Title: Coming Home 2
Author: Tigereyes320
Pairing/Character: Logan/Veronica & Logan/Veronica/Duncan friendship & Duncan/OFC
Word Count: 3229
Rating: PG-13/R
Summary: Veronica and Logan, who are doing their version of happily ever after, run into an old friend from the past. Will this spell the end for them or the beginning to an even better happily ever after?
Spoilers: This is a future fic. It is a continuation of my other fic 'One way to stay in touch'. I firmly believe that Logan and Veronica are not going to angst ridden their entire lives. I do believe they have what it takes to make it as a couple. Therefore, I've made them a bit more well adjusted then some people might like. However, don't worry the snark is there when they want it to be.
Warnings: None.
Want to thank my great beta phoenixrae
"Veronica you won't believe me when I tell you this, but I'm Meg."
"Meg is dead."
"No, my parents needed me to be dead, to take my daughter away from me. I need your help. I have to find my baby."
"Where are you?"
"The cemetery."
"I want you to catch a cab and come to Logan's." Veronica said as she rattled of Logan's address. "We'll pay the cab when you get here. Call me again when you're at the gate."
"Okay, I'll be there as soon as I can." The woman who claimed to be Meg said.
Veronica hung up the phone and raced into the shower; she was and dressed in five minutes. She grabbed her cell phone as she walked down the hall. "Cliffie, I need a huge favor."
"Yes V, what can I do for you?"
"I need you to come over to Logan's right away."
"It's Saturday."
"It's an emergency, Please Cliff."
"I'm on my way."
"Thank you."
Veronica walked into the exercise room where Logan was running on the treadmill, with his IPOD on. Keeping an eye on him, she made her next phone call.
"Miss Mars what can I do for you?"
"I'm sorry to bother you on a Saturday, but I have a woman coming over to Logan's who claims she is Meg Manning. I need you to come over here and help us figure out what to do if she is telling the truth."
"I have to go by my office to get a few things; I'll be there within a half an hour."
"See you then."
Veronica got off the phone to see Logan looking at her. "You're calling CW?"
"We got a call this morning."
"From who?"
"A woman telling me she is Meg Manning."
"Meg is dead."
"She's supposed to be. I have Cliff and Clarence coming here. Why don't you take a quick shower, and I'll wait for the cab."
"Why would someone fake her death?"
"What better way to get control of the baby and give it up for adoption. You realize what else this means don't you?"
"If Meg is alive Duncan can come home."
"Then we would have to decide what to do with the knowledge that he had your father killed."
"That's all we'd have to figure out?"
"What else is there?"
"What about us?"
"Logan, even if Duncan can come home, I'm not giving you up. I'm also not giving up on us."
"Sorry, I have my own bouts of insecurity." Logan said with a small smile.
Veronica leaned up and kissed him carefully, not wanting to get his sweat on her. Then she brought his forehead to hers. "We're in this together."
"Let me go take my shower. I made some coffee but you might want to set it up to make some more."
"Okay."
Veronica made her way to the kitchen and kept herself busy for several moments preparing coffee. Fortunately, Logan's housekeeper had gone shopping and the refrigerator and pantry were full once again. She got out the serving tray they had found at a fair and got to work peeling and cutting up some fruit. Veronica was just finishing up the yogurt dip when Logan's phone ran.
"Hello?"
"Hey V, it's me and I ran into a lovely lady that we haven't seen in quite sometime. I took care of the cab fare."
"You're a prince Cliff; I'll pay you back when you get in here. Let me buzz you in."
"Maybe you could talk to the young lady let her know I'm safe."
"Sure." Veronica said as she made her way over to the hidden security panel. After double-checking that it was only Cliff and the young woman outside the gates, she buzzed them through. She then closed the panel, and took the tray of food into the living room. Logan had obviously straightened up as all her books and things were on the dining room table.
"Veronica?"
"It's all right; Cliff is one of the good guys. We need him here to help you."
"Okay." Meg said as she disconnected the call.
Veronica took the fruit tray into the living room, and then going back to the kitchen, brought back some plates. She was heading back to kitchen when the doorbell rang.
She went to answer the door and saw Cliff standing beside a tall slender young woman. When the woman looked up Veronica nearly went to her knees, if the woman in front of her wasn't Meg Manning then Meg had a twin. She looked so different from the smiling blonde, Veronica remembered from high school. Her hair had been dyed a deep mousy brown that washed out her blue eyes, and made her complexion almost sallow.
"Come in, and sit down. I put some fruit out if anyone is hungry. I'm also making coffee. Cliff you still like yours with cream and sugar right?"
"That right V."
"Meg, can I get you something?"
"I don't remember drinking coffee to much. Can I just get some water?"
"Sure I'll bring it out. Go ahead and have a seat."
Veronica was in the kitchen adding sugar to Cliff's coffee when Logan came into the kitchen.
"Can I help?"
"Could you get Meg some water?" Veronica asked as she prepared a tray for the coffee.
"Sure, you want some too?" At Veronica's nod, Logan placed another bottle of water on the tray.
"Logan are we losing it? Meg Manning who supposedly died our senior year in high school is alive."
"I guess there are parents' worse then mine out there. You said they hated that Meg had a child out of wedlock. They didn't want Duncan to have any rights to the baby. Let's go find out what happened shall we?" Logan said as he took the tray from her and headed back into the living room.
When they heard a knock at the door, Veronica turned to answer it. Clarence Weidman was there with a large briefcase. "Do I want to know how you got past the security gate?"
"Probably not. Is she here?"
"She's in the living room with Cliff and Logan. Come on in." Veronica said as she turned and made her way into the living room.
"Cliff McCormack, the attorney." Clarence said as he closed the front door and followed Veronica.
"I thought we might need to see what we need to do to prove Meg is alive. Meg, I don't know if you ever met Clarence Weidman before. He head of security at Kane software."
"Do you know where my baby is?" Meg asked Clarence.
"I don't know exactly where your little girl is; I hope I can call you Meg, but I do have this for you to look at." Clarence held out a cloth-covered book.
Meg opened the book and slowly turned the pages that showed her little girl changing from an infant to a now thriving toddler. "She is so beautiful. She has Duncan's eyes."
"She also has your face, and her Aunt Lilly's smile." Veronica added. "Duncan named her Lilly. Meg what happened to you? Where have you been?"
"The last thing I remember was being in the hospital and talking with Duncan and Veronica, and then I remember felling pain then nothing. The next thing that I remember was I was waking up and the calendar said it was May."
"Were you here in California?"
"No, I was in Montana, I was the nanny to seven children, they are part of the religious group my parents wanted me to give my daughter to. They treated me well, they believed what they were told, that I had a complete mental breakdown when I had found out I was barren. As the entire religion focuses on bringing forth children, I could hardly expect to marry when I couldn't give a man the needed children. I knew nothing of my actual life until this past July."
"You had amnesia?" Logan asked.
"No I was given amnesia. Everyday I had to take pills. I was told it was to help me stay on an even keel. Since I enjoyed being with the children I wanted to be healthy for them. In July I developed pneumonia I had to be hospitalized, obviously I wasn't given my pills, the family thought the hospital would give me any necessary medication. Two weeks later, I started having flashes of memory. When I left the hospital after three weeks I knew my name was really Meg."
"Didn't they make you start taking the pills again?" Veronica asked with concern.
"When I got home I started taking them again but when I started forgetting again I stopped. I began to crush them and then I would flush them down the toilet. I didn't remember everything until November. I had been given a small stipend for taking care of the children. I started withdrawing it little by little. Two weeks ago, I got on a bus and now I'm here. Maybe you can tell me what I need to do to get my life back."
Veronica and Logan looked at Cliff and Clarence for advice.
"I think our first step is to prove Ms. Manning is who she says she is. Fortunately, I have samples of her DNA on file. Don't ask why. If Mr. McCormack can get copies of both her birth and death certificates, we might be able to get started."
"What about Duncan and Lilly?" Veronica asked.
"A mother unless declared unfit, retains custody. I will file for custody of Lilly Faith Manning Kane on behalf of Meg. Considering her parents had to be behind faking her death. I think Meg will win, she can also tell the judge she asked both Veronica and Duncan to do anything they had to, to keep her parents from getting her child."
"How long will this all take?" Meg asked. "I want to see my baby."
"We can rush the DNA tests, and the paperwork giving you back your life. You'll need identification to do anything. I spoke with Jake he told me to tell you, that you don't have to worry about money or anything else. We'll put you up at the Neptune Grand, and you can relax and buy some new clothes, and as soon as we get the legalities sorted out. Duncan will bring Lilly home to see you. I'd say in a week to ten days we can get you started back on your life."
Logan after looking at Veronica, and getting her nod said, "There's no need for the Neptune Grand. You can stay here as long as you like."
"I can't put you and Veronica out."
"Meg you're staying here no arguments. I'm not technically moving in for about two weeks. I'm gradually going to be bringing my stuff over here. It'd be nice to have someone besides this one here to talk to."
"I'm so glad to see you two are back together, I'm sorry I interrupted your morning together."
Logan shook his hand at her concerns. "Trust me Meg, you're the best interruptus in our coitus that we've ever had."
"Logan, I swear I'm going to have to sew that mouth of yours shut."
"You helped Duncan get away with the baby didn't you?" Meg asked Veronica
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Meg."
Cliff butted in, "Excellent thing to say as technically Duncan is still wanted on felony kidnapping charges. V, you know Lamb would still love to bring you up on charges."
"You out smarted Lamb?"
"If I had anything to do with it I would have had to outsmart the FBI and Lamb."
"That's my girl." Logan said proudly
"Logan, I need the credit card."
"Sure babe, here you go," he said as he handed over the Black Amex. "What do you need it for?"
"Meg, she needs some clothes and we can't risk taking her outside and possibly having her parents or someone else see her. Your black Amex means no questions will be asked. Come on Meg, I'll show you the guesthouse and we'll make some calls. We will let the manly men do their thing. Jake can pay you back but if women clothes show up on any thing, the FBI could get suspicious. You know they still like to keep an eye on me."
"Before you go Ms. Manning," Clarence stopped her and very delicately plucked a few hairs from her head. "Enjoy your shopping and just to let you know I've been in contact with Duncan. He's getting ready to come home as soon as he knows it's safe. He's also preparing Lilly to meet her mother."
"Thank you." Meg said as she followed Veronica outside to the guesthouse.
Veronica was finishing up her cell phone call as Meg caught up with her. "Thank you so much Olivia. We really appreciate you doing this especially on a Saturday and you'll bring the clothes as well? I owe you one. See you soon. Just ring the bell and Logan will buzz you in. Come around to the back, as that's where we are. Bye."
"You're still as bossy as ever I see. So what's been going on since I died? I see you and Logan are close." Meg said with a ghost of her old smile as she sat on the sofa.
"Is close your euphemism for us having sex?" Veronica asked as she sat down on the sofa too.
"Yes. So what happened?"
"Have a seat this could take a little explaining. First, actually where do I begin? Do you want me to start from the crash or when you woke up?"
"I had a nurse fill me in on the local gossip, when I woke up. I know Logan was still considered a suspect in that guy Felix's murder."
"Well he and Weevil found out who actually did it. It was another member of the PCHers, Thumper. It was also discovered who was behind the bus crash and why."
"Who did it?"
"It was Cassidy Casablancas, and he did it because two of the boys on the bus were going to go public with the fact that Woody Goodman had molested all three of them when they ere on his Little League team."
"Oh god that is horrible. Cassidy wanted to kill people for that?"
"Anything was better then the secret coming out. There's more to it."
"More?"
"Do you remember when I asked you about Shelley Pomeroy's party?"
"Yeah, why?"
"The reason I asked you is because at that time I thought I had been drugged and raped at the party. I also thought Logan had a part in it. He had brought GHB to the party. It was one of the reasons all those slut and whore comments really hurt and why I developed my getting even policy. For all I knew I'd been gang banged by the pool while everyone watched and laughed."
"And I let Cole talk me into leaving you there. I knew I should have insisted on you coming home with us." Meg said as she grabbed Veronica's hand in hers.
Veronica gave Meg's hand a squeeze. "Meg it isn't your fault. I've made my peace with what happened that night. I was told that it was Duncan, who came into the room, we ended up making love and he left, because he had been told some wrong information about me. What I didn't know is that one of the people questioned lied to me. I was raped before Duncan came in. I found this out when I was diagnosed with Chlamydia. It was actually Cassidy who raped me. He gave me the STD that he had caught from Woody. He blew up the plane with Woody in it and at the time, I thought my father was on the plane too. We were on the roof of the Neptune Grand when this came out. I got a message to Logan hoping he could help me, he saved me, and he kept me from killing Cassidy. Cassidy jumped off the roof. Logan took me home and stayed with me all night. The next morning we found out that my Dad was alive. We then decided we wanted to try us again."
"You've been together ever since? You're okay health wise?"
"Yes and no, we were serious for about a year and then I got spooked. I'm always afraid the people I love are going to leave me. So I asked Logan if maybe we could not break up for the summer but relax the relationship, maybe date other people. We tried that it didn't work we were both horribly jealous of whomever the other went out with. By the fall, we realized that we knew what we wanted and it was each other. I just told Logan last night I wanted to try living together. So we're going to try it for spring semester. If it works I'll stay if it doesn't we'll try again after college. Health wise I got checked out and I was very lucky the STD won't effect my chance of having children, if Logan and I want them."
"I'm so happy about that. He's always had an effect on you."
"Yeah and not always a good one. We had both been going to a counselor our freshmen year. They were the ones that brought up the idea of us taking a break. We still have our issues. We've just gotten better at not assuming we know what the other wants. I love Logan, so don't think that just because Duncan is coming back, anything is going to happen between the two of us. Duncan and I had our time and it was over long before senior year. We wanted what we used to have and neither of us could go back to who we used to be for each other."
"I knew it wasn't your fault, but thank you for any part you may have had in getting my daughter to safety."
"My pleasure."
"Hey babe, I just buzzed in Olivia." Logan voice came over the intercom.
Veronica stood and walked over to the intercom, "Thanks babe see you in awhile." She then made her way to the front door of the guesthouse.
"I'm here Veronica, who do we need to help so badly?"
"You understand no one is to know who you worked on."
"I was never here."
"Come on in and bring everything with you."
"Veronica what did you do?"
"This is Olivia; she owns this incredible spa and clothes shop. She has agreed to come and get you looking like the old Meg. I thought I might have a massage while she's at it."
"Veronica thank you, it's nice to meet you Olivia."
"There is one more thing. Did she come?"
"Yeah she's bringing up the rear. Ladies find a place to set up and let's get going."
"Okay where should I set up Olivia?" A young blonde woman asked as she set down her manicure things.
"We're here to help this young lady come back into her own." Olivia said gesturing g to Meg.
As the young woman turned around to see her client, she felt as if she had just been slapped.
"Lizzie, is that you?" An astonished Meg asked.
"Meg? You're supposed to be dead."
"Surprise?"