Lucifer is waiting for them at the entrance of the station, already halfway through a bag of mini-donuts.

"Finally," He exclaims when he spots them. "I've been waiting here for ages."

"You could have just met us at the lab." Decker says, amused. "Or did you get distracted by the vending machine?"

"For your information, you took so long that I had time to nip down to the precinct refrigerator. There was nothing there worth eating, so I was forced to use the vending machines." He sticks another donut in his mouth, muttering, "I can't believe I actually miss Daniel."

He had brushed it off, but Joy thinks that Lucifer was only waiting for them because he didn't want to go down into the precinct alone. Murmurs follow them as Decker strides through the precinct to the lab, and she sees several officers whispering together and pointing in Lucifer's direction. Lucifer may have retired, but he was still well-known.

Decker gives the lab door a cursory knock before walking in. "What have you got for me, Gabby?"

They all file into the lab and gather around the table. Joy studies the evidence bag containing the blood-stained knife, the pictures of the crime scene, but mostly she peers at a recent picture of their victim. Haley Sanders had been young, with a beautiful smile that had lit up her entire face. Joy hopes fiercely that they have found something that will help them catch the monster who snuffed that light out.

The forensic scientist is over in the corner, her back to them as she types furiously on her laptop. She's humming under her breath, dancing a little in her seat. At first Joy thinks it's like her own nervous habit of playing imaginary piano, until she spots the earbuds in the woman's ears.

"Gabby." Decker leans over and tugs the earbuds out. "You have something for me?"

"I just need to finish this up. Keep your pants on, Decker." She doesn't turn around, but Joy can hear the smile in her voice.

Decker grins. "I have to, otherwise you'll just chuck them in the pool again." He gives the woman's ponytail a tug.

The woman huffs. "Ugh, are you still mad about that? That was almost twenty-" She spins around in her chair and spots Lucifer. Her face breaks into a grin. "Uncle Lucifer!"

Joy's mouth drops open. Uncle Lucifer?

Decker just barely gets out of the way as the woman shoots out of the chair and launches herself at Lucifer's midsection, almost slamming him into the wall. "I can't believe you're here, in my lab." She squeals, squeezing him around the middle. "This is great!"

"Yes, well," Lucifer is trying, and failing, to squirm his way out of her grip. "Of course when it was suggested I help with this case I made time to see my favorite niece." He puts his hands on her shoulders and gives her a push, but she doesn't seem to notice.

"I'm your favorite niece?" She finally lets him go to clap her hands together, utterly delighted.

"Gabby," Decker sounds like he's trying not to laugh. "You're his only niece."

"I know, but it's been so long." Gabby leans against the examining table as she beams up at Lucifer. "I missed having him around. I mean, where has the fun Uncle Lucifer been? You know, the one who took me to Las Vegas on my twenty-first birthday?"

"And where was he on my twenty-first birthday?" Decker grumbles good-naturedly from the other end of the table. "All I got was a party at Lux."

Lucifer tucks his hands in his pockets. "I was going to do the same for you," he tells Decker loftily, "But as soon as your mother got wind of it she vetoed the whole scheme. And it's not as if a party at Lux is anything to scoff at. I mean, you did get free drinks all night, didn't you?"

"I've been getting free drinks there since I was ten. Comes with being the son of the owner." In spite of his grumbling, Decker doesn't look angry. In fact, he seems to be enjoying himself. "Gabby, I don't think you met my new partner yet, have you?"

The woman turns and Joy takes her in. She's shorter than all of them by a head, with delicate features and large, amber eyes hidden behind black-framed glasses. She has her straight, black hair held back in a ponytail with a scrunchie. Like Joy, she's dressed in jeans, but instead of a plain T-shirt, hers is emblazoned with a cartoonish ghost holding a sign that says "boo-tiful". She looks like she should be in high school chemistry class, not the forensic laboratory of the LAPD.

"Gabby, this is my new partner, Detective Joy Roberts." Decker says as he maneuvers to the other side of the table. "Detective Roberts, this is our Forensics expert, Gabriella Lopez."

Joy smiles at the other woman. "It's nice to meet-oh!" This is because the woman has pulled her into an enthusiastic hug.

"You can call me Gabby." She says brightly.

"Um, ok, thanks." Joy tries to peel her off, but with no luck. She looks to Decker for help, but he's too busy shuffling through the photos of the crime scene

Lucifer fussily adjusts his jacket. "She gets that from her mother." He tells Joy sympathetically.

Joy finally manages to wrench herself out of Gabby's grip. "So, you two are cousins?" She gestures to Decker.

Gabby smiles. "Oh, Lucifer's not my real uncle. It's more of an honorary title. My mom worked with Sam's mom and dad as the old Forensic scientist, and was one of their closest friends." She nods over in Decker's direction. "And Sam and I were born only a year apart, so we grew up together." Her grin turns thoughtful. "Though I was named after one of Uncle Lucifer's brothers. You know, the angel Gabriel? I guess that makes Sam and me cousins by proxy."

Joy looks at both Decker and Lucifer, desperately waiting for one of them to shout "April Fools!". But neither of them do. Decker is too busy frowning at the knife on the table, and Lucifer has pulled a flask from his jacket pocket and is taking a swig.

"For the record, I tried to talk her mother out of naming her after Gabriel." Lucifer tells her, putting his flask away.

Decker snorts, but when he glances up his attention is on Gabby. "Now that we've gotten that all cleared up, you want to fill us in, Gabby?"

"Oh, right!" Gabby hustles back to her computer. "So, cause of death was stabbing, obvs. But here's the weird thing." She points to the knife. "That knife there matches most of the stab wounds, except for the one that killed her."

"That makes no sense." Joy protests. "How could it match all the stab wounds except one?"

Gabby shrugs. "I only know what the forensics tells me, and they say there were two knives. One that made the majority of the stab wounds, and one that made what was probably the killing blow."

"We combed that entire place, and only found the one knife." Decker muses. "The killer must have taken it with him. But why stab her so many times? Everyone I talked to loved Haley-what did she do to deserve such a punishment?" He turns to Gabby. "No chance you found any prints on the knife?"

"Ok, so this is the part where you tell me love me." Gabby chirps back. "Because not only did I get a print off the knife, I did some research and found the guy in the system." She grabs a nearby tablet and slides it over to Decker. "Meet Clive Fleming. Ex-con and the diner's grill cook."

Decker pulls the tablet closer and grimaces. "Ouch. Now there's a face." He shows his father the tablet and they both shudder.

"Let me see." Joy peers over Decker's shoulder. The man in the picture is about fifty-ish, weedy-looking. He has a head of thinning, stringy blonde hair and bloodshot eyes. His teeth are an off shade of white; from smoking, drugs, or both, she surmises. "Eh, I've dated worse."

She looks up and has to swallow a laugh at the identically horrified stares both Decker and Lucifer are giving her. "What? A few of those guys actually turned out to be really sweet."

"That's right." Gabby pipes up from her desk, where she's been clicking around on the laptop. "Sometimes true beauty is found deep under the surface."

Decker grunts disbelievingly. "Well, there appears to be a thief deep below this guy's surface." He swipes through the man's rap sheet. "Petty larceny, burglary, more larceny. Never anything big, but enough to land him in jail a few times."

"Perhaps that's how our victim ran afoul of this man." Lucifer suggests. "Perhaps he went back to his thieving ways, got caught with his hand in the cash register."

Decker nods, following along. "She goes out back, confronts him, and he takes a knife from the kitchen and kills her." He frowns. "Doesn't explain the second knife, though."

But Joy has just noticed something. "Check this out. Clive's last known address." She points to it on the screen, and then at the address listed on the photocopy of Haley's driver's license. "It's the same as Haley's." She nibbles her bottom lip in thought. "Maybe this is about more than just theft. Maybe they were lovers."

Lucifer makes a sound of revulsion. "Are you telling me this lovely creature was sleeping with that troll?" He motions to the picture of Haley. "I suppose there is no accounting for taste."

"But think about it." She protests. "He's an ex-con, right? It's hard to find a job when you have a record. Maybe they start dating, and she gets him a job as a cook. Maybe he doesn't even have to steal-but because of his past, she accuses him of it. That ticks him off, so he stabs her. Rage can account for the second knife." She tells Decker. "He could have broken the first one and had to go back for another."

"It can be infuriating, being judged based solely on your past." Lucifer agrees, something dark flickering across his expression.

"Both good theories." Decker puts the tablet down. "But nothing more than speculation, until we track down Clive. Gabby, you got anything on his whereabouts?"

"Already a few steps ahead of you." Gabby grabs a piece of paper off the printer. "Clive didn't show up to work today, so I went through his file for any associates, and guess whose name came up." She points to a name, and Decker grins.

"You're the best, Gabby." He folds the paper and puts it in his jacket pocket. "I swear, you're a much better cousin than the one I ended up with."

"Seriously, Sam, I wish you two would just make up already." Gabby complains. She turns to Joy. "He has an older cousin named Charlie who also works for the L.A.P.D." Her gaze slides to Decker, whose expression has turned stony.

Too bad his father doesn't notice. "That's right, where is Charlie? I don't think I've seen him since I've been here." Lucifer whirls to look around the precinct, as if expecting the cousin to appear out of thin air. "Weren't you two partners, once upon a time?"

"We were." Decker replies in a voice that's deliberately bland. "But he decided he wanted to move on to bigger things."

"Are you still on that?" Gabby sighs "I mean, it's not like you wanted to be a lieutenant."

There's a funny buzzing in Joy's head. "Lieutenant Martin? Lieutenant Martin is your cousin?" She had been expecting another cop, or a detective. Never in a million years would she have pegged the large, imposing Lieutenant as Decker's cousin.

"You don't need to rub it in." Decker mumbles.

Lucifer seems just as shocked by this development. "Wait, when was Charlie made a Lieutenant? Why didn't anyone tell me?" he demands.

"It's kind of hard to keep you up to date on family news when we can't find you, Dad." Decker snaps back irritably. Lucifer rocks back on his heels as if he's been slapped.

Decker takes a deep breath, lets it out. "I'm not angry that Charlie got picked to be Lieutenant." He explains with strained patience. "Like Gabby said, it's not like I ever wanted the position-I'm perfectly happy being a detective. What pisses me off," Decker's eyes flash with temper. "Is that he uses it as an excuse to be more of a dick than he usually is."

"You need to cut him some slack," Gabby opens a drawer and pulls out a couple of lollipops. Lucifer's eyes brighten when Gabby hands him one. "It's probably really stressful, being a Lieutenant."

"Whose side are you on, Gabby?" Decker demands.

"I'm not on anyone's side." She retorts, unwrapping her lollipop and sticking it in her mouth. She offers one to Joy, who shakes her head. "You and Charlie do this all the time. You fight and bicker like an old married couple for a few weeks, but eventually you make up because," her voice shifts into a singsong, "you love each other."

The laugh bursts out of Joy before she can stop it.

Decker looks positively insulted. "How dare-" Oddly, he breaks off, looking annoyed with himself. "I resent that."

"Resent it all you want." Gabby teases. "You know it's true."

"Right, well, getting back to more important topics." Joy busts in. They do have a murder to solve, after all. "Clive's probably in the wind by now, and I doubt he's going to go back to the apartment he lived in with Haley."

After a quick glare at the forensic scientist, Decker nods. "We'll send out a few officers to watch the apartment just in case he is that dumb. The good news is that I know where that old associate of his works. This should be fun." He snatches the abandoned lollipop off the table and stuffs it in his jacket.

"I'll text you if there is any movement on his credit card or bank accounts." Gabby assures them.

"Thanks, Gabby!" Decker calls over his shoulder as he leads them out of the lab.

Wondering what could be fun about hunting down a possible murderer's associate, Joy gives Gabby a grateful wave as she follows, Lucifer right behind her.

"So where exactly are we supposed to find this troll's associate?" Lucifer asks. If he's still upset by his son's earlier comment, he doesn't show it.

Decker's good humor seems to have been restored, because he spins around to give his father a grin. "Your favorite place, Dad. Paradise."

"Paradise Bar and Lounge." Joy reads the name out loud as she climbs out of the car.

"A bit of a misnomer," Decker climbs out of the driver's seat. "As it's not a lounge, nor is it truly Paradise. Just a bar that caters to a more degenerate clientele than most."

Joy studies the ramshackle exterior of the bar. It sits dejectedly in the middle of what used to be a strip mall before hard times hit the other stores and forced them to sell. Surrounded by for lease signs and empty lots, Paradise Bar and Lounge looks very much like the last guest to leave the party. The fluorescent sign flashes sporadically, as if even the bar isn't sure whether or not it's still in business.

"More like Paradise lost." Lucifer remarks sarcastically as he gazes around the half-empty parking lot. "I'm suddenly glad I didn't bring my own car."

Joy was just grateful the ride had been a short one. Lucifer had opted to ride with them, sitting right behind her as Decker drove. While she and Decker had talked mainly about the case, Lucifer had peppered Decker with what she supposed he considered "fatherly" questions (when was the last time you had sex? Do your wings still pop out when you're frustrated? Have you always driven this slow?).

At one point she almost interjected, until she caught the expression on Decker's face. There was a light in his eyes she hadn't seen before, and it occurred to her that this was probably the first time in a long while that Lucifer had taken an active interest in his son's life. While Decker had answered his father succinctly (one week, you know I grew out of that, and shut up), it was obvious that he saw these prying, intimate questions as a beacon of hope.

So she had kept her mouth shut.

"Ok, the guy we're looking for is Vincent Carramazo, or Vinny. He and Clive used to be buddies before Clive was put away last time." Decker tells Joy and his father. "He helped out on a few jobs, was even picked up a time or two, but they could never make anything stick."

"What makes you think he's here?" Joy eyes the bar apprehensively.

"He listed this as his place of employment." Decker assures her. "Hopefully, Vinny's heard from Clive and will know where to find him."

"Or the troll might come looking for him to enact revenge." Lucifer tells them both knowingly. "Since he got arrested while this friend of his escaped punishment."

"Either way, it's the best lead we got, so let's go in and ask around." Decker replies firmly.

Inside, the bar is just as dingy as its exterior. Smoke hangs thick in the air, and the floor doesn't look like it's been swept this millennium. The walls are bare except for some yellowed, framed liquor ads. A jukebox sits in one corner, as derelict as the dozen or so men in the room. Behind the bar is a skinny, grimy-looking bartender, whose scowl deepens when the three of them walk through the door.

"Cops." He says with disgust. Joy wonders how he can even tell through the haze. There's a swell of murmurs as the patrons of the bar all turn to glare in their direction.

Decker just smiles, unintimidated. "Technically, two cops and a consultant." He flashes his badge. "We're looking for Vinny Caramazzo. You gentlemen haven't heard from him recently, have you?"

There's a unified growl as the men in the bar slowly get to their feet. Joy's hand shifts to her gun. Lucifer, meanwhile, is gazing about the bar with an expression of disappointment, as if the bar has failed some sort of pop quiz.

"Come on now, speak up." He tells the men, unaware of the potential danger. "Surely one of you malcontents has heard from him. Just tell us and we'll let you get back to your, erm..." His gaze flicks to the bar with its dusty, grimy liquor bottles, "beverages."

"We don't talk to cops." One of the men steps forward. He's tall, a brute of a man, with a hard face and harder eyes. He gives both Decker and his father a disgusted once over before turning his attention to Joy, his eyes crawling up and down her body. His lips curl up in a leer. "Though we might make an exception for you, pretty thing. What do you say? There's a back room if you want to...interrogate me."

His lewd tone makes her skin crawl, and it's an effort not to wrinkle her nose with distaste. When she worked in Narcotics, she often had to play along in order not to blow her cover. She knows her expression is dutifully blank, denying the creep the satisfaction of seeing her grimace. She glances over at her partner, waiting for his signal on how he wants to play this.

Both Decker and his father have stiffened and are staring at the man in front of them with such predator-like intent it sends a chill down Joy's spine. Even the loud-mouth in front of them is affected, the leer slowly fading from his face he glances back and forth between father and son.

Decker is the first to thaw. He leans towards his father. "After you."

"Lovely." Lucifer murmurs with a chilly smile. He steps forward and punches the man in front of them so hard it sends him hurtling across the room.

Time seems to slow down as the patrons of the bar, enraged, launch themselves at Lucifer. Joy's hand goes for her gun, only to find herself being pushed gently to the opposite side of the bar by Decker, effectively getting her out of the way of the chaos. Decker joins her, leaning against the bar as if he couldn't care less that his father is surrounded by a crowd of irate, vicious men.

She finds out why pretty quickly. Lucifer may be outnumbered but is hardly outmatched.

He moves with breathtaking speed, evading knives and dodging fists with the grace of a martial artist. Blows don't land, weapons miss him completely, and soon the cries of rage turn into pained yelps as the crowd of men is whittled down to only a few. The rest lay on the floor-either moaning despondently or knocked out cold.

Joy grabs one of Decker's wrists, wide-eyed, as one man comes up behind Lucifer with a chair and slams it into his back. Instead of collapsing like she expects, Lucifer merely spins on his heel and backhands him, slamming his head onto a nearby table.

"Shouldn't you stop him?" She manages to ask over the clamor of splintering wood and bodies crashing to the floor. She winces as Lucifer effortlessly picks up a man twice his size and throws him into the wall behind the bar.

"What, and deny him the chance to defend your honor?" Decker has to shout over the sound of glass shattering as the shelves in front of them are crushed. The man slides unconscious to the floor. "He'd never forgive me. Ah, ah, ah. None of that now." Decker's spotted the bartender pulling out a shotgun from a hidden spot under the bar and pointing it at Lucifer's back. He snatches the gun out of the man's grip.

"Trust me, you'll just be hurting yourself." He tells the bartender firmly. He takes the gun and, with a strength she hadn't realized he had, slams it hard into a wall, breaking it into three pieces.

Joy stares at her partner. There's a boyish gleam in his eyes as he turns back to watch his father take on the last two men in the bar. He isn't going to be any help, she thinks with exasperation. He's like a little kid watching his favorite superhero fight the bad guys on television.

It seems that she is going to be playing the Voice of Reason in their little group. "We needed these men conscious in order to question them." She tells Decker. Lucifer has just thrown the last man to the floor with an unceremonious thump, adjusting his cuffs as if he hasn't been doing anything more strenuous than a round of darts.

"These idiots wouldn't have told us anything." Decker waves dismissively as he steps over the bodies strewing the bar floor. "This place is well-known for being a local watering hole for low level criminals-small-time drug dealers, thugs-for-hire and the like-they would never snitch. Besides, you heard Tiny, here." He nudges the man who had leered at her with a toe, and gives him a sharp kick in the shin. "'We don't talk to cops.'"

She can't help but grin at his passable imitation of the rude man. Decker claps his father appreciatively on the shoulder as he passes him, aiming towards the other end of the bar.

"Are you telling me I didn't actually have to touch any of these cretins?" Lucifer asks indignantly as he and Joy follow Decker to a door on the other side of the room.

"Like you didn't have fun." Decker retorts. He opens the door and reveals a broom closet. "But no, there are other people here who can give us some real answers."

"In the broom closet?" Joy asks, confused.

"This isn't the first experience I've had with this bar." Decker tells her, hastily relieving the cramped space of its cleaning supplies. Joy and Lucifer hover behind him. "Back when we were partners, Charlie and I worked this case-a guy who got into too much debt with his bookie and killed him to cover it up. We tracked him here, but by the time we showed up, he had vanished." Decker starts to run his hand along the top half of the closet wall, near the ceiling. "We thought we lost the guy for good. But then we started to do some research." He glances over his shoulder and catches Joy's expression. "Ok, Charlie did some research. Turns out, this place was built in the 1920's, right in the throes of Prohibition."

"A bloody stupid concept." is Lucifer's only comment.

Decker continues on, still running his hand along the top of the wall. "This place was one of the many speakeasies that popped up during that time. Once we found that out, we dug up some old blueprints of the building-" Decker grunts, and Joy hears the soft snick of a hidden latch, "and discovered the entrance." The wall opens up to reveal a set of stairs.

"A secret passageway." Joy breathes.

Decker smiles and takes a flashlight out of his jacket pocket, illuminating the cramped staircase that leads down into a dark, dank hallway. "There are a few rooms down below, where the owners used to store their illegal alcohol and brewing equipment. Perps of all kinds had been using it as a hide-out."

"A clubhouse for criminals hidden underneath Paradise." Lucifer smiles with delight. "How inspiring."

He gallantly motions for Joy to precede him onto the staircase, putting her between the two men as they descend into the darkness below.

Decker's voice floats up from the dark. "It's not a hideout anymore. Once Charlie and I found our guy, we had it cleaned out." Decker gets to the bottom of the stairs and holds the light up so that Lucifer and Joy can file down without breaking their necks. "Though we did keep the two cases of illegally brewed brandy we found." He gives her a grin, his face a bit ghoulish in the dim light of the corridor.

Lucifer snaps his fingers. "I thought that brandy tasted different." He says, as if a mystery has finally been solved. "Those Prohibition liquors always had an unusual piquancy compared to the regular stuff-as if they managed to somehow bottle the contraband inside of it." He tucks his hands into his pockets. "You think this Vinny, or our troll, is hiding down here?"

"Possibly." Decker goes up to the door and knocks. "This place came under new management a few months ago. But lucky for us, I have an in."

There's a thump from the other side of the door, and Joy gets a small thrill as a peephole opens and a voice asks for a password, just like in the movies.

"Long live the Queen." Decker intones. He turns off his flashlight and shoves it back in his jacket pocket at the sounds of locks being turned. Joy blinks as light washes into the corridor.

A large man with several neck tattoos exchanges nods with Decker. "Come on in."

Decker leads the way inside, Joy and Lucifer right behind him. The space below is as large as the bar upstairs but a lot cleaner. No dirt floors in this basement, but solid mahogany that has been meticulously polished, along with the tables and chairs scattered about the room. A stereo system is set up in the corner, notes from a popular rock song an underscore to the usual bar chatter. The bar itself takes up the wall to their left, filled with bottles of higher quality alcohol than what was offered upstairs. The room is spacious enough to be cut in half by a red, thick velvet curtain not unlike one found on a theater stage, with ample room to spare. Near the top of the curtain is a neon sign, the letters written in cursive.

The Garden she reads.

The appearance and mood of this underground bar is so different from upstairs it's staggering. They could have easily been in an upscale club like Lux, as opposed to what used to be an underground bunker. Not exactly what she expected from a criminal den.

"How are you doing, Leroy?" Decker asks the man who had let them in.

The man closes the door behind them. "I've been worse."

"I sincerely doubt it." Lucifer mutters under his breath. His eyes travel over the conversing bar patrons, the plush curtains, and linger on the bar.

Decker's mouth twitches. "Leroy, I'd like to introduce you to my father, Lucifer Morningstar."

Joy holds her breath as Lucifer and the man size each other up.

"Nice to meet you." Leroy says after a long moment.

Lucifer sniffs. "Of course it is."

"And this is my new partner, Detective Roberts." Decker nods in the man's direction. "Leroy is second in command here, knows everyone who has ever come into the place."

Joy nods, appreciating a contact who can help lead them to the suspect.

"New partner, huh?" Leroy asks after a searching look at her. It wasn't like the disgusting man upstairs-this look is a professional assessment. "The Queen will be interested to hear that."

Apprehension prickles between Joy's shoulder blades.

Decker doesn't seem to find anything unusual about all of this. He takes out his phone. "We just have a couple of questions, Leroy, and then we'll be out of-"

"You know the rules." Leroy tells Decker sternly. "We don't talk to cops until we get the go ahead from the Queen."

Irritation buzzes under Joy's skin. "Did we happen to mention that we're looking for a murder suspect?" She asks the man tightly. "Maybe it would be easier to bring you in on obstruction charges, rather than waste time we could be using to catch a killer."

The man's eyebrows rise up his forehead, but he smiles at Decker. "Scrappy, this one." He tells him appreciatively. "The Queen will like her."

"Is she here?" Decker asks. "Because my partner is right, we could take you in on obstruction charges, and I'd hate to do that." He returns the man's smile, but his is sharper-a threat.

Leroy doesn't seem impressed. "She's here. I'll go get her and you can ask your questions. Just wait here," His smile turns mocking. "Samael."

Joy hears him snicker as he turns away. He strides towards the velvet curtain and sticks his head through, speaking to someone on the other side.

Decker glowers at the man's back but waits until he's a distance away before grumbling in an undertone. "I can't believe she told him my real name."

Joy blinks. "Wait-your name really is Samael?" She honestly thought she had misheard.

"Family name," Decker growls. He's so indignant that she has to bite back her own laugh. "I didn't choose it."

Lucifer catches his son's glare. "Don't look at me. I wanted to name you Bruce-you know, like Lee, or Springsteen. It was your mother who insisted on that name."

"Knowing you as I do, Father, I doubt that." Decker drawls. He and Lucifer exchange looks of mutual annoyance.

"So," Joy interjects, hoping to avoid re-living the scene upstairs. "What's the deal with this place? It reminds me of a cop bar."

"It has its share of those." Decker agrees, nodding genially to a couple of men seated in the back who are waving at him enthusiastically. "Along with a few attorneys, EMTs, nurses and social workers. You'll also find some petty criminals. Not like the men upstairs, but plenty of the patrons here have records." He waves a hand to encompass the room. "In here, sinners and saints can mingle freely. Everyone and anyone are welcome, so long as they follow the rules."

"What are the rules?" Joy eyes the men and women scattered around the bar, but is unable to spot the criminals among them.

"Don't ask, don't tell." Decker replies. "Total anonymity. Here, there are no good guys and bad guys-just people." The corners of his mouth quirk up in a smile. "So sayeth the Queen."

"That keeps coming up. Who is this Queen?" She demands.

Decker grins as Leroy holds back the curtain to allow a petite, dark-haired woman through. "Just the owner. A few months ago, an enterprising young woman took over this place with the intention of creating a haven where only one person knows the stories of everyone in this room. And nobody speaks to her-ah-subjects without her consent."

Joy eyes her partner, noting the affection in his voice. Whoever this so-called Queen was, Decker was fond of her. And she knew his real name. "Let me guess." She says dryly. "Old girlfriend?"

Decker smirks as Leroy approaches them, the woman on his arm. "Not mine." He nods his head in his father's direction. "His."

Lucifer stares down the woman in front of them, stunned

"Eve?" He chokes out. "This is your bar?"

The woman, Eve, gives him a brilliant smile. "Lucifer! Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" She leans forward to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "I almost didn't believe it when Leroy told me you were here. I'm so glad to see that you're working again." She beams at the three of them, as bubbly as the hostess of a cocktail party. She's dressed in a flowing, cherry-red jumpsuit under a fitted black jacket. Joy's amused to see that even with her unnervingly high heels she's still several inches shorter than Lucifer or Decker.

"Just for this one case, Eve." Lucifer informs her. "What made you decide to open a bar, of all things?"

"It was you who gave me the idea, Luce." Eve tucks a curl of luscious chestnut hair behind her ear. "When I first came to Earth, you helped me realize that it doesn't matter who you used to be. What matters is who you want to become. So, when I learned this place was up for grabs, I thought I'd pay it forward."

"And how is running an underground bar helping with that, exactly?" Lucifer asks, still disgruntled.

"This bar can only be found by those who wish for the freedom to be themselves. Be they heroes, thieves...or the former King of Hell." Eve gives him a broad smile. "In the Garden, we don't let the past define us. Once you walk through that door," she gestures behind them, "who you truly want to become is up to you."

Lucifer's expression softens. "Well, it doesn't quite match the sophistication of Lux," He allows. "But it's a far cry from the hovel upstairs. You've seem to become quite the entrepreneur, Eve."

Eve smiles, linking her hands in front of her. "I try." She says humbly.

"So many changes in so little time...tell me, are you and Maze still an item?" Lucifer asks his ex-girlfriend. "That hasn't changed?"

"Going on thirty years." Eve tells him proudly.

What, did they start dating when they were embryos? Eve looks hardly older than Joy, how could she have been dating someone for thirty years, let alone having dated Lucifer first?

While Eve is still gushing about her girlfriend, it finally sinks in-Maze. There can't possibly be two of them, so it has to be the same Maze who hit on her at Lux.

Joy wheezes.

"She's so supportive. She'll even stop by with her bounties after she's caught them. Treats them to a drink, introduces them to Leroy...Leroy was one of her bounties at one time too, weren't you?" She pats Leroy on the arm.

Leroy's smile is just as admiring as Lucifer's. "Yes, milady."

"He calls me milady." Eve tells Lucifer brightly.

"As he should." Lucifer smiles at her. "I'm...glad you're happy, Eve."

Eve gives his shoulder a gentle, compassionate squeeze before turning her attention to Decker.

"I swear, Sam, you get more handsome every day." She pats Decker's cheek with the air of an aunt fussing over her favorite nephew. "Just wait, you're going to be more handsome than your father soon."

Lucifer's snort lets them all know what he thinks of that.

Lips twisted in a wry smile, Decker gazes down at the woman. "I appreciate the sentiment, Eve." His expression sours. "But did you have to go and tell everybody my real name?" He complains. "I mean, seriously, it's not like I didn't get enough crap for it in elementary school. I haven't even told anyone at the precinct."

Eve's eyes dance wickedly. "Oh, but it's such a wonderful name." She insists. "Samael. Almost angelic, don't you think?" Her mouth curved into a smirk, she turns to Joy before Decker can sputter out a response. "I'm so sorry, I didn't realize we had another guest." She bounces over to inspect Joy with interest. "Hello. I'm Eve."

No last name, Joy notes with some skepticism. She probably thinks she really is Eve from the Bible. Was everyone in Decker's life this deluded? "Detective Roberts. Nice to meet you."

The wattage on Eve's smile goes up, and she lets out a thrilled gasp as she glances back and forth between Joy and Decker. "Oh, Sam, you got your own Detective!" She claps her hands together. "Oh, and she's so beautiful, too. Look at those eyes. I don't think I've seen that shade of green since Eden."

Joy feels her barriers collapsing around her. In this job she rarely gets compliments, and even more rarely are they said with such sincerity. Against her will, she feels her mouth tilting up in a reciprocating smile.

"Aw, thanks." She gestures to the bar around her. "I love what you've done to the place. Much better than upstairs."

Eve is appropriately gratified. "Oh, thank you. You should have Sam bring you back sometime when the two of you aren't working a case. Drinks are on me."
"They can just as easily have drinks at Lux." Lucifer says, a bit sullenly.

Decker grabs Eve's arm and gently tugs her back towards him. "That's great, Eve, but I need you to focus now." For the first time since she's met him, Decker seems flustered. Gone is the air of superior amusement, replaced with something close to desperation as he takes out his phone and shoves it under Eve's nose. "Have you seen this guy? His name is Clive Fleming."

Eve inspects the picture. "No, I don't think so. I'm pretty sure I'd remember him."

"Hard to forget a face that ugly." Lucifer agrees. "I'm surprised the camera didn't break when they took his picture."

Joy remembers that they are supposed to be working a case. "Have you ever heard of someone named Vinny Caramazzo?" she asks Eve. "We think he might be a friend of Clive's."

Eve brightens. "Oh, Vinny? Oh yes, he's one of my bartenders." Her brows furrow in concern. She's realized who she's talking to. "He's not in trouble, is he?"

"No, not him. Clive is a suspect in a murder case. We're just hoping Vinny will know how to get a hold of him." Decker assures her.

"All right. But no asking about his past." Eve's shed her lighthearted demeanor like a coat. Her back straightens, and she gives Decker a stern look. "You know the rules, Sam."

Decker shakes his head. "You know I wouldn't even ask if it wasn't important, Eve."

Eve nods at Leroy, who strides to the back corner of the bar to whisper in a man's ear. He and the man join them, the man placing himself in between Leroy and Eve.

"I'm Vinny." He greets them, his hands twitching nervously at his sides. He's thin and swarthy, with dark hair just turning grey and a wispy mustache. His dark eyes jump from Lucifer, Decker, to Joy and back again. "You wanted to talk to me?"

Decker opens his mouth but Joy, running on instinct, shifts just enough so that she's just in front of Decker. "Hi, Vinny." She keeps her voice warm and friendly. "We just have a few questions for you, if that's all right."

She adjusts her stance, knowing her body posture is important. Talking to the police obviously makes Vinny nervous, and the more aggressive they appear, the less they'll be able to get out of him. She keeps her shoulders loose, almost submissive, and she can see the man relax marginally.

"Do you know a man named Clive Fleming?" She asks, and the man nods.

"Clive and I were buddies, back in the day. He called me a few weeks ago, to tell me he got out on parole."

Lucifer asks impatiently, "Yes, yes, but did he ever discuss murdering a waitress with you?"

Joy grinds her teeth at Lucifer's tart question, especially when Vinny's face drains of color.

"M-murder? No, Clive wouldn't murder anyone. He's not a bad guy...in fact, when he called, he said he was planning on finally going straight. Wanted to know if I knew anyone hiring for jobs." Vinny stares at her pleadingly. "I was going to bring him here, but before I could, he called me again and said he got a job at a diner. He sounded really excited about it."

"It's ok, Vinny." Eve places a gentle hand on his arm. "These detectives are good at their jobs. I'm sure if Clive is innocent, they'll figure it out."

"But we do need to talk to him." Like her, Decker keeps his voice light and conversational. Non-threatening. "Do you know where he would go?"

Vinny shakes his head. "He must have had a place to stay, but I don't know where it was. As far as I know, his family all gave up on him." Vinny gives them a sad smile. "It's hard for family and friends to believe you've gone straight, especially if you've screwed up as many times as we have."

"It sounds like you're a good friend, Vinny." Joy tells the man gently. "And I'm sure if Clive is innocent, we'll get to the bottom of it. But we are going to need to talk to him, in order to prove it. Do you know any way we can do that?"

Vinny bites his lip. "I could call him." He says reluctantly. "I could ask him to meet me here."

"We'd appreciate it, Vinny." Joy smiles at him. "If he's really a good guy like you say, then there should be nothing to worry about."

"Yeah. Ok. Ok." Vinny lets out a sigh. "I'll call him and have him meet me upstairs." He turns away from them, pulling out his phone.

Joy feels a tap on her shoulder.

"Nice work." Decker murmurs. "You got him to tell us more than I was expecting."

Joy turns around to face both Decker and his father. "Yeah, but we have to be careful." She says in a low voice. "If Clive gets even a whiff of cops he's going to run."

"Oh, we can help with that." Eve has nudged her way into their little huddle. She gives them all a generous smile. "Just let me get a few of my subjects."