25. Chapter 25

#

“It’s time.”

Chloe turned to Agent Price and nodded once, carefully, sure that any sudden movement would lead to throwing up everything she’d ever eaten.

She stiffened her spine as she rose from her chair, too aware of the many judging eyes of her colleagues. Show no weakness. Even now, especially now. More than one of them had known about Malcolm, and they had said nothing. The whole ‘brotherhood of the force’ mentality and ‘protect your own’ could only excuse so much and should never have applied when a child’s life was on the line.

The walk to the operations room might as well have been to the executioner’s chair.

Desperately trying to distract herself, she thought about Lucifer. He kept his word. Everything would be fine. It was taking longer than she’d hoped, but he seemed confident of success. Just because she was terrified, it didn’t mean she lacked faith in him.

Please don’t hate me.

Did he think there was any crime he could commit that she’d care about if it got Trixie back to her? No, he knew as she did that she’d made a choice that night with the mercenary. Chloe had knowingly stepped aside from her principles and morality in favour of results. She didn’t regret it. So what did Lucifer have left to fear from her?

What was he going to do that was worse than psychologically stripping a man down to his bare soul? What was worse than assassinating Malcolm so brutally? Worse than a past drenched in blood?

She didn’t want to know – but when had ignorance ever saved someone?

“If you’d like to take a seat, Chloe,” Agent Price said comfortingly, one hand on her shoulder, as if anything was going to comfort her now. “Your email account is on that screen there. If the Collector stays true to form, the email with the link will arrive on the dot of four o’clock. Your account is already bugged; we aim to trace the source of the email again. Failing that, he has to keep the video link and internet access open in order to feed his psychosis. We can trace that too and we’ll have facial recognition running. There’s also the chance that something in the video or text will give away their location. We’re doing everything we can.”

Chloe nodded again, stiffly, feeling estranged from her own body. She spoke gingerly, drawing on reserves of strength she didn’t know she had to keep her voice cool and dispassionate. Did an endless void of numbed, icy, horror count as a strength?

“And, the other screens?”

“The Collector uses a webcam to conduct the auction. The feed will be on that screen there,” she indicated it with a tilt of her head, “I warn you that it will show your daughter. It’s advertisement for the…buyers. It could get graphic quickly. The Collector is known to play to his audience, shall we say. Chloe, this isn’t the sort of thing you can ever forget. You really don’t have to watch.”

“I really do,” Chloe replied, and that was the end of that line of conversation. Agent Price nodded, compassion, respect, pity – it didn’t matter.

“The third screen will show the chat room. As you know, the auction is conducted online. Every potential buyer is sent an email with a link to the website. We’ll be recording usernames to pass along to other teams, linking them to old cases or building the database up. The content is likely to be highly disturbing; these are all unpleasant individuals. I emphasise again that you can leave at any time.”

Chloe gave that all the attention it deserved and lowered herself into the central chair.

“Dan?”

“On his way, Michaels is giving him the same briefing.”

“Amenadiel?”

“Agent Johnson is with him now,” the agent hesitated, but one sharp glance from Chloe had her speaking again, “Guilt seems to be a good lever with him. We’d like him to be here with you and Dan, watching.” The agent took an uneasy breath under Chloe’s unwavering stare. “I know it’s the last thing you want, I know it’s going to be awful even without an accomplice here to taunt you, but the added emotional element may well break him. We need something, Chloe. Any little detail could save the next one.”

“Leaving Trixie for dead are you?”

Chloe didn’t recognise her own voice.

Agent Price winced, eyes widening. “God no, I’m so sorry, I didn’t meant it that way.”

“Yes you did,” Chloe said, turning her head away. She understood. Just because it was her daughter on the line, it didn’t change the statistics. The auction would begin in a few minutes, and it wouldn’t last long. That was a very short window of time for a rescue.

“Bring him here,” she gave permission in that same empty tone. “I don’t care anymore.”

Trixie.

Lucifer had promised. He’d sworn. Made a sacred oath or whatever the fuck you wanted to call it. He’d promised.

Chloe was going to hold on to that with all she had, and pray he didn’t shatter what was left of her.

Dan stumbled into the room.

“Chloe!”

“Dan.”

He flinched away from her.

She didn’t care about that either.

Amenadiel was next, cuffed to a chair. They said nothing. He was still staring at the ceiling, blank eyed and expectant.

Chloe locked her gaze to the first screen. The clock ticked over. 16:00.

Ping.

One new email.

It was a good job that it was one of the agents who clicked the email open, Chloe was sure she couldn’t have made herself do it.

Dear Valued Customer,

Thank you for your interest in our L.A Grand Auction! Please follow the link below to log in to your account. Your details are:-

Username: MamaBear

Password: Fucked

Rest assured that we take your privacy seriously! All customer details, message and transactions are encrypted. We wish you the best of luck in the bidding!

Yours sincerely,

CollectorAuctions.com

She was going to hurl.

Someone clicked on the link, and her eyes snapped to the next screen as the agent logged on with the taunting details.

[MamaBear] has logged in.

[HschlHTub] has logged in.

[Dungeon!Mast3r] has logged in.

“There’s no capacity for us to use any of the chat features, same as with the others, we can only watch,” Michaels reported calmly, eyes fixed to whatever it was he was doing on his computer.

One of the screens flickered to life, and suddenly Trixie was there in full colour, pixelated glory.

Relief nearly crippled her. Alive. Everyone had said the Collector would keep her alive, it was logical, he needed her alive, but Chloe hadn’t been sure. But there she was, breathing and fantastic.

Rage followed relief. Alive, yes, breathing yes. Unharmed? No.

Trixie was crying. She’d been put into heavy makeup, the kind her grandmother preferred, and tear tracks ran obvious trails through the bronzer and foundation, mascara smeared all over the place. She was wearing a pink princess costume; even her hair had been swept up and secured with a tacky tiara.

Bruises covered her hands and arms, and there was a nasty shadow under the foundation on one cheek.

Chloe saw red and trembled with barely contained fury.

Price approached with a sympathetic expression already plastered on her face, but Chloe looked at her, and she backed off. For fuck’s sake she wasn’t upset she was murderous.

[83246952] has logged in.

[batman] has logged in.

[poosyluvva] has logged in.

Name after name flashed by on the screen as dozens of the bastards all logged in at the same time. Statistically, there had to be a lot of sickos in L.A, but Jesus fucking Christ.

“Welcome to my Grand Auction, L.A edition. I am the Collector, and here is my prize!”

The voice was mechanical; some sort of computer program, but Chloe could sense the glee. He really was getting off on this. The Collector. Her unseen enemy; in a thousand years, she would never forget his voice.

“One Beatrice Decker, eight years old, virgin, and quite the spitfire. You’ll have a lot of fun breaking her in, I promise.”

[HschlHTub] Fuck yea

[poosyluvva] Cnt fkin w8!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BigDaddy] Come on, come on, let’s get started already!

“Patience, please, let the anticipation build, savour the moment here. I know you’ve all read my little advert –“

“Advertising? That’s the first we’ve heard of that. Get on it. Contact base, see if the CPS has picked anything up on the forums or from the usual suspects,” Agent Johnson barked.

Another possible lead. It was something. Chloe would have texted Connor to make sure he looked into it too, but she knew he was already tapped into their systems.

“-but let me explain for those of you that missed it. This little girl is descended from the stars! An acting legend for a grandmother, and an actress turned police detective for a mother. I trust you’ve all seen the clip from Hot Tub High School? Excellent genetics there, if you keep them for long enough that is.”

[poosyluvva] Boobies lol

How she could still feel mortification on top of everything else, Chloe couldn’t fathom. Trixie was glaring at something – someone- off screen, and Chloe almost smiled at the familiar expression, before the rage and terror swamped her again. Keep her for long enough? How dare they! And it was depressingly unlikely. A few weeks at most, wasn’t that the statistic? Oh god oh god oh god, Lucifer, please…

“And a father in the police force too. Trust me, if you’ve ever wanted to stick it to the pigs, stick it in their daughter instead!”

[MoFo999] Hahaha, me and me mates have plans

[abc123] $$$???!!!

“Price?” The Collector asked in that mechanical yet emotive voice, “Well I think for a specimen this fine…

Chloe glanced frantically from the screen showing Trixie to the screen showing the conversation. As awful as it had been, listening to that filth, she preferred they continued it rather than moving on to the actual auction. Anything to buy more time.

[83246952] Before you begin, please confirm the security around this transaction. Rumour has L. on the warpath.

[MoFo999] has logged off.

[DemonLover] has logged off.

[NinjaOrangeRamen] has logged off.

[QWERTY] L? ARE YOU FUCKING SHITTING WITH ME?

Chloe was suddenly very conscious of the FBI agents all around her. Everyone with two brain cells to rub together had to suspect that ‘L’ was Lucifer, and the reaction to his name was way too suspicious. Even she was surprised. Sure, Amir had known of Lucifer, known like he was some sort of landmark in their world… Still, these were men who were willing to take part in a semi-public slave auction for a child. They’d been invited and vetted by The Collector and chosen for a reason.

They didn’t balk at that, but they scared at the mention of ‘L’ enough to just cut ties and go.

Please don’t hate me.

Well, it wasn’t like she hadn’t known.

#

Agent Johnson dragged a chair over to her and sat down with a sigh.

“Interesting connections, was it?”

Well at least he had two brain cells, Chloe thought uncharitably, ninety nine per cent of her attention focused on absorbing Trixie’s image, crippling aware it might be the last time she ever saw her daughter alive.

“Whatever works, Agent,” she replied softly. “Don’t you agree?”

They pointedly didn’t look at Amenadiel, whose presence was so far off the books it left literacy behind entirely.

“I suppose I must,” the agent sighed again, then got up and switched his attention to harassing Amenadiel.

“Still think he’s a ‘good man’?” Dan muttered, only pretending to keep his voice down.

“You’re trying to score points on an imaginary tally against the man whilst Lucifer is trying his best to help,” she replied calmly, letting him do the math. It felt odd (and a relief), but Dan just didn’t matter to her anymore. She’d said she was done with him, and even her subconscious had meant it. He’d weighed her down more than she’d ever thought; it felt good to not care anymore.

[batman] No, I’ve heard the rumours too. The girl’s his woman’s daughter. L’s offering Favours for safe return.

And that just confirmed Lucifer’s identity. Shit. That was going to have consequences.

[83246952] A Favour from L might be worth the risk of his displeasure.

“Then perhaps I’ll increase my price,” interrupted The Collector’s anonymous voice.

[83246952] I still want guarantees. The last man L went after is still in the asylum, terrified of the dark and screaming about the Devil.

This was going to do wonders for Agent Johnson’s interest in Lucifer.