A/N: Thanks for the reviews. I'm not really sure where I'm going yet, so bare with me: hence the title of the fic. But I do know where it will end up ;)

Chapter Two: Out of Nowhere

There's nothing like trying to sort out your feelings for your ex and reading in the paper where he just acquired a rather large portion of Kane stock thanks to his 2.7 million dollar investment in the company. I nearly choked on my Cheerios when I read that. 2.7 million? For me? I knew I was worth something, but 2.7 million? How much money did Logan have, exactly, if he could blow 3 mil on me?

"Hey, there, sweetie."

"Hey, dad. So, I was thinking…"

"Me, too."

"About what?"

"About 3 million things, actually."

"Ok, so apparently Logan made an investment into Kane and that made Jake happy, which makes us happy, so all is good, right?"

Keith's smile and silence were her answer.

"Seriously, that's all I know, too. Logan wasn't very forthcoming with info other than he did a little insider-trading to get me out of a pickle."

"Is that all?"

Honesty, Veronica. You owe your dad that much.

"And a file I had on Duncan. I guess he's trying to track him down. But, he won't. I couldn't."

"Jake Kane has a lot more resources at his disposal than you."

"Yeah, but I'm a lot smarter."

"So smart you couldn't see a security camera looking right at you."

"Ok, ok."

"How does Logan fit in to all this? Are you two seeing each other again," her dad asked, frowning.

"No, Dad…it's…it's complicated."

"That sounds like you and Logan. So, what were you thinking about this morning?"

"Oh, I was wondering if there was a lot going on at the station today?"

"Not much. Pretty quiet in Neptune. Why?"

"Just thought I might stop by later and bring cookies or something. You know, to celebrate."

"Nothing too big, Veronica."

"Promise."

"Okay."

How big can it be, Dad? I have almost no friends, who am I gonna invite? Better call Wallace.

"Hey, V."

"Why didn't you answer earlier?"

"Well, let's see….maybe it's because I was with the rock when the hard place called."

"Aw, I wanted to be the rock."

"Not funny."

"I'm sorry, Wallace. How is Piz?"

"Do you care?"

"Wallace!"

"It's just…I'm a little weary of cleaning up the messes Hurricane Veronica makes."

Veronica was silent. Maybe through the last few years of turmoil, Wallace was tired of her drama.

"I'm sorry, V, I'm just a little stressed with finals coming up and everything."

"I'm really sorry, Wallace, I…"

"Hey, forget about it, okay. It's fine. So, what's up?"

"Well, about that party for my dad."

"Hey, yeah. I'm in. When's the do?"

"How about today?"

"Works for me."

"Good. I'm gonna call Mac and round up a few more. Meet me there about 4?"

"Will do."

"Thanks, Wallace. For everything."

"Later, V."

Veronica dialed Mac next, who, of course, was in. She called a few more people, mostly friends of her dad's. She held the phone on one number for a long time before finally hitting send.

"The thought of the day is "Those things which are precious are saved only by sacrifice." –David Kenyon Webster. Leave a message."

"Hey, Logan, it's Veronica. I'm having a little impromptu victory party for my dad down at the station at 4. If you could come, or want to come, that would be great. Thanks."

Hmmm, I wonder if that quote was for me?

She brushed it off as just another Logan-ism and finished her party supply gathering. She grabbed a cake and a few balloons and headed to the station. When she got there, one of the deputies had already cleared a spot out in the conference room. She was able to sneak in while another deputy distracted the Sherriff. As her guests arrived, they snuck back to the conference room. The deputy brought her dad in, complaining about the refrigerator. As soon as Keith hit the doorway, they all yelled, "Surprise!" While he had told Veronica, nothing big, he was secretly elated that his daughter would do something so thoughtful.

As they dug into cake, a late arrival made his way through the door.

"Hey, Logan. What brings you to the station today?"

"Well, I was certain I was wanted for something or other, so I figured I'd make it easy to find me."

Keith offered a hand.

"Thank you, Logan. I know you had a hand in this."

Logan shook his hand.

"Now, Sherriff, what would make you think something like that?"

"Ok, ok, all the same…thank you."

"Congratulations, Sherriff Mars."

"Hey, Logan, I wasn't sure if you'd get my message."

"Did you get mine?"

"What mess…?" Veronica remembered the quote on Logan's voice mail.

So it was for me.

"Oh, yeah." was all she could manage. "Thanks for coming."

"Thanks for inviting."

"Echolls."

"Hey, Wallace. Bye, Wallace. Guess he's still pissed at me."

"Yeah, well, you're not alone there, either."

"So about that talk…"

"Now?"

"No, obviously. How about tonight? I'll cook dinner."

"Um, I don't know…"

"Relax, Veronica. I promise to be on my best behavior."

"That's what worries me, Logan…Ok, fine."

"Good. Be there at 7."

Veronica nodded, wondering if she really should go, but knowing she would anyway.

Logan eased out of the room, feeling about as comfortable there as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

Veronica's phone rang. She didn't recognize the number.

"Hello?"

"Veronica?"

"Dun…I mean, D, is that you?"

"Yes, can you talk?"

"Yeah, just a sec."

Veronica raced out of the room and down to the police side of an interrogation room.

"What are you doing?"

"I think someone's trying to track me down. I need help."

"It's all my fault."

'What?"

"I'm so sorry, D, I…"

"It's okay. I know all about the file."

"You do? How?"

"There's a lot I know that you'd be surprised about."

"I'll bet. What do you need me to do?"

"I need to hack into a bank account. You think you can get your friend Mac to help?"

"Sure. She's always up for a good hacking."

"Okay, I'll call you back at 7pm. It's a disposable cell, untraceable, don't worry. Have Mac standing by. I'll give you all the details then."

"How are you doing?"

"We're good. Check your texts. I'll talk to you at 7, V."

Veronica hung up and looked at her text messages. There was a picture of Duncan and little Lilly. She wasn't so little now. They looked really happy. She dialed Logan first.

"Hey, something came up and I can't make it tonight. I promise I'm not just trying to get out of it. How about Friday night? Sorry."

When she entered the conference room, the crowd was starting to thin out.

"Thank you, Veronica. I appreciate this."

"Sure, dad. It's the least I could do."

"True….true…." Keith laughed.

"Mind if I steal Mac for a minute?"

"Sure, we should all be getting back to work, anyway. Don't want the taxpayers thinking we're wasting their hard earned dollars."

"I'll clean up before I leave."

Keith kissed his daughter on her forehead.

"Thanks, hon."

"Thanks for coming, Mac."

"Sure thing, Sherriff."

As soon as the room had cleared, Veronica pulled Mac to a corner.

"What's up?"

"I need your expert help tonight around 7."

"Ok, super secret spy, for what?"

"Hacking a bank account. I'm assuming of the off-shore variety."

"Are you mental?"

"It's DK," Veronica whispered.

"Who?" Mac asked, then thought for a second. "Really? The DK?"

"Yes. He said he thinks someone is close to tracking him. And since it's probably my fault, I need to help."

"You mean you need me to help."

"Well, yeah. I thought the implication was inherent."

Mac rolled her eyes.

"Ok, Veronica. Where?"

"Well, my place is out because I don't need the Sheriff snooping around."

"And my place is out because, well…"

"Parker."

"Yep."

"Library?"

"No, I need to be off campus. Better firewall, less security."

"Hmmm, I might know a place."

"Yeah, okay. The Neptune Grand will do."

"Thanks, Mac. Meet me there a little before 7 okay, so we can be ready to go."

"Sure, sure."

Veronica started to clean up and dialed Logan once more.

"Hey, Logan, it's me again. Change of plans again. I am coming, but not for dinner. And I'm bringing Mac. A long lost friend needs our help."

Veronica finished cleaning up and stopped by to tell her dad she wouldn't be home for dinner.

"Don't wait up. I'm helping Mac with something tonight."

"You mean she's helping you," Keith smiled.

"Whatever."

"Bye, kid. Be careful."

"Always."

Veronica headed for the Grand. Maybe she could have a few minutes to explain everything to Logan before Mac got there.

"Just the girl I was hoping for."

Veronica walked in to a delicious smell.

"Didn't you get my messages."

"Yes. Both of them."

"So, why the food?"

"Girls gotta eat, don't they? Relax, it's take out."

"Look, I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you what was going on before Mac got here."

"It's Duncan."

"How did you know?"

"He called me, too."

"Really? Why?"

"Apparently he knows about the whole you-breaking-in-and-me-talking-to-Jake-thing."

"What? He knew about me giving Jake the file, too. How?"

"I don't know, but he wanted to thank me for helping and ask for a favor."

"What favor?"

"Ah, that's personal. Just between us guys."

"Logan…"

"Seriously, Veronica. Don't push."

"Ok. So what now?"

"We just sit and wait for him to call you. Mac's coming, right?"

"Yeah, she'll be here."

"Logan, I'm sorry, I promise we'll talk."

"I know. Friday night. I'm holding you to this one. So…you still going to Virginia this summer?"

"I guess. Things have been so crazy I haven't even found a place to live or anything. Guess I better hurry since I'm supposed to be there in like six weeks."

"Need some help with that?"

"What, finding a place to live?"

"Yeah."

"You own property in Virginia, too, now?"

"Not yet."

"Logan…"

Before Veronica could finish her thought there was a knock on the door.

"Must be Mac, I'll get it." Logan said, feeling like he just dodged an onslaught of questions he wasn't ready to talk about just yet.

"Hey, Logan. Veronica said…"

"Yeah, she's here. Come on in. I'll grab plates and stuff while you two set up."

Mac unpacked two laptops and hard-wired one into the Neptune Grand's internet system. She worked a few minutes and had everything set like she wanted it.

"Ok, I'm locked in behind the firewall, so I have some protection, but I should be able to do a little untraceable hacking now."

Logan set the food out in front of them and they devoured it quickly, knowing Duncan would call any second.

Veronica's phone buzzed.

"This is it," she said.

"Hello?"

"Hey, V. You all set?"

"Yeah, the Pinball Wizard is right beside me. I'm putting you on speaker."

"The first account number is a Swiss account. It's CH41273895164751472. You're transferring into a Cayman account, numbered 70H076115779."

Mac typed a few keystrokes.

"Ok, what's next."

"I'll need you to transfer the sum of 10 million even, but first….I need you to hack into the Cayman account and gain full access. As soon as the money hits, I need you to route it to a different account at that same bank. It's account number is the exact same except the last three digits are 974."

After a few minutes at the keyboard, Mac reports," Okay, I'm in. I am making the initial transfer now…"

"Okay, the second that's complete, transfer it to the other account, but I need you to leave exactly $10,320.03 in that account."

"Okay…weird…"

Veronica gasps. She writes the numbers down and studies them for a second. Logan looks over her shoulder with a confused look at first, then his eyes reveal understand, too. Mac notices.

"Um…fill me in."

"This number has significance to someone important," Duncan answers for them.

Veronica looks a Mac and shakes her head as if to say, "Not now."

"Okay, transfer is complete, I'm backing out of the account now."

"Great, I can verify it's there. V, will you pick up now?"

Veronica takes it off speaker as Mac begins to unplug her computer setup.

"Hey."

"I just transferred enough money that Lilly and I will live comfortably for the rest of our lives with no interference from my family. We will be traveling soon to, well, an undisclosed location. Hopefully he will see the transfer and get the message."

"I sure did."

"I'm sending you a picture. In the mail. I want you to deliver it to them."

"Your parents?"

"Yes."

"Well, about that….I'm sort of banned from the Kane estate forever…"

"It's fine. Take Logan with you. There's a note in the package for them, too. Tell them to read it."

"Are you okay?"

"Are you?"

"Not fair."

"Life isn't fair."

"Not for you, is it?"

"Is Logan there?"

"Well, yeah, actually we are at Logan's."

"I figured. Can I talk to him?"

"Sure. Are you just trying to get rid of me?"

"Never. Bye V. Take care of yourself."

"Can't make any promises. Here's Logan."

Veronica handed the phone to Logan, who quietly eased further and further away until he was out of earshot of the girls.

"So, what's with that number, Veronica? The amount he left in the account?"

"It's not a number—it's a date. 10/3/2003. It's the date Lilly Kane was murdered."

"Oh."

"Yeah, I guess he's trying to tell his dad he still blames him for her death."

"If that doesn't say 'Leave me alone, go to hell' I don't know what does."

"Yeah, you're right. So, while you were in there did you happen to notice whose names were on those accounts?"

"Yeah, it was weird. The name on the first Cayman account was Duncan's, but the name on the Swiss account and the second Cayman account was Lilly Kane."

Veronica smiled.

"So he transferred money from his sister's trust fund to an account in his daughter's name. He always was smart."

"That's a mighty big trust fund."

"Yeah, I am really surprised the Kane's hadn't emptied it already. I mean, I thought they were needing an influx of cash."

"What?"

"Well, that's why Logan said he invested that money with Jake."

"Yeah, I read about that. Did that have something to do with you?"

"Umm…" Veronica heard Logan getting closer.

"Yes, D, I'll take care of it…you, too, man…take care."

"Is he gone?" Veronica asked quietly.

"Yes."

She nodded slowly. Part of her would always love Duncan. Not the same schoolgirl-crush way she did back in their early days. And not even the same way she did just over a year ago. It was different. Deeper. It was only the kind of love one kindred spirit can have for another. She missed him. She'd give anything just to see him one more time. Mac snapped her back to reality.

"K, well, I better jet. I've got a couple of projects due in a week, and I'm a little behind, so…"

"Yeah, thanks, Mac. Thanks a lot for helping…uh…our friend."

"Yeah, thanks, Mac," Logan echoed.

"No prob. All in a days work for your local computer super-nerd."

Logan walked Mac to the door and closed it behind her.

Veronica sensed what was coming.

"It's late, Logan."

"Figured."

"It's not an excuse. I promised we'd talk, and we'll talk."

"Friday?"

"Yes, Friday. Pick me up at 7?"

"This is the twenty-first century, Mars. I'm a modern man. You pick me up."

Veronica rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, Logan?"

"Seriously, Mars."

"Fine. Whatever. See you Friday."

Veronica grabbed her purse and phone and turned to go. At the last minute, Logan called her.

"Ronnie?"

Veronica felt a lump in her throat.

"Yes?"

Logan stared at her for a moment before losing his nerve.

"Be safe."

"Always."