A/N – Well my muse wasn't cooperating for my other two stories and I ended up writing a lot more on my unposted one, so I decided to finally go ahead and start publishing it. Sorry to those of you waiting for the next M&M chapter, but at least this gives you something new to read.
This new story is quite a bit different from the others I've done, but I'm really hoping people give it a try and enjoy it. It's not going to be quite as long as my other multi-chapter stories, likely ending more around the 40K mark. It's mostly in Veronica's POV, but some of it is Logan's too. It's also the darkest one I've done, well at least I think it is. So don't be expecting much, if any, fluff here. I would say it's a bit more noir-ish than my others have been too. It also uses a lot of flashbacks which I've never done to this extent before either. There will be LoVe, but whether it's only in flashbacks or in the future too, you'll have to read to find out since I don't want to spoil it for anyone.
I'm sure I'll get some complaints about certain aspects, which is fine, but there are many parts of it I really loved writing. And the good news is that it's about 90% complete, so you shouldn't have to wait long for updates. I'm planning on posting more or less weekly, although some of the sections may end up shorter, so I may post the next one quicker if I post a relatively short one to make up for the lighter update.
I'm putting it as T for FF, but there are probably some sections that are a little on the M side. If anyone really objects as you read it, please let me know. And thanks to Bondopoulos for doing her beta magic on this!
Disclaimer: All VM characters belong to Rob Thomas.
It was late afternoon and Veronica's last client of the day had just left. She stood up from her desk and went to get a bottle of water out of the fridge. She was just closing the refrigerator door when she heard the outer office door open and close. She let out a frustrated sigh, worried that the case had been compromised if he was back that early. He could be quick sometimes, but it seemed way too soon for him to have planted the bugs and returned to the office already.
"Hey," she said as she turned the corner and then stood frozen in place. Brown eyes staring at her when she'd expected blue. She felt her chest tighten slightly as she tried to take a breath. He seemed almost as affected by seeing her as she was at seeing him. Of course he would have expected to see her versus being completely caught off guard, so he did have that advantage. Although based on his expression, she didn't think it really mattered much.
They stood there just staring at each other for several seconds before he finally glanced away and then started to speak. "I need your help, Veronica," he mumbled in a more devastated tone than she'd heard from him in a very long time.
Veronica clenched her jaw and furrowed her brow. He started talking again before she could object. "I need someone I know can be discreet and I only trust you. Please... I think my wife is having an affair."
She took a deep breath and instantly thought back to the last time he'd been there.
Flashback ~ ~ ~
Veronica was searching through the filing cabinet for a folder that she was positive she'd put back when she heard the door behind her open. She glanced over her shoulder and was surprised to see Logan standing there. She gave him a polite smile and turned toward him, leaning slightly against the desk between them. Even though they both still lived in Neptune, they'd been able to completely avoid running into each other, and she certainly hadn't expected to see him here ever again. He looked nervous though, which never led to anything good. He didn't bother with small talk, jumping right to the point of his visit.
"I need to tell you something... I just..." She could also tell by his tone that this wasn't going to be good. "I didn't want you to hear it from someone else... I'm getting married."
Veronica tried not to react negatively to the news even though it felt like her chest had been violently torn open and her heart was being crushed. "That's great... Congratulations... I'm sure the two of you will be happy together," she replied as she forced a supportive smile on her face. She'd had enough practice pretending to feel something that she didn't to come off as convincing. At least she hoped it did.
He took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah... I just... I felt I owed it to you to be the one to tell you... I guess that's sort of stupid after all this time..."
"No... It's... Thanks." She didn't really know what else there was to say and apparently he didn't either.
He gave her a firm nod. "Okay then… Goodbye, Veronica," he said as he turned and headed back out the door.
"Goodbye, Logan," she said softly to herself as the door closed behind him. ~ ~ ~
Him showing up out of the blue to tell her he was getting married was the last time she'd seen him until now. That had to have been over a year and a half ago she'd guess, but she'd tried not to think much about that day. They were still standing there awkwardly in the hallway while she tried to figure out what to do.
"Please, Veronica? I need to know and I need someone I can trust to help me," he pleaded again. He'd at least met her eyes for a few seconds, rather than just avoiding her gaze.
She shook her head slightly and turned to walk back into the larger reception area. She didn't hear him following her, so she turned back toward him and gestured to the couch with her head since he was still standing in the same spot. He gave her a grateful look as he sighed and walked over to take a seat.
She leaned against the corner of the desk, folding her arms across her chest as he sat down. Veronica watched him carefully as she contemplated what she should do. He looked more exhausted than she'd ever remembered seeing him look before. He'd been through so much shit before that she was a little surprised to see him looking this weary.
"I find it hard to believe that Hannah would cheat on you... what makes you so sure that she is?" Veronica asked skeptically.
Logan swallowed hard and looked down at his hands for a few seconds. He started fidgeting with the gold wedding band on his left hand. "I just... things are off... and..."
She could tell there was something he didn't want to tell her based on his reaction to her question. "I'm not going to take the case if you keep things from me, Logan," she said resolutely.
He stopped fidgeting and looked up at her. The weariness replaced by an expression she could only classify as shame, but she wasn't sure why he looked that way if Hannah was the one doing the cheating. "She told me she's pregnant," Logan said with a hard tone.
Veronica cocked an eyebrow at him. She couldn't help but wonder if he just didn't want to be responsible for a kid and was just imagining that Hannah had cheated on him to get out of it. Wouldn't be the first guy to do that, although typically it wasn't with their wife.
Logan let out another deep sigh and shook his head. "I can't have kids, Veronica," he said as he looked at her again.
Veronica gave him a questioning look. "And you never told her that?" she asked incredulously, her voice raising slightly. "Don't you think that should have been something you told her before you even got married, Logan?"
Logan looked down at the coffee table in front of the couch again. "I told her I didn't want to have kids... I may have left out the couldn't part. She said she was fine not having kids too... I didn't think it was a big deal to go into the technicalities of it since it didn't really seem to matter at that point."
"How do you..." she paused and let out a deep sigh. "How do you know you can't?"
"I had a vasectomy," he answered abruptly.
Veronica shook her head again and let out another frustrated breath. "Well maybe they fucked it up, Logan. Did you ever think of that? They do make mistakes sometimes. Maybe you should figure that out before you accuse your wife of sleeping around." She wasn't really sure why she was so angry all of a sudden. It really wasn't any of her business. He was just another potential client now and whatever fucked up mistakes he made were certainly not her problem anymore.
"Look... I know it was a shitty thing to do, Veronica..." he replied angrily. "But I'm positive she's having an affair and that baby is not mine. They did tests after… so I'm positive it can't be mine."
"Maybe the tests were screwed up too. We're talking about Hannah, Logan. Sweet, innocent Hannah... I find it really hard to believe she's cheating on you."
"Well you're wrong and she is," Logan snapped back.
"You want to know what I think?" Veronica asked; she didn't give him a chance to reply. "I think you're just looking for excuses to get out of being a dad. So things didn't go as you planned. That doesn't make Hannah the villain here, Logan."
Logan took a deep breath before he continued. "Okay, fine... I know you may not believe me... but do you always believe all your clients? Isn't that why they hire you... to get proof?"
Veronica gave him an annoyed glare. "Do you have any other proof?"
"No... but things don't feel right... her behavior is different... that's why I want to hire you."
"You could just have a paternity test done on the baby to prove it, Logan," she countered next, still feeling anything but impartial to the situation. "That should give you whatever proof you need that she's been unfaithful, if she has."
"I just…" he let out a frustrated breath and she could see the emotions warring on his face. "I just want to know the truth about what's going on. I would think if anyone could understand that, it would be you."
Veronica let out a frustrated breath. She knew she shouldn't take his case. Tell him no and send him away. The chances that Hannah was actually having an affair seemed a million to one to her. Hannah had always been head over heels for Logan. The idea that she was actually seeing someone else seemed completely ludicrous. Although Veronica certainly hadn't been a part of his life in years, and people do change. "If I take this case, Logan... am I going to find out you've been sleeping around too?"
The shocked look on his face told her all she needed to know. "No," he replied as he shook his head adamantly.
She let out another loud, deep breath and shook her head. "Alright," she answered sounding a bit defeated as well. "I'll take your case, but you should still get verification from a doctor that you can't be the father... if you find out you could be... then just talk to her instead. Maybe it's something else that the two of you just need to deal with," she told him, still struggling over the fact that she had major reservations about taking this case.
"Okay..." he said a bit hesitantly as he nodded.
"And you know..." she said as she closed her eyes and shook her head. "Be on the safe side... have them check for other things too."
Logan let out a deep sigh and nodded.
She internally struggled for a few seconds before she continued. She hated saying it, but knew it was necessary. "And if you really do want to get proof, you're going to need to act completely normal. If she thinks you suspect something is going on, she may stop whatever she's doing, if she actually is doing anything. You understand that right?"
Logan sighed and nodded again.
Logan slowly walked back down the stairs and climbed into his car that was parked along the curb. He looked back up at the building he'd just walked out of and let his head fall to the back of the seat. Well that couldn't have gone much worse, could it? I suppose she could have told me to fuck off and totally refused to help me. He shook his head and closed his eyes. He couldn't help but think back to the last time he'd walked out of that building.
Flashback ~ ~ ~
Logan closed the car door and stared at the steering wheel. He'd wanted so badly for Veronica to tell him he was making a huge mistake and to not go through with marrying Hannah. If she'd given him any small indication that she still gave a damn about him... about them... he would have. But no, she congratulated him with a smile and said that she was sure that they'd be happy together. He couldn't detect any trace of hesitation or regret. Maybe he should just leave… disappear somewhere… drive down to Mexico and vanish. He knew he'd partly stuck around Neptune hoping that things with Veronica would eventually change. But then Hannah had come back. She'd been so excited when they'd bumped into each other and her adoration of him was a breath of fresh air after the nightmare that had been him and Veronica. He'd just gotten swept up by her. Not just her, but the feeling that someone loved him unconditionally. He'd eventually convinced himself that he loved her too. Maybe not as much as he'd loved Veronica, but he still loved Hannah. And then something had caused Hannah to doubt him. To push him for more. He didn't want to be alone again. He convinced himself that Hannah was right. That if he did love her he wouldn't run away from making a commitment. So now here he was, due to get married in two weeks on Catalina. All of a sudden escaping to Mexico didn't seem like all that bad of an idea.
Logan's cell phone rang and he glanced down and saw Hannah's name on the screen.
He took a deep breath and answered.
"Hey, babe, I thought you'd be home by now?"
"Sorry, had a quick errand to do," Logan answered trying not to sound upset about seeing Veronica.
"I thought we were going to try that new gourmet hotdog place on the boardwalk." Logan could picture the playful pout on her lips as she spoke. "You promised to get me a slushy too... Just like our first date."
Logan let out a sigh and laughed softly. "You said that wasn't a date… princess." Things were always so easy with Hannah. Maybe he didn't have the same intense feelings for her as he'd had for Veronica, but he couldn't deny he loved how much she loved him.
"Hurry home," she purred through the phone. "I'm hungry... and we should get some food too." ~ ~ ~
Logan hadn't expected Veronica to accuse him of also sleeping around. That stung more than he could have ever imagined it would. To be fair, if his marriage to Hannah failed due to adultery, he would have also placed money on it being him rather than Hannah. Although he could only imagine that happening with the obstinate blonde he'd just left.
Veronica was in the inner office adding a few more notes into the file she'd started for Logan's case when she heard the door to the office open and close again. She closed the file folder and walked out to the main room.
"Success?" she asked with an inquisitive smile.
The 'of course' reply was accompanied by a smug grin. She was close enough to run her fingers over the patch on his fake uniform and smiled at him as she did.
Flashback
Veronica collapsed back onto the pillows, working hard to catch her breath. She lightly ran her fingers through the dark blond hair on the head that was resting on her chest. "Hey," she said with a soft exhale.
"Hey," he parroted as he leaned up on his elbows with a mischievous grin, sparkling blue eyes staring back at her.
"Can you do a favor for me?" she asked as she tilted her head the slightest amount.
She felt his body shake slightly against hers as he laughed and shook his head. "You know you could have just asked for the favor and not have had to butter me up with sex first." He paused and waggled his eyebrows at her. "Although I guess if I had to choose, an unplanned afternoon rendezvous with my smoking hot girlfriend does beat a text asking for a favor."
Veronica rolled her eyes as she shook her head. "This wasn't a setup… though you know I could probably get you to do anything with another round like that one," she couldn't help adding with a smug grin. His expression changed to reflect that he wholeheartedly agreed with her as he nodded. "This should be pretty easy though. Can you place a few listening devices for me?"
"Hmm… do I get to have some sort of undercover, secret identity?"
Veronica laughed and shook her head again. "Well I don't think walking into this place as a journalist would probably go over too well, so yes. I think I have an ID card for a building inspector we could modify."
"I'll only do it if I get to pretend to be an exterminator."
Veronica let out a huff of amusement. "Exterminator?"
"Yep," he replied with a devious grin. "How ironic is that… you know you love it… the exterminator who leaves bugs behind instead of removing them."
"You're a dork," she replied as she laughed at him again.
"Yeah… but a dork who just gave you three mind blowing orgasms," he pointed out before placing a passionate kiss on her lips.
"Bugs Be Gone," he laughed against her mouth. "Perfect name for my fictional company."
"Was that Logan Echolls I just saw pulling away from the curb?"
Veronica's fingers froze on the exterminator patch. She wasn't trying to keep this from him, but she hadn't wanted to jump right into it either. She'd hoped that Logan would have been long gone before he made it back, but they'd spent time going over Hannah's normal schedule and all the other things she'd need to know to start her investigation. Veronica let out a slow breath, but didn't immediately respond.
"No lies, Veronica. That's our promise, remember," he said with just a hint of hurt already forming behind his eyes.
"Yes, it was Logan," she replied feeling a bit defensive already.
"What did he want?"
"To hire me for a case," she answered as nonchalantly as possible. She knew he wasn't going to be thrilled about this.
He let out a sigh before he continued. "What kind of case?"
"The usual," she said as she finally turned and walked over toward the kitchenette.
"You didn't take it, did you?"
She spun back toward him. She hadn't wanted to go on the offensive, but unfortunately she knew it was inevitable. "Yes, I took it."
As she expected he let out an uneasy bitter laugh. "Well call and tell him you changed your mind."
"In case you didn't notice, this is Mars Investigations, not Mars and Vandegraff. You don't get to decide what cases I take."
"I wasn't asking as a partner, I was asking as your boyfriend," Troy replied with a pleading expression.
"It's just a job, Troy" Veronica replied as she crossed her arms across her chest. "He's just another client."
Troy let out a frustrated breath and shook his head. "We both know Logan Echolls has never been just another anything." She shook her head, but didn't say anything so he continued. It was easy to detect the anxiety in his voice as he spoke again. "And it's not just some case either. He wants you to find out if his wife is cheating on him. I mean... isn't there some conflict of interest there or something..."
"Troy," Veronica said in a terse tone. "It's a case, period. There's nothing else to it. Just drop it before one of us says something we'll regret."
"Fine," Troy snapped back as he turned and headed for the door. "I've got a real job to do."
She took a deep breath as the office door slammed behind him.
A/N – Please take a minute to let me know what you think of it so far. Thanks for reading!