No words needed [L x Reader] • Death Note

Chapter 17 | god knows

You can hear everything?

You waited a moment for the response, your phone buzzing when it came through.

I can, double check for anything suspicious and then get out of there. Good job.

L's response made you smile, he always made sure you knew you were doing a good job. You'd just finished bugging some of the clothes and household objects of your suspect. As well as installing a spyware on his computer so you could track everything he did easier.

You still had an hour or so before he got home, so you had plenty of time to quickly look around for anything suspicious. You kept your camera at the ready as you walked around making sure nothing was out of place and he'd not notice someone was in his house. For the most part it looked like a regular, small and cheap house rented out by a university student. A bit filthy, clearly this man didn't care much for decor or cleanliness.

There were some movie posters on the walls, a pile of laundry in a basket, some basic things on the dresser like an alarm clock, house phone and tray of bit and bobs. Nothing too strange.

The bathroom was even less interesting, apart from a towel and soap the only things in there were dental supplies and a 3-in-1 shampoo. Gross, you just knew his hair was greasy if he didn't even condition it separately.

The kitchen was also rather boring, the unwashed dishes made you cringe a bit but other than that it was pretty normal.

The whole house seemed to be normal, clearly he didn't commit any of the crimes in his own home. He mustn't keep any weapons inside either, you assumed everything was in his car. You and L still weren't sure how he got the poison in the first place, but there didn't seem to be any sign of it here. Jus to be sure you decided to carefully check through drawers and cabinets. And just as everything else was, it was pretty much empty. Only some storage and cleaning supplies, dishes and cutlery and that was about it.

The second drawer down did stand out though, this must be the junk drawer that everyone has. The one you just put things that don't really have a designated spot. A stapler, some paper clips, tape, passport, pocket knife... maybe you should take a photo of that just in case.

A weapon is a weapon even if it wasn't used, you'd rather be safe. You snapped a picture of it, so if it did show up later you'd know it's definitely his. Continuing to dig you found nothing all that interesting, until you got to the bottom where you saw what seemed to be beads.

Pulling it out, you found it was a rosary. A broken one.

"Ironic..." you muttered.

You didn't know if he was religious, or maybe resided religious but left the religion as an adult, but the fact he still held on to an old broken rosary whole committing one of the worst sins possible- taking someone's life, was ironic to you.

You didn't really that that much of an opinion on religion, of any kind. Or any kind of worship, but you also didn't care what people chose to believe in. It was their life.

But something about a serial killer seemingly breaking and discarding a symbol of faith and redemption was... amusing. Symbolic almost. If he did believe in a heaven, there was no way he'd be getting in after everything he's done.

You took a photo of it, you didn't know why but you felt you should. It seemed... familiar.

Putting everything back you wrapped up your search and left the house just as you found it, texting L you were on your way back.

Although you couldn't help but think about that rosary... why would anyone keep a broken one? Rather than get a new one? Maybe if it was a sentimental gift sure, but wouldn't you try and fix it rather than just discard it in the bottom of the junk drawer? Maybe you were just looking too deep into it, as you often did as a detective. It was a habit you and L shared, when looking for evidence sometimes you'd have to focus in on tiny details, so maybe that was what you were doing here. Maybe it was just the irony of the situation, a serial killer breaking and discarding a rosary to commit sins.

But for some reason you felt like it was important.

When you returned you found L away from his computer for once, instead he was making tea.

"I'm back! Not too much in that house really" you said, dumping your bag on the counter.

L smiled upon hearing your voice and gestured to the boiling kettle asking if you wanted some.

"Hm? Oh yeah sure, got earl grey?" You replied.

He nodded, taking a teabag from the box and getting an extra mug for you. He'd told you to explain everything when you got back, so you leaned against the counter as he made your teas to spill the details.

"Boring ass house, no sense of decor at all. Kind of messy but also super empty. Then again I suppose that's normal for a broke university student, I bugged his desk and the bags and jackets he seems to use the most, as well as the phone line so we can listen in. And spyware is installed and should be working" you explained.

L was silent a moment, still not used to talking to you yet.

"G-good job" he replied.

Oh how his voice bought a smile to your face.

"Thanks. I only took a few photos, a pocket knife. Just in case. Although looking back I feel weird about that rosary..." you muttered.

L looked up and gave you a confused look, what could be so important about a rosary? As he poured the tea, you shrugged and explained your strange gut feelings.

"At the bottom of the junk drawer, you know that one drawer we all have with random shit in it? Yeah there was this broken rosary. Maybe I'm thinking too hard about it but it just seemed out of place, like if it was broken why would you keep it? Or wouldn't you try and fix it and not just dump it in a drawer?" You explained.

L paused a moment, thinking. He seemed to be connecting dots in his mind, and in an instant his eyes lit up. He grabbed your arm and pulled you over to his computer where he opened up the files of all the victims. He clicked on the profile of the first one, a 20 year old woman who was found poisoned in her front room by her mother. He clicked on her picture and when you noticed you almost got whiplash.

She was wearing the same rosary.

"Wait- holy shit that's the same one! I can't believe you connected that! You think he took it at some point as like... a trophy?" You said.

"Maybe..." L replied.

He truly was the worlds greatest detective if he managed to connect those dots purely from you mentioning the suspect had a broken rosary.

"What the- how did you even? My gods you're smart. You seriously earned the title of worlds greatest, I didn't even THINK of that" you complimented.

He smiled, a slight blush dusting his cheeks.

You pulled the camera out and compared the photo you took to the one on L's screen. Sure enough it was the exact same, just with a broken string and some missing beads.

"I didn't see anything belonging to any of the other victims, I wonder why he took this specifically..." you muttered.

You and L definitely had some digging to do now, the first victim might be closer linked to Max than you thought, maybe she was the key to getting the whole story.

The both of you were quick to work, sipping your tea as you did. L always made his tea super sweet, although he held back on the sugar for yours. While it was still pretty sweet, it was nowhere near as sweet as his. You found it kind of cute you could always tell when L made something because it was that little bit sweeter. As you sipped your tea, scrolling through the families statement for clues, you just couldn't help but be awe struck by how L managed to pick up on that tiny detail.

"You know you're like... crazy smart. I'm seriously impressed by that" you commented.

He nodded, knowing full well how smart he was. He was told that all the time.

"Like shit dude, you're seriously amazing. Not just with investigating, with... everything. You're amazing L, don't forget that"

A slight smile cracked on his lips, and the pink from before returned to his cheeks. He wasn't used to compliments like that...

"T-Thank you..."