The first omen

The phone beeped with no response, what a shame…

perhaps not many people were awake and ready for a phone call at midnight. The woman who called exhaled the smoke of her cigar in the air as her hand full of golden rings and a neat manicure put the handset on the cradle with a loud thud and sat back in her seat.

“Well Marcus… I tried. No response.”

The woman said with a small shrug of her shoulders; Markus had to squint his eyes to see her through the thick cloud of smoke curling around her lips. Female dancers in sparkly clothing and feathers accompanied her. Massaging her shoulders, sitting by her legs and leaning against her; one of them was bold enough to cling to her… the club where they sat, the one where men came at night for ‘music’… and where of course the sexy women performed choreographed acts in barely any clothing.

Marcus shook his head, he knew that Emanuel barely slept so there’s no way he wouldn’t hear or notice a phone call in that creepy, small apartment of his. “Please try again… I’m sure he will answer.”

A pleading tone came from Marcus’s lips as he looked up at the terrifying woman in front of him. She took a long drag from her cigar again before speaking in that haunting, monotone voice of hers.

“I’ve already done plenty for you, Marcus. Don’t you think?”

A faint smile tugged at the corner of her lips, it wasn’t friendly, and there was no trace of warmth behind it. It was terrifying at its finest. Marcus kept the eye-contact with her— As hard as it was. He would not give this up.

“Yes… I agree. But Emanuel isn’t just anyone. I think you both can help each other.”

“Markus, I forgave you for giving my number to a… scum cop.” The woman said, her smile and monotone voice not wavering.. “Give me one good reason to not…” the woman traced her own throat with an outstretched thumb mimicking the slit-throat action. Marcus gulped down his own saliva, it was a none-verbal threat… which well was intimidating enough coming from her.

“Trust me. I’m the man of my word… I know what I’m doing..” Marcus muttered under his breath. With less confidence than before, the woman smirked while he spoke up again, this time looking up into her eyes.

“I won’t let you down… Lucifer.”

…

“Tch- ahh…” Emanuel hissed as the pain shot through his body. After the stitches had opened up he was forced to go to a doctor again. Who was stitching his forehead back together… Emanuel never thought he could end up in this situation.

“I told you to be careful.” The Doctor who was stitching his forehead groaned while looking at the done damage. Emanuel was one of his restless patients, and he was honestly tired of it. “Just finish it, I have so much work to do.”

“And you think I don’t?” The doctor answered as he finished the stitches and let go of the instruments, putting them away and taking his gloves off. Emanuel sat silently afterwards…

The past couple of days were weird, the ‘solved’ case. The interrogation, the random phone call from an unknown… the forgotten Bible. There was a feeling in his gut that all of this was leading to something bigger… something worse than what he could imagine.

After being discharged by his Doctor he left the hospital and took the train to his office, who knew being without a car could be so hard? As long as he can remember himself he always depended on cars without any thought.

…

Sitting alone in his office over paperwork had became a routine, but instead of paperwork; on his desk laid the Bible he found in his apartment. Emanuel kept reading through it, taking in the highlights he left back when he used to own the book and actually shown interest in it.

Emanuel thought a lot about the interrogation as he zoned out while reading the Bible; and the unusual response of the so-called killer, he decided to dig deeper, but there was nothing to be found, just then a knock came on his office door. He rolled his eyes already recognising those footsteps.

“No no don’t come I-“

But Spencer came in anyways, walking with that familiar grin on his face. He whistled after seeing Emanuel’s fresh stitches. “Woah… expected to see anything but this- oh who am I kidding I don’t expect anything from you nowadays.”

Emanuel wanted to jump out the window and run away, how can a Captain be so giddy? Like a dumb school-girl on prom.

“Ha-ha very funny. Now get out,”

“You’re reading a Bible-?” Spencer asked with an actual surprise painting his old wrinkled face. He came closer and grabbed the book while Emanuel tried to reach for it. “Thought I’d never see the day—Detective Emanuel getting into religion.”

Spencer laughed, his laugh roughened with the cigars he always smoked. Voice surprised but deep with apparent satisfaction.

Spencer spoke up again as he flipped the pages of the sacred book. “What has gotten into you-?”

Emanuel didn’t listen to him, he just snatched the Bible back and shoved it into his bag. But before he could throw a few curse words and kick Spencer out of his office, the bastard spoke again.

“My old lady always drags me and the kids to church, you can join us this Sunday,”

Emanuel raised an eyebrow and shook his head as if surprised. Well, he was surprised because Spencer never mixed work with family. But he didn’t seem to be joking.

“Church? Yeah no. I’d be caught dead going to Church.” Emanuel laughed it off sarcastically, but the very thought of going to a church after so long… made goosebumps paint the back of his neck. Whatever.

Why would he think about it?

Why would he go.

He had so much work to do… So many unanswered questions.

…

Could the so-called Lord find the answers to his questions?

…

Emanuel couldn’t believe he actually did this, for the first time in his life instead of sweating over paperwork he went to church with Spencer’s family. Sitting there while the Priest said his prayers, Emanuel looked up to see Spencer in his casual attire along with his wife and two kids who sat there praying over their own Bibles.

He looked back down to his own Bible and sighed, this wasn’t his place. It brought back bad memories and flashbacks of the shattered past he tried so hard to sweep under the rug.

He closed the Bible with a loud enough thud so Spencer opened his eyes and looked at him mid-prayer. “I can’t do this I have to-“ Emanuel said but didn’t think twice before getting up from his seat; before he could think he bumped into a woman who was also getting up to leave-

Dropping the Bible in his hands Emanuel almost swore out loud in a damn church, the woman he bumped into; crouched down to pick up his discarded Bible which slipped free from his hands and struck the wooden floor with a dull thump. He also crouched down without realisation - his scarred and bandaged hand brushing against her cold gloved one, rings decorating the black fabric on her fingers, the pages of the Bible fanning open as she picked it up from the floor without another word and handed it to him.

“Be careful next time,”

She said with no hospitality or care as she watched him take the Bible from her gloved hands. 

The woman wore a black coat, tightly closed around her slim body; hands covered in expensive leather gloves which as good as they seemed… did not suggest wealth. Her dark curls framing her awfully cold and softly feminine at the same time face.

She smelled of Tobacco and sin. Good whiskey mixed with expensive perfume which screamed ‘danger’. 

Neither of them apologised, Emanuel was too proud to do so, and seems like he met someone with the same amount of pride he carried on his shoulders.

Her expression wasn’t warm. Nor cold… it was something unreadable. Which honestly for a detective was a huge problem.

Emanuel watched her slip through the old Church doors without a sound. Even her heels clicked softly as if to not disturb the praying people and the Priest at his duty.

…

Outside rain had already began to fall.

A black Lincoln Continental rolled quietly to the curb, Marcus stepped out from the passenger seat while the faceless driver stayed inside.

“You stayed longer than expected,” Marcus said, Lucifer already reached for her coats inside pocket and lit a slick cigarette as Marcus walked up to her with an umbrella held up already, she blew some smoke out slowly and sighed before speaking.

“Had to see it to believe it.” She answered, the cigarette dangling from her pink dusted lips.

“He has those eyes… how do I describe it…” She didn’t finish thinking as Marcus cocked a smirk and spoke before she could.

“Eyes of someone who digs too deep…”

Marcus spoke quietly as he walked her towards the car and opened the back door for her to slip in. Before she did, she stood there in silence, throwing the half smoked cigarette on the curb and crushing it with her heel.

After another moment of silence she finally answered.

“So he’ll keep digging…

…And when he does…

He’ll eventually arrive at my door.”

She slipped into the car but before Marcus could close her door she spoke up again. 

“Whether he wants to…

Or not.”

The door slammed shut after her words, and the shining black car covered in droplets disappeared into the darkness of the road.