There Are Worse Things Than Murder

It was fairly common for Michael to get involved in criminal cases. Sometimes even working alongside the police. However, most of the time, he preferred to work alone. He was currently investigating a case about a demon who’d been charged with aggravated assault and 1st-degree murder. Normally, he would have kept an arrest like that in the hands of the law, if it wasn’t for the fact that he believed him to have a partner. The police hadn’t gotten anything out of him through their interrogations, but Michael had managed to research more into the demon’s relations and the crime scene to suspect a new murder to be connected to the first one. At last, his research had ended with the name of another suspect. For that reason, he was on his way to meet up with his lawyer. If anything, she should be just as interested in finding out if he had a partner. Because even if Mr. Jackson didn't want to rat anyone out, it could still potentially improve the terms of his sentence - if the rest of the circumstances were in his favor.

He’d requested a meeting with the lawyer’s assistant, waiting patiently for her as she walked out of the room. When she returned and said that Miss Cowan was ready to see him, he walked with her. He walked a few steps inside of her office. Her first name sounded familiar. But he couldn't quite place where he'd heard it before. “Michael Sanctius,” he greeted, returning her handshake before he nodded to her question. “I have new information regarding the case of Mr. Jackson,” he explained. “A lead for a possible partner,” he clarified as he looked into her eyes, trying to sense if she knew something about that. “There was another murder, not far from the location of the first one. Same injuries and cause of death. And there was a trace of hair at the crime scene,” he continued. He'd just received the result of the DNA test half an hour ago. “Did your client mention a Kaiden Bentley by any chance?” he asked her.

He followed her gesture for him to sit down as he explained the situation. He failed to tell the recognition of the name by her expression, now not sure if she knew something about it or not. Her next sentence made him want to scoff because it was typical lawyers. But he kept up the professional appearance, simply nodding. However, he'd hoped that she'd cared to share this fact, if there was a chance that it'd prevent more people from getting hurt or murdered by this guy. Then she stood up and grabbed a file, looking at him for a moment, which made him wonder what she was thinking. He nodded as she presented him with some information she’d gathered on the case. He reached his hand out to take the file, scanning the text as she mentioned her intention to travel to the address. He raised his gaze back to her. Surprised that she’d be willing to get herself into a situation like that. “Yeah, and good company at that,” he said with a smile on his lips, accepting her invitation to come along. After all, he would have gone by himself anyway. And he figured that she might be helpful, seeing that she knew how to get on the good side of criminals, or even act if the situation called for it. He stood up from the seat as she grabbed her bag. “Right,” he agreed, glancing towards the window overlooking the city in her office. She wasn’t wrong. People got assaulted there all the time, and it was no secret that the residents weren’t a fan of the law. If he’d gone alone, he’d keep himself invisible to avoid the unnecessary attention, but seeing that they were going together, undercover clothing seemed fitting. He then walked over to open the door, holding it open for her until she passed through before he closed it behind them. “So, Zitora. I'd really appreciate if you could tell me anything you know about Kaiden. You know, considering that we are to meet him… I promise I’m only interested in preventing another murder. Not Mr. Jackson,” he said as they walked down the hallway to the elevator. Suspecting her to know something that she kept a secret. But he hoped that she'd trust him in this. All he cared about was helping people. Not the judgment of her client. That was in the hands of the law.

It was no secret that police officers and defense attorneys had a hostile relationship with each other. Always being on the opposing side of criminal cases. For that reason, he understood that she’d be reluctant to share any information with him. But above all, Michael served God and the greater purpose of saving people from an unjustifiable death, so he wasn’t really doing this on behalf of anyone else. “Thank you,” he said, following her to the parking lot before they drove to the penthouse she lived at. He smiled at her comment about not usually bringing guys home with her, but this wasn't a usual situation. And regardless, she had no reason not to feel safe with him. “So have you done this often… gone undercover because of a case?” he asked her as he entered the apartment, glancing around the big space. While he waited for her to return with the clothes, he took off his suit jacket and walked closer to the window, admiring the breathtaking view that undoubtedly was worth a fortune. He turned his head as he heard her walking down the stairs again, just staring at her for a moment as she looked like a completely new person. “You’ll blend right in,” he said with a brief smile before he walked closer to her to grab the clothes. “No, thanks. I’m good,” he replied to her offer about coffee. He then walked into the bathroom to get dressed in the new clothes: a black t-shirt, denim jeans that were slightly ripped and boots. He walked out of the room carrying his suit and the dress shoes in his hands before he glanced down at his jeans. “I think you need to throw these out,” he commented, thinking that the rips were caused by them being broken or too worn. He then glanced up at her again. “Are you ready to go?”

He frowned briefly at her comment about having to teach her mother how to drive. Usually, it was the other way around. But he was rarely one to judge, so he just nodded and followed along. “How is she doing so far?” he asked to create some small talk as they walked. He wasn't aware of who her mother was. All he sensed was that she had something angelic about her, which was part of the reason he hadn’t hesitated to work with her. He sat down in the passenger seat and buckled up. It wasn’t long before they hit the road and Michael took out a small notepad to go over the information he had of these people and added a few additional notes. He looked up from the paper as she’d figured out who he was. Normally, people recognized him if they had seen him somewhere before, and most often that place was Heaven. However, it was rather common for people to ask him if he was the archangel, had they already figured out that he was an angel. But her recognizing him. It made him realize that he knew of her as well. “Then you must be the Zitora I’ve heard about. The soul who was granted a resurrection by my father?” he said, thinking that she'd seen him or his portrayals during her time in Heaven. “You were quite the talk for a while,” he said with a smile on his lips. It wasn’t often that his father granted that kind of blessing, but he had no doubt that he had seen something great in her for doing so. He closed the notepad and put it back in his pocket as she asked him another question. “Because I need to ensure that there isn’t another killer connected to this case… I can’t help to think that there is another innocent soul out there who inevitably will fall at the hands of his wickedness and that he is causing suffering, not only to the victims but their families as well,” he explained looking at the road ahead of them as he thought back on some incidents from his past. Besides that, he felt like he was meant to pursue this lead. He couldn’t exactly explain why that was. He often got the feeling to do certain things or go somewhere specific as if it was relating to his fate. “What about yourself?” he asked as he glanced at her. He could only assume that her initial reason was to gain a new witness in her client’s favor, but he wasn't so sure if that was still the case.

The way she described her mother as a shapeshifter with her own pack made him think of Tatia. He smiled as she added the comment about her not being able to read a map, remembering the way she had reacted in the car when he’d asked her for help with directions. “Your mother wouldn’t happen to be Tatia?” he asked as he looked at her. It would be a strange coincidence, but either way, it made sense when you considered that Cain was Zitora’s father, and he remembered that Tatia had talked about him. “Oh yeah?” he asked, slightly surprised by the way she addressed it, but he couldn’t help but smile due to how calm it was said. Perhaps she didn’t realize how rare such an incident was. He looked at the scenery passing by as she said it had been nice to be reunited with her family, nodding as she mentioned the hardest part of returning to Earth was leaving them behind. Michael knew what it felt like to leave one's family behind. But he was sure that she’d done it for a greater reason. A few memories flashed before him. Of the recent losses he’d had. And how his son Zachary had begged of him to stay every time he’d returned to Heaven. Michael had always told him that whenever he needed him, he just had to close his eyes and say a prayer. That even though he was leaving, he would always be right there. The fact that they were going to Southside didn’t ease those thoughts because he knew that Zachary was most likely living there now - with Maelle and her people. All because he’d failed him. However, as they entered the city limits of Southside, he pushed those thoughts aside, knowing that he needed to focus on the case.
When they stopped near the ruins, he stepped out of the car and closed the door behind him, taking a moment to assess the area. He didn't exactly know if the change of clothes would make him blend in as his whole being screamed angel, but for the time being, he hoped that he'd be able to fool them. “So, what's the plan?” he asked and turned his gaze to her.

He nodded slowly as she confirmed his suspicion, thinking that it was quite the coincidence that he’d meet her at this time. She didn’t ask how they’d met either, but knowing her mother, she probably knew it had been under unusual circumstances. However, knowing who her parents were, it only made that much more sense to him how she’d managed to convince God of her resurrection.
Outside of the car, he turned his gaze to her as she explained her plan. He knew that it was quite a powerful advantage to read the minds of others by simply touching them, so he didn’t doubt that it was going to be extremely helpful in this case. “Great,” he replied before he turned his gaze to a couple of guys staring at them. He nodded slowly as she assured him that she hadn’t snooped around in his mind. It wasn't a place that anyone would want to stay for long. But he understood that she'd just tried to get the sense of whether she could trust him. As long as it stayed at that. “Alright, just promise to stay out of my mind from now on,” he said, giving her a sideways glance before he looked around at the buildings again. He didn’t exactly fear the many demons roaming this part of Gaia, but of course, he was more alert by the thought. “Let’s go there first then,” he said before he walked towards the bar, hoping that his appearance was enough to fool them into thinking that he was one of their own. Despite his aura being hard to hide. Even in a crowd. He walked into the bar with confidence, looking around it for a moment before he looked at Zitora. “I think you should lead the conversation,” he said before he nodded to a tall guy walking past them as a greeting. Trying to blend in. He'd learned that she had the gift of negotiation, which most likely would benefit them at this time. He then walked up to the bar and ordered a beer - again, to blend in with the crowd as it'd be weird for them to show up here without getting a drink.

It seemed that Zitora had been here before from the people greeting her, and then by the way she approached this guy. Simon. He looked to her side as she said that he worked for the Southside Serpents, giving her a nod as he knew about them. However, not in the same way that she did. For that reason, he just stayed quiet as she spoke to the guy. And it seemed that he was willing to get in touch with Kaiden Bentley for them. So, perhaps this was going to be a lot easier than he anticipated. “Cheers.” He raised his glass with beer as she made a toast before he took a sip of it. He then looked a bit around the bar, not sensing any other angel presence - at least none that weren’t fallen.

He then returned his gaze to Simon as he came by them again. Saying that Kaiden had agreed to meet them in half an hour. It seemed that he’d done right by bringing Zitora along for this. Knowing that it would have taken him quite a while longer to find him on his own. Veronica. So, she knew the leader of the Serpents as well. He looked at her for a moment at this before he took the note and read the address on it. “I must admit I’m impressed, Ms. Cowan.” A small smile found its way to his expression as he looked at the note. He’d not expected their mission to succeed this well. And so far, it hadn’t seemed that any demon took notice of his holy aura. He put the address away in his pocket and took another sip of his beer. “So, how do you know these people?” he asked. It wouldn’t take them but a second to get to the address due to his teleportation, so they could at least stay here until they’d finished their drinks.

Michael looked at her more attentively as she mentioned Lucifer. He’d always been a topic of great interest to him. And anyone with an association or interest in Hell knew that their ruler had gone. Of course, Gaia had been a place where he’d been very active in the past, but he knew that he wasn’t anywhere near here. The angels hadn’t found a single trace, so all they could do was ask around for people who last saw him for information. However, he hadn’t expected Zitora to be one of those people. “You knew him?” Michael hadn’t seen Lucifer care for anything but himself, so he was surprised to hear that she’d seen such a side to him. Of course, a long time ago, he had seen a more caring, or at least better side to the angel. But that had been when they’d lived together in Heaven. Ever since then, he had seen no such side to him. Whenever they'd met, he'd shown nothing but spite for his older brother and the rest of the pureblood angels.

He tilted his head slightly as he took this information in, wondering why he would have possessed an angel. They had a thorough database over most angels - even those who had fallen. It was easier to keep track of the ones deployed on Earth that way. For that reason, he didn’t believe him to be possessing the same angel to this day. But at least now he knew to tell the angels to focus their investigation in London. Hopefully, that would lead them to deduce some more clues. “What did you talk about?” He took another sip of his beer as he looked at her. If she was one of the last people to have seen him, in a situation where he seemed to care, it could give them an idea as to why he’d left. If not, it’d at least satisfy the curiosity he’d gotten ever since she mentioned knowing him. Michael had a complicated relationship with his brother, and it didn't get better by the fact that his Father had told him that he might need to kill him one day. But he had cared for him once. And if there was even the slightest chance that he wanted to repent for his sins and choose a better life, then who was he to not help him achieve that?

He’d looked like Cain. This either meant that he’d possessed him or played mind tricks with her. But why? He looked thoughtfully into the air as she revealed this, stating that they hadn’t met in the best of circumstances. Without going into detail as to why that was. He took another sip of the beer when she replied to his second question, looking back at her once she said Lucifer had saved her from the darkness. Lucifer of all beings. “Really?” He found that part especially noteworthy. A part of him hoping that he was trying to sway from his evil ways. She then suggested him to contact Abigal. And although he had heard stories of what she’d done to him, he didn’t know much else in relation to the occurrence. “Get his hands on her, hm?” he asked, hinting for elaboration from the hybrid as he hadn’t heard that part of the story. But perhaps she was right. Abigal could hold valuable information about him. Had they met under different circumstances, he’d probably already asked her about Lucifer the last time they met, but much else had happened at that time. He finished the last swig of his drink and placed the glass on the bartop. He was thankful for her sharing all of this with him. Especially with how secretive she’d seemed in the beginning, but perhaps that was before she'd realized who he was.

“Let’s get going,” he said once she finished her refill. He scanned the room for a moment before he walked out of the bar, adjusting the clothes as he felt strange in them. Outside, when there was no one around, he put a hand on her shoulder and teleported them to the address that Kaiden Bentley had wanted them to meet. It was completely deserted, making him look at the note for a second time, making sure that it was the right address. When he'd confirmed this. He looked up and noticed a dark figure approaching in the distance. A demon. A little hesitant in his walk. Simon didn’t say anything about an angel, he thought to himself as he neared them. He could sense that aura from a mile away. Vigilant of how ancient and powerful it seemed. So, he’d immediately assumed the woman to be behind the call. “Why hello, to what do I owe the pleasure?” He looked from the angel to the woman, at this point not knowing why they wanted to get in touch with him, other than it being regarding some job. He was a bit of an all-around guy. Helping here and there. So, whether it was about Southside business, or information, or something third, he couldn’t know.