Chapter Fifty-Two

They hadn't made it very far the next morning when Logan found himself turning to Veronica with a frown from the driver's seat. Veronica wasn't paying attention, though. She was looking outward, toward the ocean, and enjoying the view.

"Hey," he said, reaching for her hand and giving it a squeeze to get her to look at him. He needed her to see that something was wrong but didn't want to say anything aloud. It was possible that he was being paranoid, but he didn't think so.

Turning with a soft smile on her face, Veronica said, "Hey," back before she frowned, seeing the look of concern on his face. "What is it?"

"I'm not sure," he said, looking more troubled than before, "Mind if I turn off up here? Stop at a gas station? We forgot to grab coffee this morning. We can get some while I fill the tank."

Veronica knew something was wrong but she had no idea what. She gave him a questioning gaze and he lifted an index finger from the steering wheel to point it at the car itself. Her eyes filled with confusion, silently asking him for further explanation. It took a few moments but then a light of understanding filled her eyes and she nodded, saying casually, "Yeah. Coffee sounds good. And maybe some bear claws."

He rolled his eyes and laughed but there was an edge to it. It was subtle and would only be detected by someone who knew him extremely well, but it was there.

When they pulled into a Citgo station a couple miles down the road, Logan got out and moved in two strides to the back of the car. Opening the tank, he was more sure than before that he was right. He motioned for Veronica to join him at the back of the vehicle but found himself saying, just in case, "Have them add an espresso shot to mine, will you?"

Following his lead, Veronica replied snarkily, "As if you need any more caffeine. You're hyper enough as it is!"

Moving to the back of the car rather than around the front and toward the convenience store, Veronica whispered as they stepped a few feet back, "What is it? What's going on?"

"This isn't my car," Logan said with certainty, his voice low so the conversation would hopefully go undetected.

Inhaling sharply, Veronica frowned and her brow furrowed, "What the hell?! Ok, so we knew they'd managed to get a look-alike but why would they trade yours for theirs? Seems like a lame brain move considering how well you know your cars."

"I know," Logan agreed, "That's why I didn't want to talk in the car. In case it's wired somehow. But I'm also concerned that maybe they did something else to it. I want it checked for explosives and cut brake lines before we get back in it." His tone was urgent and alert as he spoke. He was clearly thinking about another day, another time in their lives where the things of which he was mentioning had actually happened. It wasn't, after all, paranoia, if someone really was out to get you.

"Ok," Veronica began, her eyes belying the fact that her mind was going a million miles an hour as she thought about how to handle the situation. "We need to call my dad. Get him involved here. Think we could fake a breakdown or would that be too obvious?" she asked.

Looking unhappy and uncertain, Logan shook his head, "Negative. Especially if we think there's the possibility it's been messed with. Why don't we find out how fast your dad can get here?" Logan asked, a clear plan formulating in his mind, "He could be our wingman in case something happens. At least then we'd have backup."

Nodding slowly, Veronica agreed, saying thoughtfully, "Yeah. I'll work on that while I'm inside." She rose up on tiptoes, her hands on his chest to balance her, and gave him a kiss. Then her worried blue eyes met his sharp brown ones, their foreheads touching for just a moment as she murmured, "Be careful, ok?"

He gave her a rakish grin and teased with his hands held out to show he had nothing up his sleeves, "What? I'm just out here pumping gas. You're the one in charge of refreshments and popcorn," he winked.

She groaned and rolled her eyes before heading into the small store. Making it into the back bathroom, Veronica pulled out her phone and dialed her dad.

"Keith Mars," came the voice's response on the other end of the line.

"Hey Dad," Veronica responded, a bit of relief clear in her tone.

"Hi Daughter," Keith's fond response followed moments later, "What can I do you for? Wait, don't answer that. Aren't you supposed to be on your way here now?"

"We were," Veronica explained, "But we've got a little problem."

"Problem?" Keith asked, sounding as if he were sitting up straighter, listening more intently to what she had to say.

"Yeah," Veronica replied, her voice hesitant before she continued, "Weevil came to visit last night. He said his cousin had given him a heads up that a vehicle had been brought into the chop shop and the owner was asking to make it look like Logan's. We were trying to figure out what to make of that when we got into the car and started driving this morning. Dad," she paused, her tone now full of concern, " It's not Logan's car."

"Where are you?" Keith asked immediately, "I'll be right there."

"Citgo station just off the PCH on the way toward Neptune," she said, "And hurry. Logan's worried they might have made some unpleasant modifications. I'm kinda with him on that concern," she admitted, glancing in the bathroom mirror as she turned the water on after flushing, pretending she'd been doing what a person is supposed to use a public bathroom for.

"Me too," Keith agreed before adding in his best parent voice, "Veronica, don't do anything without me. I'm only ten minutes from you. Just hang on. Do you hear me?"

"I hear you," Veronica mumbled, grumbling under her breath about being 30 in a couple years and asking herself when her father would begin treating her like an adult.

"When you start really acting like one," Keith answered with a tight-lipped knowing smile that could be heard even over the phone.

She snickered and said, "Fine, Dad. Whatever. We'll wait. Just hurry, ok?"

"On my way," he replied.

Ten minutes later, Keith pulled into the station and up to the pump behind them. As he got out of his Crown Vic, he gave them a sober grin and asked dryly, "What's shakin'?"

Logan gestured to the vehicle in frustration and Veronica said rather cryptically, "It's acting up a little today. No big. Think you could check it out?" Her eyes warned of something she thought he needed to be aware of.

Looking the car over meticulously, Keith gritted his teeth momentarily when he found the mirror cameras but pretended not to notice them.

"Hmmm," Keith responded casually, "Looks fine to me." He dropped the hood back into place that he had lifted to check out the engine and battery. His eyes held hers meaningfully as he added in a fatherly tone, "You two can take my car if you want. I can test this one out and make sure it's running safely. Make sure you have nothing to be concerned about."

Even if there had been no silent communication going on, Veronica would have taken him up on the offer. She grinned and nudged Logan which prompted him to comment with mildly annoyed exasperation, "You saying my driving is to blame for Rosita overheating?"

"Rosita?" Veronica questioned, an amused smirk on her face as her eyebrows shot up. It was tricky not saying anything that could be used against them. As tense as the situation was, though, it pleased her that they could keep their sense of humor about them.

Shrugging, Logan grinned and his eyes sparkled, "Real Italian beauty, remember?" His words meant more than they claimed. He was saying in no uncertain terms that what was before them was NOT real or Italian. It was a well-manufactured fake.

"You do have a tendency to run hot," Keith replied with meaning as Veronica snickered in response. "Like I said, take my Crown Vic. I'll see if I can't help get the kinks worked out of Rosita. She should be in 'like new' condition by the time I get her back to you."

"Alright, Mr. Mars," Logan conceded, blowing out a breath and leaning back against the car with his arms crossed. "Just know that if Rosita comes back worse for your wear, I'll be holding you financially responsible." He smirked, eyes twinkling darkly.

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Keith remarked dryly. "See you both back at my place."

When they were back on the road again, this time in Keith's dark blue cop car, Veronica asked in alarm, "What the hell was that?!"

"I don't know," Logan returned, a stern and stubborn frown in his voice, "A slip up would be my guess."

"Agreed," Veronica said, looking over her shoulder to see her dad clearly following behind, "But why? Surely they would have known the risks in trying to pull a stunt like that."

"Red herring?" Logan asked, glancing over at her before adding, "Something to both lead us on a wild goose chase and provide a potential clue would be my guess."

Veronica let out a tense sigh and shook her head, "No explosives. No brake lines cut. They've got eyes and ears on us clearly but what do they want?"

"No idea," Logan answered grimly, "But if we figure it out, I think we can play them."

"What do you mean?" Veronica asked cautiously, not liking the sound of where this could be going.

"I mean, we let them think they're getting what they want. Whatever that is. And we use that to track them down, smoke them out, and fry their asses," Logan replied with a tight and determined little smile that didn't reach his intense brown eyes.