Markus checked the map on his phone and stood by the bus stop. He had been there for less than two minutes before he heard a familiar voice behind him.

“I trust she received the letter?”

Markus spun, his eyes wide. “Jeez! Clear your throat or something, man. Almost gave me a heart attack. And yes, she got it. We’re going to meet this “Seraphi” now. Well, I’m going to find a suitable place to sit and watch, so she feels safer.”

“A good man, my boy. I truly hope, for everyone’s sake, that she accepts. I do so love to see my employees happy.” Lucifer grinned and clapped Markus on the shoulder.

“I’m glad to finally be able to be happy, Lucifer. I hope you never have to experience what the life of most mortals is like. There’s a lot of hopelessness out in the world.”

“I’ve noticed. And you feel strongly about it, then?” Lucifer asked in a soft voice.

Markus nodded, his thoughts drifting to a friend he had had in high school. Brian had been the epitome of “good kid”. Always helping their other classmates with homework or just a kind word here and there.

*******

The two of them had been nearly inseparable throughout their high school career. They spent so much time at each other’s house, that their mothers had basically informally adopted the other boy. Markus had never seen Brian’s father, however. His own had been in and out of the house on occasion when Brian had been there, but not much more than that.

It wasn’t until Brian was found swinging from the oak tree in the winter of their Junior year in front of his house that anyone knew how bad his situation at home was. At the funeral, it was revealed that Brian’s father was an abusive man who just so happened to be gone quite a bit.

Brian’s mother had apparently been beaten repeatedly by her husband, and she knew he was cheating on her, but she didn’t dare fight back or speak out. Brian had no siblings, and his only real friend had been Markus. Deborah had been happy to let Brian stay the weekends with his friend, and had also been happy to host Markus at their home. Whenever Dale wasn’t around, that is.

Markus had met him for the first time at Brian’s funeral. At the time, he knew nothing of Dale’s behavior, so he took him for your standard grieving, if stoic, father. How wrong he had been.

“Are you Brian’s father?” he had asked the man.

“Hm? Yeah. That’s me. Weak way to go, you know? Not even man enough to pick up a gun. Shoulda gone sooner, as useless as he was.” The big man shook his craggy head. “Who’re you? How’d you know the runt?”

“Dale!” Deborah lightly swatted her husband’s shoulder. “Can you be nice for once? Markus, honey, I’m sorry. I know this is hard for you.”

Dale leaned in close to Deborah, and Markus heard his voice, menacing and frankly, terrifying, “Bitch, the only reason you ain’t joined him is because I’ve not found a pig farm big enough for your fat ass.” He then looked at Markus and smirked as Deborah retreated into herself. “Gotta keep ‘em in their place, kid. Who are you, anyway?”

Markus clenched his fists until they ached, struggling to keep the anger from his voice. “I’m Markus. Brian was my best friend.”

Dale had laughed, then. Long and loud, much to the irritation of the people around them. “Makes you just as useless and worthless as that shitstain was. Get th’fuck out of here.” Incredibly, the man picked up a bottle that reeked of alcohol and took a long pull.

Shaking his head, Markus walked away.

It was at that moment, that Markus resolved to never be the kind of man Brian’s father was. Sure, he was a big kid, but it was mostly fat at that age. He took some simple boxing lessons and trained himself up a fair bit over the rest of that year and through the summer, coming back to school in his Senior year a much more athletic and well-built young man.

A young man determined to follow the best parts of his best friend’s example. He became more outgoing, more approachable. Started watching the other students more, and made a point of being there for the ones that were obviously going through a lot. He also visited Brian’s mom as often as he could.

It wasn’t until she failed to answer the door for nearly a week that he became concerned.

In the fall of his senior year, he had stopped by Deborah’s home on a Monday to say hi. After receiving no answer, he shrugged and went home. He got the same results for the rest of the week, and on Friday, he saw an ambulance in front of the house.

Markus remembered running up to the house, shouting for Deborah. The cop that was there had to restrain him to keep him from going to the door. He did explain the situation, however.

“Son, you can’t go in there. Now how do you know this woman?”

“Deb’s the mom of my best friend. Remember Brian? The kid y’all found swinging from this tree here?” Markus said as he cried, motioning to the massive oak.

The officer’s shoulders slumped. “Yeah, kid. I remember him. I’m the one that got called out here that night. You been coming over here much?”

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

“Yeah. I’ve been here every day since. I saw her last Friday. She seemed fine. A little anxious maybe, but I chalked that up to losing Brian. What’s going on, man?”

“Kid, look. I hate to be ‘that guy’, but Deb’s gone. This house is now a crime scene until we figure out who did this.”

“What? No. No, you’re wrong. Deb can’t be gone. She was… she was just…” Markus broke down into sobs as the officer gave him a hug.

“Look. Can I get someone to take you home? I can’t have you hanging around, kid.”

Markus remembered nodding woodenly as a stretcher came out of the house, bearing what he assumed to be Deborah’s body. “Just her?”

“Yeah, man. Just Debbie,” the officer whispered hoarsely, then radioed for someone to take Markus home.

“Check on Dale. That bastard did this. I know it.”

“Who?”

“Her husband. The shit I heard that man say at Brian’s funeral? Nah. I’d bet my left arm he did this or had something to do with it.” Markus could feel himself getting angry again.

An officer had come by and taken him home shortly afterward, where he tearfully recounted the events to his mother, who was just as heartbroken. Two weeks after the funeral, he happened to come across Dale in the parking lot of a gas station, where he was stumbling around, drunk off his ass on something.

Something snapped inside, and Markus walked up to Dale and said, “Hey Dale!” When Dale stupidly raised his drunken head, Markus landed a rather clean right hook directly to Dale’s unprotected jaw.

Dale’s jaw shattered from the impact, and he spun to the ground, twitching. Markus stood over him, shouting incoherently at the drunken man. He had raised his right arm once more, intending to drive it as far into Dale’s head as he could, when he felt his arm being grabbed from behind, and handcuffs roughly slapped onto him. He remembered growling and struggling to get to Dale, the unwavering rage fueling him forward as two police officers struggled to hold him.

It turned out that not only had Markus broken his jaw, he had hit him hard enough to tear several muscles in Dale’s neck, and forced him to wear a brace for the next few months. While Markus wasn’t formally charged with a crime, it was known throughout the small town what had happened. He quit the boxing gym voluntarily, and life continued on. The investigation into Deb’s death came to nothing, but Markus was still sure that it was Dale who killed her.

*******

“Yeah, Lucifer. I do feel strongly about it.”

“Were you thinking about him?” Lucifer laid a gentle hand on Markus’ shoulder.

Markus turned with a sad smile. “Yeah. He was just a kid, you know? No kid should ever have to hurt that badly. His dad on the other hand…”

Lucifer huffed a laugh. “You only managed to hit him once. I imagine you’d only just be getting out of prison had you been able to continue.”

“I was stupid, Lucifer. I let my anger get the better of me, and Dale wound up in a hospital bed for the next three months. He never came around me, though. I wonder whatever happened to him.”

“He’s alive, still. Lives in Minnesota with a dog, subsisting on his pension from the Navy. Hasn’t raised a hand to another soul since.”

Markus looked sharply at his manager. “Can you just tell me that?”

Lucifer shrugged. “I don’t see why not. You’re not the kind of man to go after him. You already did.”

Markus nodded in thought. “Here’s the bus. You coming?”

Lucifer shook his head. “Business meeting of my own, over in Mongolia. Be safe, Markus.” He smiled and patted Markus on the shoulder before turning around and walking into the alley.

Markus got onto the bus and contemplated the day as he traveled. If Akane could get hired, it would greatly simplify their life together. As well as allow the pair of them to live a comfortable life, and to make sure their friends were well-cared for, too.

He got off the bus and made his way into the mall. Finding the food court by smell alone was rather simple, and he scanned the area, finding a space in a corner that was unobtrusive and would allow him to see pretty much everything. He bought some ramen and took a seat.

He decided to eat slowly and savor the food as he played on his phone. After a few minutes, Akane messaged him, telling him she was nearly there. Markus looked up, and spied a slender man in a green fur hat wearing geta sitting not too far from him with his back to Markus. Smiling, Markus slurped his soup and waited.

*****

Akane entered the mall, her stomach doing butterfly flips. Was she seriously going to do this? If the opportunity was good enough, would she, could she really leave Kitscho?

Before she could formulate any other thoughts, she saw him. Seraphi. He was rather difficult to miss, with that green fur hat. Hastily, she scanned the court and saw Markus’ smiling face and relaxed. She knew she was safe, now. She looked over the restaurants and saw a line that was blessedly short, and got herself a tea.

As she was early, she figured she would have the time to get a drink before meeting this person. Five minutes later, a perfectly crafted matcha in hand, she walked over to Seraphi.

“Seraphi?” she asked. The man looked up and smiled.

“You must be Ikeda-san. Welcome and thank you for responding so swiftly.” He stood, towering over her at nearly seven feet, then gestured to the empty seat across from him.

Akane smiled and took her seat. “I was skeptical about it at first, until my boyfriend reminded me how unusual and unexpected this past week has been. He suggested we “roll the dice” and see what happens.”

Seraphi laughed. “He sounds like someone who is willing to take risks!”

Akane sipped her tea with a smile. “He does, on occasion. He certainly has taken some risks this past week, and I think they’ve all worked out in his favor. I’m kind of hoping some of his luck will rub off on me.”

Seraphi grinned. “We will find out, Ikeda-san. Would you like to hear what I’ve got? I don’t mind just chatting with you, otherwise. You seem like a sweet and kind woman.”

Color rose in Akane’s cheeks. “Thank you, Seraphi-san. And yes, I’d be honored to hear what you have to say.”