A/N: Thanx for the continued feedback - sorry there's been kind of a big gap between updates!
(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)
Chapter 7
Logan liked his new office, it was the one room in the whole place that was properly finished in the newly refurbished and slightly rebuilt block. Of course, that was as it should be, since he was the manager of the whole branch. It was odd, he thought, as he leaned back in his swivelling chair, fingers pressed together as he stared down the potted plant across the room, feeling like Lex Luthor or similar, but a lost less evil. He'd never really considered he'd have to work for a living, or that he even could. Much like his father before him, he didn't have to have brains, because he had looks and money. Though he was far from stupid he hadn't had to consider a career of any real kind until after High School when Aaron met the business end of a silenced pistol and Trina Echolls became mistress of all she surveyed.
Though his sister would have helped him out, Logan couldn't stand the thought of hand-outs from her, and did his best to pay his way. He had some money of his own and studied as best he could. His girlfriend was also his best friend by now, and they helped each other through so many tough times. Their marriage became inevitable, their moving away the next logical step especially when the kids came along. Neptune was not a place they were loving much at that point in their lives and getting out seemed like the best if not the only option.
Whilst Veronica stuck to the PI biz and made a pretty penny being one of the best out there, Logan got a job in the local lawyers office, working his way up through the ranks to where he was now. This new promotion took him almost as high as he could go, in charge of the newest office that had just opened up here in Neptune. Knowing he'd have to defend people he didn't always like or want to support may not always sit well with Logan, and even less so with his wife, but nine times out of ten Veronica pulled something from up her sleeve that would ensure justice was done one way or the other. They made a pretty good team all in all, both in their business life and at home too, bringing up their kids.
Logan smiled as he reached out a hand and tilted the picture on his desk more toward him. His wife and kids, the perfect family portrait. It was the very first item to be brought in and placed on the desk, as it always was every time they moved. Though the shot changed every year, to accommodate the kids growing up, the picture was always more or less the same, smiles and laughter all around. That had never been true when he and Veronica were the kids age, he was only glad their childhood was running considerably more smoothly.
"Mr Echolls" said the sweet voice of his new secretary as she tapped on the open door to get his attention.
"What is it, Marcie?" he checked with a smile, and she politely smiled back at him.
So far he seemed like a very fair and kindly boss, not like her last one who had been hard as nails and treated all the staff with contempt. Marcie was glad that she'd gotten this job working for Mr Echolls.
"The architect is here, he needs to ask you a few questions about the rest of the refurbishment" she explained and Logan nodded.
"Send him in" he said, and she left to do just that as her manager spun his chair around and faced the huge glass windows behind his desk.
It was odd, this view of Neptune. It'd been so long since he'd looked out over the town from such a height like this, and strangely, it all looked very much the same.
"Well, here we are. Just like old times" said a voice behind him and Logan's eyes were wide as dinner plates as he turned around sharply and faced the man he could hardly believe he was seeing.
"Duncan? You're the architect?" he checked, standing up quickly.
The man across from him was of course a little less shocked to see Logan. Though he'd only discovered the manager's name late yesterday, at least he'd had a few hours to prepare for what was coming.
"Hello, Logan" he said calmly, "It's been a while"
* * * * *
Veronica was distracted and for a change it wasn't by a case. Though she ought to have been concentrating on work, she couldn't quite manage it. Ever since she and Logan had come to the conclusion two nights ago that Dick Casablancas had probably spawned children with none other than her good friend Cindy Mackenzie, Veronica's fingers had been itching to get into her Private Eyez search engine and check out the situation once and for all.
Of course she knew that using her resources for anything other than work was unethical and wrong, especially checking up on old friends, but it was killing her working off speculation and half a story. She wanted to know for sure if Mac and Dick, the most unlikely pair she could imagine, really had got it together. If nothing else, she'd like to see her friend again, after so long apart.
Deciding once and for all that this awful feeling of wondering was never going to give til she looked for the information she needed, Veronica's fingers travelled across the keyboard of her laptop at speed. In moments she'd tracked down what she needed, first a marriage certificate and then two birth certificates all bearing Mac's name as well as Dick's own. So it was true, Adam and his as yet unmentioned younger sister Josie really were the offspring off Neptune High's former computer whiz and surfer dude.
Knowing she could find her friends whole life history with just the click of mouse was appealing, but Veronica didn't want to hear about Mac's life through facts and figures spewed out by various government resources. For once she wanted to do the girly thing. She wanted to go for coffee and chat like married women were supposed to once in a while. It might be nice, she considered, to be conventional just this once.
With what should be the correct cell number scribbled on a post it, Veronica grabbed up the phone and dialled. It rang three times before somebody finally picked up, and the voice was thankfully familiar.
"Hey Mac" Veronica smiled, "I kind of need a favour..." she said, letting the fake question hang, hoping it meant something to her, since it was almost all she'd said to her for a while, her and Wallace both.
"Oh my God! Veronica Mars?" Mac gasped and the blonde could practically see her old friends stunned expression from here, "Geez, its been years!"
"It really has" Veronica nodded to herself, "How are you doing?"
"I'm great. Busy as hell with work and the kids but I wouldn't change things" Mac told her, "How about you? Still in the PI business?"
"Where else would I be?" Veronica asked rhetorically, "Listen, Mac, I was thinking maybe we could meet up if you're free, catch up properly"
"Sure, that'd be great" she said, sounding genuinely pleased to hear from her friend after so long, "but... hold on a sec, does that mean you're back in Neptune?"
"It does" Veronica smiled, "Complete with husband and kids, in fact, it's thanks to the kids that I knew you were still around" she pointed out, "My daughter met with your son, Adam, at school, and there was talk of his parents knowing her parents. I just can't quite figure out how you ended up married to Dick"
"Yeah, that's kind of a long story" Mac admitted, "So, hey, how about we do the coffee thing and I tell you all about it?" she said, sounding like the excited teen she had once been and suddenly felt like again.
"Sure" Veronica grinned, though of course no-one could see her, "Say, Java the Hut? Half an hour?"
"I'll be there" Mac agreed.
* * * * *
"So I was thinking maybe you could come and hang out for the weekend, like stay over Saturday night and stuff? My parents would be totally cool with it and we could all get to know each other better. I mean, I was thinking of inviting Adam too, and..." Maddy rambled on and on, pleasantly but rather gratingly after a while, until Joel eventually cut in.
"Will Lilly be there?" he asked hopefully as Mia rolled her eyes at how terribly obvious he was.
She had barely allowed herself to show a reaction when Adam was mentioned, despite it being the final deciding factor on whether she attended this slumber party type event at the Kane house. She did wonder if it was a good idea to go, and if her parents would approve. She knew they would normally have no problem with her and/or Joel going over to stay at a friends house, just so long as everybody traded telephone numbers and so on. The problem was that the family they would be staying with were the Kanes and though she didn't know the details, it was clear something major had happened at some point with her own parents and Maddy's Dad, Duncan. Still, whatever happened with their parents shouldn't stop the new generation of teens from having a good time, Mia decided, as Maddy confirmed her sister would probably be around, and Joel quickly agreed to visit, seemingly on that basis alone.
"It sounds like fun" she too agreed to the suggestion when Maddy checked she was also in, "I don't think Mom and Dad will mind so..." she stopped mid-sentence when she spotted a commotion down the hall.
Two boys from her grade were messing with a younger girl. They'd knocked her books out of her hands, accidentally on purpose, and as she scrambled to pick them up they were kicking them away from her. Not one person was trying to help, in fact many were just pointing and laughing at the poor girl's distress.
"No way" Mia muttered as she almost pushed her brother and friend aside, hurrying down the hall to where the bullies continued their antics, "Hey!" she yelled, demanding the attention of the boys that were only slightly taller than her, but obviously strong enough to knock her flying if they wanted to.
"You want something, baby?" asked one guy as they both turned to look at her, eyes raking over he body as Mia stood their with her arms folded angrily across her chest, every inch her mothers daughter as she yelled at them.
"I am not your baby" she said firmly, "And she is not here to make you feel macho" she said, pointing down at the little blonde thing who was scrambling to pick up her books and papers and hopefully make a run for it before the bullies noticed she was there and started with her again.
"Er, and this is your business, how?" the other bully asked Mia who stared him down without fear.
"I'm making it my business" she said, making to push between them to help the girl they'd been messing with, but they wouldn't let her past.
"Hey, why don't you go back to wherever you came from, freak girl?" one complained, shoving her a little, though not hard enough to really bother her.
"Or what? I'm going to be your next victim? You gonna go from making little girls cry to hitting a woman? Yeah, that's real manly, a real step up in the world" she said, as she made a second attempt to pass them and this time they let her, after all they had no real argument they could make, and even if they had, the Principal chose that moment to appear and ask what was going on.
"Don't ask us, sir" one of the guys shook his head as they walked away, "Ask freak girl" they declared, as Principal Johnson glanced down at his feet where a girl was helping the as yet nameless blonde girl to gather her things together.
"Amelia Echolls" he sighed, "It hasn't taken you long to get one wrong side of several young men in this school" he pointed out, giving her a withering look.
"What can I say, sir?" she shrugged her shoulders, still crouched on the ground, "It's a gift"
Ignoring her smart mouth and at least a little glad that someone was standing up to the bullies that he was having trouble keeping in line, Principal Johnson moved on down the hall and left the girls to it.
"Are you okay?" Mia checked with the girl, who nodded solemnly, sniffing back further tears and wiping her eyes on her sleeve.
"Thank you, Amelia" she said in a small voice summoning a smile as they both stood up together.
Mia appreciated the sentiment, but winced at the further use of her real name.
"It's Mia" she told the girl, "And you are?"
"Josie Casablancas" the little blonde sniffed once more, pushing her unruly hair out of her face, "I think you're in my brothers grade"
"Adam is your brother?" Mia checked, eyes wide with surprise, after all the two didn't exactly look alike and personality wise they seemed to be like polar opposites, he so confident and popular, her apparently the school joke.
"That was so cool" Maddy was saying as she came up behind Mia, handing her the school bag she'd abandoned.
"Way to stand up for the rights of others, sis" Joel congratulated her before spoiling it by adding, "and get us noticed by a few more dangerous bully types" he complained.
"Joel, for God sakes, be a man" she sighed, rolling her eyes as she turned back to face Josie, "Oh, she's gone" she realised as she switched back to talking to her friend, "Maddy, does Adam know she gets bullied like that?" she checked.
"Everybody knows" Maddy shrugged, "but nobody wants to get involved. Not even Adam" she said awkwardly, as Mia stared down the hall and just caught sight of Josie disappearing into the girls bathroom.
Mia knew what it was to feel like an outsider. All the moving around that her family did, left her and Joel as the new kids or the freak kids all too often. Fortunately they at least always had each other, and they knew how to stand up for themselves. Josie, it seemed, did not have either of those luxuries.
It made Mia mad to think that nobody made any kind of effort to help her, especially Adam. He'd seemed so perfect to her, Mia knew he had to have a flaw somewhere and apparently she just found it.
To Be Continued...
