* * * October 27 * * *

Only a few days had passed since Bambi's conversation with Rem, but it felt like an eternity just waiting for Kira to make contact. Despite this, she felt slight ease in the knowledge that the others were aware to watch carefully and not interrupt her work. The teen was at the end of her shift as the sun made its final dip below the horizon, leading into yet another early night.

Sora waved to her coworker as she hurried to catch her bus. "Have a nice weekend, Lola. I'll see you on Monday!"

Amelia smiled and waved. "Thanks! You too."

Once she was gone, Amy returned her attention to her screen to finish the last of the day's paperwork. As she completed the mindless task, her thoughts strayed to the situation with Rem and this Kira. While she had her suspicions, the shinigami never told her who Kira was, only that he planned to come to her soon. The day was almost over and with it the agent's last chance until next week for Kira to confront her. What did Rem mean by "soon" anyway? She's a shinigami, so it wasn't hard to believe that she's incredibly old. Maybe she meant within the next year? Bambi really couldn't be sure.

A hand on her desk drew her out of her thoughts and she looked up to find Higuchi grinning down at her. It seemed as if he was ready to leave with his suitcase in his other hand, which surprised the hacker considering he always leaves long after she does – especially since the Yotsuba Kira meetings happened on Friday nights.

"You know, Lola, I've been thinking," he began as he grinned. "I learned quite a bit about you at the gala, but I feel like there's more to you than that. Why don't we go somewhere private so we can... get to know each other?"

Amelia's eyes widened for a brief moment. This had to be it. Higuchi had to be Kira. In hindsight, it should have been obvious. She knew that the Death Note could control people before they die and that seemed to be exactly what happened to his last secretary. Not to mention his behavior during the meetings. As dangerous as this was, she had to agree and bait him into confessing. It was now or never.

The teen gave him a false smile. "That sounds good."

If she hadn't seen it before, Bambi wouldn't have believed that his grin could extend as much as it did. Higuchi waited around as the young woman gathered what few things she had before locking up the office and having her follow him down to his car. The sun had set by then, the dark sky nearly suffocating her with only the street lamps and headlights of passing cars as her saviors. Even those became less frequent as time passed. Amy was making small talk with her boss as he drove her off to some unknown location. Matt and Near chimed in every so often to help her answer or keep her calm.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed before they arrived at a run-down hotel in the outskirts of the city. Higuchi fell silent as he led the brunette up to the second floor and opened the unlocked door to one of the rooms near the outdoor stairs. Once inside, he closed the door behind the teen and turned on the lights in the small alcove by the door. The rest of the room was too dark for Amelia to see, but the man's sleazy grin was very clear as she turned around.

His eyes trailed up and down her body, making her shudder involuntarily as he spoke in a lustful tone. "What do you say to having something to drink before we go further?"

He took a step toward her.

She forced an awkward laugh as she took a step back. "Didn't you want to talk about something, like Kira?"

He immediately frowned and furrowed his eyebrows as he scrutinized the teen for a few moments. "Why?"

She mirrored his expression. Much to her surprise, he was either a very good actor or he had no idea that she knew. Maybe this was a trap at Rem's making. Her heart skipped a beat at the thought.

Higuchi opened his mouth to address Bambi again, but his breath stopped short as his eyes went wide. He gasped for air as he hunched over and clutched his chest before collapsing in front of the door, blocking her exit. Her eyes went wide as her stomach churned.

"What the Hell...?"

Just like that old video of Raye Penber, Higuchi struggled as he turned his head to face the agent. No. He wasn't looking at Amy, but behind her. His eyes went wide as he opened his mouth before he exhaled his final breath and went limp. Hesitantly, Amelia followed his dying gaze, and out from the darkness stepped Rem and Rin Tamura.

The Shadow CEO smirked as she looked down at the body and commented, "I managed to get this far without having to kill him, but controlling him directly was the only way to guarantee that we met given how uncooperative he was with my demands."

Matt whispered through her earpiece, "I'll be there as soon as I can. Just hold her off as long as you can."

Rin looked up at Bambi and motioned for her to cross the room. "Sit, Lola. We have so much to talk about."

Amy's eyes had finally adjusted to the darkness around her, showing her the couch the Yotsuba Kira was pointing to. If she followed Rin's instructions, that would put her between Bambi and the door. Still, she had to stall. Despite the obvious dangers, she complied. As she took her seat on the couch, she noted several things in her surroundings. Rin sat on the chair across from the teen as she grinned, only the coffee table and small vase between them. The table itself wasn't in great condition, looking fairly easy for one person to pick up. In the corner next to Amelia was a small lamp, which she reached for and turned on. As she turned to face Rin again, Bambi noted how far the door was from her. Rem was hovering behind Kira as she watched on, locking eyes with the teen briefly.

Rin pulled out a black notebook and place it on her lap as she mentioned, "You're smart enough. Surely you know why I had him bring you here."

Although the title on the notebook was facing her, Bambi could still read the words 'Death Note,' reminding her of the life or death situation she had found herself in. Ready to play the game, she looked back up at Kira and raised an eyebrow.

Her tone was uncertain as she suggested, "Because... you find me attractive?"

Rin laughed. "Attractiveness means nothing in this business – you need to go after people with power and money, neither of which you have. Guess again."

Bambi did her best to keep her expression from changing, despite the smile that threatened to tug at her lips. She had to keep the act going as long as she could.

She furrowed her eyebrows. "But what about that time we spoke? You were pretty much coming on to me."

The older woman shook her head as she laughed again. "Maybe I'm giving you too much credit. You really have no idea, do you? Oh, well. I suppose I'll just tell you. When I first learned that you were looking into me, I tried to kill you using the name Lola Montez. You're still here, so you're clearly working under an alias."

Amelia couldn't help the chills that ran down her spine at the knowledge that an attempt had been made on her life.

Rin hummed before using a seductive, yet teasing tone to continue. "There are only two possible reasons for you to have an alias and to be so clearly looking for Kira according to my sources. So, which one is it, Lola?"

The teen did her best to calm her nerves before grinning and excitedly explaining, "I've been looking for you. I'm your biggest fan – I'm the second Kira."

Much to her surprise, no one listening in from the task force had anything to say about her claim. Perhaps they were all en route? That or whoever was listening wanted to hear the whole story – but that didn't matter now. What did matter was that she kept Rin believing her for as long as possible. Otherwise it could cost her life.

The corners of the Shadow CEO's lips curved upward slightly as she purred, "Interesting. How did you find Yotsuba?"

Wary of giving the truth, Amy told her, "I asked my shinigami to look for another shinigami in the area. He led me to Yotsuba, but wouldn't tell me who it was."

Rin frowned and narrowed her eyes. "I didn't know that Rem was contacted by another shinigami."

Bambi's heart skipped a beat as she prepared for the worst, but Rem spoke up. "Ryuk asked me not to say anything. He wanted to test her."

Kira visibly relaxed before demanding, "I want to see him."

The agent's heart raced as she scrambled for an excuse, but Rem covered for her again. "He isn't here right now. She must not have her Death Note with her."

The older woman pouted. "Fine." She paused for a moment before smirking. "Did you really think that Higuchi was Kira?"

Amelia glanced to his dead body near the door a short distance away.

She gulped as her nerves began to worsen before admitting, "You really had me fooled there."

Rin nodded before admitting, "You know, I couldn't kill him directly since it's well known in the company that he and I are rivals. I must congratulate you for being so good that you forced my hand. I was trying to incriminate him as a backup in case L became suspicious of Yotsuba. I planned to kill him after he was arrested if that happened." She grinned darkly. "You do know why I'm telling you this, right?"

"If I were the second Kira, you would tell me anyway so I could aid you. If I wasn't, you would kill me as soon as you found out."

She grinned. "Exactly." There was a short pause before she added, "Oh, right. You have an alias." Rin pursed her lips for a moment before commanding Rem, "Make the trade."

The shinigami's eyes went wide, but she complied. When the process was complete, Rin's eyes went wide and she looked above the teen's head.

"Amelia Stein," she purred.

A vision of Beyond Birthday flashed before Amelia's eyes as she realized that he had done the same, but she managed to push it back and focus on the present as the Yotsuba Kira addressed her again.

"If you answer any of my questions incorrectly, I will kill you." She opened the Death Note and held a pen over one of the pages. "Now, what did I just do?"

Bambi furrowed her eyebrows. Which part was she referring to?

"You killed Higuchi with your Death Note and traded eyes with your shinigami."

"And what do the eyes do?" she asked.

"They allow you to see a human's name and lifespan."

It was clear to Amy now that she couldn't tell Rin that she found her through the rule that one cannot see the lifespans of those who own a Death Note. Still, the agent deduced that this Kira didn't know about the rule since she still sees the possibility of Bambi being the second Kira.

"What is Kira's method of killing?" Rin asked.

"The Death Note."

She grinned. "Good, but you could know that if you caught one of the original Kiras. What do you do with the Death Note to make it work?"

"You write a name while picturing the person's face."

"And what happens then?"

"They will die of a heart attack unless you specify otherwise," Amelia explained.

"Correct."

Rin hummed before admitting, "You clearly have a good knowledge about the Death Note and how it works, but that doesn't clear you just yet. You claimed to be the second Kira, so you'll need to prove that." She stood and looked out the window a few steps away. "Tell me the name of the man across the street."

Amelia's heart sank at the request. She could give as much information as Rem gave her, but she could never give what she couldn't see. Her charade was over, but she was determined to stay alive. Still, she hesitated a moment too long and sirens began to sound off in the distance.

Rin flashed her a dark grin. "I knew you weren't the second Kira. Prepare to die."

She started to write in the Death Note. Bambi's eyes went wide before she flipped the table across the room, knocking Rin over. In the chaos, Kira had managed to drop the Death Note a short distance away. She glared daggers at the teen for a moment before scrambling to reach the notebook first. Desperately, Amelia grabbed a fistful of her hair and violently pulled back. Rin cried out as auburn locks were ripped from her head. Amy released her grip and dove for the Death Note, but Rin was quick to tackle her to the ground as she tried to take it back. With no way to get away from the woman, Amelia threw the notebook across the room. Rin jumped up to run after it, but the teen swept her leg under Kira's. As the older woman tripped, Bambi called out to Rem for help.

The shinigami grabbed Rin from behind as Amy made a dash for the Death Note, much to Kira's rage. The Shadow CEO screamed and writhed in the shinigami's grip as she clearly realized what had occurred behind her back. Amelia's eyes went wide as she watched Rin completely lose it before scrambling to her feet and running outside, leaving the crazed woman behind.

A sea of flashing lights and the buzz of nearby helicopter greeted her at the top of the stairs. Bambi rushed down the stairs and stepped out of the way as she recognized much of the task force charging into the room she had just escaped from. Amy backed away as the helicopter landed, whipping around only when she heard Rin's cries again, but she was greeted with the vision of Aizawa and Mogi dragging the woman out to one of the cars in handcuffs. After making brief eye contact with Rem, Amelia opened the Death Note in her hands and peered at the page that had just been open. Her eyes went wide as her heart nearly stopped: there was only one letter missing from her full name. Had she waited a moment longer, she would have died.

"What is that?"

Her eyes went wide for a moment as she turned to face the source. Soichiro was standing beside her, his attention on the notebook in her hands. Amelia hesitated as she glanced to Rem, still shaking.

"It's..." She nervously held it out for the detective. "It's Kira's method of killing."

Soichiro took the Death Note from the teen's hands before looking up, his gaze landing on Rem. He screamed and backed away in a panic as he locked eyes with the shinigami, causing a commotion amongst the investigators. As the members of the task force came to see what was wrong, the elder Yagami had them take hold of the murderer's book and see for themselves. Bambi made eye contact with Rem as the Death Note made its rounds, and the shinigami slowly shook her head to indicate that Amy keep quiet.

A screech rang out from the car where Rin was being held as her eyes widened and she clutched her chest. Her final song ended as she collapsed in her seat, dead. Bambi's eyes went wide as she looked on, a wave of relief washing over her to know that this Kira was gone. Almost immediately after that, she felt a pang of guilt. Was it really right to be happy about someone's death?

Before she could spiral further, Amy heard a familiar voice call out to her from behind, prompting the corners of her lips to curve into a grin as she turned to face him. She only managed to catch a glimpse of Matt before he picked her up and spun her around. He put the brunette down as he pulled her close and weaved his fingers into her hair.

"Thank God, you're alright." He breathed a sigh of relief. "I was so worried."

Amy couldn't help but smile as she closed her eyes and rested her head against his chest. Soon they heard someone from behind fake a cough and they pulled away. Amelia turned to face the source, only to find L standing behind her.

He was frowning slightly when he spoke. "There is something important that I must discuss with you."

She raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

In a flash Amelia found herself in the same position she held nearly three years ago – only this time she was innocent and L was physically present for the interrogation.

She pulled on the chains that locked her wrists to the table as she argued, "For the last time, I'm not the second Kira!"

"And you expect me to believe that? I'll admit that I've had some suspicions ever since we first discovered the second Kira, but your words with Tamura were not the only evidence against you," L explained. "It's impossible for you to be the original given your imprisonment when I challenged Kira, but you could still be the second Kira as you claimed. You knew that Kira killed Beyond Birthday. Between that and your similar lines of thinking during your years as Robin Hood, it's not a stretch to say that you sympathize with Kira and were trying to set someone else up just as Tamura did."

She furrowed her eyebrows. "This is ridiculous and you know it. Even if what you're saying were true, you can't control someone to incriminate them without killing them."

"How do you know?"

Her eyebrow twitched. "I'm starting to doubt that you actually listened to the whole conversation. Rin implied it in one of the first things she said to me." She groaned before adding, "Besides, you were literally right next to me during the Sakura TV thing. You know I didn't do anything other than my Robin Hood stuff."

"Now that we know about the Death Note, it wouldn't surprise me if you could set a date and time for deaths," he argued. "You could have controlled Ukita to leave and die at the station."

Amy huffed. "I guess that's possible, but it doesn't matter because I'm not the second Kira!"

"Then how did you know about the rules?" he argued. "You knew about the Death Note before anyone else on the task force."

The brunette tightened her lips into a thin line. According to how Rem reacted when the others saw her, Bambi was certain that the shinigami's threat against her life was still active. Amy couldn't tell Ryuzaki the truth, but maybe Rem could.

"I want to talk to Rem."

"Why should I do that?"

The teen furrowed her eyebrows. "Just get her. I'm sure she can explain everything."

"No."

Amelia pouted as she narrowed her eyes at him before turning to the camera in the corner. "Rem, please come here. I need to ask you something."

L turned to the camera as he commanded, "Don't listen to-"

With that, the shinigami passed through the ceiling and into the room.

Amy looked up at her and asked, "Could you please explain everything to him? I know you said not to say anything, but he won't believe me otherwise."

There was a short silence before Rem answered, "Very well." She turned to L and admitted, "I approached her when she was alone and offered to help catch Rin, but I told her that I would kill her if she told anyone."

He frowned. "Why pick Bambi? We had another agent in Yotsuba. And why are you telling me this now?"

"Rin already figured out that she had an alias – it was an obvious decision knowing her plans," the shinigami explained. "I thought that she would be more willing to cooperate if she thought I was going to kill her."

A few moments passed as L put his thumb to his lip and looked away, deep in thought.

When he finally spoke, he decided, "We will need to interrogate those who were chosen for Kira's murder group, specifically Mr. Shimura." He looked up at Rem. "And I'll need to ask you questions about the Death Note."

The shinigami remained silent as Watari walked in and unlocked Bambi's handcuffs, freeing her. She stood and rubbed her sore wrists before stepping into the hallway where she was greeted by Matt. The redhead grinned as he briefly hugged her.

As he pulled away, he explained. "I kept trying to tell him the truth, but he wouldn't listen."

"When does he ever?" she snorted. "You know how he gets when he's set on something. Just look at Light and Misa."

Miles thought for a moment before nodding to himself. "Yeah, I guess you have a point there." He reached for her hand. "Anyway, lets get going. They're busier than ever up there and we haven't even started the real interrogations yet."

With that said, Amelia followed him into the elevator and up to the investigation floor where the others were scrambling to complete paperwork and make sense of this whole ordeal. As they moved to approach Near and Mello, Bambi's gaze landed on Light. The former Kira suspect was clearly lost in thought, his brows furrowed and his hands interlocked in front of his mouth.