FIC: The Year of Living Dangerously, Part II (Veronica/Logan, Ensemble) (23/?) (WIP) (NC-17)

[vanessagalore]

Previous chapters: Ch.1-3 | Ch.4-7 | Ch.8-10 | Ch.11-13 | Ch.14-17 | Ch.18-20




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VERONICA MARS
10:00PM SHO ch: 340 60min 2009 TV-MA
Gazing Into the Abyss
A new development in the serial murder case, and
Veronica is curious; Keith talks to Lizzie; Vinnie
makes a deal; Veronica works a case; Logan
confronts his demons.
Veronica: Kristen Bell. Keith: Enrico Colantoni.
Cliff: Daran Norris. Lizzie: Anastasia Baranova.
Vinnie: Ken Marino. Logan: Jason Dohring
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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: "GAZING INTO THE ABYSS"

Wed. 2/4/09 morning: Hearst College Food Court, Neptune, CA

At breakfast, Veronica reads the latest news headlines on her laptop. She sees an update on the investigation into Hannah's murder and clicks on it for more information.

"The Los Angeles Medical Examiner's Office has released additional information regarding the autopsy of Hannah Griffith, the most recent victim of the Saturday Night Slasher serial killer.

"A representative for the office confirmed today that toxicology tests performed on the hair of the victim indicate that Ms. Griffith was not a habitual drug user, although urine screens at the time of death showed large amounts of heroin in her system.

"Ms. Griffith, 18, was found murdered on January 18, and the FBI and Los Angeles Police Department have confirmed that the murder appears to be consistent with the previous victims attributed to the so-called Saturday Night Slasher. A representative from the FBI has stated that there are no new leads in the investigation."

Veronica wonders about this latest development. What the hell is going on? Hannah wasn't a drug user, but she was found with heroin in her system. It's a big jump from clean-and-sober to on-the-nod. She remembers her promise to Weevil not to investigate this killer, and she hesitates. She knows her dad, too, would be upset if he finds out that she's thinking about looking into this, and, up to now, she fully intended to leave this investigation to the professionals. But a part of her thinks helplessly that maybe Logan would come back to her if the serial killer was caught. She finally gives in to her curiosity and calls her old boyfriend, Mike Fields, the FBI agent. She gets his voicemail and asks him to call her back.

~ • ~

Wed. 2/4/09: San Diego State University, San Diego, CA

Keith consults the printout of Lizzie Manning's class schedule that Veronica gave him and a copy of Lizzie's Neptune High School yearbook photo and scans the faces of the students milling around the SDSU campus. He sees a likely candidate exiting a building across the courtyard and hurries to catch up with her.

"Ms. Manning? Elizabeth Manning?"

Lizzie looks up, surprised, and says, "Sheriff Mars. Did Veronica send you to do her dirty work?"

"Lizzie...it's okay if I call you Lizzie?" Keith asks, and Lizzie reluctantly nods. He continues, "Can we find a private place to talk? It's important. I know you have...an arrangement with a certain party, and I know you don't want to jeopardize that. Am I right?"

Lizzie nods sullenly. "There's a place over there," she says, indicating a distant bench well apart from the rest of the courtyard. She walks toward it, and Keith follows her.

They sit, and Keith begins to speak. "Lizzie, this is not going to be easy to hear. Duncan Kane received the results of a paternity test, and it indicates that he is not the father of Meg's baby."

Lizzie goes white. "That's impossible. Meg said...Meg said it was Duncan's."

"I know. We all assumed that Meg was telling us the truth. Are you aware of anyone else who could be the father?" Keith probes in a gentle voice.

"What are you implying?" Lizzie cries harshly.

"Please tell me what you know, Lizzie. I can't change what happened to Meg, but I'd like to help you if I can. And I know Duncan is still committed to going through with your arrangement with him if you'll be honest with us. You see, we can't really figure out why Meg would lie about who the father was. Maybe you know something that we don't," Keith says.

"You're just as crazy as your daughter; there's nothing to know," she replies.

"Lizzie, someone fathered Meg's baby. And Meg concocted a desperate scheme to make the world think that Duncan was the father. Why would she go to such lengths to conceal the father of her baby? I know it's hard to think about, but I think you know who the father is."

She stares at him angrily, remaining silent.

"No one will blame you for keeping quiet. You were a child, and you couldn't possibly have understood what was going on," he continues. "Lizzie, you were a victim too."

Lizzie looks down at her lap, and Keith waits for her respond. Finally, he asks, "Lizzie? Are you okay?"

When Lizzie raises her head to look into Keith's eyes, his heart breaks to see the tears streaming down her face. She whispers, "I think Meg...I think Meg was trying to protect me. She...saw Daddy watching me, and she told me it was going to be alright. Then...Meg was so worried. She would hardly talk to me, but I knew she wasn't sleeping or eating. Then one day, she seemed relieved, as if she had figured something out. She was happy. Duncan made her so happy. But when he broke it off, Meg became the biggest bitch. She complained about Veronica all the time, said that Veronica had ruined her life. Meg started talking back to my parents. You just don't do that to my father. He locked her in her room for an entire weekend."

Keith tries to put his arm around Lizzie, but she flinches and he drops his hand. She begins to sob inconsolably. "Lizzie, are you confirming that it's possible that your father...is the father of Meg's baby?"

She nods.

"Lizzie, there's a DNA test that can prove that you and Lilly are sisters. If it shows that you are, the courts can compel your father to do a paternity test. Duncan still wants to try to adopt her. Are you willing to help? I'm not going to lie to you, it's going to be awful. People are going to say and write terrible things about you and your family. But if your father really did this, we need to get Grace and Lilly permanently away from him. And you need to be free of him as well."

Lizzie nods again, hiccuping through her sobs.

He hesitates, but he knows he has to ask the question. "Lizzie...did he ever...did your dad do anything to you?"

She looks up, panicked. "No! Will people think he.... Oh my god! People will say...."

"He never touched you? Or Grace?"

"After Meg died, something changed. I think that's when someone started blackmailing my parents. I thought it was Veronica, but she said..." Lizzie explains.

"Yes, we're pretty sure that it was Sheriff Lamb who was blackmailing your parents. If it kept your dad from touching you, I'm grateful to Lamb for that at least," Keith replies grimly. He adds, more gently, "Lizzie, what about your mother? Do you think she knew what was going on with Meg?"

"Why?" Lizzie replies, quizzically.

"You need to know before you decide what to do. If she was aware, she could be charged with child abuse herself. And...if she was not aware, you and she are the closest blood relatives, and as such could claim custody rights."

"I could ask for custody?" Lizzie says incredulously. "No way."

"So you think Lilly should stay with Duncan?"

"You keep saying 'Lilly'. The family calls her 'Faith'," Lizzie comments distractedly.

Keith looks at her with concern. "You can be declared an interested party in Faith's case, and you can support Duncan's petition for custody. Your support would help his case a great deal. You don't have to testify against your mother. You can say that you don't know what she knew, because that's what it sounds like to me. I'm sure that you didn't want to know, Lizzie. It's not something you want to think about your mother."

Lizzie begins to sob again. Keith moves to comfort her again; she tenses, but reluctantly allows him to hug her. He rocks her, trying futilely to calm her, damning Stewart Manning to hell for hurting his children.

Finally, she looks up at him and says, "I'll do it. I'll take the test, and I'll support Duncan's petition for custody. Maybe my...sister will have a better life because of it."

~ • ~

Wed. 2/4/09: Lompoc State Prison, Lompoc, CA

Vinnie Van Lowe, meeting with two representatives of the district attorney's office along with Cliff, prepares to sign the paperwork accepting a deal for probation in return for his testimony against the Fitzpatricks.

Cliff says, "And are we agreed, we'll be transferring Mr. Van Lowe to the protective custody of the Neptune Sheriff's Department? Mr. Van Lowe feels that you will not be able to provide adequate protection here in Lompoc, even in solitary confinement, and he has family in Neptune that he wishes to spend time with before he enters the witness protection program. This is a deal-breaker, gentlemen."

The attorneys finally acquiesce, and the deal is executed. Vinnie shakes Cliff's hand and whispers in his ear, "Tell Keith he totally rocked the house on this."

Cliff merely raises an eyebrow. "I'm not sure what you're referring to. Congratulations, Vinnie, you're on your way to becoming a free man again."

~ • ~

Wed. 2/4/09: Le Coq d'Or Restaurant, Neptune, CA

Veronica tails Douglas Stern, Jr., trust attorney to Neptune's wealthy elite, to a local restaurant, Le Coq d'Or. Keith has explained that they need to have proof that he is colluding with the beneficiaries in order to pursue fraud and undue influence charges. He has told Veronica that she should try to get photos, or even better, video or audio surveillance, of the attorney meeting with the brother of their client. The client has explained that he suspects that his brother, who is currently excluded from their father's will, is seeking to have the trust attorney influence his father to once again include him in his estate.

At the restaurant, she watches from her car and takes a long-range photograph as the attorney joins two men at a table near the rear of the room. Veronica goes into the restaurant and asks the maitre d' if there are any tables available. He replies, snootily, "All tables are reserved, madam." While she is speaking, Veronica reads the names on the reservations list upside-down and recognizes the surname of the brother they are seeking. She turns away, walking slowly and trying to come up with a way to hear the conversation.

There is a commotion in the kitchen, and the maitre d' heads back to see what is going on. Veronica smiles to herself. She looks under the shelf of the reservation desk and finds a vest similar to the maitre d's. Bingo. She dons the vest, glad that she wore a plain white shirt that day, and gets a T9 audio transmitter from her purse. She stows her purse under a chair, takes a few menus for cover, and heads into the main area of the restaurant. She grabs a flower from a vase on a convenient table and, hiding the bug in the petals, heads for the back of the room where her targets are sitting.

"How are you gentlemen doing today? May I get you anything?" She brushes against the table and 'accidentally' knocks over the table's flower vase. "Oh, I'm sorry!" she exclaims. As she rights the vase, she substitutes the flower with the bug.

The three men mutter that they don't need anything, and Veronica says, "Your server will be right with you." She quickly exits the restaurant, retrieving her purse from under the chair where it was stowed and depositing the vest where she got it. In her car, she launches the Sonic Snoop Audio Surveillance application on her laptop, selects the serial number of the audio device, and hits record. Gotcha, she thinks, as she hears the men laughing and bragging about the money they're scamming from 'the old man'. It never gets old, catching a con artist dead-to-rights, especially a sleazy '09'er con artist. As she listens, she realizes that the third man is Gordon Wilks, the psychiatrist that she had earlier noticed had signed off on many of the failed competency exams for the elderly clients of the trust attorney.

After lunch, the men stand up and shake hands. Keith had mentioned that he wanted her to pursue her instincts regarding the psychiatrist, and, checking her watch for the time, Veronica decides to follow the shrink and plan her next move. Wilks gets in his car, and, at a discreet distance, Veronica follows him as he drives to a building prominently labeled, 'Neptune Medical Associates'.

~ • ~

Wed. 2/4/09: Somewhere in the United States

Logan has ventured out of the motel room for a midday walk on the beach. So far, so good, he thinks. His new appearance and clothing have changed his look enough that no one has given him a second glance. His commitment to his physical therapy has only strengthened; each day, he is able to do more reps, walk a little further, lean on his cane a little less strongly. It feels good to move and get stronger; it's the only thing that feels good right now, and he holds onto it desperately.

Some days the surf on the beach is wild, kicked up by the wind, and he can feel the blowing sand particles stinging against his face. Today, however, the water is calm, and the sun is out; a few die-hard sun-worshippers are on the beach even though it's only in the mid-70's. It's too early for the spring break crowds; these people are locals taking their lunch break. He hates the baseball cap he's wearing, but he knows it's very 'anti-Logan' and conceals his identity more than the change in hair color and the facial hair. The sun beats down on him, and for a moment he actually feels okay. I feel okay today. I feel okay; maybe...maybe the worst is over.

He hears laughing and a camera clicking and whirring behind him, and he whirls around, panicked. No, I'm not ready! No, please leave me alone for a while longer, I can't, I can't, I can't.... He's about to hurry back to his motel room to pack up and run again when he realizes it's not a paparazzo; it's just a father taking pictures of his wife and children some distance away. Logan forces his agitation back down as the father stares at him curiously. Logan gives him a little wave and says weakly, "Beautiful day, huh?"

The father nods and turns back toward his happy family. The kids romp in the surf; it's way too cold to swim without a wet suit, but the children are enjoying themselves immensely just splashing in the shallow water. What the hell is wrong with me that it's so hard for me to be happy? How has the rest of the world figured this out, but I'm still completely at a loss how to be a happy person?

Suddenly, he thinks, I wonder what Veronica's doing. I hope she's happy. But a small, mean voice replies, No, you don't. You don't want her to be happy. You want her to be sad and lonely...especially if she starts up with Duncan again; you want her to be miserable inside. You want her to be miserable like you.

Fiercely, he thinks, No, no, I'm protecting her. I want her to be happy. The mean voice says, Bullshit. You're just being selfish. You're scared because she sees all of you; she sees what a total fuckup you are. Suck it up, asshole. Go back and beg her forgiveness and spend the rest of your life making up for running away from her. She was right to kick you to the curb senior year; you're fucking it up again, just like you did with Madison and Kendall, and if you don't fix it, she'll write you off forever.

He roars back, She fucking deserted me when I needed her the most! My mother was dead; my father had killed my girlfriend; I was on trial for murder!! She ran back to her wimpy safe little boyfriend, ran away from me, ME who loved her helplessly, completely, desperately; ran right back to that shit-eating coward Duncan. I needed her, and she ran away! She always lets me know that I can't possibly measure up to her impossible standards. She just toys me with me until it's time to dump me again. It's her fault I was even with Hannah; if Veronica had stayed with me and helped me, I never would have gone after Hannah.

The mean voice just keeps repeating, What BULLSHIT, you fucking loser; she was right to leave you. You're so full of shit; now you're blaming Veronica for Hannah. How low can you go, Logan? Your old man has nothing on you.

That day, Logan walks twice as far as he's ever gone since the cast was removed. His leg is throbbing when he finally returns to his motel room, and he is exhausted. His mental battles have raged on, only increasing in intensity as he gritted his teeth and walked just a few hundred yards more, just a few hundred yards more....

Chapter Twenty-Four

Comments

[froberger.livejournal.com]

How conveniently Logan forgets about burning down the public pool ... :-) He makes it sound as if V left because she couldn't handle the stress.

[vanessagalore.livejournal.com]

Logan does have a bit of a god-complex; he tends to think everything's about him, and this concept is reinforced by the paparazzi's hounding of him. His reactions are all over the place. He's exhibiting the two faces of depression, sadness and anger, and the depth of his feelings for Veronica means that those two elements tend to get focused on her.