Drinking the Kool Aid
Running out of the jail, she runs right into Eli.
"V, what's wrong?"
She is crying so hard that she can't answer. He opens her car door and makes her sit.
He kneels in front her.
"He asked if I was the daughter of a pudgy Sheriff or the prom king and Queen."
"V." he whispers taking her hands in his.
"My dad might not be my dad."
"Baby, you need to calm down." he whispers to her.
"Jake Kane might be my dad, Lilly might have my sister." she whispers.
Suddenly she looks sick.
Pushing him out of the way, she moves to the back of the car and starts throwing up.
Jake Kane..her dad. That means Duncan could be...Oh Fuck.
"Okay, Jake Kane might be your dad. Let's deal with this. Could this be why your dad went after him so hard?" he asks getting he back into the car.
She sits in the passenger seat and doesn't say a word.
They drive in silence for most of the ride.
"Maybe, can you bring me home." she says softly.
She watches Eli get on his back before she heads inside.
She waits until her dad leaves to take Backup for a walk.
Grabbing the photos that had been in he mom's safety deposit box to get a better look at them.
Did Jake Kane have me followed and send these to my mom so that she would never admit about the affair?
She takes a closer look and notices that in more than one photo, a PCHer is somewhere in the background.
Felix, Hector, Chardo, Thumber and Eli are in them in one way or another.
Grabbing her phone, she dials his number.
"Why have you and you boys been following me?" she demands when he picks up.
"V..."
"Tell me, Eli. I am looking at photos that have you, Felix, Thumber, Chardo and Hector following me. Why and how long?"
"Shit, can I..."
"TELL ME!" she yells into the phone.
"Lilly...she asked me to look out for you."
"This is because of Lilly. Are we even friends because of Lilly?"
"V..it's not like that..let me.."
She hangs up the phone not letting him finish.
Brushing the teas out of her eyes.
Get to that later..Right now find out who took photos of me.
Seeing one photo is from book week, she asks about when it is.
Finding a cafe that has the right angle that he would have had to be at to take them, she goes over to the waitress to see if they have receipts or anything that can help her who it was.
Showing her one of the photos and admitting that she has been stalked, the waitress gives her a receipt
That was signed by one Clarence Weidman.
Following him to Kane Software, she calls and asks for him.
He is head of security.
Checkmate.
At work, her dad asks her to look into Casey, an 09er that seems to have joined a cult.
His only request is that she stays away from the Moon Calf Collective.
Tricking her dad with a DNA test, claims it's a HIV test for health class.
I will know who my dad is.
She sends the DNA paternity test off in the mail.
She talks to Casey's ex-girlfriend, who tells him that Casey might be hooking up with an English teacher, Ms. Mills.
That he changed, even to the point of joining the lit-mag crowd.
The next day Ms. Mills talks to her about he poem that she submitted hoping to get an in and invites her out to the Moon Calf.
She is trying to figure out a way to turn her down without losing face.
"V." Eli asks interrupting her and Ms. Mills.
"Eli.."
"I'll talk to you later, Veronica.n Maybe another time, perhaps." Ms. Mills says walking away.
"Can we talk?" he looks like hell warmed over.
"Sure." she says softly.
She puts an "Out of Order" sign on the bathroom and they go in.
"Talk." she says trying to keep the emotion out of her voice.
"Okay, I know you are mad."
"I am beyond mad, Eli. You have been following me for over a year because Lilly asked you too."
"I promised her that I would look out for you before she..fuck. She called me over, it was after Duncan broke up with you and she dumped Logan after you told her about him cheating. She was worried about what some of her so called friends wee going to do to you whenever she wasn't around. All she wanted was for me to look out for you, in the background. Us being whatever we are has nothing to do with her."
"What are we? Huh? Before this I thought...it doesn't matter anymore."
"V."
"Don't." she says bushing past him and leaves the bathroom.
The door is barely closed when she hears something beaking.
Pausing a moment, she walks away. It's always about Lilly. I loved you woman but please stop trying to control my life.
Fuck. I should have told her.
Felix had told him something like this was going to happen.
Even Thumber told him that he should tell her that they have been looking out for her.
No, my dumb ass has to keep it from her. Fuck, I may have lost her, her friendship and the possibility of more. Fuck. If she finds out about what they did after Shelly's party. Better start planning his funeral. I need to talk to her. I'm not explaining this right. I need...
Frustrated he punches the mirror, breaking it.
She tries to talk to Casey and the conversation is going okay until he asks her to come with him to Moon Calf.
Once again she is trying how to refuse when Felix suddenly pulls her away from Casey.
"She'll talk to you later." he tells him.
"Felix."
"Blondie, I get you are pissed. I would be pissed too if I found out that people I consider my friends had been following me around for over a year to look out for me. That they have beaten more than one person defending me. That they kept me out of trouble when I was drunk off my ass at Shelly Pom..."
"What?" she is stunned when he mentions Shelly.
"Blondie, talk to him, okay? It might have started as a promise to Lilly but it has become more. You are our friend, chica. Put the boy out of his misery."
"I need some time, okay. There is some things..."
"I know. Just talk to him." he tells her one more time before hugging her and walking off.
In the office, she overhears Casey's parents tell her dad that his grandmother is ill and that when she passes Casey will get everything.
She notices that they have someone with them.
A deprogramer that they have hired to get Casey back home.
Casey bumps into her the next day when she is talking to Wallace and he asks if she could take him to see his grandmother.
During the visit Casey lets her know that his parents have known for over a year that he will get everything.
The next day, she goes to tell Ms. Mills about her woking for her dad and that Casey's parents hired them as well as a deprogramer.
They are interrupted by Casey saying that his grandmother has died.
She goes to the funeral to support him.
"Thanks for being here."
"I thought you could use a friend."
"You know you should put him out of his misery."
"Huh?"
"Weevil, right? That's why that PCHer came up to you. Life's too shot to stay mad at each other."
"Yeah, Casey be careful around you parents. They hired a..."
"I know. See you later, Ronnie." It felt weird to hear her old nickname but at the same time nice.
She heads home.
Checking the mail, she finds the results of the DNA test.
Sneaking into her dad's room, she sheds it before looking at it.
I know who my dad is.