#43 Petty
"You're just a murderer."
That much, Near knew, was totally true. But unlike anything else he had said, that wasn't needed. Everything else had been a means to the end of proving once and for all that Light Yagami was Kira.
But calling him a murderer and nothing more was possibly overdoing it. When he'd rehearsed it in his mind before coming out here to this warehouse he'd imagined Gevanni telling him off for such a statement.
And then he remembered the look on poor Matt's face as he slumped against that beautiful car. He recalled how Mello's exquisite form was burnt beyond all recognition.
Near felt his stomach twist in anger. Matt wouldn't have minded the being shot, but they got blood on his beautiful car, Near had observed the boy enough to know that the red classic car was the thing he valued most in the world. It was Matt's pride and joy and because of Light, his bloodstains had been splattered all over the paintwork, and bullets had left holes through the body. Near had managed to get a hold of the car afterwards and had been told the engine was custom-built (probably by Matt himself), and beyond repair. And somehow that made Near angrier than the fact that his old friend had been killed.
And poor, dear Mello. Mello who had been a god among mortals, both Adonis and Aphrodite, and glad of it. Mello who had taken such great care of his appearance and who could make everyone in a room look at him just by walking in.
Burnt to an unrecognisable skeleton. It was no comfort to Near that his cause of death was heart attack. The least they could have done was allowed him to keep his beauty. It would have been somehow appropriate that Mello died and left a beautiful corpse. He would have looked so perfect in his casket, surrounded by lillies.
Now what was left of him would be buried in an unmarked grave, beside L's. Near bit his lip in sheer rage.
It wasn't fair. Mello and Matt had been his friends, once upon a time when they were still only children. Ok, he and Mello had never really got along, but they hadn't been enemies. Because of Light, he now had no-one. Oh, he was sure his team would stick around, and doubtless Roger would come sniffing around for work before long, but that wasn't even close to the bond L's three heirs had shared.
And as Near felt the white-hot anger bubbling inside him for the man calling himself god, he found he couldn't make himself feel guilty for calling him nothing more than a murderer.