Chapter 16:
"One Of Us"
Soichiro Yagami returned, ending his phone call. The seasoned detective gave his son a confused look. Light/Beyond Birthday gave Soichiro a glance.
Soichiro asked, "What's so funny, Light?"
Light cleared his throat, but then Dr. Goodman said, "A little humour, detective. Despite the circumstances, I was telling your son a story of BB when he first arrived to Wammy House."
Light/BB gave Dr. Goodman a look. It was a complete lie, but a good cover.
"The Good Doctor is an intriguing story teller, Dad."
"The man was a menace, a psycho," Soichiro said, "and you're laughing at past stories about him?" Soichiro frowned. "I'm disappointed, Light. I'd think you'd be more serious about this."
Light/BB faked abashment. "Sorry, Dad," he said.
Soichiro looked at the doctor. "Dr. Goodman, can you tell us any additional information about Beyond Birthday to add to his file? So it can be officially closed."
Dr. Goodman thought for a moment. "Well, he's mischievous, deceptive, and he's bright, exceptionally bright. But sometimes he can be a bit too clever for his own good. He would over extend himself to the point of sloppiness. That's how L caught him."
BB narrowed his eyes, looking at the doctor.
"You talk about him as if he'd still alive, Dr. Goodman?"
Dr. Goodman chuckled. "Forgive me, he was a good kid before he turned bad. He was a favourite of mine at the orphanage. I remember him fondly. He was a quiet boy, with his own quirky personality. On one hand I'm sorry he's dead, but on the other hand, the man you knew as Beyond Birthday was a menace to society, especially after what happened in Los Angeles."
"Absolutely," Light/BB said seriously. "Dad, Dr. Goodman has also been telling me that he's been helping the FBI in the United States with the LABB Murder Case, giving them any information he can about BB to finally close the case there, since he has consulted on several similar cases in the past dealing with other serial killers as a neurobiologist and psychotherapist. Apparently he has some very good insight. Perhaps can share this information with us?"
"Thanks great, Doctor," Siochiro said. "That would be very much appreciated. Perhaps you can help us on the Kira Case in an unofficial capacity? We could really use your expertise. Not to step on anyone's efforts, Light." Light/BB said nothing. "We seem to have hit a bit of snag with Kira. Kira is always one step ahead of us. An expertise in your field would be helpful."
"I appreciate the offer, Detective Yagami," Dr. Goodman said. "You can contact me to ask for my advise, but I'm afraid I have a flight back to England later on tonight. After I learned about Beyond Birthday's death, informed by a colleague, I requested to come here to officially identify the body with medical records. Now my job is done here."
Soichiro extended his hand out to shake Dr. Goodman's hand. They shook. "Well, thank you for taking time. Now we can put this case to rest once and for all," he said.
Light/BB also shook Dr. Goodman's hand, with his right hand.
"Good luck in your endeavours, young man," Dr. Goodman said. "I foresee, you will indeed go very far," he said. "You're an exceptionally bright and up-and-coming prodigy in your field."
"Thank you, doctor," Light/BB said, as Soichiro Yagami put a hand on his shoulder.
They then parted ways.
Soichiro's car was parked in the Visitor Parking Lot adjacent to the medical building and was only a little ways from the main entrance. Light/BB went to the driver's side and reached for the door, then he realized Light Yagami didn't have a driver's licence. He smiled at his father.
"After you, Dad," he said, opening the door.
"You really need to think about getting your driver's license, Light. You can't be chaffered around forever. You can afford a car with the dowry L left all of us."
"Sounds like a good idea," Light/BB said, getting around the passenger side of the car. As Soichiro Yagami got in, so did Light/BB. "We'll set up an appointment with the driver's bureau, but a car isn't essential at the moment. I have other expenses to think about right now, the equipment in the apartment, for example. Everything was destroyed in Beyond Birthday's attack. That explosive device did a lot of damage."
"I know," Soichiro said. "And I'm glad you're okay. I don't know what I would ever do without you, son. You, your mother, and your sister, are my entire world." Soichiro Yagami padded his son on the leg in fatherly affection.
Little did he know that he was expressing such to an impostor.
Light/BB faked a smile.
Soichiro Yagami leaned back in the driver's seat and sighed. Light/BB observed a wistfulness from the man. "Dad? Are you alright?" he asked of Soichiro with inquisitive concern. BB had never known his parents. His years at Wammy House from a young age was all he knew, but at the moment, and he didn't know why, but he felt a certain kinship with this kind man.
Soichiro looked at the rear view mirror, then at Light/BB. "Dr. Goodman just got me thinking about the past. Without help, you may never have reached your full potential. I never told you this, but you were a handful when you a kid, Light, and nothing like you are today. You were diagnosed with ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder."
BB was shocked to hear this about Light Yagami. He didn't seem the type. Light Yagami was the kind of person who seemed in complete control of every aspect of his life. He was smart, well groomed, had friends—all this, according to the information BB had researched on him. Light Yagami had everything a person like him strived to achieve including the power of Kira.
Soichiro continued, "Thanks to a doctor we saw, we had to travel to England to see, quarterly a year, you were given injections to help control your ADHD. It was deemed experimental at the time, but the doctor came highly recommended, and it was covered under my police health plan as you were only five. He was able to control and then eventually eliminate your ADHD over a three-year period. In fact, there was such a dramatic improvement, your teacher's suggested we have your IQ tested. You tested high. It was also suggested that you could skip a grade because you were starting to get bored." Soichiro chuckled slightly. "But your mother insisted we keep you where you were, and a guidance councillor agreed with us when we meet to discuss it. He said that it would be too traumatic for you. You'd miss your friends."
Light/BB remained dumbfounded. But something about Light Yagami's situation sounded familiar. "I honestly don't remember that, Dad," he said. He decided to press. There was an itch at the back of BB's mind he had to scratch about this. An English doctor, injections for ADHD, that boosted Light Yagami's intelligence… Then an epiphany resounded in his mind. And BB mentally gasped. "Do you have any medical records about these treatments, Dad?" BB calmed his enthusiasm, he didn't want to sound too—alarmed. "I'm just—curious about them."
Soichiro thought. "I think your mother has them—somewhere. Oh, I remember now. A few years back, we had a flood in the basement of the house and some items in packed boxes were destroyed. I think your mother mentioned some old medical papers. But you'd have to ask her."
Light/BB nodded and sat back. And he wondered—Light Yagami, are you one of us?
Soichiro Yagami began to pull out the car from the parking spot when suddenly a motorcycle ripped passed them at breaking speed. It immediately caused Soichiro to slam on the brakes.
"Idiot!" he said, shooting a look back at the irresponsible biker. "He could've been killed if I wasn't paying attention. Did you catch a make of the bike or a license plate, Light?"
Light/BB said, "No."
As the crazed motorcyclist raced down the parking lot on a sports bike, paying no heed to safety or pedestrian traffic or other motorists, BB wondered about the incident.
The speedster suddenly skidded, his bike turning with his wheels screeching, creating a black skid mark, as he jetted back up the parking lot from whence he had come. The biker wore a helmet and all black leather attire. He suddenly took out a semi-automatic and began firing.
"Get down!" Soichiro shouted, covering Light/BB, as bullets smashed through the windshield and car exterior, glass shattered everywhere.
Despite Soichiro Yagami's attempt to shield him, a small shard of glass dropped and managed to cut the right side of BB's face mask, drawing blood. BB hissed, but the pain was a far cry from the kind he had experienced before and he endured it without a batting an eye.
"Light! Are you—"
BB heard the motorcycle turn around, listened to its wheels screeching along the ground as he and Soichiro coward behind the dashboard. He pushed Soichiro Yagami aside and then exited the vehicle. He pulled out his gun and fired at the motorcyclist. The biker fired back and BB ducked for cover, returning fire when he could. The biker was obviously out for the kill.
With his Shinigami Eyes, BB saw the name of the biker hovering above his head, and recognized it—the biker's real name. But he also knew to whom the biker served. 'A' had called him Cannon on the hospital rooftop. He was the sniper in the helicopter. Now he was riding a motorbike and firing a weapon. Was this an assassination attempt? BB didn't know anything about Cannon, but he was obvious a man of many talents.
Cannon stopped at a safe distance and faced BB. He revived the bike's motor.
Was Cannon here to kill Light Yagami? Soichiro Yagami would be collateral damage.
Cannon had no idea that the real Light Yagami was somewhere else. 'A' had tried to kill Light Yagami before with Cannon as the trigger man, firing two bullets through Yagami's apartment window. 'A' then tried to kill Light on the hospital rooftop, but the Shinigami Ryuk saved Light by catching the bullet. Was thrice the charm? Light Yagami was a prime target here.
BB should have realized he was being watched by 'A'.
He turned briefly and saw Dr. Goodman laying on the sidewalk near the building, unmoving, in a pool of his own blood. He cursed himself. His instincts were getting soft. Of course 'A' would try to kill the Good Doctor. Yet another thing 'A' would take away from him.
'A' wanted to take everything away from BB, because BB had taken everything away from him.
"POLICE! PUT YOUR GUN DOWN!" Soichiro Yagami shouted. He held a gun. As a civilian, yet working on the Kira Case, he wasn't allowed to carry. BB guessed old habits die hard.
"Yagami/Dad! NO!" BB shouted, as Cannon then began to move, his semi-automatic now aimed at Soichiro. BB had no choice and fired his gun at Cannon. And after two shots, the weapon flew out of Cannon's hand, and landed somewhere.
But it didn't stop Cannon from charging forward on the bike, and at BB.
BB depressed the trigger of his gun, but it clicked—the magazine empty. The motorcycle raced directly for him and Cannon burst on the speed. BB stood there as a target, he wanted Cannon to focus on him, and he quickly formulated a plan. He had seen it done only once and in a movie. This was a different circumstance, but it still might work. And he had to precise.
He had noticed someone had dropped a piece of wood in the parking lot near Soichiro's car. BB would be use it in Cannon's epitaph. He picked it up, and as the bike soared close—BB almost saw the world in slow motion—and tossed the piece of wood into one of the spokes of front wheel of the motorcycle, quickly rolling away, and out of the line of collision.
The end result was beyond spectacular—as the wood caught the wheel, preventing it from turning, flipped the bike end over end, and tossed Cannon through the air, and into a windshield of a parked car. The bike came to stop as it bounced several more times up and over several more parked cars causing damage with car alarms blaring.
BB stifled his pleasure, but it was difficult. Cannon wasn't moving.
Soichiro Yagami came over. "Light—that was—incredible, and very dangerous," he said in awe. "Tt-hat crazy maniac could've killed you." Soichiro went over to Cannon and flipped up his helmet visor. "I think he's dead."
"Dad! Dr. Goodman!" Light/BB said, faking his notice of the doctor previously.
He immediately ran to Dr. Goodman who was now being treated by on-site medical personnel. Soichiro Yagami followed.
But it was too late.
"Oh my god! Dr. Goodman!" Soichiro voiced shocked.
Dr. Lawrence Goodman was bleeding out profusely with bullet holes in his chest.
To be continued...
