The following few weeks sucked. I mean really sucked. We arranged interviews with as many of Carter's ex-girlfriends as we could sniff out. Melissa Burnham was happy to help out with names, but it was obvious she was disappointed that no progress had been made since I'd last seen her. That didn't help me feel any better.

We didn't learn anything from the exes. We recorded all of the interviews and passed the videos onto L, but he concluded the same. We still scheduled periodic meetings after each new interview. The uncomfortable atmosphere in my office never got any easier. Every meeting would end up in awkward silence, at which point L would then leave and the rest of us would breathe a sigh of relief.

The police officers involved and I were all in unsaid agreement that L was truly unusual. Nobody had said anything outright insulting about him – though I'd certainly dropped a few bold comments – but there were always a lot of knowing glances exchanged when L was around.

It was quite annoying really. We'd all worked so hard to get L to work with us in person and now everybody seemed to sort of regret it. But nevertheless, he was the best detective for a reason, so we stuck with it and made the effort to work the case his way. Well... I was the only one who had to make the effort. Annoyingly, the others seemed more than happy to go along with his ideas, regardless of what they thought of him as a person.

At least that was what I thought.

The one afternoon, I was sat in my office, aimlessly re-typing everything we'd learnt so far. It's a habit I have when I seem to be hitting a lot of dead ends. Some part of me always hopes that endless recounting of evidence will cause me to have a crazy epiphany. It hasn't worked so far, but I can still hope.

My cell phone rang while I was working. I checked the caller ID before answering. It was Gibson. "Hey, boss, what's up?"

"Hi, Gee," he greeted wearily. "I was wondering if I could just have a quick word."

"Sure. Shoot," I said, completely nonplussed.

"It's about Ryuzaki," confessed Gibson. "I'm considering dropping him from the team."

To say I was surprised was an understatement, especially after we'd worked so hard to get L working with us in person. Was that why he'd been going along with L's way of thinking; just to humour him?

"What changed your mind?" I had to ask.

"Well, I know we've finally got him working with us properly now... But it's hard to explain." He sounded really riled by the issue. "We're a team and we really need to work as one to progress in solving this case. He may be working with us in person now, but it's obvious he's not a team player and I think it's starting to hold us back. He's creating a very awkward atmosphere and it's making it harder for the rest of us."

So he had noticed how awkward it had been lately. At least it wasn't just me being finicky. "Are you really going to ditch the number one detective just because he's not a people person?"

"You know it's not just that," said Gibson. "So far, he hasn't been contributing any more than the rest of us. I don't know whether he's waiting for some different kind of opportunity to show off his tricks, but we really can't afford to keep wasting our resources like this."

Wow. So Gibson had minded about this all along. I really didn't give him enough credit. "What do Kenichi and Chad think about this?"

"They don't know yet," said Gibson shortly.

Uh oh. I wondered what that meant my part was in this. "So why are you telling me?"

"Because I want your opinion as a detective," explained Gibson.

What did I think? Personally, I'd be glad to get shot of the weird detective that nobody seemed to like. Like Gibson said, he wasn't bringing anything more to the case than the rest of us and he was making it more awkward for us to work together too. Not to mention it would make me the only detective on the case and I'd finally get point on it.

But what did Ireally think? As a detective? He was still the world's greatest and that could be really useful in the long run. He just didn't seem to have unleashed his full potential on this case yet. If he did that, then he'd have a better chance of solving this than anyone. Maybe I could try and hint to him that he needed to look like he was more active on the case.

Plus, now that I'd heard Gibson's opinion on the matter, I actually felt a little sorry for L. I remembered how angry and upset I'd been when Gibson had chosen another detective over me, even though it had been because he'd had my best interests at heart. But how would I feel if I got dropped from the case after being completely involved?

Not good, was the simple answer. Dammit. Why did I have to have such a soft side at times like this?

"I think maybe you should give him another chance," I said reluctantly. "He's gonna be more likely to solve this than any of us are. And maybe working on a team will be good for him in the long run. He's probably just not used to people that much."

Gibson was silent for a few seconds – I almost wondered if he'd been cut off – then he chuckled. "You really do surprise me sometimes."

"Why?" I asked suspiciously.

"Because you just gave up the chance to take this whole case for yourself," Gibson pointed out.

I smiled. I wasn't going to admit that that had been my initial thought. "Please. Where's the competition in that?"

XXX

The next morning, I was rewarded for my generosity by a very early phone call, though it definitely didn't feel like a reward at that moment. I fumbled for my phone. The display told me that it was Gibson calling again and that it wasn't even five o'clock yet. "Wha?" I mumbled groggily when I answered.

"Gee, this is important," said Gibson hurriedly. "We've had another murder. The three of us are there now."

Now that definitely woke me up. I abruptly threw the covers off and tumbled out of bed. "Where?"

I held the phone against my ear with my shoulder while I clumsily pulled on the first skirt I found, followed by my boots. I'd just keep the top I was already wearing. Gibson gave me the address and directions of the fastest way to get there. It was in Wazuka. I felt a little fearful... Kay and Laura lived near there.

"The victim?" I asked quickly.

"An elderly lady. We haven't found any identification yet."

I couldn't help breathing a sigh of relief, though of course, I knew that there were hundreds of people who lived there. "I'll be with you as soon as I can," I said before hanging up.

As I started to pull my holster on, I noticed the pager on my bedside table. I hesitated for a second.

"Dammit," I muttered, throwing the holster back down onto the bed.

I grabbed the pager and jammed in Watari's code. I knew I shouldn't be wasting time getting to the crime scene, but this could be L's chance to shine. It just depended on how quick he could be and if I could even talk him into it. Though if I had to wait long for him to reply, then screw it; I was going without him.

Thankfully, I didn't. I'd just fixed my holster on and fitted the gun when my phone rang. I grabbed it and answered, not bothering with a greeting. "There's been a murder in Wazuka," I said quickly, guessing that since Gibson had only just told me, then L wouldn't know yet.

"Are the police there now?" asked L, sounding professional for once.

"Yeah. I'm about to head down too... But I think you should come with me," I said all in a rush before I changed my mind.

L didn't reply straightaway. I knew I'd caught him off guard. "You want me to go?" he repeated.

I gritted my teeth. I didn't want to say these next few words, but I knew I had to. Better to flatter him than kill his motivation by telling him Gibson wanted him off the team. "I think it may be useful. You might be able to spot things that we wouldn't notice otherwise."

To be honest, I thought that was unlikely. If he could find something that I wouldn't have done, then I'd eat my iPhone. But him just showing up and putting the effort in would definitely help to change Gibson's opinion. Urgh, why had I made it my duty to help L redeem himself?

"Surely you're not trying to flatter me, Gee?" Dear god, he actually sounded amused. Why had he chosen now to finally show some damn emotion?

I ground my teeth together. That was all the flattery he was going to get. "No, I'm telling you that you need to pull your weight and show you're actually doing something for the case. I'm also telling you that if you can get to either my office or somewhere on the way that I can pick you up in the next ten minutes, then I'll even give you a ride." I didn't think I could be fairer than that.

There was a very long pause before L finally said, "I'll be at your office in ten minutes sharp." Then he hung up.

He'd still hung up before me! God, he just made me want to scream. I managed to control myself though. I should have been celebrating really. After all, I'd just goaded L into investigating with us. Maybe I had some kind of magical persuasive powers.

I grabbed my investigating bag and shoved my phone into it, swinging it over my shoulder and going through into the lounge. I swiped both sets of keys from the bowl on the sideboard before heading downstairs and locking the apartment up after me.

I pulled an energy drink from the mini fridge in my office and downed it while I was waiting. I didn't have to wait too long – true to his word, L turned up exactly ten minutes after he'd hung up on me. Damn. His timekeeping was even more impressive that mine. I didn't even mind that he didn't use the doorbell this time.

"Let's go," I said quickly before L could even say anything. The quicker we turned up to the crime scene, the better it would look. I hurriedly locked the office behind me and stuffed the keys into my bag.

As I opened up the car, I realised that Watari was nowhere to be seen. I guess L didn't need a chaperone everywhere he went. But it made me curious as hell as to how he'd gotten here. Maybe he'd turned into a bat and flown over.

I climbed into the driver's side. Just as L was getting into the passenger seat, I remembered how he usually sat in my office. No way was he doing that in my car. "Make sure you sit properly. Nobody puts their feet up on my seats," I ordered him bluntly. "And put your seatbelt on."

"As you wish," replied L simply with half a shrug, doing as I said.

I couldn't help glancing sideways at him as I started up the car and pulled off. When he was sat properly, he almost looked like a normal person. Almost.

However, the novelty wore off pretty quickly and it soon turned out to be the most awkward drive ever. You didn't have to be a rocket scientist to tell that L wasn't one for small talk. I'm not exactly someone who needs to be around constant conversation, but a little small talk would definitely have made the atmosphere in my car a little warmer.

But L didn't venture anything and I couldn't think of what to say either. He always created an awkward tension between everyone in the meetings – now it was twice as bad since it was just the two of us. So we spent the whole drive in a very uncomfortable silence. Why had I decided to do this?

I'd never been so relieved to get to a murder scene. I pulled up at the bottom of the driveway, behind one of the police cruisers. Gibson's, if the number of empty coffee cups on the dashboard was anything to go by. L followed me out and down towards the house. I still had the uncanny feeling that I was chaperoning a problematic child. I mused over the idea of telling him to be on his best behaviour, but I doubted he would get the joke.

Kenichi and Chad were stood out on the front porch. They both looked surprised to see L, but neither of them said anything about it. Instead, Chad wolf whistled as we joined them on the porch. "Wow, Gee's showing skin!" he exclaimed, grinning.

"Very mature, Chad," I said sarcastically.

I hadn't even put any thought into what top I'd been wearing to sleep in. It was loose with strappy sleeves and a very open back. It was very comfortable to sleep in, since it was so light, and possibly even good for a night out (as it wasn't actually a pyjama top – it was a hand-me-down I'd had from my Auntie Maggie years ago) but it probably wasn't ideal for investigating a crime scene.

Thankfully, I knew Gibson and Kenichi wouldn't give a damn about what I was wearing, as long as I'd turned up. Chad only commented because, well... it was Chad.

"Show some respect," Kenichi told Chad sharply. "There's a dead body in there."

Chad winced and had the grace to look ashamed. "Sorry. Just trying to lighten the mood a bit..."

That said it all. I knew this wasn't going to be good. "Is it really bad?" I asked, knowing the answer.

Kenichi gave a stiff nod. "Worst one so far."

That didn't make going inside sound appealing. But I wasn't going to drop out. I'd seen plenty of dead bodies before – it never exactly got easier, but I knew I could handle it.

L, on the other hand... He didn't seem like he joined in with hands-on investigation much, so would he have even seen a dead body before? I had to remember that in this case, he was just a civilian. Had I made a mistake in bringing him here? I already suspected he was somewhat of a broken toy – traumatising him with a corpse probably wasn't going to help.

I glanced sideways at him. He was stood with his hands in his pockets, looking merely bored. Huh. On second thought, maybe trauma would just bounce right off him.

"Right," I said, mentally preparing myself. I turned back to L. "Let's go."

He nodded and dutifully followed me through into the house. Gibson came out into the hallway just as got inside. He gave L a startled look, but he quickly composed himself and didn't comment on the abnormality of his presence.

"I hope you're ready. It's not pretty," he said grimly, holding up gloved hands that were dotted with blood. "And make sure you're both wearing gloves."

"Already got us covered, boss," I assured him, patting my shoulder bag whilst visually searching for clues around the hallway.

Gibson nodded. "Try not to touch too much in the lounge before forensics get here." That obviously meant that the lounge was the scene of the murder. "I'll give you room to investigate for now."

He gave L a slightly disapproving look. His eyes were hidden behind his hair and he still appeared completely uninterested in his surroundings. But since I was closer to him – not to mention also a fair bit shorter – I could see underneath his bangs and I could see that his eyes were actually restless, taking in all of the things that I was. We really didn't give him enough credit.

"Oh and be careful near the window; there's still broken glass everywhere," Gibson added.

And with that, he left us to it. I didn't mind getting stuck on my own with L again this time. We had work to do.

"Come on," I told L, pulling two pairs of disposable gloves out of my bag and handing one to him. "Put these on and let's get stuck in."

I heartily regretted my attempt to be jovial once we went through into the lounge. My eyes were automatically drawn to the armchair. It was impossible not to look. It looked like the poor old woman hadn't even had enough time to get up from her seat before she'd been struck back down. But that wasn't the worst part...

It was her face. I could tell even from this distance that there was literally nothing left of it. Whoever had broken in had butchered her face until it resembled nothing more than a slab of raw meat. I felt bile rise in my throat and I quickly swallowed it back down. It had been a long time since I'd seen something this horrific. No wonder the others had all looked so grim.

I turned to L, but this time, I couldn't see his eyes at all. I think he'd purposely hid behind his hair. He was still hunched over, gloved hands awkwardly loose at his sides, but he looked very tense. I could at least tell that much. I guessed my hunch had probably been right. This was either his first dead body or at least his first gruesome one. Dammit... What had I been thinking, bringing him here?

I took a deep breath before reluctantly saying, "Why don't you check out some of the other rooms and I'll investigate in here? We'll get more done if we split it between us."

I really, really didn't want to investigate this bloodbath of a room by myself. But I was feeling increasingly guilty about goading L into this. I'd never expected it to be this bad.

"Alright," said L slowly, slouching off out of the room. No arguments. I couldn't exactly blame him.

I returned my attention to the room itself, taking in everything systematically. The broken window meant that the murderer had forced their way in. The fact that the old woman was still in her chair suggested she'd been killed the moment they'd gotten inside. Besides the blood and shards of glass everywhere, the rest of the room looked undisturbed.

So what the hell was the motive for this? Had the Kasagi killer really broken into this house just to bludgeon this poor woman to death and then leave again? How sick could you get? Worse still, there was a Zimmer frame stood in the corner of the room. The woman had barely been mobile. How would she have even been able to attempt to stand up for herself?

I reluctantly made my way towards the armchair so that I could examine the body closer. It was so thickly covered in blood that it was difficult to be able to spot anything that could be helpful.

But then I did notice something. The blood splattering looked odd somehow. Given the way she'd been killed, it made sense for the woman's face to be covered in the most blood, then the shoulders where the blood would seep to, then the chest, and so on.

Yet there was a very large, very dark patch of blood on the left side of the woman's chest. It couldn't just have been from the blood that had spilled from her face – it was too concentrated in one place. I very carefully peeled away one side of the woman's shirt to reveal multiple stab wounds around her heart.

I bit my lip, confused. This didn't make sense. Nobody would have survived their face being so severely mangled, so why had the killer proceeded to stabbing her so many times as well? Just to ensure her death? It still seemed kind of pointless. Or had she actually been killed from the stab wounds and they'd then destroyed her face afterwards? But why?

Feeling that this case was getting more and more complicated, I combed the rest of the room. I didn't find anything else of use. I had all of my equipment for dusting for fingerprints with me, but I didn't use it. Best leave that to forensics. I hoped L was getting along better than I was.

I went back out into the hallway. I couldn't hear him downstairs anywhere. I peeped round the door into the kitchen. "Ryuzaki?"

"Yes?" said a voice from right behind me.

I jumped and banged my hand painfully against the door handle. Like I hadn't been edgy enough as it was. "Don't do that!" I protested. "Did you find anything?"

"The rooms upstairs have been torn apart. It seems the killer has been looking for something," said L.

"You reckon they've been stealing?" I asked.

"If they have, then they haven't been doing a very good job. I found a collection of expensive-looking jewellery that was left untouched," replied L.

"That's weird. Any thief would definitely take that opportunity. I wonder what they could possibly be after..." I said. "Did you notice if there was anything that was obviously missing?"

"Her purse had been emptied. There was no money inside and no identification or credit cards either," said L. "All that was left was a coupon for a garden centre."

"They took all her ID too? Did you manage to find a passport or anything like that?" I questioned. Gibson had told me over the phone that they hadn't found any identification yet, but I didn't know how much they'd searched the house.

L shook his head. "It's going to be a problem identifying her. It may even be a struggle using dental records."

No kidding. I'd be surprised if there were even any teeth left in her face after what had happened to her. We'd have to ask around to find out more about her identity. It wasn't often we had no identification to go on. Actually, come to think of it, it sounded like it was deliberately difficult.

"I think I've figured something out..." I said, mulling it all over in my head. "Do you think maybe the killer didn't want us to know who this woman was?"

"What do you mean?" asked L.

"Well, we can't find any forms of identification for her. Nobody's going to be able to recognise her without a face. Plus the damage that's been done is going to make it hard to identify her even with dental records," I explained.

"It definitely sounds like a valid theory," L agreed.

"And get this," I continued. "I originally thought that she'd been bludgeoned to death, but I found several stab wounds in her chest. Why would the killer bother doing both? It's highly unlikely she would have survived either. So what if they killed her and then went the extra length to make her face unrecognisable?"

L was silent for several long moments. "Do the police officers know about the stab wounds?"

"I'm not sure. I only noticed myself because the blood splattering didn't look right," I said. "Let's go find out."

We left the bloodbath behind and went back outside to find our police officers. They were talking quietly amongst themselves, but Gibson beckoned us over when he saw us. "Any luck?" he asked, holding out a disposal bag for us to get rid of plastic gloves.

I did so gladly and answered his question with one of my own. "Did you see the stab wounds on the victim?"

"Stab wounds?" Gibson repeated sharply. "Where?"

"On the left side of her chest, obviously aiming for the heart," I described.

"Why would they stab her if she was already dead?" asked Chad. "She wouldn't have survived having her face ripped apart like that."

"Well, actually, we think it happened the other way round," I said, pointedly turning to L. If he got more involved in this and showed that he definitely deserved some credit, then maybe Gibson would let him off the hook and keep him on the team.

Thankfully, L didn't let himself down. He explained to the others about the missing identification, the strangely untouched jewellery, how we'd came to the conclusion that the manner of the murder suggested that the killer didn't want us to identify this woman at all...

Gibson's face got more and more serious. "I'm beginning to think we really do have two killers on our hands," he said eventually. "This just doesn't add up. Our killer hasn't gone to such lengths with any of the other victims."

"But the multiple stab wounds match that of the other victims," I pointed out. "They're still being killed in the same way."

"So why has he gone to the extra lengths this time?" asked Kenichi. "What was so special about this woman that the killer felt the need to make it so difficult to identify her?"

We entered into a debate as everyone started throwing ideas back and forth. I was at least pleased that L also joined in, redeeming himself even more, but without a full autopsy on the victim and interviews with whatever acquaintances of hers we could find, then all of our talk amounted to nothing more than speculation.

"We'll have to see what forensics say," decided Gibson. "They should be here shortly. Once they've had ample time to examine the body, they should be able to tell us for definite which was the cause of death."

"When will we find out?" enquired Chad.

"Not today, at any rate," answered Gibson. "Not if we want the answer to be a hundred percent correct."

"So what's our next step?" I asked.

"Right now? You all go back to bed so you'll be rested up and ready to figure out this case tomorrow," said Gibson, only half joking. "Seeing as we can't even find her contacts, since we don't know who she is, we'll have to start with her next door neighbours and see how well they knew her."

"Even if they can't identify her themselves, they may be able to recommend family or friends that can," added Kenichi.

"Exactly," said Gibson. "So I actually think you should all head back for now. I'll wait here for forensics to turn up. I'll contact you all if we find anything new."

I didn't really want to leave Gibson on his own with this mess. Thankfully, Kenichi seemed to have the same idea. "I'll stay with you," he offered.

"Thank you, Kenichi," Gibson said graciously.

"Just remember to share your coffee with him, Gibs. Don't hog it all," I said teasingly. I definitely didn't blame Chad now for trying to lighten the mood earlier – it was weird seeing everyone look so completely serious.

Gibson managed a small smile though. "I'll try. Thanks for getting down here so quickly on such short notice. You too, Ryuzaki. I appreciate the support."

"That's quite alright," said L, seeming neither pleased nor bothered by the comment. I almost wanted to shake him and tell him to be more grateful. I didn't, of course.

"So where do you want me to drop you off?" I asked L, as we headed back towards my car.

"Back at your office is fine," said L. "I've contacted Watari. He's already waiting there with a car."

Huh. I hadn't seen him contact anyone. And why couldn't he have got Watari to pick him up from here himself? It would save me having to suffer another ridiculously awkward journey with him.

As I'd expected, the drive back wasn't any better. You'd think we'd have a fairly good topic of conversation to discuss considering what we'd just seen. I was seriously contemplating driving us off the road and into a ditch.

Fortunately, L interrupted my thoughts before I did see any ditches. "Thank you."

"For the lift?" I asked, completely nonplussed. "That's okay. It's not like I've been going out of my way – we are going to the same place."

"For giving me a chance," corrected L.

Now I hadn't expected that one. "What do you mean?" I questioned. Surely he couldn't have known what Gibson had said to me yesterday.

"I know that Mr. Gibson is considering taking me off the case," said L.

"What makes you think that?" I asked, trying my best to sound casual. How the hell did he know that? Gibson hadn't even told Kenichi or Chad about it – he'd only told me. Had he been tapping into our phone conversation?

"I can tell," replied L simply. Oh, okay, just me being paranoid then. "Everyone seems to think I don't understand people, but I actually understand a lot more than most would. I can see that Mr. Gibson thinks it isn't working out."

I glanced at him curiously out of the corner of my eye. His expression was still unreadable as ever, but for once, I actually felt like I was talking to a real person, not a broken robot. "Does that bother you?"

"Not particularly. It's not unusual. A lot of people don't really agree with the way I work," explained L.

I made a non-committal noise in response and didn't say anything else. I felt it would be a little harsh to point out that I was one of those people. I actually felt a little sorry for L, even if he reckoned it didn't bother him that Gibson wanted him out.

"I also get the feeling that you convinced me to help with the investigation today to prove Mr. Gibson wrong," L continued when I didn't venture anything. "Which is what I'd like to thank you for."

"Oh... Um, that's okay," I said, feeling a little embarrassed. Maybe I preferred the awkward silence after all. He could just go back to being robot boy. I was fine with that.

But L obviously wasn't ready to drop the issue just yet. "If I was kicked off the team, you'd be the only detective on the case," he said pointedly.

"Yeah, well... Where's the competition in that?" I said, giving him the same line I'd given Gibson yesterday.

To my absolute amazement, L chuckled. I mean actually chuckled. I was starting to wonder if I should maybe pull over and check if he was alright.

"A fair point. Where indeed..." he agreed. I saw him turn his head to look directly at me. Feeling uncomfortable, I pointedly kept my eyes on the road ahead of me. "Your tattoo is very nice, by the way."

"My what?" I asked, startled.

"The wolf tattoo on your back. It's very nice," L repeated patiently.

And to my immense horror, I blushed. What was wrong with me? I never blushed! He'd just caught me off-guard... I'd completely forgotten that my tattoo had been on display. I generally kept my tattoos covered up unless I was on a night out.

"Thanks," I mumbled.

"You're welcome," replied L.

We then spent the rest of the drive back in an even more awkward silence than we had on the way there. I was starting to think I would prefer no competition.