Title: Veronica's Choice
Rating: PG-13
Summary: This time Veronica chooses her friends over her father.
Spoilers: 1x02 and 1x21
Characters/Pairing: Veronica, Jake, Keith, Duncan, Lamb, mentions Lianne and Celeste; canon V/Duncan, mentions past Jake/Lianne
Word Count: 3242
Disclaimer: Veronica Mars is not owned by me, but by Rob Thomas. I'm simply borrowing these characters for non-profit entertainment.
A/N: This started out as being written for VM Redux, but I finally decided to finish it even though the community is still on hiatus.

When Veronica first heard that her father was bringing Jake Kane in for questioning of Lilly's murder she chalked it up to routine. Just like how a spouse was always the first suspect when a husband or wife was murdered, when it came to children, the parents were always the first suspects.

But when she heard her father was bringing Jake back in despite the lack of evidence she began to feel more than a little uneasy.

Seeing Jake later, standing outside of the sheriff's department giving an interview with Duncan by his side and tears in his eyes while proclaiming his innocence only made her heart sink further.

Not only because she considered Jake to be like a father to her also but because this meant that her father was seemingly singling him out without looking at the evidence. She had always known her father to be by the book, to trust when the evidence pointed away from even the most prime suspects. But he wasn't doing that this time. This time he seemed to be clinging to what it felt like he wanted to believe. Okay, Jake and her father had never claimed to be best friends, but she couldn't understand why Keith couldn't let it go even after Jake's alibi checked out.

As for Jake, he knew exactly why Keith was gunning for him. It wasn't just that as Lilly's father he would have had the opportunity and possibly motive, at least in some people's minds. But no, he knew it went back to Lianne. Keith's attempt at a final bout of revenge, one way to be sure he would never have the chance to be with his wife again.

He knew he couldn't tell Keith the truth. He had gone to great lengths to cover it up just to keep from having to admit it. He had already lost his daughter, he wasn't about to lose his son over something that hadn't even been his fault. How could he tell Keith it had been Duncan's doing? No one even knew about Duncan's condition, save for his family and doctors at least.

Jake knew the evidence didn't point to him so he had nothing to fear in that respect. But that didn't mean he wouldn't continue to protect Duncan any way possible. And he had to admit having the public - nearly all of Neptune in fact - on his side hadn't hurt. To them he seemed to be exactly what he was, a grieving father who was being wrongly accused of murder.

The one that surprised him the most however was Veronica Mars. On paper she was Keith's daughter, however her DNA might prove otherwise. Truth be told, he didn't want to know. She didn't even know the possibility was there, but she was standing by him all the same despite the fact that she and Duncan we were no longer seeing each other. She had no reason to side with him now in his mind, save for maybe a sense of loyalty to Lilly. But there she was, sitting with Duncan in his living room.

"Dad's saying he might lose his job over this and Mom's threatening to leave him if he does and he's still not stopping," Veronica sadly told Duncan. "I just don't get it."

"Maybe your dad just wants to put someone in jail for Lilly's murder."

"He used to want to put the right people in jail. Now it just sounds like it's all about your dad to him."

"Why? Why does he suddenly hate him so much?"

"I don't know. None of this makes any sense. And some people aren't even speaking to me now. At school, I hear more and more people whisper about how my dad's gone crazy and that I probably won't be far behind. Like just because I'm his daughter I think your dad's guilty too and I don't. I saw you all that night, I just can't believe your mom or dad could do something like that. Especially not to Lilly."

Only another week had gone by and tensions were reaching new heights. Keith had brought Jake in yet again, claiming that he had even more questions for him. That time Veronica and Duncan had followed to wait outside. Duncan to show support for his father and Veronica in the want to confront hers, but instead decided that she would stay by Duncan's side.

The more her father claimed Jake had to be Lilly's killer the more she wanted to jump up and scream that it wasn't true. The only reason she didn't was because she hadn't been there and she hadn't seen what happened, but she still knew that she would never believe that Jake killed Lilly. Not when she had seen the tears in his eyes that night. Anyone could claim that his tears on the news were fake, but the tears he and Celeste had shed that night couldn't have been more real.

Admittedly, she had questioned Celeste's innocence once or twice but she knew she would never doubt Jake's. He had always seemed too sincere and it wasn't as though Lilly had gone out of her way to anger or annoy him. Just Celeste.

Keith came out of the interview room several minutes later, hating that once again he would have to release Jake. Not because Jake had brought in his lawyer, but because there was literally nothing he could hold him on. His alibi still stuck, his story still hadn't changed and despite his personal want to lock him away for the rest of his life, he knew a twenty-year conflict with the man wasn't enough to make it happen.

When Keith felt he had collected himself, he turned towards the waiting area and saw Veronica. He let out a sigh when he saw her sitting beside Duncan. He knew he shouldn't have wondered if his day could get any worse, clearly it just had. It wasn't enough Lianne was getting closer to leaving him by the day, but now it looked like he was about to lose his daughter too. His daughter, he scoffed. Was she even really his daughter? Maybe she was right to side with Jake, maybe she was siding with her real father after all. For all he knew the possibility was more than that. He knew he could have had the tests run years ago but he hadn't wanted to know the truth any more than Lianne or Jake had. He wanted to believe he already knew the truth. But the more Veronica sided with Jake, the more he found himself wondering if Lianne had been lying to him for all these years.

"What were you doing at the station today, Veronica?" Keith demanded when they were home several hours later. Lianne was out who knows where and he wanted to know just how many more plans Veronica had to humiliate him herself.

"I was with Duncan when he heard that you had his father hauled in for more questioning. I wanted him to know that at least one Mars doesn't consider his father to be a murderer. Someone has to be there for him through this."

"What about me, Veronica? What about your father? Do you have any idea what's been going on here while you've been off showing your support for the Kanes?"

"You're going to lose more then just Mom if you keep going after Jake Kane like you are. There's going to be an emergency recall and you're still acting like you've got a vendetta against Jake. Why? What did he ever do to you?"

"He killed his daughter!" It was better than any other answer he could give her. Especially since he did believe it to be true. As far as he was concerned Veronica didn't need to know that her mother had been involved with Jake and occasionally still was.

"No he didn't! Look at his alibi! Look at the evidence! You're going to lose your job and Mom and probably even me over this and you don't even care. You want to see Jake in jail too much to see what's in front of you."

"That is not true, Veronica. I do care, but I don't think any of you are looking at the bigger picture."

"Bigger picture?" Veronica shook her head and tried to fight the tears stinging her eyes. "My best friend is dead and her killer, her real killer, will get away with it just because you have some grudge against Jake Kane. Get over it, Dad. Please. Before it ruins all of us."

After another long school day Veronica once again found herself back at the Kane mansion. Duncan was at soccer practice but Jake let her in anyway. She had noticed he hadn't seemed so bothered by her presence over these last few weeks, she guessed because he knew she was a friend. Unlike others she hadn't seemed to be fishing for information, but today that was about to change slightly.

"Can I get you anything while you wait for Duncan? Water? A soda?" he asked her.

Veronica shook her head. "Actually, Mr. Kane, I wanted to ask you something."

"If it's something about your father -"

"No, but it's kind of about him. You don't have to answer if you don't want to, but, I'm trying really hard to understand this. What does my dad have against you?"

"I really don't know," he lied.

"I've just never seen him like this. He's usually looking at every possible angle and this time - this time I don't even know what he's trying to do or prove."

Jake took a seat on the sofa and invited Veronica to join him. When she did, he told her, "I think Keith's under a lot of pressure. He's being looked at very closely and everyone wants to see Lilly's killer be caught. I don't think your father's thinking too much about every possibility, I think he just wants to wrap this up as quickly as possible and if that means putting the wrong man in jail just to say that someone was caught then I think he might. Even if that's not what he would normally do."

"And I guess it doesn't help that Lilly was killed by the pool… but still, it just doesn't add up. I'm sorry, Mr. Kane, I just -"

"I don't think it's any easier for him knowing that his daughter is even against him in this. I just wish there was more I could do to help. But I think we just have to believe that Lilly's real killer will be found and things will work themselves out. What ever happens after that is out of our hands."

It was only a matter of days after Veronica had heard him say those words that the news came that Keith was not only out as sheriff, but his main deputy (and her personal favorite) was now the sheriff. Deputy Don was now Sheriff Lamb. Just when she thought she couldn't have any more conflicting emotions over this she managed to find two more. Sadness at her father losing his job and thereby knowing she was losing her mother and the house she had known and loved, but also a bit of relief at knowing Neptune would now be in Lamb's hands. If nothing else at least no one could claim he had a vendetta against the Kanes.

The arguments between Keith and Lianne were getting louder, Veronica couldn't escape them now if she tried. Not when they were packing up their belongings, not when she tried to sleep and definitely not when she would come home from school.

Finally a night came that she was sitting on the floor and watching TV as she tried to tune the arguing out. She couldn't even be happy at the sight of Lamb being on the news as he was being shown walking a cuffed suspect out of a building. Turning the volume up, she heard the man's name was Abel Koontz, that he worked for Kane Software and - the most surprising of all - that he had confessed to Lilly's murder.

"Dad!" she called to Keith.

"I'm sorry, honey, your mom and I -" he told her as he walked over and took a seat on the sofa.

"Listen," she interrupted as she pointed to the screen.

He did. He heard everything Veronica just had, both of them watching as the news switched to footage of Lamb grinning as he held up an evidence bag in each hand, the reporter talking about how those items that Veronica had recognized as being Lilly's had been found on the suspect's houseboat.

It was finally over. Proof that Jake hadn't killed his daughter. Keith only felt sick. Not only for the wasted time and energy, but that he would have to admit that Jake was innocent and that he had lost so much over nothing. All he could do now was wait for the ensuing "I told you so's" from the whole fraking town. He briefly wondered if Veronica or Jake would be the first.

"When are you going to apologize to Mr. Kane?" Veronica asked him after Keith had taken the remote from her and turned the TV off.

"We still don't know if this man is guilty or not," Keith sighed. "Do you know how many whack jobs confess to crimes they didn't commit just to get some kind of fame? For all we know he never saw Lilly in his life."

"You still think Jake did it?" she scoffed.

"I don't know what to believe right now, Veronica. But I do know that Jake is hiding something. There is something he's not telling anyone. I will find out what that is, it's just a matter of when."

Needing a break from all she had had to face at home for being on Jake's side, Veronica all but jumped at the invitation she had gotten to Shelly Pomroy's party. She needed a night to just forget and be able to be a normal teenage girl again and given that it was Duncan to ask her to said party, she was all the more willing.

The night itself could have gone better, some people apparently still hadn't gotten the memo that she was on Duncan's family's side. But it had helped for them to see her walking hand in hand with Duncan and later dancing with him. They hardly left each other's sides all night and Veronica finally began to feel like part of her life was still in tact. She hadn't lost her friends or even her social standing over her father screwing up Lilly's murder investigation due to his lack in judgment and she had her faith in Jake Kane to thank for that.

Veronica didn't even want to think how differently the night could have gone had she sided against him but she couldn't shut the images out completely. Knowing her stubborn self she knew she would have ended up at that party anyway, but then she knew she would have been forced to see Duncan with at least one other girl and even the idea of that was too much to bear. Her friends would have all hated her, each maybe even trying to get revenge in their own ways. Anything from ruining her reputation to trying to hurt her. But she didn't have to worry about that now as she was waking up with a smile in Duncan's arms in what they both soon remembered to be one of the guest rooms at Shelly's house.

After Duncan dropped Veronica off at the so-called new apartment and she had had a chance to shower and change into a white tank top and jeans, she decided that some breakfast was in order. But of course the place she was heading to just might take her past another place she wanted to see. After all it wouldn't be fair to keep all of that junk food to herself. She could think of someone she hadn't yet congratulated in all the excitement who might enjoy two or three bear claws.

"Veronica," Inga nearly smiled to her. "How are you?"

"I need to report a crime," she told her.

"Oh? What's wrong?"

Veronica held up the box in her hands. "The bakery gave me too much. I think they're trying to force their bad habits onto the unsuspecting public." Then she glanced to the office and asked, "Is he in?"

Inga tried not to laugh. Clearly the girl's interest in the young sheriff hadn't waned. "Yes," she nodded to her.

"How's my favorite new sheriff?" Veronica grinned as she all but skipped into her father's old office to see a particular former deputy.

Lamb laughed. He would have thought for sure she would have been at home nursing Keith's wounds after seeing the news that Abel had been indicted. "You are gonna get me in trouble."

"Oh? Just by dropping by to say hi and maybe bring some sugary goodness your way?" she asked as she revealed the doughnut box she'd had behind her back.

"A sixteen-year-old girl coming into my office and bringing me snacks first thing in the morning? People might talk."

"Then tell them to go see the wizard and have them ask for lives of their own to concern themselves with. I just came to celebrate the opposite of an 'I told you so' since you were part of the Jake Kane is Innocent club. If that's going to get me locked up then you might have a bear claw shortage and you'll only have yourself to blame."

He really tried not to smile at that but he failed. "Does Keith know you're here?"

She shook her head. "But I did want to see how you look behind his old desk. Who knows, it might be fun with you in charge. After all I don't remember you breaking up the Pomroy party last night."

"Then someone was drinking more heavily then I knew! Passed out drunk, were you, Veronica?" he smirked.

She glared. "You weren't there, you can't prove a thing. Besides, do I seem hung over?"

Finally he smiled again with a shake of his head. "Didn't get enough calls about the party. Guess everyone was having too much fun there to complain."

"Sounds about right. Anyway, I've gotta go. Enjoy your breakfast and have a good day, Sheriff," she smiled as she strode out of his office.

As far as she was concerned it was official now that everything could go back to being as normal as possible. Yes she had lost her best friend and the Kanes had lost a daughter and a sister and they would all miss her for the rest of their lives and Veronica may have lost some of her faith and respect in her father as well, but now she felt they could move on. True, Keith may have still felt betrayed by her, but considering everything else she could have lost that year, she felt they were even.

Veronica had made her choice to stand by the Kanes and while she knew she would have to live with not having chosen to stand by her father, she hoped never to know how differently things could have been had she chosen the latter.

The End