XI.
The dream started, as usual, with Chloe standing in front of the LUX. The beginning was always the same, so she already realized, it was THE dream again and didn't want to enter. However, the dream developed on its own and, like in a movie jumping from one scene to another, she suddenly found herself inside the club.
If she at least saw Lucifer in these dreams, perhaps they could turn into something more entertaining. Still, he never appeared.
It was always Maze.
"Come, our fair Detective," said the barmaid, leaning to Chloe from behind the counter, "I want to show you something." With these words, Maze pushed toward her the glass filled with dark fluid, the lights of the reflectors glittering on the ice cubes inside.
"I don't want a drink," Chloe shook her head, but Maze only chuckled.
"Just look inside."
Despite her will, Chloe took the glass and looked at its content. Once she did it, she couldn't tear her eyes away. The lights reflected in the drink glittered like sparks, or little flames, the liquid started to whirl, turning into a vortex, spreading and consuming the space around her, the bar, the club, the lights, everything except her and Maze…
"What is it?" asked Chloe, looking around the vast space of grey, rough rocks, barely lit with dim glow and occasional flashes of fire in the sharp-edged crevices. She knew the answer from the previous dreams, but still, she had to ask.
"My memories," replied Maze, squinting her eyes and for a moment her face adorned the genuine smile. Then, however, she grimaced with disgust. "And you, sweet fair soul, you are the reason I cannot go back here."
Chloe wondered, why anyone, even Maze, would like to return here. Of course, it was just a dream, but even for a dream this place was extremely depressing, dark and sad, the gloomy greys as far as the eye could see, and the thick ash flakes falling from nowhere…
"Watch and listen," said Maze and at this moment Chloe heard piercing screams and saw the flashes of the mutilated corpses, limbs ripped apart, wounds and burns inflicted on the still-living flesh…
She shivered but recalled herself it was just a dream.
"I have seen worse," she said. Oh, she did see worse, at the crime scenes, in the hospitals, in the morgues, so much worse, when it was real… and all this was probably some coping mechanism of her brain, trying to work out the stress of her work.
"Why don't you just run away?" hissed Maze, sounding surprisingly desperate.
"I am not running away," replied Chloe. She tried to shake the ash from her jacket. It left greasy, dirty streaks. "But I would like to wake up."
"One day it may not be possible," whispered Maze and grasped at Chloe's chin, forcing the detective to look in her face. With a cruel smile the barmaid slowly turned, presenting Chloe her left cheek, now terribly scarred, tissue burned out and bones of the jaw exposed. "Have you really seen worse?"
"Oh, poor Maze…" gasped Chloe, raising her hand to touch the wound. "Does it hurt? Can we heal it?"
The barmaid's face lit with fury.
"Damn you!" she yelled, pushing Chloe back with such force, that she heavily landed on the rocks a few yards away. "Do not dare bring mercy to the Hell!"
Chloe started to scramble from the ground but suddenly something clenched her throat, an invisible noose tightening on her neck. She started to fight for breath - the pain searing her lungs - but in avail. When she turned to Maze in search for help, she saw the dark-hear woman standing over her, watching her struggle with such satisfaction. Triumphant grin twisted both sides of her face, equally the beautiful and the nightmarish one. Chloe realized that somehow Maze is the one responsible for strangling her.
The lack of air caused vertigo and the red stains started to dance in front of Chloe's eyes. She fell on her hands and knees and then even lower, her forehead hitting the cold rock. At the moment when she was about to lose consciousness, everything disappeared and she woke up in her room.
She abruptly sat on the bed, greedily gasping for the air in violent intakes. The red stains were slowly disappearing, the pain in her lungs diminishing.
I must have covered my face with a cushion, she thought in disbelief. Nothing like this had ever happened to her before.
Still shaking, she went to the bathroom and washed her face with cold water. Then she looked at her neck, half expecting to see some mark there, left by the invisible noose from her dream – but her skin was unmarred.
Finally, feeling very stupid, she looked at her pyjama. No, there were no traces of ash on it.
Just another dream, she thought, trying to calm herself. Still, for the next hour or so she laid sleeplessly, staring into the ceiling of her room. In the last days, she dreamt a few times about Maze and the greyish, unfriendly landscape. It was yet the first time when the dream became so hostile and so… realistic.
The girls from the drug section, made up for junkies since two days were hanging around the pub Venice, observing Alex Durham and trying to get some information about the new drug. However, probably because of the last arrests made by the LAPD, all the dealers suddenly became very tight-lipped and Durham – exceptionally cautious. After two fruitless days, Chloe decided to arrest Durham, fearing that he may disappear for good.
As soon as Lucifer appeared at the precinct, she grabbed the car keys. "Come. We are going to visit Venice," she quipped. The consultant however measured her with a surprised glance:
"Are you also going undercover, Detective?" seeing her confused glance, he looked at her more carefully and exclaimed: "I thought that you are characterized like the drug-addict, but it is not the makeup! You look terrible, Detective! What happened?"
"Now that was so kind of you," snorted Chloe. "You really make me feel special. How's that everyone else claims that you are such a charmer?"
"I think we already established, that my charms do not affect you, Detective. And I am not lying," he replied unabashedly. "But seriously, what happened?"
"Nothing," Chloe shrugged her shoulders. "I just didn't sleep well recently. Let's go. We are going to arrest Durham today."
On their way to the elevator, she tried to catch her reflection on the glass doors. Did she really look that bad? Probably yes. If even Lucifer, the muster of egocentrism, noticed… To be true, she didn't sleep well in the few days, however, the last nightmare literally drenched the energy from her. How could she have dreamt something like this? And how could she imagine Maze with the mutilated face? True, there was no love lost between her and Lucifer's bodyguard, but to imagine this beautiful woman in such a horrible way? Was she really jealous of her? Chloe felt ashamed of her subconsciousness.
"Finally. You have lingered with the arrest too long. Let's get him, make him talk and then you should take a few days off," commented Lucifer on their way to the car. "And if you would like me to help you to relax…"
"Shhh…" hushed him Chloe, because her phone just rang. She recognized the number of Anne from the drug section, who should be now sitting in the pub Venice. "Anne? What happened?"
"Durham is terribly nervous today," said quietly the girl, probably calling from the street. "I think he knows we are watching him. Once he saw me, he moved to the rear of the pub. He is still there, but I am certain that once he sees the police, he will try to run away."
"Okey, that's one more reason for not waiting any longer with the arrest. We will approach from the rear of the building," decided Chloe. "I will ask for a backup to enter the pub from the front and once Durham escapes, we would get him."
The backup patrol turned out to be led by Dan, who eagerly agreed to cooperate.
Chloe parked her car at the back street behind the Venice and, trying to fight off the fatigue and sleepiness, started the action. She gave a signal to Dan and tried to come as close to the back door of the pub as possible. Together with Lucifer they crossed the yards and back alley, sneaking between trash containers and piles of rubbish. The detective smirked at the disgusted expression of her consultant, but her face also fell, when suddenly the wind blew at them a cloud of ash from the low chimney.
The impression was so close to her unpleasant dream, that for a second she stopped and shivered.
"Bloody ash," she whispered.
"Yes," Lucifer echoed with the same aversion, but then blinked and looked at her with confusion: "I am sorry, did I just say that?"
"No, it was me," chuckled Chloe. "Seems that your mannerisms are rubbing on me."
"No, I wasn't referring to the "bloody" part," Lucifer shook his head. "It is the ash that worries me. Why don't you like it?"
"And who likes ash?..."Chloe stared at him, surprised with his sudden tension. "Let's go."
Lucifer appeared confused but nodded: "Right. Damn filth."
As if confirming his words, a few ash flakes landed on his jacket and he very carefully started to blow them away.
"See, sometimes it is better to wear clothes that can be put into the washing machine," commented bitingly Chloe and turned back. "Let's go, Dan must have already entered the bar and Durham may try to sneak away any second."
She made no more than few steps when the gust of wind blew the new cloud of ash straight at her. She instinctively tried to wipe it away from her blouse and saw it leaving the greasy stains.
"Shit," she whispered with irritation. "Like in this fucking dream."
In the next second, she was shoved against the wall and Lucifer loomed over her with suddenly darkened expression.
"What dream?" he asked sharply.
"What?" Chloe looked at him incredulously. "Nothing. Just a nightmare. Let's go."
She tried to move, but Lucifer didn't pay attention, not letting his grip on her shoulders.
"What nightmare?"
"Normal nightmare," hissed Chloe. "Nothing special. End of subject. Let go of me."
She felt enough irritated by the fact, that she had to ask him to release her, but Lucifer didn't pay the slightest attention to her words.
"What nightmare involving ash did you have, Detective?" he drawled, trying to look her in the eye.
"Shit," swear Chloe, as in the corner of her vision she noticed a man sneaking out of the back door of the building behind them. "That's Durham." She tried to wrestle Lucifer's hands away. "If he escapes because of you… I will never work with you again."
Lucifer with distraction looked at the direction of the runaway, as if he had forgotten, why they came here, and finally let her go. Chloe immediately started to run after Durham, yelling:
"LAPD! Stop!"
She caught up with him almost at the end of the alley, already hearing the noises of the pursuit. For a second, she wrestled with the man, they both falling on the ground. When she finally managed to handcuff him, Dan and the policewoman accompanying him were already behind her.
"We have him," she said panting and pushed the man toward Dan. "Thank you. Would you tell him his rights?"
While Dan started to recite the law required formula, Chloe looked around in search for Lucifer. He stood in the same place where she left him, correcting his handcuffs and looked neither apologizing, nor especially interested in the arrest. Of course, he didn't even move his ass to help with Durham. The detective felt the anger literally boiling her blood.
"What the hell was that?" she spat angrily, striding toward him.
"Well, you have made your arrest," Lucifer stated with such expression as if he had just granted her a big favour, "now tell me about your nightmare."
A fucking nightmare? Chloe struggled to control her anger only because of the presence of Dan and police gathered around Durham. Otherwise, she would either slap him or at least started to yell insults at him. He almost spoilt the whole operation just because all of the sudden he fancied to be interested in her dreams?
Dan was right, that he does everything on a whim, passed through her mind.
Besides, that was unfair. Chloe was in excellent physical condition and hell, she worked hard on it, during all these hours spend on training or in fitness rooms – instead, for example, with her daughter – just because she wanted to be efficient in her job. She could do down a man twice her weight; which, by the way, she has just done with Durham. And now what? She couldn't get rid of the grasp of the man whose strength should be waned by drugs and alcohol abuse? Hell, Lucifer didn't even sleep properly, spending the nights in his club and days as her consultant.
With his lifestyle, I wouldn't be able to climb the stairs, thought gloomily Chloe. She saw him earlier making a show of unusual strength, but it was always during the confrontations with the criminals and she attributed it mostly to adrenaline. This time, however, he was seemed anxious, but otherwise composed. How is he doing this?
"You know what? At the moment, you are my nightmare," she said angrily and followed the group leading Durham to the police car, not interested whether he was following her or not.
"You are telling now yourself your dreams?" commented bitingly Dan, who must have heard their exchange.
"Nightmares," accented Chloe heavily. "Lucifer is interested in nightmares."
"Perhaps he never has dreams on his own," snorted Dan. "With all that he drinks and inhales, he probably just blacks out each night."
"I didn't include you in this conversation, Douche," stated coldly Lucifer. So, he must have followed them. "Detective, if that's what you are expecting I may say that I am sorry, but I really need to speak to you."
"Later," replied only Chloe, without turning back.
They reached the parking in front of the Venice and Durham was loaded into the police car. The detective sighed with relief, trying to concentrate what to do next. As soon as they reach the precinct, Durham needed to be interrogated. Chloe stiffed a yawn. She would, of course, lead the interrogation, even if at the moment she would prefer to go home and sleep a few hours.
No. If I fell asleep, the dream might return, passed through her mind and Chloe shuddered. Shit, was she now going to be scared to sleep? Just because of a stupid dream?
"Everyone has nightmares," observed the young policewoman who was accompanying Dan, as if she read Chloe's thoughts. However, the woman was not looking at Chloe only at Lucifer. "Like forgetting to put the pants on before going to work, or writing the exam naked." She winked to him and Chloe was sure to hear one of his not so subtle innuendos. However, her partner remained unusually silent.
Yes, everyone had dreams. There was nothing usual at it, thought Chloe and trying to convince herself, tried to recall her previous nightmares.
"When I was younger, I often had a nightmare that I forgot to feed Trixie and she was crying somewhere there, hungry," she said.
"Which, by the way, not always was a dream," muttered Dan.
"Don't be such dou… dick, Dan," Chloe bridled angrily. "Trixie was never hungry."
"Well, she got this habit of hiding the cakes in her room from somewhere," Dan snapped back.
"You must have fed your progeny adequately if it survived till now," said impatiently Lucifer. "Now, Douche, though it is good that you reminded the Detective why she is divorcing you, I'd like to return to our previous conversation. Shell we?" he looked at her.
Chloe wanted to roll her eyes. Why did he get so obsessed with the subject? Though, on the other hand, perhaps Dan was right and Lucifer didn't have dreams – or nightmares – on his own? Or maybe – new thought dawned to her - it was the contrary? Maybe he had terrible nightmares on his own and that's why he treated hers so seriously? After all, if he was doing the therapy, he could also take some medicines and that certainly didn't agree with all the alcohol he drank. It could cause the most awful dreams. Chloe's anger immediately subsided, giving place to compassion. She had to have more understanding for him and his reactions. After all, she knew already that her partner needed to be treated as a big child. With infinite patience.
She would prefer to explain Lucifer everything in private, but neither Dan, not his companion hurried with driving away with Durham only stared at Lucifer, Dan angrily and the woman – a bit enticingly. The detective tried to ignore their presence and turned to her partner.
"Lucifer, we all have nightmares, that's how our brain tries to cope with stress," she said with a smile, imagining she is explaining something to Trixie. "Our job is difficult and it takes a toll on us. I see a lot of gruesome scenes at work and that's why, from time to time, I have a nightmare that reflects them. All I saw in my dream is nothing but twisted by my subconsciousness macabre pictures set in the postapocalyptic scenery of the grey rocky desert covered with ash. That's all. Please, calm down yourself."
The gentle persuasion she tried to speak with was in vain. Lucifer tensed even more, his eyes darkened.
"Detective," he said very quietly, "you didn't calm me down in the slightest."
"Dreams do not hurt, Lucifer," smirked Chloe. However, the involuntary recollection of the last night made her shudder. She hardly fought the urge to rub her neck. "Even if they are suggestive," she added, to mask her uncertainty.
"Detective, some dreams do not dream without a reason and the more I consider possible reasons of you having that particular dream the more I fear them."
"My job…"
"Your job has nothing to do with rocky labyrinth covered with ash."
Yes, it was a labyrinth, not the desert! Reminded Chloe and almost gasped, looking at Lucifer. How did he…
"You must have seen it on some movie," said the policewoman to her, with a shrug, trying to join the conversation. "I remember that after watching…"
"Right, the movie!" exclaimed Chloe, suddenly having found the answer for something that has been gnawing her since morning. "Of course I saw it in the movie! I couldn't make it up myself! Harvey Dent in the Dark Knight! I knew I saw such two-sided face somewhere. I mean… that's something else I also saw in my dream," she finished clumsily, ashamed with her outburst.
"You dreamt about Harvey Dent?" asked Lucifer looking absolutely confused.
"After his face got burned?" echoed him Dan.
Chloe felt even more stupid than before.
"No, actually it was your Maze," she nodded to Lucifer and laughed apologizingly, praying that he wouldn't make again some stupid remarks about her being jealous. "But with two-sided face, normal and disfigured, like the one of Harvey Dent. Sorry. I am not going to tell her this. I guess that my mixed feelings toward her somehow resurfaced. Let's just not speak about this again."
"Shit, girl, your dreams really are fucked up," laughed the policewoman. "All right, let's go or Durham would get grey before we deliver him to the precinct."
"Fine," nodded Chloe. "We parked in the back alley, so… hey, what are you doing?" she called, feeling Lucifer's hand sneaking around her and reaching to her pocket.
"I need your car," he stated and Chloe noticed that he was keeping her car keys. "I just have to settle something in the LUX. You can return with them. I will drive your car to the precinct after that," he said only and walked away.
"Hey!" Chloe gasped, for the second time today struck dumb with fury. "What about the interrogation…"
But Lucifer was already far away. She would only humiliate herself trying to run after him.
"That's not the sports car, if you burn my clutch, I will kill you!" she only yelled after him, fisting her hands helplessly.
"And who is the real dick?" rubbed in Dan, with obvious satisfaction and added patronizingly: "Don't worry, Chlo. I will take you to the precinct and help you with the interrogation."
And, of course, Chloe had no choice, but accept his help.
"We didn't kill Mitchell," stated Durham. He realized the gravity if his situation and was relatively open. "He was a useful idiot. His brother fed him with some fairytale and that was enough. And he got good contacts. There was a woman that brought him stuff from the whole world."
"I know," nodded Chloe. "But who killed him?"
Durham eyed her in silence for a while.
"Competition," he said finally.
"Develop it."
"There is nothing to develop," Durham shook his head. "We pulled them a stunt, they pulled us another and got our supplier. That's all."
"A stunt? Killing a man was a stunt?" repeated numbly Chloe. She felt something tighten in her chest. Perhaps it was good that Lucifer wasn't present, after listening to such blunt and emotionless statement, he would probably be on the verge of the outburst.
Alex Durham shrugged his shoulders and chuckled.
"Who did it? Names," demanded Chlo.
Durham's smirk only widened.
On the other hand, Chloe regretted that Lucifer was not here. Who knows, she might have left him alone with Durham in the interrogation room for a few minutes. Considering the fact, that her partner was in the mood for talking about nightmares today, a short conversation with Durham should be enough to wipe that smirk from the face of this bandit.
"Who killed Jeremy Mitchell?"
Durham looked at her almost with indulgence.
"Honey, you have a pretty face and a strong hook, but I am not going to tell you about others. I am not a snitch. Do you know what happens to the snitch in prison?" Before Chloe managed to reply, he added: "Nothing you can to do me is worse than that."
Without Lucifer to prove this last statement wrong, the detective had to accept the defeat. Alex Durham would give them something, but not enough to earn himself the death sentence from another gang.
"Then tell me about yourself. What 'stunt' did you pull on your competition?"
"Sorry, Honey," Durham shook his head again. "Professional secrets. And I think you should offer me the lawyer and the phone call now."
Chloe took a few deep breaths and left the room, hardly refraining herself from crashing Durhams head onto the table. She went to Dan, who was observing them through the mirror.
"He won't talk anymore. I am calling to Lucifer to come and try his trick."
Dan looked at her almost with disgust. "What? Chloe, come on. You used to do better than this. How did it happen, that all of the sudden you cannot do your job without this freak?"
That was Dan. He couldn't speak with her without being judgmental about her, or her competencies. Chloe shook her head, trying to keep the conversation as far from personal as possible.
"Dan, you are unjust. I just want to use his help. We still do not know who killed Mitchell. And I have a bad feeling about this stunt they made. What kind of stunt must it have been, if someone killed the man in retaliation? What if it all started with another murder we didn't discover yet?"
"Okey, but we will do it the normal way. Talk to the prosecutor, propose the deal… It will work, the guy would talk. That's how we work, Chlo. Without psycho tricks."
Actually, here Dan was right. But still… Chloe had a hunch that she should use each tool available to get as much information as possible... Oh, but Lucifer wasn't a tool. He was… so much more. Not only in a good sense.
"Chlo, this guy is unreliable. You saw for yourself today," said quietly Dan, as if sensing her inner distress. "Do not get yourself… dependent on him."
Chloe recalled the events from the last hours and finally nodded. "I guess you may be right."
The detective set a meeting with the prosecutor and arranged Durham's transfer to the prison. Still, before leaving the precinct, she decided to contact Lucifer. After all, they were partners. It was their case, not only hers.
Of course, the only way she could do it was to call the LUX. How could someone today not have a cell? But it was another proof of Lucifer's arrogance. After all, it was the world who wanted to contact him, not vice versa.
"Hi, Patric," she said, recognizing the barman's voice on the other end of the line. "Can I speak with the boss? He told me he was going to the club."
"Ugh.. yes, he is here," replied Patric, sounding rather unsure, "but he is now talking to Maze… and I am not going between them now. Sorry, Ms Decker."
"Okey, but can you pass him a message? He took my car and promised to drive it to the precinct, but I am leaving the office now. Tell him to leave it in front of my house."
"Ms Decker, I would drive your car to your home myself, if necessary, but later. An hour or two, when the atmosphere cools off a little. Right now, we are a bit tense here... I am not going to ask him for the keys at the moment."
"Fine. Thank you, Patrick," sighed Chloe and ended the phone call.
Whatever was happening in the LUX now, unfortunately, it confirmed Dan's words. Lucifer was… perhaps not unreliable, but unpredictable. The investigations and whole 'consultant' stuff was a hobby for him. For her, it was a job. She shouldn't get too much used to his help, no matter how valuable it was.
After settling the meeting with the prosecutor Chloe returned home so tired, that once she finally managed to send Trixie to the bad, she simply fell into her own, without supper or shower. In her last conscious thought she feared for another nightmare, but she didn't dream it again.