We hear about Veronica's run-in with the Fitzpatricks! I couldn't keep you in suspense for too long! A little more LoVe, and look for a little MaDi coming your way soon, cause I just love it. :)
Enjoy and review please!
Disclaimer: I don't own 'em…I just pretend to in order to bend them to my will.
Veronica opened her eyes. It took a second for her to remember where she was. Logan's room.
She gently pushed herself up so she was propped against the pillows. She ached all over. And not for the usual reason she ached when waking up in Logan's bed. Oh, the times they had had in this bed. At least then it would've been worth it…
She heard the toilet flush, and the object of her thoughts opened the bathroom door.
"Hey. You're up. How do you feel?"
"Like I got ran over by a semi." She groaned, thunking her head back on the headboard and wincing. She still had a slight bump back there. She closed her eyes. "Ugh…I could use another 2 hours of sleep."
"Did they wake you up?" he asked, nodding his head towards the living room behind the closed bedroom door.
"Who?" She opened her eyes and looked at him questioningly.
"You're dad and Agent Levi. They've been arguing for about twenty minutes. "
"They're here? Why didn't anyone wake me up?" She threw back the covers and scooted to the edge of the bed.
She stood up too fast, and was slightly light headed. She put too much pressure on her bad ankle, and let out puff of air before sitting hard back on the bed.
"Whoa, hey, hey, take it easy," he said reaching to help her when she tried to stand up again.
She let him hold her by her good shoulder and lead her towards the door. She looked up at him and asked, "When did my Dad get here?"
"He called your phone last night while you were asleep. He got here maybe around 4-ish? He came in to check on you but you were pretty out of it."
"You talked to him on the phone? What did you tell him?" She stopped their progress.
He looked down at her. "That you were hurt, but safe. And that you didn't come back alone from Virginia."
"Damnit. And now he's met Levi already."
"Veronica what did you want me to tell him? That message you left was pretty cryptic."
"Oh, I know- I'm not mad at you. I just... wanted to be able to tell him some of this myself before he met Levi. You know, prepare him."
"We're you planning on…preparing me?"
"No," she confessed. "Honestly, I was going to show up and blindside you. I wasn't sure if you'd even still talk to me. I didn't even know if you'd still be here when I came last night. For all I knew you'd bought a house and moved already."
"Bought a house?"
"Yeah. You're looking for one aren't you?"
"Veronica, have you been keeping tabs on me?" Logan asked, slightly amused and slightly…..he didn't really know what.
"Uh……no?"
He just raised his eyebrows at her, and she turned back towards the door.
"Come on." She began to hobble by herself.
"Veronica," he said, stopping her.
"What?" She turned back to him.
"You might want to…." He motioned to her shirt, which hung unbuttoned. He of course, wouldn't have minded if she stayed looking like that all day. Her tiny frame in one of his shirts was sexy as hell. But this obviously wasn't the time for any of those thoughts.
"Oh right." Once again, Veronica was having trouble with the buttons with only one and half working hands. Logan chuckled at her, and walked up and did up the shirt for her.
"My God I'm becoming an invalid," she said, to try and ease the tension of their bodies being so close once again.
"You? Never," he told her quietly, doing the last button. "But we'll need to change those dressings."
"After," she said, taking a deep breath before opening the door.
"I don't care what you told her!" Keith was yelling. "I come back here to find my daughter all sliced up and bruised so I damn well better be getting some answers!" Both Keith and Levi were standing in front of the couch, and turned when they heard the bedroom door open.
"Veronica!" Keith hurried over to her and hugged her. Veronica hugged him back as best she could. Logan went and sat in the armchair next to the couch.
"Are you okay? What happened?"
"Yeah, Dad. I'm all patched up," she smiled up at him.
"You wanna tell me why on earth you needed to be patched up to begin with? Logan mentioned the Fitzpatricks, and I can't get anything else out of this guy," he said, motioning to Levi.
"Yeah…. I see you've met Agent Levi. When did you get here?" she asked Levi.
"About 20 minutes ago."
"You wanna tell me why you're involved with an FBI agent and the Fitzpatricks?" her dad asked her.
"It's not really about the Fitzpatricks. Or it wasn't, until now."
"What do you mean?" Keith's voice was very firm.
"Veronica, I don't think—"
"I don't care what you think right now, I'm talking to my daughter!"
This was not good. Her dad and Levi were not getting off to a good start.
"Dad…it's okay. Levi's with the Organized Crime Unit and they're here because of the Sorokins."
"Veronica," Levi had warned her about what she was and was not permitted to tell them.
"Oh come on! Either you tell them or I will!"
"No- Veronica I told you we would do this my way or not at all!" He all but yelled, trying to keep control over the conversation.
"She can tell me whatever she wants!" Keith yelled back at him.
Logan watched the two men have their stand off, almost smirking. It seemed Mr. Mars didn't care he was talking to an FBI agent at all. He admired his unabashed confidence. Logan agreed with Keith, though. He hadn't quite gotten to size up Agent Levi himself yet, and he wanted to hear what Veronica had to say, too.
"Mr. Mars. Keith. Let's get one thing straight, alright?" Levi stone-faced him. "I get that you're upset. I get it. But you're going to know exactly what I tell you. And nothing more. This is an FBI operation, and you—all three of you—are civilians. This situation is unprecedented, and we're not entirely sure how we're going to proceed yet. So for the time being, you'll listen to me and do what I say, understood?" Despite his laid-back and casual appearance, Levi could be very intimidating when he wanted to be. Veronica had only glimpsed why he was considered such a prized agent in the office, but this was apparently why.
"This is my daughter for Christ sakes! My 20-year-old daughter! I think I'm allowed to be upset and deserve to know everything when she gets herself involved with the mob!"
"I understand you're worried—and believe me—I am too," he continued. "She seems to be a magnet for trouble, if last night's events are anything to go by."
Logan snorted. You don't know the half of it.
Veronica furrowed her brows in his direction. Not helping, Logan.
"We're going to need your cooperation with this. You know this town better than any of us, so we're going to have to work together," he said a little calmer. "But you have to follow my lead, got it?" Keith looked at him. When he nodded, Veronica sighed. If her dad had stopped arguing, that was a good sign.
"Now," he said, turning to Veronica, "Why don't you enlighten us as to your little adventure last night before we go any further."
They all turned to look at her.
"Ver-ronnnn-icaaaaa... Ver-ronnnn-icaaaaa..." someone singsonged.
She began to open her eyes. Her vision was fuzzy and her head fell from side to side as someone slapped her face.
"Ah...there she is!"
She blinked a few times to focus on her surroundings. And on who was in front of her.
Danny Boyd.
Great.
When she tried to get up off the chair she was sitting in, he pushed her back down and she winced when her arms were smashed against the chair. Her hands were ducked taped behind her back, but least she knew she wasn't tied to the chair itself. That would make getting away easier. Hopefully...
"You know, we've been wanting to have a little chat with you, Veronica. Talk about your little field trip to Virginia. Imagine my luck when you show up across the street."
"We?"
"Oh, yeah. You know. Liam, me…all your old friends. Seems like you've been causing some problems for us."
"Oh, I'm pretty sure you cause enough problems all by yourselves," she told him.
He smirked at her.
"So where's Liam? Let's get this over with. What? He's not man enough to take care of little old me by himself? Had to send you to do his work for him?" Veronica's mind was working over time. She had to keep him talking so she could come up with a plan. If she could get him closer she could try to use her legs to knock him off his feet. They were thankfully untied.
Danny didn't disappoint her. He was kind of stupid.
"Oh no, you're gonna be a surprise for him," he leered at her, leaning over and putting his hands on the chairs arm.
"You know, as much I'd love to stay and wait for him, I think I'll PASS!" Veronica leaned back and head butted him, then when he fell back, she lifted her feet up and kicked him as hard as she could between the legs. Not wasting time to see if went down, she ran towards the stairs behind him.
"You BITCH!" he cried, crouching over.
She almost made it when he lunged after her and managed to grab her by the ankle. She fell forward, and without her hands to break her fall, Veronica smacked onto the concrete steps. She heard a crack; the wind was knocked out of her and her vision blurred with tears. She was momentarily paralyzed by the pain in her chest as he dragged her back across the floor and flipped her over and straddled her. Veronica whimpered as his legs pressed down on her damaged ribs and her bound hands and arms were crushed underneath her body.
"Oh Veronica, did that hurt?" He feigned sympathy. Tears leaked from her eyes—from pain and fear. This was not a position she wanted to be in.
"You know, last time I talked to you, I seem to remember you were looking to get some plastic surgery done." Veronica's eyes widened.
"I don't want to cut up that pretty face of yours," he said, grabbing her face in his hand, "but let's see what else we can do." She started squirming and rocking side to side to roll him off, but Danny backhanded her hard across the cheek, causing her eyes to water once again.
"My, my, you are feisty. This is gonna be fun." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a switchblade, and cut the top two buttons of Veronica's shirt, revealing her blue cotton bra.
"I think we need to do a little slicin' and dicin', what do you think?" Veronica let out a cry of pain as he dragged the knife across her chest. Blood gushed down her side and stomach, and Danny laughed as more tears leaked from her eyes.
"Danny!" A voice sounded from upstairs. "It's Liam. He doesn't sound too happy." Whoever was standing at the top of the stairs waved a cell phone at him.
"Fuck... Sorry to cut this short, doll, but I got some business to take care of. I'll be right back," he said, running his grubby finger down her face. She threw her head to the side to turn away, but Danny gave her a little smack on her purpling cheek before turning and taking the stairs two at a time.
He grabbed the phone and motioned back to Veronica. "Watch her. She's a feisty one."
The guy looked down at her and smirked, but stayed at the top of the stairs, and his eyes followed Danny as he disappeared from Veronica's sight.
She could still hear some of his conversation... "I thought you said Lev wanted her out of the picture?"
Wait, Lev? As in Uncle Lev Sorokin?
Well shit.
This wasn't good. She had to get out of there now.
She looked around for something she could cut the tape binding her hands with. She was obviously in a basement, and the Stix made the most sense. There was a metal work bench with some weird looking iron instruments — she didn't want to think about what they were for— a bunch of papers and a baseball bat on a desk against another wall, (if only she had time to look through them), and a locked cabinet on the wall- their hardware? She glanced up at the guy supposed to be watching her, whose eyes were on Danny, and she moved over to the sharp corner of the workbench that was out of his sight. It was a high bench, and she had to stretch her shoulders up behind her and lift her arms uncomfortably high to press her hands on the sharp edge. She let out a cry when it broke through the tape and sliced her hand.
Shit...he must have heard that. She quickly ran over to the corner, grabbed the bat, and hid around the corner of the stairs.
"Hey!" The guy called, as he started down the stairs. As soon as he walked past her, she swung with all the strength she could muster and hit him on the back of the head. He dropped like a rock.
Gotta act fast...she ran up the stairs as quietly as she could, one hand holding her ripped shirt together. Still hearing Danny on the phone, she slipped behind him in the other direction and out the back door.
The room was silent.
"So, yeah. I came straight here after that, and that Devon guy came to patch me up."
"Jesus, Veronica." Her dad sat down on the couch next to her, wrapping his arm around her. She let her head drop to his shoulder, knowing it would make him feel better, but her glaze flickered over to Logan, who had remained ominously quiet while she related the previous nights events. He was looking down at the floor, hands clasped together in front of him.
Why was he so calm? To be honest, it put her more on edge. Where was the outburst? Where was the yelling- the calling her crazy and reckless? He was the only one who had actually seen her injuries yet...or at least the ones beneath her clothes.
"I can't believe that bastard cut you! Thank God you got out of there so fast," Keith told her.
"Yeah."
"How's your cut? Do we need to change the bandage? And your ribs?"
"I'm okay for now. I'm tough," she said, smiling up at him.
"I know you are honey," he pressed a kiss to her forehead.
Logan nostrils flared, and he stood up abruptly and walked into the kitchen. Veronica's gaze followed him. He opened the fridge and stared inside. He didn't really want anything in there, but he had to get control of himself. She had no idea how hard he was trying to keep his cool. Livid. He was livid. She's 'tough'. She was going to get herself killed, that's what. He took a deep breath and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and banana from a basket on the counter. Was him yelling at her going to stop her from doing anything? No. It wasn't. It never had in the past. And he was 99.9% sure it never would. Last night, while he held her crying in his arms, he had decided since he was going to worry about her no matter what she did, he might as well join the party to keep an eye on her. From as close a distance as she would let him. He knew it wasn't going to be easy, but it was already proving to be nigh impossible, just a few short hours later.
He brought the water and banana back and set them on the coffee table in front of Veronica, and pushed the bottle of pills that was still there towards her, without even looking at her.
"I talked to Booth last night," Levi told them.
"You did? What did he have to say?"
"Well, now since the Fitzpatricks seem to be involved, we're almost sure we're looking at some heavy drug trafficking."
"That's what I thought too," Veronica told him.
"That's always been their thing," Keith said. "We've just never been able to pin anything on them."
"Well, hopefully we'll get to this time. But know that if we do, they'll just be a lucky by-product. Our first priority will be taking down the Sorokins. They're the big fish here. And it's looking like the Fitzpatricks might be our way in."
"Well, small fish or not, the Fitzpatricks don't mess around. They're not above killing each other for their own gain. Liam killed his own cousin and girlfriend last year," Keith informed him.
Veronica knew her dad was talking about Kendall. Her gaze flicked to Logan. He looked at her, and quickly away, but she was unable to read the emotion in his eyes.
"Well, there's something else we need to talk about, too," Liam said.
"What?" Veronica asked.
"We need to think about how they knew you knew anything about their little hobby in the first place. How the Sorokins knew. Why would they think you were causing problems- enough to want you out of the picture?"
"Goyra seemed to have it out for her. He's not the type to just let things go. Obviously." Logan added quietly, thinking about his own fun this summer.
"Right, but go to all this trouble? I don't think so."
Veronica had a thought. "Jake Kane."
"What?" Keith asked.
"Think about it. Goyra gave him the hard drive with all the Castle's confessions on it- including his about his dad and uncle. I stole it from Jake, and he pressed charges against you. They must read the paper. Maybe they guessed I would have cracked into it and seen Goyra's confession."
Levi was nodding his head. "That's one of the theories anyway."
"What do you mean 'one of the theories'?" Logan asked.
"Well, after I got that call from Veronica yesterday, I went to the Stix for a drink."
"You what? After I had just gotten out of there are you crazy?" Veronica shouted at him.
"On the contrary, Veronica. Why on earth would they suspect me—when I show up alone, just after all this has gone down? Liam had shown up by then, and from what I could hear going on downstairs, he was really giving it to Danny. Sounded like for taking you in the first place. Now why would he be in trouble for taking you if they think you know their secrets? Doesn't make any sense." He paused here, looking at each of their faces.
Logan's brain was working overtime. He had an extremely unsettling thought. "Unless they didn't want her to know they knew she went to Virginia and was working with you guys."
"Exactly. That's the conclusion we came to, too," Levi said, nodding at Logan.
"Wait, what?" Veronica's head was still a little fuzzy.
"Who's we?" Keith asked.
"Booth. Head of our OCU team. We have to consider the possibility of—"
"What, a mole?" Veronica exclaimed. "What is this? A James Bond movie? You've got to be kidding me!" She sank down on the couch.
"I know. It's an extremely depressing thought. And with the team coming in next week…Our circle of trust will be very, very small." They all grew silent, until Veronica spoke up, somewhat hesitantly.
"Yeah, about that circle of trust..." Veronica said.
"What now?" Levi turned to her, exasperated.
"What am I supposed to tell my friends?"
Levi looked at her. "Nothing?" He knew her well enough she'd fight him on that, and she didn't disappoint.
"I can't just tell them nothing. I look like I lost a fight with a….with a…." she looked down at herself, at a loss for words.
"Hippogriff?" Logan supplied.
She looked at him, a slight smile on her face. "Sure. And Wallace already knows something is up. He doesn't know any names or details, so don't get your panties in a twist," she hurried on when Levi's eyes widened and he shook his head at her. "But my friends are not stupid. Hell, even Dick will notice something's up. They deserve to know something. At least if just to keep them on their toes."
Levi stared at her.
"Just think about it. Please," she added.
"Who the hell is Dick?"
"Dick Casablancas. My roommate," Logan supplied.
"Casablancas... Why do I know that name?"
"You enjoy Gin joints in the dessert?"
"His dad's about to go to prison for fraud," Veronica supplied, ignoring Logan.
A look of recognition passed Levi's face. That was obviously it. He turned to Veronica. "Do you hang out with anyone who doesn't have a record?" She said nothing. And he didn't even know Weevil yet...
"Well," he sighed, turning back to Logan, "I don't want you here for much longer. Too many variables. Hotel staff, other guests…. Pretty much anyone can come and go. I don't like the odds."
"I'm in the process of getting my own place." Logan agreed with him.
"Good. You have more money that God, right?" Logan looked at Veronica, who had the decency to look a little sheepish. What else had she told Levi about him?
"Use it. Gated community, gated house, security system, cameras, whatever. Get it."
"We'll probably end up on a private beach, so they'll be fewer access points anyway."
"Good." With that cleared up, Levi turned to Keith. "Keith, we'll need your input about what to do with local law enforcement. Sheriff Van Lowe, right?"
"Hah!" Veronica barked out a laugh, wincing a bit because of her ribs. "Yeah, he's quite the sheriff. I've even seen him at the Stix before…which, thinking about it, could be a problem now."
"I know, I've seen him there. I haven't made up my mind as to what he's playing at. With them or against them."
"I'd put my money on with them. Vinnie will do just about anything for money."
"I'm not so sure about that, Veronica," Keith lamented. "Vinnie may play the sleaze, but he's unpredictable. I don't think we can accuse him just yet."
Veronica just sighed. Vinnie? Though he did help her get Duncan and baby Lily out, she found it hard to believe he was infiltrating their gang for the greater good.
"Well if he isn't working with them, he's getting something out of it. Vinnie was never one to offer his services for free."
"And we don't know if he's just with the Fitzpatricks or all the way up the chain to the Sorokins," Levi added.
"So, to sum up," Logan said, clapping and rubbing his hands together, "we don't know a lot of things."
The three turned to him, identical annoyed looks on their faces.
"Well, there is one thing we know—they won't be coming after anyone just yet. They'll want to keep as under the radar as possible after this," Levi told them. "They don't know how much we know, or what we suspect, so let's use that to our advantage. Act like we know nothing. Don't be careless, but go along with your daily lives…do normal things."
"But this is normal for me," Veronica jokingly said.
"What, getting sliced up?" Logan asked tersely.
"What? No—I meant…you know, fighting crime and…stuff," she finished lamely. She didn't like the look on his face. Like he was disappointed in her.
"Normal like go to the beach, go to school…whatever. That kind of normal."
"Right," Veronica said. Classes started next week. Hopefully she'd be a little more agile by then. How on earth she'd be able to concentrate, though, she had no idea.
"Okay, well I've been here too long already," Levi said. "If you need me, Veronica can contact me for emergencies. Be careful...and don't do anything stupid. I'll be in touch," was his parting remark before he left the suite.
"We should get you home, too," Keith said, looking at Veronica.
"Yeah, let me get my stuff." Veronica limped into Logan's room, and Logan's gaze went to the older man, looking to see if he was bothered by the fact she had slept in his room. He hadn't said anything last night, and Keith had slept on the couch for a few hours, so it was obvious that Logan hadn't been sleeping there.
"Logan, if you need anything…here. Take this. It has my cell on it, just in case." Keith handed him one of the Mars Investigations' business cards.
"Thanks." Logan took the card, but didn't look him in the eye.
"Logan." When Logan looked at Keith, he saw the understanding in his eyes—how frustrating this was for both of them. They both loved and wanted what was best for Veronica. There was no need to speak this aloud, however, as they had had that conversation before, while Logan was still in the hospital.
He hadn't really known why, but Keith had come to visit him a few times during his recovery, and Logan hadn't quite known how to react to the kindness he'd been shown. He'd never really known anyone that was as completely selfless and caring as Keith Mars. With all that had happened between him and Veronica, Keith had every right to completely ignore him and right him off as a lost cause. But he didn't. Keith had seen that he had no one. No real family to even care he was in the hospital. No responsible adult figure in his life. He had even brought him books to read, which was something that certainly never crossed Dick's mind. Logan had developed a new sense of respect for Mr. Mars, and he hoped the older man no longer thought of him as another screwed up trust fund kid. He found himself actually wanting the man's approval.
"What exactly is going on here?" Keith asked, looking between him and the closed bedroom door, obviously referring to him and Veronica.
Logan sighed and shook his head. "Honestly, I have no idea."
"I think she—" He stopped when Veronica came out holding her jeans with her bag over her good shoulder. Keith walked to her and took her bag, so she could stuff her jeans inside.
"I just threw away my shirt, and I'll get this stuff back to you," she said to Logan, referring to his borrowed clothes.
"Yeah, doesn't matter," he told her. "Oh, here, don't forget this stuff." He handed her the extra bandages and antibiotic spray Devon had left. "Twice a day, don't forget," he reminded her.
"I know," she smiled at him, and her and her dad walked to the door. He followed them, and she hesitated, not really sure how to say goodbye. There was so much she wanted to tell him, to thank him for, but she felt awkward with her dad standing two feet away. She was probably driving Logan crazy- I am Veronica. Queen of mixed signals. She leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Thank you for... last night." She turned to walk away, then stopped and looked back at him. "Don't do anything…. stupid, okay?" she said, reiterating Levi's plea. Logan just rolled his eyes at her, and gave her a small smile, before he closed the door.
"Are you okay?" Keith asked, as they made their way to the elevator. He was trying to read the troubled look on her face. Whether Veronica knew he was referring to Logan or not, she chose to answer in response to her injuries.
"I'll survive. My ankle's not even that bad. I'll just take it easy for a day or two." Keith let her lean on him a bit.
"So, what exactly are you going to tell Mrs. Fennell?"
"About all this?"
"Yeah- I mean, I would normally say we tell them nothing, but we have to give her and Wallace some explanation of why I look like this," she said. He could tell she was a little nervous involving her friends.
"We can tell them together, if it will make it easier on you."
"Won't she just freak out? Be worried all the time?"
"Veronica, Alicia's a lot stronger than you give her credit for."
"I know, I just...I don't want to put this on any more people than necessary. It could get dangerous." He raised his eyebrows at her.
"Alright, more dangerous."
"Believe me, Veronica, if I could keep you from this, I would. And especially Alicia. But I'd rather have her aware than be taken off guard if anything were to happen. And I trust her. Completely. "
Veronica sighed. "I guess."
"It'll be okay, honey. I promise. Have I told you how proud I am of you?"
She gave him a reassuring smile. Sure it would be okay. Because her life always went according to plan.
Thanks to everyone who's put me on alert! I greatly appreciate the support and reviews! They make me more eager to write- so the more I get, the faster you'll see another chapter! **HintHint** :)
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