The Silent Place

Suggested Listening: Calling by Oda Kaori; Secrets and Lies by Institute

Chapter Five: Crash

When Mello woke his time had been spent making coffee and tidying up what little mess they had created, all in a poor attempt to burn off his sleepless jittery energy. That had been around five.

Now, at nearly eight in the morning, his nerves felt as though someone had taken a hot poker to them. He had been able to distance himself from the actual thought of being in an airport again, as before the flight details had simply been words.

Now however, where he could hardly hide his face least he be mistaken for a terrorist, he was being checked through security, Matt behind him, and he was less than pleased. In fact, if he were to ever admit to it, he was nervous as hell and more than a little jumpy. He was far too exposed and he hated it.

Sure, he had been on a few airplanes in the last two years, but they had been L's private ones, before he'd broken contact with the detective, and had not required them to be around a bunch of people or in an airport.

"Mello, stop glaring." he jerked slightly at Matt's hand on his shoulder, but allowed the contact as it distracted him from his thoughts. He hated airports now. Though he thought, with a slightly rye smile, Matt did as well.

Though they had slightly different reasons for it this time.

He sighed and walked beside Matt as they shuffled through the crowds of people and passed the restaurants and stores. They quickly made notice of where their gate was, and after some prodding on Matt's part, went to find something to eat.

Mello smiled grimly at the sight of a Starbucks, and glowered at the people who stared at him. He heard Matt sigh beside him and made a slight effort not to cause trouble. The last thing they needed was to be detained by airport authorities. Especially as Mello was practically a celebrity.

He hated it.

Matt had them stop at some small sub place and they ate there, though Mello hadn't really paid all that much attention to it all, as he was too tense to do so. He hated feeling so damn weak. Hated that he watched all the corners of the room from behind his sunglasses, and hated how messed up his mind had truly become.

He was alright, save for the new potential threat, and yet he acted as though the Organization still nipped at his heals at every turn. He really hated airports. Perhaps just hated large crowds of people in general...

"We need to go. We'll be boarding soon. "

Mello got up and followed Matt to their gate. It had been a good thing they had arrived early at the airport as getting through security had been absolute hell. It seemed like everybody and their mother was flying and the line had been huge.

That and it seemed like every other person was being stopped for something amiss in their luggage, though half of them were merely items that had been mashed together to look like a screwdriver or something else you weren't suppose to have.

"Have a nice flight!" one of the stewardesses exclaimed to him as she took his boarding pass and handed him back the other half. He had nearly snarled at her as Matt dragged him away. He knew he was being utterly ridiculous, but that didn't stop him from feeling the way he did. Matt had thankfully made sure that they had all three seats in the row, so it was only them. Mello took the window seat and Matt took the aisle seat leaving the empty one between them.

Somehow, Mello felt that was a quite accurate description of their relationship at the moment. Both of them together, but a deep chasm between. He moodily slammed the shade down on the window and after fastening his seatbelt, really not wanting to have to deal with 'sir can you please fasten your seat belt' anytime soon, and closed his eyes.

He heard Matt sigh again and curled closer to the window. It was going to be a very long flight. Despite his closed eyes, and the eventual leveling out of the plane, Mello was unable to fall asleep for the longest of time. Though it could have been because of all of the noise, suspicious sounds, and annoyingly loud children.

Or it was just his usual sleeplessness and the fact that it was daytime.

He stiffened when Matt settled himself in the seat next to him and cautiously touched his left arm gently. "What's got you so agitated? Despite being in a flying tin can, you're safe, spare hijackers." Matt whispered to him, mouth almost pressed to his ear.

He shivered and despite his aggravated mood, felt his lips quirk ever so slightly at Matt's attempt at disarming humor. To his credit, it had worked slightly. "You know damn well why I'm agitated." he hissed, though it lacked the intended bite.

"I know." he was a bit confused at Matt's words, as he'd expected the redhead to attempt to speak logic to him, explain why he shouldn't be acting this way, and yet... nothing. For some reason, that exclamation placated him.

"Try and sleep?" Matt's voice was soft and bordered on pleading. So Matt had noticed the utter lack of sleep he'd gotten the night before. He sighed and attempted to curl back into his previous position but Matt's tenuous grip on his left arm became firm and a gentle tug in the other direction indicated he wouldn't be allowed to simply close his eyes and pretend.

He bit his lip and with half his body tensed, rested his head on Matt's shoulder. The slight jump assured him that Matt had not expected that, and he smiled slightly to himself. And despite all his earlier misgivings Mello found himself drifting off, and didn't register another thing until the plane was landing however many hours later.

He frowned. He hated letting himself get to such a state where he would sleep in a room full of strangers. It was never a good idea, from a safety standpoint.

The second the plane had slowed on the runway he'd unbuckled his seatbelt despite the urging from the stewardesses to keep them fastened. No one really listened. Including Matt. Matt had booked them tickets closest to the front without being first class, as that generally drew too much attention to people, so when everyone was finally cleared to leave the plane they were able to quickly leave and head for baggage with minimal wait.

It occurred to Mello, as they walked out into the airport terminal, that they had no one waiting for them there. Which either meant obtaining a taxi or another mode of transportation for themselves. He opened his mouth to comment on it when Matt smiled at him, stilling his words.

"Finally noticed have you? I made arrangements back at the apartment for a car to be ready for pickup when we got here." Matt took his moment of slight shock to steal a quick kiss. He hadn't had the time to tense, as he honestly hadn't expected the action and at the same time couldn't bring himself to be irritated with the redhead.

"Well since you have that all settled, you can drive us to Takahashi's place first." though Mello was rather miffed at himself for such an oversight that Matt had taken care of, his mind had already moved onto the next set of problems. Takahashi needed to be visited first and foremost, even before they found lodgings for the night be it at Jasper's or otherwise. There was just something about the entire situation that had him on edge but he just couldn't pinpoint it.

And despite the acute feeling of being watched, he forced himself to ignore it. They were in an airport and would be watched. It was only later, when they were on their own, that if he still felt it should he set aside time to worry.

For now... they simply had to get their baggage.

Mello had wished that everything could have fit in their carryons, but had known that was an impossibility the moment he'd first taken out the duffle bag to pack. There was simply too much that the both of them had needed to pack.

He grabbed at his bag as he saw the bright orange tag on it and sighed in irritation as Matt's bag, his tag being blue, passed by him. One hand, one bag. He saw the striped arm reach out and retrieve it before it could go around the carousel again. Now was not the time for his bitter thoughts.

"We have to walk a small bit to the car rental place. Give me your suitcase." Mello had thought about arguing with Matt, but by the tone of the redhead's voice, he wouldn't have won at the moment.

Matt, it seemed, had no problem letting him get his way more often than not, but every once and a while, making him sleep on the plane case and point, he put his foot down and would not budge.

Mello was too tired to really care at that point. If Matt wanted to drag two heavy ass suitcases as well as a duffle bag, who was Mello to tell him differently?

The walk to the rental place was short and not as far as Matt had made it sound. He followed the redhead inside, where it was too warm, and stood by the door while Matt quickly obtained the keys to their ride.

Mello was slightly surprised to find it wasn't some sort of racing or sports car despite it not generally being what was rented out there. But Mello wasn't going to complain as he tossed the duffle bag into the backseat and climbed into the passenger side and slammed the door shut.

He waited for Matt to do the same before he let himself relax. "Directions?" the redhead asked.

Mello smirked and plotted the course into the GPS system the car was equipped with. "Well that was easy..." Matt muttered. Mello closed his eyes, not wanting to really see the city he'd left behind, as he knew it would be nearly an hour drive to Takahashi's place.

The silence between them, while not exactly tense, was certainly charged.

Mello supposed it had more to do with finally being in New York than anything else. After all, they would finally get some answers to the things that had weighed on their minds for the last few days.

Mello really hoped that there would be an easy fix to the situation at hand, but knew from experience that it wasn't likely to happen that way, no matter how much he wished for it to. Things just weren't ever that simple.

Not wanting to make himself any more anxious than he already was, Mello let his mind shut down, not quite asleep but relaxed enough not to keep rehashing facts and scenarios in his mind. Nothing more could be done until he, hopefully, got his favor from Takahashi.

The time blurred, his mind being unable to keep track of it, and he being unwilling to open his eyes, until the vehicle stopped and he heard the break being put on. With a sigh he cracked open his eyes and saw the familiar street a block down from Takahashi's. It would have been stupid to park directly there so he had plotted the course to end a bit always.

"Doesn't look like much." Matt commented dryly as he eyed the closed down building in front of them.

Mello sighed. "That's because we're not there yet. Leave everything except the gun I know you somehow smuggled here. Lock the car up." he pushed himself from the car and slammed the door, the few people walking on the streets didn't even glance in their direction.

Mello felt a feral smirk curl at his lips. The city was still as self absorbed as it ever was.

He felt Matt's eyes on him and it quelled his smirk and by the time he looked back over his expression was blank again. He could only imagine what Matt would think had he seen that smirk... it was like the old days.

He remembered the power that he'd had. The connections. He had thrived off of that despite being utterly miserable at the same time. But he paused. He also knew the cost of getting there. And just as he'd known it then, it simply wasn't worth it.

He hated who he'd become, what he has become, because of those decisions. Though he would never regret the path that led him back to Matt. Not ever.

He led them to the alleyway and banged on the thick metal doors that lead to the kitchens and eyed it warily when there was no answer; his fingers inched to his waistband to grab at the gun that no longer rested there. Beside him he heard Matt pull out his gun, the one he'd known Matt had brought.

He banged on the door again. "You think they moved?" Matt asked and he frowned. "No, someone like Takahashi wouldn't move now that he is firmly established. No one would."

Mello took the chance to turn the knob of the door, hoping that he wouldn't be shot upon entry, and swung it inward. Instead of the bustling kitchens there was silence. Complete and utter silence.

It unnerved Mello greatly.

He motioned for Matt to stay silent and took the lead despite not having the gun. His boots made an ungodly amount of noise on the linoleum flooring, in his mind, and he cringed every time the heavy boots clunked with his steps.

His eyes narrowed, and his movements slowed even further, at the unmistakable sign of blood spatter. All his senses were on high alert and he felt the flow of adrenaline; his eyes darted to every corner of the room.

He stepped out into the hallway and immediately stilled. Matt sucked in a breath behind him. Bodies filled the hallway, their blood covering the walls and leaving red trails. The stink of death had been well contained by the closed off kitchen. "Well, now we know why no one answered the phone."

Mello glared at the redhead, as his comment had been uncalled for and in Mello's mind, all of bad taste. He stalked as quietly as he could down the cluttered hallway, all of the bodies seemingly the bodyguards and other workers, which left him some hope.

It all vanished the second he reached the large meeting room.

There had been a deal or meeting of some sort going on, as the bodies were shot in the head and were slumped in their chairs, some even sprawled out across the tabletop, and the surface littered with scattered money. Takahashi himself had fallen to the table, eyes open wide in surprise as blood pooled out around his head.

But that wasn't what had Mello freeze up. No. It was the last body he laid eyes on that had him taking a step backwards into Matt.

"Mello?" Matt questioned softly.

He closed his eyes tightly and reopened them, hoping that the image would have changed. It had not. Stripped completely naked, face up, and embroidered with deep cut marks was Yumiko, Takahashi's only daughter. "Rat...?" he mumbled.

All around her blood was spread, and it covered most of her body. All except the area from neck to stomach where it had been wiped clean to leave the carved word 'rat' to see plain as day.

Mello stared at the woman who had been so beautiful in life, who was now nothing more than a bloodied corpse on the floor. "Mello?" Matt touched his arm slightly.

"Matt... I may know who did this. That message... that message was for me." he felt coldness creep from the depths of his being to wrap around his body, turning his skin to ice.

There was only one time in his life had he ever felt joy in setting somebody up. And had he not been reminded of it until recently.... he may not have even remembered at all despite the impact it had on his mafia life.

And looking at Yumiko's lifeless eyes... he regretted not making sure the bastard had died.

"We need to leave. This place is anything but safe." he shook himself from Matt's grasp and walked stiffly back the way he had come, though he did glance down the other hallway and saw much of the same carnage.

There would be no help from Takahashi, or anyone that he had known. They all would have gone further underground to avoid detection, or they were dead. They would have to find another source of information. Thankfully Jasper would probably be more than willing to help.

He pulled his hood over his face and hurried back to the car not even glancing back to see if Matt had followed. He waited impatiently for the redhead to unlock the car, and as the engine started he wondered at the possibility of a car bomb.

Though as they didn't erupt in a tomb of wrecked metal and flames, he assumed they were safe for the moment. "Make sure to drive in the opposite direction of Jasper's and then take the long way there. We could be being watched."

He saw Matt frown and knew the redhead was anything but pleased at the moment. But to Mello, what had happened to Takahashi and his family was just another reason to settle his past, before more people got killed because of him.

As the scenery passed by he tried hard not to think on the past, for he knew it would only lead to guilt, guilt that he didn't have time to deal with at the moment, not until he knew they were completely safe, even if only for a night.

But out of all of it, Mello did have to wonder, why now? Why not two years ago when he'd been at his weakest, when he would have been an easy kill. Or even earlier, before he'd met back up with Matt. It would have been easy for someone to zero him and no one would have bothered to search for the killer.

Why wait until now, unless he had somehow made a mistake that had allowed himself to be found. But he could think of nothing other than leaving the flat to go to the grocers. And even then he had as much clothes on to cover himself as he could stand.

Perhaps they, as he was still hesitant to think it was that man Anderson despite the message, had only recently gotten what they needed to get rid of him?

He just didn't know and that was what irritated him the most. There were only questions, questions, questions and no answers.

He clenched his fist in irritation but didn't say anything even as Matt continually glanced at him.

Matt jerked slightly as he leaned over and stuffed a hand into his pocket to retrieve the redheads phone, as his had been disconnected and left in their flat. "You could have just asked..." he heard Matt mumble and looked away at the light blush that stained his cheeks.

He didn't have time to deal with that either.

With a sigh he punched in Jasper's number, and despite the phone not being answered, wasn't overly worried. It wasn't uncommon for Jasper to either not hear it, if he were sleeping, or blatantly ignore his phone.

Jasper always called back whenever he was finished with whatever had occupied his time beforehand, but they wouldn't need to wait on him this time as they were coming to him. Though there was still the slight bit of nervousness in the back of his mind after seeing what had happened with Takahashi.

And once they saw that Jasper was fine, and being his usual sarcastic lazy ass self, Mello knew he would be able to relax.

And only then.

-End Crash-

AN: So... anyone see that coming? It's not necessarily a huge thing plot wise, but I bet you didn't expect it, right? *shrug*