:Pfft, of course that's not B's real name; we don't know his real name, and neither should you.

23 Days to B with L

Prologue - Chapter One

Brian Benjamin is a guard at a California prison, around his mid-thirties. He stands at the barred cells, banging his bat over the metal to scare the prisoners, sneering at them as though they were worthless and pathetic. If the prisoners made any face or noise to retalliate against Brian, he calls it an offense and signs the convict up for more work. If he's in a bad mood and looking for trouble, he'll send the prisoner to go get a dozen or more whippings. If there were no other guards around, he would step inside the man's cell to start a bloody fight. Needless to say, Brian is a slightly feared prison guard amongst the men; he's banned from the women's ward for striking one of the women prisoners to the point of unconsciousness. His clean record had been tarnished with that attack, and from a few more reports of other women being beaten, raped and threaten. Brian had to serve time in the own prison he worked at, but he had soon return to his station. Not to his family's relief, though; Brian Benjamin isn't a family man. He's been overpowering his wife for years and their only child had to move in with their grandparents. He threatens his wife with her own life if she says shes going to leave him. The time he spent in prison was the most freedom his wife had in years.

Brian stands out side a serial killer's cell, whistling a low tune, smirking darkly as he glances behind his shoulder to the inmate inside. He fumbles at little, however, when the man inside was awake and sitting with his knees up and his arms around them, staring straight at the guard with his wide dark eyes. Brian sneers at other man nastily before banging the police bat across the bars. The killer doesn't even blink, just stares a little ways above his head. It was the time, and it was counting down. Bare feet's toes wriggle.

"Hey, whatcha lookin' at, ugly fucker? Answer me, Birthday Boy!" The guard hisses, reaching in his pocket for loose change and threw a nickle at the black-haired man, hard. Surprising Brian, the convict leans towards the left, and the coin bounces off the wall. Finally, however, the burn scarred man looks him in the eye, and Brian shudders. The convicts eyes were like black holes, deep and empty. The prisoner blinks and his eyes appears excited and thoughtful at once.

"I want to gamble with you, Benjamin." Beyond Birthday finally answers, glancing back above his head for a few seconds before going back to his eyes. Brian turns around fully, kind of interested what the killer wanted to gamble on. He raises a curious eyebrow, a hand fisting around a metal bar as he leans in close to hear. Beyond Birthday is ecstatic, even though he only shows it by a small taunting smile, that he has the guard's attention.

"If I lose, I'll let you come in here and hit me as many times as you wish without making a sound, and I'll fake an attack so you would have a plausible reason to get me whipped. Sound fair?" The prison guard stands straight again, cautious. He narrows his dark green eyes at Beyond Birthday, all teasing gone from his face.

"What happens if you win this game?"

"Well. I'll be an escaped convict,"

Brian gives a hearty laugh, "Oh, boy! What's the game, then, Birthday Boy?" He's interested again, having no doubt in his mind that that the man inside the cell wouldn't escape his imprisonment.

Black deep eyes flash with glee.

"I bet that you are going to die in the next five minutes," and bare toes wriggle more, along with a bit of finger tapping. He is very excited, but silence follows his game topic until...

"...What?" Brian swallows with noise.

The Los Angeles killer hesitated none: "In four minutes and forty-six seconds, I bet you are going to die. Do accept my gamble? You have a minute -"

"Hell fucking yes I accept! Fuck, I'm not going to die in the next four minutes!" Brian gives a laugh full of relief and joy, thinking he already has this game in the bag. He pulls himself together and looks at convict without concern.

"Any rules, Birthday Boy?"

"The only rule I have is that you either unlock my cell now, or leave the key to the door somewhere close by so I can reach it." Beyond Birthday simply says. "If you choose to follow through the former, I swear to stay on this bed, and if you are still alive in four minutes and sixteen seconds you can immediately lock the door again."

Brian studies the pale scarred face for a few before jingling his keys at his belt and unlatching one key from the rest. "I'll go with the latter." He gives a teasing grin and waves the long key in front of Beyond Birthday, squatting down to place it on the floor, a foot away from the the bars and the cell door. "That good enough for you, Birthday Boy?"

"Yes, thank you." The thin mouth on his face frown only slightly. "Excuse me." Beyond Birthday unwraps his knees and and leans over the bed to grab something from underneath, which turns out to be a small raspberry jam packet. He opens it and presses his fingers against the bottom to pop out the messy jam square. He pinches it with his thumb and forefinger and raises it up to his mouth, sticking out his tongue, which immediately rolls around it and brings the jam filled fingers in his mouth. Beyond Birthday sucks his fingers clean.

"Jam is much better from a jar, not to mention it's also better as strawberry, but unfortunately the mess hall doesn't have any other flavors." He resumes his previous seat adjustment after tossing the empty pack on the floor absentmindedly.

Brian gives Beyond Birthday a pointed look.

"You could be written up for that, you know."

"California wouldn't care it one more piece of trash hit the floor, especially in a prison, Benjamin."

"I meant for taking food to your cell."

"Jam is not food, but a condiment. Besides, you can just list it under the one of the plausible reasons, right?" He pauses, "Benjamin, I have a couple of questions I would like to ask before you die."

Brian blinks, "Uh, sure." Toes wriggle, and they sit in silence for two minutes. The guard fidgets and bangs his bat against the metal.

"Weren't you going to ask questions?!"

Beyond Birthday doesn't even react, watching the red time clock above the prison guard's head. One minute and fifty-eight seconds left. Needless to say, Beyond Birthday was very curious as to how the guard was going to die. He surely wasn't going to do it, and the guard was too egoistic to commit suicide. Beyond Birthday was also finding it a pity that this man wasn't living in the City of Angels area back when he was searching for his third victim during his game with L.

A perfect match to his own name.

"Do you have a wife, Benjamin?" Beyond Birthday asks, mainly just to waste time. Brian lowers the bat to where it hung from his belt.

"I do."

"Do you treat her like you treated the women in this facility?"

Brian narrows his eyes in anger, "Watch your mouth, you fucking psycho! And besides, you're one to talk; I heard what you did to that woman, your third victim, and not to mention that little girl! What I do here and at my home doesn't even match to what you did!" Any person could tell his abuse didn't just stay within the prison walls.

"Why do you treat her such a way?" Beyond Birthday ignores what the prison guard said, and when the other man opens his mouth to yell or answer his question, Beyond Birthday notices the time above Brian's head.

"Think of all the little good things about your wife for thirty seconds." Toes wriggle some more, this time they don't stop, too excited to break free from the prison after years of being outside. "Think of they way she smiled at you when you first met, the first time you held her hand and felt that joy go through you for being so close to her. Remember her smell, or the way she looked while even while washing the morning dishes. Be grateful for each time she called your name for any reason, let it be to help her reach something from a shelf, or even while repeating your name after the priest when saying her vows. Do you remember what she looked like when she said 'I do'? Remember her saying all the thank yous, and the little kisses and hugs she gave you when you treated her to something nice. Think of the nice things she's done for you in return." He watches Brian very closely; if he reacts any to what he said besides anger, then he was regretting what he's done to his wife.

"Think hard, and think very clearly on her biggest smile you've ever seen."

Brian has long since closed his eyes to imagine all the killer asked him to do, and as he thinks through all this, his throat is getting tighter and tighter. Oh God, what has he done to his perfect wife? What has he been thinking when he first raised his hand to frighten her? He doesn't remember the reason, all foggy because he went out with some friends for a late drink that first time. He gives a dry sob, his chest tightening painfully, and as he recalls the brightest smile she ever gave him, her eyes shining of happiness and love, his heart pangs guiltily. Brian clutches his chest.

The pangs continue, and his chest constricts on itself. Brian's green eyes shoot open and the unshed tears fall as he gapes like a fish at Beyond Birthday, a strangled pained yell escapes his mouth. In return, Beyond Birthday bites his thumb nail, watching interestedly as the prison guard's heart gives out on him, the time and name above Brian's head slowly fading away into nothingness. Brian falls to his knees, head falling forward to land on the bars, giving out a groan before his eyes become lifeless.

Beyond Birthday hums thoughtfully. Death of a heart attack. The guard is too young, but the serial killer doesn't the time to question this. He leaps off from the prison cell bed and makes a bee line to the door, crouching for that key Brian had placed a foot away. He grabs it and pokes it through the key hole on his cage, twisting.

Frowning and backing up from the door, Beyond Birthday thinks of how it would have been just like the guard to place the wrong key on the floor. Perhaps he was worried that he was going to die, then? Beyond Birthday lays on the floor and crawls like a spider to where the dead body was positioned. He quickly goes for the keys, searching for his cell key.

66B.

It just so happened that his cell number was 66B.

Beyond Birthday fishes it in the keyhole, joyed that it worked, and he works quickly. He strips the officer and exchanges it for his own orange suit, not bothering with the shoes or socks. Beyond Birthday adjusts the dead man in his empty bed, lying his prison clothes on top, finding it will take too long to dress him, and pulls the covers over him. Ten minutes later, Beyond Birthday walks out of the prison grounds barefoot.

Beyond Birthday, Brian Benjamin, wants to give L one last challenge, one he is sure that he won't be able to beat.

: Uh huh... Well... Yeah... Oh, and it's in that point of view for this chapter only. Looks will turn to looked, if you don't understand. -grins- And I also thought I was very clever with the title.