Anna's POV

I was growing anxious. The day had finally come. The day Beyond would either be arrested or the day we would be identifying his body at the morgue. I was pacing again. It was a habit I was trying to break, but with B still on the run, I was having a hard time doing anything else. Being locked in this room with L when we should be making attempts to find him was driving me up the wall.

"She's going to the condos right?" I asked again.

L sighed audibly. "I told you she was. Anna, please sit down."

"Can't."

"Just do it, please."

I sat beside L, fidgeting and staring down at his phone. She was supposed to call soon. She had called the night before asking for some sort of financial backing to put the potential victim up in a hotel. I assume that was Beyond's idea. It sounded like something he would say. After all, it would be easier to do whatever he wanted if no one else was home.

"Wendy and Aiber are in place?" I asked.

L laid his hands on the table in front of himself and nodded. "Yes. They got there early this morning. I made sure everything was in place. We're going to catch him, you have to trust me."

"I just want to make sure." I voiced. "Is he going to be alive when we catch him?"

"Yes."

"You can't know that."

"Then why ask?"

"I wanted reassurance."

L tapped his fingers against his phone. There was no way for either of us to say Beyond would walk away from this. I knew that, L knew that. We wanted to believe he would. Well, I did. I couldn't speak for L. I looked back at L's phone. Maybe we could just call Naomi. I mean, it didn't really matter who called who, did it? No sooner than I thought that, the phone rang.

"L." L answered into the phone.

"Put it on speaker." I requested.

"Nothing happened here." Naomi Misora's voice came though the phone. "I spoke to Ryuzaki earlier, but nothing happened on his end either. No signs of anything out of the ordinary. I'm starting to think we're in it for the long haul."

"I see." L pondered something for a beat before answering. "Don't let your guard down. As I said before, your backup is in position around the condominium, but if anything happens, they aren't close enough to respond immediately."

"I know."

"Additionally, a few minutes ago I dispatched two people to the condo itself. I wasn't sure if they could be there in time, but the weather was on our side. We're lucky."

"Eh? But… that means…"

I couldn't take much more of this. I got up from the table and grabbed my jacket. L was too immersed in his conversation to notice.

"Don't worry, there's no chance the killer will notice. One of them is a professional infiltrator, and the other is a professional trickster. I can't tell you more, since you are an FBI agent, but basically a thief and a conman. I had one posted near each room."

"A thief… and a conman?" Naomi questioned.

I had to find those stupid keys. Once I found the keys, at least keys to the room I could leave. L wasn't so absorbed in the conversation that he wouldn't notice my absence beside him for long.

"So, Naomi Misora…" He was getting ready to hang up. I had to find the key card.

"Um, er, L… You know the killer, right?" I stopped in my search.

"Yes, as I said. He is B." L's eyes instantly fell on me across the room. He raised one eyebrow at me.

I knew this much look at least slightly suspicious. In one hand, I had my jacket and the other was in a drawer in search of a key card.

"I don't mean like that… I mean, he's someone you know personally?"

L and I watched one another for a long while before he actually answered. He motioned for me to come over to him once more. I sat on the arm of the chair and L tapped his fingers on the wood of the table. Our eyes met, silently asking one another what the answer should be. Finally, it was L to answer the question.

"Yes." Then added quickly. "But Naomi Misora, please keep that in the strictest confidence. The backup I have stationed near the condo and the thief and conman I have inside it have not been told what case they are working on. They are better off not knowing. Since you asked, I don't mind telling you, but generally speaking it was also something you were better off not knowing."

L shot me a look. I knew he was trying to remind me that it was my fault Naomi was asking any questions to begin with, but I didn't need reminding. I had only been trying to help ensure Beyond was captured sooner. It hadn't worked out in my favor, but the attempt was there.

"I know. Either way, whoever B is, he is a dangerous criminal who has claimed the lives of three people for no good reason. But there is one thing I wanted to ask."

"What?" I blurted before I could stop myself.

"You know the killer, but you have nothing to do with him?"

"I have nothing to do with him." The answer was instantaneous. "To be completely accurate, I do not even know B. He is simply someone I am aware of. But none of this affects my judgment. Certainly, I was interested in this case, and began to investigate it because I knew who the killer was. But it did not alter the way I investigated it, or the manner in which my investigation proceeded. Naomi Misora, I cannot overlook evil. I cannot forgive it. It does not matter if I know the person who commits evil or not. I am only interested in justice."

I knew the last part was directed at me. L went so far as to make eye contact with me as he said it. Beyond was dead to him. I knew that. The moment L took this investigation, I knew. The way he spoke about it, like Beyond was just a common criminal. He wasn't ours anymore, he wasn't the kid we grew up with. He was someone new. I simply hadn't wanted to accept it. I still didn't.

"Only… in justice?" She questioned. "Then… nothing else matters?"

L's hand found mine, his fingers brushing over the back of my hand.

"I wouldn't say that, but it is not a priority."

"You won't forgive any evil, no matter what the evil is?"

His hand enveloped mine and he brought it to his lips, resting it there.

"I wouldn't say that, but its not a priority."

"But…"

"There are people who justice cannot save." L said allowing my hand to drop back down to the table.

"And there are people evil can save."

"There are. But even so." L didn't change his tone, but he did glance away. "Justice has more power than anything else."

"Power? By power… you mean strength?"

"No. I mean kindness." It was so easy, the way he said it.

I moved my jacket from my arm to the table between us. L looked to it and then back to the phone.

"… I misunderstood you, L."

"Did you? I'm glad we cleared that up."

I moved from the arm of the chair to the table. I took one of L's hands in mine. He glanced up at me.

"I'll go back to work now." Naomi informed him.

"Very well." He shut the phone.

We didn't say anything for a few moments. I brought my hand up to cup his cheek before pressing a kiss to his lips. He leaned forward as I pulled away, prolonging the end of the kiss. As soon as it did end, he stood up and grabbed my face in his hands and slammed his mouth to mine in an almost sloppy kiss. After a few moments, I pushed him away gently.

"You want to go after him, don't you?"

"I do. Don't you want to?" I questioned.

I scanned his gaze, looking for some hint that he wanted to go with me. L sat back down and looked up at me almost pleading.

"I strongly advise against going."

"I have to."

I knew this argument didn't have a leg to stand on, but I hoped L would let it slide this once. He didn't say anything as he grabbed his phone and stood up. L's phone disappeared into his pocket.

"The jacket is unnecessary. It's rather warm outside."

"So we're going?"

L nodded, "There will be rules. Now let's go."

L's POV

The police cars had been expected. The ambulance and firetrucks had not been so well received by Anna. Her face paled instantly and I felt mine do the same. She crossed herself and put her hand on the door handle to get out. I had expected that. She couldn't get out. I'd turned on the child lock before getting her into the car after her. Anna turned to me quickly.

"L-"

"There's nothing we can do."

"Then what was the point of coming down here?" She snapped.

"To pacify your requests to do so and to ensure you didn't rush down here alone."

Anna leaned back into the seat and stared up at the car ceiling. I watched her blink back a few tears. I knew this was hard for her. Finally, I pushed open the door and offered her my hand. We slipped out of the car and headed over to the crowd of people standing behind barricades.

It wasn't long before there was what looked to be the charred remains of a body wheeled out on a gurney. So he was alive, perhaps barely so, but he was alive. Anna covered her mouth and a few tears escaped her eyes. I turned to her and pulled her into my chest.

"Let's get out of here. We've seen enough."

I led her back to the car and helped her inside before taking off down the street next back to the hotel.

Anna's POV

"I'll be back."

I stopped backing and turned to L. We had a plane to catch. We were supposed to be at the airport in four hours and he had not packed a thing. We were flying out from LAX to a small airport close to Winchester. From there Watari had arranged for a car to retrieve us.

"Where are you going?" I questioned, crossing my arms over my chest.

L looked a tad uncomfortable. His hair was a bit wilder than usual. He was wearing shoes. Old sneakers I had seen him wear over the years. They were beaten and torn and he was in desperate need of a new pair, but he wouldn't hear of it. It wasn't like he wore them regularly anyways.

"I want to thank Naomi in person."

I raised my eyebrows and turned from him, packing more of my things away. "Is it safe?"

"I'll be fine."

I considered it for a moment. "Okay. I'll see you when you get back."

He pressed a quick kiss to my cheek and then he was gone. I finished packing my things and tossed L's into his own suitcase before grabbing the key card L had left on the nightstand. We were going back to Winchester tonight. That meant we were going to leave this case behind forever. We were leaving Beyond behind forever. I had made up my mind.

I went down to the hospital quickly. This was it. The last time I would see him. This was how I would get closure for this whole thing.

L's POV

I arrived back at the hotel room to find Anna lying curled up on the bed, a book in her hands. I crawled in next to her and looked over some of the words.

"Are you ready to get going?"

She nodded and shut the book. Anna got up and grabbed her duffle bag and swung it over her shoulder without a word. I frowned.

"Is everything alright?"

She looked up at me after stuffing her book into her bag. "Everything's fine. I'm just ready to get home."

I didn't believe that for a second, but I decided to let it go. I took her hand after picking up my own bag and headed out of the hotel and to the plane. Anna stared out the window. I knew she was upset about Beyond, there was no way she wasn't, but the case was closed and time would heal the wounds he created. We just had to take the time to let it happen.

The End

A/N: This took way too long to be completed. At any rate, thank you all who have followed Anna and L this far. There is one more story that has been started for them. It's entitled Seventeen and is currently up. In this story we follow Anna and L's daughter Gia. It takes place about 17 years after Hard to Love ends. That is all.

-Insaine