One mild use of language here that you might not hear on the show, but that absolutely seemed to fit.

Still in Kanes and Abels territory, but I only barely touch on the events of the episode.

A note to the reviewers and readers: I cannot believe how popular this fic has been. Thanks, thanks to all of you. For what it's worth, I do have a definite ending in mind for this thing. I'm not sure when I'm going to get there, but I will.

Disclaimer: I do not own Veronica Mars. Unfortunately for me.

X X X X X

"Somehow I doubt that, Veronica, but let me hear it." He looked at Mac, Wallace and Logan, "Alone."

"They already know, Dad. And that's why they're staying." Logan was right next to me. Wallace was in the kitchen. Mac was leaning against the front door.

"You told your friends before you told me?" I nodded. "This had better be the funniest story on the planet."

I took a deep breath. "It starts the night of Shelly Pomroy's party . . ."

And then I told him the story of my night, whole and almost unexpurgated. I left out my suspicions about Cassidy and Madison, any mention of Clarence Weidman, and that Logan had supplied at least part of the GHB for the evening. No need to confuse him any further.

"My God, Veronica," he said when I mentioned how I'd woken up. "If all that happened, why didn't you tell me?" When I'd gotten home the morning after the party, I'd told him I'd fallen asleep -- and that I had no idea who'd written the graffiti all over my car.

"That much," I said, "I've figured out now. It was Madison Sinclair."

"Nasty of her, but hardly the most important issue right now," Dad said. "And why didn't you tell me? Or go to the police?"

"I'll get to that," I said. "I promise. Just not right now." Then I told him about my investigation and ended just before Duncan's big revelation. I stressed that I was convinced that Duncan

"This is a lot to wrap my head around, Veronica," Dad said. "If you say you've forgiven Duncan --" I reassured him that I believed his story of the evening. Duncan Kane may be many things, but a convincing liar is not one of them. He hadn't even been able to come up with a half-assed cover story when he broke up with me; he just stopped seeing me altogether. "Then I won't have to go kill him."

"Please don't, Dad. You're in enough trouble with the Kane family already."

"This isn't funny, Veronica!" he yelled. "Not only did you get raped and not tell me about it -- I thought you trusted me with everything -- but none of this still explains why Jake Kane and you took a paternity test!"

"Which do you want first?" I asked.

"Why you took the paternity test."

"Because when I asked why Duncan was so upset at a night of what he thought was consensual sex between us, his response was, 'Because you're my sister!' And more or less right then is when Jake walked in. So, long story short, he suggested it for Duncan's peace of mind and I went along with it."

"And if the results had come back the other way? And said you were his daughter?"

"I wouldn't have considered myself related to him if the test had come back saying I was his clone," I said. "I'm a Mars, pure and simple. And nothing will or could ever change that."

At last, a little grin. "Damn right it won't." The grin vanished. "And the other part?"

"Because the first and only person I told about my rape for the better part of a year -- until I confided in Logan -- was," deep breath, steady Veronica, "Don Lamb. I went straight to the police, like they always say, Dad. Only they don't say what to do when the policeman in question hates you and your family and laughs in your face when you make the accusation."

"Don Lamb," he said. "Laughed at you." Voice shaking, he said, "He has no right laughing at anyone who says they were raped. Anyone! But at you --" he started to stand up. When I put my hand on his shoulder, he shrugged it off.

Then he walked towards the door. Logan got in his way. Wallace moved to stand behind him. Mac stayed by the door. "What do you think you're doing?" he asked.

"Stopping you from doing something incredibly stupid," I said. "I know you. You're about to go charging after Don Lamb."

"You're damn right I am," he said. "Logan, Wallace, move."

"Sorry, Mr. Mars," Wallace said.

"Not going anywhere, Keith," Logan said.

"Wallace, I will tell your mother about this."

"You go ahead and do that. I'm still not letting you past me."

"Logan--"

"My mother would be as likely to believe Veronica as you." Which was true.

"Mac --"

Mac laughed. "You don't even know my parents, Mr. Mars. They might believe you; you might get me in trouble with them. But I wouldn't move right now if you calling them would condemn me to a lifetime of never again so much as touching a computer."

"Why?"

"Because, if my Dad was about to do something that would screw up the rest of his life, and I asked Veronica to stop him, she would. I owe her the same. I'm not moving."

Dad turned to look at me -- "Veronica, I just want --"

"I know, Dad. I want to too."

"So do I," Logan said. "When Veronica told me, the first thing I wanted to do was go down to the Sheriff's Office, rip Lamb's office door off its hinges, and pound him into pieces so small Gil Grissom wouldn't be able to find them."

"Me too," Wallace said. At Logan's look, Wallace said, "You put it better than I could've."

"And you?" Dad asked Mac.

"I'm not violent, Mr. Mars," Mac said. "And even if I were there's no way I could take on a sheriff. This body --" she flexed -- "isn't built for feats of physical strength." After a pause, she added, "But if Veronica asked me to, I would sign him up for every book club I could find, cancel his credit cards, donate money in his name to the KKK, and put him on the 'known sexual predator list.' And that would be just the beginning. But she asked me not to. So I won't." Another pause. "I do, however, reserve the right to send him a subscription to Chicks with Dicks at the Sheriff' Department address."

"Go to town," I said.

Dad looked at me again. "I see you've thought this through."

"I learned from the best," I said.

"Yeah, you did." A second later, "Okay, Veronica. You've made your point. I promise I will not go off half-cocked and rip Don Lamb the new asshole he so richly deserves." I could tell he meant it. "But, like Mac, I reserve the right to try to have him removed from office."

"As long as that's not 'through the window,' I'm fine."

"I am," he said, "Amazed and astonished at the lengths you went through to protect me."

I looked up at him and smiled. "That's what daughters do."

"I'm betting you even had a fallback plan in case I'd gone completely off the handle."

"Yup. Even if you had forced your way past Logan and Wallace, you would have been running all the way to the Sheriff's Office." I pulled something out of my pocket. "When you went to the bathroom, I swiped your keys."

He laughed. "That's my girl."

"That's right," I said. "I am your girl." I waved the paternity papers around. "Not like we needed these to prove it, but still --" I dropped the papers and hugged him, "Oh, Dad. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. Part of it was this -- and part of it was just not pile any more stuff on you than you already had."

"I get it," he said. "Really, I do. And I'm sorry you had to go through it alone."

I looked back at Logan, Mac and Wallace. "I think I'm starting to understand why alone isn't always the best way to handle things."

It had taken me the longest time to actually get it, but Meg had been right.

I had friends.

X X X X X

After everyone left -- yes, I forced another hug on Mac, who didn't actually seem too offended by the concept -- Dad said, "Actually, I had some news as well . . . of course, after what just happened, I think I could tell you that Rio de Janeiro had fallen into the Atlantic Ocean and it would be a bit of a comedown."

"Ooooh!" I said. "Did we win the lottery?"

"Sadly, no." He paused. "I had a visit from Clarence Weidman at the office today. You know -- the Head of Security for Kane Software."

"I believe I know the name," I said casually. Inside I was on the verge of collapse.

"Yeah, well, he came over and told me how Ms. DeLongpre was most disappointed that I hadn't informed her of her father's imminent demise."

Dad knew that Abel Koontz was dying? "And you . . ." I prompted.

"I apologized profusely, of course, and told him to convey my regrets to Ms. DeLongpre the next time he saw her. He glared at me for a couple more minutes and then he left." He grinned for a second. "We've got them, Veronica! If they're nervous enough that they're sending over their biggest gun, that means I'm onto something."

I said, "First, check your office for bugs."

He looked at me suspiciously. "Why would you say that?"

Because he bugged my room, Dad. Because that's how he's been blackmailing me to stay out of the investigation. And because Wallace, Logan and Mac aren't here, I can't tell you that right now. "Because that's what I'd do."

He nodded. "Fair enough. And second?"

"Second . . . are you sure you have those copies of the settlement papers in secure places?"

"Yes, Veronica. Even if Clarence Weidman broke into my safe --" Broke into your safe? Dad, he broke into the Department of Homeland Security. I don't think one standard issue office safe is going to faze him -- "And took Cliff's copy --" I almost laughed at this. Cliff doesn't take special precautions. The only reason I handed him those spare tapes from Aaron Echolls' poolhouse was because I couldn't think of a better place to stash them -- and because I couldn't imagine anyone thinking to look there. "He'd never be able to find the other ones. Trust me, Veronica. I'm ahead of you on this one."

I hope so, Dad.

He took a deep breath. "Anyway," he said, "I'm going to go drop in on your mother. Would you like to come with me?"

"Yeah. Just give me a couple of minutes." At his inquisitive look, I said, "That person harassing Sabrina Fuller. I need to check something."

I checked the status of my tracking device -- so far, Hamilton had only left Cho's a couple of times, neither of them anywhere near Sabrina's direction, and neither really long enough to have done much mischief even if he had.

I took my cell and the device with me when we went to see Mom. I drove separately so I could go do some surveillance on Hamilton Cho once our visit with Mom was over.

She looked exactly the same as she had when I'd found her in that hotel room: pale, unconscious, barely breathing. The only differences were the machines hooked up to her and the lack of alcohol in the room.

I kissed Mom goodbye when I left.

She didn't notice.

I will find a way to punish Clarence Weidman for this. I have no idea how, but I will.