The Girl With No Name

Chapter Seventeen

Light Yagami was a beautiful boy. Even after being tied up, body bent backwards, deprived of sleep, and emotionally drained by the endless accusations, he was still beautiful. It was unfair, and almost ironic really, that the one person who'd undergone so much strain and mental torture would walk out of his cell looking just as fucking godlike as the day he'd been brought in.

When I came to collect him, Light's doe-eyes lit up with recognition. Confusion fogged his elation, but frankly, he looked relieved just to see another person.

"Katherine," he breathed, voice heavy with fatigue and consolation. I felt pinned by the desperation in his gaze.

"Can you stand?" I asked, hesitant to lend a hand unless he really needed it.

He strained and nodded with a wince. When he stumbled, I held his arm and felt how skinny he'd gotten over the past few weeks. Guilt began to creep in but I stomped on that beast before it grew too big.

"Is this it then? Am I cleared?"

I remembered what L had said - appear sombre and dejected but not overtly sad; it would leave room for doubt but not give too much away.

"There's a car waiting for us outside," I told him slowly, ensuring he heard and understood every word of what I was saying. "I'm going to have to ask that you don't ask any questions."

To his credit, Light kept silent as he slumped along behind me, although it was obvious he had a throng of questions teetering behind those sly lips.

Light knew how to manipulate a conversation and he knew how to read the subtlest of signals. He could ask about the weather and get you to tell him your political stance, or your favourite breed of cat, or how much you hated your mother. Anything, really. He was good like that - like L, but a lot smoother.

I'd been prepared for this though. So, whenever he tried to make conversation, no matter how innocent the topic, I shot him down.

"Light, you're smart and I don't want to be condescending, so please take the hint. I'm not going to tell you anything. When he arrives, your dad will explain things to you if you still want to know."

He latched onto my error. "My dad is coming?"

I chewed my lip. "We'll be meeting him in about a quarter hour, yes."

The small slip of information I gave him - I hoped L would forgive me, shooting an apologetic glance at the camera above my rearview mirror - seemed to ease the anxieties that were playing on his mind for he didn't speak for the rest of the car ride, meaning I had room to breathe.

Speeding along the highway, I kept my gaze fixed on the road in front of me and tried not to think about the destination. The sky was stormy, battered and bruised with an array of dark purple clouds and a grey overcast. The last few minutes of sunlight fought to shine through, speckles of shiny, bright amber reflecting off the glass panes of lavish penthouses and corporate buildings.

We drove into a multistorey parking complex, where daylight bled into shadowed fluorescence, and I drove down three floors, scanning for civilians or any occupied cars. Light noticed the change in speed and sat up curiously, analytical eyes surveying our strange surroundings. I slowed the car to a stop where I felt appropriate, stepping out of the car in the middle of the deserted floor, pulling Light along with me.

The Chief pulled up in a car minutes later. Misa Amane exited the vehicle alongside him, hands cuffed behind her back. Her face lit up like a carnival display as soon she saw Light, who's only real interest was directed at his father. The Chief, refusing to acknowledge his son, approached me and began herding the two teenagers into the car I had been driving.