~Prime Target~ Minyadagniriel
Ch 10: Chase
"Oh….my side is so itchy!"
Rachel tried her hardest not to scratch at the healing tattoo she got this afternoon. She squeezed the bottle of lotion and let the scentless pink goop pile up in her hand only to rub it on the bare tattooed skin. It felt so good, cold liquid on red burning flesh.
The air flow into the abandoned building she currently resided was cool and blowing on her, almost uncomfortably.
She reached into her bag, pulled out her laptop and flipped it open. She could use a game of crypt raider and flicked the power button 'on'.
Six miles away, at the Plaza hotel, Watari's laptop beeped frantically and L who was picking away at a piece of cherry pie lost his train of thought and rushed over to the little monitor. He put his plate down and picked up the laptop, adjusting it out in front of himself. Rachel's computer had been turned on.
"Watari."
His mentor was in another room, but heard his call, "Yes, what it is?"
"Grab the others and bring them here, I have new orders for them."
Watari retreated back to the other room.
L was determined to get Rachel to talk this time and he set up a new connection so he could talk to her vocally this time. While L typed away, Aizawa, Matsuda, and Mogi joined him in the sitting room.
"Gentlemen, Rachel's computer has been turned on again and I have her current location. Your job is to go to this address and pick her up," he said while holding a piece of paper containing her whereabouts, "Don't worry, I have already taken the liberty of assigning NYPD escorts for you. They will be here any moment so please wait outside the hotel entrance."
"What will you do L?" Matsuda asked.
"I will make sure the suspect stays put."
Back at the abandoned warehouse, Rachel moved her character to level four. She was trying to break her record of thirty two levels, which could have been higher if L hadn't interrupted her and the time limit ran out. She was so close to pushing that last rock into the hole provided, until her entire screen turned all white again.
"Not again! Dammit is the whole world conspiring against me and my gaming?!"
A large 'L' appeared on her screen, startling her and she almost dropped her computer.
"What the?"
A small amount of text appeared beneath the letter requesting 'Please turn on your sound and you may talk while holding the control key'.
Rachel was skeptical but ended up turning her volume up.
"Thank you Rachel," said a jumbled voice from her monitor. It was clearly disguised with a voice simulator.
"I know it's you L," Rachel said angrily, "Why is it that every time I try to play a game you suddenly appear or interrupt my play time?"
"There are more important things to worry about, Rachel."
"I really don't wanna talk to you right now."
"Why is that?" he asked.
"I don't know…" Rachel eyes were watering up.
"You haven't been making much sense these days."
"L…if you knew what I was feeling right now you would understand…"
"If you would just let me help you…"
"Help me?! You want to arrest me and lock me up!"
"…that is what tends to happen to a guilty party, however…"
"…"
Something was going on outside, Rachel heard sirens coming. Could they have found her already?
"L! You sent the NYPD?! I knew it!"
"Rachel! Don't run! Don't resist arrest!"
"I don't know what to say to you L"
"Just stay put, let them capture you. If you run, they will use force."
Rachel wouldn't hear another word. L wasn't trying to help her, she was sure of it. Rachel pushed aside the computer, leaving it on. She could hear L shouting for her not to leave the building and give up but she wouldn't have this. Quickly she gathered her stuff except for the computer that would stay behind and she ran for the back of the warehouse, squeezing herself through some of the broken boards which lined the walls to the outside. She had to maneuver around a few dumpsters and climb over a fence to get away from the area.
The NYPD and the task force members infiltrated the warehouse heavily armed, guns at the ready. Matsuda and Aizawa were the first to enter and they searched every room until they found the glowing light from Rachel's computer. The L was still present on the screen.
Aizawa pushed the 'ctrl' key, "L are you still there?"
"Yes Mr. Aizawa."
"Rachel escaped, she left behind her computer."
"I'm aware of the situation, Rachel is getting tired. She won't be able to hide for much longer. I believe I will have to confront the suspect myself and try to convince her to turn herself in."
"How will you find her?"
"Watari is already synching up Rachel's cell phones to a satellite. We will be able to track her with that method. For now, have the NYPD back off a little bit and I will personally go out and speak to Rachel."
"Alright L."
Aizawa closed the red laptop and took it as evidence. He flagged down Matsuda and handed him the computer, "L wants us to fall back. He's going to find Rachel and try to talk some sense into her."
Matsuda nodded and placed the laptop inside a plastic bag, "I'll bring this back to the hotel room."
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L really hoped Rachel didn't move around too much. He only had his cell phone and Watari on the line instructing him of her whereabouts. L hopped one of the bus lines and took it down towards twenty fifth avenue. Rachel's signal was weak but it had finally stopped moving. According to Watari, L was closing in on her.
He was tired of this game she played and he planned to drag her back to the hotel with him, if he could get close enough. He waited for the bus to stop and quickly got off. If his calculations were correct, Rachel should be right around the corner.
Watari was right. Rachel was in a small park just south of twenty fifth ave. She sat alone in the dark on the park bench, her hands covering her face, wind making her long hair billow all around her. Every now and again she would cough, but he figured it was a result of her exhaustion until he got closer. Her skin looked frail and she may have lost around ten pounds, her clothes looked kind of loose.
L approached cautiously from behind and shut off his cell phone, he didn't want to frighten her off before he could get a hold of her.
Rachel began digging through her bag and she pulled out a cell phone, one of two and it was her work one. She flipped it open and looked at the screen saver…then she stood up off the bench. She swung her arm around and threw the phone into the pond a few feet ahead of her.
"Shit… if she throws the other phone away then Watari and I won't be able to find her if she runs again."
It seemed as though she was about to because she grabbed the other cell from her bag and flipped that open as well. L rushed up behind her and as she prepared to throw it, he grabbed hold of her wrist and the phone dropped out of her hand. She screamed for a second and turned around to see her attacker.
"L?!!"
"I would prefer that you didn't destroy every communicative device you own."
"Let go of my arm."
She glared at him.
"I cannot do that. I'm bringing you back with me."
"Try me…I doubt you have another pair of handcuffs in your back pocket. Now let go or I'll hurt you."
"You would hurt me?" L questioned.
"Yes."
Rachel tried to pry her wrist free from his strong grip but he instead grabbed onto her other wrist and pushed her to the ground, one leg on each of her sides, arms pinned above her head.
"We're going to play a familiar game Rachel."
"Do I get to answer in my own words?"
"That's what I'd expect and I'll know if you're lying."
Rachel took a deep breath, "….fine…"
"Question one; did Light Yagami force himself on you?"
Rachel swallowed hard, "…"
"Answer the question."
"I have an answer for you."
"…and it would be?"
*crack*
L let out a large groan and tumbled over to his side holding his groin in agony. Rachel rolled away from him and got up slowly; she began coughing again and tried to regain her balance. She grabbed her bag and took off in the other direction. L still lay on the ground, trying to regain his thoughts and wondering why he had been so stupid to leave himself open like that. She wasn't stupid that's for sure.
L crawled to his feet still hunched over, at least more than normal, and he took a seat at the bench gritting his teeth. This was the last straw for him…she would not cooperate and now he had to use extreme measures. He never thought that one shotting him in the balls would push him this far.
Rachel left her personal cell on the ground, now there was no way for him to track her. This was going to take a lot of manpower.
L felt well enough to pull out his own phone and call Watari.
"Yes L?"
"Watari…we need…to send out officers to search the…streets of Manhattan."
"Are you alright L, you sound like you're in pain…?"
"I'm fine…she just…got me is all…."
"Are you injured?"
"No…just give me a few minutes…to recover. Send out officers as soon as possible and Watari…we don't have a way to track her now. She left both of her phones behind."
"Very well, I'll send word to the NYPD and I'll also come pick you up."
"Thanks Watari."
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"Oh hell…I hope I didn't hurt him too badly," Rachel said aloud. She looked over her shoulder to see if he was following her.
She needed to find shelter for the night; it was almost closing time for most stores. Perhaps she could…no…they would catch her.
She ran about eight blocks and saw a huge department store up ahead, Macy's. This was the store that held the huge Thanksgiving parade wasn't it? It was huge!
Rachel jogged over to the store's entrance; they were open until ten on Tuesday nights. A doorman greeted her and held the door for her, she smiled at him. It was best that she act natural and not draw attention to herself if she was going to pull this off. Rachel wandered around the women's section of the store and pulled a few shirts off of hangers. They were simple quarter sleeve black tops on sale for twenty bucks each. She took three of them to the cashier and paid for them. Then when the clerk wasn't looking, Rachel pretended to leave the store but swiftly doubled back towards the women's dressing rooms and found an empty stall. She locked the door behind her and changed out one of her shirts. She discarded her old top into the provided trash bin along with the tags of her shirt.
Rachel stayed inside the room for over an hour. It was so warm in the store; she did not want to leave. She needed to sleep so badly. Her head ached somewhat and she just couldn't escape these sneezing fits, so she passed out on the provided bench, using her bag as a pillow. All the lights in the store shut off and everyone went home for the night save for a security guard but he never entered the ladies fitting rooms.
The following morning, Rachel awoke finding herself in the same fitting room. Nobody suspected a thing but she would have to wait until a decent time to leave the room otherwise people may question her. She didn't want the police called.
An hour had passed after the store's opening and she felt safe enough to sneak out. The employees on the morning shift were different so they didn't notice her.
Outside the store, the streets were bustling with people on their lunch hour. She joined the crowd and blended herself in.
She spent a few dollars on breakfast and sat herself close to a bar. The people seated inside were watching the news and having a few drinks with their friends. Rachel munched on her apple nut muffin and sipped away at her coffee while listening to the chattering crowds of people. But something stood out much more than the laughing and talking people. It was the news story on the tube.
Rachel looked up at the tv set and listened to the anchor woman:
"The NYPD have issued a warrant of arrest for a young woman by the name of Rachel Anne Willis. She is five foot six feet tall, twenty five years old, around one hundred thirty five pounds, and has brown hair and blue eyes."
Rachel's jaw dropped. L is putting her description on the news! What was even worse…
"Here is a photograph of the young woman in question. If you see her please contact the NYPD immediately."
She freaked out and gathered up her breakfast, needing to get away from the bar before someone saw her. L would chase her to the ends of the earth. Now the whole city knew about her and eventually a civilian would spot her. She berated herself for discarding her phones, if she hadn't, the whole situation would have been kept quiet and L would deal with her himself. But she was stupid and brought all this on herself.
Rachel spent the afternoon avoiding public places. Thanks to L, she couldn't show her face in public. He was doing it on purpose, cutting her off so she would have no place to go but to him. A few times she had to hide in back alleyways because police cars were everywhere, roaming up and down the streets.
"I don't know how much longer I can do this…" she cried as she wandered behind a set of buildings. She was looking for a place to rest. Behind a dumpster seemed to suit her just fine at the moment. There were bottles lying all over the ground, papers scattered about, and plastic bags dangling off the fencing nearby.
She sat on the ground, not caring if it was filthy there. She was a murderer which meant she was lower than dirt.
How could things have turned out this way? She had every going for herself…a degree…travel experience…she knew additional languages…friends…lover…No… she had no lover. He wouldn't accept a killer as a love interest.
Rachel cried her eyes out. She wrecked her life…there was no turning back now.
No turning back.
She picked up a piece of glass from the ground and stared at it. It was lackluster and covered in filth…but it didn't matter.
Rachel let her coat slide down her shoulders and she placed it off to the side. She rolled up the quarter sleeve of her black shirt and picked up the piece of glass again and held it out over her left wrist.
There's nothing left…just end it…
Her hand didn't budge at first but she forced it eventually, the glass just barely touching her skin…
She paused…
What would her family think? What would Watari and Misa think? What would L…
She sat there for a few moments…keeping the glass only centimeters from her skin.
L would never forgive himself if …
She was the reason he couldn't solve the Kira case. If she killed herself now…then that would be two unsolved cases and he would become depressed heavily. She was being selfish, it would hurt him deeply.
The glass piece fell from her hands and hit the ground with a clang. She couldn't do it. Whenever she thought of L…enemy or not…she realized she still cared for him.
Rachel suddenly wasn't feeling very good. Of course nobody would feel good if their face was plastered all over the city. She sneezed a few times over and realized that she had tightness in her chest. Rachel left her albuterol in Japan so she couldn't relieve the lung pain. She assumed it was anxiety causing this and decided to ignore it.
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"Rachel's picture has been broadcast on the news," said Matsuda.
"Yes. She won't be able to step out in public unless she wants to be caught," L said as he took a bite of his crème brulee. "I purposely cut her off so she would have no choice but to seek me out."
"Good thinking, L!" Matsuda shouted.
"Matsuda, stop messing around we have work to do," Aizawa said, "Give me a hand with this paperwork since Mogi is already busy with today's filing."
"Uh sure, heh heh sorry!" Matsuda chuckled. He took the large files from Aizawa and followed him into the other room.
L stayed in the sitting room as usual, deciding what his next move would be. He needed to do something much more drastic, something that would push her mental capabilities past its limit and flush her out of hiding, but what? He had no way of contacting her, the police were already searching, and he tried his hand at personally seizing her which failed, his groin still hurt just thinking about it.
L thought back to the night they shared together, she was so shy, so sweet…and so innocent. She had everything she could ever want, a good job, friends and family, world experience…not everyone had those opportunities. He too, had been lucky in life, billions of dollars at his personal disposal, a career, very good educational background, travel, etc.
When he thought of her, it saddened him. She just doesn't seem the type to…kill.
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The chest pain was becoming intolerable. Rachel stayed behind the dumpster for hours trying to relax and hoping the coughing would stop, but it just wouldn't. At one point, she thought she was going to throw up a lung it was so bad.
She stared up at the sky, the clouds were growing dark. A storm must be coming…
Rachel needed to move. She put her coat back on and picked up her bag.
For the next two hours she wandered around aimlessly…stomach empty and screaming for food, her long hair becoming ratty and wind blown, her legs weakened. She never noticed people staring at her as she passed them by. It didn't matter anymore.
Her eyes were sore and swollen from crying.
A thundering sound rang from overhead and she didn't care as the rain started to pour down on her. People around her scattered and ducked into stores and entryways to avoid the wetness but she stumbled on for several blocks, letting her clothes soak up all the rainwater.
It was to the point where she didn't know where she was anymore. Someone offered to assist her but she ignored them and moved on.
She stopped to lean up against a building for another coughing fit, this time it was accompanied by mucus. It was getting worse. At this point, killing herself was beginning to look good but she wasn't ready for death just yet.
As she continued on, she began thinking about the justice system in the U.S and if was any different from Japan's. She wasn't sure what L would do; he was so…serious about his cases. In the U.S a person received a life sentence or the death penalty for murders and since she was a U.S citizen, would L be forced to follow the justice system when he resided here?
Her thoughts were swirling together, jumbled from her illness and hunger pangs. She was wobbling and vision fuzzy, the lights of the city took its toll, making her head throb. She had to stop and the brick wall nearby was a good spot. She dropped her soaked bag and slid to the ground.
What should she do? It was the end of the line…time to give up now that she was half delirious.
Two am.
"I don't know how long I'll be able to hold out…" she thought as she pulled her hood lower to cover her eyes. The rain pelted her body like icy daggers and the wind chill sent shivers down her spine. "There's always….turning myself in…but…" She shifted her weight to make herself more comfortable against the brick wall. "Nowhere to go…"
All the shops had closed for the night, so she had no chance of finding shelter by hiding in another dressing room. There were cops everywhere searching for her for what she did. Her face was plastered all over the media as a murderer.
So here she sits, alone and cold against the wall of Andy's Chee-Pees vintage shop off of Broadway. A sudden urge hit her and she began to cough profusely, the pain from her lungs was incredible.
"It's gotta be pneumonia…"
If she turned herself in, maybe she could plea-bargain. No, L would push for the maximum penalty to ensure public safety. But there's no harm in trying, was there?
"No! He would never go for that!"
She gasped as she thought of receiving the death penalty… "Would L really do that to me?? I'm so afraid."
She touched her wet forehead which seemed to be burning up. If she admitted herself to a hospital, they would call the local authorities and she would be picked up without medical help. That would be the worst case scenario. However, if she didn't go to a clinic soon, she would probably die. Which was worse…dying of a painful illness or dying of lethal injection? She didn't know.
Three am.
The heart of New York City at this time was no different from regular rush hour traffic. It truly was the city that never sleeps.
She pulled her overcoat tightly around herself for warmth and rubbed her hands together to relieve some of the numbness out of her fingers.
"Try to sleep…I have to…tomorrow I'll go to a…hos..pit..al…"
Resting against the shop, she let sleep take over her thoughts.
What Rachel didn't know, was the set of events about to take place.
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"L, my phone has been ringing off the hook. We're received multiple sightings."
"Thank you Watari, what's the area?"
"She's been spotted close to Broadway, a little north of Times Square."
"Watari, send units to Times Square and request a chopper. She's not getting away this time. Aizawa, Mogi, and Matsuda will accompany the NYPD and surround the area, close off roads and stop any civilians from entering."
Watari rushed out of the room and L got up off the couch and wandered over to a window. It was a dark and stormy night…so cliché.
Twenty minutes later the police had been dispatched and the task force members on their way to the scene. L and Watari had to meet up with the chief of police to obtain their helicopter. They had no problems getting one and with L behind the controls, they easily flew across the city, dodging through skyscrapers and towers. Times Square appeared below them. As instructed, the task force and NYPD had blocked off the area detouring cars and pedestrians.
It was difficult for L to see through all the rain, but he would have to do his best, so he switched on the chopper's searchlight.
"Any visuals on the ground Mr. Aizawa?" L said through his headset.
"Not yet," Aizawa responded.
"Keep searching."
Only a block away from Matsuda's detour, Rachel still lay against the vintage shop wall. She thought she heard a loud sound pass overhead.
Was that a helicopter? No… couldn't be. She opened her eyes, instantly regretting when her head pounded away. Her lungs were squeezing themselves shut and it was difficult to breathe. It was still raining and the moisture in the air made her feel stuffy and miserable.
But what was all the commotion nearby?
Rachel peeked out from around the wall, staring down the street. It looked like a road block, was there an accident? By the looks of it, it must have been really bad. There were cops telling people to go back the other way. Maybe she should leave the area too, cops around made her uncomfortable.
She took her bag and got up, stepping out from around the corner of the shop. She still couldn't keep her footing very well and she toppled over into the street.
Apparently somebody saw her because they shouted at her, "Hey miss! This area has been closed off, you can't be…."
The man paused.
Rachel pulled herself up and looked at the person who yelled at her. It was an officer and he was glancing at her from head to toe. He looked at her funny and then without taking his eyes off her, he reached behind himself and tapped another cop on the shoulder. The second cop turned around to see what was up.
One of them suddenly shined a flash light into her face and she raised a hand to cover her eyes. Then the second officer lifted a walkie-talkie to his mouth and muttered something.
Rachel could feel a surge of panic in the pit of her stomach. One of the officers took a step towards her and immediately she took off running in the other direction.
She could hear the officer yelling behind her to stop but she didn't. Then she could feel something whizzing past her ear. Gunfire? Now she was really frightened and doubled her speed but she wasn't fast enough to dodge another round of bullets and one of them passed through her shoulder. It burned as it tore through the skin. Still she continued running away, adrenaline taking over her body.
L was still up in the air, searching the grounds for any signs of Rachel when Aizawa's voice literally deafened him through his earpiece.
"L! We have a visual! She's heading towards the northern roadblock."
"Send more of our officers in."
L redirected the chopper and headed north. "Watari, take the controls."
The two of them flew over a group of officers who were running in the direction of the northern blockade. Several feet ahead of them was a lone figure, running at top speed. It was her; L recognized the long brown hair.
Watari closed in on Rachel and shined the searchlight on her.
Police cars began to appear everywhere, surrounding the girl and she was forced to stop running when she discovered the roadblock and officers pointing their weapons at her.
The helicopter flew above her and she glanced up at it. This was it…she'd been caught. A voice boomed through the air, it was coming from the chopper.
"Rachel, you have nowhere to go. Give up now."
Rainwater mixed with Rachel's tears. That was L's voice…he was so angry with her.
"Rachel, you need to raise both of your hands into the air and get down on your knees," L said over the speaker.
Easier said than done, Rachel thought. Her shoulder was in so much pain…she'd never been shot before. Slowly she dropped down to both knees and let her coat slide off her shoulders. Perhaps if they saw the wound, she could keep her arms down.
"Put your hands over your head."
It was impossible for L to see the blood through a black shirt so she attempted to lift her arms up. Her right hand went up easily but the left just wouldn't budge, it hung at her side limply.
L took the speaker away from his mouth and spoke to Watari, "She can't lift her arm, it must be injured. Land the chopper in the street."
Watari did as he was asked and guided the craft down towards the intersection and safely landed. L ripped off his headset and seat harness and hopped out of the chopper. For the second time in a week, L approached her cautiously not exactly happy about the idea of getting soaked in the rain but it was his job to bring her to justice. He reached into his back pocket and once again, pulled out a set of handcuffs, no intentions of playing games with her this time.
She did not move, just sat there with one hand up in the air. He didn't startle her when he grabbed hold of her raised hand and slid the metal around her wrist. L kneeled behind her and gently took her other hand. She winced as he brought it behind her back and attached the other cuff.
L had her now and he knew he had to read her the Miranda rights, an American custom.
"Rachel, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak to an attorney, and to have an attorney present during any questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be provided for you at government expense."
Rachel said nothing.
All of the police officers lowered their weapons and the task force members joined L in the middle of the street. Matsuda helped Rachel climb to her feet and he and Aizawa guided her to the nearest police car.
L sighed as he watched her duck into the car. It was finally over.
To be continued…
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Oye…this chapter was really difficult to write! Please feel free to leave any comments/ suggestions to improve my future chapters. Happy reading!