LUX welcomed Chloe with exuberant crowds, loud, vibrant music and flashing lights. The detective squinted her tired eyes, for a moment blinded by the bright lamps. Even in her distress, she noticed the subtle change in this place: somehow the dancing floor was slightly too crowded, the pulsating basses a bit too aggressive, the costumes of the dancing girls just on the wrong side of provocative. One could hardly say that it was the same club that hosted Blues Evenings.
And yet, the detective didn't feel out of place here, on the contrary, once she crossed the threshold of the club, she sighed with relief, as if she just reached the safe place. After all, it was LUX.
She couldn't spot Lucifer from the gallery, so she plunged into the dancing crowd, pushing herself through the slightly intoxicated, playful people. Those who noticed her stepped back with a frown – she could only guess, how haunted she must have looked. Still, she didn't care.
Having realized she would not be able to find Lucifer in this crowd, she pushed her way to the bar, where, as expected, she saw Maze.
The bartender was sitting on one of the high chairs and, as the LUX, she was also… more. She had more make-up, the clothes even more tight and revealing and the more grasping smile. She was looking at Chloe, probably observing her from the moment when she entered the club. When the detective reached the bar, Maze smirked unpleasantly.
"Upstairs," she said only and the detective understood that she would see in Lucifer's apartment something that, according to Maze, she wouldn't like.
At the moment, she couldn't care less. Without losing any more time, Chloe nodded and headed for the elevator. In the corner of her vision, she noticed Maze looking behind her with darkened, anxious eyes, her scornful, naughty mask slipping off for a moment. Chloe wondered fleetingly, why the ninja bartender appeared to be afraid of her, but the thought was gone, as the elevator took her upstairs.
Lucifer's apartment seemed even more crowded than the club itself. Already in the elevator, Chloe heard the sounds of the party. Just in case, when the doors opened, she kept her eyes glued to the floor until she made sure that Lucifer's guests were still mostly clothed.
No one paid attention to her. People were dancing, kissing, making out on all surfaces in the apartment, appearing oblivious to everything around. For the first time, Chloe hesitated – not because of their presence, but because of the specific mood of this party.
It was not about entrainment, it was about oblivion.
It dawned to her, that perhaps not everything was fine with Lucifer.
She didn't see him among the guests and thought she would be forced to search for him in the bedroom. Intending to go round the crowded leaving room she turned, and then noticed him, standing under the bookshelves of his library. She couldn't help making a small step back.
Lucifer didn't participate in the party. Fully clothed, much more formally than his guests, he was just standing with folded hands and observing the playful crowd – and there was something very strange in a way how everyone in the room kept away from him, not nearing closer than at the distance of a yard or two, as if there was some barrier around him, he didn't wish to be crossed.
Then Lucifer shifted a little so that Chloe could see his face – and she realized that the photos on the Internet didn't give him justice. He didn't look good.
He wasn't happy.
For a moment, the detective forgot about her own misery, taking in the shadows under his eyes and the bitterness in his expression. She saw Lucifer tired or angry before, but this time it was different. This time he looked… dark. And old. His eyes were so old.
For one small second, she regretted having come here.
But then it was too late to retreat, because Lucifer suddenly turned toward her, as if felt her presence. His eyes widened and the flash of emotions on his face told Chloe that perhaps they have parted in the worse air than she thought.
However, she had no choice now. Besides, she didn't come here her searching for the help of delusional playboy. If there was, indeed, something…inhuman in Lucifer's expression…. it was the side of him she was counting for.
And she needed to hurry. She had lost here enough time.
Steeling her resolve, Chloe took a deep breath and walked toward him. After a moment of hesitation, Lucifer came up to her as well, the guests occupating the penthouse stepping out of his way as if some invisible force pushed them away. He never let her from his sight and Chloe almost physically felt, how he noted all signs of the distress she was subjected to for the whole day. Before they met, the frown on his face changed from reluctant into concerned, the cold aura around him dissipating a bit.
"Detective, you look awful," he said with certain resentment in his voice, as if she used some unfair trick against him, forcing him to leave the grudge he would prefer to nourish. "What happened?"
"It is about Trixie," she replied simply. "She was kidnapped. I need your help."
"Your offspring?" Lucifer frowned. "The child? Who did it? Where is she?"
Chloe sighed with relief, seeing his concern. A moment ago, she feared he could distance himself from her troubles, but now he was again close to the Lucifer she knew. She was about to reply, when one of the guests, a young man, approached Lucifer with the drink in his hand, as feeling that the invisible barrier around him host was broken.
Lucifer looked at him with distraction and refused the drink with a slight shake of the head.
"Go. Have fun," he said to the man in a way that sounded like an order, not like an invitation. The man looked at him with hazy eyes and turned back, joining the others. By any other occasion, the detective would consider it strange, but now she didn't care.
"A member of the dealers' gang who held the grudge against Dan. He shot him and kidnapped her."
"Daniel got killed?..."
"No, he is in the hospital. But Trixie… This man who shot Dan took her. Would you help me get her back?" Chloe's voice shivered and the words failed her. "I just… don't know what to do. I…"
"But of course. I acknowledge this child as the part of you," Lucifer replied with a shrug. "Let's go."
Chloe let out the shaky breath, feeling the tears stinging her eyes, threatening to spill. She expected Lucifer to agree, but the way he did it… as if it was the most obvious thing in the world… No one ever supported her so unconditionally, not even her mother.
"Detective?" Lucifer called her impatiently, already by the elevator, keeping the doors open for her.
"What about all these people here?" asked Chloe, entering the cabin, pointing at the crowd of guests, that somehow remained oblivious to their departure.
Lucifer only waved his hand. "Not what I have been searching for," he replied with distraction and, as soon as the elevator door separated them from the noises of the party, asked: "Do you know where are your offspring and the man who kidnapped her?"
"In some empty museum. She got kidnapped in the morning, but only a few hours ago the LAPD managed to locate her and the kidnapper," Chloe hesitated and admitted to her greatest fear. "I can only hope that she is still alive. And then… the risk is increasing with time. This man… he is unhinged. Unpredictable."
"What does he want?"
"Revenge," whispered Chloe. "He lost someone he loved. I just… I do not see how he could be persuaded to let her go," she admitted helplessly.
"Detective, if your offspring would be alive when we get there, I promise you to get her back safely," replied Lucifer evenly. "And if she got killed, remember that the souls of the children are innocent and pure. Rest assured they go straight to the gates of Heaven."
The thought of her daughter being dead was too much. Chloe wavered, finally succumbing to the weakness, the walls of the elevator closing over her. Her vision darkened and her legs gave in. She would fell down if Lucifer didn't held her.
"I am sorry, Detective, I didn't mean… I wasn't thinking," he whispered hastily. Chloe never saw him so embarrassment, the rest of his distance dispersed. "I was just looking at the things from a different perspective. I am so sorry."
"Don't be," replied Chloe, gathering herself. During this terrible day, she was surrounded with the expressions of fake optimism or hasty consolations. Lucifer didn't lose time for pretences. "I missed you," she said earnestly.
"Why didn't you call me earlier?" he asked quietly and it sounded exactly like 'I missed you too'. However, Chloe didn't' manage to reply, as the elevator finished its course.
Lucifer quickly headed to the service exit, to avoid the crowds gathered at the club. Chloe followed him, trying to decide on the fastest way back to the museum. The next thing to consider would be to decide, what exactly they are going to do when they got to the museum. That was something she didn't think about, leaving it for a time, when she would get to Lucifer. Now, her head was empty.
Or maybe, she thought a bit hazily, weariness and hunger taking better of her for a moment, I do not have to think about anything. Didn't he promise to get her back safely? Maybe he would simply do it. After all, she came here led by belief, that Lucifer is more than a man. That he can do things beyond the human's possibilities. Maybe she should just stick to this belief.
"You've got to be kidding!" Maze's sharp voice cut off Chloe's deliberations, bringing her back to reality. Apparently, the detective was right, seeing the nervousness on the bartender's face during their earlier encounter. Maze must have been waiting for them on the parking and at Lucifer's sight, he snorted with anger.
"Everything was back to normal," she hissed at him, her eyes blazing. "And now what? She comes just like that, whistles, and you are what, back on the leash?..."
"Easy, Mazikeen. I have no time for your tantrums right now," replied Lucifer almost serenely and passed by the seething bartender. The detective after the short consideration followed his example, only kept a bit more distance. Maze looked as if she was about to rip someone into shreds.
"Where are you going?" demanded Maze, but Lucifer ignored her. He stepped in front of Chloe's car with the hand on the door form the driver side.
"Let me drive," he asked.
Chloe slowly nodded. She knew how he used to drive and realized he would get quicker to their destination. She needed only to trust that he won't kill them both during the way there.
"Put the siren on," she said with resignation, moving to the passenger's seat. At least they wouldn't be stopped for crossing the speed limit. "Just remember to take it off, until the police around the museum would notice it," she added, remembering they should remain unseen.
Lucifer froze, looking at her questioningly and Chloe realized he didn't understant the last precaution.
"Oh… you got me wrong," she said, confused. "I didn't ask for your help… officially. It is not the LAPD assignment. They kicked me off the scene, told me to go home and wait. The operation is led by an agent… he was doing his best, but now he is bending under pressure. And when the critical moment comes…" Chloe swallowed, imagining how quickly one hasty, inconsiderate decision could cost her daughter's life. "I… I know they… they won't make it. I mean… they won't save Trixie, so…"
"Trixie?" asked Maze nearing to them. "That child of yours? A small thing with these…?" she waved her hands around the head, imitating Trixie's ponytails. Chloe only nodded, not letting the eyes from Lucifer, who in the meantime remained motionless looking at her with a puzzled expression.
"So what exactly do you want me to do, Detective?" he asked quietly.
Chloe blinked, confused. Was he having… some second thoughts now? Because he heard they would be acting behind the police back?... Certainly not. The detective realized his voice wasn't helpless, only very… factual. He wasn't refusing her, only… checking the limits. She came closer and looked him in the eye almost challengingly.
"Bring her back. As you promised."
Whatever it takes. Wake the Hell up, if necessary, she thought and certainly he could have read it in her sight.
Lucifer crooked his head, watching her, and slightly nodded.
"Mazikeen. I think we would need you," he said casually, getting into the car.
The bartender snorted, but without the trace of previous hostility. "If there is going to be some action, I am in," she replied, placing herself in the backseat.
With the police siren on the car roof, Lucifer threw away the remains of the regards he might have had to the traffic rules. The detective for once didn't complain, only kept the sight glued to her palms, to avoid getting into the details of his narrow escape manoeuvres. In the meantime, she tried to consider the next part of the plan.
"I am not sure how we should proceed," she admitted. "I wanted the LAPD to let you… or me… negotiate with him, but they didn't agree. And, in fact, I am not certain whether this man can be persuaded to give up. He already… lost everything."
"Even the most heartless fiends have sometimes reservations against murdering children," observed Lucifer, so matter-of-factly, as if he was reading the manual. "Tell me more about this man."
"Benitez. The special informer Dan was working with. Do you remember this 'stunt' theme that flashed in my investigation from time to time? But keep looking at the road," she pleaded because Lucifer turned to her with vivid interest. "Benitez was a stunt. Bribed to the cooperation with the police, and then blackmailed by his own gang to continue it as a double agent. He was blackmailed with the life of his daughter, who, at the end was murdered. At least that's what Dan says," she added.
"Ah, the Douche! I am certain that his incompetence considerably contributed to this misfortune," muttered Lucifer.
"It did," stated matter-of-factly Chloe, simultaneously feeling obliged to add: "But we both made bad decisions, Dan and me. We were… quarrelling about her. I was sending her to Dan like a package because I was busy. And he was trying to prove me, that he is… better. And we didn't see her. Am I making any sense?" she asked, suddenly embarrassed with her openness.
"Not to me," replied Lucifer lightly. "But I am not an expert on children. Or on all these small family dramas."
"Only on the very big ones," chuckled Maze from the backseat.
Chloe shook her head, feeling familiar sting of irritation. Why did she think that opening to them would be a good idea?
"I have a feeling that Dan and I are being punished in consequence of our bad choices," she said curtly. "Does in sound more comprehensible to you?"
"Perhaps. And I know what you feel, Detective," observed Lucifer, not letting his eyes from the road, just as she asked him. "Guilt. That's something I am an expert on. You are searching for the way to blame yourself for your daughter's kidnapping. Believe me, that's… unnecessary."
"I know, I need to stick to the facts," muttered Chloe, more to herself than to him. She needed to concentrate on what she should do to help Trixie… not on what she should have done differently. The past couldn't be undone. "And yet I cannot stop thinking that each time this misfortune could have been avoided, we failed somehow, due to our small, petty sins, and now we are paying for it, as if it all was some kind of a plan…"
"Oh, but perhaps it was," replied Lucifer, seemingly so lightly as before, but with a shadow of strain in his voice. "Perhaps it was, indeed a part of the plan, for you and Daniel, to…" he chuckled in a rather unpleasant way and recited sneeringly: "to give you a lesson what truly matters in life and renew the respect to your marriage vows. If so, it apparently didn't work out, as you are here with me… theough perhaps you should be with him in the hospital, waiting and trusting that your daughter would be saved… by others. Perhaps that's what you should have done, Detective."
Chloe frowned at his last words, suspecting another mockery, but his this time his expression remained serious. Keeping his eyes on the road, he spoke again after a while, this time with more strain: "Or perhaps it was a plan for you to come to me… which would make it… a plan for me," he spat, not hiding anger, "so that we would get back together again… and you would keep prattling around me about the mercy… and this, obviously worked, because…"
Lucifer silenced for a while, driving through the big crossroad on the red lights, manoeuvring between two big trucks. Chloe squeezed the eyes shot, expecting the sound of crashing cars behind them, but all that followed them were the noises of horns.
"Because I was determined not to meet you again, Detective and yet when I saw you today, I cannot imagine another parting," he finished quietly, the gentle tone in strange contrast to his violent driving manoeuvre. "Or perhaps there was, indeed, no plan," he concluded in the casual tone. "Perhaps it was all accidental, Detective, and that's actually the worst option for your offspring, because, from what you told me, your LAPD colleagues won't be able to negotiate with this man releasing her."
"I know that much," snapped Chloe, her strained temper compromised by Lucifer's words. "That's why I asked for your help."
"Yes, you did…" he sighed and for a moment drove in silence. Chloe realized they were getting close to the museum and waved for him to take the siren off. Lucifer slowed to do it and suddenly stopped the car. "Asking for the help of the devil is bound to have consequences. I.. I have no idea where it would lead," admitted, sounding surprisingly helpless.
"I don't care," said quietly Chloe. She felt very, very tired, and the time was running out, but she felt that Lucifer needed some kind of assurance from her side, so she forced herself to look at him and say: "I want my daughter back, alive, now. I don't care about the consequences. I will deal with everything, somehow, later. I just need to get my child back."
Lucifer for a moment looked in her eyes as if he wanted to read her thoughts, and nodded. Without further comment he turned the car on again, this time slowly and cautiously driving closer toward the museum. Chloe already saw blue and red lights of police vehicles. And, of course, a few press trucks, unloading their equipment.
"You are overthinking it, Lucifer," snorted Maze from the backseat. "Plan, no plan, same shit. Let's go and spill some blood."
The detective turned back to explain, that the priority was Trixie's safety, not the bloodshed, but the bartender leant toward her with a spark of excitement in her eyes:
"I can gut this Benitez or whatever his name is," she offered. "Slowly."
"There will be no gutting," muttered Lucifer, casting an anxious glance at Chloe. However, the detective felt only slight irritation that he refused Maze's offer so easily. "I only need you, Mazikeen, to take care of the child, so that she wouldn't get scared."
"You are afraid that the child would get scared and you want me to take care of it," repeated slowly the bartender with utter amazement in her voice. "I even do not know which part of this sentence is more absurd. You play nanny. I will have fun with the guy."
"No fun," replied Lucifer, quietly, because they were stopped by the policeman who was turning back the cars from the street leading to the museum. Chloe showed him her badge and he let them pass. Lucifer parked a bit closer to the building, but still in a distance so that they wouldn't get noticed by the LAPD operational group, surrounding the building.
"No fun, Mazikeen," he repeated. "That man is... he lost a daughter."
"So what?" the bartender shrugged her shoulders and then looked at Lucifer with disbelief. "You really care about it!" she burst out with short laugher, though she looked more scared than amused. "Do you even hear yourself? That's… terryfying. Please, let's go home before it is too late!" she pleaded, but after short consideration added: "After we get this small human back."
"Just stop it," hushed them Chloe. In the meantime, she got out of the car and for a moment observed the situation. "To start with, I have no idea how are we even going to get inside."
It didn't look that the police made the move already and Chloe felt the wave of relief, feeling, that they were on time. If Benitez wasn't pressured, perhaps he didn't… he didn't do anything to Trixie. Then, however, she noticed, how tightly secured by the police cars the building was. And somewhere inside was a Trixie, held hostage by a madman. Suddenly she felt helpless again. Even if for a moment she felt a bit better, slightly consoled by the fact that she was not alone, now all the terror of the situation crushed her again. What on the hell was she about to do? Sneak inside, behind the back of the police? How?
"Getting inside won't be a problem," observed obliviously Maze, looking around. "For us."
And it was clear that by 'us' she meant herself and Lucifer. Chloe opened her mouth to object when she felt Lucifer's hand on her shoulder.
"You need to stay, Detective," he said quietly, but with finality in his voice. "That's the condition."
Chloe swallowed tears, that suddenly threatened to spill, Fear, helplessness and weariness suddenly overwhelming her. Lucifer was to help her, why was he asking her about the most difficult thing?
And yet arguing with him would only result in losing time. The detective gave up without further discussion.
"The LADP may intervene any moment," she said, trying to sound composed and failing, when the sob broke her voice. "There might be shooting. In such case, Trixie might be hurt, even accidentally…"
"Don't worry, I know what to do," muttered Maze. "I will keep her safe."
"Oh, and…" added quickly Chloe, the tears openly flowing down her face, "when you tell her to do like three little monkeys, she would cover her eyes and ears. We learnt her to do so when we were quarrelling with Dan… too often... so that she didn't… witness it."
She felt the Lucifer's grip on her shoulder tighten for a moment and saw how he and Maze exchange glances, looking then at her in disbelief.
Well, yes. She knew who she was asking for help.
"So, that would come in handy," stated Maze almost obliviously after a moment and turned back, striding toward the building.
Lucifer let her shoulder off and for a moment it looked as if he was going to wipe the tears from her face. Or at least embrace and hug her. However, instead, he reached for her hand and put it on the car door, pressing her palm slightly to the metal surface. Then, without any more word, he followed Maze.
It seemed they were walking straight toward the police cars, crowding around the museum.
And then, all of a sudden, the world went black.
Wholly black.
No like when the street lamps go down, or clouds cover the moon, or there is a blackout and lights are extinguished, and it gets darker, but still there remains, some light, reflected in the glass, or in water, or in the air, and the eyes eventually can adjust to it.
No. It was as something sucked out all light from the world, not leaving even smallest, shyest twinkle.
The detective had never experienced such darkness before. She gasped, suffocating as if the air devoided of light was also lacking oxygen and fought against the wave of vertigo. Suddenly she lost the sense of balance, not being able to tell top from bottom, her only anchor point in the reality being the cold, metal surface of the car she was still touching. Slowly, she leant herself over the vehicle, pressing her back to it, to stabilize herself and locate herself back in the reality.
She closed her eyes because the blackness behind her lids was more familiar than the darkness outside. For a moment, she just stood, breathing.
Slowly, with few deep breaths, the sense of panic diminished and her other senses sharpened. She heard the scared shouts of the poor policemen guarding the building – no, they certainly didn't expect anyone passing by them at the moment, and even it, they wouldn't be able to do anything about it. She also heard some vehicles horning and then crashing and only hoped that these were press cars, not the police ones.
And then it was over.
Just unexpectedly, as the unnatural darkness covered the world, it receded.
Lucifer and Maze were nowhere to be seen and the policemen were shouting and trying to reorganize themselves after the unexpected incident.
Chloe considered her options for a moment and decided that the only thing she could do would be keeping Monroe and Carson from premature intervention, that could hinder Lucifer's action. Quickly, she walked toward the blue and red police lights pulsing in front of the museum.
"What the fuck was it?" Carson's shouts were heard from the distance. "A blackout? Here? Now?"
He sounded a bit hysterical. The detective thought, she judged him right, seeing how this otherwise calm and composed man was changing under excessive pressure.
"A blackout," replied someone. "But it was too short. Benitez couldn't have escaped."
"Still, it shouldn't have happened. Ms Decker?" the agent noticed her and for a moment his expression faltered with discontent and anxiety. "What are you doing here? I thought you were going to the hospital."
"I couldn't stay away," she said only. "What are you going to do?"
"We tried to contact Benitez, but he refused to negotiate," replied Monroe. "We are going to try a forcible solution."
"No!..." gasped the detective, imagining the unit storming into the building, the exchange of fire and her daughter in the middle of it. "The risks…"
"I am aware of the risks," muttered Carson. He measures the dark museum building with a gloomy sight, then, almost subconsciously passed the glance by the press vehicles standing in the short distance. "Does your proposal still stand, Chloe?" he asked with hesitation. "Do you want… and feel up to the task… to talk with the kidnapper?"
"Yes!" called Chloe immediately. Then, however, she recalled Lucifer's words: 'You need to stay out of it. That's the condition.' He definitely didn't want her there.
But it was about Trixie. How could she stay away?
On the other hand, what if… her presence would cause some irreversible harm? Lucifer seemed absolutely confident of being able to cope with Benitez. What if her presence would case things slipping out of control? She had already trusted Lucifer over the legitimate police force, over her work colleagues. Apparently, she should also trust him over herself.
Please, let it all be true, she prayed silently. Let him really be the devil, so that he would be able to save my daughter.
"No," she replied with resignation. "No, I cannot."
"That's understandable," nodded Carson with resignation, unaware of her inner struggle. "In such case, there is no other choice but…"
The sound of shots, coming from the museum, resounded in the air.
Chloe's heart stopped beating, the wave of fear flooding over her. Carson cursed, just as Monroe, people around her started to shout and run and for a moment there was nothing but commotion. Someone pulled her aside and she saw the strike unit preparing to barge into the building. She thought about following them and, perhaps, in the general confusion she would manage to do that, to get to the building behind them.
And then she recalled once again, that she had to stay away.
Almost like in this fucking story about not looking back, she thought with desperation. The man was to get back his brother… or perhaps his wife… if he wouldn't look back while walking out of hell… The grey paths of hell from her dreams flickered in her mind and for a moment the ash-covered labyrinth seemed almost friendly. Everything would be better, than waiting here, in front of this building. That was real hell.
"Chloe, step aside," someone said to her and the detective recognized one of the police officers she knew quite well. "Or the press would spot you. They would kill for a photo of you at the moment."
Chloe nodded with a bitter smirk and let the woman led her under the arcades of the nearest building. She could wait there unnoticed.
For a moment she stood, pressing the hands to her mouths, dying inside.
"Decker!"
The sound of Maze's voice was like a hit of electric shock. The detective turned on the spot in its direction. The slim silhouette was barely visible in the darkness, but Chloe noticed that the bartender was keeping something in her arms and her heart stopped beating again.
"Here. All safe and sound," stated Maze. "Unhook yourself from me, little human," she touched the small hands wrapped around her neck but made no effort to pull them forcefully aside.
"Trixie!..." chocked Chloe.
"Mum!" sobbed Trixie, throwing herself straight from Maze's arm into hers.
Trixie, Trixie, Trixie… Chloe felt the tears flowing down her cheeks, when she was pressing the little body do herself, kissing her, cuddling, trying to check her limbs for any injuries…
"Maze, how…" she asked, but the passage under the arcades was empty.
Chloe returned her whole attention to her daughter, trying to whisper some words of comfort, though barely comprehensible due to emotions. Trixie, all tensed at first, slowly relaxed in her arms, at first quietly, then louder, finally drawing the attention of the police to them.
"That's her? That's this child?... Alive?" agent Carson appeared to be at the verge of collapsing, wiping away the sweat from his face. "How?..."
"I am not sure", replied Chloe, not letting Trixie out of her arms, even when she felt that someone led them to the ambulance. She only released her hold a bit to let the medic examine Trixie, but still kept her on her lap.
"She must have escaped from the building," informed her Monroe, peeking into the ambulance. "Benitez is dead, you know? Suicide," she added lowering her voice. "Carson almost died when he saw it. He was certain, that…"
That Benitez killed Trixie before committing suicide, finished Chloe in her thoughts and ran her hands again over her daughter's body, making sure that she was alive, that she was fine, no matter what happened in that museum.
When the ambulance pulled out and Chloe, still not letting Trixie go, reached to her pocket for the phone and called Dan.
"Trixie's fine," she said immediately after hearing his voice. "I have her."
"I know," replied Dan. "Are you going to the hospital now?" He must have heard their ambulance signal in the phone.
"Yes. She is fine. She just needs to be hydrated. Probably we would even be able to visit you later. How did you know? Someone called you, right? What did they say?" asked Chloe to learn more about the events in the museum. "I even don't know what exactly happened."
"Neither do I," replied Dan. "It was Maze, you know. She only told me that Trixie is found. Maze and Lucifer were there, right? I thought you asked her to call me."
Chloe would have got surprised if she didn't felt that tired. And cold. Finally, the adrenaline that kept her going started to drop and she succumbed to the wave of exhaustion, the only energy that remained concentrated on keeping the hold on Trixie.
"No," she replied only. "It must have been Lucifer. Yes, they were here."
She disconnected the conversation and leant herself over the ambulance wall, oblivious to anything other than the child in her arms.
This had to be shorter and a bit darker. And still, the last chapter is still to be written. Stay with me for one more installment :)