Summary: Begins with the missing scene from 1x19, just after LoVe's kiss, and before she breaks up with Leo. AU from there.
A/N: This chapter is dedicated to truemyth who's request helped me figure out the best way to end this chapter and deal with the end of this episode as well. Thanks to my muses, lex and forcedmovement. Italics are VMVO and feedback is muchly appreciated. Also, many lines of dialogue double checked with the VM transcripts at www twiztv com.
Veronica frantically searched through the papers while Logan watched, biting his lip. She knew he was wishing he hadn't said anything.
That's what happens when you assume my father actually tells me anything.
She paused, spotting the legal notice on one of the last pages. Her intake of breath gets Logan's attention and he comes around to read over her shoulder.
"Notice of service: Seeking Lianne Mars." Logan began reading aloud. He glanced at her.
"Please contact this number immediately." She picked up where he left off. "Legal proceedings have begun in your name." Veronica whispered the last part, feeling her eyes burn.
"Veronica, I..." Logan started to say, but she ignored him, reaching for the phone and dialing.
"Yeah, it's Cliff."
"Hey, Cliff, are you busy?" Veronica asked, trying to keep her voice from shaking.
"I'm always available for you." Cliff said into the phone. "Veronica, what do you need?"
"Why would someone place a notice of legal proceedings in the classifieds section?" She wanted to know.
"Well, it could be anything." Cliff answered. "Can you be more specific?"
"Like say, a man seeking the whereabouts of a woman." She told him. Logan put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. She glanced at him with a worried smile.
"Could be child support, uh, civil suit, divorce." Cliff rattled off a list.
"Divorce?" Veronica echoed, tightening her grip on the phone.
"Yeah, California law, you have to run a notice for seven days before you can file a divorce on grounds of abandonment." Panic settled over Veronica's features as he talked. "I gotta run, V." Veronica hung up, and breathed rapidly, trying to keep it together.
You're a Mars, girl. Get it together.
The last thing she wanted to do was start crying in front of Logan. She scooted the chair over to the computer and looked up the paper's classified section for the last week. Flipping through the entries, she counted them.
One, two, three, four, five, six. One more day before whatever is happening happens, and Lianne Mars returns clean and sober to a home that no longer has a place for her.
"Veronica, what's going on?" Logan asked, concerned by her silence. She ignored him, picking up the phone a second time and dialing.
"Classifieds." The voice on the other end said.
"Hi, this is Veronica, Keith Mars' assistant who place a legal notice at the start of the week Mr. Mars legal situation has changed and he won't need to run the add tomorrow. " Veronica spoke into the phone. Logan watched silently, leaning against the wall as she talked.
"Good thing you called, we're an hour from deadline." the newspaper guy told her. "If you could just confirm Mr. Mars address, credit information and Mr. Mars account password, we'll take care of it for you."
"Account password." Veronica whispered. She hung up.
"Veronica, will you please talk to me?" Logan got her attention.
"I can't let my family fall apart, Logan." She replied, clearly lost in thought. Her face lit up as an idea struck her. "Come on, let's go." Veronica grabbed her stuff and headed for the door. "You coming?"
Logan reluctantly followed her.
"What are you doing?" Logan asked as they drove along.
"Tracking my dad's cell phone." She answered, not taking her eyes off the road unless it was to glance at the tracker.
"Veronica..." He trailed off.
"I don't want to hear it, Logan." She told him. "I have to do this."
After a few more minutes of driving, they pulled up in front of the Hotel Dunes.
Great, a hotel. Suddenly I'm feeling queasy.
Determined, she got out of the car, and strode inside. Logan had to do a little jog to keep up with her. He reached her just as the receptionist answered her request.
"I'm sorry, we have no one under Mars or Fennel staying with us." The receptionist told her.
"Thanks anyway." Veronica looked dejected.
"You tried." Logan comforted. She gave him a look. The sound of music from the ballroom drifted over them as they walked past, and Veronica came to a dead stop as she spotted her father, dancing along to the music with Alicia. Logan slipped an arm around her as her eyes welled up.
Ok, Dad, I get it. You're happy.
Logan led her back out to her car and helped her inside. He joined her after a moment.
"You want to tell me what's going on?" He finally asked. His voice proved to be her undoing, and she let out a sob. Logan pulled her against him.
"My father's going to divorce my mother on grounds of abandonment." Veronica answered, wiping her eyes frantically.
"You don't know that." He pointed out.
"Really, Logan?" She was sarcastic. "Are you blind?"
"I get the feeling there's something you aren't telling me." Logan said. She sighed.
"I found my mother a couple of weeks ago and checked her into a rehab." She told him softly.
"Veronica..." He began, but she cut him off by pulling out of his arms.
"Let's just go." She said.
"Good morning." Veronica said to Carmen as she and Logan approached the pretty Latina.
"It is good, isn't it?" Carmen replied with a smile. They began walking into the school.
"Hey, Carmen." Some guy said.
"Hi." She replied, stopping.
"You hungry?" The guys asked, causing the girls to exchange looks.
"No." Carmen answered him.
"Cause I thought you might like to suck on my Popsicle." The guy told her, pulling one out from behind his back and holding it out towards her. Horrified, Carmen covered her face with her hands. Veronica looked stricken.
"Tad pushed the button."
Veronica was staring at the video footage of Carmen in shock.
I
remember those stars and Chinese lamps. In fact, they're about the
only things I remember from that night. A year and a half ago. Shelly
Pomroy had a party. Could it be the night Carmen gave her boyfriend a
sex show in the hot tub that she can't remember was the same night
that I was drugged and raped in a guest bedroom?
Veronica's phone rang, startling her. She answered it absentmindedly, still reeling over what she was seeing on the screen.
"Hello?" She said.
"Hi." Logan's voice met her ears. "Did you find Carmen?"
"Yeah." Veronica answered. "She decided she couldn't go through with it." Logan whistled.
"After all that, and she didn't want to strike back?" He replied.
"I don't get it either, but I guess this way, she's still free." Veronica told him.
"Are you ok?" Logan wanted to know. "You sound distracted."
"I'm fine." Veronica answered, still staring at the screen. "I gotta go, Logan. I'll call you later." She hung up without waiting for her boyfriend's reply, replaying in her mind the events of Shelly's party.
The next morning Veronica found herself walking quickly across the school grounds.
An hour early to school is pretty brown-nosey, but even at Neptune yachting is not a recognized excuse for a late English report.
She spotted Tad duct taped to the flag pole and made note to inform Carmen to thank the bikers for her.
"How's it hanging, Tad?" She asked the teen as she walked towards him. "Let me guess: Uncomfortable?"
"I guess you and Carmen got the bikers to put me up here." Tad snapped at her.
"I had nothing to do with putting you up here." Veronica said. "But I might be convinced to help you get down." She pulled out her switchblade and opened it.
"What do you want from me, Bitch?" Tad snarled at her. "You took away the only person that I ever loved."
"I don't recall forcing you to send that video." Veronica pointed out, holding the knife tightly in her hand.
"No, she did. She left me." Tad replied.
"And what good did sending it do?" Veronica stared at him in disbelief.
"Who's gonna want to touch her now?" He replied, staring down at her with a smile. "You know, if I can't have her, no one can."
"You are so lucky she has a better soul than I do." Veronica told him. "I would've taken you down with me."
"So what? Are you going to cut me down if I apologize?" Tad asked. "Is that it?"
"Nope." She answered, climbing up on the plinth to stand next to him. "I just want a simple answer to a simple question." She gave him a steely glare. "Who gave you the rohypnol the night of Shelly Pomroy's party?" Tad stared at her. "Yeah, I know. You roofied your girlfriend. Class with a capital 'K'." She continued.
"I don't remember." Tad stuttered out.
"In about five minutes, people are going to start showing up for school, and unless you want you little business to be the first thing people see, you're going to tell me who gave you the roofies." Veronica threatened, all business.
"There weren't any roofies." Tad finally said. Veronica looked incredulous, but he kept talking. "It was GHB." He sighed. "It was Logan Echolls. He gave them to me." He looked away as Veronica inhaled sharply.
"This might sting a bit." She walked behind him.
"Oh, thank you." He said, relieved. She reached up and ripped off the gauze covering his new tattoo, which proudly declared Seth's name. Veronica hopped down and walked off, leaving him taped to the pole.
"Veronica!" He shouted. "Come back here! Veronica, Please! Don't do this!" She kept walking as he got angrier. "Come on! This isn't over, Veronica Mars!"
Veronica approached the Echolls boat with trepidation, Tad's words echoing her in head.
No. There was no way...
Logan spotted her approaching and smiled, stepping out onto the pier to meet her.
"I'm sorry I'm late." Veronica apologized as he helped her aboard the boat. He shrugged.
"No biggie." He told her, taking her bag and stowing it in a cabinet. "You ready for a sail?" She forced a nod. "What's wrong?" He asked, seeing her facial expression.
"It's nothing." Veronica replied.
"Is it about your parents?" Logan wanted to know. She forced another nod. "Never fear." He told her, getting up and giving a little hop as he made his way over to the cabinet where he'd stowed her bag. "I got you a present in honor of our first date." He took out a gift bag. "I was going to give it to you later, but you look like you could use it now." She took the bag he held out and opened it slowly. Reaching in past the tissue paper, she pulled out a stuffed bear wearing a red t-shirt that proclaimed:
I wuv you bear-y much.
It was too much for her, and Veronica found herself letting her tears spill over.
"Hey..." Logan sat down next to her. "What is it?" Veronica shook her head.
"I'm going to ask you a question, and I need you to answer me honestly." She said when she could talk.
"Anything." Logan promised, reaching out to wipe away one of her tears. She leaned away from his touch and he frowned.
"Did you buy GHB and take it to Shelly Pomroy's party last year?" She questioned him bluntly.
"Yeah." He finally answered, sounding unsure as to why she was asking. She gripped the bear tightly as she heard his answer and stood up abruptly.
"I have to go." Veronica told him, crying harder.
"Veronica, what's going on?" Logan demanded, upset now.
"I can't do this." She cried, grabbing her bag from the cabinet and walking over to the side of boat.
"Can't do what?" Logan asked, frustrated. "Can't go sailing?" She turned around to face him.
"I can't see you anymore." Her shoulders heaved, and then she lifted herself out of the boat and took off at a run down the pier. Logan stared after her in shock.