Chapter 26
Veronica walked up to the van and pulled open the side door "Really Vinnie, don't you think it's time to update your van, it looks like something from Catch a Predator."
Vinnie let out a high pitch girl screech when Veronica opened the door, but a grin crossed his face when he realized who had found him. "Now, now Veronica Mars, you don't mess with the classics, big boy blue here is a classic."
"Whatever you say. So what do you want with Don Shepherd?"
"I do not know of who you speak."
"Is that the game you want to play?"
"But playing with you is always so much fun."
"Ew, Vinnie. Seriously what or who are you following him for?"
"It looks like I could ask you the same thing. I'll show you mine, if you show me yours."
Veronica took a deep breath and shook her head. "I'm working on behalf of a wronged client." That was the truth, sorta.
"Standard cheating husband stuff."
"Mrs. Shepherd thinks her husband is cheating?"
"Nope but the step daughter does. What did he do to wrong your client?"
"He leaked information to the competition, I'm trying to find what kind of kickbacks he got for it. Well, Vinnie as always this had been an experience." Veronica turned to leave.
"Hey Veronica, you're legal now, we should go out sometime."
"Gross. Vinnie you are old enough to be my father."
"No, but I wouldn't mind you calling me Daddy." Vinnie wiggled his eyebrows at Veronica.
Veronica made a heaving noise "Good bye Vinnie." She slammed the door shut and heard Vinnie laughing from inside the van.
Veronica wanted to take a hazmat shower. Vinnie had been helpful, Veronica now knew that Susan Knight thought Don was cheating on her mom, but did Susan have any idea it was Carrie? "Well this should make for some interesting conversations at the reunion" Veronica said to the air.
Cliff McCormack's office was only a few blocks away and Veronica decided to take a break from one murder case to check up on the other murder case. "Never a dull moment in Neptune, how did I stay away so long?" she chuckled to herself.
The law office of Cliff McCormack was old and worn yet comfortable and oddly inviting. Cliff could have dropped all his other clients a long time ago; he made enough money off of Logan Echolls and Logan's misadventures in life to live comfortably. But at the end of the day Cliff liked his job, and even if he didn't like all his clients, he did love the sound of his voice echoing in a court room.
Veronica walked into Cliff's office and was surprised to find her Dad and Cliff deep in a hushed conversation. She cleared her throat, "Can I come in, or do I need to know the secret handshake?"
Keith Mars looked up at his daughter, "Hey kiddo, what are you doing here?"
Veronica eyed several brand new folders on Cliff's desk, "Just checking in, seeing if you guys had any news."
"Actually, you are just the person we need to fill in some blanks for us." Cliff motioned to the open seat next to Keith. "You have read the next Betty March book; you can tell us about it and how the murders fit into the story."
"Shouldn't you be asking Logan?" Veronica sat down as her father rose.
"Logan can get defensive when it comes to the Betty March stories, you can at least be a little more objective about the matter." Keith walked the front door, flipped over the 'Sorry We Missed You' sign, locked the door and returned to his seat.
"So, V, what can you tell us?" Cliff leaned back in his chair and watched the blonde.
It felt strange to talk about the book without Logan around but Veronica knew it was in Logan's best interest. "It's called 'The Prodigal Runaway' Betty has been gone for almost a year when the bodies start washing up on the shore. Most look like Betty's dead best friend and Rick's ex-fiancé Lauren, but the newest one looks like Betty. All have been strangled and had their tongues cut out and the letter L carved over their hearts. The cops think Rick did it, so they arrest him and Betty comes back to clear his name."
Keith rubbed his chin. "In the story, do they know who did it?"
"It's Rick's father, Charles. You know in the second book you find out Charles killed Lauren on the night of her and Rick's engagement party because she wanted to come clean about their affair. In this book Charles is losing his mind and in fits of drunken rage he mistakes the women for Lauren and cuts out their tongues to keep them from telling the truth to Rick. Charles carves the Ls because Lauren is always in his heart. When he comes too and sees what he has done, he dumps the bodies in the ocean thinking it will somehow wash away his mistakes." Veronica finishes and watches the two men as the story sinks in.
Cliff speaks first, "Your Logan Echolls is a pretty twisted little pup isn't he?"
Veronica shook her head and turned to her father waiting for him to speak.
Keith took a deep ragged breath "So there is a chance that this really isn't about Logan at all, but about Aaron."