I would like to thank XxMichyBabyxX, MissMomo11, mrsLlawliet162, Jen, Scarlet-Red-Wings and candy-is-epic for the most wonderful reviews. You rock, ladies. Enjoy the third part of my game.
3
Another Message
"Still awake, I see."
L did not turn to look at Watari, choosing to take another square of milk chocolate between his fingers and throw it into his mouth instead. He munched on the chocolate for a moment and gulped it down, immediately taking another one.
"I am on a case, Watari. Until it is solved I will not waste time on sleep." He glanced at the old man finally "You know that very well."
"You could use some rest." Watari insisted delicately. He came up to the couch L was sitting on and put the blanket he was holding beside the curled up detective. "Should I bring more chocolate?"
L's wide eyes traveled to the coffee table. There were only three squares left, along with some sugar cubes, an almost untouched pack of doughnuts, candy and an unopened cartoon of ice cream. It should be enough for the next hour or two.
"No, thank you."
Watari nodded. "Very well."
L listened to the sound of the man's footsteps as Watari walked up to the door and stopped briefly. "Goodnight, L."
"Goodnight, Watari."
The door closed softly behind the old man and L was once again alone in the room. He took another piece of chocolate and waited for it to melt on his tongue before swallowing. He threw a fleeting look towards the blanket before turning away from it, facing the set monitors.
All six of them were security camera records from the Narita International Airport with the exact same date as Anders' death. The American detective appeared on monitor 2, his suitcase already in hand. He sat down on one of the chairs and took out his cell phone, dialing the number to - L had already checked that - the Mercure Hotel to confirm his reservation.
L's attention was brought upon the third monitor; a woman was standing in the corner, constantly looking around. She had short black hair, wore sunglasses and a knee-length cream colored coat. Her red suitcase was at her feet, her red handbag was laying right next to it. She reached out - her hands were covered by red leather gloves - and stopped two young girls, who were about to pass her. The two paused their walk and looked at the woman curiously as she spoke something briefly. One of them, a girl with two dark brown pigtails smiled brightly, nodded and raised her hand to check her wristwatch. She told the woman the hour and she and her companion, who had waist-long black hair and was not fully facing the camera walked away, passing Anders, who finished the conversation a minute later.
L narrowed his eyes. The woman acted suspicious, but something was not right. The one who had left the message, 'Come and Play', was without a doubt childish, arrogant and very full of herself, confident in her skills; this woman seemed too nervous, too jumpy, too… L couldn't name that, but he knew that something was not right.
Soon enough, his theory was proven correct as the woman he was watching intently grinned broadly and ran straight into the arms of a man, her boyfriend (L assumed it was only a boyfriend from the visible lack of a ring). Everything fell into place and left the detective with a slight feeling of disappointment. Then again, ever since he'd deciphered that message, he knew the opponent will not be easy to catch. She may not be even half as intelligent as L was, but she would not go down without a fight.
Judging from her attitude, she also planned on having fun.
Judging from her sense of humor, the situation could get dangerous.
-
It was way near midnight when a team of 4 skilled police officers, each holding a loaded gun in their hands, approached the door of apartment 14 inside of block 03. There were only 7 blocks in the area and all were numbered, so it was easy to find the right one.
One of the armed policemen rapped on the door shortly. After a few seconds of silence, they nodded to one another and two of them kicked the door down. Guns ready to fire, they entered the apartment.
It was a plain place, a 2-room apartment with a small kitchen area. There was no toilet, since the bathroom was located at the very end of the corridor, being shared by all tenants of the floor. The team split into two pairs, each duet searching a different room.
The first pair had the bigger one, a living room plus kitchen. They found nothing out of place.
The other two policemen entered the smaller room and simultaneously raised their guns, aiming at the chair beside the desk. The combination of the late hour and drawn curtains made the place incredibly dark. There was only on source of light in the room - a small desk lamp which illuminated the whole desk and the front of a figure sitting on the chair, shadowing it's back and everything else.
"Don't move!" one of the men shouted, gathering the attention of the two in the first room. They appeared almost immediately, also having their weapons drawn.
The figure seemed to listen, for it staid frozen in the seat.
Seconds ticked by. The officer who was the closest to the chair, slowly approached the silhouette. Never taking his finger off the trigger, he reached out with his other hand and grabbed the top of the chair's back. The man close to the door out stretched his free hand to look for the light switch and found it. All waited, watching the figure's back intently.
.
Downstairs, Inspector Ichigawa and his assistant, a young rookie named Kuroda, were waiting for the team to come down with whatever they would find. The inspector didn't waste his time however, instead talking to the tenants who lived on the ground floor.
"Excuse me," he asked a man that had just returned from a walk with his dog. The man stopped and smiled politely and Ichigawa "I wanted to ask if you knew anything about the person who lives in apartment 14."
"Fourteen?" the man replied and his eyes lit up "Oh yes, I do know." The inspector held his breath "It's not a person, sir. Fourteen is the Fujimoto' apartment."
"Fujimoto?" the rookie replied, looking at his boss skeptically "Maybe it's the wrong address?"
"What can you tell me about them?" Ichigawa ignored the young man.
"They're really nice neighbors, a married couple and a kid. If I remember right, they'll be living here for… 6 or 7 years now." The man shrugged "I honestly can't say anything bad about them."
"Thank you." Ichigawa nodded at the man and he returned the gesture, walking away.
"Is it possible L might've gotten it wrong?" the young man asked again in a hushed voice. Beside Ichigawa, only Kuroda knew that L was also on the case of Detective Anders' mysterious murder. "Maybe there was no code to begin with?"
The inspector did not reply; instead, he narrowed his eyes and waited for the team.
.
Inside apartment 14 the three officers waited with batted breath as their partner gripped the chair's back and spun it around, making the figure face them. At the same time, the other man turned the light on.
The mannequin's big, emerald green eyes stared at the four men in silence, eyebrows raised in a comical display of surprise and blood red lips pouting, making the expression seem almost taunting.
It was definitely a female mannequin, without the legs and arms. There was only the torso, the head, and a wig dyed in four different colors - black, brown, red and blonde. And something cream-colored duct taped to the middle of her chest. An addressed envelope. Blood red letters written in different styles and in the English language formed --
F O R the Other Detective
.
"I'm gonna step out for a second," Kuroda took out his pack of cigarettes and, after receiving a nod from his boss, he did as he'd said. The young police officer enjoyed the breeze as he put one cigarette between his lips and lightened the end, inhaling the smoke. He leaned against the wall and mused about the case for a while, before a strange noise broke his concentration. The sound was coming from around the corner, so he figured he'd check it out.
Away from the streetlamps, it was hard to see the details, but the sight before him left no room for doubt. Someone was washing their car in the middle of the night. Being a car enthusiast, Kuroda was sure it was a 4-door SUV, Toyota Land Cruiser, either white or light silver, he was not sure. A person was walking around it, pouring water from plastic bins on the hood, roof, doors, wheels and rubbing the bumper and windows with a cloth occasionally. After a few seconds of staring, Kuroda noticed the person was a young woman. He grinned.
"Good evening, miss."
The person froze before straightening up and turning to face the man. She stared at him with a blank face as he smiled charmingly, the cigarette tucked between his lips. The smile was still on his face when the woman appeared right in front of him in what seemed like an instant, not giving him the time to even blink. She took the cigarette out from his mouth and for Kuroda, the world lost all colors and turned pitch black after pressure was applied to the back of his head with precision.
He was lucky. He staid unconscious through the whole ordeal and woke up just before his death. He was sitting on the ground, back leaning against the side of the car, inside of which were three more bodies - bodies of people who were not as lucky as Kuroda, who had just returned from a short road trip and were about to return to their apartment under the number 14; who were awake as the knife slashed their skin and sliced their veins and organs. Along with their bodies, all their material treasures taken straight from said apartment were with them in the trunk. All but their family photo, who was on the desk back at the apartment, in its' cute white frame.
The liquid Kuroda took as water was in fact gasoline and the car was soaked with it. There was a thin trail going from the white or light silver Toyota and stopping at the feet of the woman, who was still holding Kuroda's lit cigarette. After inhaling some smoke and releasing it through her pursed red lips, she threw it uncaringly on the ground, where the lit end connected with the end of the gasoline trail. One spark later the fire ran along the thin line and began to consume the car along with the four bodies.
A few minutes later the explosion took place, luring the Investigator, his 4 policemen and a few tenants out.
She was long gone by then.