A/N: And here we go, the real plot changes begin here. I've yanked the reigns out of the hands of the previous plot and put in place a new driver. Hold onto your seats, it's going to be pure awesome. I can't wait to show you how I've changed the ending, because it's pure awesome. I have one more chapter to write. The story now has 34 chapters total. Who-hoo!
-DW
Chapter Twenty - Red's Debut
Stepping out of the shadows,
Into the light.
No longer unknown,
Unseen.
Start the race.
"You will be the lead investigator in a case separate of the Kira case. You will go under the alias Red, and I will provide you with the necessary equipment required to keep your identity unknown. Any additional funding will be provided by me. The goal of your investigation is to recover Naomi Misora's body, and if possible gather evidence of her murder."
"So, Kurai, how are you doing?" Light asks and smiles pleasantly.
I look up at him, sulking quietly as I fiddle with the spoon in my coffee cup. There really isn't much of a reason to answer him, so I just let the silence be my reply.
"Is that good?"
"Oh, sure, I'm just fan-fucking-tastic," I reply sarcastically.
"What's the matter?"
I sigh. He will just keep badgering me until I do answer him. "This case is bothering me. I don't have much to go on, at all."
"You mean the Kira case?" Light blinks, and I shake my head.
"I've been put in charge of a separate case."
"I thought you were working with Ryuzaki though," Light says, confused. He wouldn't know of this, we haven't told him, although, there hasn't been anything said about not telling him. And if anything were to get Kira's skin crawling, it would have to be knowing that there is someone looking for that one little oversight you squashed.
"I am, but in the meantime I am looking for the corpse of someone we suspect was murdered by Kira."
"Who?"
"A woman by the name of Naomi Misora," his eyes widen in recognition. I knew it!
This is the problem though.
I suspect that Light killed her. That much is obvious. To do that he would have to write her name down, and because we can't find her body, some form of instructions as to where she would die.
So where the hell is she?!
I've looked as much as I can (even though I know that probably won't do anything, but I might as well get rid of our options), everywhere I can go without having to leave for more than a few days at a time. Light's a Collage student who's spent his entire life in the general area. There aren't that many places he could hide a body.
It's July 13th.
I've spoken with other detectives from around Japan, and even FBI agents that she's worked with. Still nothing, they have no clue, not even an inkling as to where she could be.
"Hello, Detective Red," the FBI agent said, nodding to the computer. Kurai sat on the other side of the screen, grinning in satisfaction. Contacting L wasn't the only use her computer could serve. There was a one-way video set up so that she could see them but they couldn't see her. Her voice modifier was on, and the picture representing her was being displayed.
She was being connected through another computer in the FBI headquarters. A person on the other end (working for L) had set up the whole thing, working as her own Watari. This thought made her smile as well. She felt powerful, respected.
"Good evening. I assume you know the reason for this meeting?"
"Yes."
She had been recommended to them to take this case by L. His reputation had left no room for arguments. If he thought she was good enough to take this on, then there wasn't much they could do, especially when he had taken a special interest in this particular murder.
It had been made very clear who they had thought had killed her: Kira. It was also clear that until they could provide proof of that, it would remain a separate case. The FBI knew this very well, but they would be happy enough just to recover her body.
"Good. I'd like to hear everything you know about her."
"Who's that?" Light asks.
"Raye Penbar's fiancé, she's been missing for months …"
"So how do you know she's dead?"
I sigh and roll my eyes. "Light, I suspect that she was murdered by Kira. I came to that conclusion the moment I had heard who she was, and that she was missing, which was early January."
His eyes widen even more, and a slight frown tugs at his lips.
"Anyway, the objective is to find the body and if possible gather evidence of her murder," I say, attention returning to the coffee in front of me.
"Are you sure it was murder? I mean, she could have killed herself. It must have been pretty depressing when her fiancé was killed," Light suggests, probably defending himself. Light, I can see right through you.
"Honestly, if she had killed herself I would bet everything I have that it would be in a place where somebody could find her, so that her family could give her a proper funeral. What's suspicious is that she's missing."
"There's no evidence."
"I know. That's why I'm in such a bad mood."
I glance up at Light. He seems to be deep in thought. Damn him. Somehow, he found Naomi before we did and now she's dead. He wrote it down in his little notebook, probably lying and saying that he was just writing a note down.
I wonder how he came across her …
That's beside the point. I have to find the body before I can do anything else.
Hold it.
Light said that she could have committed suicide.
Damn, how could I have missed that!
I abruptly stand up and drain the rest of my mug in one gulp.
"Hey, where're you going?" Light asks, startled by my sudden change.
"Thanks Light, couldn't have done it without you," I chuckle at his expression. "I can't believe I didn't think of that sooner," I say to myself and head towards the door.
"What?"
"Can you pay Light? Thanks!" I call over my shoulder as I leave.
My walk back to the hotel is quick and rushed with my hands shoved into the pockets of my jeans.
"So this means you finally have something to go on?" Vile asks me. Ever since I helped get rid of his boredom he's a little bit more free with his opinion. He still likes to mock me whenever he can though. He's a sly bastard that way.
"Yes," I reply quickly as I swing open the door to the building.
"Well, looks like things will be a little more exciting around here then."
Absolutely Vile, It will be a little more exciting.
I run upstairs to the room, taking stairs two at a time. I would have done three, but I would have probably tripped and fell on my face. I'm not too tall, so my legs aren't that long either. Ryuzaki's a lot taller than me and it's even worse for Light. It seems like everyone I know is a little taller than me, or a lot taller than me.
The door's locked, so I end up fumbling with the handle for a few seconds before I realize that the key-card is in my pocket. I do a face-palm and pull it out and open the door.
Ryuzaki is standing in the middle of the room, staring owlishly at me as I rush inside and shut the door behind me. I waste no time greeting him and instead rush over to the coffee table where the pages for my case are scattered.
I have spent hours there, puzzling at all the information that I had. In fact, it was a little too much. Maybe that is why it took me so long to come to this conclusion. I remember in January thinking of something similar, but I didn't make the complete jump before now.
"You seem to be in a hurry," Ryuzaki observes, not moving from the spot.
I don't answer him, the gears turning too fast in my head to make a coherent reply. I shift aside different pages and slowly gather the ones that I need at the moment.
Ryuzaki comes to stand next to me, finger up to his mouth, "What did you find out?"
I stand up straight and stare at him incredulously. Won't he just shut up and leave me to my conclusions? Judging from his expression, probably not – I've caught his attention.
"I've been looking at this whole thing the wrong way," I say, glancing back down at the pages. "I find that I haven't come to this conclusion a huge and stupid mistake on my part, but fortunately it won't kill anyone."
"Go on."
"I've been evaluating all the information I have with the assumption that I'm looking for a murder victim, so I'm getting nowhere. That's what everybody naturally assumes when they hear that I think she was killed by Kira. Killed is the key word. Nobody would suspect that we were looking for someone who committed suicide!"
"You don't think she committed suicide though."
"If she had committed suicide it would have been somewhere where we could find her, therefore her family could give her a proper burial. She isn't the sort of person to just die in a secret place and leave her family a wreck."
"Then why would you think to look for the place she killed herself?"
"That's what Kira would do!" I shout excitedly. "My first conclusion: Kira can kill in more ways than one! I said something similar in January. Kira could have her kill herself somewhere secluded and secret. People do this in normal homicides too; make it look like a suicide and move the blame away from them."
"Then what are you so excited about?" I can tell he's just baiting me into explaining everything. He's grinning, so he has an idea of what I'm saying.
"Kira can also control his victims before death. Kira is cunning, so I bet that he would know it would be too easy to find her body if he hid it in a place he knew about. It's too easy! Childs play. So what if he made her kill herself in a place that nobody besides her could find or know about?"
L is grinning, and I grin back.
"He wouldn't even have to know where it was. It's the perfect way to hide a body."
"So, now what are you going to do?"
"Look for plausible places where she could kill herself in seclusion."
"Do you need anything for that?"
"Yeah, probably, I'll let you know later."
He nods, and heads off to where he was seated before. I gather all my pages together and head towards my own seat.
I have a long night ahead of me.
I sigh and place the last page on the pile of 'read' pages. That took longer than expected. It's actually been two days since I had any sleep. So as you can imagine, I'm about to collapse.
I've read all the pages that I needed to read and then some. When I read some things I needed more information so I went and read more pages. I've even talked to some of the FBI a few times to learn more.
I need to find a general area where she could have possibly found a hiding spot.
Now, after reviewing all the information, I need to pick a spot to start.
Her childhood might be a good place; there are tons of places that kids get into! Since I can't talk to her, I should talk to the people who were closest to her. I doubt that I would be able to find friends … she has no siblings, so that leaves her parents!
They are living in Japan. Apparently that was one of the reasons Penbar took that particular assignment. It was because he would be working in Japan. They had been here to get married, and more importantly introduce Penbar to her parents.
That's where I will start.
"Welcome," an older woman greets me as she opens the door, though she pauses when she sees me. I give a reluctant sigh. Of course.
I had decided to come here in person, to show my good will. They are grieving, so I didn't want to alienate them by sending off a person with a laptop in order to speak with them. These people want to speak with real people.
They did not expect me though.
They had been under the impression that a private detective had been hired by the FBI to investigate the disappearance of their daughter. So naturally they expected a middle-aged man in a suit with slick lawyer-like skills, not a young woman, barely an adult, dressed in casual clothes knocking at their front door.
"Come in …" she says, blinking in surprise. I nod politely and go in, taking off my shoes and leaving them by the door. "Are you Detective Red?" she asks hesitantly.
"I am. Thank you for letting me come and speak with you Mrs. Misora," I say, giving a small smile.
Mrs. Misora presents herself like a mousy little housewife, with traditional and older perspectives to what a woman and a house should be like. She seems a little off-put by my appearance and general aura.
She quietly leads me into her living room, where there is a little spread of finger-foods. I wonder if she bakes when she's upset. I take a seat in one of the squishy armchairs and place my bag by my feet.
Mr. Misora is sitting across from me, eyeing me warily with suspicion. It's not like I didn't expect that. He's a larger and older man with a walrus moustache and bristly black and gray hair.
"Can I get you something to drink?" Mrs. Misora asks me hesitantly.
"Coffee, thank you," I reply, taking out the voice recorder from my bag and setting it up on the table. After that I take out a thick coil notebook and a pen.
She comes back a few minutes later with a nice steaming cup of coffee. I take it graciously, with a short 'thank you'. I turn the recorder on as I take sip. Mrs. Misora seats herself on the couch next to her husband.
"I'd like to ask that you keep any information I reveal during this meeting to yourselves," I say, glancing up at them. They exchange looks of uncertainty before nodding to me.
"Is there a reason for the secrecy?" Mr. Misora asks.
"Yes, mainly due to the fact that you will be receiving confidential information."
"Confidential information?" Mrs. Misora squeaks. I nod.
"I will be honest with you. I don't think that your daughter is alive any longer. In fact, I suspect that she was murdered."
"Murdered?" Anguished expressions flash across their faces.
My mouth forms a thin line as I nod, "By Kira, to be exact."
"Why would Kira want to hurt our daughter?"
"If you do not already know so, three months before her disappearance your daughter was an FBI agent. Her fiancé, Raye Penbar, was also an FBI agent. In later December he was killed along with 12 other members of the FBI. He had been on duty in the country under L, investigating the Japanese Police for suspicious activity or signs of a leak in information. He died of a heart attack."
"Why are you telling us this?" Mrs. Misora asks, absolutely horrified.
"You deserve the right to know. Now, shortly after Penbar's death, she disappeared. Both L and I agree that she is not a person to commit suicide. No, it was far more likely that she went after Kira on her own. It's possible that she could have found a lead. I suspect that Kira got to her first."
"You're working with L?" They both blink in unison.
"Yeah, I am also working on the Kira case," I confirm.
"So let me get this straight. You think that Naomi found something out, and Kira found her first and killed her?" Mr. Misora asks.
"Yes."
"Then why would she be missing? Kira kills with heart attacks," Mrs. Misora says.
"Well … not necessarily. We discovered early on in the first few months of the investigation that to some extent Kira can control his victim's actions before death. That stunt he pulled in March proved it. So I also have reasons to believe that Kira may be able to kill in more ways than one."
Their eyes widen.
"I came to the conclusion that if this were true, Kira would be able to have her kill herself somewhere secluded. I haven't been able to find her body this way. Recently I thought that if Kira could control the victim's before death, and kill in other ways, he could have her kill herself somewhere that only she would know about."
"You're saying that she killed herself?" Mrs. Misora asks quietly.
"Yes, but not willingly."
"So then why are you here talking to us?" Mr. Misora asks.
"I want to know if there was some general area that she could have discovered a hiding spot in her childhood. Did she go out adventuring? Did she often go out for long periods of time?"
They tell me everything they know. Unfortunately the information they give me is unsubstantial for me to make any conclusions. I'll probably have to send people to investigate the areas to make sure, but at the moment I doubt that I will find the place in her childhood.
I thank them for their time and promise to keep them updated on my progress. I leave feeling as though I have knocked off one possibility.