Disclaimer: Veronica Mars is the property of Rob Thomas Productions and Warner Brothers Television. This story is intended for entertainment purposes only and no copyright infringement is intended.

AN: This story begins where the episode, "Look Who's Stalking" ends. A little insight into the events that happened during that episode and on Lilly's murder trial.

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Logan helplessly watched Veronica sprint into the elevator as fast as her short little legs would carry her and struggled to catch up with her only to have the doors close in his face. He futilely slammed his fist into their shiny surface and whimpered, "Veronica," as he sank down against them wallowing in his misery. With his head still throbbing from last night's binge at the alterna-prom he'd hosted in his lavish suite, he'd been no match for the petite blonde in her righteous anger with him and he deserved it, he was sure. He'd been honest though. Last night was a blur. What had he said to her? What had he done last night that had her showing up this morning looking at him with those doe eyes, adoring him as if...just once, she were forgetting how broken he was, how flawed...and were willing to give him another chance. Then Kendall had emerged from the bowels of the destroyed suite and the look was gone in a flash replaced, with one of anger and worse...hurt.

"Kendall," he muttered as he shook his head, forced himself to his feet and resolutely marched back down the hall and into the living area of the suite to find her tossing plastic cups into a trash bag. "My, my, don't you just look like the picture of domesticity?" he snarled.

"Well, somebody has to do it," she parried wrinkling her nose as she continued in her task. "This place is disgusting. Your little school friends did quite a number on it."

"That's why this place has a housekeeping staff," Logan countered. "So, why don't you just scurry on along and start looking for your next meal ticket, Sweetheart, 'cause it's not gonna' be me."

"Oh, is that right?" The icy brunette replied as she dropped the bag. "Do I need to remind you of who was looking after you last night after all of your friends just ran off and left you here lying in a puddle of your own vomit? Revolting, by the way."

"And I'm sure you were here to help just out of the goodness of your heart," Logan replied dryly. Before Kendall could reply, He held up a hand to stop her. "Save it! You and I both know what you're after. My mother's dead, my father's about to go to prison for the rest of his natural life, my sister's a head case and that leaves me with the keys to the kingdom. You were left high and dry when Dick Senior bailed on you and the trust funds for Dick Junior and Beaver are managed by their mother. I may not be acing math class, but it doesn't take a genius to work out those numbers."

Kendall smiled seductively, approached him slowly, her hips swaying as she did so and purred, "Logan, Sweetie..."

Logan grasped her arm and growled. "Get out!" He then forcibly steered her toward the door and yanked it open. "You're not getting a free ride from me."

"Logan, Baby," she cooed as she ran her free hand up his chest. "Maybe I'm the one who wants to give you the free ride."

"OUT!" he shouted as he used his grip on her wrist to shove her through the door and slammed it behind her. Once she was gone, he quickly punched in the numbers for the security desk and waited impatiently until his call was answered. "Yeah, Logan Echolls...Good, you know who I am. Make sure that Kendall Casablancas never darkens my doorstep again, would ya'?"

Once done with his call, he slammed the phone down before he sank wearily onto the sofa, buried his face in his hands and moaned, "Veronica..." as he desperately tried to recall whatever it was that he'd said to her in his drunken stupor the night before that had brought her here this morning.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," a taunting female voice chided him. "Boy, did you ever screw the pooch on that one."

He looked up to the other side of the sectional to see a vision of his once-beloved Lilly flopping onto her back and crossing her legs over the arm as she peered back at him. He closed his eyes, shook his head and when he opened them again to find she was still there, muttered, "This can't be happening. You can't really be here. This can't be real!"

"Duh! Of course I can't really be here! I'm dead, Lover. But that doesn't mean that this isn't real."

"I can see being dead hasn't changed your ability to screw with a guy's head," Logan responded sardonically.

Lilly swung her legs over the side of the couch to look him in the eye and stated bluntly, "You're the one screwing with your own head, Logan."

He cringed at he really looked at her. "If you're going to haunt me, do you have to do it looking like...like that?" He gestured wildly at her appearance.

She rose and sashayed toward him. "You mean this?" she teased him seductively as she tugged on the short shorts she wore. "You used to like seeing me in my Pep Squad uniform because it showed off my legs." She planted one foot between his legs and patted her own leg. "Remember?" When he shrank back from her, she then backed up a step and tugged at her blood-matted blond hair. "Or is it...this you have a problem with...the gaping hole in my head where your daddy bashed it in with an ashtray." She laughed dryly and continued, "Blunt force trauma, the cops said, but it took them forever to figure out the murder weapon or even who murdered me, thanks to my dear old mom and dad suspecting my poor, dim-witted brother and fudging the evidence. I have to hand it to Veronica for putting all the pieces together."

"Yeah...yeah...uh...Veronica's good like that," Logan stammered awkwardly.

"How exactly did she put the pieces together again? Let's see." She mocked putting a finger to her lips as if lost in thought. "Oh, yeah, that's right. She saw you pulling stuff out of your hiding place in the vents. And how did she do that again? Oh, that's right...she was in your bedroom!" Lilly's voice rose to a shriek on the last word. "Of all people for you to fall for, you had to go for my best friend? I ask you, where's the loyalty? You screwing your brains out with Kendall, I get. She's nothing but a gold-digging, vapid whore, always up for a good time and all, but Veronica? No, Veronica is off-limits."

Finally gathering his nerve, Logan rose to his feet and shouted back at her, "Loyalty? You wanna' bitch at me about loyalty? Where the hell was your loyalty when you were screwing...oh, I don't know...everyone! Weevil, for instance? Or here's a better one. Where the hell was your loyalty when you were screwing my father?"

"Ooh, good comeback. Too bad you don't have proof to back it up."

"I saw the tapes with my own two eyes, Lilly."

"Then you destroyed them, the evidence that was going to be to put my murderer away. Don't you care about justice for me?"

"I couldn't..." Didn't she get it? How much he'd loved her in spite of her numerous betrayals? That he was trying to keep others from seeing that side of her to spare her reputation? "I couldn't let all those people see you like that...see how much of a-" He broke off deciding he couldn't finish that sentence as he reflected on the long-ago comment he'd once made to Veronica, "I loved Lilly...and Lilly loved guys."

As if sensing his thoughts, she screeched, "Oh, I get it! Just because I didn't like to be tied down, you don't care if my killer gets away with killing me! I your ego that big?" She paused as she leaned in close and stared directly into his eyes. "Or maybe you just completely forget about me now that you've got our precious Veronica."

"You're dead, Lilly! Was I supposed to die with you like some cheesy country song?" He let out a sigh and in a more resigned tone, concluded, "I'm not going to spend the rest of my life apologizing or feeling guilty for moving on with my life."

"Bravo," she softly replied as she brushed a soft kiss to his lips and then vanished.

He sank back down on the couch and muttered, "What the hell?"