What was wrong with him?

Well, it was simple really.

A panic attack.

The first place Lucifer had gone when he'd fled the precinct was straight to Linda's office to seek advice—therapy—a kick to the head to get his thoughts straight again.

But Linda had managed to calm him right down. Soothed his worries, so to speak. Using logic, of course. He'd gone into her office terrified that his response to Chloe's behaviour meant he was still in love with her. But after she began questioning him, the two words—panic attack—came up, and Lucifer had latched onto them.

The rest of the conversation hardly mattered. Her probing questions about how he really felt about Chloe. About his hurt, about his heart. About unresolved issues and unrequited feelings.

None of that was important.

The restriction in his chest wasn't due to feelings for Chloe. It was simply a panic attack.

He'd been caught between Chloe's emotional attack, his surprise at Pierce's willingness to talk, and his worry about Eric and their case. Chloe's tirade had thrown him over the edge.

Hence a panic attack.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Easy to move on from.

Although that wasn't quite true.

He now understood that his reaction to run away while his heart was in his throat was due to an emotional break not for any love for the Detective, but it didn't stop him from worrying. And what better way to deal with his worries than by drinking his way through Lux?

It was early evening yet, the sun just thinking about setting as far as he was aware, and almost no one was in the bar just yet. Which was good. It meant the bartender was slinging drinks just for Lucifer. And the devil intended on getting through every cocktail on the menu, touching every bottle of spirits on the lighted wall. The joy of being the devil was enjoying all of the earthly sins—the downside of being the devil was how quickly his metabolism burned through the drugs and alcohol.

Still, he was adamant he'd have a good buzz going on by the time Eric rose from his coffin. Not because he wanted to drink his emotions into oblivion or anything—although that certainly was playing a part in his current escapade. But rather, he convinced himself, he was drinking in the hopes he could share with Eric. The vampire had admitted he could feel the effects of narcotics and alcohol and Lucifer wanted to give him precisely that.

They'd spent the last few nights working on this bloody case and they honestly hadn't gotten any closer to finding an answer. It was time for another break. A fun one. The kind where they reminded each other how much they were in love—and that no special women would ever come between them.

He'd started with the scotch whisky of course, and had quickly worked his way from the hard liquors to the wines and he was now settling in with some of the more colourful cocktails. Only the bartender seemed to know how many drinks he'd gone through, but the staff were paid to keep their mouths shut, and this definitely wasn't the first time he'd gone on a bender.

He was feeling good—so good that he wasn't even thinking about Chloe or Sookie—when Eric sidled up next to him at the bar.

"Viking!" Lucifer cried out, probably too loudly considering the vampire was right next to him. Vampires had good hearing, after all, and the music wasn't blasting loudly just yet. "I've a treat for you!"

"You do?" Eric asked, a slip of fang showing as he smiled at Lucifer. Those icy blue eyes burned with a shared heat, and Lucifer's thoughts tripped upon the fun they'd had the other night. Any night, really. Sex with Eric, whether alone or with others, was something to get lost in.

Lucifer leaned forward, a lascivious grin spreading across his face. "I've sampled everything Lux has to offer, Viking. Would you like a taste yourself?" He tilted his head to the side, displaying his throat to the vampire.

He heard the rattle in Eric's throat and knew he was a tempting snack. Of course, Lucifer was always a tempting snack. To everyone. But it made him feel extra special when the desire was verbalized by this particular person. But a second later there came a frustrated sigh.

"Much as I'd like to appreciate your blood while you're intoxicated, we have to go up to the North Star offices."

Lucifer pouted. "But I did this for you," he said, his voice coaxing.

A cool vampire arm slid around Lucifer's waist, only to pull him off the barstool and closer to the elevator.

At first he let himself be led, but he finally stopped, feeling stubborn. "I don't want to work right now," he said firmly.

Eric turned back to give him an amused look.

"We've worked for three days straight, Viking. It's time for play." He pulled on the vampire's arm, and Eric came back into his personal space willingly enough.

For a few brief moments, he got to kiss Eric, heating the other man's lips with the fire of whisky and bourbon. Eric returned the advances, and a moment later, there were cool fingers digging into the hair at the back of Lucifer's head. Eric gave the devil a good snogging, Lucifer had to admit that. At least he entertained the drunken man for a few moments before regretfully pulling away, his blue eyes lit with lust and amusement.

"Much as I'd like to take you upstairs to your loft, we do need to go to North Star," Eric told him. "We have a client."

Lucifer growled, his imitation of Eric's emotional response to just about anything pretty spot on. He smiled to himself, eyes closed as he leaned back toward the vampire, trying to take in the scent of him. He didn't want to meet a client—Eric had mentioned going up to the loft and that sounded like a positively delightful idea.

"Luci," Eric's voice was firm, but there was no frustration there, no impatience. If it had been Chloe he was dealing with, trying to seduce with his drunken advances, she would have been testy. Amenadiel would talk to him like a child. Linda would coax his problems out of him. But Eric? He just said his name to gain his attention. Lucifer opened his eyes to find the vampire gazing at him, and he thought for sure Eric would agree to going upstairs—all the way upstairs—to spend some time in bed. The construction workers shouldn't be there at this time. And Lucifer really wanted to spend some quality time alone with his Viking.

It was not meant to be though, even as Eric tugged him toward the elevator. Even if Eric wasn't reacting poorly to Lucifer's drunken state, it was clear the vampire was in work mode. The man who sat behind the desk and did the numbers and made their business run smoothly. Which meant there really was someone in the office waiting for them. The alcohol was still running through Lucifer, and he'd probably be a piss poor detective at the moment, but it wasn't lost on him that he was supposed to be the second half of their agency. And while the thought of stripping down and jumping into bed with Eric was most definitely on his mind—and certainly not at all compensating for the fact he might still have feelings for Chloe—he knew they still had halflings to find.

Or perhaps the new client had a completely different issue.

Lucifer did like solving a mystery. Almost as much as ravaging his lover.

He willingly let himself be led into the elevator and up one floor to the North Star offices.

As soon as they entered the outer office, Eric was at the tiny kitchenette, starting a pot of coffee. To sober the devil up, no doubt. He stood in the doorway, looking at the twin desks, feeling the love and care that they'd put into building this place up. He was being a fool, he decided. The worry he'd had earlier, the bloody panic attack over Chloe and her reactions to him. Why care about her when he had this? An office with the man he loved, and mysteries to solve just the two of them. Perhaps it was the whisky talking to him, but love blossomed in his chest as he looked at Eric's blonde head bent over the coffee maker. His vampire loved him, was making him coffee.

How the Hell had he gotten so lucky?

Far luckier than the woman sitting on their couch, a wad of tissues fisted in one hand. She wasn't vampire, of that Lucifer was certain. He didn't think she was a werewolf either. She just didn't have that . . . scruffiness about her. As far as Lucifer could tell, she was human. But she was here, asking for help, and Lucifer loved people.

She was cute, too.

He hadn't been able to get Eric to bypass the office to go up to the loft, but maybe he could convince this lady she needed solace—in the arms of two immortal men. That would be a grand time, indeed.

Lucifer surged forward, hand stuck out to force her to shake. "Lucifer Morningstar, at your service," he said, his words tripping over each other in their eagerness to get out.

She blinked up at him, only hesitating a moment before shaking his offered hand.

"This is Amber Hope, Luci. She's here because something has attacked her vampire." Eric paused, the sound of the coffee maker gurgling loudly filling the space between his words. "She's a halfling."

"I don't even know what that means," Amber said, but she reached out to shake Lucifer's hand all the same.

"It means you're special," Lucifer said. "Vampires think you smell delicious."

Amber stared up at him. Lucifer gestured toward Eric. "If this vampire says you're a halfling, then you're a halfling. One might call him an expert on the subject." It was supposed to come out professional, but there was sarcasm thrown in there, courtesy of the alcohol still buzzing through his system. It was beginning to fade, his direct line to the drinks having been cut off when he left the bar. But he was still buzzing enough that his insecurities were showing their ugly heads. Still, it wasn't wrong. Eric knew more about halflings than the average vampire. His time as Sheriff in Louisiana gave Eric Northman more knowledge than most.

Lucifer sank down on the couch across from Amber. "What happened?" he asked, finally admitting that he was going to have to work, not play. Besides, this was about a missing vampire. That was the reason he'd wanted to open this agency. To help vampires; not to find missing halflings.

"Yvonne was attacked!" Amber said, her voice quiet yet shrill at the same time. She was terrified, not sad, Lucifer realized. Almost as if it had just happened.

Which Amber confirmed in the next breath. "The sun set an hour and a half ago," she said, not knowing she was also telling Lucifer that Eric hadn't come directly to the bar to find him. Lucifer briefly wondered just how long he'd been sitting there drinking himself into a beautiful oblivion before Eric decided to sober him up with some casework. "Yvonne and I went for a walk in the park near our place, like we always do when she wakes up and I'm not at work."

Lucifer nodded encouragingly, wondering what fool would think to attack a vampire.

"Someone started chasing us," Amber said, her voice going quiet. "No, not someone. Something. I've never been more terrified in my life." She took a trembling breath and looked Lucifer in directly in the eyes. "It was coming for me, I just knew it. So did Yvonne. Which is why she stopped running and turned on that . . . that thing."

Eric sat down next to Lucifer, a cup of coffee in his hands. He handed the hot beverage to Lucifer who held it between his hands, ignoring it while he listened to Amber's story.

"Yvonne never stood a chance," Amber nearly whispered. "One second she was flying at this monster and the next she burst into flames." A sob escaped her. "I'm such a coward. I didn't even try to save her."

"Well, if the bloody thing set a vampire on fire, I'd be running too if I was mortal," Lucifer said, his words meant to comfort, but only resulting in tears. "Is Yvonne dead then?"

Amber shrugged her shoulders helplessly. "I don't know! As soon as she burst into flames, it grew tired of her and turned to me again. Last I saw before I ran, she was jumping into the fountain in the middle of the park. It wasn't on or anything, but there was water in it." She paused for a second and then swore. "Fuck. I can't believe I left her there like that."

Eric nudged Lucifer's knee, the vampire staring at the devil until Lucifer finally brought the cup of hot, black coffee to his lips. He took a dutiful sip to appease the vampire into thinking it would help sober him up.

"What, by Dad's green apples, was chasing you?" Lucifer asked.

"A—a monster," Amber stuttered. Her eyes got big as she described it. "Nasty smelling thing, and huge. At least eight feet tall." She looked at both men. "I know it sounds ridiculous, but he had only one eye. One massive eye in the middle of his head!" She visibly shuddered at the memory of it.

Eric tensed on the couch next to Lucifer, the vampire going as still as a statue. "Amber . . . was this monster covered in algae, by any chance?"

Lucifer started at that, and then excitement burned away the last of his alcoholic fog as Amber nodded her head, surprise etched across her face. "How did you know?" she asked.

"It was after you, wasn't it?" Eric asked, leading the interview. "It only attacked Yvonne when she decided to protect you?"

Amber nodded. "I don't know how it set Yvonne on fire, either. It didn't even touch her. One second she was flying toward him, the next she was screaming while it stared at her with that grotesque eye. And as soon as she was more concerned with her own safety than mine, it came after me again."

Eric was nodding. "Almost like it didn't care either way if the vampire would survive. Yvonne was not the intended target."

Amber nodded. "It was me."

"How did you get away?" Lucifer asked, wanting to be in on the questioning. He was starting to suspect this wasn't a new case at all. Just an extension of the broader case. This was a halfling, after all. One that hadn't been kidnapped, although not wont for trying.

"I hailed a cab," Amber said dryly. "Got in and told him to boot it over here."

Lucifer gave a short laugh at that. A quick getaway.

"How did you know to come here?" Eric asked, his knee knocking against Lucifer's a second time to get him to drink more of the black coffee.

"I'd say you won't believe this if I told you," Amber said, a sardonic look in her eyes replacing her fear for the first time. "But then, I did just tell you I saw a one-eyed monster set my friend on fire. There's actually a billboard right across from the park where we go."

"You see?" Eric said. "It works."

"Not the safest park to be at once it gets dark though," Lucifer said, eyes sparkling as he wondered what Yvonne and Amber did at the park when they went for their daily walks. He didn't think they went for a stroll. And when Amber suddenly wasn't meeting his eyes, he suspected their nightly visits to the park were definitely the kind he'd be interested in.

In fact—if they could find Yvonne, safe and sound, perhaps he and Eric could partake in whatever it was these two were up to. The joy of no longer working with the police was that no one could frown upon Lucifer's illegal activities. There was no one to tell him it was illegal, only a man who would gladly join him in the seven deadly sins.

Yes.

North Star was so much better than tagging along with the Los Angelese Police Department.

"So you don't know if Yvonne is dead or alive?" Eric asked. "Just that she was set on fire and went to a fountain to try to put out the flames."

Amber nodded sadly from her spot.

Lucifer put down his half empty coffee on the little table—he was sober now without it anyway—and gave Eric a meaningful look. "If that's the case, we must go check the crime scene, Viking. She might still be there." And so too, perhaps, was the monster.

Eric was nodding his agreement. "This is the first real description of whoever is taking halflings."

Amber blinked from her spot. "I'm sorry . . . what?"

"You're not the first halfling that's been abducted, although you're the first we've heard about that got away," Eric said, standing and taking Lucifer's coffee. He frowned at the cup but went back to the kitchenette to dump it down the drain. He grabbed a fresh cup and poured a second one, bringing it and a variety of creamers and sugars over to set in front of Amber. "It would be smart to go check to see if we've got any fresh clues."

"I'm sorry . . . people are going missing?" Amber asked. "People like me? What makes me so special? What is a halfling and why do you think I am one?"

"A halfling is part fairy," Lucifer explained, happy that he knew these secrets. Secrets which he hadn't been privy to until recently. "I gather the fairies don't live on this plane of existence anymore, but it seems they enjoy coming here from time to time to . . . partake in a good time."

"My parents were normal people," Amber defended. "And they were loyal to each other."

Lucifer waved a hand at that. "It wouldn't have been your parents, I don't think. Viking?"

"You smell similar to Sookie," Eric said. "I'd say you were third or fourth generation. You've got hidden talents, don't you? Something no one else can do?"

Amber seemed to shrink into the couch. Lucifer reached forward to the coffee, hoping it would help soothe her. "How do your take it?" he asked, lifting up a creamer.

This seemed to ground her. "Two cream, three sugar," she said automatically, and Lucifer went about preparing the coffee.

A moment later the cup was wrapped in her hands as she looked off into the middle distance. No one said a word, but Lucifer was hoping she'd tell them her secret. It was clear she had one.

"I can move objects with my mind," she finally said, her words small.

"Telekinesis?" Lucifer asked in surprised. Surely this was a more useful trick than Sookie's reading people's minds. "Mind showing us?"

"I'd rather not," Amber said. "I'd rather you go find Yvonne and see if she's still alive."

Lucifer sighed, disappointed he wouldn't get to see something float through the air. But still, she was right. She'd come here seeking help, and as luck would have it, they needed to help. To find the waitress and whatnot.

Lucifer stood suddenly. "Well, if we're going to find this damn monster, we better be going."

Eric looked up at him, confusion in his eyes. No doubt because he wasn't following Lucifer's train of thought.

But no matter.

The sooner they found that waitress, the sooner he could forget about her.

And the sooner he could forget about Sookie, the sooner he could pretend that he, too, had complicated feelings about someone other than Eric.

"Amber, will you be coming?"

But Eric shook his head before she could answer either way. "I think Amber should stay here. You'll be safe at North Star. Better yet, if you go down to Lux, I doubt any monsters will track you down there."

"Safety in numbers," Lucifer agreed.

He headed for the door, deciding everything was settled. He paused to look back, seeing Eric still sitting on the couch across from their client. "Come now, Viking. We've got a mystery to solve and a vampire to save!"