Sorry it's been a while. First there was the whole process of compiling the whopping Mars out of Neptune Guide & Timeline. And then I'm moving in four days, so I had to pack and all... but I knew it'd been a while so I wanted to get a new chapter in before we moved and I'd be busy still :)
http/community. about theguide and timeline (linked above), it will be updated with the last chapter's info (for example, this chapter's info will be added when the next chapter will come up), and should be easy on the navigation. If you have any questions at all though, just ask :)
Now enough rambling, on with the chapter :D
CHAPTER 14: A QUESTION OF EXPERTISE
THE NEXT DAY – MISS JAMES' OFFICE
"Well here we are… last meeting."
"Yeah," Veronica nodded.
"And how's everything?"
"Good," Veronica nodded again after a moment. "I mean, it's not like I've forgotten the last year, but I'm okay… things are easier than they were."
"You look like you've really settled back in."
"I guess I have," Veronica agreed.
"So then I'll be able to… give the 'all clear' to Vice-Principal Clemmons."
"That's good."
"Still working with your father?"
"I am."
"How's that going?"
THE NIGHT BEFORE – MARS HOME"I need your help." Veronica took a moment. "I realize it's late, but I need you to come with me."
"What's going on?"
"Please Veronica, just…" he got agitated for a second, then regained control. It made Veronica startle.
"O-okay, alright. Just let me get dressed. Sit…" she stepped aside. He walked in, went to sit, lowering his head. "Okay…" she whispered, letting her breath out as she closed the door. She gave him a look as she walked by. What was going on in his mind?
She rushed along, pants, T-shirt, jacket, sneakers… No time for over dressing. On her way out, she stopped off in her father's room. "Dad…" she whispered. He stirred.
"What is it?" he asked groggily.
"I need to go somewhere. I'll call you if it takes too long."
"Something wrong?"
"Nothing for you to worry about," she assured him.
"Okay…" She walked back out to the living room. Logan hadn't moved.
"Let's go." He stood and they filed out.
Getting into Logan's car, neither of them spoke. It remained this way for a time as they drove. Eventually though she couldn't help asking.
"Logan, what is this about?" Two seconds went by.
"It's better you wait and see," was all he said. She looked out the window, trying to situate herself. They drove for a few minutes more, eventually pulling into a hotel parking lot.
"Okay, now I really need an explanation."
"Relax, it's not what you think." They got out of the car, walked into the hotel. They got on the elevator up to the seventh floor, up to the door of room 705.
"Now are you going to tell what's..." Her voice caught in her throat as he opened the door and she walked in. She froze.
"Hello Veronica," she stood.
"Oh my God… Mrs. Echolls? But… how…"
"Told you," Logan spoke, walking past her after closing up the door again.
"Would you excuse me?" she told Lynn with a finger in the air. "Logan?" she went into one of the suite's adjacent rooms. He followed. After he'd closed the door and turned to her, she gave a bit of a shove/smack to his shoulder. "Have you lost it, what the hell is going on?"
"Woah, calm down!" he protested.
"Logan, your dead mother is standing in the other room, excuse me if I'm not exactly cool and collected."
"It was necessary."
"What are you talking about?"
A FEW WEEKS AGO – NEPTUNE HIGH
As he watched his mother storm off after his father had threatened her in response to recent articles tied to the Christmas attack, Logan's mind went into high speed. Something needed to be done. He'd lost all but one of the people he ever cared about in one way or another. If nothing changed, he'd lose her too. He felt it.
"Excuse me," he spoke to his father before dashing off to catch up with his mother. He got out there just as she was closing the door to her car. "Wait, Mom, hold on," he ran up, pulling the door open.
"Logan…"
"Just listen for a second, okay?"
"Logan, I can't do this anymore," she spoke, on the verge of tears.
"I know, I know," he took her hand. "We'll make it stop." She looked over at him.
"How?"
"I don't know yet, but I'll come up with something. Just have to stick it out a while longer." She nodded, hugged her son.
'PRESENT' – BACK AT THE HOTEL
"We went back. For a couple days, we still didn't know what to do. Then you came back…"
"What…"
"When you told me about what you'd done, what you'd been through, that's when I got the idea."
"Logan…"
"We'd fake her death, then we'd get her out."
"And suddenly I'm part of the 'we'."
"You were gone nearly a year, and no one found you."
"No one was looking for me," she pointed out.
"Well no one's looking for her either, she's 'dead'." He had a point.
"It's still different. People out there know her face."
"Doesn't have to be an issue if we work it right." She sighed, looked at him as she turned and paced about for a moment. Finally, she turned back to him.
"I don't like it."
"Will you help?"
PRESENT, FRIDAY AFTERNOONVeronica walked out of Neptune High. She'd told Logan to keep her where she was through another day. Being covert and skipping school didn't mix well at all. Still, this was a lot to handle, more than before. All she'd done for her father so far, what she'd worked on, didn't involve anything like what Logan's request was implicating. She had to believe she could do this. Doubt was out of the question.
The part that was problematic to Veronica for the moment was lying to her father, keeping secrets. When it came to Lilly's case, she had been an open book to Keith Mars. He knew all and he helped her along. She had him, she had Wallace…
But now, by Logan's demand, neither could be involved. She knew it was necessary, she knew the risks… it didn't make it any easier though. Her willingness to help him as such, that part remained veiled in constant confusion. Despite continued questionings, by Wallace, by herself… she didn't really know what it was, she just did it. It felt right.
Maybe that was it, or at least a part of it. She wasn't too sure what it was all about, not in words… She'd told him – now she was getting to see part of it. Was it really enough to forget what he'd put her through? Not really. That was why this whole situation had her puzzled.
She got home soon after, needing to put in some face time with her father. The key was not to appear guilty. When she walked in though, the only one there to greet her – however happy he was – was Backup.
"Hi," she smiled, crouching to scratch him. He approved. She found a message on the machine.
"Hey sweetheart, sorry I… ow!" she heard something crashing on the other end. "Sorry I wasn't there, had to get back into the office… and now I've killed a plant. Listen, we can still do movie night. Come on by and we'll go as soon as I'm done. And honey? Bring a mop and bucket?"
She laughed, shaking her head. He'd been increasingly cheerful over the weeks. It made her happy, but now sad that she had to lie to him. So she got in her car and headed toward Mars Investigations. All these things were happening so fast. She hadn't been back very long if compared to the amount of time where she was gone.
At the same time though, all these things bombarded at her were sort of helping. She hadn't felt like herself this much since before her mother took her away. No – she hadn't felt this much like herself since before Lilly was killed. It wasn't a total heal over of course – it couldn't be, not until Lilly's killer was caught… or really ever.
She knew it wasn't really her fault, but she still felt like she should have been doing more, earlier. The run took over her life, forced her to put so much aside. She wouldn't do that again. She'd live her life with all she had to give… as cliched as it might have sounded. It was all true.
She'd felt it to a degree after Lilly's death… Never know what you have until it's taken from you. It was even worse as the run started. How many times she'd be in a situation and a reflex would propose an action, but then she'd remember… She couldn't do that anymore, could she? She wasn't in Neptune anymore, and she wasn't Veronica Mars.
Now that she was home, allowed to be herself, she didn't want to be left wanting. Her goals were that much more important now. One goal was finding Lilly's killer once and for all – she was filled with a great amount of confidence.
When she got to the office, her father gestured for her to give him the mop and bucket. She watched as he cleaned the floor where he'd dropped the plant.
"When did you turn into a klutz?" she asked, standing by.
"It's not nice to mock your elders," he looked back at her, gesturing with the mop handle in his hand.
"Yeah, well all I can say is I hope it's not genetic."
The statement forced the reminder of her still existing paternity problem to echo in her mind, and she hurried to bury it again.
"Why'd you come back?" she asked then.
"New development on a case."
"What is it?"
"Uh…" he hesitated as she came to help him on the plant pick-up.
"National secrets… nothing you need to get involved in."
"Why not? I have the hometown pride, I care." He gave her a look. "Go Pirates?" she tried weakly.
"Go homework. I won't be long."
"Fine," she sighed in 'resignation', getting up to sit at her desk. She kind of loved these moments… her father working away in his office as she worked at her desk. It felt normal, but not too normal. It was enough to give her what she was lacking – for those moments – without having to forget a thing. It was never about forgetting, just moving on.
She tried to work on her science review, but her laptop beckoned. Her files on the case were starting to build. Her grasp on things had greatly changed in recent weeks. She clicked through the info, scanning it with her eyes – she already knew it by heart.
After a moment, she felt her father's presence, looking over her shoulder. "That doesn't look like science," he tapped the abandoned book at her side. "If it is, then I'm a genius of the scientific world." She smiled up at him.
"Just checking what I have… The Kanes had alibis, but we know those are wrong. The time of death is wrong… There's two things I'd love to get my hands on."
"And when you say 'I'…"
"If for some reason you should happen to find yourself in the evidence room…" she shrugged innocently, turning back to the screen. "You interrogated Jake and Celeste, right?" He nodded.
"If you're looking to get the tapes, I can tell you already… All you'll find is that their stories don't check, don't match. You'd think if they were going to lie, they'd at least check their stories, make sure they didn't spell it out for us like this."
"Okay…" Veronica paused. "There was a reward for information to get Lilly's killer. Koontz was fingered, but you said the reward was never claimed. I was thinking… if we could get our hands on that call that sent them to Koontz, we could find out who was the caller." Keith was quiet a moment.
"If I should find myself there…" Veronica smiled.
"Coincidence is a beautiful thing."
"And you're in need of some quality family time. Let's get out of here, kid."
"Yes, pops," she smirked, standing to pick up her things.
THAT NIGHT, MACKENZIE HOME"Cindy, sweetheart? Dinner's ready," Mac heard her mother's voice from the hall outside her bedroom door.
"Be there in a minute…" she replied.
Her mother… Madison's mother, but her mother… The distinction was both simple and the most puzzling thing ever. Sam and Natalie Mackenzie had raised her, but the Sinclairs had made her, given her life. It was one thing to think you might be adopted, but this… She was born a Sinclair, and would have been raised one if not for an error in the hospital.
What would she have been, who… Sinc? No, she would have been an 09er. Would she have been stuck-up, mean, with a perpetual sense of entitlement? Or would she still have been herself?
Nature, nurture…
What kind of people were the Sinclairs? Did Madison suffer the nurturing effects of parents just like her, or was it simply her nature? Would her parents have done better with her?
Her parents… that was what they were, no matter what. Still, she couldn't leave it alone. She had to at least know… something, anything. She didn't even know their names, they were just "the Sinclairs"… "Madison's parents"… "her birth parents"…
THE NEXT MORNING – ROOM 705Veronica had driven over to the hotel, as agreed two nights before. Logan had given her a keycard so she didn't have to wait to be let in and risk being seen more than she should. When she got in, it was quiet.
"Hello?" she spoke. A moment later, Lynn Echolls walked out from a side room. Veronica jumped a bit. "I'm starting to get why people get that look when they see me now," she smiled shyly.
"I'm sorry we had to drag you into this," Lynn spoke as she came up closer.
"Don't worry about it. Uh, where's Logan?"
"He'll be here soon." The two of them sat, waiting. After the silence's awkwardness got to be too much, Veronica turned to Lynn.
"Look, I… I don't really know what's going on…"
"I had to get out of there. It was killing me to stay… it nearly killed me until Logan suggested all of this."
"But he's not leaving with you," Veronica pointed out.
"He shouldn't have to give up his whole life for me…" Lynn was on the verge of tears. Veronica looked down, taking the woman's hand. She was starting to get why Logan had called her in to this.
"He really loves you," she gave Lynn an encouraging smile. "I'll do my best to help you," Veronica promised.
"Thank you," Lynn squeezed her hands with a smile. There was another long pause. "You know, he's really missed you, I think." She looked up, the statement shocking her.
Before she could ask for a clarification though, they heard the sound of an accepted card swipe. They tensed a moment until they saw it was Logan.
"Sorry I'm late. Had to get away without suspicion. You two been catching up?" he asked, looking to each of them.
"Something like that," Veronica blinked.
Logan and Lynn started explaining things to her. She could tell Logan was holding was holding back on some parts, and Lynn didn't push on those. What she did find out was this: Aaron Echolls may have lived in the spotlight for years now, but the public did not know the true man, only the actor. He was abusive to his wife, controlling. They glossed along past the topic, but it didn't take much for Veronica to understand – what Logan didn't want to say, why he didn't want to go home after the dance… the horrors Lynn had suffered at the hands of the handsome action star, Logan had suffered them too. She moved right along for his sake.
"First things first, you should move somewhere else. Until you can get out of town, low profile is key. This place is too risky." They agreed.
The next few steps would have to wait until she was safely hidden away. Veronica felt relatively confident that she could do this right. She didn't want to rush things though.
"Need a ride?" Logan asked as she got ready to leave an hour later. She looked to him.
"I'm okay. Either way, it's probably better we don't draw any suspicions."
"Yeah, we're not really 'buddy buddy', are we?" Logan spoke quietly.
"I'll try to find something to give us a reason for meeting," she nodded.
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it."
She left the hotel, careful again to remain covert. For now, she couldn't do a thing about the Echolls case, so she headed over to meet Wallace and Mac.
MONDAY AFTERNOON – NEPTUNE HIGH"Sorry, didn't see you," Veronica apologized to the student she bumped into on her way into the administration office. He didn't pause, kept on walking. "Okay…" Veronica spoke to herself as she got through the door. "Hey," she greeted Wallace. He nodded in reply, focused on a stack of papers. "How's aide life treating you?"
"Some days better than others," he shrugged.
"Well, if you ever need a hand…"
"Yeah, don't see that happening, Sneaky."
"Everyone's so suspicious," she shook her head.
"Veronica?" She and Wallace both looked up to find Miss James had been the one to call her name.
"Hello…"
"Can I talk to you?" she asked, looking concerned.
"Uh, sure," she nodded. "Don't wear yourself out," she told Wallace before following Miss James into her office. "What's going on?" Veronica asked the counselor as she closed the door.
"I realize this isn't regular procedure, but in this case…" she hesitated.
"Is there a problem?"
"I have a student who was sent in to see me. Something's going on with him, and if I involve anyone through 'proper channels', I know he'll shut down. I was hoping you could give a shot at talking to him, get him more willing to open up."
"How serious are we talking?"
"I think he may have gotten himself in some danger."
"Well if that's the case, then why not go to…"
"If he goes to Lamb, he won't listen, and that's if we can even get him to go. You're the closest… middle ground I could think of."
"Alright. I can talk to him," Veronica eventually nodded.
"Thank you," Miss James smiled.
"So who is he?" Miss James picked up a file from her desk, taking pen and paper to scribble down some information.
"His name is Cale Endecott, he's a sophomore." The name was familiar.
"Mrs. Endecott's son?" She was an algebra teacher at Neptune High until she was killed in a car crash a few months before Lilly was killed.
"That's right," Miss James confirmed as she handed the paper to Veronica. She remembered then – the kid she'd bumped into in the hall, that was him. She'd almost forgotten about him.
"I'll see what I can do."
NEXT MORNINGShe'd been swamped with other obligations so it wasn't until now that Veronica could do some research on Cale Endecott. She settled in the computer lab, finding Mac there. She sat across from her.
"Hey, what are you up to?"
"Just research for English," Mac explained, glad that Veronica's position kept her from seeing what she was really up to. She'd debated looking up the Sinclairs for a few days before finally giving in. she didn't know how Veronica would react, so she preferred keeping it to herself.
"Right, I should get started on that," Veronica nodded.
Sending the search on Cale, she naturally got some hits on the accident that claimed his mother's life. Other than that, the search didn't bring many results. This was someone who'd lived under the radar. Nothing was out there to tell her what she could use as a way in, no way to try to figure out who Cale Endecott was, or what Miss James might be so concerned about. So that redirected her efforts toward school. She'd have to ask Wallace for his schedule, unless…
"Hey Mac?" She looked up, clicking the window shut instinctively.
"Yeah?"
"I wanted to ask you for a favor."
"English?"
"Computer."
"Homework?"
"Covert."
"Oh," she stood, walking around to sit at Veronica's side. She had closed out her own windows.
"Can you get me into the school's system?" Mac gave her a look. "Right, of course."
"What do you need?" Mac asked, commandeering the keyboard.
"Class schedule." Mac nodded and got typing and clicking.
"You're in, and if you're caught you're on your own. Good luck," Mac stood to head out.
"Thanks," Veronica smiled.
Once she'd saved Cale's schedule, she hurried to get to class. She had something to do before it started. A half hour later, the class was in session.
"Do you think the 'I already read it and got tested for it while my mother had us on the run' excuse might get me out of this test?" Veronica Wallace and Meg, who both sat nearby.
"That true?" Meg questioned. Veronica paused.
"It's half true…"
"Take the test," Wallace nodded.
"Okay, listen up," the teacher drew them back. "Before we go on, I've got your partner assignments for the next project."
Veronica sat up. Wallace found himself partnered with Dick Casablancas, something that didn't look to sit well with either of the two. Meg found herself with Duncan, which went over a lot better. And then…
"Mars, Echolls."
Veronica sat back. Mission accomplished. She looked to the back, where Logan sat. He gave her a salute, and she returned it, neither betraying that this was just what they needed.
When the day was over, Logan invited Veronica over to work on the assignment. Naturally, they'd have to focus on that as well, but it wasn't their primary goal. That honor went to the task of checking on Aaron, seeing where he stood mentally, and whether he suspected anything at all.
"What are you gonna do exactly?" Logan asked as they pulled through the front gates.
"Just leave it to me," she nodded.
Inwardly, she wasn't as brave. Aaron Echolls had been a figure she knew from the movies when she was younger. Then he was a man, a friend's father, as she had become friends with Logan. Evidently, what she thought she knew and what was reality were two things. Now that she knew, it would be different to have to face him. She tried to think back to previous encounters, if there were signs. If there were, they didn't come from him. But there were moments, being with Logan, when Aaron came around… he'd be different, just a little bit.
"Alright, here we go," Logan spoke as they got out of the car. "He's not here," he announced as they paused inside the house. Veronica nodded. "He'll be back soon."
"How's he been dealing with all this?"
"Like the poor grieving widower. Proclaims he's a changed man, faced with the truth of his life in light of his recent tragedy," Logan narrated, eyes staring out in the distance. This whole thing wasn't without its effects on him, and he was doing his best to keep it together. Veronica didn't push him on it.
Before she could go on, they heard the car pull up outside. "Come in the kitchen," she instructed.
When Aaron walked in, Logan was filling two glasses of water. "Veronica…" he spoke, surprised.
"Hello Mr. Echolls," she nodded.
"Look at you… I heard you were back. Are you okay?" he asked with concern. She could almost feel Logan trying to keep a blank face at her side.
"I'm fine, thank you for asking. I… I wanted to tell you how sorry I was, hearing about Mrs. Echolls." Aaron nodded solemnly.
"Thank you Veronica."
"We should go get started, I need to get home before dinner," Veronica turned to Logan after a moment. "It was nice seeing you again Mr. Echolls," she gave a smile.
"Same to you Veronica," he nodded.
"We can work in the pool house," Logan told Veronica. They picked up their glasses and went quietly. Once there, they sat and pulled out their books, setting up to appear to be working, in case Aaron looked in on them. "That was it?" Logan asked her.
"I didn't want to appear to probe. The goal is not to draw attention to ourselves, remember?"
"Right."
"So far though… he looks normal. Then again, I guess you never know with him." Logan nodded. "He hasn't said anything like he might have doubts?"
"Not that I can think of. I haven't been very willing to strike up a conversation though, so who knows." He got quiet again, and Veronica wasn't sure what to say.
"Well… let's get started," she finally indicated the books.
NEXT MORNING, NEPTUNE HIGHShe'd stayed at Logan's for almost two hours. In that time, a trip for snacks and a bid farewell had gotten her to cross paths with Aaron. They established what they had hoped for. Aaron was none the wiser. Logan was set to come by Mars Investigations the following day at lunch for the next step. Keith was out of town, so they didn't have to worry.
For the moment though, she had another task at hand – a first encounter with Cale Endecott. According to his schedule, he had history in first period. Miss James had promised her a tardy slip should this take too long. She hurried to go stand near the classroom. She kept her eyes discreetly roaming, looking for Cale.
This was another thing she'd been keeping to herself, although in this case it wasn't anything she had to feel bad about. This could well be nothing at all. Then she saw Cale coming down the hall. He had that look she'd mastered herself as well – the auto-pilot disturbance, with an extra of jumpy. He looked a bit worn, sleepless… She readied herself for the approach, and…
"Veronica?" She looked over and saw Mac stopping at her side.
"H-hey." She looked back quickly, but Cale was gone. "What's up?" she turned back to Mac trying not to sound too disappointed.
"I… was wondering if you might need anything."
She'd wanted to ask Veronica to come with her, backup courage for what she hoped to accomplish, but then she thought against it. She had to do this on her own.
"I'm good for now," Veronica shook her head briefly. She looked preoccupied too, so maybe they were better off.
"Okay. See you in class," Mac spoke before ducking out. After class, she got in her car and drove.
She could do this. She could go to the Sinclairs' home, meet her birth parents. She didn't have to tell them who she was. She just wanted to see them, see what kind of people they were. It was simple… drive, park, knock, talk, leave…
She got to 'park' and was on her way to 'knock' when she saw the car drive up and she hid before they could see her. She watched through the bushes as a girl got out from the back… Lauren, her sister. She really did look like her. She was smiling, a genuine smile – not the mock smile. From the front seat, she saw a woman emerge… her mother. She could tell just by looking at her, this woman didn't have a mean bone in her.
She had to go before they saw her. Crawling behind bushes, she checked now and then – all clear. She was on the street before a car honk made her jump. Her head snapped back to the Sinclair driveway. The girl was gone, but the woman looked right at her. Mac hurried to her car and drove off.
Clearly, the plan had not been thought through well enough. She wouldn't go back. She had what she needed to know… She could live with that.
NEXT DAY, NEPTUNE HIGHIn her second attempt, Veronica knew she needed a different maneuver. She may have excelled in certain investigative areas, but this one wasn't without its issues. She needed him to see he could trust her. He couldn't know what she was attempting to achieve, that much she was sure of. Among the cards she could play, the 'girl' card seemed a good place to start, but alone it could be hard to recover from if he didn't take the bait. So…
"Cale Endecott?" she stopped him as he got out of class. He didn't look particularly willing to stick around.
"What?"
"Hi, I'm…"
"Veronica Mars. I know, you were on the news."
"Right," she smiled shyly. This had been a bit of a problem in some activities of an investigative nature. "Well I… I was told you might need some help with… algebra?" Sneaking a look at his grades was proving beneficial. He looked to be considering his options.
"I don't need help. I'll manage. Excuse me." He shuffled off. She let him. No need to appear too insistent. At least they'd made contact. She'd give it another go in afternoon.
When the lunch hour came around, she left school for Mars Investigations. Logan was waiting outside. "Gotta admire punctuality," she got out of her car.
"I took a shortcut," he followed her into the building.
"Do you have that list I told you about?" He pulled a folded sheet from his back pocket and handed it to her.
"That's everything."
"Okay," she sat behind her desk. After a while, sensing he wasn't moving, she looked up. He was looking at her.
"Thanks… for doing all this."
"Sure," she slowly nodded.
Silence settled in once more… the better to hear the door open downstairs, steps coming up, then joined by a hum.
"Perfect," Veronica gasped under her breath as she stood, moving to the window. "Quick, go out there, get down to the street, I'll meet you in a minute," she whispered, grabbing his hand to push him out there.
"What…"
"It's my dad. If you don't want him to know anything, you need to go," she spoke hurriedly. He got out, starting his climb down.
Perched to look as he went, Veronica felt like she was betraying her father more and more, and she hated it. But then Logan looked back up at her. He looked into her eyes, and she looked into his – she had to go on, all sacrifices in.
"Now I know you're trying to prove you can do this job, but you don't need to put in overtime," Keith's voice made her jump, and she very nearly bumped her head on the open window.
"Hey," she turned to face him. "I thought you were coming back tonight."
"I got an earlier flight. So what are you doing here?"
"Couldn't concentrate at school, figured I'd… I need to go back, see you tonight?" she grabbed her things, kissing his cheek as she passed him.
"Dinner'll be on the table. There could be pasta."
"Perfect," she smiled back at him before taking to the stairs. She got to the sidewalk, looked around… Logan had left. "Great…" she sighed.
THAT AFTERNOON, OUTSIDE THE MACKENZIE HOMEMac got out of her car, finding part of the lawn torn up. "Ryan…" she muttered. She paused then as she spotted someone approaching.
"Hi… Cindy?" She froze. It was Ellen Sinclair.
"Yeah, well… People call me Mac," she blinked.
"Mac…" she repeated.
"Yeah… Hi," she smiled weakly.
"Hi," the woman smiled back. "You… you came by the other day, I saw you… Were you looking for Madison?"
She wasn't sure what to say. After a moment, she shook her head. Mrs. Sinclair took this, and the implications made evidence by the look in Mac's eyes, pondered it a minute.
"How much do you know?"
"Not a lot. Switched at birth, there was a settlement, and nothing changed." Realizing she might have sounded resentful, she went on. "It's not bad. I mean… they love me, and I love them. That doesn't change. I just wonder sometimes."
"We felt like that too," Mrs. Sinclair nodded, stepping forward a little. "It'd been four years, we couldn't give Madison up, and neither could the Mackenzies… your parents… give you up."
"I know," Mac nodded.
'It doesn't mean it was easy… knowing our daughters were out there, and we couldn't do a thing…" she spoke tearfully. "Does she know?" she continued after a minute, and Mac knew who she meant.
"No," she shook her head.
"Okay," Mrs. Sinclair nodded. Hesitation fading, Mac placed a hand over her birth mother's forearm.
"I'm okay, you know? My life here…" Mrs. Sinclair smiled, moving her arm up so that Mac was now holding her hand.
"I see that."
"If you ever wanted to talk though… It'd be nice."
"We can do that," she continued to smile.
MEANWHILE, ENDECOTT HOMEThis was her third attempt, and at this point Veronica was not willing to get another spoiled or brushed off approach. So she decided to try him at home. When she rang the doorbell of the small but well kept house, a young girl about ten or eleven years old answered. She remembered the articles…
'Caroline Endecott leaves behind a husband, Steven, and three children, Cale, Carly, and Sean.'
So this had to be Carly. She looked just like her mother.
"Hi, I'm looking for Cale?"
"He's not here yet," Carly responded.
"Mind if I come in and wait for him?"
"I have to ask my dad," she spoke before turning her head back. "Dad?" she called out. Shortly after, a man came to stand behind the young Endecott.
"Can I help you?"
"I've been trying to get a hold of Cale for a few days, but he's not the easiest person to catch for more than twenty seconds. I'm supposed to help him with algebra."
"I know what you mean," Steven Endecott sighed. "Please, come in. He'll be home soon." Veronica nodded and followed them inside.
"Is he alright? I mean, I tried talking to him before, but…"
"Carly, sweetie, go finish your homework, okay?" he looked down to his daughter. She nodded and ran off, after which Steven looked back to Veronica. "He was finally starting to move on, after his mother's death. But then about a month ago, he started pulling away again. I've tried talking to him, but…" He looked trapped, out of solutions. They heard the door, followed by Cale passing through toward the stairs. "Cale, there's someone here to see you." He stopped, turned. Seeing Veronica there he had the briefest of reactions.
"Hi," he spoke.
"Hey," she replied.
"She says she's here to help you with algebra?" Steven asked his son.
"Yeah, but uh… We should go to the library or something. It'll be too noisy here."
"Okay," Veronica nodded. Well talk about progress. "It was nice meeting you," she spoke to Mr. Endecott before following Cale out the front door.
The moment they were out from his father's view and earshot, Cale turned to Veronica, turned back into the frenzied version of himself she'd previously encountered.
"You have to go, now. Don't come here, don't ask questions. I know what your father does, and I know you work for him. Just leave me alone, then everyone can be safe."
After that he went back into his house. Veronica just stood there a while. Her earlier belief of progress may have been premature, but this now was a whole other thing. This may have been more serious than what Miss James believed.
THAT NIGHT, ECHOLLS POOL HOUSE"Is she ready?" Veronica asked Logan.
"Yeah," he nodded. "Tomorrow night…" They paused.
"You should go be with her, it's the last day… After that…"
"I know. I thought about it. But if we do that, it could be harder for her to leave… or for me to let her go," he looked down.
Veronica's cell phone rang, making her jump. She picked it up. "Hello?" She listened, pausing between replies. "Yes? It was?" Logan looked up. "Where? Okay… No… Thank you." She hung up, looked up.
"What? Who was that?"
"We… we might have a problem."
TBC