Naomi, Raye... and a special guest.

[americanagent]

[It's been years since Naomi last saw this particular penitentiary. Or any penitentiary for that matter. Prisons had become a thing of her past when she had retired from the FBI. Still, there is something familiar in the air that never quite leaves her system - the old way of seeing things, and the old way of thinking. She feels more at home now, walking toward the barbed wire fencing, than she has in years of shopping along the LA streets, carrying bags of groceries, and winter clothes, or summer clothes.]

[She's still thinking as she walks - one step, and she's thinking of London, two and she's thinking of the areas surrounding it - especially Essex. Three, and she's thinking of poisons, delivery systems...]

[And she's counting her steps as she walks, waiting for Raye to ask her again if she's sure she wants to do this, and remind her that she's no longer an agent, and that England is outside their reach anyway. But there's a thought in her head, lodged hard, and she can't shake it lose. So she holds her packet of photographs under her arm and she walks on.]

Comments

[americanagent]

[How would she describe them?]

[Naomi stares past Beyond at the wall, running through the facts in her mind. The causes... they looked natural, but of course they weren't. They looked...]

[She shakes her head.]

They look natural, but they can't be. Even so, the killer can't be trying to make it look natural - I thought of that, but if they were, they would certainly not kill so many people so quickly. It's almost like they want to be noticed, like they want--

[she frowns and dips her head. Like they want the attention? But no, in her experience, a serial killers looking for publicity would leave a signature, or contact the police. Usually both. Then what?]

[backupcorrupted.livejournal.com]

[He nods a little as she speaks, looking rather like a teacher trying to coax the correct answer out of a struggling pupil. When she finishes he begins chewing on his thumbnail again, watching her face intently.]

You're right, Naomi. There has to be some way to reconcile the abnormal rate of deaths with their natural appearance. If you look at it logically, there isn't any possible way for a normal person to be able to do this.

[It had always been a little tiring waiting for the intuition of others to catch up with his own. In most cases the wait was a futile one, but he knew Naomi better than that. She was very clever, even if someone else was pulling the strings.]

But I think you may be wrong as well.

[A little tug here, and there... there wouldn't be any way for him to keep up with this "case" in his position, but it just might be possible to use her as a point of contact. A proxy. Her curiosity was already piqued, enough so that she came here to see him. She would want to see this through. Her determination was impressive.]

[If he really wanted, he might even be able to guide her from here. In this place he was confined, but she could move freely, doing what he needed of her. A puppet master in his cell, leading the investigation by a thread.]

[The irony was not lost on Beyond. In fact, he quite enjoys it.]

[But it would be difficult to arrange, and there was no guarantee that she would be led a second time. Or third, depending on where you started count.]

[americanagent]

[Wrong? How could she be both right and wrong? He would be referring to some specific thing, then - different points of her statement, some right and some offbase. Which parts?]

[Suddenly, she has an annoying urge to sit with her knees pulled up to her chest. But she refuses to indulge it.]

[She drops her head, staring at the dull grey stone under their feet.]

This person. He doesn't want to be noticed, not as a person. He isn't looking for publicity, exactly, but...

[What?]

[Killing criminals. Natural causes, or apparently so. And could it really even be one person? How would that be possible, if it were -- no, that's a sidetrack. It doesn't matter for the moment. Find the motivation, and then the method. She closes her eyes, thinking...]

[They're making it look like natural causes, but on such a massive scale that--]

[She blinks, and lifts her head.]

They're making an unnatural event look natural. But why? It's too obvious that it's murder - soon, even the skeptics will have to agree if they keep going at this rate. It isn't to cover up that it's a murder. It's to cover up the nature of the murders. To make it look as though it's the work of...

[What? The work of...]

[She stares at him, feeling a little sick.]

[backupcorrupted.livejournal.com]

[Beyond watches her face very closely, taking in her disgust. It hadn't taken her very long to get it after all. Of course, there was no way to prove to her that this very likely was a supernatural murder and not simply constructed as to appear that way, but he could worry about that later.]

Very intuitive, Naomi Penbar.

It makes sense, does it not? An event cannot be both natural and unnatural, not as we as humans understand the nature of our world. But what if something is just that? Unexplainable. How are we meant to interpret these facts?

[He dips his head lower, moving closer to the door with an odd serpentine quality, and wraps his free hand, the one not holding the envelope, around the bars of the door. He speaks with a voice that's low and harsh and threatens to lose itself in the shadows.]

It would appear to be the work of someone, or something, who is outside of the natural order of things. And that is exactly what the killer wants - to show that he is above the law, both man made and universal. And the criminals?

[tips his head back a bit, staring at the empty space over Naomi]

Hm. It seems they are being judged by this person.

You see? In a way, your colleagues were correct. This wasn't mean to look like a murder at all. It is meant to look like an act of God.

[americanagent]

But that doesn't explain how he's doing it. Or she. Or they. The rate is too quick for it to be a single person.

[Naomi shakes her head. An avenging angel serial killer. ...or mass murderer, really, although this is a case that blurs the lines between the two. She is getting unhappier by the moment.]

The method should lead to a suspect. But then again, a suspect would lead to a method as well. But with that kind of motivation, it could be anyone.

[Not quite true. It was more likely to be someone involved with crime in some way - a victim, or a law enforcer, perhaps - police, judges, lawyers. Someone with a reason to dislike criminals more than the average citizen.]

[backupcorrupted.livejournal.com]

Yes, it could.

[If he was right - and he's quite confident that he is - this person would be virtually untraceable. Being able to, presumably, kill from a distance gave them a powerful advantage... but was there a limit to that distance, or was it confined by other parameters? The ability to see someone's face, for example...]

[There wasn't any real way to be sure without performing some tests, which he was in no position to do, and the only person that was... No. That wasn't an option. He'd have to figure this out for himself.]

[Well, that shouldn't be too hard. He already had far more information than he rightfully should. And in a very literal way, he'd been prepared for just this sort of thing.]

...No, it could not.

Forgive me, I misspoke. It would obviously have to be someone with the skills to do this as accurately as it has been achieved. They would need to have the proper drive and motive. That considerably narrows down the likely suspects.

[He drops his head again, and it falls to a rather odd angle, but he doesn't appear to notice. Once again he's looking at her with that eerily steady gaze.]

There may be many people in the world who would endorse this activity, Naomi, but far fewer who would have the strength of will to carry it out.

[americanagent]

Someone with a strong motivation.

A victim? Or...

[If it was a victim, it was a survivor in the truest sense - the sort of person who would never be cowed.]

...someone on the other side? Or maybe...

[A criminal? Someone eliminating competition - someone only pretending to be an avenging angel. If not, then...]

...someone in law enforcement.

[If it was someone on her side - a cop, an agent, a judge or lawyer - it would be a zealot. An extremist. It could also be a defense attorney, someone acting out his or her disgust at his clients -- or wait, could it? London... in honesty, Naomi can't claim to know enough about the British legal system to make an accurate judgment in this area.]

It seems as though it should be someone with medical training. Who else could devise this sort of murder?

[And how was it carried out? This is the stumbling block every time. Naomi makes a frustrated sound and shakes her head.]

[backupcorrupted.livejournal.com]

[Ticking off the options one by one as Naomi mentions them, silently, Beyond tries to decide which one is most likely. It's difficult to tell, even for him. They all had good reasons, and without anything to indicate the source of... whatever it was that was killing these people, it would be almost impossible to narrow it down by method.]

Who else indeed? A very capable person, to be sure. Not necessarily someone in the medical field, however. It's simple enough to have training independent of a career.

[By method. Killing by... what? Did it work the way he thought it did, or was it something altogether different? No, he felt sure it was similar, somehow. Connected. A pattern that no one else could see.]

[But they appeared to have hit a wall, for now, with only the information they had between them. Even so, Beyond removes the photographs from the envelope again and looks at the potential victims, checking their vitals.]

[Everyone who had gone into the envelope alive came out that way. No more victims yet.]

But we have narrowed it down, somewhat. That is good news, Naomi.

[americanagent]

Of course it's good news.

[Naomi watches Rue for a while, getting more annoyed by the second. Why was he so interested anyway? There was something to the tenor of his interest - it wasn't only about L, was it? It was something else as well - something new.]

[Well, there was probably no chance that she'd ever puzzle it out, considering that she isn't insane.]

...but it's all we have.

[She sighs. This is frustrating.]

I don't have any other information. And I have no access to anything they might have turned up in London.

[backupcorrupted.livejournal.com]

[As he slips the photographs back into their packet, he gradually becomes more aware of the very distinct frustration that Naomi was implying, and something else there, too. He couldn't immediately pinpoint it but... something was bothering her, that was obvious enough.]

[Not surprising. Most people ended up bothered by something spending only half the time with him that she had so far. And unless it became a problem, or she decided to bring it up herself, he couldn't be bothered with dragging it out of her.]

That's unfortunate, but you should remember that you have far more information now than you did coming in here. And your suspicions were validated - that is what you wanted, isn't it?

[He focuses on her face, his own unreadable, and looks down at the envelope again for a moment.]

Naomi. Do you intend to continue your search, even though you have no legal obligation to?

[americanagent]

[Naomi turns her head down. ...she should say no. Hadn't she promised Raye that this would be the end of it? She would get her answers and either report them or let it go, depending on the results, and then she would walk away?]

[She had made that promise, yes. But.]

[...there had been so many killed. And it was only getting worse. And here, for once, was someone who heard her, believed her - who saw the things she saw even if he couldn't explain them any better than she could. No one else would even listen, and now...]

[She presses her lips together and looks up.]

Yes. I have no choice. Until this case has been solved, I must continue.

[backupcorrupted.livejournal.com]

[Beyond leans fully against the door, his forehead pressed against the bars, and completely fails to register surprise, or satisfaction, or any other sort of reaction. Except for maybe a faint twitch at the corner of his mouth, which leads to nothing.]

I thought you might say that. You are a very honorable person, Naomi Penbar. Your determination will be rewarded by the end of this.

However, reaching the end will be extremely difficult, as you are no doubt aware. I'm in no position to retract my earlier offer. And... I suppose it won't be hard to locate me, if you should need my assistance.

If you find it to your liking, of course.

[americanagent]

[Naomi sets her jaw.]

"Liking" is a strong word. But...

[she nods.]

I'm sure I'll be back even so.

[It would be... interesting trying to explain that to Raye. If she's honest with herself, she isn't sure how she can.]

[Naomi draws a deep breath, steeling herself in advance for the storm that's sure to come as soon as she mentions it.]

I should go. Do you want to keep the photos?

[backupcorrupted.livejournal.com]

[lifts the envelope a little, but doesn't move to look at it]

Yes, I would like to keep them here for now. If you have any other potential victims, you may bring those in as well.

...ah, that reminds me. Based on what you've told me about the rate of deaths, it's very possible that you may find that the number of victims will increase by one shortly. If it hasn't already.

[Beyond chews on his thumbnail again and raises his head a little against the bars. She seemed confident enough in her promise to return, but there was no reason not to give her an extra little push. It wasn't as if she could accuse him of being anything other than absurdly intuitive... which was the reason she'd come in the first place.]

[As he bites on his nail, the knuckles of his hand obscure his mouth, muffling his voice slightly.]

It will be interesting working with you again, Naomi.

[americanagent]

[Interesting was definitely more appropriate than Liking had been, but Naomi frowns even so - another victim, so soon? If that's the case, then the number dead in a single day will have increased yet again. She feels a little ill, as she steps back from the cell.]

I hope you're wrong.

[She bows her head slightly in... respect(or something like it) before she turns on her heel and heads for the door.]

[backupcorrupted.livejournal.com]

[He doesn't move, but his eyes follow her as she turns and passes out of sight. Strange. He had always thought that seeing her again would be infuriating, or humiliating, or something along those lines, but the reality had been quite the opposite.]

[She had offered him a gift, though to her it was merely a plea for help. Where L failed her in the most basic of ways, he had been there, gracious and understanding. A new case for both of them, though neither had any cause to be working on it. And now?]

[Well. It may have taken seven years of waiting, but this could be the second chance he'd been hoping for.]

[It isn't until Naomi's footsteps have almost completely receded into the dark of the hallway that he drops his fingers from his lips, and responds in a low, hollow voice.]

I'm not going to be wrong anymore.

[With a soft laugh, he pushes himself away from the bars.]