Chapter One

A foreign exchange student staying in a house seems like a bit too much but the chief of the Japanese Task Force believes it's the best place for me. This is far too many lengths to go through for someone who is only staying in Japan temporarily. The reasons I have for being in Japan don't warrant this much care. But still, the chief insisted I get my own place near his home in order to make it accessible for me to go to task force headquarters. Through my experience working with the police in France and also as a spy, I get to work with the Japanese Task Force on the Kira investigation. The case is not something a lot of field officers fight over, all things considered. It was even more difficult to send a student to do this but the French Interpol was willing to take on anyone who would be willing. Getting a spot on this investigation is both good news and bad news: good news because it means that I'm hard working and competent and bad because, well, my life is on the line. I can't repeat how many 'be careful's' and 'don't die's' I received before coming here. I probably made a mistake in not reassuring them that I'd be fine but I guess I was too focused on not giving them hope where there was none guaranteed. It's made settling in a bit harder and as part of being discreet, I cannot maintain too many contacts with people from France. Not that Kira would be able to kill them in order to get to me but he might kill them after he has me. Who knows? Not only do I have to settle in quickly, but I have to get ready for my entrance examinations. Even if I'm working with the NPA I'm still a student and I cannot ignore impressing the system here. The exam is next week and while I have time, I wonder how much of it will be occupied with the Kira investigation. But tonight, I have dinner with Chief Yagami and his family. Though I declined, he insisted. How much more in debt will I be to him?

The house is big enough for a family of four; too spacious for a family of one. I didn't bring that much with me either. I was told the place was already furnished and that I have only to take care of rent and other bills via my work with the NPA. Bringing three suitcases of clothes and a few personal belongings and a forensic kit isn't much. I set up everything in my room (the master bedroom) while the TV plays the news. There's a lot of talk about the increasing death toll of criminals killed by Kira as well as broadcasts of other criminals charged or suspected of something. There's not much developed about the specifics of the Kira investigation. As far as I'm concerned, I only have to attend the briefing with the members of the Task Force and I'll be caught up with what I need to know.

Finished with the last of my unpacking, I move on to getting myself ready for the dinner. Aside from a shower and a change of clothes, I should also bring something as courtesy to the family for inviting me. I wonder if I have time to bake a cake. According to the clock I do but according to my fridge, I don't. I know that there's a small grocery store not too far a walk from here, maybe I can buy something from there. I have enough money to do so. Oy! What a hustle! I think I'm going to just take a shower and worry about the gift later. I take my time under the warm water, going over the mission I have in my head. I have at least six months at Toho University where I will be going as a student of biology, as I did in France. Just the thought of my home country brings me back memories of home, of my friend Martha, of our days in school. I think about my mom, whom I lost when I was six. I think about her sweet, gentle face, the warm voice that would send me to sleep. I wish she saw me now, the way I have grown, pushed myself to do my best as she would've wanted. I doubt that she'd be happy that I'm working on this investigation though. On hearing the news about the murder of twelve FBI agents, I know that a lot of countries outside of Japan are pulling out of the investigation as a result of the murders. My school and the police force I often worked with in France were a little hesitant to send me but when they saw my willingness, they relented. I was, no am, interested in bringing this Kira person to justice. If I have to risk my life to do so, I will. My mom would not want to hear that.

I step out of the shower and get dressed in a simple black long-sleeve crop top with a white spaghetti strap shirt underneath and black jeans. I style my hair into a single pony-tail that sticks from the side. I look presentable enough for dinner. Dumping my clothes in the hamper, I grab my purse and fill it with my phone, keys and wallet. It's best if I go to the grocery store now. There's one just outside of the neighbourhood. Locking the door behind, I walk to the store and look for something I can bring to the Yagamis house; a box of chocolates, a bottle of wine or sake, flowers, or cake. A row of different types of cakes are displayed in a fridge in the store. I decide to go for the tiramisu cake. Paying at the front, I head back in the direction of the Yagami house, just a couple of houses away from mine. I wonder what kind of family he has. Chief Yagami hardly spoke of them when he picked me up from the airport. In fact, he was busy asking me about myself, but there was only so much I could tell him. I guess it makes sense that I would be a bit nervous. At his house, I stop to breathe before I ring the doorbell. A moment later it opens and a polished young man stands in front of me with a partially expectant look on his face. Handsome? Definitely. Brown bangs covering his face, his eyes gentle for the most part and an athletic build; I suspect that this is Chief Yagami's son. 'Hi,' I smile.

'Hello. You must be the new neighbour?'

'I am.'

'It's a pleasure to meet you. Please come in.'

'Thank you.'

I follow him into the house. A younger girl walks out of what appears to be the doorway to the family room. 'Hi,' she says joyfully. 'Are you the new neighbour?'

'I am.'

'It's nice to meet you. I'm Sayu.'

'It's nice to meet you too. I'm Frejda.'

'Free-yaa?'

'Frejda. It's Russian.'

'Are you Russian?'

'Iranian-French, actually.'

'Oh that's right. My dad mentioned you were from France,' the boy says.

I nod. 'Um…I brought cake,' I hold out the packed box in my hands.

'Ooh!' Sayu takes the box out of my hand. 'What kind is it?'

'It's a tiramisu.'

'Cool!'

'Anything that has chocolate in it, my sister loves,' the boy chuckles.

'All kids do,' Sayu says defensively.

'I'm Light, by the way.'

'Nice to meet you.'

Light leads me to the family room in which the kitchen and dining room are connected. Chief Yagami and his wife are setting up the meal on the table. I smile at the chief as he welcomes me: 'Frejda, welcome. You've met my children, I presume?'

'Just now, yeah.'

'This is my wife,' he points to Mrs Yagami who sets a bowl of rice on the table.

'It's a pleasure to meet you dear,' she says. 'Please, make yourself at home.'

'Thanks,' I nod, following Light and Sayu to the sofas.

A sort of romantic episode plays on the TV. As I have no idea what the actors are saying, I choose to ignore it. Sayu looks glued to the story.

'So which part of France are you from?' Light asks.

'Lille.'

'Is that anywhere in Paris?'

I shake my head.

'What made you decide to come here?'

'Well, I was always interested in the foreign exchange programme. I got my chance this year so I took it.'

'Was Japan the only place available?'

'No. I had the option of going to America, but I was more interested in Japan.'

'Which university are you going to?'

'Toho.'

Light looks surprised.

'What?'

'That's where I've applied, too.'

'Really?'

'Yeah.'

'Quelle coincidence,' I nod.

'What does that—did you say, "what a coincidence" in French?'

I nod. 'Can you speak French?'

'A little. It was never the focus of my studies.'

'I see.'

'What will you be studying?'

'I'm majoring in applied science, specifically biology. And you?'

'Double major in Applied Science and Criminology. Of course, I still have to take my entrance exams.'

'Same.'

'For foreign exchange students?'

'Yep. It's weird but, oh well.'

'Perhaps we can go there together then. On that day.'

'Sure.'

There's a pause. I glance at his sister who still looks glued to the TV. The house has a warm feel to it, a typical family home: photos of family spread across the room, one or two miniature Buddhist temple souvenirs, what one would expect. Chief and Mrs Yagami set some more plates of food for dinner. It's awfully nice of them to let me come tonight. I feel a bit like an inconvenience though, given how busy Chief Yagami is at work but I'll be joining him soon. It's best I enjoy the free time I have.

'Oh, uh—would you like something to drink?' Light asks.

'Sure,' I nod.

'We have water or some apple juice?'

'Apple juice sounds nice.'

'I'll get it for you.'

'Thanks.'

He gets up and walks in the direction of the kitchen. That's when I notice something. From the corridor, quietly watching us, are a pair of glowing red eyes. I narrow my eyes, trying to get a cleaner picture of who it could be. But sensing my look, whoever it is disappears into the shadows. Hm. I wonder who that could have been. Perhaps another member of the family? And what was with the red glowing eyes?

'Here you go,' Light says returning with my apple juice.

'Thanks,' I take it.

'You're welcome.'

The juice feels cool to my lips. I set it down on the table after a second sip. 'So Light, what is there to do around here? For fun?'

'Well, I guess that depends on what you mean by fun. But there's a great place to hang out at a part of Tokyo called Aoyama.'

'Okay.'

'Are you interested in any sports?'

'I like swimming. And maybe a little sparring.'

'Sparring?'

'You know, one on one tackles, mainly through martial arts.'

'What kind?'

'I focused on simple combat. Not like specifically Kung Fu or something.'

He nods.

'What about you?'

'I used to play tennis but not anymore.'

'I see.'

'Alright everyone,' Mrs Yagami calls out, 'Dinner time.'

'Uh—can you show me to the bathroom?'

'Of course.'

Light leads me down the hall to the bathroom. I give my hands a quick wash and then join everyone in the dining room. I can't get the sense that there's another presence in the house out of me. I wonder if it's that person with glowing red eyes. Why aren't they joining us now? Shaking the questions off, I join everyone for dinner. As the guest, I'm told to have the first serving. I fill my plate with some rice and chicken with a side of steamed vegetables. Chief Yagami is the first to go after me. After everyone has taken their fill, Mrs Yagami opens up the conversation: 'So Frejda, how do you find your new home?'

'It's nice. A bit too spacey for one person but I can't complain.'

'Did you live in a smaller space in France?' Sayu asks.

'Sayu!' Chief Yagami scorns.

'It's alright. I actually grew up in a c—boarding house. I had a lot of roommates so I'm not too used to the quiet.'

'Oh.' Mrs Yagami looks stunned. 'Did you—um—your parents…'

'My mother passed away when I was six.' Yikes! I really didn't think I'd be talking about this soon.

'I'm sorry,' Mrs Yagami says.

'It's alright. It happened a long time ago.' I just hope that they don't ask about my dad because the answer can get really complicated then. It's not something I discuss easily. The elephant in the room is oversized enough. I should change the subject. 'The rice and chicken are really good. Thank you Mrs Yagami.'

'I'm glad you enjoy them.'

'Are you preparing yourself for the entrance exams?' Chief Yagami asks.

'I am.'

'We were just talking about that earlier,' Light comments.

'It's true. Light volunteered to take me to the exam on the day.'

'Perhaps you can study together,' Mrs Yagami suggests.

'Oh I don't want to impose—'

'No that's fine. I don't mind.'

Oy. 'Really, it's fine. I actually have a few things planned out for the week on top of my studies so…'

'Oh, of course,' Mrs Yagami agrees.

There are actually extra days I have to visit Toho because I'm coming in as an exchange student but that's not what I speak of when I say I'm busy. I don't think I can openly discuss what I'm really up to. I want to play this as safe as I can, especially for the sake of the Yagami household. Thankfuly the conversation steers away from me to Light for the next few minutes. I get to know a lot more about him, that he's one of the best students in Japan. I volunteer to help clear the table at the end of the dinner but Mrs Yagami insists that I remain relaxed. I don't feel like relaxing, especially if I have to watch others clear away my dishes. But I can't impose myself any more than I already have. I follow Light and Sayu back to the living area. Sayu returns to the TV while Light and I sit on the sofas resuming our talk. 'So what are you excited about coming here?'

I shrug. 'I don't know. It feels good to be around new culture all together.'

'I suppose so.'

'I like the change. It's really cool to be in another country.'

'It's kind of bad timing though isn't it?'

'How do you mean?'

'With what's going on and all. You know, Kira.'

'Right.' I was hoping that wouldn't be brought up tonight. 'Well I'm not a criminal so I don't have to worry.'

'Of course.'

In the morning, Chief Yagami picks me up from home, taking me to the meeting place of the Task Force. He gives me a prepared set of folders for my review of the case as we ride. This is the most exciting and most terrifying part of my time in Japan. The case. But I doubt that I'll do much over at Task Force Headquarters. Feeling caught up with what I need to, I quietly follow Chief Yagami into a hotel. He takes me to the twenty-third floor and into a room at the end of the corridor. 'This is our meeting place for the time being,' he explains. 'We may need to move our location in a few days.'

'Right.'

'I find it brave of you. To work on this case even if it risks your life.'

'If I must, I must.'

Chief Yagami opens the door and I'm led into a relatively dark room with stacks of surveillance tapes surrounding six men who sit in various areas of the room. Their eyes are tired, probably getting little sleep as a result of reviewing the data and surveillance tapes across the room. They look in our direction, save for one man hunched over on the sofa staring directly at the TV. 'Chief,' a young detective says. 'Welcome back. Is this—'

'Yes. This is the girl from France: Frejda Sofer.'

'Ah,' says the man on the couch. He stands and walks towards us. 'Ms Sofer, I'm L.'

So this is the guy that she talked with. She mentioned a lot of things about him and one was that no one knows what he looks like. Well, I didn't have a lot of expectations but I was not expecting this: a pale man with a hunched back and a face that looks like it belongs on some sort of mad scientist magazine cover. In fact, I don't think I'd be surprised if he has never spent a day outside of whatever he prefers to confine himself in. Catching myself before staring too long, I nod at him. 'Nice to meet you.'

'I'm Mogi,' a larger man behind him says.

'Ukita,' says a shorter man.

'I'm Matsuda,' a younger detective says.

'Aizawa,' an older, more mature looking man says.

'Pleased to meet you all.'

'Please, come on in. we have a lot to catch you up on.'

'Of course.'

I follow L back to the couch.

'She's a lot younger than I expected,' someone says. Already all their names escape me.

'She doesn't look much older than Light to me,' says another.

'Ms Sofer, or is it alright if I call you Frejda?'

'It is. Please, no one call me Ms Sofer.' It sounds too formal and I'm anything but.'

'Fine, Frejda it is. If you don't mind, I go by Ryuzaki.'

'Right.'

'We have been investigating the deaths of the twelve FBI agents deployed to Japan to secretly investigate Kira. While here, they were in charge of investigating possible suspects. For now, your job will be to help Watari thoroughly examining the suspects all of the FBI agents were investigating. It will also give you time to familiarise with tracking back any potential murderer. On the side you are also attending Toho which means you'll be on campus often.'

'Yep.'

'Excellent. I'll let you know when that part will come in handy in the investigation.'

'You know that part belongs to me,' I say sternly.

'Yes it does. But it might also help me.'

'That wasn't part of the deal.'

'It'll help you, it'll help me.'

'Fine.'

'Everyone else, we will continue with reviewing the surveillance cameras.'

I walk over to a man in the corner and sit beside him, opening my laptop and connecting to the internet of the hotel. The man, an elderly British man with small eyes, hiding behind his glasses and a gentle face seems more welcoming than any other man in the room. He allows me to have access to the confidential folders containing information about the agents and which families they were investigating. AS I study the files, I notice that almost all the people the FBI was investigating were somehow connected to the Task Force. I don't recognise most of the families though. Then again, who do I have to recognise? I just got here. Going through the files takes time, especially after Watari mentions something that Ryuzaki forgot to mention: the primary suspect is a student. Not all the families have children and not all have children who look old enough to commit such a crime. But then again you never know. Little demons do exist. But I don't dismiss them for that reason alone either. All of these families were investigated for a reason. I work on getting the details of occupation and school years of all the potential students who could be Kira. The possibilities of it do not weigh down to one just yet. The way I see it, even if I can narrow the list down, it's not possible to say how Kira could be killing these victims without approaching them first. That's the part of the case that doesn't add up. I look at the files that Chief Yagami gave me to review. Kira only needs a name and a face to kill. So even if he doesn't need to physically be there in order to make his kill, how can he do it so flawlessly?

Meanwhile the rest of the Task Force discusses a peculiar piece of information that might prove vital to the case. Specifically an agent named Raye Penber. To catch up with them, I pull out Raye Penber's file. This man was investigating two families: a detective from another force and…whoa! Chief Yagami's family is being investigated! But why? I glance at the chief. Based on the secrecy of the FBI agents, it's possible that Chief Yagami is not aware that he and his family were being trailed. I keep quiet for that reason. In shifting the direction over to discussing Raye Penber, I pull out the information about both families, including the children. I feel terrible that I just met Light and Sayu and yet here I am practically digging into all information about them. Mr Watari works by my side for a little while longer, helping me wehre I have questions. Soon he stands and walks over to the freezer. From it, he produces some coffee flavoured ice cream. Scooping three onto a cone, he hands it over to Ryuzaki. He grabs more cones and scoops the same amount, giving one to each of the really sleepy members of the Task Force. I'm surprised he gives me a cone even if I need it the least. The Task Force continues to discuss Raye Penber meanwhile. One of them mentions something about how Penber boarded a train that had a specific route, which lasted about an hour (as Ryuzaki points out). 'It's strange that it would take him an hour and a half when the route only takes an hour. But there's also the envelope.'

'What envelope?' someone asks.

'He appears to be carrying an envelope on the way to the train.'

'You're right!' says the same man, 'He carries it on the way to the train but on his exit, he doesn't hold anything. I can't believe you noticed that!'

'If you look closer, he appears to be straining to look into the train as if looking for something.'

'There was no mention of a folder in his possessions,' Chief Yagami says. 'Do you think it means something?'

I can't see any of the videos from where I am but I can tell that they have reached a breakthrough. Their once sleepy faces are alert and awake.

'Wouldn't it be interesting if Kira was on board?' Ryuzaki asks.

Hmm.