Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note.
A/N: Thank you for reading Just Enough Time! I hope you all enjoy it! For Matt, I depict him with red hair and green eyes, despite what his official hair/eye colors are. Again, thank you for reading.
Just Enough Time
Chapter One
Mello was driving down a dark deserted road in a large truck. In the back, he had one of the most famous and influential women of the day: Kiyomi Takada. His destination was a small church an hour's drive from Tokyo. If all went well, this would solidify Near's case against Light Yagami. Mello's eyes were calm and focused on the road in front of him. One when the mini-television caught his attention did Mello allow himself to be distracted. A man in a suit, whom Mello recognized as the local news anchor, was at a desk. "As for the suspect who was gunned down earlier, we still are unable to identify him." Mello's previously cold blue eyes softened. 'Matt. I never thought you'd be killed.' Mello watched as the screen changed to show a picture of a bullet-filled Red Camaro (A/N: Matt's car). 'I'm sorry.' Regret and guilt filled the blonde's gut as he grew closer to the church. Matt was not supposed to be injured, let alone die; he was only supposed to be a distraction and then meet Mello at the church safely.
Due to the eerie silence, Mello could hear every noise Takada made in the trunk. He heard the distinct crinkle of paper, along with the scratching of graphite. Mentally keeping time, Mello waited for the Death Note to "kill" him. So Mello had guessed correctly; Kira did know his name and face. Thank God he had taken the necessary precautions. Two days prior, the blonde had legally changed his first name to Misha Kal (though he would change back to Mihael Keehl back once everything settled down). If things went according to plan, Mello would be able to fake his own death.
'34…35…36…' With only seconds left to pull this off, Mello increased his pressure on the gas pedal. He had to make sure Takada fell for his stunt. '38…39…40!' Reaching the count of forty seconds, Mello crashed into a garage-like alcove attached to the church. Glass shattered and Mello fell forward. His head hit the steering wheel, and Mello collapsed onto it. Relaxing his body, Mello waited for Takada to make her move.
Sure enough, he heard the woman call someone. She was speaking softly, obviously upset, so Mello could not hear everything she was saying. He only caught the last line she said to the person on the other line. "Light, come save me." She sounded like she was crying, so Mello took the opportunity to stealthily sneak out of the truck. He was in the middle of the nook when he heard a voice. "Hello?" It was a man's voice, and Mello saw the beam of a flashlight turn in his direction. Mello turned quickly and was faced with a middle aged man. He was wearing a uniform and had a mop and flashlight in hand. 'He must have been hired by the church to clean the place.'
Mello did not have much time; police officers would be flocking to the place now that they knew where Takada was. With indifferent, uncaring eyes, Mello pulled out his gun and shot the man in the chest in cold blood. Quickly and quietly, Mello placed the corpse in the driver's seat. Now the police would figure this man had committed Mello's crime. Grabbing the cross around his neck, Mello ran away from the scene. Once ten yards away from the stone building, said edifice went up in flames. Fire licked at the structure's walls and roof as smoke flooded the atmosphere. Police cars and news crews alike flocked the area, along with a few cars that seemed to be passing by. One in particular, Mello recognized immediately. A blonde with shoulder-length hair stepped out of the car, a genuinely shocked expression on her face. Mello quickly hid behind nearby cars and trees. Once next to the car and within earshot of the woman, Mello whispered harshly. "Halle. We have to get out of here. Now." Said woman gasped and turned around quickly. She opened her mouth to say something but Mello was already stepping into the backseat. Halle, managing to compose herself, stepped into the driver's seat. Once shutting the door behind her, Halle started the car and drove away. "We're going back to Near." Mello growled in indignation. Halle spoke in an indifferent, strict tone, not intimidated by the leather-clad man. "We need to keep you out of sight for the time being, so bear with it." Mello huffed, but remained silent for the next hour. The pressing silence allowed the chocoholic's mind to wander, which only caused the gnawing guilt in his gut to intensify.
Upon reaching the SPK headquarters, Halle and Mello quickly entered the building and took the elevator to the top floor. When the doors opened, Mello felt sick to his stomach in anger. The last, and only, time he had entered this room was to retrieve his photo from the white-haired boy. Near was sitting in front of a wall filled with screens and monitors. Some were playing various news stations, while others depicted surveillance shots of the building and of an empty warehouse (A/N: The warehouse that Light and Near are supposed to meet, in case you were wondering). "Halle. Mello." Near addressed the two of them without looking up; he appeared to be playing with several finger puppets on the floor. "Good to see you. I'm grateful that you helped me. Now I have the final missing piece of the puzzle."
Mello grit his teeth and pulled out his gun. He aimed it at the young boy's head as a rush of deja-vu washed over him. "Damn it Near, I'm not some pawn you can use as you please!" Like before, the team of SPK members all drew their guns and aimed them at Mello. Halle tried to calm Mello down and reason with him. "Mello, put your gun down. What good is it if you both are dead?" Scowling, Mello un-cocked his gun and put it back in its holster. Near, unaffected by the sudden display of violence, continued. "Either way, it is thanks to you and Matt that we will finally take down Kira." As he said this, Near knocked down a creepy freckled puppet over. Mello felt his stomach drop at the sound of his best friend's name. His blind rage subsided to make room for his remorse. "What happened to him?" Halle chose this moment to speak up. "Near sent a team to retrieve his body. We're planning a funeral for him as well." Mello gripped his rosary as he murmured a vague response. Halle looked over to him with sympathy. "You've been through a lot; why don't you rest here tonight? We'll figure out what to do next in the morning." Mello nodded, too physically and emotionally exhausted to object. Halle led him to a spare room and gave him a change of clothes. Once he was situated, Halle smiled at him gently before closing the door behind her.
Flopping down on the queen sized bed, Mello felt completely spent. However his endless guilt kept him up, as it often did. The faces of his family, Matt, and the innumerable people he had killed throughout his life flooded his brain. For hours, Mello tossed and turned, praying that his suffering would halt just long enough for him to sleep. When the blonde finally succumbed to his fatigue, his dreams were filled with curses and accusations from a certain goggle-wearing male.
A/N: I hope you liked this chapter. The actual plot will start next chapter. Any thoughts or comments? Please review!
