Taking Over

“You seem a little more relaxed today, Light,” Matsuda told him, grinning.

Light looked at him. “Is that good?”

“Well, you had already gone to—“

“Matsuda!” Ide snapped, shooting an eye at Soichiro.

“It’s all right, it’s all right,” Soichiro said, waving a hand. “I trust Light.

“But--!”

“Matsuda, grow up.”


There was a beep! beep! beep! and a call for L.

Immediately, Light whirled around in the chair. “Yes, this is L.”

“L, you asked for any information if we should find anything in M’s headquarters.”

Light smiled a little. “You found something?”

“Well…not things that really seem important.”

“Even the smallest things can be important. What is it?”

“We found a bug under one of the computers, it was dead and we checked the rooms. One of them had an empty briefcase…except for two things…one seemed to be a little toy and one was a photograph.”

Light felt his heart jump but he kept himself calm. “A photograph. Can you show it to me?”

Up on the screen it came; it was a young blond boy with blue-green eyes and a black shirt.

“Hey, that’s—,” Matsuda started but Light was already digging out the drawings.

Mello…

“What about the toy?”

It looked pretty ordinary, just a little Lego man. Light looked at the pictures again. This guy knew these two…unless…

“Thank you, maybe if I figure out who the one in the picture is, it may give us a lead to any conspirators.”

“They will be returned if we don’t find anything.”

Light hated being under the thumbs of certain countries. One like the United States in particular pissed him off.

“That’s to be expected and we’ll all owe M an apology if my suspicions were wrong.”

“Yes…”

“Thank you for the information, Mister President.”

Light printed the picture out when Hoope disconnected. He laid it down over the drawing of the boy. I’ll check with Misa…


But, later on, when he took her the picture she looked at it with the Eyes and shook her head. “I can’t see the name or the lifespan.”

“That means he’s dead,” Ryuuk threw in.

Light looked at it, then at the little picture of the Lego man. They’re both…these two really are Mello and Near…and they’re both dead. They have to be and M just used them as aliases. So this M has to be someone who knew them. Why else would he have these items? He had to have been a close friend with at least one of them. And if this guy is L’s heir then that means they died before L did and this one was third in line to take his place. He glared a little. Which means Roger lied but if there was a leftover photograph of Mello, then there may be another of M but getting him to hand anything over, including a name would be very difficult because this probably means that M had already told him to do this.

“Misa, pack up.”

Misa perked. “Oooh! Why?”

“We’re going to England.”



“You know I’ve been investigating the Kira case and you know I can’t tell you anything about it!”

“If you’re Kira—“

“I can’t give you that information regardless!”


Three days and finally, suddenly, his wrists were unclasped. They draped at his side, his inner elbows and wrists raw and torn. His legs were unbound and he slumped. Someone grabbed him.

“We used the most intense stuff we could come up with, take his blind-fold off.”

Matt jerked when he opened his eyes, the light blinding him, hurting his eyes.

“You’re off the hook.”

He squinted looking at a woman, who was looking down at him.

“We’ll prepare a car to send you back. It seems we made a misjudgment.”

Matt bit his tongue. Yeah right, you don’t trust me. “It’s to be expected when L becomes suspicious that I might be Kira. We’re both working towards the same goal but we don’t exactly see eye to eye on the situation.”

“We sent your people back too. All your stories check out. I apologize for this.”

“Yeah, thanks.” I’m ordering a pizza as soon as I get back. “Can I have my cigarettes back?”

“Yes. Along with your personal items.”

Matt inwardly stilled. He gave them a puzzled look instead.

“We found a suitcase with a photograph in it and a small toy. The President spoke with L about it.“

Shit...! Goddammit! I was in such a hurry that I had to hide that fast, I was afraid they’d find my other notes and I—shit! And he told L about it!

“And I get those back?”

“Yes. If I could ask—“

“No.”

The woman nodded.


When he got back, his team looked at him.

“We were wondering when they were going to give you back. They swept the building.” Gevanni told him.

“I know.” Matt coughed and collapsed into a chair.

Hal looked at him. “What happened?”

“Interrogation.”

Hal winced a little. “Looks like they did a number on you.”

“They install new cameras?”

“No. They figured you’d find them and compromise them.”

“When did they send you all back?”

“Two days ago,” Rester supplied. “They said they wanted to give us time to do what we thought necessary to watch you.”

“This is really a pain in the ass.”

“We’ll send them reports until they get their fill. Then they’ll leave us alone.”

“You guys maybe, but so long as L is in the ear of the President, I’ll have to watch my back. Bastard.”

“You said you had a plan to get him back though.”

Matt smiled. “That’s right.” Matt leaned over, opening up a case. There had been someone there. Someone in that federal building had nabbed his cell phones before his stuff had been gone through. He found the phones untampered with, thank God. He’d had no time to get rid of them. At least he knew someone there at the branch thought he was all right. He just wished he knew whom. Of course, they could have been bugged…

He flipped open the first, checking it over, opening up the side casing. Nothing. Wish I knew…well, thanks to whoever it was. “Cassandra and Matthias left, did they come back?”

“No.” Gevanni shook his head. “They haven’t contacted us either.”

Matt nodded. He leaned back and dialed Diante.

The man sounded half-relieved, half-aggravated. “I send you two of the best I find and this—“

“Are they with you?”

“Yes. They came back here.”

“All right, tell them it’s safe to come back and I’ve got their first job ready. Do you have the other stuff?”

“Yes. Would you like me to send it back with them?”

“No. I have to go see Rustam anyway.”

“Rather do things yourself, eh?”

“Something like that.”

“Sometime you’ll have to tell me what is going on.”

“When it’s all over maybe and hopefully not before. It’d be bad if you were connected with me and someone found out about it.”

“All right. But at some point, Nickolas.”

“Haha!”


He leaned back, took a breath and got up again. “Keep an eye on them when they get here, keep them down here. I have to make two runs.”

“Matt, maybe you should get some rest…”

Matt looked down, four days and three nights without sleep…well, he was used to not sleeping but…”Maybe when I get back. I have to take care of a few things first.”


So out he went, putting a backpack over his shoulder, back in his jeans and a black t-shirt. He looked like some sort of student.

He did not meet Cassandra or Matthias on the way back. Seems they were pretty good. They’d escaped the building without setting off any of the alarms and went to Zetta’s without raising suspicion.

He went to Diante’s first. It was closed but it seemed he was expected. Marietta pointed back towards the kitchens. Matt went around the back and opened the door. Diante was waiting on him. “I close for maintenance, but only while you’re here. We’ll lose customers—it’s almost supper hour. So feel honored.”

“I’m honoured.”

Diante gave him a look and went to his desk, opening a drawer and taking out a small case. “Here it is. There are two in case you screw up.”

“I won’t screw up. Thank you, Diante.” He dug out a book gave him some cash.

Diante snorted. “Yes, yes—you should be thanking me. Thanks to you, Marietta has been watching the windows ever since she found out you were coming.”

Matt blinked. “What?”

Diante rolled his eyes. “Nevermind.”

“Well, tell her I said thanks for pointing me back.”

The Italian nodded. “Yes, yes—now go. I have to reopen.”

“Gotcha.”

Next was Rustam. The man looked at him, aghast. He looked at his younger partner. “Where is my suit! You look terrible, Jonathan!”

“’Fraid it took some abuse from the Feds.”

“Rotten bastards! I will have to fit you out with another.”

“Thanks for the offer. Maybe later. I just came by for my stuff.”

Rustam nodded and smiled. “I am glad that you made well with Diante. He likes you. You speak perfect Italian. What other languages can you speak?”

Matt smiled. “A few.”

Rustam chuckled and beckoned to him. He scowled over at his assistant. “Go get the black silk from the store room.” He turned back once the guy left, going behind the mirrors to the wall. “Come and look, young Jon.”

He looked behind, keeping an eye out for the assistant. He watched Rustam pushed in a little and then move to the right. A foot wide square of the wall clicked and moved aside and he took out a bag. “Your other clothes and your guns.”

“Thanks. I owe you again.”

Rustam waved his hand. “You have helped me. Let me fit you with another suit some time.”

Matt chuckled. “Whatever you want, man.” He put the stuff in the backpack with Diante’s case and left.

By the time he got back, he found Cassandra and Matthias in the room with Hal, Rester and Gevanni. There wasn’t exactly…tension…but something he couldn’t quite pin.

“Okay, everyone put away your imaginary weapons and come here.”

All five looked up as Matt slumped into his chair again. God, he really was tired now. But, first things first.

He took out Diante’s case and looked at Matthias and Cassandra.

“We all know who Takimura is and where he’s located. You two,” he looked at his professionals, “I want you two to go to Japan and study him for a week. You’ll leave on Monday. Tail him, study his habits. I wanna know what routes he takes home, if he’s got kids, how he takes his coffee. That’s the first part. Stay in separate hotels and switch hotels on Wednesdays. I’ll provide you with scrambled cell phones. You two have had to spend some time with each other—can you work together?”

They nodded.

“Can you speak any Japanese?”

Cassandra raised a hand. “I can, with some others.”

“I’m afraid I am more acquainted with the Italio-Western romantic languages. Spanish, French, Italian, English, Latin, the Germanic languages and Greek and their related sub languages.”

Jesus. Damn. “All right. That’s fine. So long as you can get around. The Japanese tend to learn English in school anyway. If you need help, call Cassandra. So. For the first part. Tail the guy, get as much info as possible. After a week, call us back—don’t leave Japan—and I’ll tell you about the second part.”

“You don’t trust us.”

“I’m being cautious.” He glanced at the woman. “Go pack up and make a list of the things you’ll need besides the obvious bugs, money, and guns and stuff.”

They nodded and went to their rooms.

Matt rubbed his forehead. If this works…


“You’re leaving?” His father was standing.

“Roger lied to us. I’m going to find out why.”

“But wouldn’t you have to—“

“No. I’m not revealing myself as L. I can honestly tell him I work with the police.”

“But why take Misa-Misa?” Matsuda looked nearly distraught.

Misa stomped her foot, clinging to him. “I’m not letting him go alone!”

“She’ll stay at the hotel, don’t worry.”


So. A day later, he and Misa took a plane, arrived in London and made their way to Winchester. The day after, once he had set Misa up in a hotel, he made his way to Wammy’s House. Shidoh and Ryuuk stayed with Misa. She seemed to be treating Shidoh nicer, though whether that was because Light told her to or because he was growing on her, who knew.

He sat in Roger’s office in a private meeting. No one knew about it but the two of them. He’d requested it specifically, telling him it was in relation to the Kira case. He politely introduced himself, using his name, bowing slightly over his arm and click went the compact camera.

He asked about Mello, showing the picture and the drawing. “From information I’ve found, this boy is dead. Is Near also dead?”

“Yes.” Roger folded his fingers together and thought carefully.

“Who was in line to take place after them?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

He nodded, polite smile. “I didn’t expect you’d be able to. Thank you for your time anyway.”

Roger watched him, his old eyes alert. Too short. Far too short. He was here for something else. The young man left. Roger waited half a moment and then reached for the phone to call Matt.


Light rushed back to the hotel, went up to the room and started immediately. “Misa! I need you! Get in here!” He flipped open a laptop and took out the memory stick in the camera, plugging it into the computer. He passed Misa on her was out of the bedroom. “Get in the first file and read the name of the old man.” He went into his suitcase and got the Death Note. He’d kept it in his suit when he was going through the airports but left it when he went to see Roger. He’d made a fake book to replace with this one while he was gone so his father and the others wouldn’t note the difference.

“His name is Richard Williams,” Misa sang out as Light returned, opening the book.

He looked at his watch—one forty-eight pm, it had taken him ten minutes to get back to the hotel—and then back at the book and he wrote:

Richard Williams; 1:50 pm, goes to the kitchen for an apple, goes back to his office and gets a hold of, via computer, to whoever knows the real identities for the orphans to look through them, stops at the third file and emails it to given address on the card that was left to him a few months previous by Japanese investigators. Tells no one of it. He chokes on a bite of the apple and dies.

“What?” Matt slammed a hand down.

“A young man from the police came asking about you.”

“Any idea who he was other then that?”

“Yes, his name was Li—“ Suddenly there was a choking noise.

“Roger?”

A heavy rattle.

“Roger! ROGER! Answer! ROGER!”

The line went dead.

Light waited. He waited and waited. One fifty came and went, two o’clock came and went. “Why hasn’t it come?” He should have gone through the files by now. It would be entirely plausible to send a file to someone who wants to help. He paused. Unless…there were no files…no. That can’t be right. They have to keep track of these kids somehow. They may have used nicknames but someone would have had to know.

“Misa, we’re going back to Japan tomorrow morning.” It’ll have come by then.

Misa whined and pouted at him.

Shidoh looked at Ryuuk, whispering, “They are using the Death Note in scary ways.”

“That’s what makes it fun.”


Matt was scrambling. He jumped up when the line went dead and tuned in on the BBC and a couple other news programs. Nothing. No. Calm down…there wouldn’t be. He wasn’t famous like Watari. He just over saw an orphanage. World doesn’t know what it really does.

Another call beeped on his cell phone. He grabbed for it.

Hal, Rester and Gevanni all looked at each other, curious.

“Hello!”

“This is B—M?”

“Yes. Is this the B I think it is?”

Beatrix. The lady who had found him.

“Yes.”

“Where’s Roger? I was on the phone with him!”

There was a very long silence. “He’s dead, Matt.”

Matt froze. “What?”

“We found him in his office…he’d…it was a heart attack…”

A bubbling sort of rage, building and building... “When I was on the line he said a young man had requested a meeting with him. Did anyone know anything about it?”

“A meeting? No…he just asked the professors and students not to disturb him for a time…he said he had something important to do.”

“Was there anything in the room?! A camera, bug, something?!”

“Matt, calm down! There was nothing in that room. The phones are secure. You wanted to—”

“So there’s nothing. No one knows who it was that he met with?!”

“No…”

Matt had to grit his teeth, taking a harsh breath. “When is the funeral?”

“Two days from now.”

“What time?”

“Three o’clock, our time. We’re six hours ahead of you.”

“I remember. I’ll get there a little late. No one is supposed to know about me. All the professors and students will attend, right?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you.” He hung up.

He was quiet for a just a moment and then he shoved his chair back, violent. “SON of a BITCH!” Matt dropped the phone, grabbed his coffee cup and threw it across the room. The porcelain shattered.

He whipped around. “Get Cassandra and Matthias on the line. Now!”

Rester went to the computers, calling each of them. Their faces flickered into view. Japan was about fourteen hours ahead of the United States. It was eight in the morning, so in Japan it was around ten in the evening.

“What’s up?” Cassandra asked.

Matthias just looked at him, taking in the enraged look on his face.

“Change in plans,” Matt snapped. “You two work fast. I need to make a trip to England and I’ll have to go supervised. As soon as I get back, we’re going into the second part. Tag that Takimura best you can, get everything you can on him. I can’t send anyone ahead of me because, technically, they’re supposed to be watching me--so I'll have to leave the other two here most likely. So get what you can.”

“We just arrived yesterday, M,” Matthias reminded him. “We have not—“

“You two are professionals, aren’t you? Get what you need or improvise. You have two days. As soon as I get back I want reports from both of you!” He disconnected.

Light got the evening newspaper as soon as he could manage and grit his teeth.

A local orphanage is suspended in grief over the loss of its Headmaster, Richard Williams. He was appointed by Quillish Wammy himself when it was established. Williams died of a heart attack…

“A heart attack.”

Misa looked up. “He didn’t choke on an apple?”

“Obviously not!” he snapped at her. “There really must not have been files on them. The rules—if something is impossible the victim will just die of a heart attack. Dammit! M went there, so he’ll find out and he already suspects me! He’ll probably try and get in touch with everyone else! And if it was impossible then the rest is useless! He might have gotten in touch with M right after I left and told him my name! We’re leaving. Now!”

“But I thought we were leaving tomorrow—“

“Just shut up and get your stuff, Misa!”

Ryuuk grinned at Shidoh, whispering, “He’s taking his anger out on her. Haha.”

Shidoh frowned though. “That’s not very nice.”