Chloe sat with Lucifer in his lawyer's office as they prepared to figure out their best course of action going forward. They needed to figure out a game plan before Dan managed to get people to listen to him.

"Lucifer, are you sure you don't want to speak privately?" Lucifer's lawyer, William
Geoffrey asked.

Chloe glared at the man. She knew it was his job to look after Lucifer's best interests, but it annoyed her that he was trying to push her out of a meeting about her own child. "Excuse me, but this is my daughter we are talking about."

"Yes. Detective Decker is Beatrice's mother. You will treat her as such. As far as you're concerned, she is your client now as well," Lucifer said strongly.

"Very well. It's just that on the rare occasion that something like this happens, the biological parent and the adoptive one are not on the same side," Mr. Geoffrey said.

"Well, we want what's best for Beatrice, and that means working together as her parents," Chloe said.

"I'm assuming that there is another problem, otherwise you wouldn't be here," Geoffrey said.

"My ex-husband. He didn't respond well when I told him. He's trying to get the police involved to try to take Beatrice from Lucifer. Our main concern at the moment is that if Social Services gets involved, they'll put her in a foster home until everything is sorted out. That's the protocol when something like this happens. We want to prevent that. Beatrice has been through enough hell without being taken away from the one home she's always been safe in." Chloe explained.

"I assume your also preparing for a possible custody battle with your ex. Tell me everything you can about him," Geoffrey said.

Chloe did so. She explained everything that happened the day her daughter was kidnapped, including that sobriety test determined that Dan was legally drunk. She also told him how often Dan had chosen other things over his family even before Beatrice was taken.

Mr. Geoffrey smiled smugly. "He won't get custody. I can just about guarantee that, especially with the two of you working together."

"We didn't really think he would have a chance at custody, but we're worried about how much time he could get with Beatrice. We don't trust him with her. The last time he was alone with her, she was abducted right in front of him. We want him to have as minimal contact as possible," Chloe said.

"I'd prefer no contact at all unless Beatrice wants it," Lucifer spoke up.

"That could be tricky. He's still the biological parent. Judges tend to want to preserve parental rights as much as possible. Unfortunately, Lucifer, that means that it's very likely that your adoption of this child will end up being voided," Geoffrey said.

"She's my child. I don't care what any judge or paper says," Lucifer said firmly

Chloe took his hand. "The people that matter will know that."

"Like I said, the two of you have a good case for custody, and I think I can make a good case for getting your ex very strict visitation due to his history. I can try to have his rights terminated, but I don't think it will be successful," Geoffrey said.

"Alright, we can decide that later. We're more concerned with keeping Beatrice out of foster care," Chloe said.

Mr. Geoffrey nodded. "I think we can avoid that.

"Excellent. What do we do?" Lucifer asked.

"We avoid the police and Social Services entirely. I get us a meeting with a judge, and you explain your situation, and by that I mean your desire to work together for the child. Do not mention the pending custody battle with the biological father. Say only what you have to," he advised.

"But won't the judge want to know about Dan? Chloe asked.

"The judge might ask, but if that happens, you let me do the talking. You don't have an existing custody order, so unless your ex files a petition before we speak to a judge, he doesn't need to be notified."

Lucifer smiled at his lawyer. He did appreciate a man who took advantage of loopholes and technicalities, especially when that man was doing it for his benefit. "Very well. Do what you must."

Xxxxxxxxxxx

A few hours later, Chloe and Lucifer were sitting in a judge's chambers with their lawyer and the judge that would here their petition.

"Well, this is definitely an unusual case. Let me first say, Detective Decker, that I'm very sorry for what you've been through," the judge said.

"Thank you, Your Honor. Right now, I'm just focused on trying to do what's best for my daughter, which is for her to stay where she is. Once the police and Social Services finds out, they will try to put her in a temporary foster home," Chloe said.

"As a member of the criminal justice system, I don't think I have to tell you that there is a reason that protocol exists," he said.

"No, Your Honor, but that protocol doesn't take into consideration the individual child's needs. I know that in many cases, a foster home is initially best for abducted kids, but it's not what's best for Beatrice. She's had very little stability in her life since she was taken. Lucifer has been the first person to offer her that," Chloe explained.

The judge nodded. "Despite the very short notice your attorney gave me before hearing this petition, I managed to get ahold of and read the adoption file. I know that life has not been easy for this child. I am glad to see that you both seem to have that in mind right now. I am curious as to what your goal is though, Detective Decker. Do you intend to try to regain custody of your child?"

"Lucifer and I want to try to work that out for ourselves. We wanna make this as easy as we can for Beatrice," Chloe said.

"What about the child's father? I have noticed that he's not here to give his opinion," the judge said.

"Your Honor, Detective Decker explained the situation to her ex-husband a few days ago. She hasn't heard from him since, and he apparently showed very little interest in the child before she was abducted," Mr. Geoffrey said.

Chloe had to give their lawyer credit. He managed to remain completely honest with the judge regarding Dan while also withholding quite a lot of information. She just hoped it didn't come back to bite them down the road.

"But it's possible that he may not agree with what's being done today. I don't like the idea of making a decision like this without all parties having the chance to argue their cases, however, my job is to determine the best interest of the child, and after reading the adoption file, I don't think it's in the best interests of this child to be removed from her home. Mr. Morningstar, I'm going to grant you a temporary custody order while everything is sorted out, but you need to understand that either parent still has the right to file for custody in the future."

"Thank you, Your Honor," Lucifer said.

"Yes, thank you so much," Chloe said before sighing with relief. It was far from over, but for right now at least, no one could take Beatrice away from them.