[Fic] "Deep Cover"
Oct. 1st, 2016 03:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lux_tuliArtwork by: emmatheslayer
Despite that today was the day that he was turning thirty years old, Sam had not been expecting a surprise birthday party when he walked into the break room of the Los Angeles Police Department to grab himself a quick coffee before he looked over the briefing for his next case under the Organized Crime division.
His boss, Joshua, an always polite man with a good sense of humor was leaning against the counter with a warm smile on his face. Charlie and Kevin, his two best friends that both worked in the technology lab, stood before the table, blocking its contents from his view while also surrounded a few more of his coworkers.
As soon as he had made eye contact with Charlie, she had leapt right at him with her arms wide. If Sam was not so tall, she probably could have tackled him to the floor with her hug. Kevin kept standing where he was, laughing at Charlie’s antics.
“Happy birthday, Samster! You didn’t think that we forgot, did you?” Her chin pressed into his chest as she looked up at him. Admittedly, it had been oddly quiet when he had walked into the office this morning but Sam had chalked it up to perhaps a rather serious case going on that was keeping the office tense. He had not suspected that they were trying to be quiet about this little gathering had been prepared in the break room, which was most likely courtesy of his friends.
They knew that he did not do much for his birthday, generally treated it like any other day, and with all of his family dead that he really did not have anyone to celebrate with outside of his friends. His parents had died when he was just a baby in a car crash and his older brother Dean had raised him until he was in high school when he was accidentally gunned down for simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Caught in the crossfire between two rival gangs, Dean’s death is what had prompted Sam to go into law enforcement, disregarding his previous plans of going to law school despite having secured a pretty nice scholarship into Stanford.
Sam just did not want to see anyone else die the same way that his brother had.
Grief had consumed him, leading him towards self destructive tendencies, causing his near perfect grades to drop and lead to his ex-girlfriend Ruby taking advantage of him. Sam found out the hard way that she had extensive connections to drug dealers and ended up getting him hooked on drugs so that he could forget the agony of his loss.
It was Charlie, only a classmate of his at the time, that had found him passed out in the middle of the park on a bench half naked one day, Sam had no recollection of what had transpired leading up to that event, and got him clean. She never once judged him for his mistakes and guided him into seeking counseling and rehab until he eventually got better, reassuring him that it was a slow process and things would not change immediately. Their bonding during this process is what made them become such close friends.
Charlie had frequently invited him over her apartment to play video games together and eventually he got to meet her girlfriend Gilda, who was a model. She traveled all over the world for photo shoots and since they did not always see each other all the time they always cherished what time they did have together. And Gilda always brought Charlie home souvenirs from each place she visited.
She was the first person that Sam had ever admitted to that he was not totally straight and in fact swung both ways. A fact that he kept tight lipped about when he joined the police force, it was bad enough that he found men attractive and on top of that so many people denied bisexuality. He was somewhat envious of Charlie of being so open with her sexuality, especially at work, but Sam did not want to have to deal with the ridicule.
Not too long after Sam had discovered how protective Charlie was when it came to her friends and reminded himself to never got on her bad side because she made Ruby pay for what she had did to him. Charlie was a white hat hacker and used her skills to land Ruby in heaps of trouble by hacking into her phone to find up when she was meeting up with her drug dealer friends and then tipped off the police about the time and location.
“Of course not, I know you have a stellar memory.” Sam chuckled.
“Good, you better remember that because I know all your dark secrets. Wouldn’t want me leaking all over the internet that you secretly love My Little Pony.” Charlie teased. He had seen an episode of the children’s show because Charlie had insisted that he at least try one episode. He could see what had drawn adults into it but it just wasn’t to his personal taste.
“Oh, which one is your favorite pony, Sam?” Kevin joined in on the fun.
“I bet it’s Rainbow Sparkle.” Joshua spoke up and the whole group turned to him dumbfounded by his knowledge of the show’s characters. He was more into gardening and bicycling than watching a television show, especially one that was targeted at children.
“What? I have a little girl that loves the show. She won’t stop talking about it.” His boss answered, raising an eyebrow at their surprise.
After the conversation died down, their attention to the cake and presents that Charlie and Kevin had been hiding behind their backs. Charlie had spent last night baking the cake from scratch and it tasted as good as anything a bakery would sell. Kevin had bought him a book about serial killers, knowing his fascination of them, and Joshua joked about hoping that his interest was strictly professional.
Sam had been wondering why Charlie had been giving him a Cheshire grin when opening her present. As soon as he had peeled back some of the wrapping paper, he found out why. She gave him gay erotica. A deep blush instantly coated his face and his hands moved quickly to cover it before anyone saw what it was.
“Charlie, why…” Sam was far from modest but to give it to him at work of all places. She could have waited until later so it would be less embarrassing but Sam was sure that she wanted to make him flush with mortification. Sometimes she showed her love for her friends in rather strange ways.
“What? I think it should be rather educational.” She had the gall to wink at him. Charlie had tried on setting him up on dates a few times but Sam declined the offer because he was more focused on his work. Having a relationship was the least of his worries.
“What did you give him? Sam’s face is almost as red as your hair!” Kevin inquired with wide eyes.
Sam managed to divert the conversation away from his present and hide the book discreetly inside his locker so that his coworkers could not get nosy and investigate. As he made his way to his desk, he was approached by Joshua, who asked him to follow him to his office.
“Has my performance not been satisfactory?” Sam asked nervously. It was not often that his boss spoke to him in his office, it normally meant something serious was going on.
“Hahaha, no worries, Sam. You’re a fantastic officer. I just wanted to talk to you about your next assignment as it requires you to be delicate and mindful of everything because it is such a high profile case. Chief Milligan brought it onto my desk and asked me to take it to you since you are one of the best.” That alone was very high praise for Sam as Michael Milligan was not easily impressed.
The chief held his officers to such a huge standard that very few even got close to meeting his expectations. He had graduated from the police academy at top of his class. His records prior to his admittance to the academy was sealed for a reason that no one knew but the word was that he came out on top in all his academic pursuits.
“I’m sure you are aware of Alighieri family, they’re one of the biggest and the hardest to pin crimes on. Their boss, Lucifer, has remained so elusive that we don’t even have a face to put to his name. No one aside from his trusted associates know his true identity.” Sam was sure that Lucifer was just a stage name because he doubted that any sane mother would name her son after the Devil.
“We recently got an anonymous tip that the Alighieris are using the Lux to orchestrate their operations and hold meetings. We don’t know if this information is true or not but I want you to go undercover as a civilian and see if you can find any truth to that tip then we’ll proceed from there.” Lux was an upscale bar located in the heart of downtown Los Angeles. Not just anyone could walk inside, you had to have the right look to get past security. Which means that Sam was going to have to fish out his nicest suit out of his closet for the operation. Sam was a bit giddy with excitement because it was not too often that he got to go undercover.
When Sam told Charlie about his next case, she had insisted on coming over to his place and help him get dressed for his visit to Lux. He assured her that he really did not need help but once Charlie had her mind set to something she could not be convinced otherwise.
He had put on his black suit with a red tie but when he left his bedroom to the living room where Charlie was waiting, she shook her head and complained. “No, too dull, don’t you have a more exciting color? Unless you want to be a plain Jane.”
“I’m going there for work, not to pick up anybody, Charlie.” Sam said firmly.
“You could do both. Wouldn’t that be a great way to spend your 30th? Getting laid by some smokin’ hot dude?” She replied back to him with way too much cheer in her voice.
To appease his friend, Sam returned to his bedroom to put on another suit. This time, he selected navy blue but kept the same tie. This time he got Charlie’s approval as she gave him two thumbs up.
But apparently that was not even enough for her as she started chasing after him with mascara, which he did not want on his face. At what point would she stop because if he allowed the mascara she would probably then go for some lipstick.
“Why do you want to put makeup on me???”
“You have these naturally long eyelashes and just thought that I would accentuate them.”
Sam dropped off Charlie back at her apartment before he headed over to Lux in the Impala that he had inherited from Dean, who had always fondly referred to the car as “Baby”. He did not have the same type of obsessive attachment to the vehicle but it brought back a lot of nostalgia of all the moments he had spent in it with his brother. He reluctantly left the keys in the hand of the valet that greeted him when he pulled up to the curb.
Apparently his outfit was up to snuff for the bar as the security guard did not give him a second look before waving him inside. Sam observed as he walked through the doors that Lux had rightfully earned its luxurious reputation considering that all of the decor looked as if it had come with a rather hefty price tag.
There was a small area for dancing in front of the stage but most of the floor were covered with high tables and stools. Sam ignored the tables and made his way straight to the bar to grab a drink and blend in. He could hold his liquor rather well so he knew a beer or two would hardly affect him plus it would be strange for him to be inside a bar if he did not drink, it would just draw unwanted attention towards him.
“Well, you must be a new face around here because I certainly don’t recognize yours and surely I would recognize such a handsome fellow. Welcome to Lux, what will be your poison for today?” the blond haired bartender winked as he slid a napkin onto the counter. He wore a black vest and bowtie over his white button down shirt, which almost made him look like a butler but he supposed Lux’s elegance even applied to its staff.
“I will just take whatever is on tap please.” Sam requested politely, being careful in the way he talked because the last thing he wanted was to anger the wrong person, especially in a bar that supposedly had mafia connections.
“Coming right up.” The bartender pulled out a glass mug and started pouring the beer from the tap.
“The name is Nick, by the name, in case you require any additional assistance or just want my company. We have a limited menu in case you need something to wash down your alcohol with.” Nick kept flirting with him. Sam did not know whether the man flirted with all of his customers or did Sam just happen to catch his interest. While Nick was certainly attractive, Sam did not want to reciprocate his flirting because of the case.
The bartender went to attend to some of the other customers which left Sam to look around the area. There were a couple bowls filled with peanuts scattered about the counter and on top of that a candy filled one, which Sam thought was a little bit odd.
Even stranger was when a bunch of people backed away nervously from the bar when a short man wearing a ridiculous purple suit walked up to it. Sam did a double take as he recognized him as Gabriel Alighieri, a well known member of the Italian family through not just name but blood as well. He was supposedly just a lieutenant but he was also considered as one of the top candidates among the police department for being Lucifer.
Sam felt nervous at only being a few feet away from the man, desperately hoping that his disguise was enough to hide the fact that he was a cop. Gabriel might be half his size but Sam knew better than to underestimate him.
He reached out to take a candy from the bowl but his hand was slapped away by the bartender, which caught Sam by surprise. The fact that Nick was bold enough to do that, to one of the Alighieris of all people, had to mean that he was one of them.
“What the hell?” Gabriel gave him a scowl.
“Cas told me that you just had a bunch of cavities filled so you should really cut back on the sugar.” Nick scolded him.
Sam assumed that Cas was simply short for Castiel who was another known member of the Alighieri family and cousin to Gabriel. He worked as the family’s doctor as the Alighieris never sent their men to a hospital unless it was a life or death situation.
“Who do you think you are, my mother?” Gabriel shot back, voice dripping with sarcasm, and reached for the candy again, this time unobstructed by the bartender.
“Well, don’t come crying to me when all your teeth rot off and you have to get dentures. Besides if I were your mother, I would have done a much better job of dressing you up this morning as you look like a pimp.” Nick rolled his eyes. Sam had to hold back a snicker because watching two mafia members sass each other was hilarious, after putting aside the frightening part of their identities.
“If I’m the pimp then you must be one of my hos.” Sam quickly moved his hands to cover his mouth before he burst out into laughter but even still a small squeak escaped his lips, causing the two to turn towards him. He saw Gabriel’s honey eyes shimmer in amusement while Nick glared at him.
“I like him, he has a healthy sense of humor. Put his next drink on my tab.” Gabriel gestured towards Sam, whose eyes flew open at the acknowledgement. Well, at least he did not want to kill him, which the same could not necessarily be said for Nick as he was still looking at Sam with a fierce look in his icy blue eyes.
“Anyways, I’m going to head back to see Abby. Talk to you later, Nicky.” Gabriel waved dismissively at the bartender, though not before giving Sam a pat on the shoulder. As Sam turned to face Nick, he saw that his lip was curled.
Sam still lingered at the bar even though Nick was now giving him an icy reception. It was alright with him, he was here to work, not play around.
A few minutes later, he heard people screaming as shots went flying, the sound ringing in his ears and as soon as he had turned to face the commotion, he was struck unconscious as he felt his abdomen explode with pain.
Great, happy 30th to him.
When preparing for his outing at Lux, Sam had not thought to put on his bulletproof vest since he was intending on lying low and people could tell most of the time if you were wearing the vest underneath your clothes.
Sam regained consciousness, though he kept his eyes closed, to the sound of someone pacing and practically shouting. He could feel another person beside him as they covered his abdomen with bandages.
“That little upstart Zachariah has crossed the line! You don’t just shoot up a place that has civilians in it!” The voice he recognized to be Nick’s. Sam knew that Zachariah was the don of the Milton family, who were known rivals to the Alighieri.
“Nick, if you would please calm down, you’re disturbing my patient.” A soft voice replied and Sam finally opened his eyes. He instantly could tell that he was not in a hospital room even though the man leaning over him was wearing a doctor’s jacket. Since he was in an Alighieri establishment, they had probably brought him to the family doctor, Castiel.
“Welcome back to the world of the living, Mister…?” The doctor tilted his head at him in curiosity. He had blue eyes like Nick but his were much brighter and friendlier.
“Campbell but you can just call me Sam,” Sam gave his mother’s maiden name followed by his true first name, not forgetting that despite their assistance that he was still in the presence of mafia members. They had always taught them in the academy that the easiest lie to maintain was the one not too far off from the truth.
Nick walked within range of his line of vision and he could see the relief that washed over his face, apparently his concern for his wellbeing was not just an act.
“Well, Sam, you’re lucky that the bullet did not sink too far into your body so it was not too hard to remove. Additionally, it did not hit any vital organs. You will be sore for a while as your body heals. I can prescribe you with medication to deal with the pain in the meantime. We can schedule an appointment for a checkup and the removal of your stitches, unless you wish to put your care into your own doctor.”
The LAPD provided great medical insurance so it was not like he was desperate for the medical attention but the kicker was that his doctor worked exclusively with police officers and if he was to reveal that then his cover would be blown, leading him to potentially more danger. Besides, taking advantage of the Alighieri doctor could get him closer to discovering the identity of Lucifer.
“No, that’s alright, I trust you.” Sam did not trust the family as far as he could throw them but he assumed the doctor at the very least took his hippocratic oath seriously.
“Anyways, where are we?” He asked as he looked around the room, it did not even seem like a doctor’s office. Where exactly had they taken him?
“One of the offices above the ground floor of Lux. I figured it was prudent not to move you too much. Most of the police had already processed the scene and left but one of them is still waiting downstairs to take your statement whenever you are ready.” It was Nick who answered him. Shit, hopefully whoever it was would keep it professional and not react in a way that would tip them off that they knew each other.
Castiel wrote down a script for a pain medication while also noting down his contact information on a separate piece of paper before handing it to him. “You can call me later at this number and we can schedule the appointment then or if anything urgent pops up.”
The circumstances sucked but it was not Sam’s first serious injury or gunshot wound, all too often a hazard of his job. Castiel assisted Sam in getting off the couch he had been laid out on and back onto his feet while Nick guided him towards the elevator.
“Oh, what about my tab? I never got around to paying it.” Sam reached into his pocket checking to see if his wallet was still there.
“You got shot and you’re worried about paying your bill? You have some rather strange priorities.” Nick laughed out, no longer acting cold towards him, forgetting the earlier incident with Gabriel from which he had taken offense.
“Anyways, Mr. Alighieri has taken care of the bill in question. Additionally, the establishment has offered you free drinks for a year as an apology for what happened.” That was rather generous of them but he supposed the Alighieris did their best to have the Lux appear as a clean and legitimate business.
“Oh, well, can you give Mr. Alighieri my thanks then?” Sam said politely, though what he really wanted to know is what had happened. Apparently the Miltons were involved but why Lux and how did they find out? The LAPD did not even know of a possibility of a connection between Lux and the Alighieris until their little tip. Dread filled his stomach at the idea of a Milton mole in their ranks or a corrupt officer that was accepting cash from the Miltons.
“Certainly.”
Sam was relieved to see Ash when the elevator doors opened and saw him leaning against one of the tables. He was very unusual for a cop, having a long mullet, but he was sharp as a whip. Ash gave him a subtle smile but made no indication of recognition aside from that.
“May I speak with the victim alone?” Ash told Nick, it was not a question up for debate, so that they could speak in private.
“Of course.” Nick responded before going over to the bar to clean up the shards of glass covering the counter. He had not even had the time to take in the damage done to the bar before he got knocked out.
“Dude, am I glad that you are okay. The Josh man was freaking out when we got the call of shots fired here. He wants to talk to you asap.” Ash said in a small voice, low enough that Nick could not overhear them.
“I will be fine as soon as my abdomen heals. Did they tell you anything?” Sam was curious on what sort of explanation that the Alighieris gave for the confrontation.
“They were pretty tight lipped about it. Just said some hooligan snuck in and decided to shoot up the joint.”
“More than some hooligan I can assure you, I heard the bartender drop Zachariah’s name so the Miltons had to be involved with this.”
“Damn son. You got yourself in the middle of a mess, haven’t you?”
“Yeah, not exactly how I envisioned celebrating my birthday. Hey, do you think you can have someone pick up my car and give me a ride down to the station? I don’t think I’m in any shape to be driving right now.”
“Sure, no problemo.” Ash nodded before grabbing out his cell phone to make a call. While his coworker was busy during that, Sam limped over towards Nick.
“The officer is going to give me a lift and have someone take care of my car. I just want to say thanks for everything.”
“You’re welcome. It’s rather unfortunate that such filth wandered into Lux and cause such harm to our patrons. I know it’s a bad first impression but I hope that this one isolated incident will not deter you from stopping in again.” Nick leered at him and Sam could have sworn that he was undressing him with his eyes. He just did not know what to make of the bartender, he was such a hard person to read. And that was a skill the academy had really emphasized, reading people and their behaviors.
Joshua pulled him into a firm hug when he walked into his office. It was nice to know that his coworkers and boss really cared about him. Besides that, Joshua had always treated him like a son, knowing the tragic fate of his parents and brother.
“Thank God, my heart dropped when I heard the call for Lux. If you want to be reassigned to a different case, I would completely understand.”
“No, it’s alright. I have already built up rapport of sorts with some of the Alighieris so it would be a shame to let that connection go to waste.”
The next evening when Sam popped into Lux, Nick was noticeably absent. A woman with long curly brown hair he did not recognize was working behind the bar instead. She grinned when her eyes met his face and leaned against the counter.
“You must be Sammy. Nick has been talking nonstop about you, he’s been practically drooling. I never seen him so interested in a customer before, normally he’s pretty good about being a professional on the job.” She teased, causing Sam to blush.
“Where is he, anyways?”
“Missing your boyfriend already? He’s taking care of some business today so I’m covering his shift. My name is Meg, by the way.”
When Sam visited again, Nick was back behind the counter and apparently happy to see him.
“How’s your wound doing? I’m pretty impressed that you are taking it rather well, don’t tell me that you are accustomed to getting shot,” He had joked.
“Oh yes those IT nerds get so vicious when you touch their precious setup.” Sam replied sarcastically. He dabbled in computers so it was a lie he could pull off convincingly.
“Hmm, you don’t look like much of a nerd.” Sam may be a cop but he did in fact have a nerdy side, a fan of sci-fi and horror films and tabletop rpg games. He could blame Charlie for getting him hooked onto tabletop games. It just started off with one game that she had invited him to just to give him an idea of what it was like and it went downhill from there.
“Appearances can be deceiving.”
“That is very true.” Nick concurred.
“Have you ever been to Z’s Pizza along the riverfront? They serve Chicago style pizza there. You want to get lunch there sometime?”
“You mean like a date?”
“Only if you want it to be.”
A frail looking old man with a receding hairline and a cane greeted them when they arrived at the pizza shop. When he saw Nick, his eyes slightly widened and said as he opened his arms for a hug, “Nicola.”
“Uncle Z, you old dog, glad to see that you are still kicking.”
“And you are still a mouthy smartass as ever.” The man responded, whacking Nick in the back of the head as he withdrew from the embrace.
“Ow, what was that for?”
“You should show respect to your elders. Don’t forget who was left changing your stinky diapers and looking after you when your father was out.”
“Oh c’mon, don’t embarrass me in front of my friend here.” Despite Nick’s obvious interest in Sam, he respected his boundaries enough that he was not being pushy about dating. It made him respect him more.
“If you want me to really embarrass you, I can tell him stories all about your childhood. Nicola was a little hellion, always raising trouble and dragging Gabriel into his messes.” Nick’s uncle started, turning towards Sam. If by Gabriel, did he mean Gabriel Alighieri? That could not be mere coincidence, which means that the two of them knew each other since childhood.
“Okay, that’s enough about me, can we get a table or do I have to go down the street to Vinni’s?” Nick teased and apparently his uncle did not take it too kindly as he tapped his cane down right on his foot.
“See what I have had to put up with all these years?” The man addressed Sam once more and he could only nod silently, not wanting to offend him. Nevertheless, he led them to a table and left them in peace once he handed them a menu.
“So, Nicola, huh?” Sam chuckled a bit in amusement while Nick pouted at him.
“I know, it’s such a feminine sounding name. But my father was old fashioned and wanted to give me a traditional name.” He huffed, his cheeks puffing out childishly.
“So, how did a guy like you end up as a bartender at Lux?”
“Surprisingly, there are not a lot of great options for a person with a liberal arts degree. Even as an art history major, I did not want to work in a museum, too boring for my tastes.” Nick explained as he leaned back into his chair. Sam’s eyebrows rose, not expecting that kind of answer.
The rest of their conversation had carried on rather well. While art had been his focus, Nick was rather knowledgeable when it came to other subjects like politics and the law.
“This was fun, I had a great time. We should do this again sometime if you would like to.” Nick smiled at Sam as he grabbed the check for lunch from his uncle before he could offer any protest about paying for his fair share. He had pulled out a thick wallet from his pants’ pocket which was filled with twenty dollar bills and laid a few of them on the table. Sam doubted that his bartending job paid that well but he kept that thought to himself.
They stood outside the building, about ready to part ways when Nick asked vaguely, “May I?”
When Sam gave his consent, Nick cupped his cheek and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. As much as he had enjoyed the kiss and the date, Sam knew that he should not pursue this relationship any further. He was working a case undercover and while he was not totally certain where Nick stood, he knew that he had a connection to Alighieris, which would ultimately not reflect well upon him. It could ruin his career that he worked so hard for, a sacrifice that Sam was not willing to make.
“Nick...I…” Sam fumbled with his words, unsure of how to gently reject Nick. If it were not for the fact that he was a cop and that he had mafia ties, he would have no reservations about dating him.
“Did I overstep my boundaries?” Nick interjected with genuine concern, withdrawing his hand from Sam’s face and let it drop to his side.
“What? No, definitely not. That was very nice. Look, you’re fantastic but I…”
“Sam, we’re both adults, you don’t need to sugar coat turning me down. You need not worry about me hiding in some basement and crying into a bowl of ice cream.” Nick teased lightly. His understanding nature just made him an even better date, which made the whole situation even more bittersweet.
“I know but I just want to assure you that it’s me and not anything wrong with you.”
It had went from one simple casual conversation with Meg while she was filling in for Nick behind the bar to her later pulling him aside asking if he wanted to join the Alighieris, saying how much they could use a tech nerd like him that was also rather tough. It was just the opportunity he was waiting for, though the deeper he dove into the operation, the riskier it got for him. They certainly would not be so kind if they discovered Sam was actually a cop.
She instructed him to return later after the nightclub closed.
When Sam showed up, Nick was cleaning off tables and the bar counter. He smiled when he caught a glimpse of Sam and tossed the wash rag to the side.
“You being here at this hour only means one thing, Meg recruited you. Are you not getting enough excitement at your day job?” The bartender chuckled.
“I guess you could say that.”
“Meg dear! You got a recruit to train!” Nick hollered and she swaggered out of the kitchen.
“So, Nicky, what do you think? Did I do good? Is the bossman going to be proud?” She put an arm on his shoulder and leaned against him, the levels of comfort between them demonstrated that they were close friends.
“I’m sure the boss will be very pleased. I couldn’t pick a better man myself.”
“Unfortunately our recruitment numbers have been low lately so there’s only one other recruit besides you and he’s unable to make it today.” Meg turned her attention onto Sam. Nick picked his rag up and went back to cleaning, leaving the two of them to proceed without any distraction. Not that Sam minded the distraction that Nick provided, he only wished that things could be different between them.
Meg concentrated on hand to hand combat to start with, stressing that it was important for him to know how to defend himself even if his task was not intended to be confrontational. She ended up being impressed when she saw how skilled Sam was and asked what his background. He made up that he had done mixed martial arts through middle and high school.
When they took a break, Nick walked up to him and handed him a glass of water and a towel to wipe his sweat off.
“Looks like you don’t need much instruction. Aren’t you a bundle of surprises?” Nick mused.
After weeks of training, Meg told Sam that he was finally ready to run on a mission with them. It was time to administer some payback on the Miltons for their attack on Lux. Thankfully, Sam’s injury had healed up without any issues.
Surprisingly, Nick joined them, wearing a crisp white suit instead of his usual bartender garb that felt so out of place given the situation. And he was the only one dressed up. Not even Gabriel Alighieri, the supposed don, wore something so bold, instead donning a more casual look of jeans and a t shirt.
“I give you one minute before that suit of yours is stained by blood.” Gabriel practically read Sam’s mind and teased Nick, who was loading up his gun with bullets.
“How about I make it yours?” Nick raised an eyebrow at him as he spoke coolly. Though underneath the joking, Sam could tell that he was tense. He pulled him aside from the others to ask if he was okay.
“I’m fine, I just hate those swarmy bastards. It’s their fault that you got hurt at Lux.” The bartender stuffed the gun into the insides of his suit pants.
“But I’m alright.” Sam reassured him.
“Even still, that should have not even been a hazard simply for visiting Lux. It’s distasteful to involve civilians. When we joined the Alighieris, we accepted the risk that came with the job but they didn’t. You hadn’t when you first turned up at the club.”
“Be careful out there, I would hate myself if anything happened to you.” Nick brushed his lips against his cheek before walking over to rejoin the rest of the group.
They drove to one of the Milton’s main warehouses, where they stored most of their illicit goods and conducted meetings. The strategy was to divide and conquer. Sam had been paired up with Alfie while Nick went off with Meg.
Their part had went without a hitch. The two of them then met up with Meg and Nick at the designated meeting spot at the front of the warehouse but Gabriel or the lieutenant that went with him had yet to show. He could see Nick growing anxious, from tapping his foot impatiently against the floor to pacing.
The lieutenant surfaced but Gabriel wasn’t anywhere in sight.
“There was an ambush, sir. They captured Gabriel!” He informed them and Meg did not have enough time to grab a hold of Nick’s arm to stop him as he took off like a rampaging rhino.
It wasn’t too difficult to pursue after him, all they had to do was follow the trail of dead bodies. Sam could feel himself growing sick as he ran. Sure, as a cop, he was used to seeing corpses at a crime scene but nothing quite compared to a mass execution like this.
When they finally caught up, Sam paused at the scene he found in front of them. Gabriel was gagged and tied up. His face was bruised and bloody from being repeatedly punched. All the grunts were dead and Nick was strangling Zachariah with his own tie while also holding his gun at his bald head.
“You bald ass punk. You crossed the line for the last time. No one hurts my baby brother.” Nick seethed and kicked him in the gut.
“Go ahead, Lucifer , do your worst.” Zachariah sneered at him.
Fuck, fuck, fuck! No! It couldn’t be! Nick, the unassuming and charming bartender, was none other than the Alighieri don? God, how screwed was he? He had feelings for the guy!
“Nick!” Meg called out to him, causing him to briefly turn his head. His bright blue eyes had mellowed into an icy hue. However, he did not pay them any mind, turning his attention back to the Milton don. He pulled the trigger of the gun and kicked the body away.
Gabriel was right. His suit was completely covered in blood. White tainted by red. Though Nick did not seem to care as he ran his blood caked hand through his hair. He let out a deep sigh.
“Meg, if you would please restrain Samuel before he calls the LAPD here.” Nick commanded her as he kneeled down in front of his brother, releasing him of his bonds.
“C’mon, Sammy, behave. Don’t look at me with those smoldering eyes, just doing what the bossman wants.” Meg said softly as he tried to struggle against her hold as he wrapped rope around his wrists.
“All this time you lied to me!” Sam shouted, angry that he had been deceived, seduced by the sweet mask that was Nick.
“Hmm, I doubt that you are in any position to be speaking from a moral highground. In any case, this conversation would be best done in private.” Nick regarded him briefly before focusing on Gabriel.
“Ravish him more like it.” Meg snickered.
“Oh please, get your mind out of the gutter.” He reprimanded her before speaking in hushed whispers to Gabriel.
When they returned back to Lux, Sam was tied up to a chair in the office and left there until Nick decided to join him. Apparently, he had taken the time to get clean up, rinsing the blood off his skin and hair then trading his stained suit in for his bartending outfit.
He poured himself a drink from one of the various bottles of scotch sitting on the bookcase.
“You’re a bastard!” Sam growled at him.
“You have me confused with Gabriel. But honestly, is such vulgarity necessary?” Nick stood in front of him and leaned back against the desk. He sat down the glass and crossed his arms.
“This whole time you were playing me for your own amusement!” Sam thought back to their date at the pizza shop, how he allowed Nick to kiss him.
“Not true, I did find you rather attractive despite your daytime occupation.” Sam clenched his teeth.
“I don’t know what you mean.” He feigned ignorance.
“You’re quite the actor, Winchester, but I do have my spies in the LAPD.” Sam twitched as Nick used his real last name. He frankly was surprised that he was still alive considering his cover had apparently been blown for some time.
“Honestly, I don’t know what to do with you. You wouldn’t happen to be interested in becoming my consigliere?” Nick offered with a slight smile, seeming to enjoy the notion of having him at his side.
“Hell no, I vowed to uphold the law, not break it!”
“Loyalty, I can appreciate that. If only I had managed to snag you before you had reached the police academy.” The disappointment in his rejection was evident but Nick kept his face stoic.
“So, go ahead and kill me! What’s another dead body on your hands?” Sam attempted to goad him. His arms pulling against the rope holding him down.
“Oh, Sam, I’m not going to kill you. No, I’m not even going to harm a hair on your precious head.” To enunciate his point, Nick gently ran his fingers through his hair.
“Here’s what we’re going to do. I will send you back to the station, in perfect condition and topped with a red ribbon for an extra touch. You can expose me to your boss but know that it will not end well if you decide to go with that. I know how to make your life a living hell, don’t doubt me on that.” Nick leaned forward and whispered into his ear. Sam crossed his legs, trying not to find Nick’s threatening tone of voice to be hot. Fuck, it kinda was.
He didn’t need to raise his voice to make himself sound dangerous.
Meg had literally strung him up with ribbons, Sam thought Nick had just been teasing, and dropped him off at the front door of the station. And so marked the end of his undercover mission.
He had a long sit down with Joshua about what had happened. He hated to lie but he told him that he had been discovered as a cop before he could find out Lucifer’ identity. It wasn’t just his own life he was worried about but the rest of his coworkers. Though, he had informed him of the fate of Zachariah and the Miltons.
Nick would surely know that he went along with the ruse as he claimed to have claims in the department. As much as Sam wanted to sniff them out, he was afraid of retaliation.
A couple weeks later, Sam started receiving red roses being delivered to his desk at the station. The card was never signed by anyone but he knew who it was. Charlie and Kevin started teasing him about finding someone special but Sam kept tightlipped on the matter.
