A/N: It seems to be an even balance of love for the growing MaDi relatonship and love for the Veronica mystery element of this fic. Both take their turn at being a pain in the butt to write, but I always like the results when I'm done, and all your fabulous reviews make me very happy, so thank you all.

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 10

"Yahtzee!" declared Veronica as she pulled apart the lipstick cylinder and found no makeup inside.

It seemed very strange that anyone should have a ten year old off-brand rolling around in their purse, and it was doubly suspicious to find it at a crime scene. Veronica was almost certain when she opened it up she was going to find a surprise, and so she did. Her latex-covered fingers moved over a tiny button that looked as if it might trigger a spray of some kind. Aiming it into the plastic baggy on the table, Veronica pushed down but there was barely a 'fzzt' of a sound and the tiniest splash of liquid dripped out. Whatever had been in this container was all used up and somehow Veronica doubted it was Chanel No 5.

"Honey?" called a voice from the entranceway.

"Come in, Dad!" she replied, dropping the not-a-lipstick into the bag and pulling off her latex gloves inside out.

By the time Keith made it to the door, limping all the way, Veronica was in deep internet search mode. She needed to figure out what this stuff was and where it came from. First stop was emailing a buddy of hers who she hoped still worked in a lab and remembered that he owed her a favour.

"I know that look," said Keith, taking a seat across from his daughter. "You got a breakthrough on one of your cases?"

"Maybe." Veronica nodded as she finished off her email and hit send. Her attention went to her father then, a grin on her face as she carefully picked up the evidence baggy and showed it to Keith. "That look like a lipstick to you?"

"Absolutely not," he agreed, casting his eye over the mysterious tiny spray bottle. "Certainly doesn't look like perfume or smell like breath freshener either," he winced after just a cursory sniff of the bag.

"My guess would be some kind of knock out juice. I'm calling in a favour at the lab, should be able to identify the compound. Of course, finding out who put it in the cylinder and why is a whole other battle. I really wish Dick could actually remember something about the attack."

"He might yet," Keith considered. "The memory is a funny thing."

"Dick's brain is a funny thing, and that's putting it delicately." Veronica rolled her eyes. "Speaking of, I should really check in with Mac at some point. It's been a couple of days."

"That girl is a marvel. I know Dick isn't all bad, but he isn't exactly all good either."

"Ain't that the truth!" Veronica declared loudly. "Still, he is Logan's friend and he's been through a lot. The fact that Mac hasn't walked out on him or caused him further injury is either a testament to her patience or he is actually, dare I say it, growing up a little?"

"You all do eventually, it seems," said Keith, smiling fondly at his daughter. "Although quite honestly, I think you were an adult from around age ten."

The phone ringing interrupted any further conversation. Veronica looked apologetic as she picked up and found it was Mac on the other end of the line. Weird coincidence duly noted, they talked briefly over a few messages that Mac had taken and some progress she had made with research into other cases.

"How's the patient?" asked Veronica when she got the chance.

"Dick's fine" replied Mac. "We're getting along."

It was a fairly short and vague answer, and somehow Veronica could hear a smile in the words that Mac spoke. It wasn't a bad thing that there was no drama happening at Chez Casablancas, but Veronica was almost more unnerved by that than she was comforted. Mac and Dick becoming any kind of friends freaked her out just a little bit, though quite honestly, Veronica couldn't have explained why even if she had been asked.

"Well, don't tell Dick yet," she said eventually, "but I may have had a breakthrough on his case. It's not definite but we might at least have identified one part of the attacker's weaponry."

"All clues are good clues, right?" said Mac hopefully.

"I always think so," her friend agreed. She may have said more if given the chance, but a rather loud thump caught her attention and caused some alarm.

Mac was clearly worried too as she yelled Dick's name and asked if he was okay. When no answer came, she told Veronica she would call her back later and hung up fast. Mac was yelling to Dick repeatedly as she ran from her room to his own. She felt sick when she saw him lying face down on the carpet, trying his damndest to get up again and failing miserably.

"What were you trying to do?" she asked frantically as she hurried to assist him.

"I thought I could get to the damn bathroom by myself!" Dick yelled, clearly frustrated with himself for not managing what seemed to be such a basic task. Of course any such movement was hampered by his injuries. He had got from the bed to the chair and back a few times, but clearly today things were proving more tricky as he really hadn't got far from the bed before falling. With Mac's support, he managed to lever himself up on his good arm and uninjured leg. She had him sitting down on the edge of the bed, but dare not move too far from him until he looked less pale.

"You okay now?" she asked him.

"Yeah, I guess so," said Dick, pushing his hair back off his forehead. "I don't even know how that happened. I just got up, my ribs kinda hurt, and then bam! Did I black out?" he asked, as if Mac was supposed to know.

It was unlikely she would have been able to tell even if she was in the room, and more than a little worrying that Dick didn't know himself.

"Maybe I should call the doctor," she considered, biting her lip.

"Nah, it's cool," he assured her, waving away her concern as he tried to get his legs back up onto the bed with varied levels of success until Mac assisted. "I probably just got up too fast."

"That might be it," Mac agreed.

After all, Dick hadn't had any fainting spells since she had been taking care of him, no dizziness since the first day which was nearly two weeks ago now. They were due to head back to the hospital tomorrow for a check-up. Dick's ankle had been classified as a Grade 2 sprain so it was likely to be anything up to a month yet before it was fully healed, but it was getting a little easier already. His ribs were clearly still giving him trouble, but Mac soon realised he was due more pain relief.

"You're looking at me weird," said Dick, returning the look, Mac noted.

"You are weird," she told him with a smirk she couldn't help. "And hey, I'm the one who volunteered to babysit you, so doesn't that just make me more than a little off-balance? Sorry, that wasn't supposed to be a joke..." she apologised immediately gesturing the patch of carpet where Dick had landed face down just minutes before.

"It's cool," he told her, with a lop-sided shrug. "You're cool for being here. I've told you that right?"

"A couple of times." Mac nodded, feeling awkward still when he paid her any kind of compliment. "Um, I'll go get you some water so you can take your meds. That should ease the pain some, and then I can help you with the whole getting to the bathroom thing."

She was out of the room pretty fast and Mac was glad to be able to breathe more freely. It was the craziest thing, because she could handle being around Dick, playing video games, hanging out, even having him lean on her when he needed to. The part that made her most uncomfortable was when he looked at her this certain way, like she was just the best thing in his life. That was a ridiculous way of putting it, but Mac couldn't find other words in her head. Nobody ever looked at her like that before, but she had seen a similar expression on Logan's face when he gazed at Veronica. It was unnerving to have such a look aimed at her, especially when the person looking was Dick.

They were friends, of a kind, but that was all, and prior to the attack they hadn't even been that. In high school, they barely spoke until Mac dated Cassidy, then every time Dick saw them he poked fun at their relationship. He said some truly horrible things back then, but in college he seemed to repent. Mac knew from what Veronica had told her that Dick really suffered after his little brother committed suicide. The drinking got worse and he went through a serious depressive state. Logan had been a rock for him, whilst Veronica and Wallace supported Mac when she struggled in the aftermath of Beaver's demise. It was strange to think that the best people to get each other through all that might have been each other.

In spite of the dark subject matter on her mind, Mac smiled as she got water from the fridge for Dick and another bottle for herself. The idea of the two of them being buds in college was so out there. When he decided one day on the beach to apologise for his past sins, Mac had forgiven Dick, but then he tried to kiss her and she pushed him aside. Even so, she had to admit she had thought about it more than once afterwards, about the possibility of what could have been.

"Not helpful," she muttered to herself, heading back upstairs.

She barely looked at Dick as she got him the correct pills and handed them over, along with a bottle of water. Mac heard him say 'thanks' and then turned away, taking a drink from her own water bottle. Her eyes were fixed on the view beyond the window, the waves lapping on the beach below. For an indoors type of woman, she would love to be out there in this moment. This room was lacking fresh air, or any air at all just now.

"Mac?" said Dick, getting her attention so suddenly she spilled a trickle of water right down her shirt. "Sorry."

"No big deal," she told him, brushing the dampness off her t-shirt. "Er, you need to go to the bathroom, right?"

Dick only nodded in reply, looking oddly nervous. Mac had to think he was remembering a few minutes ago and worrying he was going to land in a heap on the floor again. He was stupidly helpless lately and that had to suck. Sure, Dick was the type to have been waited on hand and foot for much of his life, but there was a difference between wanting to do nothing for yourself and being unable to, Mac supposed.

"Y'know, my mom went through this dizzy spells thing for a while," she said eventually. "The doctor told her that when she got up out of bed she should sit on the edge for a while, take a few deep breaths and then stand," she explained. "Maybe you wanna try that?"

Dick did as he was told, swinging his legs down to sit on the edge of the bed for a minute. Mac moved in close just in case, keeping her eyes away from his face. Nothing had happened here, and nothing was going to, she was sure on that, but just the very thought of the past, or even past musings on what could have happened, it had put her on pins and needles with him.

When he was ready, Dick moved to get up and Mac reacted instantly, being there for him to lean on as he hopped and hobbled to the bathroom door.

"You okay?" she checked, before letting him go it alone.

"Yeah, thanks," he told her, going into the en suite.

Mac moved away, retrieved her water bottle and took another drink. She moved to sit down on the foot of the bed and waited until Dick needed her help getting back across the room.

Tomorrow was going to be an adventure, taking the guy to the hospital. They had already booked a cab and Veronica knew when Mac would and would not be available for work and such. The only issue, which Mac had yet to broach with Dick, was the fact the people at the hospital believed they were engaged. That particular piece of information had not been mentioned at all since her first telling him about it way back in the beginning of their arrangement. Of course, way back was barely two weeks ago, but sometimes, Mac just felt like she had been here forever.

The toilet flushed, water ran from the faucet at the sink, and Mac moved back over to the door in time for Dick to emerge, looking pale. She didn't even ask if he was okay, just offered her support again and got him back to the bed as quickly and carefully as she could.

"Probably should've waited 'til those pain pills kicked in," said Dick, holding his ribs with his good arm. "Damn, I actually think this is getting worse."

"Well, we can talk to the doctor about it tomorrow," said Mac, trying not to sound as worried as she felt.

He didn't look well. Dick may have been an ass hat for a lot of years that she knew him, but Mac wasn't so stupid that she didn't know he was a good looking guy. Always tanned and always smiling, that was Dick Casablancas, but today a lot of people who had known him before might not even recognise the guy. It was uncomfortable for Mac to see. She only wished she could be of more help.

"Dick..." she began, not really sure what the rest of the sentence was when he met her eyes. "Um, are you okay for a while if I go to my room? I have to call Veronica back. Work stuff," she explained awkwardly.

"I'm cool," he said sleepily, eyes closing as if beyond his control. "I might just nap a little."

Mac smiled as she watched him drifting off. Sleep would probably help, but she knew she would be back every five minutes to check he was still okay. It would be easier to just come sit in here with her laptop as soon as she could, but her call to Veronica was probably best conducted out of the way. She headed back to her room, pushed the door almost closed and grabbed her cell to call her friend again.

"Mac, everything okay?" asked Veronica immediately.

"Pretty much, yeah," she confirmed. "Dick fell out of bed, but he's okay now. His ribs are hurting a lot. I guess that's normal," she said, Googling it even as she said the words. "He should probably be moving more for the sake of his chest, but with his ankle... Nursing is not easy," she declared everntually.

"Really? I thought you just threw on the uniform and automatically knew it all," said Veronica, dead-pan as ever.

"If I put on the traditional uniform I think Dick would fall down several more times, from the shock." Mac smiled, unable to help it. "I think he'll be okay."

"I'm sure he will," her friend assured her. "Maybe this is the worst time, but if I sent you a couple of pictures, could you maybe ask Dick if he recognises the women? It didn't seem so important before but in the light of new evidence, it might just be."

"Sure, I can ask, when he wakes up," Mac agreed. "Who are the women?"

"Missy and Stephanie, the bartenders from the club that I told you about before. Dick doesn't remember much from the night of the attack, but he might know more about these ladies than we can dig out of the old 1s and 0s."

"Okay," said Mac. "Send them over and when he wakes up, I'll ask."

There was a pause before Veronica spoke again.

"Mac, you're okay, right?" she checked. "I mean, this is all pressure on you..."

"I'm fine," her friend told her quickly. "Honestly, Veronica, I'm fine."

"Okay," replied Veronica, soon ending the call, though they both knew that neither of them were really buying that Mac was altogether fine, not for a second.

To Be Continued...