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Fic: What Goes Down #5: Reason Is Treason (Veronica Mars, Lamb/Veronica)
Title: Reason Is Treason
Fandom: Veronica Mars
Pairing(s): Lamb/Veronica
Word Count: 3015
Rating: PG-13
Summary: After Parker asks Veronica to set her up with Piz, Veronica unwittingly finds herself on a date of her own - with the last person she ever would have expected.
Notes: Fifth in the What Goes Down series. AU from episode 3:2 - My Big Fat Greek Rush Week; general spoilers up to episode 3:9 - Spit & Eggs. Some dialogue from episode 3:6 - Hi, Infidelity.
Previously: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Veronica looked down as she stood at the help desk, ignoring the quiet whispers and shuffling around her. She felt like she was making absolutely no progress on the Hearst rapist case, and it was driving her crazy. She had suspected the Pi Sigs from the beginning; they were the obvious suspects. Of course, she reflected, in Neptune, it was rarely the obvious suspects who were guilty.
Every rape coincided with a Pi Sig party. Parker had been at a Theta Beta rush party the night she was raped; Claire had been at the Pi Sig haunted house. But she, Mac, and Wallace had been through the house, and there was nothing there; no drugs, nothing to tie the Pi Sigs to the victims. Nothing to tie them to the rapes except the dates of the parties, which, if Veronica were being completely honest, could have been completely coincidental. After all, when wasn't there a Pi Sig party?
Veronica sighed. She would just have to keep looking into it.
Someone approached the desk, then, and Veronica looked up to see Parker smiling at her.
"Hey," Veronica said. "What can I do for you?"
Looking a little nervous, Parker paused. "What's the story with Piz?" she asked after a minute.
"Piz? Nothing. We're just friends."
"No," Parker said. "I mean ... he's cute." She shrugged. "Do you think you could ask him what he thinks of me?" she asked, and Veronica just stared at her for a second.
"Um ... sure," she said finally, and Parker beamed.
Great, Veronica thought, as Parker left the library. Solving mysteries she could deal with. Untangling other people's love lives? Not so much.
Still, when her shift was finished, she picked up her bag and went down to KRFF, where Piz was sitting in front of the microphone. Putting on another track, he waved at her, and Veronica went in, sitting down on his couch.
"So," Veronica said, wishing like anything that she didn't have to do this. She paused. "Parker said you guys had a good time at the Pi Sig party."
"Yeah." Piz laughed. "I guess it was kinda fun. I've never really done any detective work before." He paused. "I thought there would be more guns. High-speed chases. Maybe be in black and white."
Veronica smiled. "Parker had fun," she said. Piz just looked at her, and Veronica waited for the ground to swallow her up. "She thought you were cool."
Piz nodded quizzically. "And cute?" she tried.
"Oh." Veronica sighed as Piz finally got it.
"Oh," he said again. "Um. Yeah. Look, Parker's really nice, but she's just not ... you know."
Veronica nodded, slowly. Not his type.
Smiling at Piz, Veronica left, almost running into someone carrying a pizza box on her way out.
"Sorry!" she said, looking up, and the guy she had bumped into stopped.
"Hi," he said, like he knew her, and Veronica paused.
"Um ... hi," she said uncertainly.
"Mercer," he supplied, smiling. "I'm friends with Logan."
Oh.
Trying not to let whatever it was she was feeling - and Veronica wasn't even sure exactly what that was - show on her face, Veronica excused herself from Mercer, only to run into someone else in the hallway.
"Parker, sorry," Veronica said.
Parker was just standing there, and Veronica wasn't even sure she'd heard her until the other girl looked up.
"What's wrong?" Veronica asked, at the expression on Parker's face.
"That guy ..." Parker trailed off.
"Mercer?" Veronica asked.
Parker nodded. "I think I recognise him," she said.
-
"You want my keys?" Weevil asked, and Veronica looked up at him hopefully.
"If it's not too much trouble," she said, and he shook his head. Okay, she admitted to herself, that was a lie. She'd want them even if it was a lot of trouble.
To her surprise, though, Weevil just pulled his keys out of his pocket and handed them over. "Lucky for you," he said, "I'm going out of town this weekend. You can babysit them while I'm gone, but I'll need them back on Monday."
Veronica smiled up at him happily, and Weevil shook his head.
"The things you drag me into," he said in mock frustration.
"You know you love it," she said.
-
Mercer's show, Piz had told her, started at nine the next night. At a quarter past, Veronica let herself into Mercer's room, thankful that it was a single. Wrapping her hands in one of his shirts, she started to search.
There was nothing in the side table she searched, or in Mercer's closet. She moved over to his chest of drawers, pausing to write down the name of his cologne.
Checked the first drawer. Nothing.
Checked the second drawer.
Damn.
-
"Hey!"
Veronica smiled as Lamb looked at her, then looked around his office.
"You're not my bear claw," he said.
"I might have some news about the rapes."
Lamb sat down behind his desk, and Veronica couldn't quite tell if he looked interested or just amused.
"I know one of the victims," she said. "Yesterday, she thought she recognised the guy who raped her, by his cologne. And when I was in his room, I saw some clippers."
Lamb was looking at her sceptically, though she thought she saw him raise an eyebrow slightly when she'd mentioned being in Mercer's room. Finally, he asked her, "who?"
"Mercer Hayes," Veronica said, and she thought she saw Lamb's expression change.
"Mercer Hayes runs an illegal on-campus casino," Lamb said at length, and Veronica rolled her eyes. Of course he did. Suddenly, she was not at all surprised that Logan knew him. "On Halloween, the casino was held up. Robbers took the cash box, as well as wallets and jewellery from the people who were there. When we found the cash box, we also found two vials of GHB."
Veronica swallowed. He didn't say anything else, and finally, she stood up.
"Before you go," Lamb said then, and Veronica stopped, waiting for him to continue.
"Kane Software's CFO," he said, and Veronica sighed. She was pretty sure she had had all she ever wanted to do with the Kanes - at least, with the ones who remained in the country. She sat back down.
"Jake Kane suspects him of embezzling," Lamb continued. "Apparently there have been some ... indiscrepancies in the Kane Software financial records. He asked me to investigate."
"Funny," Veronica said. "I hardly thought you were Jake Kane's favourite person."
"He wants to keep this low-key," Lamb said. "Doesn't want a lot of attention drawn to it."
Veronica smiled, shaking her head slightly. "I get it," she said. "The Feds start investigating, shares drop, and suddenly the business is in a worse position than it is now."
"Something like that," Lamb said.
Veronica shrugged. "I still don't get what any of this has to do with me. Unless you want me to keep doing your job for you."
Lamb leaned back. "The CFO - David Kretchmer - also has a thing for younger women. Recently divorced for the third time after his wife reached her thirtieth birthday."
"So, what?" Veronica asked. "You want me to marry him, become filthy rich, and support your next campaign?"
"I want you to do whatever it is you usually do," Lamb said. "Get close to him. See if you can get him to let anything slip. Get into his house or office if you can."
Veronica frowned. "Don't you have anyone else you can ask to do this sort of work?" she asked.
"I can't think of anyone better suited to it than you," he said.
Veronica looked at him for a moment. "Fine," she agreed eventually.
-
Veronica showed up at the club at 8:02pm. Lamb was already waiting outside.
"Nice outfit," he said, his gaze lingering over her, and Veronica resisted the urge to tug at her dress. Lamb had a knack for making her feel naked, vulnerable, that she thought she had long since got past. She would have to work on it.
"What's the plan?" she asked him, and Lamb's expression shifted as he focused on the job at hand.
"You go in and find Kretchmer," he said. "Get him to talk to you. I'll be keeping an eye on you. If you need me to get you away from there, spill your drink and I'll come get you."
Veronica nodded. Squared her shoulders. She could do this. No sweat.
As Lamb laid a hand on her shoulder, as if to ask her if she was okay, Veronica heard voices behind them.
"Veronica!" Shania said, as Veronica turned around. She saw a flash of recognition in Shania's face as her eyes travelled over Lamb. "Veronica's date," she greeted him, smiling. "Are you guys going in?"
"Yeah," Veronica said, trying to smile. She recognised the girls Shania was with from the Theta Beta house.
"Well, we'll see you in there," Shania said.
Veronica turned back to Lamb as the girls disappeared inside. "What do we do now?" she asked. "I can't pretend to be in there alone if Shania thinks we're together."
Lamb slung an arm over her shoulders. "I guess we go into the club," he said.
The bouncer didn't ask for ID as they entered, which Veronica was thankful for. She had at least half a dozen pieces of identification she could have used, but she didn't think Lamb would be very happy with any of them.
The club itself wasn't very crowded, but it was early. There was a small space cleared out in the centre that Veronica supposed was the dance floor, but most of the space was taken up with tables and couches, and there were chairs lined up along the bar. There was only one man sitting alone.
"That him?" Veronica asked as she and Lamb slid into the seats at the bar closest to the door.
Lamb nodded. "That's our guy," he said.
The bartender came over, then, and looked at Lamb.
"Scotch on the rocks," Lamb ordered, and looked at Veronica.
"Vodka lemon?" she asked, and the bartender nodded. Lamb didn't say anything.
"So what now?" Veronica asked, as their drinks arrived.
Lamb took a sip. "We watch Kretchmer," he said. "I doubt we'll be able to get anything on him tonight, but we're here, so we might as well make the most of it."
They drank in relative silence after that, watching Kretchmer, who nursed his drink at the end of the bar. Lamb ordered another round.
"It doesn't look like he's here to pick up women," Veronica said, as Kretchmer ignored a redhead two seats away from him.
Lamb shrugged. "He's not here for his health," he said.
Just then, Veronica saw Shania approach, and put on a hasty smile.
"Why don't you guys come join us?" Shania asked, gesturing to the table where she sat with the other Theta Betas. Before Veronica could make an excuse, Lamb stood up.
"We'd love to," he said, and smiled at Veronica. If he had still been sitting, she would have kicked him. Instead, she stood, following Shania back to the table.
Lamb sat on one of the empty couches, and with a fake smile, Veronica joined him.
"I'm Shania," Shania said, smiling at Lamb. "This is Laurel, and Siobhann, and Kim."
"Don," Lamb said, smiling at them.
"How do you know Veronica?" Shania asked.
Lamb put his hand on Veronica's knee, and Veronica tried not to swat it away. "We sort of work together," she said, and Lamb raised an eyebrow at her.
"Well, we love her," Shania said to Lamb, and he smiled at Veronica in amusement. Yes, Veronica wanted to say, some people actually do like me.
Instead, she took another sip of her drink, and watched as Lamb leaned towards the other girls.
"Are you all in the sorority?" he asked, and they smiled.
"That's us," Siobhann said brightly, and Veronica silently prayed that Lamb wouldn't start interrogating what passed for her friends right there in the club.
"Did you invite him to our Spring in November mini-carnival?" Shania asked, then, and Veronica wished that he'd led them all away in handcuffs.
"I'm sure he's probably -" Veronica began, but Lamb interrupted her.
"I'd love to come," he said, and Veronica finished the rest of her drink.
"Great!" Shania enthused. "It's next week, but I'm sure Veronica will tell you all about it." She tipped Veronica a conspiratorial wink, and Veronica could have throttled her.
"Can I get you girls another round?" Lamb asked, finishing his own drink, and the Theta Betas practically glowed at him.
When he came back, Lamb slid back in next to Veronica and put his arm around her shoulders. As Shania smiled at her, Veronica moved closer to Lamb, and his grip on her tightened.
Veronica let the Theta Betas do most of the talking, keeping an eye on Kretchmer as much as she could. At first, she thought the night was going to be a complete bust, but then she saw someone sit down next to him; not a woman, like she had expected, but another man.
As she watched, the man pulled a sheath of papers out of his briefcase, and Kretchmer studied them. Glancing back at Lamb, Veronica saw that he was watching them, too.
"Veronica?" Shania said, and Veronica hastily turned her attention back to the table.
"Sorry, what?" she said.
"Cotton candy or funnel cakes?" Laurel asked her, and it took Veronica a moment to register that she was talking about the carnival.
"Um ... cotton candy," Veronica said absently, and Shania beamed.
"That's what I said," she told Veronica.
Veronica looked at Lamb, expecting him to be amused by the topic of their conversation, but he hadn't taken his eyes off Kretchmer.
-
As Veronica's keys jangled in the lock, she winced, pushing the door open carefully. Lamb had dropped her off, promising to have her car delivered to her by the time she woke up, and she just prayed that her father hadn't seen Lamb's car. She wasn't sure how she'd be able to explain that one away.
But Keith wasn't on the couch, where she expected him to be, or in the kitchen, pretending he wasn't waiting for her to come home. When she closed the door behind her, he didn't surprise her from his bedroom. Silently thanking the world for small favours, Veronica crept towards her own room.
But when she woke up, she didn't smell eggs, or bacon, or toast. Her father still wasn't in the kitchen, and there was no breakfast, no note.
Frowning, Veronica opened the door to her dad's room. His bed hadn't been slept in.
Sure enough, though, Veronica's car was in the parking lot, and she drove down to the office after making her own breakfast.
"You didn't come home last night," she said, as she walked in the door. Keith came out of his office, and smiled at her.
"I'm sorry, honey," he said. "I was working all night on a case. Miss me?"
"Always," Veronica said. "Big one?"
"Sorry?" Keith looked at her.
"Your case," she said. "Is it a big one?"
Keith looked thoughtful. "Pretty big, yeah."
Veronica smiled at him. "Do you have time to take on another one?" she asked him.
-
"I've got something for you," Veronica said as she walked into Lamb's office, shutting the door behind her.
"Doughnuts?" Lamb asked, looking up. "Coffee?"
"Better," Veronica said. Sitting down in the chair opposite Lamb, she laid the file her dad had given her on the desk.
"What's this?" he asked, looking at her suspiciously.
"Just everything you ever wanted to know about David Kretchmer," Veronica said, and smiled.
"Embezzlement?" Lamb asked, taking the file.
Veronica said. "Nope. Nothing to do with Kane Software, actually - at least, not directly - but plenty enough to get him fired, or worse."
Veronica waited as Lamb read through the file, then nodded at her. "I'll pass this along to Jake Kane," he said, setting it down.
He was still looking at her, and Veronica frowned. "Why didn't you just go after him when we were at the club?" she asked him finally. "He was probably making these deals as we watched."
Lamb sat back in his chair. "The Sheriff's department isn't really in the habit of breaking up college parties," he said.
"Just high school ones," Veronica countered.
Lamb ignored her. "We don't have much to do with the college. They have their Rent-a-Cops. Until this whole rape situation, I don't think I've ever been over there." He leaned forward again.
"Until this investigation is solved, the best thing we have going for us is our ability to get onto campus and not be recognised. College students tend to be from out of town; they're not usually inclined to vote in local elections."
"They don't know you're Sheriff," Veronica supplied.
"Most of them, no. And I'd rather keep it that way as much as possible."
Veronica nodded. She hadn't actually expected that much foresight from Lamb, but it was solid reasoning.
"We had to let Mercer Hayes go," he said, after a moment's silence.
Veronica shot forward. "Why?" she asked.
Lamb shrugged. "There was no DNA evidence from any of the victims on the clippers," he said.
"And the GHB?"
"Says it isn't his. And he has an alibi for one of the nights of the rapes."
"Who?" Veronica asked.
Lamb smirked. "Why don't you ask your boyfriend?"
"Logan is Mercer's alibi?" Veronica asked.
Lamb's grin faded. "Like I said. Why don't you ask him?"
"He's not my boyfriend," Veronica said reflexively, and she could have sworn that Lamb smiled. "Do you think Mercer's innocent?" she asked.
Lamb shrugged. "Do I think that Logan Echolls is the most reliable witness? Not really."
Veronica ignored the urge to defend Logan. Not her problem any more, she told herself. Besides, if Mercer was guilty, it meant that the Pi Sigs - and by extension, the Theta Betas - were off the hook.
"We're still looking into it," Lamb said.
"Keep me updated?" she asked him.
Lamb's nod was barely perceptible.
Next: Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18
Fandom: Veronica Mars
Pairing(s): Lamb/Veronica
Word Count: 3015
Rating: PG-13
Summary: After Parker asks Veronica to set her up with Piz, Veronica unwittingly finds herself on a date of her own - with the last person she ever would have expected.
Notes: Fifth in the What Goes Down series. AU from episode 3:2 - My Big Fat Greek Rush Week; general spoilers up to episode 3:9 - Spit & Eggs. Some dialogue from episode 3:6 - Hi, Infidelity.
Previously: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Veronica looked down as she stood at the help desk, ignoring the quiet whispers and shuffling around her. She felt like she was making absolutely no progress on the Hearst rapist case, and it was driving her crazy. She had suspected the Pi Sigs from the beginning; they were the obvious suspects. Of course, she reflected, in Neptune, it was rarely the obvious suspects who were guilty.
Every rape coincided with a Pi Sig party. Parker had been at a Theta Beta rush party the night she was raped; Claire had been at the Pi Sig haunted house. But she, Mac, and Wallace had been through the house, and there was nothing there; no drugs, nothing to tie the Pi Sigs to the victims. Nothing to tie them to the rapes except the dates of the parties, which, if Veronica were being completely honest, could have been completely coincidental. After all, when wasn't there a Pi Sig party?
Veronica sighed. She would just have to keep looking into it.
Someone approached the desk, then, and Veronica looked up to see Parker smiling at her.
"Hey," Veronica said. "What can I do for you?"
Looking a little nervous, Parker paused. "What's the story with Piz?" she asked after a minute.
"Piz? Nothing. We're just friends."
"No," Parker said. "I mean ... he's cute." She shrugged. "Do you think you could ask him what he thinks of me?" she asked, and Veronica just stared at her for a second.
"Um ... sure," she said finally, and Parker beamed.
Great, Veronica thought, as Parker left the library. Solving mysteries she could deal with. Untangling other people's love lives? Not so much.
Still, when her shift was finished, she picked up her bag and went down to KRFF, where Piz was sitting in front of the microphone. Putting on another track, he waved at her, and Veronica went in, sitting down on his couch.
"So," Veronica said, wishing like anything that she didn't have to do this. She paused. "Parker said you guys had a good time at the Pi Sig party."
"Yeah." Piz laughed. "I guess it was kinda fun. I've never really done any detective work before." He paused. "I thought there would be more guns. High-speed chases. Maybe be in black and white."
Veronica smiled. "Parker had fun," she said. Piz just looked at her, and Veronica waited for the ground to swallow her up. "She thought you were cool."
Piz nodded quizzically. "And cute?" she tried.
"Oh." Veronica sighed as Piz finally got it.
"Oh," he said again. "Um. Yeah. Look, Parker's really nice, but she's just not ... you know."
Veronica nodded, slowly. Not his type.
Smiling at Piz, Veronica left, almost running into someone carrying a pizza box on her way out.
"Sorry!" she said, looking up, and the guy she had bumped into stopped.
"Hi," he said, like he knew her, and Veronica paused.
"Um ... hi," she said uncertainly.
"Mercer," he supplied, smiling. "I'm friends with Logan."
Oh.
Trying not to let whatever it was she was feeling - and Veronica wasn't even sure exactly what that was - show on her face, Veronica excused herself from Mercer, only to run into someone else in the hallway.
"Parker, sorry," Veronica said.
Parker was just standing there, and Veronica wasn't even sure she'd heard her until the other girl looked up.
"What's wrong?" Veronica asked, at the expression on Parker's face.
"That guy ..." Parker trailed off.
"Mercer?" Veronica asked.
Parker nodded. "I think I recognise him," she said.
-
"You want my keys?" Weevil asked, and Veronica looked up at him hopefully.
"If it's not too much trouble," she said, and he shook his head. Okay, she admitted to herself, that was a lie. She'd want them even if it was a lot of trouble.
To her surprise, though, Weevil just pulled his keys out of his pocket and handed them over. "Lucky for you," he said, "I'm going out of town this weekend. You can babysit them while I'm gone, but I'll need them back on Monday."
Veronica smiled up at him happily, and Weevil shook his head.
"The things you drag me into," he said in mock frustration.
"You know you love it," she said.
-
Mercer's show, Piz had told her, started at nine the next night. At a quarter past, Veronica let herself into Mercer's room, thankful that it was a single. Wrapping her hands in one of his shirts, she started to search.
There was nothing in the side table she searched, or in Mercer's closet. She moved over to his chest of drawers, pausing to write down the name of his cologne.
Checked the first drawer. Nothing.
Checked the second drawer.
Damn.
-
"Hey!"
Veronica smiled as Lamb looked at her, then looked around his office.
"You're not my bear claw," he said.
"I might have some news about the rapes."
Lamb sat down behind his desk, and Veronica couldn't quite tell if he looked interested or just amused.
"I know one of the victims," she said. "Yesterday, she thought she recognised the guy who raped her, by his cologne. And when I was in his room, I saw some clippers."
Lamb was looking at her sceptically, though she thought she saw him raise an eyebrow slightly when she'd mentioned being in Mercer's room. Finally, he asked her, "who?"
"Mercer Hayes," Veronica said, and she thought she saw Lamb's expression change.
"Mercer Hayes runs an illegal on-campus casino," Lamb said at length, and Veronica rolled her eyes. Of course he did. Suddenly, she was not at all surprised that Logan knew him. "On Halloween, the casino was held up. Robbers took the cash box, as well as wallets and jewellery from the people who were there. When we found the cash box, we also found two vials of GHB."
Veronica swallowed. He didn't say anything else, and finally, she stood up.
"Before you go," Lamb said then, and Veronica stopped, waiting for him to continue.
"Kane Software's CFO," he said, and Veronica sighed. She was pretty sure she had had all she ever wanted to do with the Kanes - at least, with the ones who remained in the country. She sat back down.
"Jake Kane suspects him of embezzling," Lamb continued. "Apparently there have been some ... indiscrepancies in the Kane Software financial records. He asked me to investigate."
"Funny," Veronica said. "I hardly thought you were Jake Kane's favourite person."
"He wants to keep this low-key," Lamb said. "Doesn't want a lot of attention drawn to it."
Veronica smiled, shaking her head slightly. "I get it," she said. "The Feds start investigating, shares drop, and suddenly the business is in a worse position than it is now."
"Something like that," Lamb said.
Veronica shrugged. "I still don't get what any of this has to do with me. Unless you want me to keep doing your job for you."
Lamb leaned back. "The CFO - David Kretchmer - also has a thing for younger women. Recently divorced for the third time after his wife reached her thirtieth birthday."
"So, what?" Veronica asked. "You want me to marry him, become filthy rich, and support your next campaign?"
"I want you to do whatever it is you usually do," Lamb said. "Get close to him. See if you can get him to let anything slip. Get into his house or office if you can."
Veronica frowned. "Don't you have anyone else you can ask to do this sort of work?" she asked.
"I can't think of anyone better suited to it than you," he said.
Veronica looked at him for a moment. "Fine," she agreed eventually.
-
Veronica showed up at the club at 8:02pm. Lamb was already waiting outside.
"Nice outfit," he said, his gaze lingering over her, and Veronica resisted the urge to tug at her dress. Lamb had a knack for making her feel naked, vulnerable, that she thought she had long since got past. She would have to work on it.
"What's the plan?" she asked him, and Lamb's expression shifted as he focused on the job at hand.
"You go in and find Kretchmer," he said. "Get him to talk to you. I'll be keeping an eye on you. If you need me to get you away from there, spill your drink and I'll come get you."
Veronica nodded. Squared her shoulders. She could do this. No sweat.
As Lamb laid a hand on her shoulder, as if to ask her if she was okay, Veronica heard voices behind them.
"Veronica!" Shania said, as Veronica turned around. She saw a flash of recognition in Shania's face as her eyes travelled over Lamb. "Veronica's date," she greeted him, smiling. "Are you guys going in?"
"Yeah," Veronica said, trying to smile. She recognised the girls Shania was with from the Theta Beta house.
"Well, we'll see you in there," Shania said.
Veronica turned back to Lamb as the girls disappeared inside. "What do we do now?" she asked. "I can't pretend to be in there alone if Shania thinks we're together."
Lamb slung an arm over her shoulders. "I guess we go into the club," he said.
The bouncer didn't ask for ID as they entered, which Veronica was thankful for. She had at least half a dozen pieces of identification she could have used, but she didn't think Lamb would be very happy with any of them.
The club itself wasn't very crowded, but it was early. There was a small space cleared out in the centre that Veronica supposed was the dance floor, but most of the space was taken up with tables and couches, and there were chairs lined up along the bar. There was only one man sitting alone.
"That him?" Veronica asked as she and Lamb slid into the seats at the bar closest to the door.
Lamb nodded. "That's our guy," he said.
The bartender came over, then, and looked at Lamb.
"Scotch on the rocks," Lamb ordered, and looked at Veronica.
"Vodka lemon?" she asked, and the bartender nodded. Lamb didn't say anything.
"So what now?" Veronica asked, as their drinks arrived.
Lamb took a sip. "We watch Kretchmer," he said. "I doubt we'll be able to get anything on him tonight, but we're here, so we might as well make the most of it."
They drank in relative silence after that, watching Kretchmer, who nursed his drink at the end of the bar. Lamb ordered another round.
"It doesn't look like he's here to pick up women," Veronica said, as Kretchmer ignored a redhead two seats away from him.
Lamb shrugged. "He's not here for his health," he said.
Just then, Veronica saw Shania approach, and put on a hasty smile.
"Why don't you guys come join us?" Shania asked, gesturing to the table where she sat with the other Theta Betas. Before Veronica could make an excuse, Lamb stood up.
"We'd love to," he said, and smiled at Veronica. If he had still been sitting, she would have kicked him. Instead, she stood, following Shania back to the table.
Lamb sat on one of the empty couches, and with a fake smile, Veronica joined him.
"I'm Shania," Shania said, smiling at Lamb. "This is Laurel, and Siobhann, and Kim."
"Don," Lamb said, smiling at them.
"How do you know Veronica?" Shania asked.
Lamb put his hand on Veronica's knee, and Veronica tried not to swat it away. "We sort of work together," she said, and Lamb raised an eyebrow at her.
"Well, we love her," Shania said to Lamb, and he smiled at Veronica in amusement. Yes, Veronica wanted to say, some people actually do like me.
Instead, she took another sip of her drink, and watched as Lamb leaned towards the other girls.
"Are you all in the sorority?" he asked, and they smiled.
"That's us," Siobhann said brightly, and Veronica silently prayed that Lamb wouldn't start interrogating what passed for her friends right there in the club.
"Did you invite him to our Spring in November mini-carnival?" Shania asked, then, and Veronica wished that he'd led them all away in handcuffs.
"I'm sure he's probably -" Veronica began, but Lamb interrupted her.
"I'd love to come," he said, and Veronica finished the rest of her drink.
"Great!" Shania enthused. "It's next week, but I'm sure Veronica will tell you all about it." She tipped Veronica a conspiratorial wink, and Veronica could have throttled her.
"Can I get you girls another round?" Lamb asked, finishing his own drink, and the Theta Betas practically glowed at him.
When he came back, Lamb slid back in next to Veronica and put his arm around her shoulders. As Shania smiled at her, Veronica moved closer to Lamb, and his grip on her tightened.
Veronica let the Theta Betas do most of the talking, keeping an eye on Kretchmer as much as she could. At first, she thought the night was going to be a complete bust, but then she saw someone sit down next to him; not a woman, like she had expected, but another man.
As she watched, the man pulled a sheath of papers out of his briefcase, and Kretchmer studied them. Glancing back at Lamb, Veronica saw that he was watching them, too.
"Veronica?" Shania said, and Veronica hastily turned her attention back to the table.
"Sorry, what?" she said.
"Cotton candy or funnel cakes?" Laurel asked her, and it took Veronica a moment to register that she was talking about the carnival.
"Um ... cotton candy," Veronica said absently, and Shania beamed.
"That's what I said," she told Veronica.
Veronica looked at Lamb, expecting him to be amused by the topic of their conversation, but he hadn't taken his eyes off Kretchmer.
-
As Veronica's keys jangled in the lock, she winced, pushing the door open carefully. Lamb had dropped her off, promising to have her car delivered to her by the time she woke up, and she just prayed that her father hadn't seen Lamb's car. She wasn't sure how she'd be able to explain that one away.
But Keith wasn't on the couch, where she expected him to be, or in the kitchen, pretending he wasn't waiting for her to come home. When she closed the door behind her, he didn't surprise her from his bedroom. Silently thanking the world for small favours, Veronica crept towards her own room.
But when she woke up, she didn't smell eggs, or bacon, or toast. Her father still wasn't in the kitchen, and there was no breakfast, no note.
Frowning, Veronica opened the door to her dad's room. His bed hadn't been slept in.
Sure enough, though, Veronica's car was in the parking lot, and she drove down to the office after making her own breakfast.
"You didn't come home last night," she said, as she walked in the door. Keith came out of his office, and smiled at her.
"I'm sorry, honey," he said. "I was working all night on a case. Miss me?"
"Always," Veronica said. "Big one?"
"Sorry?" Keith looked at her.
"Your case," she said. "Is it a big one?"
Keith looked thoughtful. "Pretty big, yeah."
Veronica smiled at him. "Do you have time to take on another one?" she asked him.
-
"I've got something for you," Veronica said as she walked into Lamb's office, shutting the door behind her.
"Doughnuts?" Lamb asked, looking up. "Coffee?"
"Better," Veronica said. Sitting down in the chair opposite Lamb, she laid the file her dad had given her on the desk.
"What's this?" he asked, looking at her suspiciously.
"Just everything you ever wanted to know about David Kretchmer," Veronica said, and smiled.
"Embezzlement?" Lamb asked, taking the file.
Veronica said. "Nope. Nothing to do with Kane Software, actually - at least, not directly - but plenty enough to get him fired, or worse."
Veronica waited as Lamb read through the file, then nodded at her. "I'll pass this along to Jake Kane," he said, setting it down.
He was still looking at her, and Veronica frowned. "Why didn't you just go after him when we were at the club?" she asked him finally. "He was probably making these deals as we watched."
Lamb sat back in his chair. "The Sheriff's department isn't really in the habit of breaking up college parties," he said.
"Just high school ones," Veronica countered.
Lamb ignored her. "We don't have much to do with the college. They have their Rent-a-Cops. Until this whole rape situation, I don't think I've ever been over there." He leaned forward again.
"Until this investigation is solved, the best thing we have going for us is our ability to get onto campus and not be recognised. College students tend to be from out of town; they're not usually inclined to vote in local elections."
"They don't know you're Sheriff," Veronica supplied.
"Most of them, no. And I'd rather keep it that way as much as possible."
Veronica nodded. She hadn't actually expected that much foresight from Lamb, but it was solid reasoning.
"We had to let Mercer Hayes go," he said, after a moment's silence.
Veronica shot forward. "Why?" she asked.
Lamb shrugged. "There was no DNA evidence from any of the victims on the clippers," he said.
"And the GHB?"
"Says it isn't his. And he has an alibi for one of the nights of the rapes."
"Who?" Veronica asked.
Lamb smirked. "Why don't you ask your boyfriend?"
"Logan is Mercer's alibi?" Veronica asked.
Lamb's grin faded. "Like I said. Why don't you ask him?"
"He's not my boyfriend," Veronica said reflexively, and she could have sworn that Lamb smiled. "Do you think Mercer's innocent?" she asked.
Lamb shrugged. "Do I think that Logan Echolls is the most reliable witness? Not really."
Veronica ignored the urge to defend Logan. Not her problem any more, she told herself. Besides, if Mercer was guilty, it meant that the Pi Sigs - and by extension, the Theta Betas - were off the hook.
"We're still looking into it," Lamb said.
"Keep me updated?" she asked him.
Lamb's nod was barely perceptible.
Next: Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18