FIC: YLD2 (1-10/151) (NC-17)
Feb. 1st, 2008 12:01 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vanessagaloreYou can help me by letting me know if you spot any formatting errors that you suspect are due to this conversion (putting ~10 chapters in each entry). There are certainly many grammar errors and frank typos--if you notice them, please forgive me. One of these days I will fix them. (Maybe...)
I have added the links that direct you from chapter to chapter; however, I am still working on correcting all the "Previously on's" and other extras. Usually there is a link, but it will send you to LJ, so if you wish to read here, you'll have to use the back button on your browser for right now. I hope to get all those links fixed this summer (2012).
TITLE: The Year of Living Dangerously II (1-10/151)
AUTHOR:
vanessagalore CHARACTERS: Logan/Veronica, Keith, eventual Wallace/OFC, Mac, Duncan, Weevil, Dick, everyone else you love / love to hate that I haven't already killed in part one.
WORD COUNT: 515,553 in total (all 151 chapters)
SUMMARY: If you don't deal with the past, the past will deal with you. This is a future-fic about fatherhood, consequences, and redemption. Someone from Logan's past is murdered; angst ensues, and Veronica investigates. There's plot, quite a bit of it: in fact, I consider this an homage to Season 2. You say plot hole and red herring; I say opportunity.
RATING: NC-17 (please see warnings).
SPOILERS: All of Veronica Mars is spoiled. You are expected to be familiar with all three seasons.
WARNINGS: My previous fic, 'The Year of Living Dangerously', was 'broadcast' on the Teen FX channel. The censors were not happy with Chapter 47. Therefore, 'The Year of Living Dangerously' is now being 'broadcast' on Showtime (woot, woot) and IS INTENDED FOR MATURE AUDIENCES. Well, maybe not MATURE, but 18 AND OVER PLEASE. There is NC-17 material here: graphic sex, violence, and perversion. Now you're really interested! Plus, my characters curse...A LOT. Angst warning: there is a massive amount of angst in this fic, mostly dealing with the fallout from events in season 2. Not much fluff–sorry, I'm not a fluffy person, deal with it. I tried to spike it with enough humor and smut that no one will become suicidal. Contains references to past relationships V/D and HaLo. MINOR CHARACTER DEATH.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own any rights to Veronica Mars. This story is written as a tribute only. No celebrity endorsement is implied by product placements. All real persons' names are used in the sense of "wouldn't it be cool if this person had this gig?
A/N: This is truly a sequel to my previous fic. If you read it and just need a refresher, here's what you need to know. If you never read it, why the hell not, and go read it right NOW (please).
A note to nitpickers about characters' birthdays: I'm sure someone has figured out when everyone's birthday is, and supposedly the writers' bible contains that information. But I don't have the writers' bible, and I was not able to determine everyone's ages. If I got the ages wrong according to your calculations, just try to go with it: the ages I picked have certain legal ramifications that are important to the plot and essential to my retconnage.
A big thanks to my beta reader,
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poniesforall. All errors are my responsibility.Here's something you may not have realized: writers LIVE for comments. Seriously, we'll just mope in bed if we don't get comments. In fact, I'd even rather have comments than my favorite adult beverage...well, maybe not Ketel One, but I'll definitely take comments over Svedka or Skyy. Send me a comment-tini and let me know what you think, and I'll buy the next round when you're in town.
On to the Prologue...
PROLOGUE:
Veronica sits on the thin mattress on the floor, hugging her knees to her chest in a vain attempt to keep warm. A threadbare blanket is draped around her shoulders and she tries again to stretch it to cover her lower legs completely. The darkness of the room is complete; not even a speck of moonlight penetrates the blacked-out window. How many girls spent lonely nights in this room before me?
I can get through this, she thinks, trying to talk herself into being courageous. She shivers again, uncontrollably, and she accidentally knocks her bruised shoulder against the wall, wincing from the unexpected pain. Remembering last night's vicious fight, she wiggles her loose tooth with her tongue, hoping it will eventually tighten in its socket again; she smiles grimly, thinking that at least her opponent got the worst of it. Veronica stands up and resumes pacing the length of the room, flailing her arms to try to keep warm. One, two, three, four, five, turn around, one, two, three, four, five, turn around.... Finally, she gives up and curls up in a fetal position on the mattress, huddled under the blanket. She whispers, "I'm going to make these bastards pay. I'm not giving up."
Two months earlier...
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Boy's Got Game
Veronica and Logan have a study break;
Wallace meets the new girl.
Veronica: Kristin Bell. Logan: Jason
Dohring. Wallace: Percy Daggs III.
Candice Pauling: Toy Connor.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER ONE: "BOY'S GOT GAME"
Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
Veronica pauses in her studying and considers Logan sitting across the room on the couch, his feet propped up on the coffee table. He is staring out the floor-to-ceiling windows of his beach house at the Pacific Ocean, ostensibly writing. On the stereo, the Coldplay song 'Don't Panic' plays over and over, set to repeat ad infinitum.
Veronica has asked him about this. After the tenth time through a song, she is ready to scream, but he sits there staring at the ocean, thinking. He tells her that the repetition almost hypnotizes him while he sits there figuring out what he wants to write in his head. Usually after several hours of thinking, he grabs his laptop and types furiously for an hour or so. Then he begins to edit, slashing and burning, rewriting, reconsidering.
Now, he feels her eyes upon him; his eyes focus on her and he smiles.
Veronica removes the headphones she's been wearing to avoid listening to 'Don't Panic' for the last hour, and says, "Hey, you."
"Tonight's our last chance to have kinky sex in the wheelchair," he replies, using the remote to shut off the stereo.
"Almost makes you feel sorry for Anna Nicole, considering how much trouble we've had."
"I wouldn't say trouble, I would say creative," he retorts. In the last two and a half months, the cast on Logan's leg has forced the couple to experiment with position and leverage. He's getting the cast off tomorrow, and he can't wait.
She stands up, smiling broadly, and pulls off her T-shirt, revealing bare skin underneath. "I think I know what you have in mind."
"Looks like you're the one who has it in mind," he muses, noting her erect nipples. He watches her in amusement, an appreciative smile on his face.
Veronica shucks off her jeans and walks over to the kitchen in the corner of the large room. She moves a footstool next to the kitchen counter, wiggling her ass provocatively at Logan as she adjusts it. Deliberately seeking out his eyes, she then shucks off her panties, and hops onto the end of the kitchen counter, facing the footstool located directly below her. She crosses her legs and says in a kittenish voice, "I thought it seemed a little warm in here so I took my clothes off. I saved a spot for you, right here in front of me. Why don't you come over here?" She motions to the footstool, then leans back, keeping herself propped upright with her hands on the counter, which makes her breasts slightly more prominent. She bounces her foot a little and looks enticingly at Logan.
Logan chuckles and grabs his crutches. He propels himself over to the kitchen area and seats himself on the ottoman in front of Veronica, stretching out his right leg in its cast. Logan strokes her foot and caresses her calf, kissing a small childhood scar. He gently uncrosses her legs.
"Oh my goodness, look what we have here," he says throatily. He breathes in the heady aroma of Veronica's arousal. His fingers slide smoothly over her thighs, and she sighs appreciatively, "mmm". He leans in and kisses her just above her right knee. He looks up questioningly.
"Oh, that's nice. Maybe...just a little higher," she suggests.
"Up here?" he says, stroking her inner thigh, so lightly, kissing her again in the same place on the other knee.
"Mmm, hmm," she agrees, arching her back a little.
"Maybe...this is what you had in mind." He trails kisses up her thigh, and pretends that he is going to kiss her center, when he teasingly pulls back to look up at her again.
"Loooo-gahhhhn..." she pleads.
"Oh, you want me to stop," he says.
"Noooo, please..."
"All right," he says, resuming his kisses on her upper thigh, coming so achingly close, that she involuntarily scooches closer to the edge of the counter, trying to make contact. "Veronica, you're such a dirty girl."
"God, Logan, please..."
He takes pity and caresses her pussy, just for a moment, ever so lightly, with the back of his index finger. She pushes into him, trying to increase the pressure. He laughs, saying, "Don't be in such a hurry, let me enjoy you." He touches her again gently, watching her reaction. He speeds his finger's motions and is gratified when she sighs "Ahhh..." She throws her head back, enjoying the moment, and Logan gently pushes the finger in her pussy, indulging in the incredible feeling of her dampness. She grabs the edge of the counter and moans again, rocking against him, as he adds a finger and increases his pace. He kisses his way up to her center, then roughly grabs her ass with both hands, pressing his tongue into her. He flicks his tongue furiously against her clit, and she grabs his head, stroking his hair, muttering incomprehensibly, "Logan, god, Logan..."
As he feels her trembling begin, he clutches her ass with his left arm, maintaining the pressure and intensity of his tongue, and brings his right hand back to her, plunging two fingers in again. She lets out a gasp and launches into her orgasm, clutching her legs around him in desperation. He gently bites on her clit, and she moans loudly, bucking against his mouth and fingers. He holds her firmly against him, loving the control she has given over to him. Awed by the abandon of her release, he thinks every minute of every day about how close they came to losing each other forever.
As her shuddering slows, he gently pulls away to look at her smiling down at him. Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he tilts his head questioningly toward the bedroom, and she nods. Logan pushes the footstool far enough away that she can drop down to the floor. She retrieves his crutches for him, then walks toward the bedroom saying "Coming, dear?"
"Soon enough, sugarpuss," he replies, following her, moving quickly on the crutches. When he enters the bedroom, he almost loses it when he sees her already kneeling on the bed, playing with her breasts.
"Are my babies feeling ignored?" he whispers, seating himself on the bed and swinging his legs up. "Veronica, help me get my clothes off." It kills Logan every time he has to ask her for help. He quickly takes off his shirt while she pulls off his sweats and boxers.
She runs her fingers along his leg, enjoying watching his cock jerk in anticipation of her approach. She straddles him and he reaches for her breasts, saying insolently, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to ignore these."
He rolls her nipples between her fingers and watches her sway in front of him. She is drunk with her enjoyment, and moans delightedly as he leans in and licks her nipple, nipping at it gently with his teeth. He sucks greedily, as he continues to roll and gently pinch her other nipple.
She lowers her hips and gently begins to drag her pussy along Logan's hard length, and he moans in appreciation at the sensation. "Veronica, wait...wait...let me get a condom."
Veronica holds his head in her hands and kisses him deeply. "No, I trust you, we don't need one...."
"Are you sure, Veronica?" he asks, looking into her eyes. "I know you're on the pill, but...." He has never suggested going without a condom, knowing Veronica's history and her fear of std's and pregnancy. You don't have to do this, Veronica....
"I love you, Logan, I know...I can trust you."
Logan pulls her closer and kisses her back, feeling as if he can just kiss her deep enough, he'll touch her soul and she'll finally be his forever.
Before he can protest further, Veronica slides herself one last time along Logan's cock and when it jerks in response, she engorges him in her.
"God, Veronica, so wet, you're so tight around me. It's so incredible to feel you," he murmurs. She begins to move her hips furiously, and he grabs her, holding her in place.
"No, slow down," he begs her. "I want to feel you, I want it to last, the first time I've felt you, god." With the strength of two months of upper-body workouts and six weeks of supporting himself on crutches, he takes control of her hips. He slowly moves her up and down and she mewls in frustration. "Touch yourself, baby," he whispers. She licks her finger, reaches down and begins to finger her clit.
As Logan watches, he gradually loses control and allows Veronica to set the frantic pace she desires. The strange new sensation of skin on skin is overwhelming in its intensity. He releases her hips and grabs her breasts again, furiously kneading her nipples as she pants and moans. With a supreme effort, he pulls himself to a seated position, and Veronica screams with pleasure as his cock hits her in an extreme angle. He grabs the back of her head and kisses her as he surges inside her, glorying in coming inside her without a barrier, loving the feeling of her muscles clenching uncontrollably around him.
~ • ~
Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Hearst College, Neptune, CA
Wallace adjusts the collar of the new suit his mom had bought him for Christmas as he enters the common room of the engineering building. He looks around the room and realizes that he might be overdressed, noting that he's surrounded by pocket protector types. He muses, What else would you expect at the induction ceremony for the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society?
He recognizes a classmate from his engineering classes, and greets him with his fist extended. "We made it," Wallace says.
"Never had a doubt," his friend replies, bumping fists.
"Don't think I'd go that far," Wallace responds.
His faculty advisor, Professor Winkler, joins them. He claps Wallace on the back, and says, "Mr. Fennel, congratulations. You've worked really hard for this."
"Got in by the skin of my teeth, Professor Winkler," Wallace says, smiling.
"Nice suit, Wallace," the professor comments.
"Just trying to spread a little of that fine Fennel magic around." Wallace looks around the room and notices a woman standing by the bar. He adds, "Speaking of Fennel magic, do you know who that is?"
"Oh that's Candice Pauling. She just started in the MSE program."
"The master's program? That's a hard program to get into," Wallace comments.
"She's a brilliant scholar. Candice had her choice of programs across the country," Professor Winkler explains.
And a really beautiful woman besides, Wallace muses. "Can I get you a drink, professor?"
"No, Wallace," the professor laughs, "Good luck." He motions for Wallace to go.
Wallace presses his way through the crowd, keeping his eyes trained on Candice. She has chocolate-colored skin, and elaborate hair, woven into a multitude of messily curled braids, with some of her hair colored red and gold. The overall effect is one of exotic charm that contrasts with the unfashionable engineering crowd. Best of all, as Wallace draws closer he notes that even with high-heeled shoes, she is only slightly taller than he is. He pushes through the last few bodies and reaches the bar, standing directly next to Candice. Wallace catches the bartender's eye and asks for a Coke. He turns to Candice and asks, "Do you need a refill?"
She smiles, and shakes her head no.
"Just the Coke, then," Wallace says. As the bartender gets his drink, Wallace watches her peripherally. He notes her unusual jewelry and, screwing up his courage, asks her, "Your jewelry is beautiful. Is it from Africa?"
"Oh, thank you, the earrings are from Mali. They are called fula earrings," she explains. "I just returned from a year working in Mali with the Peace Corps. It was a life changing experience."
Wallace, surprised, replies, "I know what you mean. I spent a summer working in Uganda with the Invisible Children Project."
She is about to comment when another student sidles up to the bar intending to order a drink. He notices Wallace, and says, "High five, man, great game last night!" Wallace obligingly high-fives and returns his attention to Candice.
"Great game?" she queries, looking from the student to Wallace.
"I'm on the basketball team."
The student turns and says, "He's being modest. He is the basketball team. This year, Fennel is averaging .660 in True Shooting Percentage, and he leads the league in rebounds."
"Aren't you a little...um...height-challenged to be a basketball player?" she says in a slightly surprised tone.
"What I lack in height, I make up with stamina and hustle," Wallace retorts. He extends his hand. "Wallace Fennel, nice to meet you."
"Stamina and hustle," she repeats, thoughtfully. "Well, Wallace Fennel, nice to meet you too. I'm Candice Pauling."
~ • ~
Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
Logan and Veronica lay on the bed panting and recovering. Veronica gently extricates herself and lays next to him. Logan reaches for the nightstand and grabs the notebook and pen there for the purpose of writing down ideas in the middle of the night. He rolls onto his left side and begins writing.
"What are you writing?" Veronica can't help asking.
"Nothing," he says, turning a little more so she can't read what he's writing.
"Logan! What are you writing?" She tickles his side and he jumps, but keeps the notepad obscured. "Don't make me hurt you, lover," she says dramatically.
"Like you could....You are so nosy."
Veronica rolls out of the bed and runs over to Logan's side. She grabs the notebook after a tussle. She sits on the edge of the bed and reads aloud.
1. In the shower, from behind, while soaping her breasts"Oh my god, what is this?" she laughs.
2. Against the wall, with her legs wrapped around me
3. Doggy style
4. In the backseat of the BMW
5. In the backseat of the Saturn
6. Missionary, missionary, missionary
7. On the kitchen counter after I lick her
8. With her legs flipped up and wrapped around my neck
9. In the Hearst library on the third floor--the Congress of the Cow
10. Tie her to the bed and make her come ten times
"It's the top-ten list of the ways I'm going to fuck you when I get this cast off." He reaches around and grabs her breast.
She screams and giggles, turning to kiss him on the lips. "You know, you're still going to have a cane, and you're not going to be as limber as you used to be," she says mock-solemnly.
"Don't worry, I'm going to see a special physical therapist to help me with this. I'll show you limber," he says, kissing her neck. "Come on, let's try it on my side again."
She stands up to move to the other side of the bed, and the doorbell rings.
"Shit," Logan says.
"Are you expecting someone? Dick, perhaps?" Veronica suggests. After the last time that Dick walked in on them, with Veronica moaning uncontrollably on top of the kitchen counter, Dick swore that he would always ring the doorbell in the future.
"I don't know. Maybe."
Veronica grabs Logan's white fluffy bathrobe, monogrammed 'Neptune Grand' on the pocket, and wraps it around herself. "I still can't believe you stole a bathrobe."
"They got enough of my money; they can afford it," he snarks.
Veronica pads toward the door, trying futilely to smooth her just-fucked hair. She looks through the peephole, then excitedly flings open the door. "What the hell are you doing here?"
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Daddy/Daughter Time
An old friend visits and pisses off Logan;
Keith reluctantly takes on a new assignment.
Veronica: Kristin Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Cliff: Daran Norris.
Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack. Vinnie Van Lowe:
Ken Marino.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER TWO: "DADDY/DAUGHTER TIME"
Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
Veronica flings open the door, saying, "What the hell are you doing here?" She grabs Duncan Kane in a hug.
Duncan folds his arms around her and kisses her cheek. God, what is that smell... she smells like Kendall used to, how can that be...oh my god...they were making love, she smells like LOGAN...look at her hair, he's been running his fingers through her hair...they were FUCKING, they were FUCKING....Duncan feels as though he was sucker-punched. This must be what Logan felt...whenever Veronica was over.
He clears his throat, pulling back from her. "Veronica, I've been trying to call you. You never pick up. Finally I called your dad. He said you were here for the long Martin Luther King Day weekend, studying." He stares at her.
Veronica blushes, and says, "We were just taking a little break." She walks into the living room and picks up her iPhone, scrolling through the missed calls list. "I don't answer calls without a caller ID. We still get a lot of reporters trying to get an interview." She spies her clothes scattered on the floor, and picks them up, saying, "We really weren't expecting company. I'll tell Logan you're here. He hasn't seen you since you...changed." Duncan has had numerous plastic surgeries and his appearance is completely altered. His hair is blond, and even his voice has changed due to a surgery on his voice box.
Veronica disappears into the bedroom, and Duncan hears murmurs, and a loud "Who?" from Logan. Five minutes later, Logan and Veronica emerge, having hastily dressed themselves. Veronica's hair has been pulled back into a messy ponytail, Duncan notes.
Logan stumps over on his crutches. "Duncan, is that you? I wouldn't have recognized you if I passed you on the street."
"In fact, you didn't. You saw me one time when you were in Veronica's parking lot, and you didn't look at me twice," Duncan comments. He hesitates, then crosses the short distance to Logan and grabs him in a bear hug. "I've missed you, man. It's been so hard."
"It hasn't been so easy for us here either," Logan replies, looking closely at Duncan to see if he can find anything recognizable in this blond stranger's appearance.
"I heard about Harmony Chase. How's the leg?" Duncan asks.
"I'm getting the cast off tomorrow. I can't wait. I'll still need a cane for awhile but I won't need as much help. It's probably going to be four more months of physical therapy before I'm one hundred percent again," Logan says. "Did you see the TV interviews? The media is never going to leave us alone."
"I know...." Duncan agrees. The three of them move into the living room and sit down.
Duncan continues, "The reason why I'm here...I'm going to surrender myself into custody in three weeks. Then there will be a hearing about the kidnapping two days later. We have a deal in place, I will plead guilty to a misdemeanor, endangering the welfare of a child, and serve five hundred hours of community service. My mother insisted that I not be charged with a felony, since she still has her heart set on me becoming a lawyer. The district attorney has also agreed that he will not charge me in my sister's murder, since my attorneys made it clear that there is sufficient reasonable doubt that I would not be convicted." He glances at Logan, the unspoken thought that 'your dad killed my sister and got away with it' passing between them.
"When I surrender myself, I will hand Lilly over to the child welfare authorities. Then there will be another hearing to determine Lilly's placement. Veronica, I know you're responsible for providing the tapes of the Mannings abusing their daughter Grace, and I thank you for that. If my mother and father could form a coherent sentence without spitting your name, they would thank you as well."
"They still blame me for helping you flee the country," Veronica says, nodding.
"Yes. My mother is...not very rational about all this," Duncan comments.
He continues, "When the plea deal was first negotiated, the Mannings agreed to relinquish their claim on Lilly. After all, I can prove conclusively that I am her father, and if I am cleared of felony kidnapping charges, their claim that I am an unfit parent will be hard to prove, especially since there is equally damaging evidence about their family."
Duncan sighs. "But now at the last minute Stewart has found a new attorney and they are disputing the evidence on the blackmail tapes. They are claiming that the tapes have been manufactured, and, since they were obtained without a warrant, are not admissible. This is juvenile court, so the standards of evidence are lower, but my attorneys are warning me that the Mannings may be successful in getting the evidence excluded. If it is excluded, the Mannings will bring up my seizure problem. My seizure problem alone isn't enough to deny my custody, but in conjunction with the kidnapping–it might be enough to cause me to lose custody. We have to find a way to force them to drop their custody suit, or else I'm going to have to reject the entire deal and go back overseas."
"I don't understand, Duncan. Why can't I just testify to what we saw at the Mannings' house?" Veronica asks.
"Veronica, the statute of limitations for felony burglary is three years, so you would be in the clear. But unless you perjure yourself and say that I was not there, you would be exposing me to prosecution. There's a clock on the statute of limitations, and it doesn't run if you are not living in the state where the crime was committed. For me, the clock has only run for several months, so I can still be prosecuted for breaking into their house," Duncan explains.
"So I'll perjure myself and say that I broke into their house alone. It's their word against mine," Veronica says impulsively. "You can't stay on the run forever, Duncan."
Logan glances at her, wishing she wasn't offering to help so quickly.
"No, Veronica. It's an unacceptable risk. I might not win custody if I'm convicted of a felony. You yourself could be convicted of perjury; Manning will certainly contradict your story," Duncan says, shaking his head.
Veronica thinks, I was just cleared of manslaughter charges in the shooting of Harmony Chase. Okay, that was a formality, but still...I need a nice safe profession, like race-car driver, or Alaskan crab fisherman. "Let me speak to Cliff and see what he says. Maybe he can arrange some kind of a deal for me. But Duncan, you know I promised Meg...to keep Lilly away from her parents. I have to find a way to help you," Veronica muses.
Duncan adds, "Veronica, there's one more thing. We have to be careful how we proceed. No one can know that you helped me to flee the country. There's no statute of limitations for kidnapping."
"The only people who know for sure about the kidnapping are the three of us and my dad." And Astrid and...Vinnie, she realizes, horrified.
At her expression, Logan turns to her and says, "What?"
"Vinnie Van Lowe knows. He helped us get across the Mexican border. Oh my god. That's why...that's why my dad's been helping his defense case in his racketeering trial. Vinnie must have threatened to tell what he knows about the kidnapping. I couldn't figure out why Dad was helping him, after Vinnie targeted me in the Wiedman murder investigation. Dad just said 'Everyone deserves a defense' and wouldn't discuss it," she explains.
~ • ~
Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Lompoc State Penitentiary, Lompoc, CA
In Lompoc State Penitentiary, Keith Mars and Cliff McCormick wait in the attorneys' interview room to see Vinnie Van Lowe. When the guard opens the door, they are shocked to see Vinnie shuffle in, obviously in pain, and sporting a black eye. The guard escorts Vinnie to the table where Keith and Cliff are already seated and discreetly moves a distance away.
"Vinnie, what happened?" Keith asks.
"Liam's boys got to me last night. They heard I was going to be speaking to you today, and they wanted to warn me to keep my mouth shut," Vinnie explains morosely.
Cliff clears his throat. "We can request that you be moved to solitary confinement."
"I'm not sure it would help; Liam owns a couple of the guards," Vinnie says. "Let's just face it, I'm screwed. I'll just plead guilty and spend the rest of my life in prison, focusing on keeping my mouth shut. Do you think you could arrange for some conjugal visits?"
"Vinnie, I don't understand why you're refusing to take the deal the prosecution has offered. If you testify for the prosecution against Liam, they'll have to provide a new identity and relocation," Cliff asks.
Vinnie sighs. "You're my attorney. You can't be forced to repeat what I'm telling you, right?"
"Well, if you tell me something, I can't allow you to commit perjury when you testify, and if it involves a future criminal act, I'm required to report it..." Cliff reiterates, having gone over this with Vinnie numerous times.
"And Keith, he could be compelled to testify..." Vinnie says nervously.
Keith quickly says, "Vinnie, you and I know I won't divulge anything you tell me." He stares at Vinnie, thinking about what Vinnie knows about his daughter's misdeeds.
Vinnie slowly nods. "All right, I trust you, Keith." He fiddles with his hands, delaying his words. "When I was just a kid, about nineteen, before I went in the army, I held up a liquor store." Vinnie looks at Keith and Cliff to see how they are reacting; they motion that he should continue. "I was pointing my gun at the kid behind the cash register. He made a move like he was going for a gun. He scared the crap out of me, and I shot him without thinking. I didn't mean to hurt anybody, but the kid was dead. I panicked and called my high school buddy, Liam. He and a couple guys came right away. They hot-wired the kid's car, put his body in it and took it away, then cleaned out the liquor store. I don't know what they did with the body, but I imagine they stashed it somewhere in the desert, or buried it. I was in shock, and I gave Liam my gun. I didn't even think about it at the time, but I found out later he kept the gun, with my fingerprints on it. I joined the Army the next day. The police thought that the kid had taken off with all the cash and the premium liquor from the store."
Keith looks at Cliff, then says to Vinnie, "No statute of limitations on murder."
Cliff adds, "And manslaughter committed in the course of a felony is automatically charged as murder in the first degree."
Keith comments, "We see your problem. You're positive that Liam kept the gun, with DNA and fingerprints on it?"
"Yes, he showed it to me, when he convinced me to run for sheriff. Liam laughed and said, 'And Vinnie, don't forget I'm the only one that knows where the body was buried.'"
"And it's not just that," Vinnie continues. "Even if I could somehow get out from under a murder rap, I can't even consider witness protection. Liam has a contact in the FBI. He'll know my new identity before I do."
~ • ~
Mon. 1/19/09 MLK Day: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
Duncan and Veronica endlessly rehash the problem of the Mannings' custody suit. Logan observes their conversation with growing aggravation. Finally he comments, "I don't see a solution here. I really don't like Veronica getting involved in this."
Veronica says, "I'm already involved." She looks at Logan quizzically, "There's a right thing to do, and I'm doing it." She excuses herself to go to the bathroom.
"What is your problem, man?" Duncan says to Logan once they are alone. "We used to be friends. I let you live with me after your house was burned down."
"My problem? My problem is that you put Veronica is jeopardy by asking her to help you kidnap Lilly." Logan stares at Duncan. "And you played me. You needed me to witness Kendall coming out of your room and Veronica having a freak out. What was the plan? You had Veronica wait by the elevator, then she just happened to come up to the room at the same time as me?"
"Something like that," Duncan replies.
"Did she tell you what I said? I was joking; I said, 'Time to fake the donut.'" Logan looks at Duncan, who avoids his gaze. "She jumped a mile high, must have thought for a sec I knew what was going on. But you know Veronica. She kept her cool and had her scene with Kendall. And I did my part, I reported the whole thing to Dick, and he did his job, told the whole school. Geez, Duncan, you never even said goodbye to me," he says, only half sarcastically.
Logan pauses, then plunges ahead. "Why are you coming back now, Duncan?" He adds to himself, why are you coming back now that things are good between me and Veronica? Aloud, he says, "Why didn't you just stay overseas? It seems like that would be the smartest move here."
"It's not easy being on the run, Logan. It's hard on Lilly. She has to lie all the time. More and more schools require fingerprinting, which obviously I can't allow. And as soon as Lilly and I would settle in somewhere, the Mannings' private detectives would start to catch up with us. The Mannings have backed off now, but I'm still on a U.S. watch list. There's always a danger the federal agents will find us, and it's expensive to keep moving all the time. If my mother hadn't relented and started sending me money, I don't know what I would have done. The amnesty deal is my opportunity to put all that behind me and have some semblance of a normal life," Duncan explains.
"I still don't understand why you didn't just get a lawyer and sue for custody when Meg died. You're the dad. You would have won custody," Logan insists.
"My mother said she wouldn't let me ruin my life like that."
FLASHBACK: Celeste and Duncan are arguing in the old Kane house. Celeste says, "I was always terrified that Lilly was going to get pregnant. I never worried about you; I always thought you had more sense than that."
Duncan replies, "The condom broke, Mother. Accidents happen. Deal with it. I'm going to keep the baby."
Celeste turns and screams at him, "You can't let one mistake ruin your life, Duncan. We have plans for you: Harvard, law school, Congress. I won't allow it. I'll testify for the Mannings. I'll testify that you have violent seizures and hurt your sister without even knowing it. I'll say that the medication doesn't fully control your fits. I won't allow you to keep this baby."
Across the room, Jake sips at a drink, unhappy but resigned.
Celeste continues, "If you sue for custody, we're going to cut off all your funds. No more trust fund to pay for your attorneys and your dirty diapers. You haven't even graduated from high school. How will you support your bastard child? You will do as I say, Duncan."
Duncan turns to his dad and yells, "And you're okay with this? You'd let your granddaughter live with those monsters?"
Jake says quietly, "I'm not okay with any part of this. I'm not okay with you being stupid enough to knock up your girlfriend. I'm not okay with you making sure we're featured in the tabloids again." His voice begins to rise in anger. "And I'm definitely not okay with you giving up your life because of one drunken night at prom."
Duncan flushes in anger and leaves, slamming the door behind him.
Duncan continues, "Veronica and I went to see a lawyer in Los Angeles. He said that as a seventeen year old there was a real danger I would lose custody at least temporarily if my mother testified for the Mannings. The fact that Lamb didn't arrest us the night we broke into the Mannings' house actually made it worse. The lawyer said it would support the Mannings' contention that there was no abuse, and we made it all up to try to get custody. The Mannings are churchgoers with a reputation for supporting charities and good works."
Veronica comes back into the room and says, "And they threatened Lizzie. I know it. She wouldn't even see us. She was afraid of what her parents would do to her if she testified for us. Duncan told me he was going to run with or without my help."
Logan thinks, He did it before. It's what he does. He's a fucking coward.
"Astrid came to me and offered to help. She overheard my parents talking, and she was furious at them. Veronica realized we could use the fact that Astrid looks a little like her in our plan," Duncan adds.
Logan says aloud, "So what changed? Why are you back?"
Duncan explains, "When Aaron tried to throw suspicion on me for Lilly's murder, my father realized that it was too dangerous to say that I had violent fits. He told my mother he would support my custody petition. He set up a fund that funneled me money overseas and began speaking with attorneys about amnesty. That's actually one of the reasons my parents separated. Celeste finally relented just this past year."
"That's why your parents reconciled?"
"One big happy family," Duncan says sarcastically.
Veronica, Logan and Duncan continue to talk for hours, endlessly discussing the upcoming custody battle. Throughout the evening, Veronica keeps catching Logan staring at Duncan with a bleak look. As the hour becomes late, Veronica suggests that Duncan should crash in the guest room and go back to Neptune in the morning. There is an awkward moment as the three say goodnight, with all three remembering the different sleeping arrangements at the Neptune Grand three years earlier.
In the master bedroom, Veronica undresses and joins Logan in his bed, settling herself under the covers. He turns on his side, ignoring the discomfort from his cast. Leaning on one elbow, he reaches for Veronica. With the back of his fingers, he caresses her cheek, then runs his fingers through her hair, massaging her scalp lovingly. Her eyes half-closed, she turns her head and places a kiss against his wrist. He trails his hand across her neck and down between her breasts. Watching her reactions intently, he languishes caresses on her stomach, and slowly strokes the side of her breast, so gently that for once she doesn't feel ticklish. Logan lovingly palms her breasts, circling her pebbled nipples with his thumb, then returns to caressing her face, gently touching her lips as if to memorize them. He strokes down her torso, causing her to shiver. Veronica sucks in her breath in a quiet 'oh!'. Logan slowly slides his hand down below her waist. She opens her legs invitingly as he gently strokes the juncture of her thighs. He whispers to her, "Turn on your side."
She complies, sighing and pressing her ass against him, loving the feel of his arousal.
Logan begins to stroke her pussy. He whispers in her ear, "He's laying in the next room thinking about what I'm doing to you. He knows I'm making you come right now."
Veronica turns her head in shock. She gasps, as Logan lovingly probes her sensitive areas; she tries to keep silent, mindful of Duncan next door.
Continuing to caress her, Logan murmurs into her ear, "He's listening right now, the way I used to listen. Whenever I used Kendall to get me off, I was always thinking about you next door...thinking about how much I loved you and wanted you. I just wanted to be touching you the way I'm touching you right now. I hated that he was your first." He is still touching her, languidly, loving that he, and only he, knows exactly what she wants.
She stiffens, thinking my first?
He notes her reaction and whispers, "I mean, I hate it that he's the first guy you gave yourself to. I wanted it to be me. It should have been me." He begins to stroke her violently, making her shudder.
Veronica turns her head questioningly, seeking his eyes. She tries to talk, but she can only whimper, breathless from Logan's ministrations. "Logan..." she tries, but her words dissipate into incoherent moans.
"Veronica, I love you so much. I loved you since the first day I saw you. It should have been me," he repeats, his lips brushing her ear.
She is thrashing under his stroking hand, and reaches back to touch him.
He says, "No...don't...this is about you. This is about me making you come, and he can't do a goddamned thing about it. You are mine, Veronica." He leans to her mouth, turning her head to him with his insistent lips, and kisses her hungrily. He fills her mouth with his tongue as he fills her with his fingers. He pulls her to him desperately as she comes, hard, shaking uncontrollably. She is crying soundlessly, her tears smearing on Logan's face as he kisses her. She bucks against him one last time, and begins to calm down, trembling as the aftershocks of her orgasm dissipate. Finally, Logan breaks his kiss, pulling away and looking into her eyes.
She says quietly, "Logan?"
He caresses her face gently. "No, Veronica, we're not going to talk about this," he replies, with finality, rolling onto his back.
She turns over to cuddle against him and closes her eyes, wishing futilely for the oblivion of sleep as the tears run down her face.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Nimbus
Mac is contacted about a new case;
Logan gets his cast off; there's bad news
about someone from the past.
Veronica: Kristin Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.
Mac: Tina Majorino. Hsiang Chu: Parry Shen.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER THREE: "NIMBUS"
Tues. 1/20/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
Veronica gives up on sleep at 6 am and decides to go for a run on the beach. The recent events with Harmony have reinforced her commitment to training. Whenever she stays with Logan and is unable to attend her Neptune jujitsu classes, she makes a point of running every day and working out with the lightest set of Logan's weights. He teases her about using the baby barbells but she just smiles, saying it's technique more than strength.
She runs that morning as if she's trying to pound the feelings out of herself. Winded, she walks up onto Logan's deck, where Logan is sitting sipping his coffee, staring at the ocean. "Any more of that coffee?" she asks, slightly out of breath.
He nods and she goes inside to get a cup.
She rejoins him on the deck. She caresses his arm and says, "Did Duncan leave?"
Logan just nods again.
"I'm glad," she replies. She sets down her cup and moves behind Logan. She puts her arms around him, and leans down to whisper in his ear, "I was listening too....It should have been you."
~ • ~
Tues. 1/20/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA
Charleston Chu knocks on the door of Mac's and Veronica's dorm room. When Mac opens the door, she recognizes Dick Casablancas' Pi Sig fraternity brother. She frowns and says, "Uh, Charleston, right?"
"Yeah, that's what they call me. I'm looking for Veronica," he replies. "The Pi Sigs sent me over."
"She's not here."
"You're her friend Mac, right? The one who was going out with–"
"Don't say it. I'm trying to forget that I ever went out with him." Mac grimaces, just thinking about her ill-advised dalliance with Dick Casablancas.
"Umm, yeah, right. Well, he's still totally in love with you."
"Funny, I see him with a different girl every day," Mac says sarcastically.
"We all deal with the pain of rejection differently," Charleston muses.
Impatient, Mac blurts out, "What do you want?"
"Somebody screwed up all the computers at the Pi Sig house. Chip Diller thinks someone is trying to bring down the frat again, maybe Nish and her society of frigid bitches," Charleston explains.
"And you think Veronica's going to help you?" Mac laughs. "I think she's more likely to call up Nish and congratulate her."
"We're willing to pay the Pi Sig rate," Charleston replies.
At Mac's puzzled expression, Charleston explains, "Di–, I mean one of the frat brothers said Veronica was willing to help us before when we paid double." He pulls a wad of cash from his pocket. "This is a thousand dollars for a deposit."
Despite her reservations, Mac is tempted by the cash. "I don't know. Are you sure this isn't some scheme of Dick's to try to get me back?"
"No way."
"Keep the cash for now. I'll talk to Veronica and see what she says."
Tues. 1/20/09: UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
At the orthopedist later that day, Veronica sits in the waiting room trying to get some studying done. Even Logan couldn't maintain his dour mood when faced with the prospect of being liberated from his cast.
The orthopedist, Dr. Remick, examines the final set of x-rays, and confirms that he will remove Logan's cast that day. "So, Mr. Echolls, what's the first thing you're going to do when you get this off?"
Logan looks through the doorway at Veronica and smiles. The orthopedist catches his drift and laughs. "Nothing too strenuous at first, okay? I don't want to have to recast this."
After the cast is removed, the orthopedist writes a new prescription for physical therapy. Veronica accompanies Logan to the physical therapist, who replaces Logan's temporary cane with a permanent one perfectly fitted to his height. The therapist teaches Logan the proper way to use the cane, then continues by assigning exercises and stretches. He then reviews techniques to help Logan perform everyday tasks safely. Logan, grinning at Veronica, asks about any limitations on physical activities. The physical therapist is slightly dense and says that Logan should be careful until he has completely healed.
Logan goes to change into street clothes, ecstatic to be back in his customary jeans. When he has finished changing, he looks for Veronica in the waiting room. She is pacing back and forth, watching the waiting room television, which is showing a CNN news anchor speaking grimly.
"Veronica?" Logan asks.
"Logan...it's...." she tries to speak.
On the television, a photo replaces the talking head. It's a school photo of Hannah Griffith. The graphic under the photo reads 'Saturday Night Slasher Serial Killer Strikes Again'.
The physical therapist's exercise pamphlets drop to the floor forgotten. Logan stares at the television in shock. Finally, he stammers, "The Saturday Night Slasher? Doesn't he only target...?" He can't bear to say the word.
"Yes, he targets prostitutes." Veronica grabs Logan's arm and leads him to a chair, forcing him to sit down. "They're saying that she ran away from boarding school in the summer of 2006 and her family lost contact with her. Apparently, she ended up in Los Angeles on the streets....Logan, I'm sorry."
Logan looks at her, finally focusing his eyes. "She ran away?"
Just then, the CNN news anchor is shown interviewing Dr. Tom Griffith, who says, "She took up with a bad element in high school, and we sent her to boarding school...." His voice begins to shake, and he continues, "She ran away and we haven't heard from her since. We hired private detectives, but they hadn't been able to find any trace of her. Please, if anyone knows anything...the FBI would like to speak to anyone who's been in contact with her in the last two and a half years."
"Logan?" Veronica asks.
He looks at her, the pain evident in his eyes. "She called me a few summers ago, just after Beaver...after we got back together. I told her I was sorry, but you and I were...a couple again, and....Damn it, why didn't she tell me she ran away? She told me she hated the boarding school and....How could she become, she was...Veronica, she was so...inexperienced." His voice trembles, and he struggles for control. Finally he says, "I would have helped her."
"Logan, it's not your fault," Veronica says.
"I'm not so sure about that," he replies.
Veronica is pushed into the hard plastic chair. "Sit, and pay attention." The woman grabs Veronica's hands and forces them to her thighs. "Don't move, and LISTEN!" the woman screams in Veronica's ear. Veronica flinches, and the woman shakes her shoulder roughly; Veronica mimics the girls around her and stares straight ahead and listens to the speeches.
After an hour of rambling, interminable lectures, Veronica begins to feel sleepy from the lack of sleep the night before. She sees that the girls around her are listening with rapt attention, but Veronica's head starts to nod, and her eyes close part way. Suddenly, her neighbor pokes her, and Veronica jumps, startled, accidentally striking the girl next to her. The speaker behind the podium points at her, screaming, "YOU!"
The girls around Veronica hastily stand up and drag her to the floor; Veronica kicks and fights against the sudden onslaught, but she is quickly pinned, with a girl sitting each leg and others holding her arms outstretched to the sides. Veronica yells and fights against the restraint, and the speaker comes to her and places one hand over her mouth and pinches Veronica's nostrils so she can't breathe. Veronica's vision clouds as she hears the speaker say harshly, "ACCEPT THAT WE LOVE YOU AND KNOW WHAT'S BEST FOR YOU!"
Two months earlier...
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Non Dolce Vita
An old enemy decides to exploit the bad
news, and she gets help from a familiar
face; Logan grieves.
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.
Carrie: Amber Heard. Madison: Amanda Noret.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER FOUR: "NON DOLCE VITA"
Tues. 1/20/09: San Francisco, CA
In a sleazy bar in San Francisco, Carrie Murray, the disgraced former Dateline reporter, notorious for her discredited exposé on Logan Echolls and Veronica Mars, serves one of her regulars his beer with a whiskey chaser before he can open his mouth to request it. "Thanks, sweetie," he says, slurring his words just the tiniest amount. Carrie leans on the counter, giving the man a good view of her cleavage as he pulls out his wallet. He rewards her with a ten dollar tip and a wink. She winks back and deposits the ten in her cleavage as her customer avidly follows its progress.
Carrie turns her back on the customer and rolls her eyes at her fellow bartender. He motions to the television screen in the corner and says, "That serial killer struck again. Some hooker in L.A." Carrie looks at the silent television and reads the closed captioning. 'Eighteen-year old Hannah Griffith grew up in Neptune, California...' Carrie sees the word 'Neptune' and grabs the television remote control, turning off muting.
The CNN news anchor is droning on about Hannah's early life as the screen shows a montage of family candid photos of ballet recitals, camping trips in the Sierra Nevada, and school portraits. Carrie listens intently. She calculates quickly, and realizes that Hannah Griffith was three years younger than Logan Echolls and Veronica Mars.
Carrie lifts the bar divider and makes her way to the back office where Frank, the bar's owner, is working on this week's payroll. She sits down in front of his desk and says, "Frank, I need a couple weeks off from work."
Frank frowns. While Carrie isn't the best bartender he's ever employed, her good looks have brought in more than a few new customers. She makes up for her inexperience behind the bar with a quick wit, and she has quickly caught on to the strategies Frank showed her for maximizing the bar's revenue which, not incidentally, have also increased her own tips. "A couple weeks? Carrie, you know I took a chance on you when I hired you. You had no experience and your resume was pretty questionable. Now you pay me back like this? I can't get along without you for two weeks."
Carrie stands up and walks behind Frank. She pulls his rolling chair backwards away from the desk and then moves in front of him. "Frank, I would really appreciate it if I could get a couple weeks off." She kneels in front of him and proceeds to convince him in the same time-honored way that she initially procured her position.
Frank is completely on board with Carrie's leave of absence before she has his zipper halfway down.
~ • ~
Tues. 1/20/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
Veronica had intended to return to Neptune that evening so she could attend a seminar, but Logan begs her to stay, and she agrees. She's seen Logan at his worst before, but this despair is suffused with guilt and shame, and he is completely gutted. Veronica orders dinner for the two of them from Logan's favorite restaurant, but he merely picks at his food before pushing it away.
"I really want a drink," he says abruptly. He stands up and limps over to the couch.
Veronica doesn't know how to respond.
"I know it won't help. I just keep thinking that I want a drink."
Veronica joins him on the couch, sitting turned toward him with one hand on his shoulder. "Logan, tell me about her. You've never talked about her at all," she improvises, uncertain how to help him. She tries to soothe him by caressing his arm, but it appears to have no effect.
"You don't want to hear it," he says. He remembers what Veronica said at the time: 'Toying with a sweet little girl's heart just to screw with her dad?...I get it, San Quentin isn't quite as enticing as, say, college, but damn, you've really plumbed new depths, Logan.' He flushes in embarrassment and shame at the memory.
"If it helps, I do want to hear it," she responds, becoming more certain that this will help him.
He turns to look at her in surprise, then looks away, not wanting to meet her eyes. "Veronica, she was you...Hannah was you before Lilly was murdered and you got raped, before you turned into warrior Veronica," Logan says hesitantly. "She was innocence and romance and purity, and she was naïve enough to believe in me, when all I was doing was using her."
"Logan, did you care for her at all?"
"Yes, of course I cared for her," he responds.
"Then you didn't just use her."
"Veronica, it was the most despicable thing I've ever done! Worse than bum fights, worse than setting fires. To set out to corrupt a human being in order to compel her father to withdraw his testimony..." he cries out bitterly.
"No, Logan! You didn't set out to..." she lies quickly, afraid of his anger and bile.
"I absolutely did, and you knew it at the time," he contradicts. "I was desperate. I was certain that I would go to prison if her father testified."
"So isn't he the true villain here, the man who perjured himself? And then sent his daughter away?" Veronica asks.
"He wouldn't have had to if I had kept my word to him. I promised him I would leave Hannah alone if he withdrew his testimony. But she wanted...." His voice trails off.
"Logan, she cared about you. She knew what you had intended but still saw someone worth loving. Logan, she saw what I see. You were in a fight for your life."
"No, Veronica. I was willing to sacrifice her for my life, my freedom. I am my father's son after all."
Veronica stares at him, aghast. She moves closer and folds him into her arms, murmuring, "Logan, you're not your father."
"Don't run out on me this time," he says desperately. "I can't do it without you."
This time? Veronica realizes he's trembling.
"Please don't abandon me again when I need you the most," he repeats, almost begging.
"I'm not leaving," she replies, rocking him in her arms. But she can't help thinking, Oh god, oh god, as she remembers the violent carnage that Logan left in his wake after being accused of Felix's murder.
~ • ~
Tues. 1/20/09: Interstate Highway #5, near Bakersfield, CA
On the way to Neptune, Carrie Murray has an idea. She pulls to the side of the road and looks up a name in her notebook. She dials the phone number. "Madison Sinclair, please?" After a brief conversation, she decides to head for USC instead to meet with Madison the next morning.
~ • ~
Late Tues. 1/20/09-Wed 1/21/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
For the first time since they reunited, Logan and Veronica spend the night together without making love. Veronica holds him in her arms, worrying, trying to come up with a strategy to help him. Just the day before, Logan's grand obsession had been his plans for steamy sexcapades after getting his cast removed. The past several months, even with the fallout from the accident and the shooting, have been close to idyllic; they have rediscovered each other, with the time they spent apart during their sophomore year giving them the space to forgive and, more importantly, to miss each other. She remembers her complaints that Logan was indifferent and unmotivated freshman year; this new Logan who has finally found something to be passionate about is vibrant and compelling. And yet, from the moment that this new tragedy surfaces, the old obsessive, self-hating Logan emerges, wallowing and self-destructive. She finally falls asleep in exhaustion.
She wakes some time later on her side with Logan pressed up against her back. He whispers, "Veronica?" She leans back against him sleepily, and he murmurs "Make love to me?" She hears him, and knows he means, 'Love me...do you love me? Please...love me.' He gently pushes her top leg forward, spreading her. He nudges his cock between her legs, sliding smoothly, stimulating and exciting her, even in her drowsiness, god feelssogood. She reaches down and strokes him as he presses into her more urgently, and he thrusts a little harder into her hand, exhaling a huff of pleasure into her ear. He insinuates his hand across her arm and runs the back of his fingernails gently across the sides of her breast. She matches his breaths, panting and suddenly gasping as he flicks his fingertip against her impatient nipple and cups her breast possessively. "Love you," he breathes into her ear, "Love you so much, Veronica. Want to make love to you."
He subtly changes the angle of his thrusts, seeking, striving, diffusing her moist arousal over himself. Logan urges her to roll over, and she shifts onto her hands and knees. He sighs, "Fuck, Veronica... have I told you today that you have a legendary ass?" He bends down to her and begins to kiss her ass, reaching around and between her legs to stroke her as he slowly drags his tongue along the cleft between her rounded cheeks. She sways helplessly under his touches, shivering as he fitfully hits her engorged nub.
He maneuvers himself so that he covers her back, rubbing his pelvis against hers as she moans and pushes back into him. He momentarily seems to stumble a little, and she suddenly stiffens and says, "Logan, your knee, be careful," but he merely grabs her hair, turning her head to him, and kisses her, thrusting his tongue into her mouth deeply as his cock persistently assails her. She reaches down and guides him to her entrance, angling her pussy for him, and he pushes in swiftly as he feels himself connect. She moans aloud at the ferocity of his movement and pushes back against him, urging him on, "Oh please, Logan, god, fuck me..." Logan places a palm on her back; she looks back at him and sees the arousal and the intensity and need need need in his eyes. He gently encourages her downward, and she acquiesces, leaning on her elbows, her ass in the air, spreading herself more for him, as he drives mercilessly, thoroughly. He pulls out and pauses, and she groans, "No, please don't stop," and he suddenly drives the length of himself into her; she gasps "Logan" and arches into him with the pain and oh-my-god-the-pleasure-of-it: him, inside me. She leans onto one elbow and reaches down to touch herself; he growls, "Yeah, come on, Veronica" and she shudders. "Come on, baby, yeah, come for me, fuck! Veronica," he moans, driving relentlessly into her as she bucks and trembles, stroking herself frantically.
She jolts awake suddenly to the sound of the alarm and sees that it's five a.m. Logan has finally fallen asleep beside her. She quickly turns off the alarm before it can wake him and dresses quietly, hoping he can get some much needed sleep. Veronica spends a moment watching him sleep, thinking about who needs who in this relationship. Before she leaves, she writes him a note.
Dear Logan,She thinks a minute, then adds,
I have to go to class today. Please call me when you get up. I am only a phone call away if you need to talk. I love you.
Veronica
You're the best thing in my life.
~ • ~
Wed. 1/21/09: near USC, Los Angeles, CA
Madison Sinclair opens the door to her well-appointed off-campus apartment. "Come in," she almost purrs to the waiting reporter.
Carrie Murray enters the apartment, glancing around at the luxurious trappings. She reflects that Logan Echolls is not the only spoiled Neptune brat now living in Los Angeles. She sits down on the comfortable white sofa that Madison indicates and gets out her digital recorder and notepad.
"So you're doing an article on Hannah Griffith?" Madison asks. "I loved your report on Logan and Veronica, by the way. I think you're the only reporter that got it right. It's ridiculous that she got away with murder. Veronica always was a lying tramp, and Logan couldn't help but fall under her spell."
"Yes, I'm working on an article about Hannah. I was wondering if she was friends with Logan or Veronica," Carrie explains. "There doesn't seem to be much that happens in Neptune that those two aren't involved in."
"Well..." Madison stalls. She looks at Carrie, calculating.
"I'd be prepared to make you the focus of my story if you know something. As told by...with a large photo. And of course, I can offer you a large payment." Carrie crosses her fingers, knowing that she has no money to offer Madison until she sells the story.
"I wouldn't want to...profit...from Hannah's terrible tragedy," Madison muses, thinking that the money is completely beside the point. "But, the photo...I am trying to break into newscasting myself. This could be helpful."
"Absolutely. Do we have a deal?" Carrie extends her hand, and Madison shakes it, nodding.
"Well...for some reason, Logan took an interest in Hannah Griffith his senior year. Everyone knew that Veronica had dumped him for her old boyfriend Duncan at the beginning of the year," Madison begins.
Carrie nods, urging her on.
"And then–oh it was so gross–the gossip was that Logan was screwing his best friend's stepmother."
"Really?" Carrie says, taking notes.
"Logan was out of control. He was living in the Neptune Grand Hotel, no parental supervision you know. He was accused in the murder of a local gang member and was wearing an ankle monitor at the time. Of course, he was still allowed to go to school functions, and that's where he met Hannah. She was three years behind us, really too thin and not very pretty at all if you ask me, but for some reason Logan was smitten. He tried to keep the relationship quiet, but I saw them making out by the soda machine in the lunch area."
"Oh, these details are wonderful," Carrie comments. "It really makes the story sing. You'll see when you're a newscaster yourself," she adds, buttering up her source.
Madison smiles, then continues, "I heard through the grapevine that Hannah told her friends that her parents tried to split them up. Of course, everyone always let me know what was going on, because they knew that Logan and I had been friends forever, and I had been dating his best friend Dick."
"Really? You used to date Richard Casablancas, Jr.? The one who was driving in the accident last fall?" Carrie scribbles a note.
"One and the same. I can tell you stories about Dick...." Madison comments. Realizing from Carrie's lack of reaction that she is not very interested in Dick, Madison returns to telling the story of Logan and Hannah, leaning conspiratorially toward Carrie. "I heard that Hannah's father stormed into Logan's suite at the Neptune Grand and found Logan in the process of deflowering his precious daughter. Dr. Griffith shipped Hannah off to boarding school the very next day, and no one ever heard from her again."
"No one? Not even her friends?" Carrie asks.
Madison shakes her head no. "The word was that it was a very strict school. To Logan's credit, he did seem to be upset about it, at least for a few days. Then he started pursuing Veronica again."
"Hmm. So Hannah was just...a dalliance for him," Carrie comments.
"He can be very callous," Madison replies, thinking about Logan not returning her phone calls after their tryst in Aspen.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
What Tangled Webs We Weave
The complications of Vinnie's defense and
Duncan's custody battle; the FBI pursues
leads on Hannah's murder.
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Cliff: Daran Norris.
Agent Morris: Lucy Lawless. Agent Carney:
Jason Isaacs.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER FIVE: "WHAT TANGLED WEBS WE WEAVE"
Wed. 1/21/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA
"Knock, knock?" Cliff calls out as he enters Mars Investigations.
"In here," Keith answers from his inner office.
Cliff enters Keith's office and takes a seat facing Keith. "Have you had any brilliant ideas regarding Vinnie's defense?" Cliff asks.
"The only choice is for him to turn state's evidence, and he can't do that if Liam still has the evidence from the liquor store murder. I've been looking up the old newspaper reports from the robbery. It was well before my time here at the Sheriff's department. The kid's name was Matt Dannon. It seems that no one doubted that the kid whom Vinnie killed ran off with the money; he was a kid who'd been in trouble with the law before."
"You know, Keith, if you're thinking about tampering with the evidence from that crime, I can't hear it." Cliff puts his fingers in his ears and sings 'la, la, la, la'.
Keith waves his hand in front of Cliff's face, and when Cliff is listening again, continues, "Cliff, if you could concentrate on getting Vinnie a deal, I'll take care of the rest of it. Rest assured, I would never tamper with evidence in an ongoing investigation."
Cliff, noting that Keith is splitting hairs, says, "Ongoing investigation, my ass. What about the witness protection angle?"
"Vinnie said that he doesn't trust the FBI to make him disappear, but let's let them think that he's going to take advantage of their offer. I'll work on setting up a new identity for him somewhere overseas. Cliff, if Liam had evidence, where do you think he would keep it?"
"Unh, unh, unh," Cliff says, waving his finger 'no, no' in Keith's face. "I'm not telling you that Liam would probably have one of his many relatives hold evidence like that. Oops. I would never tell you that."
Veronica enters the office, calling, "Dad?"
"In here, Veronica." Keith stands up to meet his daughter halfway. He is shocked by her expression. "Honey, what's wrong?"
She hugs him and he holds her tight. "Dad, didn't you hear about the serial killer?"
"The Neptune girl who was killed? Veronica, was she a friend of yours? You never mentioned her to me."
"She was a few years behind me in school. But Dad...Logan dated her for a while. Her dad was the false witness in Felix' murder case, and Logan pursued her to get her dad to withdraw his testimony. When Logan didn't break it off after Dr. Griffith recanted, her parents sent her away to boarding school to break them up. Logan's completely devastated; he feels like her murder is his fault."
"Oh honey," Keith says.
Cliff comments, "So that's why Dr. Griffith recanted? I was certain Logan was going to go away on that charge."
Veronica wipes some tears from her eye, and sits down. "There's no way the tabloids will miss this. Someone will dig this up, and it will start all over again, just when the publicity over Harmony was starting to die down."
"Veronica, it'll be okay–" Keith starts to reassure her.
"That's not all," Veronica interrupts. "Duncan's back. The Kanes' attorneys finally reached an agreement with the district attorney on the kidnapping and murder charges."
Cliff and Keith exchange a glance.
"He's going to plead guilty to misdemeanor child endangerment and be sentenced to community service. But he still has to win custody of his daughter. The Mannings have found an expert witness who will testify that Lamb's blackmail tapes were manufactured. Duncan has to provide evidence that the Mannings abused their daughter Grace."
"Veronica, you can't be thinking of testifying. They'll charge Duncan with felony breaking and entering, and you could be charged with aiding and abetting in the kidnapping," Cliff comments quickly. "I've heard about the plea arrangements down at the court house. The Mannings are gearing up for a big fight over custody, and they're not going to take this lying down."
"I know. Cliff, can you help with this? There's got to be a way to help Duncan. Can we get immunity from prosecution for testifying?"
"No," he shakes his head, "There's no benefit to the prosecutor's office. They won't be offering any kind of deal like that."
"What else can we do? We can't let the Mannings have custody of little Lilly," Veronica cries.
"Maybe Duncan shouldn't come back," Keith says, thinking, This is exactly the wrong time for this, with Vinnie threatening to tell about Veronica's part in the kidnapping.
Veronica looks at her dad in shock. "You can't mean that. Duncan's been on the run for three years."
Keith spreads his hands and shrugs. "Veronica, it might have been the right decision at the time for Duncan to run with baby Lilly, but his actions have had far-reaching consequences, for himself and for you. I'm not going to let you do anything that will jeopardize your future. I'm hoping you learned something from that experience. I'm already concerned that the Harmony Chase shooting will have an impact on your future with the FBI, and I don't think you want to have another felony charge on your record. The FBI has already questioned you regarding the kidnapping, and you were lucky to escape charges at the time, and even more lucky that they overlooked it when you applied for your internships."
Veronica is silent, thinking about living with the consequences of her actions. Then she finally replies, "I'm not giving up. There's got to be something I can do to help Duncan."
~ • ~
Wed. 1/21/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
Logan hears the doorbell and a incessant pounding on his front door through the haze of his exhausted sleep. He rolls over and puts the pillow over his head, but the pounding continues. "Echolls? Open up! FBI. We need to speak to you. Logan Echolls!!" The doorbell rings again. The words 'FBI' penetrate his semiconsciousness, and he reluctantly rolls out of bed, grabbing his bathrobe. He shrugs into the bathrobe and takes his cane from next to the bed.
He walks to the door, leaning on his cane. The pounding continues, and Logan realizes that he's developing a splitting headache that's sure to get worse when he faces what's behind the door. Logan disengages the alarm system and opens the door, wincing against the bright light of the Los Angeles late morning sun.
"Late night, Mr. Echolls?" a blonde woman asks. "I'm Agent Morris, Federal Bureau of Investigation." She flips open an ID case so that Logan can see her identification. "This is my partner, Agent Carney. We'd like to speak with you about the murder of Hannah Griffith. May we come in?"
Logan recognizes Agent Morris as one of the two agents who searched the Neptune Grand Suite after the Faith Manning kidnapping and is momentarily panicked that the agents somehow know Duncan was there two days before. He takes a breath to steady himself, looking at Morris' and Carney's ID's briefly, then steps aside to allow them to enter the beach house. He follows them in to the living room and proceeds to the adjoining kitchen area as they settle in on his couch. "D'you mind if I make some coffee?"
"Do you always sleep until eleven in the morning?" Agent Carney asks.
"Only when I can't sleep until noon," Logan quips. He grinds coffee beans and adds water to the coffee maker. "I had some bad news yesterday and had some trouble getting to sleep," he adds, more seriously.
Agent Morris clears her throat. Consulting her notes, she begins to speak. "Mr. Echolls, we've been informed by Tom Griffith that you had a relationship with his daughter Hannah three years ago. He also said that you had promised to break off the relationship, but continued to see his daughter against his wishes; he stated that that was the primary reason his daughter was sent to boarding school."
"Well, I guess that's essentially correct. I tried to break it off with her, but she still wanted to see me. She was persistent, and I did care for her; so, yes, I did continue to see her against her father's wishes. Her father, by the way, is a lying cokehead, in case you didn't know." Logan gets out three coffee cups as the coffee brews.
"So you admit that you had a relationship with her? A sexual relationship?" Carney probes.
"Is that illegal now? What was it Hoover said? 'I regret to say that we of the FBI are powerless to act in cases of oral-genital intimacy, unless it has in some way obstructed interstate commerce.' I'm not seeing any interstate commerce issues at play here." Logan's sarcastic words are belied by the slight tremor in his voice.
"The FBI Behavioral Science Unit is involved as a matter of course in serial crimes," Morris says. "Let's get this out of the way. Mr. Echolls, where were you on Saturday night, January 17th?"
Logan breathes out a sigh. He brings the three coffee cups to the living room, placing them on the table in front of the couch, then returns to the kitchen for the coffeepot and a container of cream, holding them awkwardly with one hand as he leans on his cane. "I was with my girlfriend, Veronica Mars, the entire weekend." Morris looks at Carney with an 'I told you so' expression. Logan sits down, pouring himself a cup of coffee and adding cream. He motions to the agents that they should do the same, and continues speaking. "Veronica came up for the long Martin Luther King Day weekend to study. Both of us are behind in our school work due to the events of last semester. I had to write a sample screenplay treatment, and she was working on her final statistics project from last fall. On Saturday we went to hear some music. Several of my friends saw us there. In addition, our picture was taken by one of the paparazzi. I'm sure if you contact the good people at E! Online, they'd be happy to lend you a copy."
Logan sips at his coffee, then adds, "And by the way, until January 20th, I had a cast covering my entire right leg, and I could only walk with crutches. So, unless I'm mistaken about the modus operandi, I'm not sure how I could have kidnapped Hannah and slashed her throat while using crutches." As he makes this last remark, his voice strengthens, knowing that it clinches his innocence. "I'm not really sure why the FBI would be looking at a boyfriend from three years ago in this case. I don't think I have much confidence in your ability to find this serial killer."
Carney looks at Logan angrily. "We follow every lead in every case. These questions have to be answered. And after all, this is the second girlfriend of yours that was murdered–"
Morris interrupts as Logan stares balefully at Carney. "Mr. Echolls, we know that your relationship with Hannah was some time ago. Have you had any contact with her since then? Were you aware that she had run away from school?"
"I heard from Hannah once, in the summer of 2006. She asked if I still felt the same way about her. I had recently got back together with my girlfriend Veronica, and I told Hannah that of course I cared about her, but Veronica was the woman I intended to spend my life with." Logan's voice drops, as he talks about spending his life with Veronica. "Hannah was upset, but she said she understood."
"How did she make contact?" Carney asks.
"She called my cell phone."
"Do you remember the date?" Morris presses.
Logan thinks a minute. "I think it was in July. I remember Veronica and I were at the beach when she called."
"We'll check your cell phone logs for that month. It sounds like she called you not long after she ran away," Morris muses.
"Why was she still in boarding school in the summer?" Logan asks. "Shouldn't she have been on summer break?"
"Apparently, she was a recalcitrant participant in the school's therapy programs, and the school recommended that she remain at the school over the summer for more intensive work," Carney explains.
"Recalcitrant? I'll bet. What a crock. Hannah was a sweet girl. She didn't have any emotional problems, never drank or took drugs, never was in trouble any day of her life," Logan insists.
"Perhaps you never really knew her. Her records at the school indicate she was in trouble almost constantly from the day she got there," Morris says, consulting her notes. "She was diagnosed with a borderline personality disorder, with a tendency to sexual addiction. She was engaging in 'cutting' and other self-destructive behaviors."
"That's absolutely impossible," Logan says vehemently. He looks at the agents, hesitating, then plunges ahead. "Hannah and I...we made out, a lot...I saw her entire body. She definitely was not a cutter."
"Perhaps she was depressed that her father broke you two up," Morris suggests.
"I don't believe it."
"She did become a prostitute, Mr. Echolls. I think it's fair to say that you don't really have any idea what Hannah became after she left Neptune," Carney states. "We'd like to get your statement in writing. We're going to take a trip down to the LAPD. Of course, we'll be looking at your phone records to see if we can determine where she was calling from when she contacted you."
"I don't understand how all this is relevant to the serial murder investigation anyway," Logan protests.
"The profilers working on the case always want to know every fact available about the victims," Morris says. "You never know what piece of information might break the case. Get dressed, Mr. Echolls."
"I need to call my attorney first. I'd like him to meet us at the police station."
"Your choice, Mr. Echolls. You're not under arrest," Carney says.
"You'll excuse me if I don't want to take a chance in that regard," Logan comments bitterly.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Tabloid Reality
Veronica back at Hearst; Carrie aims
for the money shot; Mac checks out the
Pi Sig's problem.
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Wallace: Percy
Daggs III. Carrie: Amber Heard. Mac:
Tina Majorino. Dick: Ryan Hansen.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER SIX: "TABLOID REALITY"
Wed. 1/21/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA
In the Neptune food court, Veronica checks her messages, frowning at Mac's text explaining about the possible case for the Pi Sig fraternity, then chuckling when she reads 'offered to pay Pi Sig rate'. She texts back, 'ask for triple'. She surfs to a news web site on her laptop in order to catch up on the latest online newspaper reports on Hannah Griffith's murder while eating her lunch.
'The body of Hannah Griffith, 18, was discovered late Sunday night in an alley on Olive Street in downtown Los Angeles. The area is known to police to be a popular spot for prostitutes soliciting clients. Ms. Griffith's body was concealed behind a dumpster, but police stated that, as in all of the other murders attributed to the Saturday Night Slasher, the murder is believed to have been committed elsewhere, and the body was placed in this location afterwards. No weapon was found at the scene of the crime.Veronica dials Logan's cell, and is surprised to have the call go directly to voicemail. She smiles at the chipper tone of his outgoing greeting, but then frowns, realizing that he hasn't changed it from two days ago when his mood was considerably brighter and more hopeful. 'Hello, you've reached Logan Echolls with today's inspirational message. "What matters the false directions in life if a few fervent and luminous hours give meaning to a lifetime. Emile Zola." Leave a message after the beep.'
'The Los Angeles County Coroner's office has stated that the cause of death was a knife wound to the neck. "It appears that the victim's wounds are similar to the wounds of the previous victims of the so-called Saturday Night Slasher," said Scott Carson, a spokesman for the coroner's office. "Preliminary toxicology reports indicate that a large quantity of heroin was ingested not long before the victim's death."
'A spokesman for the FBI Behavioral Science Unit also confirms that certain elements of the crime are similar to those of the previous victims of the Saturday Night Slasher.
'The Los Angeles Police Department reports that Ms. Griffith did not have a police record, and they have not been able to locate the victim's place of residence. They are asking anyone with knowledge of Hannah Griffith's recent whereabouts and activities to call 1-800-555-TIPS.
'Hannah Griffith resided in Neptune, California with her parents, Dr. Thomas Griffith, and Ms. Stephanie Denenberg, until three years ago, when her parents arranged for her transfer to the Briar Hill Academy in Manchester, Vermont. Hannah Griffith left the school against her parents' wishes in June of 2006. Ms. Griffith's whereabouts from 2006 to present are not known. Anyone with any information is asked to call the hotline number listed above. A memorial service for Ms. Griffith will be held in Neptune on Saturday, January 24 at 2:00pm.'
"Hey Logan, just called to say I'm thinking of you and wondering how you're doing. Call me later. Love you." She terminates the call, refusing to think about the irony of Logan referring to the 'false directions in life'.
Wallace joins her at the table. He sees the online newspaper article about Hannah Griffith and says, "You heard?"
She nods.
Wallace exclaims, "I can't believe another one of Logan's girlfriends was murdered...as if he didn't have enough issues."
"There's going to be another shitstorm when that comes out," she comments.
"Maybe it won't be so bad," Wallace says hopefully.
"Not a chance in hell...what's going on with you? How was the honor society dinner?" she replies, trying to change the topic.
"Funny you should ask. I was hoping you could do me a favor."
"Wallace...." she says warningly.
"We're still BFF, last I checked, and I need you to do your girly-girl detective thang." Wallace leans in and hands her a slip of paper. "You're going into the office today right? Can you check out this woman for me? I met her at the dinner, she's....well, I need an in with her, and I don't want to be the one looking her up on PryingEyez."
"Oh my god, are you in wuv?? That's so sweet. And you want me to check her out for you so you don't feel like a perv." Veronica says teasingly.
"Don't mock the love, Vee. I'm just afraid she's a little out of my league."
"No such thing, Fennel. All right, let me see what I can come up with."
~ • ~
Wed. 1/21/09: Venice Beach / Los Angeles, CA
After leaving Madison's apartment, Carrie Murphy drives to Logan's Venice beach house. She hasn't made up her mind whether she intends merely to spy on him or if she's going to ring his doorbell and try to get him to react to her planned story. She sits in her car just watching for a few moments. The front door opens, and Logan, escorted by a man and a woman in dark clothes, leaves the house. When the woman turns slightly, Carrie reads the letters FBI on the back of her jacket. She gasps and grabs her camera. She adjusts the zoom and rapidly takes a series of shots of Logan walking with the agents and then being helped into the backseat of the agents' car.
Carrie follows the car as it proceeds to downtown Los Angeles. At a stoplight, she rummages in her camera bag and locates a telephoto zoom lens, realizing it might be necessary for the shot she's hoping to get. Her suspicions are confirmed when the agents' car pulls into the LAPD parking lot. She quickly parks at a meter within one hundred feet of the main entrance. Carrie can't believe her luck when she manages to get a clear telephoto shot of Logan Echolls being escorted into LAPD headquarters by two FBI agents.
~ • ~
Wed. 1/21/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA
Mac looks through the peephole of her dorm room door at Dick Casablancas and sighs. Through the door, she calls out, "Dick, I told you. I don't know what I was thinking. We have nothing in common except our friendship with Logan and Veronica, and that's just not enough to have a relationship." Or even a friendship, she adds in her head.
"I know, I fucked up bad. I got drunk and kissed that girl at the Delta Tau party," he replies morosely. "Wish you'd give me another chance. You know we had fun together. C'mon, Mac, let me in."
Ignoring his pleas, she says, "What do you want? I'm trying to study here; you know, that's why we're here at college."
"Speak for yourself; I'm here for the parties," he can't help joking.
"Dick, please. Find some sorority girl to harass, willya?"
"Okay, but a sorority girl is not going to be able to help the frat with our computers. Did you talk to Veronica? Please, Mac, will you help us? The brothers told me they would kick me out of the frat if I couldn't get you guys to look into this."
"Will you promise to leave me alone if we help you with this?" she says hopefully.
"I promise."
She opens the door. Dick wisely refrains from speaking and hands her a laptop computer. She sighs and takes it from him. Mac puts it on the desk and opens it; when she recognizes the web site, she exclaims scornfully, "A porn site? I'm not going to help you guys download porn. Besides, what do you even need porn for? I heard you were back to sleeping your way through the freshman class and posting your ratings on Facebook."
On-screen, a window shows the last few lines of an online instant-messaging conversation.
ANYA35: is anyone thereMac regards Dick quizzically. "So?"
DICKSTER: hey baby
ANYA35: are you looking for fun
DICKSTER: always
ANYA35: come to my website babesluvchat.com i want to meet you
DICKSTER: tell me more
ANYA35: live girls chatting online
ANYA35: r u still there dickster
ANYA35: i want to meet you
"That's not the first time it's happened. And ever since the first time, my computer's been acting crazy."
Mac looks at the screen and says, "Is babesluvchat a site you've seen before?"
"No, I've never heard of it. But when I asked Chip Diller about it, he said that he's gotten these chat invites all over the place recently. Sometimes they direct you to a site with downloads, and sometimes it's one of these chat sites."
Suddenly worried, Mac types in the URL for the website YourCheatingHeart.com that she and Veronica had created in the fall for cyberdaters to check out their potential matches. She is shocked to see a chat screen pop up on their site as well despite the security icon that is displayed in the corner.
LARA77: hi thereAs Dick, Mac types:
DICKSTER: hi yourselfDick looks at Mac and says, "Maybe I should be doing the typing."
LARA77: are you looking for love
DICKSTER: of course what do you look like
LARA77: i'm blonde eighteen years old
Mac shrugs, and says, "Go ahead. Just let me read it before you hit enter."
Dick takes Mac's seat at the desk and types:
DICKSTER: how big are your boobsMac sighs, but shrugs "ok" when Dick looks to her for permission to hit enter.
LARA77: substantialMac says, "Wait!" as Dick starts typing. He holds the delete key down, erasing what he was typing, and waits for Mac to instruct him. Finally she says, "Type, 'what does it cost? I don't have a credit card'." Dick looks at her, then types her request.
DICKSTER: can i see them
LARA77: come to my website superhotgirls.com
DICKSTER: what does it cost i don't have a credit cardThe pop-up box disappears. Dick says, "What happened?"
"I think it's a scam. Let me see," Mac replies, motioning Dick to let her sit at the keyboard. She types furiously, and Dick watches as she scrolls through command line codes. At one point, she mutters, "What the hell?", and suddenly the screen fills with a weird graphic typed over and over.
"It's the logo for the Cult of the Dead Cow. They're a bunch of hackers who find the weaknesses in computer programs and then publish them on the internet. They wrote a program called 'Back Orifice' that allows any user to operate another user's computer as long as Microsoft Windows is installed on the target computer."
"So they're evil computer hackers?" Dick says, slightly confused.
"Not really. They're more like activists. They have an agenda, but it's usually not for their own financial gain. That's what doesn't make sense," Mac replies. "Dick, did you go to one of these web sites and click on anything?"
"Of course!" he says. "Free porn, how could I resist?"
"I'm pretty sure you inadvertently downloaded a malware program." At Dick's continued look of confusion, she explains. "When you clicked on something, it downloaded files into your computer, probably to try to get any financial information you might have stored on your hard drive. When I tried to get information on this messaging program, it triggered a command in the program that overwrote your hard drive."
"Shit, is my laptop wiped out?" Dick says, panicking.
"You still have the automatic backup program installed that I put on there, right?" Mac asks. Dick nods, and she takes pity on him, "All right, I'll help you. I should
"So then why did everyone start having problems?"
"Because you're all downloading porn, apparently. I can check all the computers at the house and either try to get rid of the malware or help you guys set up new hard drives with better virus protection. For a rather substantial fee, of course."
"What about this Cult of the Dead Cow? Are you sure it's not Nish and her psycho Amazons?" Dick asks.
"I doubt that Nish would use such a convoluted scheme to bring you guys down. Her style is newspaper exposés and Take-Back-the-Night rallies. But I want to find out more about the Cult of the Dead Cow. I'm sure my computer expert friend can help. In the meantime, I'll have to shut down the YourCheatingHeart website until I can figure out how to upgrade our security," Mac muses. She pulls out her cell phone and sends Veronica a text message explaining what she's doing and why. Then she sends another text to Max, asking to meet with him, '911'.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Peccavi, Mea Culpa
Logan and his shrink; Keith plants
some bugs; Veronica worries.
Logan: Jason Dohring. Dr. Friedman:
Lorraine Bracco. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.
Veronica: Kristen Bell.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER SEVEN: "PECCAVI, MEA CULPA"
Wed. 1/21/09: Los Angeles, CA
Logan sits in the waiting room at his psychiatrist's office, his head down, staring at his feet. He fumbles nervously with his cane, occasionally checking the time on his cellphone, which shows '5 missed calls' on the display. When the door opens, he looks up anxiously.
"Logan? Did we have an appointment?" Dr. Friedman says. She notes the dark circles under his eyes and walks over to him. "Are you all right?"
"Not really. Your service said you had an available time now; is it okay to talk?" he says hesitantly.
"Let me just finish up with my patient." She returns to her treatment room, shutting the door; Logan hears murmuring voices. A middle-aged woman exits the inner office and leaves, avoiding Logan's eyes. Dr. Friedman calls out that Logan can come in now.
He stands up, and, leaning on his cane for more than physical support, enters her treatment room and takes his usual seat. Now that he is here, he is uncertain how to begin. Logan meets Dr. Friedman's eyes, then drops his gaze to the floor as he ruffles his hair.
"I see you got your cast off. I'm sure that's a significant improvement in your life," she starts, innocuously.
He huffs a quietly sarcastic laugh. "Yeah, my life is really improving."
"Did something happen? Is Veronica all right?" Dr. Friedman presses.
"The latest victim of the Saturday Night Slasher is, I mean was, an old girlfriend of mine. From high school," he finally says.
Dr. Friedman sucks in her breath. Inwardly cursing her inadvertent reaction, she says, "What was her name? Can you tell me a little about her?"
"Hannah," he says quietly. "She was...." His voice trails off; he has no idea where to begin.
"Start at the beginning, Logan."
He tells her the whole sordid tale, from targeting her at the carnival to the vicious scene at the Neptune Grand when her father drags her away, half-dressed, still protesting her love for Logan.
FLASHBACK: Logan is kissing Hannah's stomach below her pink undershirt as she caresses his head and arms. He looks at her, and she smiles. He unbuttons her jeans and kisses her below the waist. Dr. Tom Griffith and a Neptune Grand employee burst into the suite. Griffith yells, "Hannah!...Get dressed!" To Logan, he says, "I told you to stay away from her. You're lucky I don't kill you."
Logan confronts Griffith, saying, "Don't speak to her like that....There's nothing you can do that'll stop me from seeing her."
Griffith gets in Logan's face and spits out, "You want to bet?" He grabs Hannah and drags her out of Logan's room.
Logan quotes the recent news reports. "So I'm the 'bad element' that her dad was getting her away from when he sent her to that boarding school. I'm the 'corrupter of innocents' that set her on her path to destruction." This last phrase is a direct quote from the televised Gracie Jane interview that he couldn't help hearing as he sat at LAPD headquarters waiting for his statement to be typed. He continues, "The FBI told me she was cutting herself at the boarding school. What I did to her...she must have...I ruined her life."
"Tell me again why you pursued her," Dr. Friedman asks.
"Her father gave false testimony that he witnessed me stab Felix Toombs. When Veronica investigated him for me, I noticed that he had a daughter at Neptune High. So I thought I would, you know, play to my strengths," he snorts derisively. "Exploit my bad boy reputation for all it was worth. She was a few years younger than me and had never even had a date before. All I had to do was turn on the Echolls charm, and she came running, begging for me to corrupt her."
"This was to pressure her father to retract his testimony?"
"Fucking lying cokehead," Logan says bitterly.
"And you say that Hannah was willing to continue to date you even though you told her the truth about why you originally went out with her?"
Logan nods.
Dr. Friedman continues, "Did you ever do anything to Hannah against her will? For instance, did you pressure her to have sex with you?"
"Of course not. She suggested it. It's a talent I have; the girls just seem to line up and throw themselves at me, even if they know better." His sarcastic tone is vicious, shocking Dr. Friedman with its intensity.
She remains quiet, looking at Logan with concern.
Finally, he can't stand the silence, and yells, "Say something! Tell me I'm a fucking degenerate, or that you can't stand to be in the room with me. Fucking say something!"
She responds quietly, "Logan, you told Hannah why you had pursued her. And she forgave you."
He pushes himself up out of his chair violently, leaning on his cane and pacing around the room. "Goddammit, that's the same shit that Veronica said. I know that's not how she feels either. Why can't you just tell me that I don't deserve to live? That I'm responsible for Hannah becoming a hooker? That I caused her death?"
"Do you truly feel that you don't deserve to live, Logan?" Dr. Friedman says quickly. "Haven't you been working hard to make your life better? You've been happy lately. You have a healthy relationship with Veronica for the first time ever. I've seen her with you. She cares about you deeply."
Logan continues to pace angrily around the room. "I don't deserve her. Every woman that I love gets hurt eventually just because they're around me. Lilly got killed BY MY FATHER! Why do you think he first noticed her? Because I brought her around the house. Veronica was raped because of me and my great GHB plan. And now, Hannah is killed because I couldn't keep my promise to her father to stay away." He throws himself back down in the chair, wincing when he lands awkwardly on his right leg. "Do you know what Veronica said to me at the time? 'You've really plumbed new depths, Logan.' I keep hearing her say it, over and over. I can't even stand to look at her, knowing what she thinks of me."
"Is it possible that Veronica said that at least partially out of jealousy?"
He doesn't respond.
"Logan, you are not responsible for Hannah's death. You are possibly responsible for her going to boarding school, which was almost three years ago. In those three years, she had contact with perhaps thousands of people who influenced the course of her life. Do you truly claim responsibility for every event that happens to every person you have had contact with throughout their lifetime?"
Logan exhales sharply, but does not answer.
"Have you thought about hurting yourself, Logan?"
He nods 'yes'.
"Have you thought about how you would do it?" She watches him closely, hoping that he will say no. Dr. Friedman is immensely relieved when Logan shakes his head 'no' without looking at her. "What is stopping you from hurting yourself, Logan?"
He shrugs, then says, almost inaudibly, "It would hurt Veronica. I can't do that to her."
~ • ~
Wed. 1/21/09: St. Mary's Church, Neptune, CA
Keith waits in his car outside St. Mary's. He has gone over the possibilities in his head compulsively since his meeting with Vinnie in Lompoc. Although Vinnie swore that the shooting was an accident, Keith knows that there is no escaping his culpability. He imagines the grief and worry of the boy's family, who thought he had committed a crime and disappeared forever, to live god knows what kind of life on the run. Keith can't conceive of not knowing where Veronica is, of not being able to pick up the phone and talk to her. He is certain that Vinnie will carry out his threats and testify that Veronica was involved in the Manning baby kidnapping if Keith doesn't help him; he can't see a solution except to do as Vinnie wishes. He finally decides that he can't bring the boy back to life, but he can spare his own child from prosecution for a crime that was in essence a selfless act of charity for another child.
The bells ring signaling the start of the 5:00 p.m. mass. The service appears to be sparsely attended but Keith decides to wait another ten minutes for latecomers. While he waits, he pulls on a pair of latex gloves and removes his gun from the glove compartment, placing it in his shoulder holster under his jacket. A short middle-aged woman exits the priest's residence. Keith observes her through his camera's telephoto lens and confirms that she is Mrs. O'Grady, Father Patrick Fitzpatrick's cleaning lady. She pulls the door shut behind her, checking to see that it is locked. At 5:15, Keith exits his car and quickly walks to the back of the priest's residence. Holding the screen door with his shoulder, he picks the relatively simple lock on the rear door and enters the residence. He makes his way through the house, searching for an office.
Keith enters Father Patrick's office. Spying a computer, he turns it on. While he waits for it to boot up, he looks around the office for suitable locations for the video and audio transmitters he has brought with him. The miniature video camera, hidden in a compact disc jewel case, is easy to hide among Father Patrick's collection of The Three Tenors and Frank Sinatra cd's. He puts one audio transmitter behind a large decorative cross high on the wall behind the desk, hoping that the diminutive Mrs. O'Grady will be lax about dusting up there. Keith pries open the cordless handset for the telephone and hides another among the electronic components.
He replaces the phone and looks at the computer monitor. A login screen confronts him. He frowns and tries a couple obvious passwords with no success. Keith notes the wireless keyboard and mouse and remembers that Mac told him that these devices were relatively susceptible to hacking via a Bluetooth connection. He comments to himself that this humble parish priest has a surprisingly expensive computer system. Checking his watch, he then takes a cursory look at the papers on the desk. There is a substantial amount of correspondence between Father Patrick and his lawyers. Of all the people indicted in the recent racketeering scandal, Father Patrick was the only conspirator who was released on bail, due to his lack of a criminal record and his upstanding reputation. No criminal activities that we know of, Keith thinks. He turns off the computer, reminding himself to call Mac about the wireless keyboard, and double-checks that his surveillance devices are not visible and that he has left no trace of his intrusion.
He returns to his car and drives to a diner for dinner, killing time before returning later that night to place several more transmitters in the church itself, including one in the confessional booth.
~ • ~
Wed. 1/21/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
Logan checks the screen on his cell phone and realizes that Veronica is not going to give up. He hits the talk button, saying, "Hey."
"Logan, I've been so worried. Where have you been all day?" she says quickly. "Are you okay?"
"The FBI questioned me about Hannah. I had to give a statement about the time she called me a couple years ago," he says quietly.
"A statement? Are they...." she says hesitantly.
"No, they don't think I did it. I told him we were photographed by one of the paparazzi on the night Hannah was killed, and I pointed out that I still had a cast on my leg at the time. They seemed to be satisfied, but they'll probably want to talk to you anyway. It's that same FBI agent, the woman who investigated Duncan when he kidnapped baby Lilly."
Veronica sucks in her breath. She remembers that Agent Morris was pretty smart.
Logan continues, "They're trying to identify the phone number Hannah was calling from. I don't know what that has to do with her murder."
"They're probably trying to create a profile in case the killer isn't selecting his victims at random."
"I thought...I thought this guy was just picking prostitutes," Logan queries.
"From what I read today, he's what the FBI calls an organized killer. He kills the woman, then stages the crime scene later, so he can control the evidence and forensics. Sometimes organized killers have a convoluted reasoning that determines the identity of their victims and other aspects of the crime," she explains. "The profiler takes all the information about all the victims and tries to predict the characteristics of a likely killer. A disorganized killer doesn't have the mental capacity to have a complicated process where he picks a victim, and he usually can't keep it together to control the crime scene the way that the Saturday Night Slasher does."
"That's just great, he's organized. Where did you learn this stuff? Is that what you did at your internship?" he says morosely.
"No, we learned about this in my Intro to Criminology class freshman year and also in my Abnormal Psych class. Logan, the fact that the killer is organized makes it more likely he'll be caught. A truly random killer is far more frightening because there's no underlying pattern to be discovered."
"I'm sorry, I'm not finding that very comforting."
"Logan...are you all right? Do you want me to come stay with you? I can skip class tomorrow–"
"No. Veronica, I kind of need some time alone right now. I know I'm not...responsible for what happened...but I'm pretty upset. I just need...I don't know what I need but I think it's something I need to go through by myself."
What happened to 'please don't leave me'? What has changed? she thinks. She says aloud, "If you're sure...I'll come up if you change your mind."
"I'm coming to Neptune for the memorial service on Saturday. Will you go with me?" Logan asks.
"Of course. I love you, Logan." She ends the call, thinking, I'm not sure going to the funeral is a great idea.
Veronica is roused from a deep sleep. She is shaken roughly, and when she doesn't move fast enough, she is slapped twice on the face and hears, "Do you think you're special? Let's go. Get your shoes on right now, or you can hike without them." Veronica quickly gets out of bed and pushes her feet into her tennis shoes; like her roommates, she lines up and keeps quiet. Single-file, they march to the common room, where they stand at attention to listen to a diatribe about the value of exercise and spiritual toughness. The hike leaders, wearing down jackets and hiking boots, hustle the girls outdoors. Veronica shivers in her light sweatshirt, but by now knows better than to ask for a jacket. The leaders set a fast pace, and the girls struggle to keep up. Veronica is starving; last night's meager dinner of oatmeal and an apple seems a distant memory.
After five miles of relentless hiking, they are met by two different leaders who take over for the first set. Veronica sees that all the girls are tired, but no one says a word when they set off again after a minute or two. Veronica's leg begins to cramp, and she starts to limp and fall behind. One of the leaders jogs back and yells. "Stop being so lazy! Keep up with the group!"
Veronica says weakly, "I have a cramp."
The leader blows a whistle, stopping the hike. All the girls stop, staring at Veronica. "Fifty pushups, let's go!" the leader says. When Veronica doesn't get down fast enough, the hike leader shoves Veronica on the back, and Veronica falls to the ground.
The hike leader looks around at the girls and says, "If she doesn't do the pushups, no one will have dinner today. And five extra miles on the hike."
The girls begin to scream at Veronica, "Do it! Goddamn it, do the pushups." A few begin to approach Veronica, making as if to kick and punch her, and Veronica shakily begins to do her assigned pushups.
Two months earlier...
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Deep Down and Dirty
Candice checks out; Veronica suggests a
new tactic in Duncan's custody case; a new
exposé on Logan; Keith gets in deeper.
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Wallace: Percy
Daggs III. Duncan 2.0: Chris Carmack.
Logan: Jason Dohring. Keith: Enrico
Colantoni. Eli: Francis Capra.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER EIGHT: "DEEP DOWN AND DIRTY"
Thurs. 1/22/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA
Veronica enters Wallace's dorm room. "Wallace, I don't know how to tell you this," she says somberly.
"What is it? Is Candice married? I know, she's got a criminal record, doesn't she?" Wallace moans, holding his head.
"Wallace, I can't find a single thing wrong with this woman. Except that she's way too smart. She got a perfect score on her SAT's and entered college at sixteen. She graduated Georgia Tech summa cum laude. She spent the last year in the Peace Corps and wrote several articles about her experiences." Veronica hands Wallace some printouts. "No quickie marriages, no criminal record, no bankruptcies. There is one thing though."
"What??" he asks, despairing.
"She doesn't appear to be a basketball fan. And I see no evidence that she knows how to bake snickerdoodles."
Wallace glares at her. "Thanks a lot. What about hobbies, things like that?"
"You're on your own for that, dude. I will, however, agree to set up a bump and dump should you need it."
Wallace looks at her thoughtfully. "Bump and dump, huh?"
"I did happen to get a copy of her schedule. Looks like Thursdays she's free between one and two."
"Okay, you're on. Lunch today, one o'clock."
"See ya then, studmuffin."
Veronica leaves Wallace's room smiling. No clandestine mob connection to Candice's parents? Check. No secret love-child in Brooklyn? Check. Her cell rings and she hits the talk button.
"Veronica?" Duncan asks.
Ah, speaking of a secret love-child.... "Hey, uh, Daniel," she says, looking around to see if anyone can overhear her conversation. "I talked with Dad and Cliff yesterday. They are not optimistic about me testifying. Cliff said there's no chance of a deal with the prosecutor's office."
Duncan/Daniel says quickly, "Then what are we going to do? My deal with the prosecutor's office is going to expire in three weeks if I don't turn myself in."
"I did have an idea. There is someone else who can testify about the abuse that was going on in the Manning house," Veronica says. "Lizzie."
"Lizzie?" Duncan asks. "She hates us. She'll never testify for us."
"She hates us. But, Duncan, she's never met Lilly. What if we surprised her and showed her how happy Lilly is? And the other thing is...." Veronica starts.
"What?"
"Lizzie feels like she got screwed out of a normal teenager's life because of Meg's pregnancy and Lamb blackmailing her family. What if we offered that to her...what if you paid her enough money that she could go to whatever college she wants and get out from under Stewart's thumb?" Veronica suggests. "Just think how you feel. You've been screwed out of that too."
"Yeah. You're right," he agrees.
"It'd be worth it. Just pay her, and both of you can put Stewart Manning behind you."
"Do you think she would tell her parents if she turns us down?" Duncan worries.
"It doesn't matter. They know we're desperate. How much worse could it get? Right now, you're considering turning down the prosecutor's deal and returning to a life in exile," Veronica replies logically.
"I guess you're right.... Hey, how's Logan doing? This exposé that's running is completely unreal. It makes the Tinseltown Diaries look like kid stuff."
"What are you talking about?"
"The story on TSG? The one about the FBI suspecting him of being the serial killer?"
Veronica hears a commotion behind her. She whirls around and sees a reporter and a video cameraman. "Got to go. I'll be in touch about Lizzie." She hustles back to Wallace's room and bangs on the door. "Let me in, Wallace!"
The reporter, hurrying to catch her, calls out, "Any comment, Ms. Mars?"
Wallace opens his door, saying, "You need to chillax, Vee! What the hell–"
She pushes him inside and slams the door shut. "Get up the Smoking Gun web site."
Her heart sinking, Veronica reads a report titled "Son of Murderer Aaron Echolls Arrested in Connection with Serial Murder Case" complete with pictures of Logan being escorted into an FBI vehicle and entering LAPD headquarters with the agents. She winces as she hears knocking on the door and voices calling her name.
"Oh shit," Wallace says.
The article speculates on comparisons of Aaron murdering his girlfriend with the possibility that Logan killed his ex-girlfriend Hannah. No motive is given, although the article implies that Hannah was murdered to protect Logan's current relationship with Veronica. There is a prominent picture of Madison Sinclair, and she is quoted extensively throughout the article.
"This doesn't have any basis in reality," Wallace comments.
"The FBI didn't arrest him, they just asked him to provide a statement about the last time Hannah contacted him," Veronica moans. "He has an alibi, and the motive is ridiculous."
"God, Madison sure hates you. Talk about a bunny boiler!"
"It's mutual. I should have cubed her car when I had the chance." At Wallace's quizzical look, she adds, "Never mind. It's not important." She tries to call Logan, even though she's certain his phone will be off. The call goes directly to voicemail, and she hears a message, 'Voicemail box is full. Please try your call later.' Veronica hangs up and looks closer at the web page. She gasps when she sees that the byline reads, 'Story by Norman Phipps. Additional reporting by Carrie Murray.' She sits down heavily on the bed, and Wallace joins her, hugging her.
Thurs. 1/22/09: Logan's house, Venice Beach, CA
In Venice Beach, Logan shuts down his computer with a shaky hand. He stands up, trembling with rage and humiliation, and goes to the window. Leaning on his cane, he peeks out and sees that there are reporters lining the driveway. He quickly moves away from the window, his stomach beginning to clench and heave. The room begins to spin around him, and he stumbles toward the bathroom, just barely making it before he loses his breakfast in the sink. He runs some water in the sink and splashes cold water on his face. He looks at his face in the mirror, and suddenly the room appears to tilt sideways. Logan's breathing quickens, and his heart begins to pound, seeming to fill the silent room with its thumping. Logan falls to the floor in a faint, his cane clattering to the tile floor next to him.
When he comes to a few minutes later, he is at first uncertain where he is. He looks around the bathroom and focuses on the glass shower door. Logan stares at the glass door for long minutes as, unbidden, memories of the night of the accident a few months previously begin to surface. He groans and shuts his eyes to try to block out the flashes that besiege him: the crash of the glass door when he slams his hand into it; Dick's panicked assessment of Logan's wound; the nightmarish trip through the jostling crowd of screaming reporters; and finally leaning against Dick's car door, thinking that everything is so blurry and why is there so much blood.
He lays on the floor of the bathroom for a long time, trying to sort out the flashes into some sort of coherence. The neurologist had told him it was unlikely that he would ever completely remember that night considering the head trauma that he sustained in the car accident. The elusive nature of the memories is frustrating and terrifying. Suddenly another memory assaults him: Aaron screaming at the top of his lungs at eleven-year old Logan cowering on the bathroom floor. Aaron begins to strike him repeatedly with an open hand as Logan tries to avoid the blows, a punishment for some infraction of the rules that Logan cannot fathom to this day. In the present day, Logan mentally relives the traumas, drawing himself into a fetal position and crying soundlessly, hopelessly, until at last he falls into an exhausted sleep.
~ • ~
Thurs. 1/22/09: El Cajon, CA
Working on phase two of his plan to help Vinnie Van Lowe, Keith drives down to El Cajon Gun Exchange.
"I'm looking for a Smith & Wesson 539 9-millimeter semi-automatic," he says to the man behind the counter, perusing the contents of the display cases.
"They only made that model for a few years in the eighties. It's pretty rare. I know I don't have any in stock," the man says, thoughtfully.
Keith shows his PI license to the man and says, "It has to be that particular gun. It's for a case I'm working on."
"Hey, are you any relation to Veronica Mars? She used to shoot here all the time last fall."
Keith suppresses a sigh. "I'm her father."
"Well, tell her hi from Fred. Mr. Mars, I can make some calls, and see if any other dealers have one. In the meantime, do you see anything else you like?" Fred motions to the impressive assortment of modern weaponry.
"No thanks. If you could just let me know right away if you find a 539, I'd appreciate it. I'll tell Veronica you said hello."
~ • ~
Thurs. 1/22/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA
"Break it up!" Eli Navarro calls out. Veronica has called him for help, asking him to get rid of the reporters who have besieged Wallace's room. "You guys don't have permission to be on campus. I've called the local sheriff's department, and they're on their way." Sirens can be heard approaching the campus, and the reporters reluctantly leave, grumbling about their free speech rights.
"Veronica, it's Weevil, let me in."
She cautiously opens the door and allows him to enter.
"This is some sick shit that going on," he says. "It's worse than the Aaron Echolls trial. I never thought I'd feel sorry for Logan."
She glances at him, startled.
"Get your stuff; I'll take you to class and make sure these guys leave you alone," Weevil suggests.
They walk together. Twice reporters try to approach, and both times Weevil menacingly orders them to leave her alone.
"My personal bodyguard," Veronica comments.
"About time you let someone protect you," he replies.
"You know that tomorrow there will be pictures of you and me with the caption 'Veronica Mars leaves Logan Echolls, runs to her Latin lover'."
"As long as they spell my name right, I'm okay with it." He throws an arm over her shoulder. "So you're not going to look for this serial killer. I'm not asking. I'm telling you. I know you think you're invincible, but you're not."
"I hadn't thought of it."
"Bull, Veronica. You're just this guy's type, you know."
"Now you're calling me a hooker?" she asks.
"No, but you're young and female. And he gets off on hurting people. You're not gonna mess with this," Weevil says.
"I'm not going to," she swears.
Weevil stares at her, hoping she's telling the truth for once.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Flirting with Disaster
Nerd bonding; Keith probes St. Mary's;
Veronica helps Wallace with his crush;
the FBI comes calling.
Mac: Tina Majorino. Max: Adam Rose.
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Veronica: Kristen
Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring. Wallace:
Percy Daggs III. Candice: Toy Connor.
Morris: Lucy Lawless. Carney: Jason Isaacs.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER NINE: "FLIRTING WITH DISASTER"
Fri. 1/23/09: Neptune, CA
Max plugs a USB cord into the hard drive from Dick's computer and begins to copy the files onto his own computer. While waiting for the copying to finish, he leans back in his chair and regards Mac. "So how've you been? I checked out your web site. It definitely serves a need. There are way too many noobs on the internet."
"Things are good. I'm still going out to Vegas playing cards, but the pressure to make money is off so I can have more fun. What about your business?" Mac replies.
"Fortunately, there aren't too many college kids who actually care about getting an education, and I'm right there to supply them with the papers and tests they need to get their degree with the minimum amount of work," he answers. The drive finishes copying, and Max sits up quickly, banging the front two legs of his chair on the floor. "Let's see what we got here." He scrolls through the same files that Mac had found, but more warily, keeping in mind her warning. He stops and points to the screen. "You're right, your client did have a malware program on his drive. You said that the screen was overwritten with the Dead Cow logo?"
Mac nods.
"That's totally crazy. Those guys are my heroes. They're hackers, to be sure, but their agenda is about exposing software flaws, not unleashing malicious viruses. Lately, they've been working on the Goolag project," Max comments.
"Right, I read about that. They're protesting Google's decision to comply with China's Internet censorship policy. 'Goolag–Exporting censorship, one search at a time.'"
"Mac, can you bring up the chat program that you told me about?" Max says.
Mac turns the keyboard and logs onto the porn site that Dick had been on. Max raises his eyebrows questioningly. She says, "The client is sort of lowbrow."
"Client, huh?" Max clicks on the system profiler window and highlights the text 'Dick Casablancas' Computer'. "I heard you were seeing Dick Casablancas, but I didn't believe it."
"Are you keeping tabs on me?" she says in surprise.
"Isn't stalking just another way to say 'I love you'?" he replies, laughing.
She punches him in the shoulder. He rubs the shoulder ruefully and says, "I'm not ever going to wash this shirt."
She explains, "I'm not seeing Dick anymore. It was just temporary insanity, okay? He promised to stop bothering me if I helped him and his frat buddies with this."
Max looks at her for a moment, then continues, "Okay, I'm going to try to get the attention of the IM program." He begins to click on various salacious photos and browses through the linked pages.
Suddenly, a message window opens.
BRANDY42: hello anybody there
Mac and Max exchange a glance, and Max types:
MAXIMAN: hi baby
BRANDY42: i've been waiting for you
MAXIMAN: i'm looking for something special
BRANDY42: like what
MAXIMAN: more personal
BRANDY42: what are you into baby
MAXIMAN: i have needs
BRANDY42: are you on facebook i'd like to see your picture
MAXIMAN: i'd rather meet face to face
BRANDY42: i can't do that i need to check you out first
MAXIMAN: how old are you
BRANDY42: twenty-one how old are you
MAXIMAN: thirty-five
Mac looks at Max in surprise, and he says, "Just wait."
BRANDY42: i like older men
MAXIMAN: i bet
Max signs off and turns to Mac. "I've heard about this, but this is the first time I've seen it. It's called a 'flirt-bot'. The software was developed in Russia. It's been seen on dating sites and porn sites. The idea is to mimic human interaction to try to get the user to supply personal information, or to get them to go to a remote site which will then infect the computer with malware that will collect data."
"'Flirt-bot'? You mean that's a computer program, not a human? It's been different every time," Mac says in amazement.
"It's designed to gauge the responses of the human and respond in kind. Some people think it actually passes the Turing test of artificial intelligence," Max replies, almost reverently.
"So how do we get rid of it on our website? And how do I prevent it from reinfecting my...uh...clients when they surf onto porn sites?" Mac asks. "I don't want them coming back to me for help because it happened again. And what's with the Dead Cow logo stuff?"
Max ponders. "I guess whoever's responsible for this is trying some misdirection by blaming a known hacker group. I have a contact in the group. Let me get in touch with him and see if he has any ideas how to keep it off your site."
~ • ~
Fri. 1/23/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA
Keith checks on the bugs that he placed at St. Mary's. He accesses the Sonic Snoop program and enters the serial numbers of the devices he planted in the priest's office and in the church itself. He listens to a short one-sided phone conversation, then checks the bug he left in the phone, which recorded both sides. He nods with satisfaction that the voice-activated audio recorders are functioning properly. Keith then peruses the image captures from the video devices in the church. He chuckles when he realizes that he has inadvertently taped a young couple making out in the confessional booth.
~ • ~
Fri. 1/23/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA
In the Hearst Food Court, Veronica tries Logan's cell phone again with no success. She calls Dick, who answers, "Hey Ronnie. Thanks for getting Mac to help us."
"At triple rates, it's hard to say no....Dick, have you talked to Logan?"
"Not since yesterday."
"Me either," she replies. "I'm pretty worried after what happened because of the Dateline interview. But he told me not to come."
"And you're going to start doing what you're told NOW?"
She is silent for a minute, then says, "Dick, I think he's ashamed about Hannah. He blames himself. He said he doesn't want to see me. Can you try to call him? He's not picking up for me."
"All right. I'll call you right back," Dick acquiesces.
She waits impatiently, drumming her fingers on the table. She sees Wallace and waves at him to come over. Her phone vibrates, and she grabs it quickly. "Hello? Dick?"
"No, it's me," Logan says. "Dick said you were worried. Listen, I'm okay. It's crazy here; I'm not going to lie. I'm just going to stay in. I hired a limo to take me to Neptune for the funeral Saturday. I'll pick you up at your dad's at ten," Logan says.
"Logan, talk to me. What's going on? I think I should come up–"
"NO, VERONICA."
Veronica is stunned into silence. Wallace looks on, worriedly.
Logan continues, more calmly, "I don't want the reporters harassing you too."
"But–"
"No. I'll call you later." He ends the call abruptly, and she stares at the phone in disbelief.
"Hey, are you okay?" Wallace asks. "You know, we don't have to do this today. My love life is not that important."
She turns her head so Wallace can't see her wipe a tear from her eye. "No, let's do it. It'll be fun. Are you sure you can handle your end of it?"
"Vee, I can't even believe you said that. Nothin' but net, baby!" He pantomimes shooting a basketball.
"Remember to do it just like I taught you, Fennel," she smiles back wanly.
They scan the crowd of students entering the Food Court for lunch. When Candice enters, Wallace nudges Veronica. "Spiffy," she comments, nodding, and Wallace elbows her again. They walk over toward Candice, who has a loaded lunch tray and is making her way to the cash register to pay.
As they approach, Veronica begins to speak animatedly, gesturing with her hands. "So then he says to me, can you believe it, he ACTUALLY SAYS, 'I don't think this is working for me'. After I caught him talking to that skank at the party–" she turns around, continuing to come closer to Candice as she walks backward. When Wallace subtly nods, she 'accidentally' bumps into Candice, slipping her hand underneath Candice's tray and knocking it to the floor, making sure to push it away from Candice so she won't be splattered.
"Oh my god, I'm so sorry, let me help you," Veronica exclaims.
"Why don't you ever watch where you're going? I can't believe you did that," Wallace says. He grabs napkins from a dispenser, and kneels down to help Candice. "My friend is such a klutz. Can I get you a new lunch?"
Candice, trying to salvage her lunch, says, "It's okay, I'm sure it was an accident." She looks at Wallace and says, "Wait, we met the other night. Walter? Wally? Something like that?"
Wallace is crushed, but recovers quickly, "Wallace. Wallace Fennel. The Tau Beta Pi dinner."
"Right," Candice says.
Wallace takes the tray, dumps its contents in the garbage, and says, "Let me buy you a new lunch. My treat, to make up for my friend." He quickly makes his way to the counter to order a replacement lunch.
"I'm so sorry, I don't know what's wrong with me," Veronica says again. "It didn't get on your clothes, did it? Wallace is always having to clean up my messes."
"It's all right," Candice replies.
"My name's Veronica. I'm a criminology major." Veronica extends her hand for Candice to shake.
"Candice. I just started in the master's engineering program." She smiles as she releases Veronica's hand.
Wallace joins them with a new tray for Candice. "Don't you have class now, Veronica?" he says.
"Oh you're right. Nice to meet you, Candice," Veronica says, wiggling her fingers as she walks away.
Veronica turns and watches Wallace pay for the lunch and lead Candice to a table. He catches her eye and smiles, and she thinks, Poor woobie, he's got it bad. She sighs, worrying about Logan alone in Los Angeles, wishing he'd let her come be with him.
~ • ~
Fri. 1/23/09: Mars Investigations, Neptune, CA
Keith accesses the PryingEyez database. He's been thinking about what Vinnie said, that Liam Fitzpatrick claimed to know 'where the body is buried', and he's had an idea. Liam's not a trusting guy, and he doesn't leave anything to chance...especially something as important as a dead body that was necessary to keep a bought-and-paid-for sheriff in line. He types in 'obituaries' and 'St. Mary's cemetery' and limits his search to a period from the date of Sheriff Lamb's accidental death to six months after Vinnie's election as sheriff. Keith finds that there were six interments in the small cemetery adjacent to St. Mary's during that time. One name stands out on the list: Cormac Fitzpatrick. He thinks a minute, then requests information on requests for exhumations approved by the Department of Health during the same period. The results of this search adds two names to his list. The second of the two names is Mary MacDonald, and the family member requesting the exhumation is listed as Liam Fitzpatrick.
~ • ~
Fri. 1/23/09: Hearst College, Neptune, CA
Veronica is trying to study without much success when there is a knock on her dorm room door. "Ms. Mars? FBI." Veronica opens the door cautiously. Her heart sinks when she recognizes Agent Morris along with another FBI agent.
"Come in," Veronica says with resignation.
The two agents offer their ID for Veronica to inspect, and she looks at them carefully. The other agent is Thomas Carney, who appears to outrank Agent Morris. Veronica hands back the IDs and is surprised when Agent Morris runs the interview.
"Well, Ms. Mars, I can't say I'm surprised to see you in trouble again. I couldn't believe it when I heard you passed the background check for the FBI internship program. You really must have friends in high places," Morris comments.
"What's this about, Agent Morris?" Veronica says abruptly.
"Just routine questions. Were you with Logan Echolls on the night of Saturday, January 17th?"
"Yes, we took a break from studying and went out to hear some music. There were paparazzi at the club who took pictures of us; I think it was E! Online."
"Yes, that's exactly what Mr. Echolls told us," Agent Carney comments, glancing at Morris.
Veronica remains quiet, her lips pressed in a thin line of anger.
"Were you friends with Hannah Griffith in high school?" Agent Morris continues.
"I saw her around school, but I never even spoke to her."
"You knew she was seeing Mr. Echolls though?"
Veronica frowns, and says, "What are you implying?"
"I'm not implying anything. Did you know she was involved with Mr. Echolls?" Morris presses.
"Of course. The whole school knew," Veronica explains.
"Was this is a serious relationship?"
"I'm not sure why you would ask me about this."
Morris stands, and clasps her hands behind her back. She walks around the room and approaches Veronica. "We're just wondering if Mr. Echolls continued to see Hannah after she left Neptune."
"My understanding is that she was taken away from Neptune by her parents. You make it sound like Hannah had a choice in her actions," Veronica replies.
"You do know that she contacted him in the summer of 2006?" Morris asks. Carney stares at Veronica, and she falters a little under his stern gaze.
"I didn't know at the time. But he mentioned it to me when he heard she had been killed. He was upset that he didn't know that she needed help, and he wished that he could have assisted her."
"You mean he wished he had helped her to run away?" Carney says quickly.
Veronica realizes her error. "He wished that she had asked him for help, and he would have done whatever was LEGALLY possible to help her."
"Legally? Hmm..." Agent Morris turns to Carney. "What's the status on the Kane kidnapping case? That's still open, right?"
Carney responds, "The Kane case is still unsolved. But the scuttlebutt is that it's just a matter of identifying his accomplice."
Veronica narrows her eyes at the not-so-subtle threat. "I heard that Jake Kane is close to working out an amnesty agreement with the prosecutor's office on his son's behalf. And I'm really not understanding the connection between the Kane kidnapping and Hannah's murder."
"Your boyfriend flees the country with his love-child. Another one of your boyfriends dates a girl who then runs away. Maybe the connection is you. You were busted for making false ID's, as I recall. Perhaps you've got a little business setting up new identities," Morris says.
"Those charges were dropped," Veronica protests.
"It all comes down to connections, Ms. Mars. Must be nice to have a dad in law enforcement who watches your back. Oh that's right, your dad's not in law enforcement anymore; something about a digital video recorder being erased while in his possession at the sheriff's department," Carney says sarcastically.
Veronica remains silent for a moment, then says, "You know, as much as fun as this is, I really have to get to class. Let me know if you have any other questions for me, and I'll be happy to answer them." She stands up and pointedly opens the dorm room door for the two agents to exit.
"Really nice to see you again, Ms. Mars," Morris says as they leave.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Eulogy
Hannah's memorial service.
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Logan: Jason Dohring.
Keith: Enrico Colantoni. Dr. Griffith: Rick Peters.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
CHAPTER TEN: "EULOGY"
Sat. 1/24/09: Neptune, CA
Veronica waits impatiently at the Sunset Cliffs apartment for Logan to pick her up for Hannah's memorial service. Logan called her two times in the last two days; both times he refused to say more than that he was doing alright and was keeping a low profile. She checks her phone again, but Logan has not called since the last time she checked thirty seconds ago.
Finally there is a car horn outside. She quickly checks to make sure that there are no reporters. She grabs her dark suit jacket that she bought for her FBI internship and puts in on over her conservative black dress. My funeral dress, she thinks. She's worn it to three funerals: Lilly's, Meg's, and her mother's. She dons her oversized sunglasses, acknowledging the cliché to herself, but nonetheless unwilling to exhibit her naked face to the world at this event.
Veronica slides into the backseat and joins Logan in the limo. She removes the sunglasses and kisses him. She pulls back to look at his face and is shocked at his haggard appearance, despite the expensive dark suit he is wearing. She subtly sniffs and is ashamed of her suspicions but relieved not to smell alcohol. "Logan, when's the last time you ate something?" she worries.
"I had breakfast this morning," he says shortly.
She doesn't believe him, but doesn't press the issue. "It's good to see you. Will you stay for the weekend? I've missed you, Logan." She leans against him. When he doesn't automatically put his arm around her, she takes his arm and places it over her shoulder.
"I think I'm going to go back right after the service," he replies.
She sits forward and turns to look at him. "Why are you pushing me away? You said you were scared I was going to run away again, and now you're the one who's running away."
"I'm not running away, I'm protecting you," Logan says vehemently.
"Protecting me? From some asshole reporters?" she responds angrily. "I don't need you to protect me. I do need to be with you. And Logan... You. Need. Me. Look at you. You haven't slept or eaten in how many days now?"
"I'm protecting you from me. All the women around me always get hurt, because of me," he bites off.
She is stunned into silence. Finally, she says, "What about the times you saved me? Beaver? The River Stix? MERCER??!!"
"Again, you're missing the point. You wouldn't have needed saving from the River Stix or Mercer if it hadn't been for me. And Beaver? Don't you think I should have noticed something was wrong with him? He's my best friend's brother; he tagged along with me and Dick that whole summer before senior year. I should have realized he was a psychopath. Yep, you can put me down as responsible for that one too."
Defeated, she slumps against the seat. What is going on? Is he breaking up with me? Why is he acting like this?
She tries again. With a superhuman effort, she keeps her voice calm. "Logan, all I know is that I love you, and I've never doubted that you loved me too."
"I've never? I've never...done anything to hurt my girlfriends," he says sarcastically, pantomiming drinking. "I've never...corrupted a naïve freshman." Again, he pretends to drink. "I've never...introduced my underaged girlfriend to my statutory rapist father. Shall I continue? There's probably not enough alcohol in the world for me to play this game right."
Veronica crosses her arms and huffs a breath, trying to think how to deal with this new incarnation of psychotic jackass...a psychotic jackass determined to punish himself. Her eyes fill with tears, and she tries valiantly to keep Logan from noticing.
Finally, he takes pity on her. "Veronica, all I want to do is protect you, and it seems that all I ever do is hurt you. I just...couldn't take it if anything happened to you." He reaches for her hand, and she hangs on for dear life.
As they approach the church where the memorial is being held, Veronica raps on the divider and asks the limo driver to stop. "Logan, I think it would be less obvious if we get out here and walk."
"All right," he agrees.
They exit the limo and, seeing a group of somberly dressed people ahead, rush to tag along, hoping to blend in with the crowd. Both Logan and Veronica put on sunglasses, though neither is optimistic that they will remain unrecognized. Logan struggles a little to keep up, leaning heavily on his cane. At the front of the church, Sheriff D'Amato and several deputies are posted, preventing reporters from entering and disturbing the memorial. Logan and Veronica nod at Leo and enter the church, sitting in a pew well to the back.
The church is packed with multitudes of curious onlookers unable to disguise their prurient interest in the latest Neptune scandal. The murmurs of the crowd are a constant humming background to the eulogies being given from the altar. Veronica discreetly looks around and is relieved to see that everyone's attention is on the grieving families at the front of the church: Hannah's mother, Stephanie Denenberg, sits on one side of the church with an older woman, presumably Hannah's grandmother; Dr. Tom Griffith sits on the other side with a woman and a baby. Did the cokehead doctor remarry? She tries to think if she heard anything about Griffith, but draws a blank. Why didn't the Fitzpatricks ever punish Griffith for not testifying against Logan? Maybe they did, and we just don't know about it. What the hell, we never figured out why they were so determined to frame Logan in the first place. She continues to scan the crowd, recognizing a few familiar faces from Neptune High School, including Principal Clemmons, Ms. James and several students whose names she does not recall.
She turns toward Logan. His eyes are closed, and she's certain he's still torturing himself with regrets about Hannah. She takes his hand, and Logan opens his eyes and regards her. She pulls his hand to her lips and gently kisses his hand. The faintest smile possible touches the corners of his lips, only to disappear immediately.
Several girls come up to the altar together. One approaches the lectern and speaks hesitantly. "We were on the track team with Hannah. She was the sweetest girl we ever knew, the best friend you could have; she was always ready to believe the best of everybody. It was hard for her when her parents got divorced; she loved them so much." The girl pauses, and stares at Dr. Griffith. "But we lost Hannah twice: when her parents took her away from us and now permanently to a horrible killer. She never did anything wrong, and she was punished as if she was a criminal. We loved you, Hannah. We miss you." The girls traipse down the steps of the altar, staring accusingly at Dr. Griffith as the crowd murmurs excitedly.
Logan reflexively tightens his hand into an angry fist in Veronica's hand; she caresses his hand until he relaxes.
Dr. Griffith stands and slowly makes his way to the altar. The gossiping silences, as the audience eagerly awaits. "I'd like to thank you all for coming today. Hannah was my jewel, my princess. She was a precious gift to her mother and me. When she began to have trouble with depression and anger, it was the hardest decision her mother and I ever had to make to send her away for help."
Veronica notices out of the corner of her eye that Ms. James frowns when she hears Dr. Griffith mention 'depression and anger'. The undercurrent of whispered gossip begins again.
Dr. Griffith continues, "Regrettably, we waited too long to get help for Hannah, and we lost her to god knows what horrors." His voice breaks, and he says, "I'm sorry...Hannah, we loved you so much, I'm sorry we couldn't help you." He covers his eyes with his hand, apparently weeping. The reverend stands and helps Dr. Griffith return to his seat in the front row.
Logan whispers intensely, "Liar."
Veronica turns to him and shushes him. "Don't," she says under her breath.
He looks at her with unfocused eyes, then his gaze clears, and he nods imperceptibly at her.
The reverend ends the service, and the family stands to leave the church first. As Dr. Griffith passes Veronica's and Logan's pew, he notices Logan and stops dead. "You. What the hell are you doing you here, you bastard?"
"I'm grieving for your daughter," Logan says, standing angrily. Veronica puts her hand on his arm and tries to force him to sit down. Logan continues spitefully, "Your precious jewel, the one you dragged to boarding school against her will."
"Logan, no!" Veronica says.
Dr. Griffith aims a punch at Logan's face. Instead of avoiding the blow, Logan allows it to land; he sags a little, then stands again, saying bitterly, "Go ahead, hit me again; you can't make me feel any worse than I already feel." Dr. Griffith complies, and Logan goes down. Reporters break past Sheriff D'Amato and his deputies, and the crowded church rushes to witness the spectacle at the back.
Veronica tries to go to Logan, but she is pushed aside as several people try to restrain Dr. Griffith, who continues to beat on Logan. She fights her way toward him, screaming, "Stop it!" She is buffeted by the throngs of people trying to get a look at the scene. Flashes from cameras blind her, and someone pushes her; Veronica is knocked off her feet, hitting her head on the edge of the pew. The world goes dark as she blacks out.
~ • ~
Sat. 1/24/09: Neptune, CA
"Honey? Open your eyes. Come on, Veronica, wake up," Keith says.
Veronica opens her eyes. She sees her dad staring at her with concern, and she realizes that she's in the emergency room.
"Honey? You got knocked out," Keith explains.
The doctor pulls the curtain shut around the bed and flashes a light in Veronica's eyes. "It's probably just a minor concussion but it's a good thing the paramedics brought you in to be sure."
Veronica asks, "Logan?"
"He's right here, honey," Keith says. Logan stands up and approaches the bed.
"You are such a jackass," she says quietly. "You practically begged him to hit you."
"That's me, I'm a jackass," he answers. "Are you okay?"
"Better than you, apparently," Veronica replies, noting his cut and swollen lip and black eye. She reaches up and touches his face tenderly. He winces. "What possessed you to bait him like that?"
"I'm going to discharge her. Keep an eye on her for the next twenty-four hours. Head injuries are unpredictable," the doctor says, leaving the area.
Veronica rolls her eyes and tries to sit up, but is hit with a wave of nausea and sinks back to the bed.
"Slowly, honey," Keith cautions her.
~ • ~
Sat. 1/24 - Sun. 1/25/09: Sunset Cliffs Apartments, Neptune, CA
The next twenty-four hours are a blur for Veronica. Keith brings her back to the Sunset Cliffs apartment and puts her to bed. Her head aches intensely. At one point, she thinks she hears Leo speaking with Logan in the living room. Then Logan comes in the bedroom and sits with her. She drowses off, unable to stay awake. Sometime later, Logan approaches the bed, kisses her, tells her he loves her, and leaves the bedroom. She falls into a deep sleep and does not wake until late in the afternoon the next day.
"Dad?" she calls. "Logan?" She manages to sit up. Her head throbs, but it's bearable.
"Honey, how do you feel today? You slept for almost twenty-four hours," Keith says concernedly.
"My head hurts a little, and I'm starving," she replies.
"Starving is good."
"Where's Logan?" she asks.
"He left yesterday around dinner time," Keith says slowly. "I told him that he should stay, but he just muttered about not wanting to be in the way and took off."
She repeats uncomprehendingly, "In the way?"
"Leo came by and asked him if he wanted to press charges against Dr. Griffith. Logan refused, said the grieving father defense is a pretty good one, and he doesn't need any more bad press. There were a lot of reporters outside, but most of them left when Logan did."
"That's why he left," she explains. "He was going on about protecting me and not wanting me to get hurt."
"He was very upset in the emergency room; he wouldn't let the doctors look at him until they examined you," Keith says gently.
"Get my phone, will you?" Veronica asks.
Keith finds her purse, which somehow survived the stampede at the church, and gives Veronica her cell.
The display reads 78 missed calls. The message waiting indicator is lit, and she scrolls through the menu. "54 voicemail messages and twenty text messages," she muses. She looks for Logan's number in the list of missed calls unsuccessfully, then peruses the text messages. She recognizes one as coming from Logan's cell.
The message reads:
Veronica, I love you so much, and all I ever do is hurt you. I'm going away for a while. Please don't try to find me. If I can figure this out, I'll come back. Know that I'll always love you. Your loving jackass, Logan
She lets the phone slip out of her fingers and begins to cry.
Chapters Eleven thru Twenty