Sorry about the slow uploads of chapters; I have not forgotten about this story. Life has been hectic in a good way, with a full-time job and taking a few courses. But I promise that I will finish this story; it just might take a little longer than I anticipated. I hope you enjoy this installment. Sorry if there are any grammar mistakes; my lovely beta-reader is currently unavailable at this time, and I am looking for a new beta reader.
Slowly his eyes opened to an unfamiliar room, awakened by the aroma of something he hadn't smelt in millennia; the sweet smell of coffee. Gingerly he pushed himself off the soft bed into the seated position and glanced around the modest room. The sun was high in the sky, shining through the slightly open blinds. Lucifer smiled when his memory came back to him.
After the lengthy shower he had with the detective, he had collapsed carelessly into the bed and wrapped his unclothed body in the soft duvet. The woman sat next to him, her fingers playing in his hair until he drifted off into a surprisingly dreamless sleep.
Currently, the detective was absent from the room. His leg swung to the side of the bed, and he pulled the white sheet to wrap around his waist. He walked towards the slightly open door; he pulled the doorknob and noticed the woman walking up the stairs with a tray in her hand. She looked up at him, somewhat startled, almost dropping the contents of the trey on the stairs.
"Lucifer!" Chloe smiled; she walked up the rest of the stairs. "Good, you're awake. I brought us some breakfast in bed. I mean, it's mid-afternoon, but breakfast food seemed like a great idea."
"Lovely." Lucifer returned the smile as he gestured for the woman to enter the room. The intoxicating smell reached his nostrils. He didn't realize how hungry he actually was.
Chloe placed the tray on the bedside table. "One more thing. I'll be right back." Without even thinking, she reached up and gave him a peck on the lips. "Make yourself comfortable." She hurried out of the room.
Lucifer sat back down on the bed and leaned against the headboard. His stomach was starting to growl. He glanced over at the arranged fruit in a bowl; he plucked one green grape still on the vine and popped it in his mouth. The grape squished between his teeth; the fruit was the perfect combination of juicy and sour. It tasted so good.
Chloe had returned with a second smaller tray. One with two cups and a carafe. "Coffee?" She beamed. She placed the coffee tray on her dresser and poured the coffee into the two cups, handing one cup to the Devil. The woman stood close to him near the bed. "One last thing." She magically pulled out a small bottle from the deep pockets of her housecoat. It was a bottle of whisky.
"You are really something else." Lucifer was amazed; he placed the cup on the table and pulled the woman onto the bed. The woman snuggled into his arms and rested in his bare chest. She was so happy to see him act more like himself.
"You seem to be feeling better." There was a noticed question behind her voice. "How is your back?"
"A little pain won't keep this devil down." He kissed the woman on the forehead. She was kind of annoyed that he didn't give a straight answer, but she wasn't going to dwell on it; she just wanted to enjoy the moment.
"Let's eat." She shifted to the edge of the bed. She was ready to give Lucifer one of the plates stacked with pancakes and a side of bacon. However, he was busy opening the bottle of whisky and topping off his coffee with its contents. She waited, holding the plate until he had a sip of his coffee before he realized what was in front of his face.
"Thank you." He gratefully took the plate and placed it on his lap.
Chloe made herself comfortable, sitting across from him, one leg tucked in, and the other hung off the bed. Her plate balanced in her hand. Her fork cut through the soft layer of pancakes.
"Oh my dad, these are amazing." Lucifer let out a moan as he shoved another fork full into his mouth. "How did I not know you could make these?" His playful eyes looked up at her.
"It's no secret recipe." Chloe let out a little chuckle. "It's from a box, and all I did was add water." She pursed her lip as if she had just revealed a shocking secret.
"Really? Well, they are still amazing." He took another bite.
The woman watched him, every so often taking a bite of her own food; her heart was relieved to see that he didn't change too much. It did take long until his plate was empty. Chloe took the plate from him and placed it on the dresser along with her half-eaten one. She could feel his eyes on her.
"You're not hungry?" Lucifer asked.
"No, not right now." She walked up to the bed. "Can I check you back?" She asked her hand on his shoulder. The Devil nodded his head and turned his back towards her. Her hand gently grazed over the wound under his left shoulder. Chloe was stunned to see that it had healed so well. "Umm, Lucifer," He looked over his shoulder. "Does a demon blade wound usually heal this fast?"
"No." He was straight to the point.
"Then how is this..." Chloe was struggling to understand the logic behind it all.
"Where was the blade?" Lucifer turned around to ask the woman.
"In your back through your wi..." As she spoke, a light bulb went off in her head. "your wings." He gave her a knowing smile. He scooted over on the bed and patted on the spot he had just vacated. Chloe sat on the bed and immediately found herself in his arms. Her head rested on his chest, her arm wrapped around his torso. "I was so scared."
"Nothing to be scared of. I'm going to be just fine, just a little beat up. Nothing I can't handle." His arm tightened around her body and kissed the top of her head.
A comfortable silence filled the room. Chloe could feel his chest rhythmically rise and fall with every deep breath he took. His gentle fingers slowly caressed her arm. It was still difficult for her to believe that he was here, let alone in her bed.
"Talk to me," Lucifer mumbled; Chloe looked up and noticed that his head was resting on the headboard, his eyes closed.
"About what?" Chloe wasn't sure what he meant.
"Anything. An interesting case. Trixie. I just miss hearing your voice." The man reached for his coffee with the hand holding her; he carefully transferred the cup to the other hand over the top of her head. His arm returned to wrap around her body as he took a sip from the hot spiked beverage.
"I don't know what to say." The woman bit her lip. "So much has happened in..." The woman was drawing a blank; the last year was not one she wanted to repeat. "I have been more in the office doing paperwork than in the field." She could feel his eyes on. She looked up to see a question mark across his face. "It's nothing. The cases I have been on have been straight to the point, easy to solve. Disgruntled son. Angry Ex. But nothing too major. My focus hasn't been..." Chloe let out a sigh. "Umm...yeah, it's been different since...since you been gone." Her body tensed in her arms.
"I'm sor..." He started but caught himself remembering that she wanted him to stop apologizing.
"It's ah..." She couldn't bring herself to say that it was okay. It wasn't okay; she was miserable without him, and it showed in her work. Her solve rate was unprecedented with him as her partner, but without him around, she had missed clues that were right under her nose.
"Trixie has been attracting the boys at school." Chloe quickly changed the subject, which worked because his eyes lit up.
"What? No, that's not...no one will be good enough for her."
"Don't worry; she's not interested." Chloe let out a light chuckle, amused that he immediately went into protective mode. "Maze has been teaching her some moves to keep them away."
"Good. The last thing the urchin needs right now is a boy. Vile sticky little creatures." The words came out with utter disgust. "She's too bright for them."
"That's the same thing Dan said." Chloe gave the man a weak smile.
"Well, it's true." Lucifer let out a sigh; his head rested on the headboard once more. He took another drink of coffee. Another spout of silence filled the room again.
The detective noticed his foot sticking out of the blankets. The iron chain wrapped around his ankle brought her back to reality. Her emotions were still raw as she recalled everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. Just yesterday, she was grieving his absence. The local news even covered a story about the anniversary of his speculated death. She didn't know how she was going to explain this one to the Lieutenant. Chloe knew that Ross was already afraid of him; she even reassured him that the Devil would not return. She couldn't tell him. The woman wondered if the LAPD would consider Lucifer a suspect in the missing people found in the fire if he suddenly reappeared. If she didn't know him, he would be on top of her list of suspects. She was thankful that the people in their inner circle at the station knew what really transpired that night. Dan saw it with his own eyes when he pulled her out of the building. There had to be a way she could convince them to find a way to close the case before he resurfaced. The more the woman thought about it, the more her anxiety grew. Chloe wanted nothing more than life to go back to normal before Lucifer left for Hell in the first place. A time when they had spent their days solving murders. Life seemed a lot more complicated now.
"Detective? Is everything alright?" Lucifer snapped her out of her head. Only to realize that she was holding onto his side with a vice grip, nail digging into his side.
"I'm so sorry, I..." Chloe sat up from her position. She gently brushed his side where her hand was. The marks from her nails were barely visible. "I just...trying to wrap my head around you being back and what that all means."
"I'm back. For good now. Are you not happy about that?" Lucifer browed furrowed with confusion. He thought this was a good thing, better than the alternative, that for sure.
"Yes. Of course, it is." Chloe reassured him; she adjusted herself on the bed to look at him without twisting her body awkwardly. "It's just...complicated." Her mind was reeling, trying to figure out a way to tell him about the very public investigation with LUX and his uncertain disappearance.
"How is it complicated?" Lucifer placed the cup back on the night table.
"Lucifer, the night that you left...with the fire there was..." Chloe's throat was dry as she tried to find the right words. She reached for his hands, and she was about to speak when the doorbell rang throughout the house. Chloe looked back towards the door, she started to stand, but the Devil didn't let go of her hands. "I should see who it is."
"Tell me." Lucifer insisted; there was a concerned look on his face. The doorbell went off again, followed by loud knocking.
"Please. I promise I'll tell you everything." Chloe pleaded, slowly, he let go of her hand. She got off the bed and adjusted her robe before she hurried out of the room.
"Chloe, let me in." A familiar voice came from the other side of the door. The man's fist banged against the door.
The woman opened the door and was face to face with her ex-husband. "What is it?" Her tone was harsher than she meant it to be.
"Chloe, are you okay?" Dan stepped inside the house without being invited; he couldn't help but notice the woman's attire. In all his life, he had never seen her still in sleepwear past nine in the morning. "I tried calling you all day; I came as soon as I could get away from the precinct." He looked around the room for any signs of distress. "Are you okay?"
"Look, Dan, I'm fine." Chloe let out a sigh of slight annoyance. "It's just been...it's not a good time."
"What is going on?" Dan's curiosity peaked; he had noticed the strange-looking weapons on the floor just inside the front door. "What are those?"
"I can explain. Those..." Chloe started but was interrupted.
"Daniel!" The Devil descended the stairs, the chain around his ankle rattling with every step he took. The white sheet was wrapped around his waist, the healing battle wounds visible upon his bare chest. "It's wonderful to see you." Chloe glanced at Dan to see his reaction, and just as she suspected, his face was in shock as if he saw a ghost. "I see you haven't changed much, still the same simple look on your face." Lucifer always had a weird way of showing his endearment towards Dan.
"Lucifer." Chloe scolded the childlike immortal in a grown man's body. "Dan, I would have called you, but Lucifer, he was at my door, hurt. Really hurt. I didn't know..." Chloe stopped and looked at the floor as if she was a teenager in trouble hiding her boyfriend from her parents.
"Chloe, I thought you said that he was in...you know." Dan turned to face the woman, talking about the Devil as if he wasn't standing there.
"Yeah, I know," Chloe whispered.
"This is bad; if Ross finds out, it will affect everything." There was panic in his voice.
"I know." She repeated.
"What are we going to do?" Dan finally looked back at Lucifer.
"I don't know yet." The woman sighed.
"Well, you can start by catching me up to what is going on." The immortal demanded, frustration building up with being out of the know.
"I'm sorry, Lucifer. I was trying to tell you. There is an investigation undergoing after the fire at LUX and the murder of eleven people. Your body wasn't found, you are presumed dead, but they still have ruled you out as a suspect." Chloe blurted out, finally. She was watching for his reaction to the information, but he just listened intently. "If they find out you are alive, you will be the number suspect to the murders."
"Oh, this is bad." Lucifer let out a defeated sigh.