End Games

Chapter 29: Loyalty

Misa cradled her little one in her arms, swaying him gently to calm him down. Gradually, Mihael's cries turned into small grunts and whimpers as he squirmed rebelliously in his mother's arms. Misa smiled and lightly ran a finger over his small face, tracing his features. At the first chance he got, the baby latched onto her finger with his mouth, and clumsily suctioned it, as if trying to feed from it. Upon not being rewarded with milk, he released the finger and began to cry in protest. Misa and Halle couldn't help but smile.
"I think we'd better feed you..." Said Misa, moving to breastfeed the impatient baby.
Halle looked around the room, accounting for everyone. After one look-over, she snapped out of her fascination with the baby and remembered someone very important.
'Gevanni! He's gone!' She thought frantically. Halle saw that Misa was distracted with Mihael and took the opportunity to exit the room quietly.
Gevanni crossed the living room and took out his cell phone to call his employer. He would be happy to know that his suspicions about the mystery woman were correct. As he opened the front door of the apartment, he heard a 'click' behind him, and not just any click, but the unmistakable sound of a loaded gun ready to be fired. The agent stopped in his tracks, and turned around slowly, with the cell phone still in his hands.
"Where do you think you're going?" Asked Halle, pointing a gun right at him. The man sighed.
"You're not going to kill me. Not with the midwife still here, not to mention neighbors..."
"I'm an FBI agent and I work for Interpol. I can do more than you think I can."
Gevanni showed no signs of being intimidated.
"Your scare tactic won't work on me. I'm an FBI agent also, and I'm pretty sure we're not allowed to go trigger-happy on civilians or fellow agents." He said, unperturbed. "Now if you'll excuse me..." He pressed a button on his cell phone and brought it up to his ear, ignoring Halle altogether.
'Damn him!' Thought Halle. She lowered the gun slightly, pointing it at a different part of his body: his groin.
"Very well. You got me, I'm not going to kill you. But I can still shoot you where it'll hurt a lot." She said dangerously.
Gevanni scowled. Something about the way she'd said that told him that she was not kidding. As expected, Gevanni's phone started to ring, and as soon as he'd made a move to answer it, Halle fired. Gevanni gasped and jerked back, the shot grazing the inside of his thigh, and embedding itself in the wall right between his legs. His heart nearly jumped to his throat at the prospect of what she could have done just now.
"Are you insane!?" He shouted at her. Halle herself seemed shocked by her own actions, her hands no longer steady as she continued to point the gun at him.
"Why do you have to be so difficult?!" She yelled at him. "Don't you understand that I have a mission to carry? I have to keep Misa safe and hidden from your employer at whatever cost. And that's what I plan to do, so stop interfering!" She continued, shakily.
She could get into serious trouble for shooting a fellow FBI agent. Halle didn't want to harm him, but she had a job to do, just like him. Gevanni stood there, eyes wide, at a loss.
"Listen, I understand...I'm in the same position as you." He said, slowly approaching her with his arms extended. Halle watched as he stepped closer. She gripped the gun tighter, steadying her aim.
"Stop! Don't think you can sweet talk me! That was just a warning shot but next time I won't be so sloppy." She told him. "Now hand over that phone and sit down on the couch. Now. And if you make any sudden movements, I swear I'll blow a hole right through your crotch."
Gevanni swallowed nervously, and eyed his phone wearily. He wanted to answer it very badly. One press of a button would be all that would take but he didn't want to risk being unmanned by this madwoman. In the end, he decided to do as he was told, figuring that even his employer would cooperate if it were his penis on the line of fire. The phone continued to ring as Gevanni took a seat on the couch with both of his hands visible.
There was a gasp at the door as the midwife, followed by Misa and the baby appeared inside the living room. Halle's hands wavered slightly, betraying her nerves once again. Still, she did not take her eyes off the other agent as she tried to explain.
"It's OK! We're just having a little misunderstanding. He's my boyfriend and this is how we settle arguments" Said Halle for the benefit of the midwife. Misa giggled in response whereas Gevanni was not as amused.
"Yeah, like anyone would believe that." He said.
Halle shot him a glare. The midwife's gaze darted from one agent to the other before finally moving to get her things.
"Okay...whatever, I'm just going to pretend that none of this is happening." Said the midwife, ignoring Gevanni being held at gunpoint. "I'm going to gather my stuff and then I'm going to leave and not speak a word of this to anyone..."
Halle gave her a nod of approval.
"Sounds good. Thanks for everything." She said. Misa echoed that. Once the woman left, Halle got back to threatening Gevanni.
"So what are you going to do now? Keep me hostage indefinitely? If I don't answer the phone or call my employer, he'll start to suspect I'm in danger, you know." Said the agent. The phone continued to ring on the coffee table and everyone looked at it apprehensively. Halle lowered her gun and sat down next to him.
"Ok. I'm sorry for shooting at you. I don't know what came over me...but please don't tell him you found Misa" She requested sincerely.
"Yeah please don't!" Misa pleaded as well.
"And why would I ever help you after what you've done. Both of you"- he looked at Misa - "don't think I forgot about that little tampon shopping incident. That was embarrassing."
"Embarrassing?! I was the one who practically wet herself in front of everyone!" Said Misa adjusting the baby in her arms. "So don't tell me about embarrassing!"
Mihael squirmed in Misa's arms as if reveling in all the excitement. Gevanni's cell phone continued to ring for another minute, and then it stopped. It didn't ring any more after that.
"See? He's probably already figured it out." Said Gevanni, gesturing toward the phone. "What you're doing is incredibly stupid."
"Misa, he has a point." Said Halle, defeated.
"Okay..." She thought for a moment. "...then call him back and tell him that the mystery woman was someone else. Tell him you made a mistake, or something." Misa suggested. Gevanni shook his head.
"Even if I did agree to help you, he won't believe that. He's very thorough and he'll still want your picture."
Misa scrunched her face in concentration. L was formidable when he was after something, and tricking him wasn't going to be easy. But she was still going to try.
"Do it anyway!" She said.
"Are you deaf? I just said-"
"Do it!" Said Halle, pointing the gun at him once again.
"Fine! Just put that thing down!" Gevanni picked up the phone and pressed a button. A moment later, the phone rang again and he heard L for the first time without the vocoder.
"Well?" Said the calm baritone voice. Gevanni took a second to get over hearing his employer's actual voice for the first time.
"Well...I...as you know, I followed the woman. Unfortunately I was enlisted to help with delivering her child. In the process I determined that she wasn't Misa Amane." Said Gevanni in an even tone.
L did not say anything and Gevanni was sure that he wasn't convinced. Misa looked at him anxiously, wishing that she could hear the conversation. She sat next to him and pressed her ear as close to the phone as possible.
"Hmm...that's a shame." L said at last.
'It's him, it's really him!' Thought Misa excitedly. She couldn't help but feel happy to hear his voice again, especially after having had their child, she wished she could just announce to him that they were parents at last. A smile slowly formed on her lips, and she moved in even closer to hear more from him. Misa was practically ear-to-ear with Gevanni now but she didn't care. She really did miss L terribly, and deep down, she knew that he was worried about her too. After all, why would he be doing all this to find her if he didn't care?
Gevanni, on the other hand, didn't know what to think of the situation. His employer didn't sound upset, surprised, or anything except mildly disappointed. It was as if the past week of staking out had been nothing to him, and that the end result was just as he'd expected, a boring dead end. Maybe he should have felt relieved that his employer was taking this presumed false lead lightly, but something told him that there was much more going on beneath the surface.
"So what now?" Asked Gevanni cautiously.
"Now? I have a different task for you." Said L. "As you may have guessed, you were not the only agent I enlisted to look for Misa Amane. There were several others, like you, who have been reporting to me for some time with information on her whereabouts, or better yet, the lack thereof. I have reason to believe that one of the agents assigned to this task has recently given me false information."
L purposely lingered over that last part. Gevanni's heartbeat quickened, knowing that this could be his employer's way of telling him that he didn't believe him. This could be a tactic to get him to fess up to his lie. Gevanni glanced over at Halle. She had lowered her gun to lay flat on her lap. If he wanted to, he could probably grab the gun from her and run for it. He was considering just that when Misa's baby made a loud, unintelligible babbling noise. Misa gasped and shusshed him, realizing too late that she was close enough to the phone to be heard. L stopped abruptly mid-sentence.
Gevanni gaped at Misa, who was just frozen, with her hand covering her mouth. She dropped her hand and mouthed an 'oops' while giving him a pleading look.
At headquarters, L stopped breathing for a moment. He cradled the phone in his hands as though it were something precious instead of holding it like he usually did, trying to listen for whatever sound he'd just heard. He stood silent for a moment, listening. Nothing. He exhaled and then resumed his instructions as if nothing had happened.
"...as I was saying, I will assign you an agent to follow over the course of this week. Please maintain a low profile. That's all for now." Said L. Gevanni visibly relaxed.
"Okay. I'll get started on that right away." Said the agent.
"Please do. Oh, and I'll be needing a picture of the mystery woman. I'm sure you managed to obtain one during the course of your encounter with her, so please send that to me right away." And with that the line went dead. Everyone remained silent as Gevanni placed the phone back on the table.
"Did he hear me?" Asked Misa, worried. Gevanni shook his head.
"No, I don't think so..." He said. "But, regardless, he wants your picture, just like I knew he would."
"Damn" Said Halle. Misa's face lit up like it usually did whenever she got an idea.
"It's OK! That disguise with the black wig and glasses was inspired by my old manager. Whenever I wear it, I look just like her, so if I can find one of my old pictures of her, you can take a picture of her face with your phone and send it to him." She said, gently adjusting Mihael in her arms. "It's not fool-proof, but it's better than nothing."
"This is ridiculous...why should I even go along with this?" He said. Halle brandished the gun in her hand, causing him to flinch defensively. "Nevermind, stupid question."
"True...but I have to try..." Said Misa, hugging Mihael close.
Halle looked at Misa, worriedly. She wished she could secure Gevanni's loyalty somehow, but she didn't have any leverage other than her gun, and that was only temporary. Eventually Gevanni would have to leave the apartment, and once that happened, nothing would stop him from contacting L and telling him the truth. Halle sighed and put her gun aside. Gevanni regarded her curiously.
"When you leave here, will you tell your employer that Misa is here?"Asked Halle.
"Probably." He said truthfully.
"Please hold off on that."
"Why should I?"
"Because you don't know Misa's story. I think there's a lot you don't know about the circumstances surrounding your mission, and if you do this, you'll piss off a lot of people at Interpol." She told him sincerely. "Do you even know who your contractor is?"
"Does that matter?" He asked.
Having an anonymous contractor was very common in his line of work, and normally agents like him took jobs with only the necessary information to get the job done. However, Halle had peeked his curiosity. He looked into her eyes, searching for any sign of deceit. He saw nothing but sincerity and worry written on her face, and he couldn't help but feel some sympathy for her. She really wasn't a bad person, she was just trying to do her job and protect someone she cared about. He could understand that.
"Fine...explain yourselves and the issue with Interpol..."
...
Days later, L sat at his desk, typing away on his keyboard when Watari came into the room carrying something for him. He placed the parcel on the desk next to the detective.
"Here are the trackers you asked for. Are you planning to use them for something? They're not ready yet."
"Thank you, they will not go to waste. I'm actually taking on a new case."
"Oh is that so?"
"Yes, it's a cold case, unresolved for 50 years..." He continued to type, never taking his eyes off the screen. "...the only leads to date is a deathbed confession and an old train ticket. Other than that, most of the witnesses are dead or too senile to remember anything."
Watari regarded him carefully. L had solved cases with little to no evidence before, but this was his first time taking on a cold case. Well, if it helped him get his mind off of Misa for a while, then so be it. Still, it didn't make sense to him why L wanted the tracking devices that he had developed a few years back. They were smaller than a grain of sand, undetectable, and most importantly, they were edible. They could embed themselves in a target's digestive system for weeks at a time, probably longer. Watari had worked hard on these, but for whatever reason, they just weren't reliable and often fell apart when they came into contact with stomach acids. But now L planned to use them. Watari turned to leave but the detective called to him. The old man looked at him expectantly.
"Is there something else you need?" He asked. L held up a piece of paper in between his thumb and forefinger.
"Can you please order me one of these?" L asked. Watari took the paper and read it, his brow furrowing.
'A hazmat suit?' He thought, puzzled, but then he just nodded and said that he could.
...
"Oh man, this week was a killer..." groaned Misa, throwing herself onto the couch. Mihael babbled from his cradle swing next to the couch as he looked at his exhausted mother. Misa perked up at seeing his carefree face and clumsy hand motions. She moved over to the edge of the couch and reached her hand out to caress his face.
"My Mello, you're so precious and beautiful..." She cooed, leaning over to kiss him on the head.
The baby waved his arms around contently. Misa put her head down on the arm of the couch, and just looked at him adoringly, thinking of how he was worth everything.
Misa had just completed her first week as a new detective for the Investigation Bureau under the ICPO. Overall, detective work was really hard. Misa never imagined that it would drain so much out of her, and to think that at some point she thought modeling was hard work! It was cake compared to the 12-hour work days she had to pull off this past week just to get by. It was painfully obvious that she really wasn't cut out to be a good detective. She wasn't bright or experienced enough to figure things out quickly, and she constantly needed to ask for help. Not only that, but she found out the hard way that, ironically, she actually hated death. Especially the ones she was assigned to work with at the investigation bureau. She hated the times she had to go to crime scenes in person the most. Misa was squeamish by nature, and it didn't help that she had to smell death, see death, step in it, and sometimes even touch it. It was not pretty. It made her want to run back to modeling where everything was beautiful and perfect, at least in pictures.
"Thanks for taking care of him while I was out, Halle!" Misa called out from the living room.
"No problem, it was a pleasure. He's a good baby, really." Said Halle.
She stepped out of her room and quickly moved toward the door, hoping to not attract the younger woman's attention. Misa sat up when she heard the sound of heels clacking on the floor. She caught Halle attempting to sneak out the front door and saw that she was all dressed up in a classy wine-red dress and black heels. She was wearing nice silver earrings, red lipstick, makeup, and even her hair was styled. Misa's jaw dropped.
"You look awesome. You're going on a date aren't you?!"
"What? It's not a date..." Said the older blonde with a slight blush.
"You can't fool me! I always know when a girl is going out on a date!" Said Misa. "So who's the lucky guy, huh?"
"Uh..."
"Wait. Don't tell me!" Misa jumped up from the couch and ran to the window. Sure enough there was Gevanni's black car parked outside, running. "I knew it! I knew it! You're going on a date with Stephen Gevanni! Aaahhh!" She squealed excitedly. Little Mihael squirmed in his cradle and pitched in his own squeal, as if trying to match his mother's.
Halle's face turned pink. "Well...I saw him earlier this week and I invited him to lunch, you know to make up for trying to shoot him. And we had a really nice time, we exchanged numbers, and next thing I knew, he asked me to dinner. But he never said it was a date, so it's probably not."
Misa shot her a skeptical look. "Sure, the hell it isn't! It definitely is, Halle! Wow, this is so romantic, I'm going to be a third wheel..." She said wistfully. Halle couldn't help but smile and shake her head at Misa. The girl really was something.
"I should get going now. You're gonna be alright tonight? You seem tired."
"Yeah, I'm good. I'll just sit here and tell Mihael all about his father. You behave yourself, and don't think I won't ask you for the juicy details later!" Said Misa, curling up on the couch. Halle chuckled and said her goodbyes as she left the apartment.
...
Back at the Kira Investigation HQ in Japan, Watari walked into the main investigation room to find it empty. All the monitors were off and L was nowhere to be found. He'd searched everywhere, even Misa's old apartment, and he was starting to get worried. For the past week, his adoptive son had been very secretive, working tirelessly on something on his own. He'd assumed it involved the cold case he'd recently taken on, but now he wasn't so sure.
"Hmm..." He frowned and called L on his cell phone. The worry lines on his face thickened when the phone operator asked him to input a country dialing code.
'He's left the country! Without me!' He thought alarmed. This was unprecedented, but immediately, Watari knew which country code he would type in first: the American country code. As he feared, the call went through.
"Yes, Watari?" Answered L.
"L, why are you in America? What's going on and why did you not ask me to accompany you?" He asked, though he probably already knew the answer.
L sounded like he was busy. There was some ruffling in the background and something that sounded like sirens from far away.
"Where are you and what are you doing?" Insisted the old man.
"I'm in the U.S. is there a problem? I didn't need any assistance so I came on my own. Besides, I need you to remain at Headquarters because there is a very strong chance that the ICPO will go there looking for me in a few hours. Feel free to tell them I'm on the run."
"What? L stop this!"
"I have to go. I will contact you later tonight, and we'll set a rendezvous point."
"L!"
But he had already hung up.
From his hotel room, L prepared for his next performance. He connected a device to his laptop in preparation for his little "prank call." He cleared his throat and dialed a number through his laptop. He immediately got a response.
"United States Department of Hazardous Materials Safety and Research Administration" Said a poised female voice.
"Yes, this is Director Deputy Matthews, ID code 233, I need you to send a team out to the address that I just submitted to the call system. And be thorough; Quarantine anyone on the premises."
The operator seemed a little unsure at first but then she verified the number and confirmed that it was the chief superintendent's identification.
"Uh, yes sir, Chief! Right away! I believe we received a call earlier today for this address...a possible deadly virus infection?"
"Yes. A level four hemorrhagic fever virus, extremely dangerous." He said gravely. "Dispatch a team right away. Thank you."
"Yes, right away!"
...
In Halle's apartment, Misa was fast asleep. She dozed off while telling Mihael a romanticized version of how she and L met. Her arm was outstretched to lie protectively over the baby's stomach as he lay in his cradle swing.
The satellite phone that Watari had given her began to vibrate loudly from where it lay on the coffee table in front of the couch. The lights on the phone turned on as well, but Misa was out cold, and exhausted.
The sound and lights caught Mihael's attention. He squirmed and stretched his arms out toward the shiny 'toy.' Unable to reach it, he frowned and began to whimper in protest, babbling in his baby talk.
"Not now Mello...you already ate..." Misa mumbled in her sleep, too tired to notice the phone and the urgent message it held.
...
In a classy uptown restaurant, Halle and Gevanni were finishing their dinner. The place was an exquisite locale that only opened its doors from 6-11pm four days a week, and was known for its ambiance, high-quality food, and high demand for reservations. The lighting was delicate and soft, the tables were made out of a dark mahogany wood, and the decor was exotic but modern and neat. A few of the walls were covered in floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the city in all its nighttime splendor.
"Wow, I still can't get over this place. It's beautiful and this food is so good! How did you even manage to get a reservation?" Halle asked. Gevanni smiled at her and she blushed. He really did have a great smile.
He leaned in as if to tell her a secret. "I know the owner. He's a close friend of mine." He said.
"Oooh I see. Sneaky."
"But not sneaky enough to fool you." He said, alluding to his failed attempt to get inside her apartment the day Misa gave birth.
She smiled, remembering him in that stupid CO inspector's outfit.
"True. I can fool you well enough though" She chuckled.
"Oh, the airport incident. That was quite an outfit, you should dress like that more often." He said jokingly, causing her to roll her eyes at him. "You also didn't look bad as a redhead." He continued.
"Oh stop! I looked awful." She said, playfully smacking his arm.
They laughed and conversed easily the remainder of the dinner. Gevanni had to admit that Halle was quite a beautiful, intelligent woman, and that in spite of what had happened between them, he enjoyed her company. On the way to the car, their hands brushed and Gevanni wished he had seized the opportunity to hold her hand. Neither said anything as they waited for the valet parking. Once inside the car, he drove through the streets while frequently glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, wondering if she was interested in him as much as he was in her. He figured that his intentions were probably clear, but with women one could never be sure, and Halle never once said she felt attracted to him.
'Ah, screw it. I'll just go for it.' He took a sharp turn into a parking lot to a hotel and Halle looked at him curiously. He parked the car and turned to her.
"Listen. I just want to be clear with you...I really like you...in a romantic sense." He blurted out, his face slightly flushed.
To him, it was better to get this off his chest quickly. Halle just looked at him, a smile tugging at her lips as she watched him shift nervously, waiting for her answer. Her hesitation unnerved him. Just when Gevanni was about to berate himself for being so forward on a first date, he felt Halle's hand over his. He turned to face her and the moment he did, she threw herself in his arms and brought their lips together. He was surprised at first, in a good way, and then he encircled her in his arms, giving in to the kiss. The next half an hour they made out in that parking lot, only driving home because it had started to thunder and pour outside.
As they approached Halle's apartment complex, the rain died down, but something else was very wrong. There was caution tape, police carts, and a few white vans gathered around Halle's apartment.
"What the hell?" Said Halle.
Gevanni quickly parked his car in front of the caution tape and the two got out of the car.
"What's going on here?!" She asked one of the officers standing by.
"We're investigating a call about a potential hazardous virus infection in this location, we're under strict orders to evacuate and quarantine anyone found on the premises."
"What?! What virus?! This has to be a joke, this is my home!" Argued Halle.
She halted abruptly and looked at Gevanni. "Oh no, Misa's in there, they might have taken her and Mihael. I'm going inside."
Halle stepped beyond the tape before the cop could stop her. Gevanni followed right after.
"Halle, wait!" He called but it was no use. She pushed past the many bodies in white hazmat suits and went inside her home.
"Miss, we're finishing up a decontamination here. I'm sorry but you'll have to wait a few more minutes to come inside." Said one of the suited men through his air mask.
"Like hell I'll wait, this is my house and I'm staying here! Who the hell called you guys about a damn virus anyway?!" She asked, walking into her living room, which was being hosed down with some clear fume. She coughed a little but other than that, whatever they were spraying seemed to have no effect on her. She walked around, inspecting the damage. Her whole place had been ransacked for this stupid virus. And where were Misa and Mihael?
"Hey, you, did anyone get taken away for quarantine?" She asked one of the masked and suited men.
"Uh, no, miss. The house was empty when we arrived. You really shouldn't be here we're still decontaminati-"
"Yeah, I got the memo. Thanks." She said dismissively, walking away. She was really worried now, wondering where Misa and the baby went. Luckily, all the guys in hazmat suits seemed to be packing up and moving out. A couple of them walked out of her bedroom, which she noticed was slightly upturned. When she went to Misa's room, she found yet another guy in a hazmat suit crouched down on the floor. This one, however, seemed different from the others. He wasn't hosing anything down, and he was crouched on the floor stretching something out in between his hands, inspecting it. It looked to be a strand of hair, which he stuck in a clear bag before moving on to examine some other things.
"And what are you doing? Some sort of forensic analysis?!" She asked the man. She could tell he was studying the place, like a detective at a crime scene, and not a hazmat worker. The man looked at her but didn't say anything as he concluded his little 'search' and stood to his feet. Halle couldn't help but notice his slouched posture and his languid movements. Gevanni finally caught up to Halle then and took her hand, trying to comfort her.
"Hey, everything looks clear, they didn't find anything. I think they want to talk to you up front." He said, hugging her.
It was then that Gevanni noticed the other man standing in the room, looking at the two of them.
"...right" said Halle, looking back at the strange hazmat worker once more before leaving him. Minutes later, she was given the OK to stay in her house.
"Let's move out boys!" Announced the team leader. One by one, the hazmat workers filed out of her house. One approached her on his way out. His rounded shoulders and easy movements gave him away as the hazmat worker that had been in Misa's room.
"Here miss, for your troubles." Said the hazmat worker as he deposited something in her hand. It looked like...a lollipop. She scrunched her face in confusion as she looked at it, trying to decipher the meaning of this gesture.
"Wha-" She began to ask, but when she looked up, the man had already blended into the group of hazmat workers. Halle and Gevanni looked at each other with questioning frowns as the team of policemen and hazmat personnel boarded their vehicles and drove away.