Note: I don't own VM. Just a big fan.
My mother is dead, she thought while she sat on the floor. She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Her throat felt tight and her eyes burned, but no tears would come. Logan sat down next to her and put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her in close.
"I'm so sorry Veronica…" he whispered.
"Is it… is it so bad that I'm not exactly sorry?" Guilt coursed through her but she had said goodbye in her heart to her mother a long time ago. She knew that Lianne had left partly to keep Veronica safe from the Kanes but also because she couldn't handle living in Neptune with her family not at the top anymore. Instead of fighting for her family, she quit and turned to the bottle instead. Alcoholism is a disease but Veronica felt she could have fought harder to stay. The heroes are the ones that stay.
"I don't know what happened with you guys but no, it's not bad. I'd be happy if Aaron died." He kissed her hair gently and jumped slightly when he heard the front door open. Keith came into the apartment and saw them both sitting on the floor of Veronica's room.
"Hello daughter and daughter's boyfriend who is sitting way too close to her," Keith called out while removing his jacket and setting down his briefcase.
"Mr. Mars," Logan said hesitantly. Veronica didn't move or make a sound. Logan squeezed her arm gently and stood up to break the news. Keith looked puzzled when Logan came out of the room and shut the door quietly behind him.
"What's going on? Is Veronica okay?" Keith made to walk into his daughter's room. He stopped when Logan placed a hand on his arm.
"She read something that upset her. I'm not sure how to say this," Logan began. Keith realized how serious he was being and braced himself for the worst. "She saw a news article online about a woman who killed in a car accident last week in Arizona. The body had been unidentified until today. It was Mrs. Mars." Logan let out a long breath and stared down at the floor. Keith stood stunned. Long moments passed before Keith rushed into Veronica's room and gathered her up in his arms.
Logan stood in the kitchen, not wanting to intrude on this moment. He could hear Keith talking quietly and Veronica murmuring back. He grabbed the leash, hooked it on Backup's collar, and left the apartment for a quick walk. His mind raced over the news. He knew that Veronica's mom drank too much and he had heard rumors that she had moved out. He had even teased Veronica at school about it which now made him feel a fresh wave of shame. As he was walking back into the apartment's courtyard, he saw a dark SUV drive up slowly and park by Veronica's car. He hung back in the shadows to watch an African-American man quickly step out of the SUV, touch the bottom of the LeBaron's bumper, tap some screens on a cell phone, then get back into the SUV and drive off. Logan ran quickly to the apartment.
Veronica and Keith were sitting on the couch now and both looked up at him. "I just saw something weird. I'm not sure what to make of it," he started, breathless from the running and the panic. They both sat looking at him, waiting for him to continue. "I was walking Backup and saw a dark SUV pulled up by Veronica's car. A guy got out, put something on her bumper, then drove away."
Keith's face grew stony. "What did he look like? Could you tell?"
"He was a tall black guy, dressed nice. After he put the thing on her bumper, he pulled out a cell phone and was messing around on the screen. That lit up his face. I didn't see glasses or anything but his hair was short like a crew cut."
"Weidman…" Veronica whispered.
Keith turned suddenly to her. "What do you know about Clarence Weidman?" Veronica opened her mouth to speak but Keith's face paled and he held a hand up. He grabbed the nearest thing to write on, an envelope sitting on the coffee table, and wrote 'BUGS?' Veronica paled too and nodded. Logan looked between the two of them, totally confused. He started to speak but Veronica shook her head violently.
Keith walked into his bedroom and came back with a device that looked like a remote. He began sweeping the room then the rest of the apartment before a beeping noise sounded in Veronica's room. Her and Logan followed her dad into her room, watching while he took apart a panda figurine to find a bug inside. They all looked at each other silently before Keith threw the bug on the ground and smashed it with his foot. He continued sweeping the room and nodded in satisfaction when nothing else came up.
"What the hell is going on?" Logan burst out.
Veronica moved to her dresser and lifted out a large envelope from under her sweaters. She pulled the pictures out and showed them both. Logan's face blanched and Keith's turned red with anger when they saw Veronica in a rifle sight.
"Where did you get this?" Keith demanded.
Veronica took deep breath. "I found a key to safe deposit box mom had. These photos were in there. I figured out that it was Clarence Weidman from Kane Software who took them." Keith frowned. "I asked Jake Kane about it at Logan's Christmas party." Keith scowled at this. "He didn't have a clue about it. I think Celeste did it."
"Why would Duncan's mom threaten you?" Logan asked in bewilderment.
"She thinks Jake might be my father."
Silence. Keith and Logan stared at Veronica while she looked at the floor. She cleared her throat and reached over to grab the photo of her and her dad at the zoo. She took the photo out of the frame and pulled out a folded piece of paper. She wordlessly handed it to Keith.
He looked at the paper and his eyes filled with tears. "How? Why?" he asked quietly.
"Celeste told Duncan that we were siblings so he broke up with me. Except he never told me. I found out by reading his journal. I had a DNA test done so I knew for sure we weren't. I'm a Mars through and through." Keith pulled her into a big hug.
They held each other a bit longer before Keith pulled back and asked, "So why did Weidman put a tracker on your car?"
Logan's eyes opened wide. "A tracker? Like GPS?" Both Veronica and Keith nodded.
"I can only imagine what he's heard with that bug. He must be threatened by something."
"Do you think he heard us talking about your files on Lilly? About the shoes?" Logan asked.
"Probably. We were only right outside the room and no one else was here. It could have been quiet enough for him to hear." Veronica sighed. She was suddenly exhausted and leaned back into the couch.
"Logan, can you grab Veronica's laptop? I want to read this article about my wife." Keith asked. Logan went into her room and returned with the computer, setting it down on the table. Keith read the article with a blank expression. Logan sat on the couch and pulled Veronica close, stroking her arms softly. She leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
"It looks true, honey. I'm going to call the police department where the accident happened in the morning. Right now, I'm going to go look at your car." He walked into his bedroom and came back out wearing a shoulder holster and 9mm Glock handgun. Logan gaped but Veronica was unaffected. Keith left the apartment.
"Your dad has a gun, eh?" She nodded. "That's a bit scary." She gave a small laugh.
"I just can't believe it, Logan," she whispered.
"I know, baby. It's harder to come to grips with stuff when they are totally unexpected." She nodded and he pressed a kiss to her head. "I was wondering though. Who sent you the article?"
"I put an alert on the search engine I use to find anything with my mom's name. I had sent out prepaid cell phones to anyone I could think she would go to, but I hadn't heard anything back. This was the first hit I've gotten on her since she left a year ago." Logan tightened his hold on her and breathed in her scent.
"This hasn't been your year, has it?" he asked softly.
"No, it hasn't. But it's looking up now." She reached up to give him a soft kiss. His heart warmed with affection for this tiny blonde who didn't let anything knock her down.
Keith came back into the apartment and looked at the two of them. "Verdict is in. It's a GPS tracker. What in the hell are the Kanes doing that they need to track my 17-year-old daughter?" he asked angrily.
"I don't know, daddy. Celeste hated Mom because she had an affair with Jake. Jake got you fired because you found holes in their testimony. And Weidman will do whatever they ask him to do."
"We're going to get to the bottom of this once and for all. I just can't believe they thought they'd get away with this." Keith paced the room, his fists clenched. He took a deep steadying breath and looked to Logan. "Thank you for your help tonight Logan. If you don't mind, I'd like Veronica at your house tomorrow after school while I'm at work. I don't want her here alone and you guys have security there."
"Of course Mr. Mars," he replied quickly.
"Please, call me Keith."
"No can do, sir. You're wearing a gun." Both Keith and Veronica laughed while Logan grinned. Their laughter was infectious and soon all three were laughing hard.
After calming down, Veronica said, "God that felt good to laugh. It's been such a shitty day." Everyone nodded and Logan stood up from the couch.
"I'm going to head home now. Let me know if there's anything more we can do."
"Oh! I forgot all about Mac. I just… can't deal with that tonight."
"Text me her number and I'll call her." Veronica raised an eyebrow but looked relieved. Logan kissed her on the brow and said goodnight before leaving the apartment.
He got to his car and saw the text with Mac's number. He dialed it and listened to it right while he pulled on his seatbelt and started the engine. Mac finally answered and Logan spoke, "Mac? It's Logan Echolls."
"Uhh… hi."
"Veronica asked me to call you."
"That's weird. What about?"
"Her and I were going to stake out some guys for your dad tonight but she got some bad news. She's hunkered down with her dad now but didn't want to leave you hanging."
It was silent for a few long moments before Mac said, "You were going with her?"
"Yeah. We're… hanging out again. I was curious about how she works and wanted to come along."
"I've seen her in action. It's pretty amazing." Logan smiled. Yes, she is pretty amazing, he thought. "What news did she get?"
"Oh. Uh… she found out her mom passed away. Car accident last week."
Mac gasped. "Oh my God. Is she okay?"
"They weren't, uh, close. She's taking it hard because it was unexpected. She hasn't talked to her in a long time."
"I can't even imagine that. My parents and I don't always mesh but I can't imagine them being gone." Mac sighed. "Okay. If you see her, tell her I'll stop by tomorrow after school."
"She's going to be at my house. You can come by there if you want."
Mac was quiet again. "So you really are hanging out again. Does Wallace know?"
"I'm not sure. Should it matter?"
"Dude is not your biggest fan, Logan. Last time you guys talked you were bashing in V's headlights." Shame lit Logan's cheeks red.
"Yeah. I remember," he said quietly.
"He loves Veronica though. If she's happy, he's happy. Don't make her unhappy." Logan could hear the warning in Mac's voice.
"I never want to again."
"Good. She's the best person I know." They said goodbye and Logan tossed his cell phone on the passenger seat.
His mind was churning over everything that had happened recently. His dad had been stabbed. Him and his mom had moved out. He'd found out why Duncan broke up with Veronica. She'd been raped at Shelley's party. Koontz didn't kill Lilly and the Kanes were covering something up. Celeste ran Veronica's mom out of town. Veronica's mom was dead. And Weidman bugged and put a tracker on Veronica. Was this real life or did he stumble into a mystery novel?
He pulled into his driveway and turned off the engine. There was one more day of school and then they'd be on break. Then he could spend as much time as possible with Veronica. After being a complete dick the last year, he wanted more than anything to be there for her now. He got out of the car and headed into the house. His mom was sitting on the couch reading a magazine and she smiled when she saw him.
"Hi sweetheart. How was the stake out?" she asked.
"We ended up not going. Mom, do you remember Veronica's mom Lianne?"
"Yes, it's been a while, but she was always so sweet."
"They found out tonight that she died. Last week, in a car accident in Arizona."
Lynn sat up, setting the magazine aside. "My God. Are they okay?"
"Shook up. I guess she left a year ago. They haven't talked to her since."
"That's horrible. Poor Veronica. This past year without a mother." Logan hadn't thought of that.
"Something else is going on too. Something with Keith's work. He asked if Veronica could come here tomorrow after school so she isn't alone."
"Of course, that's fine. She can help us decorate the Christmas tree."
"What Christmas tree?"
"The one I'm having delivered tomorrow. I'm so excited to finally decorate my own tree."
"We've never decorated one by ourselves before," Logan said skeptically.
"Yes, your father never let me. He said it was below our station in life." Lynn rolled her eyes.
"Well, that sounds... fun." Logan said awkwardly. The idea of decorating a tree had never crossed his mind. The staff always did that and it turned out looking perfect. One year, when he was probably 8 or 9, he ran by the tree and knocked an ornament off, shattering it. He got five belt whippings for that. Logan shuddered with the thought. "I'm exhausted from today though, so I'm going to bed." Lynn stood up and kissed his cheek before walking out of the room.
He went into his new bedroom and sat down on the bed. A room was a room but this one felt empty. He hoped that Veronica would help him decorate when their new stuff came in. He removed his shoes and set them in a perfect row by the closet out of habit. Aaron didn't like when things were out of order. He removed his clothes and threw them in the hamper. He went into the bathroom to get ready for bed when he heard his cell phone chirp with a new text message. He finished brushing his teeth and picked up his phone, crawling into bed.
'Thank you for tonight. I couldn't have handled it without you. XO Veronica' He texted her back and fell asleep with a smile on his face for the first time in long time.