Chapter 11: Better Make Up Something Real Quick
SUMMARY: Veronica leaves a gift in someone's locker. Someone else leaves one in Logan's.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Happy holidays! I'm posting out of schedule just as a holiday gift to thank you if you've been following this fic. This is NOT a throwaway chapter, though; if you skip it, the next one will not make sense. It's just a chapter I would otherwise have posted on my regular schedule, but moved up a few days. So, thank you for hopping on this ride with me and giving this fic a chance. Also, thank you to the amazing Irma66, my beta reader who is made of wisdom, joy, and general awesomeness. This fic would probably never have been posted had she not read my first few chapters and told me it was engaging enough from the start to post as a WIP now instead of as a behemoth fic whenever I happened to get it finished.
Friday mornings were always a little louder than usual, and today was no exception. Veronica had texted Wallace to meet her out in front of school a quarter hour before first bell. She'd already talked him into using his powers as an office aide to move her locker so they'd be side by side.
Her old locker had been beside Lilly's, as it had been since she'd started high school, but given their current on-the-outs status, she figured it would be suspicious if she didn't push for a change of locker location. She'd deliberately ignored Lilly's pout when she'd moved her stuff out of her old locker a couple of days before.
She positioned herself so her back was to the entrance (and the principal's office) as she chatted with Wallace, asking him about his family and move to Neptune.
"Veronica Mars."
She allowed her body to stiffen when she heard her name called in stentorian tones. She turned to see Vice Principal Clemmons headed toward her, with Deputy Sacks and a perky-eared Buster trailing behind him.
"Mr. Clemmons!" She smiled and tilted her head, thinking that if she projected innocence any harder, she'd be hitting him in the face with a halo. "What can I do you for? Hi, Deputy Sacks! Hi, Buster!"
The large dog cocked his head and let out a friendly whine, making her grin.
"We got an anonymous tip suggesting you might have contraband stashed in your locker," Clemmons said. "I'm going to have to ask you to open it up."
"You really think I would have contraband? And that I'd be foolish enough to keep it in my locker? What kind of reprobate do you take me for?"
"Honestly, before school started this year, I would've said I wouldn't have taken you for a reprobate at all. But I just don't know anymore."
"Aww, don't let me stress you out, Mr. C!"
"Veronica, will you please open your locker?
"Why, surely, Mr. C!" she said, grinning broadly.
She pretended not to hear when Sacks muttered, "Veronica Mars. This should be good."
She spun the dial on the lock, and the dog started to bark. She frowned down at him, and said in a firm voice, "Buster." He whined a bit and settled back on his haunches, licking his lips for a treat she was a little sad she wasn't going to be able to give him today. She saw Sacks frown down at him and hid a smile as the lock released and she opened the locker with a little flourish she'd learned from Logan.
Her locker was completely empty, except for a photo she'd stuck to the back of the door, cut into a heart and traced in pink. Clemmons frowned at the photo, which depicted his own face in the exact same expression he was wearing now. Around them, some of the Neptune High students could be heard giggling.
"Wow," she said, smiling sheepishly. "This is a little embarrassing."
"You used to be such a sweet girl. Never gave me any trouble."
"I also used to be a super fan of the Backstreet Boys, but things change. Nick Carter's golden locks no longer "
"We've got a couple more lockers to check out," Sacks said.
"Well, I wouldn't want to keep you," Veronica said. And smirked when Clemmons, Sacks, and Buster made their way a short distance down the hall toward a blond girl who remained blissfully clueless about the heaping dish of revenge that was about to be served up to her.
"Madison Sinclair," Clemmons said. The bottle blond whirled to face him, then squeaked at the sight of the perky-eared Buster, who regarded her calmly. "Why was I not surprised to see your name on my desk today?"
"Mr. Clemmons!" Madison was smiling creepily, like she wanted to charm her way out of this moment, but it just came off like she was trying to flirt with the vice-principal. "What can I do for you today? I have no idea what I might have done to call your attention to little old me."
"Do you not? Please open your locker."
Madison rolled her eyes, flipped her hair, and turned to comply. She opened the locker door with a bang. "My father will be hearing about this." She stepped to the side as Clemmons and Sacks stepped forward, Buster barking dutifully.
Veronica, Wallace, and all of the students milling about in the hallways watched as Clemmons reached into the locker and pulled out a giant ceramic penis. There was a pause, and then the hallway was filled with muffled giggling as Clemmons said, "This would appear to be a device one would use to smoke marijuana."
"That's exactly what it looks like," Sacks said unhelpfully.
Clemmons ignored him. "I shudder to think of what else you might use it for. So you were right. Your father will certainly be hearing about this."
The giggles increased in volume. Madison glared at the crowd. "That is not mine."
"But it is your locker," Clemmons said.
"No." Her face was a study in pre-tantrum angles, jaw clenched, eyes narrowed, bottom lip stuck out.
"We did just watch you open it," Sacks said. Buster barked, as if for emphasis or to attest to the fact. God, Veronica loved that dog.
Madison jumped at the bark, her face showing just a hint of apprehension. "I mean, yes, it's my locker, but that thing is not mine."
"Perhaps you didn't realize it was drug paraphernalia? Although the alternative is still against the rules of this school."
The blond cheerleader was cherry red in the face by now. "Are you some kind of idiot?" she screeched.
Veronica wondered if she'd temporarily forgotten she was talking to the school's vice principal. Clemmons' face set into hardened lines. He opened his mouth to speak, but the now-enraged Ms. Sinclair had worked herself up to a rant. Veronica was amused to see Lilly and a few other students pulling out their mobile phones to video the exchange.
"I said that wasn't mine, and it's not! I don't even do marijuana, it's way too stinky! And you think I'd be stupid enough to bring a dildo to school and leave it in my locker instead of hiding it in my nightstand like a normal person? Do you know how gross that would be? Especially with your pervy janitors or whatever doing the cleaning? Ugh!"
"That is enough!" Clemmons interrupted after a few moments of staring agape at the cheerleader. "Ms. Sinclair, you are to report to my office immediately. If you insist that the item is not yours, an investigation will be made into the matter, and if it turns out that it is yours, I'm sure Deputy Sacks will inform you that you may be looking at an additional charge of falsifying a report. Either way, we will be having words about your attitude, young lady."
Madison let out a wordless shriek, slammed her locker shut, and stomped away, escorted in the direction of the vice principal's office by one of the teachers Clemmons had beckoned over.
As she passed Veronica and Wallace in the corridor, Madison stopped. "Was it you?" she demanded, her voice shrill.
Veronica raised her eyebrows and adopted an expression of exaggerated innocence, pointing at herself in a "Who? Me?" kind of gesture.
"I know it was you! This isn't over!" The cheerleader was shrieking now. Veronica made a show of yawning. "You think you're so cute? I'll get you for this! I will!"
The teacher escorting Madison took the girl by the arm and pulled her away. "I'll get you, Veronica Mars!"
"And your little dog too!" Wallace whisper-mocked, making Veronica giggle.
"Guess now we know where you keep your sex toys, Maddy!" Lilly hollered after her. Veronica rolled her eyes while beside her, Wallace started to snicker. Many of the students who'd witnessed the scene were doing the same.
"That's enough, Ms. Kane. Shouldn't you be heading to your next class?"
"But I was superbly entertained right here!"
"I'd like to remind you that the goal of your attendance at this school is education, not entertainment. But I suppose I should just be grateful you're here at all."
"I do light up the halls with my presence, don't I?"
Veronica bit down on the urge to smile at Lilly's audaciousness. Clemmons frowned at the milling crowd. "Move along, people, move along!"
Suddenly everyone seemed to have somewhere else to be, and the hallway filled with the shuffling of students.
Corny strolled past Veronica with a goofy grin on his face. "Solid!" he said, offering a discreet fist in her direction. She bumped it obligingly and grinned back at him.
"You're right," Wallace told her. "That was funny."
"Meet you after school for Phase 2?"
"Absolutely."
He headed off to class while Veronica stuffed a couple of books in her locker. She turned and frowned when she noticed that Buster, whom Sacks had started to lead away from the scene, stopped and stiffened, his nose scenting the air.
"What is it, boy?" Sacks asked, transferring his leash to his other hand as he held the evidence bag that contained the ceramic cock bong. The dog tugged his handler toward Lilly, then passed her, moving toward the locker beside hers, on the opposite side from where Veronica used to have her locker.
Buster stopped in front of Logan's locker, and Veronica's stomach bottomed out when he barked three times. The signal for when he'd found something he'd been trained to detect.
Lilly turned wide eyes at Veronica, who shook her head subtly. Veronica turned to the end of the hall where she knew Logan had been standing, talking to Dick Casablancas. He met her gaze, a question in his brown eyes. Veronica widened her eyes and twitched one shoulder to indicate she had no idea what was going on. His gaze shifted toward the deputy and dog, then narrowed, his jaw tight.
"Whose locker is this?" Deputy Sacks asked. "Looks like we've found another stash of contraband today."
Clemmons walked forward. "I'm not sure, but I can check."
"It's mine," Logan said, shoulders squared, face bored. But Veronica recognized the lines of tension around his eyes, the nervous way he tugged at the long sleeves of his green overshirt.
"Well, would you please come over here and open it for inspection, Mr. Echolls?"
Logan walked down the hallway. Veronica knew by his measured steps—not his usual lope when relaxed or the skip-shuffle she did not find adorable when he was happy—that he was very, very worried. She was too.
He leaned one arm on the locker next to his, then made a show of carelessly spinning the dial and opening the locker. "There you go," he said.
Once again, Clemmons stepped forward. Veronica angled her head so she could see what he was looking at. Logan's locker held a few books and notebooks. The back of the door was bare, where once it would have been decorated with photos of him and Lilly, just for show.
Then Clemmons reached in and pulled out a baggie filled with a couple of vials of liquid. "What's this?" he demanded.
"That's not mine." Logan had lost all color in his face.
Jesus, Veronica thought, her mind panicking. His dad is home this week.
"That's the second time I've heard that today," Clemmons said mildly.
"It's not," Logan snapped. "Look, man. I don't do that stuff."
"And yet despite being unlabeled, you know exactly what 'that stuff' is. You can understand why we might find that somewhat suspicious, Mr. Echolls."
"Very suspicious," Sacks added. He pulled out an evidence bag, and Clemmons dropped the baggie into it.
"Let's take this to my office," Clemmons said. "I think you may want to give your sheriff a call."
Sacks glanced in Veronica's direction before turning his gaze toward the vice principal. "Yeah," he said. "That's probably a good idea."
As they spoke, Veronica kept her gaze locked on Logan's. He was pale beneath his tan, lips pinched. She knew as well as he did what was in those vials, given that a mutual acquaintance had just snuck Duncan Kane one the day before. And she knew what would happen when Aaron got a call about his son having date rape drugs in his high school locker.
She dug her mobile out of her jeans pocket, waved it to Logan, gave him what she hoped was a reassuring look. It must have worked because some of the tension around his mouth loosened, and he mouthed the words "thank you" at her before allowing Sacks to take him away.
She was moving in the next instant, headed toward the girls' bathroom.
By now the hallway was half-empty, though several people had stopped to stare. "Oh, man, Logan's busted!" someone exclaimed in a suspiciously delighted tone of voice.
Veronica narrowed her eyes but didn't have the time to stop and to identify the speaker, and she was mildly surprised when Dick Casablancas shoved another boy against a wall. "Shut the fuck up," the blond surfer snarled just as Veronica swept into the bathroom.
She pulled a rubber stopper from its hiding place under the sink, used it to barricade the door, and then checked under the stalls to make sure no one else was there. She stopped when she saw Lilly sitting atop the closed lid of the toilet in the last stall, nodded when the other girl raised a finger to her lips.
Then she pulled out the number for the Echolls household and made the call. Letitia Navarro barely managed to say hello before Veronica was talking over her. "Hi, Mrs. Navarro," she said. "I need to talk to Mr. Echolls really quick. It's an emergency."
"Mr. Echolls would not be happy to be disturbed," the housekeeper said carefully.
"Another boy planted GHB in Logan's locker to get him into trouble during a routine drug inspection at the school today," she snapped in reply.
"I will get him for you."
The housekeeper must have answered the wireless phone in the living area, as it wasn't too long before Veronica heard knocking on the other end of the line.
"What? I told you not to disturb me!"
"It's Veronica Mars, Mr. Echolls," Mrs. Navarro could be heard saying. "She said it was an emergency."
"Veronica? Are you in school? What's this about?" Aaron Echolls sounded like an indulgent father. He must have practiced to achieve that warm, concerned tone because Veronica knew it wasn't out of any kind of real emotion.
She didn't have to fake the panic in her voice. "Mr. Echolls, Mr. Echolls, I think I got Logan into trouble, and the school's gonna call you soon."
She smiled gratefully at Lilly as the other girl silently came up beside her and started rubbing her back comfortingly.
"Calm down, Veronica, and tell me what the matter is."
What the matter is, is you're an abusive fuck and I have to do damage control because other parents would ground their kids but that isn't punishment enough for the son of Aaron fucking Echolls. She took a deep breath. Remembered that the best lies were true ones. "You remember that guy Logan was warning me about? Troy? He's been kind of hitting on me at school lately, and he's a creep. And yesterday Logan got in his way when he was trying to charm me into going out with him or something."
"That's good. I've told Logan time and time again that a man looks out for his friends, especially when they are beautiful damsels in distress."
Oh brother. "Yeah, well last night Duncan was chatting with us and told us the guy was bragging about having GHB. And one day after Logan messes with Troy's plans, there's a vial of GHB in his locker. Logan swore it wasn't his, but I don't think the principal believes him. There's no proof, but I know it's Troy's, Mr. Echolls."
"Someone framed my son?!" Aaron's voice was full of outrage, heavy on the rage.
Veronica's hand tightened on the phone. She didn't bother to control the tremor in her voice when she whispered, "I think so."
"I'm going to head over there right now! Heads are gonna roll. I'm Aaron Echolls, damn it, and he's my son."
She groaned inwardly. "Please, Mr. Echolls, please wait for Mr. Clemmons to call? I'm—I'm supposed to be in class but I snuck out to the bathroom to call you so you would know what happened. I was gonna call Sheriff Lamb next, cause he's a friend of my dad's. Maybe call my dad? Oh, what should I do, Mr. Echolls?"
"All right, Veronica. I'm going to call my lawyer and give him a heads up while I wait for the call from your school. I'd appreciate it if you could mention to your dad that I'll definitely want to hire MIS to look into this if the local cops prove incompetent. I'll give Sheriff Lamb a call myself."
"Will I have to testify?"
"I'm sure it won't get that far. In fact, I'll make sure of it."
"Th-thanks, Mr. Echolls."
"No problem. And I thought I told you to call me Aaron? You say hi to your dad when you talk to him, tell him Aaron Echolls sends his regards. Thank you for calling me. You're a good friend to my son."
"I'm pretty sure the drugs wouldn't have been in his locker if he hadn't gotten between Troy and me."
"Nonsense. He was doing the right thing, what I taught him to do. If this Troy you mention really is behind this, you can be sure it's his fault and his fault alone. And he's going to get what's coming to him, or my name isn't Aaron Echolls."
Veronica rolled her eyes. Did he really have to say his name so often? It wasn't like she didn't know it. "Okay, Mr. Echolls. I'd better get off the phone before somebody catches me. Logan will be okay? He won't go to jail?"
"Absolutely. I would never let them lock Logan in a jail cell. Why don't you come over after school later? I'll make sure my lawyer is there, and you can tell him everything that's going on. In fact, why don't you come over for dinner? Invite your parents, if your dad isn't too busy."
"I'll be there. I promised I'd help out this new kid after school, and I can't get out of that, but I'll call my dad during the break. I'm pretty sure he'll agree to dinner tonight when I tell him what it's about, though I'm not sure if my mom's home today."
"All right. I'll let Lynn and Letty know, so we can make a little dinner party of it. Thank you again for calling, Veronica."
"Bye, Mr. Echolls."
She hung up and heaved a big sigh. Scrubbed a hand down her face.
Lilly smirked. "Dinner at Casa Echolls, I presume?"
"Yeah. He wants me to bring my dad. And my mom too, but you know he really only cares about hobnobbing with Dad."
"Don't I know it." Lilly rolled her eyes. "So, Troy, huh? I'll let Duncan know what you told Aaron so he can corroborate if he needs to."
"Thanks, Lilly." Veronica's voice ended in a yelp as her sister wrapped her arms around her and squeezed, going so far as to lift her off her feet.
"Veronica Mars! I miss you so much!"
"I miss you too, Lilly."
"And up until Logan got in trouble, that bong was a masterwork! Madison's face, ohmigod! And that screeching!"
Veronica smiled a little at that. "Yeah, that was fun."
"Fun? Veronica, that was divine! You totally smote her ass with your big dick of vengeance."
"Har, har. Thank you very much, and remember your promise to be a bitch. Now go to class because if we both skip at the same time, people will be suspicious."
"What are you gonna do?"
"Call Don. Also, Wallace gave me a couple of excuse slips that I can forge, but I can't use them for you because he might get suspicious."
"Fine, fine, I'm going." Lilly took the opportunity to grab another hug. "Go pull some strings, puppet master! And call me after you get home from Logan's place! I need some sis-on-sis bonding, even if it has to be on the telephone."
"Fine. Just go already." She pulled the door stopper off, and Lilly peeked outside then skipped out before Veronica stopped the door again.
Then Veronica pulled Don Lamb's number up on her phone and dialed it.
"Veronica. What the hell is your boy up to?"
"He's not my boy, and he isn't up to anything. The drugs are a plant related to that other case I mentioned to you before."
"His dad's gonna be pissed."
"I talked to him, told him what was going on. Act surprised if he tells you anything. Don't mention I talked to you."
"Teach your grandma to suck eggs, why don't you. I thought I told you to stay away from Aaron Echolls."
"I did. I only called him. You know why I did it."
"Fine. I'm headed to your school as we speak."
"Great. Make sure you store the GHB beside the other bit of contraband Sacks collected today."
"GHB? Are you fucking kidding me, Veronica? GHB? You know what that shit is for!"
"Yes, and it's suspected that the guy who planted it on Logan was planning to use it on me." She held the phone away from her ear as the sheriff squawked into it. "Get your head in the game, Donnie, because I'm going to destroy him."
"Fine. Let me know how I can help."
"For now, just store the stuff near a smoke detector."
"You got it. I'm assuming you've talked to Bill. And possibly bribed our fair fire chief with cookies. The type of which I will also expect to receive sometime soon."
"But of course. Talk to you later."
"Just make sure you keep me in the loop."
Veronica hung up. She would loop him in when necessary. She called up the next person on her agenda.
"Veronica?"
"Hey, Dad."
"Do my ears deceive me, or is my darling daughter skipping… what is it? English class? Will I have to prepare an alibi for you?"
"Har, har. I've snuck an excuse slip, so no one is gonna call you."
"Petty corruption. Sometimes I worry about the things I've taught you. Other times I am tempted to shed a proud tear."
"Dad, I need your help."
"What do you need?" All teasing was gone from Keith's voice. Quickly, Veronica outlined what she'd told Aaron. It had the benefit of being the entire truth. "I don't like the sound of this Troy Vandegraff, Veronica. I'm going to be doing a little digging."
"You have my blessing to use your biggest shovel." She bit her lip. "You'll help, though, right?"
"Honey, I like Logan. Of course I'll help, even if it means spending an entire dinner in the company of Logan's douchebag of a sperm donor. I'd offer Echolls the investigation pro bono, but I have no compunction about taking that bastard's money to do something I would've done for free."
"Thanks, Dad. I promise you Logan is innocent."
"I know, sweetie. Even if Logan were dumb enough to do drugs, he wouldn't be dumb enough to keep them in his locker. And I'd believe Vicodin or Oxy over GHB."
Veronica's eyes narrowed at his words and tone. "What are you saying, Dad?"
"That I have no problems about you dropping everything to visit your friends, even late at night. And I approve of your dressing like a ten-year-old when you do so."
"Dad—"
"Plausible deniability. But I want you to come home before dinner instead of going straight to the Echolls place. We'll drive there together. And you're gonna dress like you're Daddy's little princess."
"I'm Daddy's little superhero, that's what."
"I know that, and you know that I know that. But Aaron Echolls doesn't know that."
"Fine. And I'm sorry you'll have to talk to him all evening. He'll probably refer to himself in the third person whenever he can."
"It will only further confirm his douchebaggery. Who knows? It'll give me the chance to talk Lynn into letting me do a little more investigation than she's allowed thus far. I can also talk him into supporting your little business venture by hiring you to keep an eye on Troy while you're at school."
"Thanks, Dad. You'll talk to Mom?"
"No can do, sweetie. I'm afraid it's just me tonight. Your mom's on a spa vacation. Spacation? Spaycation? No, wait that sounds like she's off getting a hysterectomy."
"Eww."
"Now, go back to class. Learn something. And tell Bill I said hi when you see him."
"Bill who? You mean Fire Chief Bill?"
"Plausible deniability, number one daughter. Plausible deniability."
All morning, all anyone could talk about was Madison and Logan getting busted on the same day. By the time the lunch bell tolled, the verdict was out: both would be suspended pending an investigation of the items found in their lockers.
Wallace met Veronica at their lunch table and proceeded to give her an update on what everyone was saying. She'd found that people tended to watch their tongues less around the new kid than they did around her.
"No way," she said when Wallace told her some of the 09ers thought they'd both done it on purpose so they could get time off to hook up. "Logan would never get with Madison Sinclair. He would have to be blind drunk or drugged before he touched her."
Wallace frowned. "How do you know?"
"I may no longer be led around the nose by the dictators of 09erdom, but I still know Logan and Lilly pretty well."
"Well, speaking of Lilly Kane, the other theory is that Madison hit on Logan and the queen bee decided to teach them both a lesson."
"That's so typical."
"Yup."
Veronica watched without pretending to notice as Troy Vandegraff made his way toward their table. She stomped down on the rage building in her chest and fought to keep her face amused.
"You talking about the cops busting down on a couple of 09ers?" Troy asked as he sat down beside her. He'd positioned himself so when he rested his elbows on the table, his hand brushed hers. She had to fight not to snatch it away. "Crazy, huh? And it's only the first week of school."
Veronica glanced at Wallace, who shrugged, then turned to the sack of worm food in human skin beside her. She smirked at him. "It's a dangerous world we live in."
"You know, I could've sworn I saw you sneaking around with a package in hand after school was out yesterday."
Veronica's eyes narrowed at him, but he just smiled at her blandly. Well, at least she'd confirmed he'd been around and therefore had the opportunity to plant the drugs as well as the means and motive to do so. Plus it proved he wasn't above blackmail or extortion, if he was mentioning it at all. "I have no idea what you are talking about. But thanks for changing my tire the other day."
"Well, then, my mistake. Probably. And you're welcome." He paused. "How's that spare tire holding up?"
"Ah, there it is! The quid pro quo."
"Hey, this great nation of ours was built on quid pro quo." She just raised her eyebrow at him, so he rushed to continue. "I'm having a party tomorrow, as a kind of 'I'm new to the neighborhood, I come in peace' sort of thing. You should come." He glanced at Wallace. "Well, both of you."
Wallace grinned. "Cool."
"But—" Troy turned back to Veronica and actually winked. She kept her face cool while her blood boiled. "Especially you."
"Haven't you heard?" She must have inherited her talent for lying from her mother because somehow, somehow, she kept her voice light. "I'm only an 09er by zip code. Ever since I dared offend their queen, I haven't been allowed in the first class cabin."
Troy scowled at her, then licked his lips. Because that wasn't creepy at all. Then he arranged his face into an approximation of what she suspected he thought of as all-American charm.
"Look, uh, I don't believe in much, but I do believe in this: when sexy, sassy girls can't come to a shindig of mine, it's time for all parties involved to just stand up and admit that, hey, maybe I was a little bit wrong. So sorry. I mean, let bygones be bygones. Screw pride. Let's dance." He moved in his seat like a stripper giving a lapdance. Is that supposed to be sexy? Veronica was tempted to dump her drink on him. "Baby, let's dance!"
Wallace rolled his eyes at Veronica, then said, "That was beautiful, man."
Troy shrugged and gave Wallace a kind of aww-shucks look. Obviously, sarcasm was lost on him.
"We'll see," Veronica said, voice bored.
"Keep an open mind. That's all I ask."
"Whatever. Now, shoo fly, don't bother me. Wallace and I are talking."
Obligingly, Troy stood and headed back to the 09er tables. "Well," Wallace said. "He's an interesting guy. That should be a pretty interesting party."
"Don't tell me you actually want to go."
"Nah. He wasn't really inviting me. Just thought it'd make him look bad in front of you if he didn't."
"Well look at you, Mr. Perceptive."
"Ha! Now what's the plan?"
"You don't have a car right?"
"Nope. I'm afraid I am a poor plebeian forced to take the bus to and from school."
"Oh, stop it already. Meet me at my car after school, and you can join me for the fun part. Assuming you still want in?"
"Hell yeah, I'm in!"
"Good. See you then."
Veronica parked her car outside the Balboa County Sheriff's Department, then sat back and glanced over at Wallace. He was clutching an antennaed remote controller in his hands, staring at it thoughtfully. She'd been pleasantly surprised to learn he was a model airplane enthusiast, and he had willingly sacrificed one of his sets to the save-his-ass project when she'd asked him for parts.
"Now, we could get in a lot of trouble for this," he said finally.
She glanced at his face, the worry lines wrinkling his brow. "Give it here," she said, and snatched the remote out of his hands.
"Wait," he said, grabbing it and yanking it back. "I'm gonna do it. Just thought one of us should state the obvious."
"That it's obvious should tell you it doesn't need stating."
He glared at her. "How do you even know it will work, anyway? Have you done this before?"
She rolled her eyes. "Maybe not with an incendiary cock bong, but yeah. This isn't my first prank."
"Fart sprays are pranks. This is some next-level shit."
She grinned. "Welcome to Neptune! Now are you going to flip the switch or what? My source inside is only going to keep the evidence room clear for another thirty minutes."
"Fine, fine." He pulled out the antenna so it was deployed as far as it would go, then flicked the switch. "Well, that was kind of anticlimactic. Wonder if it worked."
She smirked. "O ye of little faith. Wait for it."
Suddenly, people started streaming out of the building, and a siren could be heard from the direction of the fire station, which was one block over.
Veronica grinned at Wallace. "It worked." A fire truck pulled up behind her car, blocking them in. She pulled out a textbook and settled in. "This is going to take a while."
"Dang. Should've left while we had the chance."
"And flee the scene of the crime? I would prefer not to look like a guilty party, thank you very much."
"Should've warned me. I would've brought my history book home with me today instead of just calculus."
Veronica reached into the back seat and pulled her history textbook out of her backpack, then handed it to him. She also pulled out a big bag of chips. Then she reached into the car fridge she'd finagled her dad into paying for and grabbed a couple of bottles of Skist. "Eat, study, hydrate."
"Wow, you came prepared," Wallace said, suitably impressed as she handed him his bottle.
She grinned. "I never was a girl scout, but you wouldn't be able to tell from the way I operate."
"I'm starting to see that."
They studied in relative silence for the next hour or so, until the fire truck pulled away. Veronica put her book aside then and turned to Wallace. "Where to?"
"Eh, just drop me at a bus stop. I called in sick to work today, so might as well go home."
"I can drop you off," she offered.
"Nah, it's out of your way, especially if you're headed to the fire department after this. Plus my brother will be home, and if he sees your car, he'll want to know who you are, and if my mom's there, she'll insist you come in—"
Veronica smirked. "So early in our friendship and ashamed of me already?"
"Naw, you're pretty fly—"
"For a white guy?"
Wallace snorted. "You're not a guy. Anyway, was just gonna say you mentioned at lunch you had a dinner thing tonight, and I know you're stopping off at the fire department before going home, so maybe next time? I appreciate the offer though."
"All right. But now that you've reminded me I have a dinner thing tonight, I'm going to need some fortifying coffee. And chocolate. If you're not in a rush, want to come with? My treat."
"Only if you let me buy. It's my ass you're saving."
"Not only, but you're on."
Thirty minutes later, caffeinated and chocolated up, she dropped Wallace off at the bus stop, then drove over to the fire station. As she came in, she saw two of the fire fighters setting up a weight bench.
"Hey, Adam. Hey, Eddie. Is the chief around?"
One of the firemen glanced back at her, then nodded at someone behind her. "Well, if it isn't Smokey the Barely Legal."
She turned and grinned widely at Neptune's fire chief, who happened to be one of her dad's and Lamb's poker buddies. "I saw you in action today, Bill. You were very brave! Did you make the switch?"
Bill handed her an envelope. "Fait accompli." He held it for a moment as she reached for it. "Now, the tape you had me put in its place isn't going to make trouble for my Donnie boy, is it?"
She gave him a look of mock indignation as she tugged the envelope out of his grasp. "Who do you think I am? No, they'll blame it on the fire. I just magnetized it, so nothing'll show when they pop it into the VCR."
"Good. And might I say, that was a skillful bit of arson you did back there."
"I can neither confirm or deny my involvement."
"Plausible deniability?" He grinned.
She nodded. "Exactamento, my dear Bill."
"Well, whosoever rigged that bong must have had magic hands and a thorough knowledge of evidence storage protocol. The fire it sparked pretty much burned itself out after quickly consuming everything in one little section. It only seemed as big as it did because the device had a smoke bomb alongside it."
"Sounds like somebody knows his stuff."
"Yeah. Somebody definitely knows her stuff. I'm not gonna catch flak from your dad for this am I?"
"Just roll out the good ole PD."
He rolled his eyes at her, then patted her head fondly. "I don't ever want to know just how much Keith can deny under the banner of plausible deniability, kid."
"What, you think you're dealing with amateurs here?"
The fire chief grinned. "I know I'm not. Which is why, gimme." He wiggled his fingers.
She lifted up a paper bag, and he grabbed onto it with greedy paws. "Two dozen snickerdoodles, as ordered."
"Not so loud! The others might hear, and I'm not sharing!" He looked right and left. "Now get going before someone wonders why you're here.
She grinned. "See ya later, Bill. Nice doing business with you."
"Same, as always. Now scram!"
So Veronica scrammed, drove herself home. She arrived just in time to don a somewhat loose sweater with a purple and gray argyle design, a black knee-length skirt, black leggings, and gray ankle boots. She pulled her hair into stumpy little pigtails, piled on gloss and cheek shimmer, then met her dad in the foyer.
"How do I look?" she asked, twirling like a model on a catwalk.
"Prepubescent," Keith replied approvingly.
"Perfect."
END NOTE: For the next chapter update, we're back to our regularly scheduled programming, so expect it on 30 December 2018 to ring out the year with!
