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LoVe Songs of the Secret Police

Around ten Veronica persuaded Logan to take a shower. He still had blood on his clothes from the night before, so she gave him a pair of her father's sweats to wear since he had nothing else. He was adamant he wasn't going back to his house. Actually, he said he was never going back there again. They'd deal with it later. Right now they had other things to worry about.

--- VVV

"Thanks for doing this, Wallace." Veronica let her best friend into the apartment. "How much do I owe you?"

"The receipt's in the bag. I put it on my mom's charge, so write the check out to her. And can I just say, picking out some other dude's underwear, not something I wanna do ever again." As Wallace handed her the shopping bag, he glanced around the small apartment looking for Logan. "How's he doing?"

"He's managing, I think. He's making phone calls right now. He's been in my room for awhile, but I haven't heard anything I don't know... weird?" Veronica put the bag on the floor. "You want something to drink?"

Wallace shrugged as he sat down at the kitchen island. "Sure, I'll take a water." Veronica got him a bottle out of the fridge. "What happens now?"

Veronica leaned on the counter across from him. "Cliff should be here soon. We're going to the hospital to see to my dad, then we're going to the police station. I'm sure that's going to be a circus."

"It's going to be more than a circus. It's all over the news, the radio, the papers. You up for that?" Wallace was worried about her. Veronica acted all strong and tough, but he knew the truth – she was a marshmallow. Especially when someone she cared about was involved. "You don't have to do this. He can go to the police with Cliff. You don't have to go with him."

"Actually, I do. I have to give my statement, which means Logan's going to be sitting around waiting for me. He doesn't know anything, not about his dad and Lilly. Of course, Lamb being Lamb, who knows what's really going to happen. I know he'll say something nasty about Lilly, and Logan's going to lose it." The reporters she could deal with; she'd been through it before when her dad was ousted from office. But the thought of Lamb questioning-slash-interrogating Logan, gave her nightmares.

"You want me to go with you?" Wallace wasn't a fan of Logan, but he'd do whatever he could to help Veronica.

"We'll be fine." Veronica smiled brightly, but Wallace continued to stare, obviously not believing her. She slumped against the counter. "I just want to get him through today. Hospital, police, hotel. We'll deal with tomorrow, tomorrow."

Wallace slowly nodded. "Okay. But if you need me..."

"Thanks, Wallace. Again." Veronica's smile was a little less bright, but more real. Things weren't going to be fine, but the people she cared about were safe and Lilly's killer was in custody. The rest would work itself out. "I need to give Logan the clothes, but stick around. I'll be right back." She walked down the short hall, knocked softly on the door before opening it. She expected to find Logan on the phone, but instead he was wandering around her room. "I've got clothes," she said as she shook the bag. "You make your calls?"

Logan pulled her to him, laid his cheek against the top of her head. He finished a few minutes before, but he heard her talking to someone, her friend Wallace he thought. He stayed in the room; he wasn't ready to see anyone else right now. All he wanted was Veronica. "Trina was a peach. I think she's already perfected her devastated daughter act. She's flying in tomorrow, but she's going to stay at the house, so I doubt we'll see much of her. And I booked us a suite at the Neptune Grand."

"A suite? You spoil me." Veronica wanted to cuddle close, but she was afraid to hurt him. After his shower, he'd come out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist. She'd seen every bruise the PCHers had put on him. When she got her hands on Weevil... "What is the Grand's policy on pets?"

"You pay enough, you do whatever you want. Back-Up is coming with us." Logan wasn't as worried about his bruises; he tightened his hold on her. "You don't need to stay with me. I'll be fine in the hotel by myself."

"No, you won't. Besides, maybe I want to hide out with you." Veronica gave him a quick kiss, then stepped back. "Wallace is still here. Once you've changed, come out and thank him for the clothes." She saw the anxiety cross his face. "It's Wallace, Logan. He's not going to say anything to upset you."

--- VVV

There was a deputy guarding Keith's door when Veronica, Logan and Cliff arrived at the hospital. He reached for his walkie-talkie the minute he saw them. Veronica looked at Cliff, and the lawyer stayed outside the room to deal with it while she and Logan went in to see her dad. She rushed to her dad's side enveloping him in a careful hug. "Lamb has you under guard? Is he planning on arresting you for something?"

Keith smiled at his daughter. She looked much better than the last time he'd seen her. "No, Karl is there to keep the reports out." He glanced at Logan who was leaning against the back wall. The boy looked worse than Veronica. Earlier on the phone, she told her dad about the incident with the PCHers. She didn't want him questioning Logan about his appearance. Keith was willing to let it slide. It had been a bad night for everyone. "How you doing, son?"

Logan shifted his weight from side-to-side - guilty, nervous and not happy about that fact he was in the same building with his father. He knew Aaron was in the hospital somewhere. Veronica told him the medics had taken his dad away in an ambulance with a sheriff's guard. But his immediate concern was Veronica's dad. Logan wasn't sure what to say. Aaron had tried to kill him and Veronica. "I… I'm sorry about what Aaron did to you. To Veronica. I didn't know…"

"You have nothing to apologize for, Logan. You're not responsible for your father's actions. Besides, if you start apologizing, then I'll have to apologize for handing you over to Lamb, and what good would it do any of us?" Keith grabbed Veronica's hand, turning his attention back to his daughter. "The doctor was in earlier, honey. He checked my burns again. No third degree, so everything should heal on it's own. I'll have to stay here for a while, but I got off lucky."

Veronica barked out a laugh. "Yeah, lucky." Second-degree burns would be painful, but they wouldn't require skin grafts like third degree burns. She wiped a few tears from her cheeks. "I thought Alicia would still be here."

Keith struggled in bed. Veronica motioned for Logan, and the two helped Keith sit up. "Thanks, kids. I sent her home. She was here most of the morning and I wanted her to get some rest. Besides, the state police came in soon after the doctor left. I had to give a statement."

Veronica sat on the edge of the bed. "The state police? What were they doing here?"

"That party you crashed, it was for the Governor, remember? Every major state political official was there. And they were all still there when Aaron was arrested. I heard there were a few choice comments made about the Sheriff's Department's handling of the original investigation. It's all a political play, but the mayor asked for the Governor's help, so the Governor turned the investigation over to the State Police. The Neptune Sheriff's Department is officially off the Lilly Kane murder case."

"Wow." A smile played at the corner of Veronica's lips. Ah, the silver lining. "Lamb has to be furious right now."

"Yes, and it couldn't happen to a nicer person. He's been ordered to cooperate fully with the State Police. That's why Karl's standing guard outside." Keith glanced between Veronica and Logan. "When you give your statements, you're going to have to tell the whole story from the beginning. These guys have the Sheriff's Department files, but they don't have any faith in them. The captain in charge is an old colleague of mine, Dwight Burrows. You've met him before, Veronica. He's a damn fine cop, so don't give him an attitude. He got handed a very messy situation. I told him he could get our files from you, honey, but I want to keep a copy of everything. Make sure you copy it all before you hand it over. They'll probably have a officer watch you do it, but I'd feel better if you made the copies."

Veronica nodded. "Should we go to the office to get them before we go to the station?" Keith put all the files, even the one's he'd been keeping at home, in the safe at the office when Lianne showed up.

"No, just go to the station. Do what you were planning on doing. I told Dwight you'd be staying at the Neptune Grand until I got out of the hospital. He'll send someone over tomorrow to escort you to the office for the files." Keith blinked his eyes several times, trying to keep the sleep at bay. "Before you leave I want to get a complaint on record. I know you'll be safer at the Grand. I know the hotel will keep out the reporters. But I'm still not crazy about you staying with Logan." Keith locked eyes with the boy to his left. "No offense, Logan. I meant what I said; you aren't responsible for your father's actions. You're innocent in this. But you're still a teenage boy alone in a hotel with my daughter."

Veronica rolled her eyes and tried hard to suppress her laughter, but it did feel good to be loved and worried about. She opened her mouth to answer, but Logan beat her to it. "You have nothing to worry about, Mr. Mars. I promise. The suite has two bedrooms, but I can get her another room if you'd prefer. Maybe Wallace or Mac could come stay with her, if it would make you feel better." Veronica stared at Logan. His voice was somber. He almost sounded like her dad – protective and… dangerous.

Keith read a lot into Logan's statement, mostly because he wanted to. But… there was something about the boy. He was doing a fair job of covering it right now, but Keith knew he was devastated. In essence, he'd lost Lilly all over again, so had Veronica. And he'd lost any illusions he held about his father. Topped with his mother's suicide, it was too much for one person to handle alone. He probably needed to lean on Veronica as much as she needed to lean on him. He looked at his daughter again. "The check?"

Veronica briefly slid her eyes to Logan. She hadn't exactly told him this part yet. She'd taken care of it when he was in the shower. "The lawyer is going to stop payment on the check. They'll re-issue it when you get out of the hospital. He said they'd be deducting the fees for the stop-pay, but I didn't think you'd care."

Keith saw Logan studying his daughter; the boy had no idea what she was talking about. "Thank you, honey. I know it was difficult for you."

For Veronica, her mother taking the fifty thousand dollar check was the cherry on top of the sundae. The affair, the drinking, running away, skipping out on rehab - rehab Veronica paid for with her college money. No, calling the Kane's lawyer to stop payment on the check wasn't difficult at all. "You and me against the world."

"Always." She leaned over to kiss him, and Keith grasped her hand tighter. His girl. His girl that he was leaving in the care of Logan Echolls. "Honey. Give Logan and me a minute alone, okay?"

Veronica's eyes narrowed. "Dad...."

Keith lightly shook his head. "I'm in a hospital bed, pumped full of painkillers. I can barely move. Besides, you have my gun. What am I going to do to him?"

Veronica shook her head as she leaned over to place another kiss on her dad's cheek. "Be nice," she whispered before pulling away. She also made a show of kissing Logan on the cheek before she left the room.

The door clicked softly and the room descended into silence. The drugs interfered with Keith's vision, but he did his best to stare down the young man standing in front of him. He had to give the boy credit; he didn't look away. Logan locked eyes with him and waited. He never knew Logan had that much patience. "Veronica has good instincts about people, Logan. She trusts you, so I want to trust you. Don't give me a reason not to. Clear?"

Logan nodded curtly. "Yes, sir." Check? What check? And why was it important? A conversation to have later with Veronica.

Keith's expression softened. "You can call me Keith, son." He patted the space next to him Veronica had vacated. "Sit down. It strains my neck to look up at you." Logan discomfort was palatable, but he did it while Keith studied him again. He hated being stuck in the hospital. He wanted to be at the Sheriff's Department with the kids. Right now it wasn't an option, but he could offer a little advice. "Dwight Burrows is a good guy and damn fine officer, but if you start giving him lip, he'll take it personally. That's not what you need right now. You feel yourself getting.... anxious, you tell him you need a break. He'll be fine with it. Lamb shouldn't be around too much, but if you see him, you avoid him. He's pissed as hell because the State guys are here. He'd like nothing more than to get to you or Veronica, to push your buttons." Keith smiled. "Don't give the ass the satisfaction."

Logan smiled back. "Yes, sir. Uh, I mean, Keith."

Keith grew serious again. "I know I'm not your father -"

"You could never be Aaron," Logan cut in with venom.

Keith recognized the signs. Logan was distancing himself from the man, calling him by his first name instead of his father. It was the second time he'd done it. "Every now and then, a guy needs an older guy to talk to. You ever need to talk, about anything, I'm here. And whatever you say to me, Veronica doesn't need to know about it." Keith yawned; he was fading fast. "Now, help an old man get comfortable in this damn bed before I fall asleep. I'm in enough pain without my back acting up too." Logan helped him lay back down. Before Logan walked out of the room, Keith called to him. "You take care of our girl."

Logan nodded solemnly. It was all he could do. Keith Mars had just give him responsibility for the most precious thing in his life - Veronica. Logan didn't want to disappoint him.

--- VVV

Captain Dwight Burrows continued to be amazed at the depth of the cluster-fuck he'd been handed on a silver platter. When the deputy called to let the sheriff know the two kids and the lawyer were at the hospital, Burrows had one of his officers escort them to the municipal building instead of the Sherriff's Office. He'd be damned if he'd work his investigation around the incompetence he saw there. The mayor was more than happy to lend him and his team office space. The guy was putting as much distance as possible between himself and the excuse for a Sheriff they had. Dwight couldn't blame him either.

He sat next to Veronica on the bench across from the conference room where Logan and the lawyer were waiting. He'd finished getting her statement an hour before. She'd been raised by Keith, so she answered each question succinctly and kept her emotions in check as best she could. But the cool, professional girl Dwight dealt with earlier was gone now, and he could easily read the worry tattooed across Veronica's face. He had an enlightening conversation with Keith that morning and knew why she was concerned. Logan Echolls was a time bomb, the fuse was lit and the boy was ready to blow. Even though he had less information about the case, it was more difficult to get it from him because he was enraged. When he smartly asked for a minute to compose himself, Dwight obliged. "He's doing fine, Veronica. He asked for a break and I thought it was a good idea. We'll be done soon, and then the two of you can leave."

Veronica spoke, but she never took her eyes off the door. "He shouldn't have to go through this. He had nothing to do with Lilly's death."

"I believe that, but I still need to question him." Keith asked him to do it personally as a favor, but with all the past blunders on the case, and the media whirlwind surrounding it, Dwight was inclined to handle it anyway. There would be no mistakes while he was in charge. "Can I get you another cup of coffee? We shouldn't be much longer."

Veronica was about to tell him the last thing she needed was more caffeine, she already had six cups, but Cliff opened the conference room door. "Captain, we're ready to continue," he said, giving Veronica a reassuring smile.

Dwight patted her knee. "See? Nothing to worry about, little girl. We'll be done quick as a flash." He winked at her before returning to the room.

When the door closed again, Veronica dropped her head into her hands. She wasn't sure which one of them had it worse. Logan was being forced to relive the pain of Lilly's murder with the new information that his father was responsible, but she'd had to relive the terrifying night with Aaron again. She knew Burrows was asking him about the bruises too.

It had been a rough ride in the back of Cliff's car. Logan promised her he wasn't going to press charges against Weevil. He'd said matter-of-factly the PCHer had stopped him from jumping off the bridge, so he figured they were even. When he didn't even attempt to deny the reason he'd been on the bridge in the first place, Veronica exploded. She'd punched him in the shoulder Weevil dislocated, knowing exactly how much pain she'd inflicted and not caring. Then she'd yelled at him that if he ever contemplated doing something so stupid again, she'd kill him before he got the chance to do the deed himself. He'd pulled her into his arms and apologized for scaring her.

Twenty minutes later Logan, Cliff and Burrows exited the conference room. Burrows shook Logan's hand, thanked him for his cooperation, then he reiterated to Veronica the plan to pick her up tomorrow morning to retrieve her father's files. He was going to oversee that personally too. Cliff would meet them at the hotel and they'd get everything squared away as quickly as possible. Within minutes the three were back in Cliff's car, on their way to the Neptune Grand with another police escort.

Security at the Grand was ready for their arrival. Cliff pulled around the back off the hotel and was directed to the loading area used by vendors and staff. It had a security gate that kept the reporters far away from the couple. Exiting the car at the front of the hotel would have left them exposed, even with the police present. This way, they had a measure of privacy. The manager was waiting to greet them. They bypassed the lobby, using the staff elevator to reach their suite. The manager handed Logan his car keys - Weevil had dropped-off the Xterra earlier that morning - and the room keys before he departed. Cliff briefly went over a few things with them, then he too left, and they were finally alone.

Logan had been practically vibrating since walking out of the conference room, and Veronica knew it. She sat down on the sofa, tucked her feet under her, and watched him pace like a caged animal. "What can I do for you, Logan?"

"Strip and fuck me into oblivion," he answered without thinking. Then he realized what he said and turned wide apologetic eyes to her. "God, Veronica, I didn't mean -"

"Hey, I asked." She titled her head and smiled. "But since that's not going to happen, do you have any other ideas?" She could be furious or insulted, but she decided to let it pass.

Logan dropped down beside her and clasped his hand in hers. "I didn't mean to say that. I am so sorry. I just need... I need..." It had been a rough morning, and Logan needed to expel some physical energy, sex being his preferred method. That or punching things. People. Whatever. He knew Veronica wasn't ready to have a physical relationship with him, and he didn't want their first time together to be angry anyway.

Logan responded honestly, and Veronica had to give him points for letting his guard down with her. Also, but she'd never tell him, the answer made her hormones race. Just a little. "Doesn't this place have an exercise room? Maybe they have a heavy bag you could punch instead of the wall your contemplating."

Logan had to admit it wasn't a bad idea. He ran his thumb back and forth across her palm. "Wanna come watch?"

Veronica nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, yes. My hot, sweaty boyfriend punching a bag filled with sand." She straddled his lap, looping her arms loosely around his neck. "The idea makes me all tingly inside."

Logan's lips were centimeters away from hers. "We will discuss your tingles later," he said, then closed the short distance between their mouths.

Veronica got lost in the kiss and body contact. But when Logan's fingers dipped under her shirt and started climbing up her back, she pulled away, breathless. "Hands where I can see 'em, mister."

Logan stretched out his arms on both sides and continued kissing Veronica around her laughter.

---TBC