Failure (A Death Note/L Love Story)

Chapter 14

There were so many video tapes. There were just so many. I didn't think they would be a problem until I woke up the next day and saw more had arrived overnight. There were boxes and boxes of them. Then, when we started unpacking them, we began to start feeling the overwhelming stress. We had stacks of them on most of the tables.

It was around three in the morning the next day. I had left Ukita to trace the heart attack victims by himself earlier to help with the footage, but he had left at around ten at night when he finished. Mogi was taking his shift as being the one at headquarters. Chief Yagami, Aizawa, Matsuda, L, and I continued to watch security footage of the agents' deaths and other activities leading up to their deaths. I hadn't realized there was so much of it.

I wasn't too sure how much longer I would last. We had been going at it for a while, and coffee was the only thing holding me together. Aizawa and Matsuda looked like they were about to die. Yagami were getting sleepy. L seemed to be the only one doing fine, thanks to me convincing him to sleep the night before.

L and I sat on a couch in front of a table with three TVs set up. Aizawa was standing next to the couch and was in charge of putting the video tapes in the VHS. Yagami stood behind us as he watched. Matsuda was off to the side sitting in front of a different table holding stacks of video tapes. I had offered for him to sit with us, but L had stepped in and said it was important for him to keep track of the tapes. I knew that wasn't true since the information to keep them organized was written on them, but I didn't say anything. L was going to act like that for a while. I could just tell.

"That was the footage from surveillance cameras at the station. The death of one of the FBI agents was captured on here," Aizawa told us after the tape ended. He rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"Let's see the following scenes again: Raye Penber passing the ticket gate on his way in, then him boarding the train, and finally the part where he dies on the platform," L said. He took a bite out of the double-scoop pistachio ice cream cone Watari had fixed him a few minutes ago. Since it was one of the few times he asked to replay the footage, I drank some of my coffee and tried to be more alert.

"Okay. Let's see...." Aizawa crouched down, looking for the tape he had just put away.

Matsuda spoke up, "I think it's next to that."

Matsuda followed his instructions and found it, "Oh, here it is." He put the tape into the VHS.

"Thank you," I smiled as Watari handed me my own ice cream cone. I licked it quietly.

Matsuda read off of a file as the video played, "Um, so based on the records I have here, Raye Penber comes through the west entrance of Shinjuku Station at three-eleven p.m. Then, at three-thirteen, he boards a train on the Yamanote Line, but even if he was following someone at the time, I think it's gonna be very difficult for us to draw any real conclusion from this blurry video. Then, at exactly four-forty-two p.m.-" He was distracted by Watari handing him ice cream. "Um, oh, thank you very much, Watari. Um, and at four-forty-two p.m., he exits the train at Tokyo Station and dies on the platform."

The footage ended. I pursed my lips to the side, confused, and leaned my back against the couch cushions. "Hikari, did you see that?" L asked.

"Yeah, I did," I nodded. I licked the ice cream.

"It's quite strange, don't you think?" he said.

I sighed, "It's weird, but I don't know how to explain it this time."

Yagami interrupted, "I'm sorry, what do you find strange?"

Matsuda asked, "Yeah, what is it? Did you notice something?"