I didn't understand the whole thing behind how a person could Kill. What goes through their mind, their motives, or even how they come up with the idea of ever taking someone else's life because of a specific circumstance. How people become bad. How they become such an awful person. To kill is to take someone's else's life for the benefit of an individualistic or selfish reason. To get payback, for instance, and to set an example. You don't get to mess with them. Sometimes killing can happen to bring out the much darker side of humanity. If not all the time. That is what sets apart humanity at times, the belief of morality is brought into this world of question. Is there a good way to kill?

Which lead me to worry. Would this supposed big time criminal who's conducting these crimes go after Lucifer? Will he go after me next? I could take him on just as easy. Considering he happens to be an average, serial killer, human. Verse's me who is an angel. One on one I could take him just as easy. All of this worry wasn't good but I can't help feel this threat is much closer than I'd like to think it is. Or he is. I can't shake it off.

Now Ella is telling me there is a chance how bad guy, the Sinnerman, is actually in Los Angeles. A match in forensics found DNA matched both of the crime scenes we inspected today that showed correlations between the two incidents. She even did some research into the old cases, from all the way in Chicago, that connects to one's right here. In Los Angeles itself.

" What has you deep in thought, Decker?" Pierce called out, bringing me out of the spiral of thoughts I let myself go down into my mind, and I felt his hand place itself on my shoulder. I felt it shift onto my back as he walked around to stand before me. I didn't know how to feel about it but I wasn't in the right headspace to push him off me. " I was calling out to you, for a full minute across the room, but you never acknowledged any of em and I was starting to sound like a broken record."

" Oh." I must've been way deep into my thoughts. " I'm sorry, Marcus." I mumbled, closing the file cabinet shut I am staring down at, and I thought about how Marcus still had his hand on my back. " Don't you think it's a little inappropriate to.." I moved out of his reach, from his touch, rubbing a hand on my forearm. " Do all of that while there.. are eyes on us. Remember?" He openly scoffed at my reminder. A plain face of indifference to what I worried about. " What? What is that scoff for?"

" So, even as a friend, I can't simply touch you? Is that what you are saying?"

" Friends? Marcus, really? Is that what.." I swish a finger between us. " This is? A friendship? We both have very different definitions of friendship. Friends don't do what you are trying to do." I say, pointing out his obvious lack of understanding of what a friend means. I popped my hip out. " And that is trying to openly sabotage my career by the fact you want to make these advances at me when I am not interested in you like that."

He grabbed my wrist, using an excessive amount of force while bringing me into the office Ella worked in which is vacated thankfully as the last thing I wanted to do was try and explain how and why my boss is dragging me into this room of all things alone, locking the door closed. He rolled a selected number of curtains down for our privacy or so he could talk to me without someone seeing us.

" Why did you drag me in here for... Marcus? I've got to get back to work." I huffed, arms crossed on above my chest, wanting to roll my eyes at this sight of him frustrated with me. " If you're going to yell at me go ahead. It's not like you're going to leave any effect on me. Not with all these people, these innocent people, dying because of.."

" The Sinnerman. Yes, yes I heard he's found his new hunting grounds here in LA. I am aware and I have been working behind the scenes of getting him off the streets. But that isn't what I dragged.. you in here for."

" What is that you possibly.." That's when Marcus shocked me. Grabbing my waist he grips parts of my neck to bring me up to kiss him on the lips, a free hand had found his way down to my lift up my leg and place me on the counter top of Ella's research lab, while things are knocked of the top. I shoved him off and took a few steps towards the end of the counter.

" What was that for?" Shock is scribbled on my face. I wasn't expecting that and I sure as hell shouldn't have liked that but I did. I felt horrified at why I did. Angrily I stomped up to Marcus, giving him a good slap him across the face, breathing heavy. He didn't seem phased but there is an evident sense of respite in his face. He calmly rubs the place I delivered him to good slap to the face. " Don't ever think it's okay to kiss me like that, ever."

" Then how is it you do.." He cornered me back in the surface of the countertop. " Want to be.." his hands trapped me in the middle of his arms, all the while holding me hostage in the making, and lowered his head. " kissed?" I swallowed the air in my mouth as it goes drier by the second at how Pierce is looking at me. " Admit it. You're not.. at all angry at me. But yourself. You are angry that you liked it. You like me. I like you. Yeah.. I get.." He shrugs, intuitively thinking about how we've never even been on a proper date since it's as if a force has come between us, ignoring my burning face. " We never been on those dates that never, even, happened but what's the difference? When it's obvious. We don't need to do that. Dates are.. just a ruse for an excuse to make the connection go slower and form. When.." he lowered his voice right down to my ear leaning in. " This is real."

" Pierce.."

He puts a tender hand behind my ear, thumb on the sides of head, hovering his lips over mine but I get him off me. " Give.. me time. To think about it." It slipped out of my mouth before I could get a grasp of what I just said. " I meant to say is that this is all.. New to me. I haven't.." I haven't been in a relationship before. I haven't dated. There is no high school crush or anything I've had. Not at all. " I got to get back to work. Ella.. she found an old connection that led back to our cases we had, today, relating back to the Sinnerman in Chicago. I was going to tell you before you interrupted."

" Hang on." He interrupted, backing off a little to give me room to breathe. " You said they.. you said they matched?"He sounded surprised the DNA matches. " What did she find?" He cleared his throat. " out about it?"

" Just that they were a clear match. Our vic made sure to put up a good fight and scratched him. So, that is how Ella was able to get a good find."

She is really good at her job. Real good.

" I have to.. I have to go meet with Miss Richards. She is helping me with this case."

~•~

I drove to the upscale restaurant that Charlotte is going to be meeting with Frankie, her old client in the ferrante family mob young Joey ran with, which I think is a good idea considering Frankie trusts Charlotte. Even considering her change of career path to be on the right side of the law and her history proved she is reliable for the job. At least I hope my judgement is right which lately I feel has been put in question.

" Thank you, Charlotte, for coming along on this.. well on this ride." I said to her, honestly, resting in my driver side. " I asked you to come with me as I know Frankie knows you and I have a feeling he'll trust you more than me if I approach him."

" He won't know what hit him." Charlotte said, a good laugh left her lips at the opportunity to be a temporary undercover officer of the LAPD, but I stopped her as I made sure to not hold her tight. " What's wrong? Ellie?" She, in concern, asked. " I won't make any mistakes or double cross you if that is what you are worried about."

" No, that isn't what I am worried about." I say, I knotted my eyebrows. " I was going to originally let you go in by yourself but something tells me I need to go in with you."

I stated, unbuckling my seatbelt, and I opened my car door. Charlotte got out the exact same moment too as well while she also tried to reason she didn't need my protection for a simple dinner with the mob.

I didn't listen, walking into the smoke house, casing out of the place. It's a dive-baresque scene with poker machines and black-jack tables. It reeked of alcohol and cigarettes. Soon we found Frankie, he's surrounded by the likes of a few intimidated strong men, joining him at his table. " It's nice to see you, again, Frankie. I'm glad you gave us some of your time to meet us again here. I bought detective decker here because she has a few questions she'd like to ask." Charlotte spoke, to clarify her reason for me being here, with her renowned professional work tone she used while on a job. " You said you would do anything to... I guess help with finding out who killed Joey."

" We are looking for leads on a criminal who calls himself The Sinnerman. Does that ring a bell?"

Joey and his friends exchanged a few questioning stares, which I take is he's never heard of what or who he is hearing about before until now, and my nails tap on the table. I started to get a pang to a feeling what I could describe as panic setting, my chest becoming heavier, and I rubbed the spot I'd left my hand on. This only happens when lucifer is in danger or something is really wrong. Come to think of it, he's been gone for a few hours.

" Frankie you know you and your people are not under investigation here. The Sinnerman is.. well he is known to have entrepreneurial ties. Did you ever cross paths with him?"

Charlotte pressed her question, to see if Frankie would break his silence if he does or doesn't have the knowledge of the Sinnerman, hands pressed firm against one another. She glanced at me with worry in her eyes as I continued to run a hand on my chest.

" Well, Louie here crosses paths with a Cinnabon once a week. Can't get enough of em', am I right, Louie?"

" If you help us out, I promise it'll be worth your while."

" Charlotte." I warned. " Don't make a promise I know we can't keep or follow through with."

" Look, Frankie, come on. Wouldn't it be quite a handy thing to, you know, have an entrepreneur like you to have friends in the DA's office."

I don't even know if I should be hearing this kind of talk, considering it's a form of manipulation of the system she is trying to lean into to try and get an answer out of Frankie. I shake my head a little bit to keep her from potentially getting into more trouble.

" I'm sorry, ladies, I don't know him."

Charlotte got out of her seat, irritated, and slams her hands on the table which I copy but minus all the other forms of irrational thinking she's doing. " Cut the crap, Frankie. Give us something!" My hands found hers, I nodded to Frankie, and I say to him 'Thank you, have a good night' before my hands pushed Charlotte to the direction out of the restaurant. We have everything we needed.

'This is perfect.'

Of course he wouldn't talk to us, especially me, being I'm a cop. He's going to go after the Sinnerman himself and when he does I will be there to catch either him or Frankie in the act.

'Now to explain myself to Charlotte'.

After explaining myself to her, with the reasons I am wanting to leave out for the purpose of being slightly less inclined to share that include Pierce, I was left to stakeout Frankie in the case he tried to leave to go after the Sinnerman. A Coincidence of course that he calls, as I'm waiting outside for Frankie, and I answer.

" Marcus. I'm kinda in the middle of a stake... out.." I turned to find him and there he is. On a motorcycle. Did he follow me? Here? " Who are you, Edward Cullen?"

" Who is that? Who is Edward Cullen?"

I raised an eyebrow.

" You don't know Edward.."

He shrugged, still on the phone to me, as he did a charming grin. " Maybe you can teach me 'bout this Edward Cullen over come food I bought for us?" He tried to cover up the whole following me with the excuse of bringing food for us to eat. But I can't help but find it odd how he followed me. It was almost too much of a coincidental thing for it to be an accident.

'I am overthinking this too much' .

" So, Edward Cullen, let me get an understanding of this. Edward fell in love with this human and it lead her to give birth to her half vampire and half human daughter named Renesmee?"

Marcus debriefs the entire plot of twilight. I nod, chuckling. " I am team Edward, but to be honest I also have the hots for Jacob. He is quite literally hotter than Edward." I grinned, the movies did a good job at showing attractive Taylor launter is, and Marcus snorted. " What? A girl can't look?"

" It's just hysterical how much of a fan girl you're being. I didn't picture you the type to consume it, pop culture I mean."

" Well I guess there is more to know when it does come to what you think you know about me." My reply struck a chord in him and he laughed a bit. As if what I said is amusing to him. " I'm not that much of an open book but I have been known to be terrible at hiding my feelings and emotions."

I furrowed my brows, coming back to the thought of how Pierce suddenly thought it was a sane idea to follow me, and I turned to him.

" Speaking of.. which. You and the Sinnerman. You two crossed paths in the past. Right? Does it not strike you as odd that I find you here at the same time as me? You so happen to follow me here." I craned my head. " Why... did you follow me? Lieutenant."

" You want the personal answer or the business one?"

" I guess personal." I muttered.

" Personal then."

" The Sinnerman killed my brother." Why didn't I believe that? I stayed quiet, letting him speak. " I thought I could.. I thought I could run away from the pain of it. You know... from him. Now I know I can't anymore." I slowly nod, my hands on the steering wheel gliding off the hard plastic. " So I need to find him and make him pay for what he did." He sounds sincere but I couldn't shake off the underlying issue of sensing he's lying to me. I could be overthinking. I sighed. He's opening up to me. It's fair I share some of my past with him.

" You know how you were wondering why there's holes in my life and such? In my file?" He nods. I leaned back in my seat. " You know how Malcolm was my father? My real, birth, father. Well there's one piece of detail that might be left out of it." He intensely stared at me, waiting for me to continue with my sentence. " It's the anniversary of.. well, my birth mom and adopted dad's death. Both of the were killed. One in the line of duty and one by the gun of my birth father. Malcolm graham."

I buried myself in work to forget about the deaths of my parents. Well, my mom. Dad is alive. But it is complicated. He is my dad but also under new circumstances with a whole different name than mine. I knew who he is but mo one else knew it's him expect Lucifer and Amenadiel. I just want to have no more secrets. " My granddad, John, he.. died in the line of duty too. We caught his killer a few months ago. And... you'd think I would have.. been glad he was caught. He caused my family a lot of pain. So much grief."

Maze had caught him and brought him to me to take justice into my own hands. I knew it was the wrong way to deal with it, I am an officer of the law. I did what I was taught to do. I let him go. He got what was coming to him in the form of prison.

" Sometimes I find myself lying awake at night, thinking of how and what my life would be like if I had my mom and my grandpa, my dad.. all alive. Where would I be. Who would I be."

If I am being honest, sometimes I wish I could fly up to heaven myself. I have the wings. I just would not know how to. I've never had the thought of it. My home is here on earth. With my friends and my family. Pierce had stayed quiet, I was kinda thankful for him listening to me, and I sighed. I went to open my mouth but someone in the distance going into the restaurant caught my eye. " I wonder who he is. He doesn't scream I'm a mobster."

My phone rings and I didn't need to look at the screen itself to know it's Lucifer. I answered as I put the phone to my ear.

" Lucifer, I was starting to worry, I got this feeling in my chest..."

" Ellie! Darling. Oh, dad's name, I am so glad you picked up! I thought.."

" I'm on a stakeout. It turns out the Sinnerman is behind this, after all." I explained, noting how he sounded in distress the sound of his voice carried into the speaker followed by picked up winds as it would be when he's in his corvette, and I begin to think about his missing hours he wasn't around.

" Where were you? I was beginning to be worried sick."

" I've just gotten out of cold storage after being grabbed by him, again!" He was taken again? The panic I felt before must've been from him being in the storage. " What I am feeling now? I'm just dying to crush that pathetic excuse of a man."

" Wait. You saw him?" I asked, baffled. " Who is it? What does he look like?"

" Black fellow, early forties. Though he dresses like an old man. Would you believe he wore a sweater vest?! A sweater vest! Who even wears those anymore? It's so out of style I tell you."

Wait a second. That's him. That is the guy I see.

" That's him!"

I exclaimed, to pierce, and I hang up the phone on lucifer as he tried to repeat my name a few times. I go running into the direction of the man, while Pierce calls out to me, and I unbranded my weapon out of its holster.

" Decker! Wait! Wait! Decker!"

Pierce called out, wanting to stop me from making a rash decision, but it is over beared with the sound of four exact gunshots in the air.

I raised my gun to point at the gentlemen Lucifer described, he's lighter brown skin tone shone as a luminous red shade shone on him hovering over Frankie, and I realise now he'd shot Frankie in an area of his chest that could be considered lethal. I aimed higher to his head. " Drop your gun, now." He doesn't listen and instead he turned his gun on me. He missed, aiming at me, and I have to pretend I wasn't invincible ducking my head into safety. He runs out of the dining area and I start to run after him with Pierce trying to get me to at least stop and think about it. I don't listen.

Now I'm in the kitchen. I put my gun back inside of my holster, looking around the industrial silver machines the kitchen has. " I have units outside, waiting to take you in for the crimes you did, but we can come to an agreement. If you give up the gun." I say, falling into a walk, and I didn't flinch after a shot is fired. I dodged it easy. " Is that all you got for me?" I chuckled under my breath, I looked into the reflection of the salad bowl I see, kicking the serving table once I saw his reflection staring back into mine and the bullets ricocheted.

I craned my head, around the corner to see him dash out of his hiding spot, and i caught a little of my eyes changing into my special angel eyes as I chase after the suspect through the kitchen until he manages to get out to the loading dock. I see him about to escape until Pierce interrupted his escape, tackling him to the ground, and I craned my head hearing the supposed Sinnerman say a line that confuses me. " Do what you gotta do."

" Pierce. Hang on a second..."

I know he must be hurting from his brother's death but there's better ways of getting justice.

" Remember what I said. This won't help you with your brother. He.. wouldn't you go do this."

I said, softly, putting an arm on his chest to get him to see this wouldn't prove anything. He squinted his eyes remaining quiet for a few seconds before he made a choice.

He got the man up on his feet, putting him under arrest, and he got his handcuffs out.

" You... are under arrest."

The usual protocol, for a crime scene, made most of the law enforcements show up to the scene. It's another night of almost being caught but in the end it all worked out.

I watch another set of head lights come rushing into the scene, recognising it as part of Lucifer's corvette, and he parked right in front of a EMT on standby. He came running over, soon as he laid eyes on me standing here in the dark, and he searched me for injuries.

" I'm okay, Luc. See? I'm alright."

I assure him, as I did an demonstration of extending my arms, and his reaction is to breathe out in relief.

" We caught him. Well, it was Pierce who got him while he was trying to run but we got him, Luc!"

" Where is he?" Lucifer looked around, eager to get his hands on the Sinnerman for making a fool out of him locking him in the storage facility, and when he does spot him being checked over by an ambulance EMT his breathing gets ragged. " Oh, do I have some words of wisdom for him, I am.." before he could get himself into trouble, I did the one thing I could think of, and hugged him. He is confused but ultimately he stopped his warpath.

" I'm glad you are okay, Lucifer." I looked up at him, the feeling in my chest residing the more i am closer to Lucifer. " You had me worried. I was close to going out of my way to find you myself. I didn't know if I should have.. let aunt Chloe get a lead on this case but then I remembered she had her personal day. Today.."

" I'm a big boy, more ways than I liked to think, Darling. I can care for myself. Like I have been doing for eons, now. But..." He exhaled. " I am.. glad you felt the need to go out of your way and possibly go on a manhunt for me."

He mumbled, hugging me in return to mine, and I could feel a fresh wave of guilt go over me. Remembering of the hours before this how Marcus kissed me and I had allowed myself to like it.

'Why do I feel... this way.'

JASMINE SPEAKS;

This chapter took me a long time to write. Boy, I love writing longer chapters but it takes me long to finish them. Hours of my time. However I do love getting into details, with these chapters, so I don't regret doing them this long. I like longer, detailed, chapters so I write them myself.

What did you think of this chapter? Ellie with the lieutenant and Lucifer? Her reaction to the kiss? Her guilt about liking it?