Chapter Text
This could not be happening.
It should not be happening.
She did not deserve this.
He knew punishment and she did not deserve this.
They’d just gone back to the crime scene to sweep over for any clues they missed after they got no leads.
They found something and were about to leave when someone burst through the door.
It all happened too quickly.
He saw the person with a black facemask on lift the gun and point, but he was too far away to stop it. To jump in front of it. He fired and it hit her.
Chloe shot him down immediately after, but it was too late.
Ella had already been shot. And she was bleeding out.
“No no no no NO,” Lucifer yelled as he dropped down to the ground beside Ella.
Chloe did so as well and put pressure on the wound.
“It’s gonna be okay Ella, we’re gonna get you to the hospital, just hold on,” Chloe said quickly, and Lucifer could hear the worry in her voice.
It was bad. The wound was really bad. She was bleeding so much.
Chloe went to pull out her phone with her free hand to call for backup and medics.
Lucifer thrust his hand out, stopping her.
“There’s no time,” Lucifer said frantically.
Chloe looked at him.
“Lucifer, we need to call this in, she needs medical help!” Chloe replied, just as frantic.
Lucifer shook his head.
“They won’t get here in time; it’ll be too late.”
Lucifer looked down at Ella, whose head was cradled in his arms. He shifted and moved his other arm underneath her knees.
“I have to fly her there. It’s the only way she’ll get there fast enough,” he said, standing up with Ella in his arms.
He saw Chloe nod as he turned away, running to the door. As soon as he stepped outside, he summoned his wings and took flight. Flying as fast as he could to the hospital.
He looked down at Ella while he was up in the air.
“Hang on, Ms. Lopez, Father can’t have you just yet,” he whispered, flapping his wings harder, willing himself to go faster.
When he arrived at the hospital, he dropped down in the empty space, not really caring who saw him at that moment and folded his wings back in. He ran into the emergency room yelling that she’d been shot, and a gurney appeared in front of him, where he laid Ella down.
They rushed her away, promising to do everything they could for her.
He just stood there and watched them run her down the hall, not really sure what else to do. When they turned the corner and disappeared out of sight, he turned and sat down in the chair closest to him.
He put his head in his hands and closed his eyes, images of Ella getting shot flashing through his head.
A few minutes later, someone in scrubs approached him, asking about Ella. Her name, how he knew her, what happened, getting background information. She thanked him for his help and walked away, back to the desk to put the information into the system probably.
He figured he should probably let Chloe know what was going on. He pulled his phone out of his suit jacket pocket and called her. She picked up barely through the first ring.
“Lucifer? Is she okay?” she asked, slightly panicked.
“We got to the hospital, the doctors just took her a few minutes ago and they asked me for information about her. They haven’t said anything about her condition yet,” he replied.
Both of his elbows were on his knees, one hand holding the phone to his ear, the other hand in his hair holding his head.
“Okay, I’m on my way over there now. I had to wait for backup to come. The guy was still alive and confessed that he was the one who killed our victim and was coming back to clean up the evidence. He just shot because he didn’t want any witnesses,” Chloe explained.
Lucifer growled, a sound not of this world. Chloe sighed.
“I know, I know, he’ll get what he deserves. He’ll sit in a prison cell for the rest of his life and then in another cell for the rest of eternity,” Chloe replied, sounding as angry as Lucifer felt.
He nodded even though he knew she couldn’t see him. They stayed silent for a moment more.
“I called Dan and told him, so he’s on his way over as well. He’s going to call her brother’s who are here in LA and let them know. So keep an eye out for any of them if they come through,” Chloe continued.
Lucifer grunted in response.
“Ok, I’ll be there soon Lucifer, hang tight. I love you,” she said.
Lucifer’s shoulder relaxed slightly, and his eyes fluttered shut.
“I love you too,” he said back.
They hung up and Lucifer leaned back, his head resting against the wall, slumped in his chair.
It had been 2 months since he had returned from hell. 2 months since he saw Chloe again after the century he endured in hell. 2 months since she had said she still loved him, and since he told her he loved her too.
It had been a really good few months.
He and Chloe had spent almost every night together, only separated a few torturous times. When the child was with Dan, they would sometimes stay at his penthouse, and other times they stayed at Chloe’s.
He still had nightmares pretty much every night, and they were always much easier to calm down from when he was with Chloe.
Sometimes they would wake her up and she would coax him back into her arms. Other times she wouldn’t wake up, but she would reach out to his side of the bed in her sleep and would only settle down when he joined her back in bed.
The first night they spent apart since his return, he had had a particularly bad nightmare. One that seemed all too real.
He had woken up in a panic in his penthouse, and he couldn’t calm himself down, not sure what was real and what wasn’t.
He fumbled with his phone, trying to call Chloe. He looked at the clock as he heard the click when the phone was answered and he cursed himself silently, seeing that it was well past 3 in the morning.
“Lucifer are you okay?” she asked, her voice thick with sleep and worry.
He had immediately relaxed, knowing she was okay. It had just been a dream, she was okay.
“Yes, yes, I’m fine. I just needed to make sure you were okay,” he breathed.
“Oh, ok,” Chloe said, sounding relieved and also understanding his reasoning.
“I’m-I’m sorry for waking you, I shouldn’t have. I didn’t realize the time,” he muttered apologetically.
“It’s okay Lucifer, I told you to call me if you needed me. This counts,” she reassured.
Lucifer sighed and relaxed back onto his bed. He closed his eyes and another part of the nightmare flashed across his mind.
His breathing hitched.
“Chloe?” he asked, his voice sounding incredibly vulnerable.
“Yes?” she replied.
“Could- could you check on Beatrice? To make sure she’s okay? I’m sure she is, I- I just-” he tried to finish but couldn’t find the words to explain.
Chloe picked up on his meaning right away.
“Of course, Lucifer. Just a minute,” she replied, and he heard shuffling and moving around coming from her side of the phone.
Lucifer held his breath as he heard her walking down the hall. He was pretty sure the child was okay, but after what he’d seen- in his dream- he needed to be sure.
“She’s okay Lucifer,”- Chloe interrupted his thoughts, - “she’s snoring like an Albanian field wench, just like her mother,” Chloe said, and he could hear her smile as she said it.
Lucifer exhaled both in relief and in laughter at her response. He thanked her and they had both gone back to bed shortly after. Lucifer made sure to drop by her apartment before Trixie left for school the next morning, claiming he wanted to make them breakfast. She smiled, knowing the real reason behind it, and made sure to hug him extra tight that morning.
He and Chloe were officially together now. Finally. And he could not have been more thrilled about it.
They didn’t tell anyone for a little bit when he first came back, mostly because they themselves hadn’t even put a label on it yet, so they weren’t entirely sure what they would tell everyone.
They managed to mostly keep their hands off of each other at work, Chloe wanting to remain professional, which Lucifer, of course, respected.
But there would be stolen touches or kisses here or there. Sometimes in her office when no one was looking, or in the cruiser on the way to a crime scene. Which Chloe initiated her fair share of, much to Lucifer’s delight.
When they finally got around to having the conversation, they both agreed they wanted this to be real and they wanted to tell people.
They first told Trixie, who replied only with a “duh,” and a roll of her eyes, but was very happy, nonetheless. She was definitely settling in as a teenager.
Dan wasn’t too surprised and gave them a congrats when they told him after dropping Trixie off one day.
In Lucifer’s years away, Dan had healed as well as could be expected from the loss of Charlotte, with Linda’s help. He didn’t blame Lucifer anymore, but he still missed her of course. Some days were better than others, but there were more good days than bad.
Dan gave Lucifer the ‘if you hurt her speech’ as they both expected him too, and Lucifer promised that if he did hurt Chloe, he would allow Dan personally to pummel Lucifer to the ground. Chloe has raised her eyebrow in disapproval at that one but said nothing.
And when they told Ella, dear Ms. Lopez had been elated. She had screamed and almost fainted. She had hugged them to no end and said she had been waiting years for this moment. Her whooping and hollering was heard throughout the whole department.
Lucifer felt his eyes sting and a lump form in his throat as he thought about her in this moment. He couldn’t help the memory of her on the ground bleeding out flash through his mind, and he squeezed his eyes shut in pain.
After a few moments Dan ran through the door up to the front desk, and Lucifer stood up and intercepted him, calling his name.
He quickly updated Dan on what had happened, and Dan’s shoulder has sunk in relief that they’d made it here but remained incredibly tense at the rest of the news. He joined Lucifer on the chair beside him, his head in his hands, much like Lucifer’s had been a few minutes ago.
“I should’ve stopped it. I should have been closer to her. I tried to jump in front, but I was too far away-” Lucifer whispered, his voice getting more frantic as he kept talking.
“Hey, this isn’t your fault,” Dan interrupted, his hand coming up and gripping Lucifer’s shoulder firmly.
Lucifer looked up at Dan in genuine disbelief, both at his words, and who was saying them.
“Yeah yeah, I know. It surprises me to say this too. But from what Chloe said, it all happened so fast, there was nothing you could have done. It’s that scumbag’s fault and no one else’s. He’ll get what’s his,” Dan said, removing his hand from Lucifer’s shoulder.
Lucifer sighed and put his head in his hands again.
“Did you contact her brothers?” Lucifer asked after a few more minutes.
“Yeah, their numbers were listed on her emergency contacts. They are both hurrying here,” he explained.
Lucifer nodded and they returned to silence.
About 10 minutes later, Chloe arrived. She joined them in the chairs and held Lucifer’s hand the entire time, both of them needing each other’s support in that moment.
Ella’s brothers arrived after a bit too, Ricardo first, and Jay a few minutes later. They explained what happened to both of them, and they joined them in the waiting room, alternating between sitting and pacing around the room.
They sat there for what felt like forever. Chloe had checked the time on her phone and seen it had only been an hour. The only update they had gotten was that she had been rushed into emergency surgery and they wouldn’t know anything specific until after surgery.
A little while later, a doctor came around the corner and called out for Lucifer Morningstar. They all bolted up and the doctor walked over to them.
“Hi, are you all here for Ella Lopez?” the doctor asked.
They nodded quickly.
“Ms. Lopez is stable for now. The surgery went fine, and we have removed the bullet. Ms. Lopez lost a lot of blood, but you all are very lucky she got here in time,” the doctor explained.
They all noticeably relaxed, and Chloe squeezed Lucifer’s hand, recognizing his decision to fly her there.
“So as I said, she lost a lot of blood, and we are looking into a blood transfusion,” the doctor continued, “are any of you direct relative of Ella?” she asked.
Ricardo and Jay immediately piped up and stepped forward, informing her that they were both her brother. The doctor nodded and explained they would need to test their blood to see if either were compatible with Ella’s blood type if they were willing.
“She is not out of the woods yet, these next few hours will be crucial for Ella. But she is on the road to recovery, and she seems like she’s a fighter,” the doctor said to the group.
They all nodded.
“She is,” Chloe said, a lot of emotion in her voice.
“Can we see her?” Jay asked.
“She is currently sedated, and the nurses are finishing up. We have her in a joint room right now, so someone will come out and get you guys when the room has been cleared for visitors,” the doctor explained.
“Could she be moved to her own private room?” Lucifer asked, “Expenses are of no concern, she should be as comfortable as possible."
Jay and Ricardo looked back at Lucifer, saying neither they nor Ella could afford that. Lucifer just shook his head.
“You needn’t worry about it,” he replied to them and turned back to the doctor.
“Of course, sir, we will have her moved to her own room. Someone will be down in a bit when she’s ready,” she said, and when they nodded, she turned and walked away.
They sat back down, and both of her brothers thanked Lucifer, which he dismissed, saying it was no problem.
After another 15 or so minutes, a nurse came down and led them to Ella’s room, which was on the 5th floor.
(Link to Picture Ella's hospital room)
They let Ricardo and Jay in first, and the 3 of them waited outside, watching through the window into the room.
Ella was still asleep, and her face was very pale, likely from the lack of blood. The average human couldn’t, but Lucifer could hear her heart rate monitor from outside. It was beeping at a stable rate which calmed him slightly. But he knew she needed more blood. And soon.
Just then another nurse appeared and walked into the room. Lucifer heard him ask if they were her brothers, and then say they needed to come with him to test their blood. They nodded and looked back at Ella for another moment.
Chloe looked up at Lucifer in question, knowing he could hear what had been said even though she couldn’t.
“He’s taking them to test their blood,” he said quietly.
Chloe nodded and Dan looked slightly confused at his words, probably wondering how he knew or heard them, but didn’t bother to ask.
When her brother followed the nurse out of the room, Chloe assured them that they would stay here with Ella until they got back. They nodded in thanks and followed the nurse down the hall.
Chloe and Dan walked into the room and immediately over to opposite sides of Ella. Lucifer hung back a little, just staring her from the end of the bed.
Looking at her from closer now worried him more. She looked unlike her usual self. Gone was the chipper and always positive Ms. Lopez. Instead, she looked tired and worn down. It scared Lucifer even more.
Chloe looked up from Ella at Lucifer and gestured for him to come join her. He walked around to her side of the bed, and Chloe placed Ella’s hand in his, from where she had been holding it.
Her hand was still warm, thank Dad. Chloe placed her hand on his back to support him. None of them could say anything, not even sure what to say.
Eventually, Dan grabbed the chairs from the corner and brought them to the side of her bed. They sat down and continued to watch Ella for a while longer.
At some point, Dan stood up and said he was going to get them all some coffee and some food since they were missing their normal lunchtime and would likely be here for a while longer. Lucifer didn’t pay much attention, but Chloe nodded and thanked him.
A few minutes after Dan left, Chloe said she was going to call Maze, Amenadiel and Linda to let them know what was going on, and then Trixie as well so she knew to take the bus home.
Lucifer did pay attention to that, simply nodding. Chloe squeezed his hand before she left the room and disappeared down the hall.
Lucifer sighed and looked back at Ella, so many memories about her flashing through his head.
When he first saw her at that crime scene the day he met her. When she hugged him for the first time. The countless times in her lab, her explaining forensic stuff about cases, always so enthusiastically. When he learned about Azrael, and when he sat in the lab listening to her talk about the different materials shortly after. When he’d returned and crashed into her in the precinct those months ago.
He would give anything to ensure she could tell him boring case-related details again.
A few more minutes went by, and Lucifer heard the door open. He figured Dan or Chloe was back from whatever they were doing.
He glanced up and his face immediately paled. He broke out in a cold sweat and his heart started pounding in his chest.
Because the Angel of Death was standing in the doorframe.