Okay, so the next two chapters are dark (very dark), but after that the darkness is mostly over. Things won't be fixed and happy right away, of course, but the worse will be over!

Chapter 21: The Nightmare Returns

******Friday Afternoon: Mac and Veronica Still*****

Mac was sad but resigned as she answered Veronica's inquiry. "I'm sorry, Veronica, but I don't blame Madison. I blame the Universe or God or whoever's in control. I know Madison was drunk and angry and lashed out at you. It was wrong of her. But her intent wasn't to cause a miscarriage, and I really wish you'd stop punishing her," Mac said.

"She hasn't begun to suffer yet," Veronica said in sudden anger. She couldn't understand how Mac was on Madison' side. Madison wasn't a victim. She had willingly participated in too many of Veronica's years of misery. It was going to end.

"Veronica, please, don't keep this up," Mac said beseechingly. "At the end of the day, you still won't have your baby, Madison will still be the selfish bitch she's always been, and my family will be angry at me for not stopping you."

"You just don't get it. Not at all," Veronica said in sudden anguish. She put her hand on her stomach. "I had a life inside of me, Mac. Not a life I planned on creating, but a life that was created out of mine and Logan's love. Once I got past my fear, all I could see was my son. I knew it was a boy, and it was. My son, Mac. I had a son, and now I don't. How can you not get that? I could just imagine what he'd look like. My blonde hair but Logan's eyes. I could feel his little hands grabbing mine. I could picture Logan and him on a kiddie board on the water. I could see it, Mac. That was my future. A future that is not going to happen. He was mine. Mine. How could he be gone? How could you expect me to just let it go? Let Madison get away with her part in it? How could you ask that of me? You know I'm not built that way. Please, don't ask me to just let it go, to let her get away with what she took from me."

Mac brushed the tears Veronica's heartfelt words had brought forth. "I'm sorry," she whispered. And she was. She was sorry that Veronica was once again forced to live through another loss. That Veronica's dreams for her unborn baby were destroyed, her hopes forever unrealized. She felt guilty that she couldn't give Veronica the unwavering support she'd always given her.

The two best friends stood there looking at one another. Their eyes filled with tears and pain. They both could feel something slipping away from them, a shift in their relationship. One they knew they were unable to stop.

********San Diego State********

Wallace went out on the court to warm up. He looked up in the stands and wasn't surprised to see his mom and Darrel. They usually made most of his games that were in the area of Neptune, especially if the game wasn't late. However, he was surprised to see Duncan and Lily sitting with them. Then he did a double take when he also spotted Thea and an older couple sitting next to her. She was sitting directly in front of Duncan. Wallace told his coach that he'd be right back. He headed to the stands.

"This is a nice surprise!" he said to Thea. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

"Well, my grandparents live not far from here, so I thought we'd come watch your game," Thea said. She introduced Wallace to her grandparents, who were delighted that their brilliant granddaughter finally had a beau.

"Wally!" Lily shouted, not liking the fact that he hadn't noticed her yet. She moved down and squeezed next to Thea, holding out her arms to Wallace.

"Lily!" Duncan admonished trying to grab her, but she was in Wallace's arms before he could reach her.

Wallace laughed. "My favorite girls are all here to see me! I'm so flattered!" he exclaimed.

"I's your best girl!" Lily insisted with a touch of the Kane arrogance.

Thea and her grandparents laughed at the toddler's bold claim.

"Yes, you are," Wallace solemnly agreed. He kissed her cheek. "Nice of you guys to come see me play," he said to Duncan.

"Well, I've been telling you we would, and since you were playing so close, I decided to bring her," Duncan said. No reason to get into his other reason. Wallace was close friends with Piz after all. An away game increased the odds that Piz would not be in attendance.

"Do you want to grab a late dinner after the game?" Thea asked.

"Can we join you?" Alicia asked, deciding her son had ignored her long enough. She grinned knowingly at him. This must be the new girl. She wasn't like the normal girls he went for, but Alicia knew he was really crazy about her.

"Oh, sorry, Mom," Wallace said. He introduced his mom and brother to Thea and her grandparents. Wallace was glad his mom would get to meet her. Although they had met once briefly the night Wallace had met Thea for the first time, she hadn't been his girlfriend then.

Thea gave his mom a shy smile and greeted her. "Have a good game!" Alicia said to him.

"Gotta go!" he said. He gave Lily to Duncan and headed back down to the court.

"See, honey, I told you that Wallace would see you," Duncan said to his daughter. The cheerleaders made it to the floor to start their warm-up. They weren't sitting but a few rows from the floor, so they were easy to spot. Lily was excited to see the pom-pom waving girls. "Look, Daddy! The cheerleaders!" she said excitedly. Then she spotted Parker. "Daddy, there's Parker! She's a cheerleader!" She pointed and waved crazily. Then she yelled, "Parker!" at the top of her lungs.

Parker looked up at the sound of her name. She was pleasantly surprised to see Duncan and his little girl at the game. Lily was waving like crazy, obviously wanting to be noticed. Parker smiled and waved at the toddler. She tried not to think too hard about why Duncan was at the game. He was friends with Wallace, so it probably had nothing to do with her. However, when Duncan's eyes stayed steady on her, she couldn't help but wonder.

******At the Same Time Elsewhere******

David had carefully listened to Wallace all week. He knew what was going on in the lives of Wallace's friends. He knew that Wallace was on his way to a game against San Diego State, and Jazmin's roommate Parker would be cheering at the game. Jazmin's other roommate, Mac, was taking Veronica Mars to her doctor's appointment. And the big, bad brother Jason was on his way to Puerto Rico. David had to work hard to contain his glee when Wallace had told him that Jazmin had broken up with her beaner boyfriend. She was finally utterly alone.

It was time to have a little chat with her. Rage still burned within him when he thought about her behavior toward him at the coffee shop a week ago. His friends were still ribbing him over her obvious dislike. Since David knew her schedule as well as he knew his own, he knew her last class was over at 3:15pm. Normally, she stayed on campus to wait for her boyfriend. Now that he was no longer in the picture, David knew that she'd probably come home directly after school.

David walked to her house. If anyone drove by, they'd just see another college student out for a stroll. He had on his work-out clothes to help portray the image. Her house was not very far from campus, and it took no time to arrive at her house. Deciding that he shouldn't try the front door, he went around back to the kitchen door. It didn't take him very long to get in since the door was unlocked. He smirked in satisfaction. The girls were entirely too confident of their safety. David strolled inside and decided to wait in the kitchen in case Parker or Mac came back home for something. Then he could slip back out undetected.

******The Beach House*******

Logan wasn't home when Mac and Veronica made it back to the house. Mac saw Dick's truck, so she parked. She wasn't ready for things to change between her and Veronica, so she decided to hang around a bit.

"You're coming in?" Veronica asked in surprise. She had figured Mac would avoid her for a bit now that things were uncomfortable between them.

"If it's okay," Mac said haltingly.

"Of course!" Veronica said with a smile. "My home is yours. Always."

The girls walked inside to see Dick dancing around the living room with Richie. The stereo was blaring All American Rejects' song "Give'em hell". Dick was singing to Richie and dancing around the living room. The two women stood there a few minutes amazed at the sight. Finally, Veronica marched over to the stereo and turned down the music. Dick noticed them. He wore that ape-shitting grin of his.

"Look! Richie's smiling!" he exclaimed.

Mac went to them while Veronica looked on from the stereo. She still wasn't ready to hold Richie yet. Sure enough, a wide grin covered Richie's face. "Hey, he really is!" Mac gushed. "I haven't seen him smile like that before."

"Because he hasn't," Veronica said softly. She fought an internal battle because she wanted so very much to grab him and hold him close. She wished his first grin was for her and not Dick. Feeling petty and foolish, she turned and went to her room.

Dick frowned. "What's wrong?" he asked. Mac leaned in and placed a kiss on Richie's cheek.

"It's not easy for her to be around Richie right now, I think," Mac said in understanding.

"How come?" Dick asked, perplexed.

"She just lost a baby, Dick. A son. Richie probably reminds her of what she won't have," Mac explained.

Dick looked sad at the reminder. "This really sucks, Mackie! I don't know what to say or do," Dick said.

Mac reached out her arms to hold the baby. Dick handed him over, and she sat down on the couch with him. "Yeah, I know," Mac said tiredly. "I'm not doing so well with Veronica myself."

"What happened?" Dick asked.

"She's determined to make Madison suffer, and it puts me in the middle," Mac said.

"I don't get it, Mac. Madison told Ronnie that her baby was better off dead the other day on campus. Veronica told me. Why would you not be on Veronica's side? She's your best friend," Dick said with a note of censure.

"Dick, we've talked about this. You know what Madison's like better than anyone. You know how she manipulates her parents," Mac said. "I've already got one upset phone call from Marilyn. Madison has always been spiteful with her words. But it doesn't make her guilty of maliciously trying to harm Veronica's unborn baby."

Dick didn't like Mac being on a side that wasn't firmly aligned with him. "Mac, Madison's an adult. Shouldn't she be responsible for her own actions by now?" Dick pointed out.

"Yes. Absolutely. But because I'm Veronica's best friends, they seem to think I should be reigning her in," Mac shared. "I'm going over there in the morning for brunch. I'm sure I'll hear more about my failings."

"Don't let them criticize you, Mackie! They chose to keep that bitch, so they have to deal with her," Dick said hotly.

"I won't. I'm going to explain how Madison has brought this on herself," Mac said.

"Ah, babe, did you check your email?" Dick asked.

"Of course," Mac replied.

"Did you get the mass email someone sent out about Maddie?" Dick inquired.

"No. My email filters out mass emails," Mac said.

Dick told her about the email. "Well, I guess my brunch will be worse than I thought," Mac said dryly.

"Do you want me to go with you?" Dick offered.

Mac really did, but she didn't know if his presence would help or not. "I'd love for you to go with me, but I'm not sure it'd be a good idea," she said.

Richie started fussing. "Trina left a bottle for him. I'll go warm it," Dick said, getting up. Mac got up carrying the baby to follow him.

"You know, Dick, they'll probably think it's me helping Veronica get Madison's records," Mac said as they walked to the kitchen.

Dick grabbed the bottle out of the fridge and placed in the bottle warmer. "Okay, it's decided. I'm going with you tomorrow," Dick stated.

"I can deal with them, Dick," Mac said.

"I didn't say you couldn't. But I'm not going to let you deal with them alone," Dick insisted. "How many times have you accompanied me to my Dad's? You even went to the Country Club a few times even though you hate that place."

Mac quit arguing because she decided that Dick would make the meal bearable at least.

"Okay," she said. "After arguing with Veronica, I don't have much energy to face them anyway."

"You and Ronnie argued about Madison again?" Dick asked.

"It's different this time, Dick. She was really upset. It broke my heart knowing how much she's hurting. She asked me how could I ask her to leave Madison alone," Mac shared. "After listening to her heartbroken words, I couldn't."

"Well, that's not much of a fight," Dick said. He grabbed the bottle and handed it to Mac. She moved to the kitchen table and gave Richie his bottle. He began sucking it down.

Mac smiled at the sight. He was such a good baby. "It wasn't a fight but an impasse really," Mac said.

"Huh?" Dick asked.

"I can't have her back on this one, Dick. For the first time since we've become friends, I can't be the one she turns to in this," Mac said sadly.

Dick couldn't conceive of a circumstance that would cause him not to have Logan's back, so he could imagine how badly Mac was feeling. The hits seemed to keep coming. Dick's superstitious soul couldn't help but wonder what else was coming. His mother always said that bad things came in threes.

******Back at Jazmin's*****

Jazmin walked slowly home from campus. It had taken an effort of will to drag herself out of bed and face the day. A day without Eli. However, she decided that misery was all she deserved after what she did to him. Why did she let him and Veronica believe she'd been unfaithful? Although her reasons made sense at the time, now she was second guessing herself. She should just tell him what happened to her. Then he'd understand and forgive her. Somehow, she'd make him promise not to go after David. If her dad tried to pull her out of the school, she'd put her foot down. She'd have all of Thanksgiving Break and Christmas Break to convince him that she'd be more miserable in Chicago away from Eli. David terrified her, but surely if she told Sheriff Mars, he could help her. Even if there wasn't enough evidence to convict him, maybe the Sheriff could convince David to stay away from her.

The idea gave her some hope. She went into her house having made up her mind to call Eli and tell him the truth. She loved him too much to let him think she'd cheat on him. What had she been thinking? She threw her bag on the sofa and headed to the kitchen to get something to drink. Her mouth fell open in shock when she saw the man in her nightmares calmly sitting in a chair at her kitchen table.

He smiled. "Hello, Jazmin," he said.

"What are you doing here? How did you get in?" Jazmin demanded, her heart racing in fear.

David slowly got up from the chair. "You made it really easy when you left the back door open for me," he said in satisfaction. "It's almost like you wanted me to come in for a visit."

"I didn't leave it unlocked. It must have been one of my roommates. You need to leave before I call the cops!" Jazmin ordered. Her cell phone was in her bag in the living room. She edged closer to the door by taking a step backward.

David's face lost any air of friendliness. He pulled out his big hunting knife. "If you move another inch, I will kill you," he said calmly.

Jazmin froze in fear. Her mind raced. Maybe she could get out the door before he reached her and make a run for the front door. Then the image of him planting the knife in her back came to her mind, immobilizing her.

David stepped closer and grabbed her arm, moving her away from the door. "Don't even think about!" he warned. His hand dug hard into her arm. "You and I are going to have a little chat!"

"I have nothing to say to you!" Jazmin said with loathing.

"Well, that's fine because I have plenty to say to you," David said. "You obviously don't understand how things are going to work between us."

Jazmin assumed he was referring to a sexual relationship between them. "If you rape me again, you better kill me this time because I won't remain silent," she informed him.

David moved quickly and backhanded her. "Don't threaten me, girl!" he said angrily. "I don't want you anymore! Once was enough. But I am going to punish you."

Jazmin's hand was on her now throbbing face. Tears filled her eyes. This was a nightmare. More than before because she now knew what he was capable of. She had no hope, no one to help her. Feeling helpless, she inquired, "Punish me for what?"

"You humiliated me last Friday at the coffee shop in front of my boys. Not only did your reaction to my presence make me look suspicious, it also made me look bad in front of my teammates," he said angrily.

"You raped me! How am I supposed to act around you?" Jazmin asked bitterly.

"Women fake things all the time. You better figure out a way to fake it around me. If anyone starts asking questions, I'm just going to kill your brother," David decided. "Killing you won't be a punishment. I'll take what you love the most. No one is going to humiliate or threaten me."

"You won't find my brother so easy to target. He's not me," she said.

"Look how easy it was for me to get to you," David replied. "Your brother is entirely confident of his safety. He won't be on guard. Believe me, I'll find away into his house. I know how to pick locks."

His arrogant smirk made Jazmin want to deck him. Her fear of the knife, however, kept her frozen in place. She once again felt completely powerless. Loathing for him and for herself filled her. She had made such a mess of things. It was foolish of her to think he wouldn't bother her again. That she could put out of her mind what he did and move on. She was never going to be free of him. She tried to placate him. "I'm sorry, David. I didn't mean to embarrass you. Please, don't hurt me," she begged.

"That's a good start. I won't hurt you too much," David said with satisfaction. "Just enough to let you know I mean it. Bad girls have to be punished when they mess up. It's the only way you'll learn." He reached down to unbuckle his belt.

Jazmin's eyes widened in renewed terror. He was going to rape her again. "Please don't! You said you didn't want me anymore!" she reminded him.

He grinned in pleasure at her fear. It felt intoxicating to make her so afraid. He held the belt in his hand. "Oh, I don't. I'm not taking off my pants. Just this," he said, holding up the belt. "My momma always used the belt. It hurts but not too bad. I won't make you take off your clothes. That's when it really hurts."

Insight into his psychology didn't comfort Jazmin but made her feel worse. The man was crazier than she realized. All she could do was cry out as he raised the belt.

*******San Diego State*******

After her squad's half time show, Parker decided to go up to the stands and say hi to Duncan. "Hey," she said.

Lily grinned happily at her. "You very good!" Lily said. "I wanna be a cheerleader, too!"

"You can be as soon as you start school in a few years," Parker said, smiling at her. She'd look adorable as a little cheerleader.

"I think I'm going to have to tell mom that the dance class should be changed to gymnastics," Duncan said, smiling down at his excited daughter.

"Well, dance classes are helpful, too, for cheerleading. It will teach her rhythm," Parker said. "I'm going to get a drink at the concession. Can I get you anything?"

Duncan decided to take a chance. "I'll go with you," he said. He turned behind him and said to Alicia, "Would you mind watching Lily why we go to the concession stand?"

"Not at all," Alicia said. She held out her hand. Lily grinned and stood up on their seat. Then she jumped down to land in front of Alicia, who bent forward to lift her up.

"Can I get you anything?" Duncan asked.

"No thanks. Darrel is already in line," she replied with a rueful smile.

"I want chocolate milk, Daddy!" Lily said.

"I'm not sure they'll have it, but I'll try my best," he said. He turned to Parker. "I'll walk down with you."

She nodded and turned to walk down to the floor. Duncan fell in step next to her. Parker was unsure how to act. He said that he didn't want to be her friend, but now he was being friendly. She didn't know where they stood.

"It's good to see you," she finally said as they walked through the gym doors and headed to the concession.

"Yes, it's good to see you, too," Duncan said easily, smiling down at her. He wanted to reach out and grab her hand.

"It's great to have you support Wallace at an away game," Parker said, trying to find something neutral to talk about.

"Well, I must confess that he isn't the real reason I'm here," Duncan told her. He stopped before they reached the crowd of people at the concession.

Parker looked up at him in surprise. Her heart raced at the intent look he was giving her. All that intensity focused on her was hard to pull away from. "He isn't?" she asked, a note of breathlessness in her voice.

Duncan reached out and grabbed her hand. "I wanted to see you," he said simply. "I don't like not seeing you anymore."

Parker frowned. "I'm sorry," she said sadly.

"Don't be sorry. Be with me," he said. Before she had time to process what he was asking of her, he bent down and placed a soft kiss on her lips. He pulled back before she could respond. "I'm in love with you, Parker. I don't want to lose you."

Parker was caught off guard by both his words and his actions. She knew that Duncan had feelings for her, but she hadn't realized they were so strong. He had been so gentle and patient with her that she thought he was just enjoying her company. Now she was forced to reevaluate all of his past actions. "Duncan, I.." her voice trailed off. She didn't know what to say.

"Don't say anything. Just know that I'm not giving up on us. You aren't meant to end up with Piz. I know it," he said confidently. "You are meant to be mine. Mine and Lily's."

Adding his daughter into the mix unexpectedly moved her. She knew how much Lily meant to him. If he wanted her to be a part of his daughter's life, then he must really mean it. He squeezed her hand in reassurance. "Don't worry. I know you're with Piz. I know he's important to you," Duncan said in a reasonable tone. "But is he the one you see spending your life with? Will he be enough?"

"I don't know," she admitted.

His hand moved to tuck a strand of loose hair behind her ear. His fingers lightly caressed her cheek before moving back down to his side. "I'm not going to stop trying to convince you that you're making a mistake with Piz," he said.

"Duncan, don't do this to me. I don't want to be that girl," she said.

"I'm not asking you to cheat," Duncan clarified. "I just want to remind you that I'm here. When Piz quits being enough for you, you know where to find me." He decided that he had pressed enough and turned to go to the concession stand.

Parker stood there watching him move away from her. She felt guilty for being so affected by his words and his touch. Somehow, she knew that this wouldn't be the last time she'd feel this way.

******Chapter End*******

Just a few more chapters will be devoted to Jazmin's story. It will quickly come to a climax in the next chapter. The belt thing was twisted, I know. But it was used on the show with Logan's abuser, and I thought it a fitting tool for a bully and twisted soul. David, like Aaron, glories in his power over his victim. No, I don't plan on writing the scene in detail—just the aftermath. Thanks for continuing to read!