be here any minute."

Linda chuckled. "Oh, Maze."

"Yeah," Chloe responded, and the two sat for a moment in a silence that was broken by the sounds of car doors slamming.

"Hey, Chlo, how ya holding up?" Ella asked, sitting on Chloe's other side and putting her arm around the detective. Eve waved at Linda, who smiled back at her.

"Great. I have this stupid case to work on, Lucifer's being a big baby, and my ex has gone crazy and kidnapped my daughter."

"There's some weird ju-ju with this gang shooting, Chlo. I've got a bad feeling that it's somehow connected to everything else that's going on."

"How would Dan kidnapping Trixie have anything to do with-" Chloe was cut off by Maze revving up to the curb and the simultaneous chirp of Ella's phone. Ella moved a few yards away to take the call, covering her free ear in order to hear better. Eve sat on the bottom step and looked everywhere but at Maze as she approached.