"Empire" season 2B is still a month away but Lucious' (Terrence Howard) fight for vengeance has already made several implications for the rest of the characters. According to a recent report from TVLine, Cookie (Taraji P. Henson) now favors Lucious over Laz (Adam Rodriguez), particularly after the latter's act of betrayal.

Fans will recall that during the first half of the season Lucious discovered that Laz was responsible for Hakeem's (Bryshere Y. Gray) kidnapping. By the midseason finale Lucious dealt with Laz, leading many to presume the latter was killed off but the report confirms that Laz may yet survive, although his luck won't be getting any better.

Showrunner Ilene Chaiken explained that Laz may not be dead but is instead seriously injured. This is speculated to indicate Laz may yet have a chance to redeem himself or that he may cause further trouble for Lucious and Empire. However, Chaiken did state that Laz's fortunes won't be turning up anytime soon, particularly in respect to his relationship with Cookie.

"I wouldn't assume Laz is dead, but I'd assume that he got hurt pretty badly," Chaiken reiterated. "And I would say he's dead to Cookie -- you can't do that to Cookie and expect ever to live another day in her eyes."

A report from Ecumenical News states that this means there is a chance Lucious and Cookie will get together now that Laz is out of the picture. It is stated that their embrace featured in the season 2B promo indicates they will be getting closer than ever, despite their past grievances.

One of the areas the two agree on is that Empire should be run by the Lyons and the mere fact that Camilla (Naomi Campbell) and Mimi (Marisa Tomei) overtook the company, right behind Lucious's back, is also stated to be a declaration of war against Cookie.

Laz's fate and Cookie's relationship with Lucious will be explored when "Empire" season 2 returns this March 30.