When Mandy's dog vanishes, Veronica agrees to investigate and ventures into Neptune's seedy underbelly of dognapping rings. Weevil breaks into Lilly's room to steal a pink "spy pen", which she used to hold secret messages. Keith secretly takes hair samples from Veronica and sends them in for a DNA test. Veronica and Logan begin secretly dating.
VERONICA VOICEOVER: Previously on Veronica Mars� Veronica and Leo kissing outside the Mars apartment (from 118 "Weapons of Class Destruction"). VERONICA: Later, Deputy. Veronica and Keith in the apartment from the same episode. VERONICA: Have you met someone? KEITH: Alicia and I talked about it- VERONICA: Wallace's mom! Veronica kisses Logan and is kissed by Logan on the balcony at the Camelot from the same episode. Cut to Aaron and Logan in their funeral suits (from 113 "Lord of the Bling"). AARON: I know you blame me for your mother's death. Cut to Logan and Trina at the Sunset Regent (from 115 "Ruskie Business"). TRINA: She was your mom, my stepmom. LOGAN: Dad could have used you there. TRINA: So now you're worried about Dad's welfare. Cut to Aaron throwing Logan onto the sofa (from 106 "Return of the Kane"). Then back to Veronica's reaction to what Trina is saying to Logan (from 115 "Ruskie Business"). TRINA: [Offscreen] Isn't he the big bad wolf? Cigarette burns, broken noses� Cut to Weevil in Rebecca's James office and Veronica listening in her car (from 112 "Clash of the Tritons"). WEEVIL: I never would have hurt her. VERONICA VOICEOVER: Lilly and Weevil? Cut to Duncan and Veronica in the journalism classroom (from 118 "Weapons of Class Destruction"). DUNCAN: Lilly is dead. Her killer is in jail. VERONICA: Abel Koontz didn't kill Lilly. DUNCAN: You think I killed Lilly. Cut to Meg talking to Veronica in the school hallway from the same episode. MEG: You haven't seen Duncan tonight, have you? He's missing. End previouslies. Open in Mars Investigations. Veronica is pacing behind Weevil who is sitting on the visitor's side of her desk. VERONICA: [Reading] Bob sells a house for $136,000. If he makes 5% commission for every house he sells, how much money did Bob earn on this sale? WEEVIL: All I know is, if your boy Bob only gets 5%, um, he's pushin' the wrong product. Veronica sits next to Weevil on the same side of the desk. WEEVIL: I get something to write with here? VERONICA: [Picking out and handing him a pencil] First fundamental of fundamentals of math? Always carry your writing utensil. Weevil takes it and prepares to write, left-handed. WEEVIL: Um-hmm. So I heard, uh, Duncan Kane took off, huh? VERONICA: I believe the official story involved a sick relative in Chattanooga, but, yeah, he took off. Weevil looks at Veronica, waits. WEEVIL: Hmm. Well the word is he bolted 'cause you accused him of killing Lilly. VERONICA: Well, word is wrong. WEEVIL: Hm. But, you don't think they got the right guy. Keith walks into the office and stops short at the door when he spots Weevil. KEITH: Hey, honey. [Coming closer] Eli. WEEVIL: Sheriff. An uncomfortable silence ensues as Keith stares down at Weevil and Weevil stares steadily back at him. Veronica glances from one to the other. VERONICA: I'm just giving Weevil a refresher for his quiz tomorrow. The silence continues until Weevil makes a move. WEEVIL: Well, I guess I'm refreshed. See you at school. Weevil gathers up his books, nods at Keith and leaves. Veronica leans back in her chair and folds her arms. KEITH: Honey, do I need to recap my Concerned Dad lectures? [Taking Weevil's seat] No running with scissors, no candy from strangers, no smartening up the local criminal element. VERONICA: He helped me out in the past. I'm just returning the favour. KEITH: What say you call it even. VERONICA: I'll be at home. [Getting up and leaving] With the only sane member of the Mars family. KEITH: The one who eats from the garbage and keeps bringing me dead birds? VERONICA: [From the door] That's the one. Veronica goes out the door and Keith sighs heavily. Cut to a barking Jack Russell terrier tied up outside a house. It is night. Inside the house, Mandy is reading Judy Blume's "Forever". She looks up at the sound of the dog and behind her towards the door. She rolls her eyes, puts down the book and heads for the door. Before she gets there, the bark turns to a single yelp and then silence. She runs. Outside the dog is gone. MANDY: [With increasing desperation] Chester! Chester, come here boy. Come here, baby. [Running around the large garden] Chester! Chester! Chester! Cut to Neptune High School. Veronica slams shut her locker door and turns. Logan is standing in front of her. VERONICA: [Startled] Oh! Hey. LOGAN: Hey. LOGAN: So, uh, what do you think? VERONICA: Like...in general, or is there a specific arena in which you'd like my opinion? LOGAN: Do you think Duncan, uh, is just cooling off or is he, like, holed up in some hotel room pouring peroxide on his hair and trying to file his fingerprints off? VERONICA: Honestly, I have no idea. Veronica turns to walk away. Logan follows. LOGAN: I got the call from Celeste today wanting to know where, uh, I thought he might've gone. VERONICA: What'd you tell her? LOGAN: The truth. That I don't know. They stop and look at each other for a moment. Then Logan raises his eyes and points towards the ceiling in well-timed anticipation of the bell, which rings right on schedule. He grins. LOGAN: See ya. Veronica gives a pained little smile and Logan turns and walks away. Veronica turns and walks slowly on, letting out her held breath. VERONICA VOICEOVER: All righty, Logan. We'll just skip over the two minutes in heaven we had. You wanna pretend it never happened? No argument here. My lips, for all intents and purposes, are sealed. Veronica purses her lips. Her attention is drawn to Mandy who is putting up lost dog notices. Someone has stuck one of her notices onto her back. Veronica pulls it off and Mandy spins round.. VERONICA: Sorry. MANDY: Oh. VERONICA: This was on your� MANDY: Thanks. [As Veronica walks away] You're Veronica Mars, right? Veronica turns back reluctantly. VERONICA: Sometimes. MANDY: Do you think I could, like, hire you, or something? To help me find my dog? VERONICA: That depends. Was he cheating on you? [Off Mandy's confused look] Lost dogs aren't really my speciality. MANDY: Oh. Okay. Well, thanks anyways. Mandy is abject and turns, head down, and walks away. Veronica gazes after her and changes her mind. VERONICA: You know maybe I could make a couple phone calls, uh, maybe help with signage. Mandy beams. Wallace runs into shot. WALLACE: Excuse me a sec. He puts his arm around her shoulders and leads her away from Mandy. WALLACE: Breaking news. Record this date in history. First time Wallace Fennel got the 4-1-1 before the little birdy got it to you. They stop. VERONICA: Do I have to tip you over or are you gonna spill it on your own? WALLACE: Clemmons just got a call. Weevil broke into the Kane house last night. Neighbourhood security patrol caught him in Lilly Kane's bedroom. Veronica can't believe it. Opening credits. Open on an exterior overhead shot of the Sheriff's Department. Cut to inside as Veronica approached Leo at the counter. VERONICA: [Softly] Hi. How are ya? LEO: Better. Now. I haven't heard from you in a couple days. About to show up at your place with my tools of restraint. VERONICA: Wouldn't recommend it. Dad usually likes to have a guy to dinner at least once before he cuffs me. LEO: So what can I help you with, Miss Mars? My schedule? Sure. I'm off Thursday and Friday. VERONICA: Um, I'm actually here to see Weevil. Do you think I could get a minute with him? Leo looks back towards the cells. LEO: What is it about bad boys? VERONICA: [As Leo leads her to the door to the cells] Um, tattoos, leather, parole violations. Total good-girl bait. LEO: I'm doomed. VERONICA: Hey, you were here when Weevil was brought in, right? What did they find on him? LEO: The bad-ass standards, $0.17, a couple of condoms, a pen Veronica slips her bag off her shoulder and hands it to Leo. He opens the door for her. Cut to the cells. Weevil is lying on one of the cots. WEEVIL: Do you have that nail file and the J-Lo poster I asked for? Veronica sits in the chair outside the cell. VERONICA: Why were you in Lilly's room? WEEVIL: What better house for some B&E? VERONICA: I know about you and Lilly. I know about the letters. WEEVIL: Yeah? [Sitting up, a bit pissed off] Well, whatever you know, that's not all there is to it. VERONICA: [Standing] I tell you that I'm close to finding Lilly's killer and two hours later, you're breaking into her room. What do you expect me to think? WEEVIL: [Angry] Look, I told you what I was doing there. Now if you don't wanna believe me, that's on you, okay? You gonna help me or not? VERONICA: No. Veronica turns and gets to the door leading out of the cells. WEEVIL: All right, all right, hold on! Weevil stands and moves to the edge of the cell. Veronica stops by the door and looks back. WEEVIL: Diamond ring. VERONICA: You broke in to steal a ring? WEEVIL: I was trying to get it back. It-it's my mother's and she was saving it for me as an engagement ring. At one time I was dumb enough to think I wanted Lilly to have it. VERONICA: Find it? WEEVIL: No. Look, uh, the Kanes want me crucified for this and now that I'm 18... VERONICA: Good-bye juvie. Hello community soap. WEEVIL: [Whispering] Yeah. Cut to a new lost dog notice rolling off the printer at Mars Investigations. Mandy takes it and compares it with her effort. MANDY: Now I see how crappy mine was. VERONICA: It was heartfelt crappy. So tell me more about the night Chester disappeared. Your front gate was open? They move to and sit on the small couch. MANDY: Oh, not mine, the McDades. I baby-sit their son Ryder twice a week. They let me keep Chester in their yard. VERONICA: How far do you live from them? MANDY: Far. I'm more like an 02er. VERONICA: So, you put up flyers. Did you check the pound? MANDY: Well, I called and I left them my number. VERONICA: You should go down there. Give 'em a flyer. If they meet you, they're more likely to remember you and Chester if he comes through. Cut to an exterior of the Echolls family home. A worker cleans the pool. Inside, Aaron is sitting on a couch covered in leopard print throws. He is reading Hermann Hesse's "Siddhartha". Trina walks into the lounge, carrying a script. AARON: Sweetheart. Stay close, okay? Barry's gonna be here any minute. TRINA: [Sitting next to him, grinning] Research for your next role? AARON: No, Phil Jackson gave me this. He said it would change my perspective. TRINA: Maybe you could option it. AARON: Nobody seems to believe me. Not even my own children. I'm done acting, Trina. It's behind me now. TRINA: What if something so great came along. Logan enters, carrying his books and checking his watch. AARON: There is nothing greater than living in the moment, being here with the ones I love. That's my job now. Lynn's death was my wake up call. Having dropped his books, overhearing throughout, Logan joins them in the lounge. He smirks and holds out his hands in classic "setting scene" style. LOGAN: Push in on our hero. Natural light frames his handsome, weathered face as he passes sage advice to his doting daughter. The music swells. [Imitates Yoda as Trina rolls her eyes] Important your family is. Hm, hm. Logan against the arm of a second couch and lets himself fall back onto the couch. TRINA: But Daddy, there's this terrific part. [Logan laughs] It's the villain in this independent feature my boyfriend Dylan's producing, "Escaping Your Past". You'd be perfect. Two days work. AARON: Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on, Trina. Thank you for thinking of me, really, [Logan laughs again] but, but this, this is what I want to be doing now. Logan can't stop laughing as the doorbell rings. Cut to the three Echolls sitting around a table. The lawyer, Barry Randall is sitting at the top of the table. BARRY: I'm not sure if you're aware but Lynn updated her will a few weeks before her�death. Aaron, you were removed. AARON: Hm. Well I didn't know that but, uh, well, doesn't surprise me. LOGAN: It's cool, Barr. Dad's accountants didn't give Mom much of an allowance. Aaron is not impressed with his son. BARRY: All right, I'll skip to the relevant paragraph here. [Reading from the papers in front of him] To my son Logan, I bequeath my art collection as well as all of my personal effects in the house. In addition I leave him the balance in my investment account, held with JP Morgan, totalling $115,000. TRINA: And me? She took me out too? BARRY: I'm afraid you were never in it. Trina looks shocked and sighs heavily. Cut to Veronica and Mandy at the dog pound. They hand a flyer over to the man at the counter. VERONICA: We're looking for a lost Jack Russell terrier, Chester. Any chance he's come through? JW: Pure breed Jack. Hadn't come through. Sorry. Another dog pound worker comes through from the back. HANS: Veronica Mars? J-dub, this is the coolest girl in Neptune High. Uh, she was gonna get expelled for planting a spy cam in the teacher's lounge but she had so much dirt, they just let her off. JW: Is that so? MANDY: Have you seen my dog? Veronica hands him a flyer. HANS: Um. Uh, man, no. Aww, I wish I had though, what a cutie. Keep an eye out, okay? VERONICA: We'd really appreciate that. Thanks� HANS: Hans. VERONICA: Hans. Hans exits as Mandy turns to Veronica. MANDY: You really hid a camera in the teacher's lounge? VERONICA: I have no idea what he's talking about. MANDY: Um. They leave the pound. Cut to the Echolls family kitchen. A chirpy Trina, with plate in hand, bears down on Logan, standing and looking at his books on one of the counters. TRINA: Good morning, bro. [Holding out the plate] Pop tart? LOGAN: Taking it[] Hm, a tart from a tart. Logan takes a bite. TRINA: He of the sickle wit. Can I ask you something? Logan, still chewing, uses his thumb and forefinger to pretend to take something from his now closed mouth. LOGAN: Hm. Will you look at that? There was a string attached to my pop tart. He tosses the imaginary string over his shoulder. TRINA: Yeah, well, I'm in a little bit of a jam. I could use a loan. Logan makes a display of hitting a button on his watch, which pings. LOGAN: Twelve hours to hit me up for my dead mother's money. Hm, I wonder who had that in the pool? TRINA: You know I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important. LOGAN: Oh, I do. I do. TRINA: Could I just borrow�ten grand, just for a little while. LOGAN: [Incredulous] Ten grand? TRINA: Will you just hear me out, please. My boyfriend Dylan spotted me some cash a few months ago and�now he's bugging me about it. I-I can't get him off my back. LOGAN: [Smirking] Did you try standing up? TRINA: [Sarcastically] Thanks. Knew I could count on you. Trina stalks off. Cut to Veronica and Mandy entering the school. VERONICA: This afternoon we should post at the pet stores. Pet owners are more likely to call with any tips. Mandy's cell rings. She takes it from her pocket and answers it. MANDY: Hello? [Pause, then excited] Yes I did. [Pause, then really excited] Oh, you have? Her joy quickly turns to pain as she takes the phone from her ear and puts it back in her pocket. VERONICA: What happened? MANDY: Nothing. Someone was just playing a stupid trick. A crowd of boys further down the hall are laughing and barking, one in particular, who is holding up and waving his cell. MANDY: Lenny Sofer. I had a crush on him last year. I put his picture in my locker. I never told him but somebody did. He's gone out of his way to be mean to me ever since. Lenny barks again, entertaining himself and his mates. Veronica, riled, fixes Lenny with a hard stare and heads for him. MANDY: Oh, Veronica, please, don't worry about it. Really, it's not worth it. VERONICA: Oh, it's so worth it. [To Lenny] You prank-call Mandy? LENNY: What if I did? VERONICA: Well, I want to congratulate you. [Holds out her hand] Shake your hand. [They shake hands energetically] Congratulations! You've been named the world's biggest cockroach. This award is given in recognition of your unparalleled lack of decency and humanity. Bravo! You're gonna die friendless and alone. The boys around him do the crowd equivalent of an 'ouch' as Veronica turns away from him. LENNY: Hey, everybody knows you're the biggest- Veronica turns back to face him. By now, a fair sized crowd has gathered round to watch. VERONICA: Shut up! If I want you to speak, I'll wave a snausage over your nose. If you use Mandy again to try to convince yourself that you're not a loser, I will ruin your life - got it? [With feeling] You got it? LENNY: Okay, geez. Lenny is crushed. Veronica marches off until Mandy speaks to her. MANDY: I can't believe you did that. VERONICA: [Harshly] I can't believe that you didn't. If you want people to leave you alone, Mandy, or better yet, treat you with respect, demand it. Make them. Veronica spins around and races off, leaving a beaten but ponderous Mandy behind. Cut to the Mars apartment. Backup greets Veronica as she comes in. VERONICA: Hey, buddy, you wanna go outside? Okay. Her cell rings and she answers. VERONICA: Hello. HANS: Veronica, it's Hans at the pound. I've got some bad news. Cut to Mandy, Veronica and Hans at the pound. HANS: One of our guys found Chester by the side of the highway on his way in last night. He'd-he'd been hit by a car. They had to put him down. I found this, saved it for you. He hands Mandy Chester's collar. Mandy is devastated and Veronica is sad. Cut to the beach. Veronica and Backup jump over the small wall onto the pavement. Veronica gazes at the notice board. VERONICA VOICEOVER: Backup and I walk by here almost everyday. [Collecting notices] This used to be covered with band flyers and surf boards for sale. Now every inch of space is covered with lost dog notices. Cut to Mars Investigations. Veronica is calling the numbers on the notices she took from the beach. The first offers a reward of $750. VERONICA: Hi. I was calling about your missing Yorkie? [Pause] Oh, you did. Great. How did you find him? [Another call] Three weeks. No, I haven't seen him, just a concerned dog lover. [Notwithstanding that the flyer sets a reward of $50] How much is the reward? [And another, the flyer of which refers to a seven year old spaniel with a reward of $100] Hi, is this Bridget? [Pause] Hi, I'm calling about your toy Spaniel, Louie. Is he still missing? [Pause] I'll definitely be on the lookout for him. Good luck. Veronica puts down the phone and looks at the notices. She writes $1000 on a sheet of paper, cuts it out and puts it over the $100 on Bridget's poster for Louie. VERONICA VOICEOVER: Only the owners who've offered big rewards have gotten their dogs back. What happens to the dogs who don't bring a high enough price? Do they end up like Chester, just left by the highway somewhere to die? The pen she is using runs out. She goes into Keith's office to find another. VERONICA VOICEOVER: I can't do anything for Mandy but if someone is stealing dogs in Neptune, they need to be brought down, hard, then beaten with some sort of tyre iron, and dumped into the nearest body of water. As she checks Keith's desk and finds a pen, the door to Mars Investigations can be heard opening and closing. Veronica is however startled by a voice from Keith's door. CELESTE: What did you say to Duncan? Where is he? VERONICA: Excuse me? CELESTE: I think you know why he left. In fact, you're probably the reason he left. What did you say to him, Veronica? VERONICA: Let's start with what I didn't tell him. I didn't tell him that his mother threatened to kill me. I didn't tell him that his mother drove my mother out of town. CELESTE: [Walking into the office] I know you think I hate you but I don't. I just can't stand to look at you. Every time I see you, I see everything that's wrong in my life, in my family. Keith enters the main office and can immediately hear Celeste's voice. CELESTE: I see my husband's infidelity, your mother in his office, in his hotel room. I see your father trying to destroy us. Keith enters his office. KEITH: What are you doing here? Keith walks straight past Celeste to stand behind Veronica. CELESTE: I�needed to ask your daughter a few questions. KEITH: You don't need to ask her anything. You just leave her alone. CELESTE: You don't scare me, Keith. If you were such a great detective, you would have seen what was going on right underneath your nose. Celeste turns and walks out. Keith looks upset. The phone rings and Veronica races out to catch up with Celeste as Keith deals with the call. VERONICA: Wait. KEITH: [Offscreen] Mars Investigations. VERONICA: I'll help you find Duncan if you drop the charges against Weevil. CELESTE: You want the intruder caught in Lilly's bedroom released. I'm sure I should be surprised but I'm not. VERONICA: Nothing was stolen, nothing was damaged. I might have an idea where Duncan went, that's my offer. Celeste looks down, in every sense, at Veronica for a moment then wordlessly leaves the office. Cut to the notice board at the beach. Veronica staples the new Louie dog notice to the board, the reward now reading $1000. VERONICA VOICEOVER: Truth is, I have no idea where Duncan might be but she doesn't know that. As for the whereabouts of lost dogs, let's see who bites when I increase the reward exponentially. Cut to the Echolls family kitchen. Logan is getting a late night snack which he brings over to the counter. He leans down over the counter to eat when Trina walks in, wearing sunglasses and limping. TRINA: Is Dad still at dinner? LOGAN: Yeah. But he's not far. I'm sure if you really tried you could blow smoke up his ass from here. Trina passes him and goes to the ice maker behind him. Logan glances at her. LOGAN: Hey Trin, if you take your top off before you get on the mechanical bull, you won't fall off. Trina doesn't respond. Logan loses the smirk as he realises something is up. He straightens up as she passes by him again. LOGAN: What happened to you? TRINA: Nothing. Logan grabs the sunglasses off of her face. She has a black eye. Trina tries to snatch them back but Logan holds them up, out of her reach. TRINA: Don't you have some homework to do, little brother? Logan drops his arm and she grabs the sunglasses. She turns to walk away. He follows. LOGAN: That wannabe producer boyfriend do this to you? She stops but does not turn and does not answer. LOGAN: What's his name, Dylan? Dylan what, what's his last name? She faces him. TRINA: It doesn't matter. LOGAN: It does now! Tell me. TRINA: You've made it clear that you have no interest in my problems, Logan. Don't be wishy-washy. It's so unattractive in a guy. She walks away. Cut to Neptune High School as Wallace and Veronica come out to the outdoor area, carrying lunch trays. WALLACE: I walked in on 'em making out on the couch last night. She was sittin' on his lap. VERONICA: Hey, hey, hey! No discussing parental PDA at lunch! It's your rule! WALLACE: Sorry. I can't be the only one with that image burned in my brain. I had to share. As they sit at a table, Veronica's cell rings. VERONICA: Hello. [Pause] Yes, this is Bridget. [Pause] Wonderful! [Pause] Yes, the reward is still a thousand dollars. [Pause] How 'bout this afternoon. [Pause] Great, um, I'll send my brother to meet you. Dog Beach, three o'clock. [Pause] Thanks, buh-bye. Veronica puts the phone away. WALLACE: So I'm your brother? VERONICA: I didn't mean brother like, brother. I meant brother like... [doing a funky head wave] you know. Cut to the park by the beach. Wallace is waiting with an envelope. A white van pulls up and a man gets out of the passenger side. He has Louie. WALLACE: Yeah, I know. And where are you gonna get a thousand bucks? If you rollin' like that, you really been holding out on a brutha. MAN: T�, [Translation: You] eh...lost dog. WALLACE: Sure did. Hi there Louie. How you doin' boy. I missed you. Oh yes, I did. Where was he? How'd you find him? MAN: No hablo ingles. [Translation: I don't speak English] WALLACE: Oh. All right, then. Wallace hands over the envelope and the man hands Wallace the leash. The man checks the envelope. WALLACE: Thanks man. MAN: Gracias. [Translation: Thanks] WALLACE: Come on. Wallace walks off with Louie and the man heads back towards where the van dropped him. Before he gets there, Backup races to him and brings him down. The man shouts and screams. MAN: �Ah, ah, aaahh! �Ay, Dios m�o! Perro... �Ah, ah, ay! �Ay! Qu�teme el perro. �Ah, mi zapato! �Ayuda! Ay, mi zapato, ah, zapato, agh, ah... [Translation: Oh, my god! Dog! Take the dog away from me! Ow, my shoe! Help! Shoe!] Wallace walks off with Louie and the man heads back towards the van. Backup races to him and brings him down. The man shouts and screams as Backup gets his shoe off. VERONICA: Oh Backup. I'm so sorry. He just ran from me, that's so weird. Veronica acts to try and help and eventually gets Backup back on the leash. MAN: Est� loco el perro. [Translation: The dog is crazy.] VERONICA: Sorry. The man gets up and runs away. Veronica watches and pulls out the envelope containing the money that she has pick pocketed. VERONICA VOICEOVER: Tag, you're it. Now it's time to play follow the dog thief. Cut to Veronica's laptop, open in her car. She has also put a tracker on him. VERONICA VOICEOVER: Hm, you're walking. Veronica drives off to follow. She pulls up outside a retail warehouse wehre the man is explaining what's happened to him. MAN: La chica suelte el perro, se agarra a mis zapatos entonces se agarra a mi-mi-mi pierna... y no me solt�. Adi�s amigos. [Translation: The girl releases the dog, he grabs my shoes then he grabs my-my-my leg... And he didn't let me go. Goodbye, friends] He moves off, around the corners and Veronica follows on foot with Backup. As she rounds the corner, the man, now talking to a group of around ten men. He spots her and starts shouting at her. MAN: You! T�! �T� tienes mi dinero! �Dame mi dinero! �D�melo! Necesito el dinero para llevar al otro hombre, entonces le puedo exigir mi pago. [Translation: You! You! You have my money. Give me my money! Give it to me! I need the money to take it to the other man so I can demand my payment] Others have joined them in support of their friend and Veronica is surrounded by about twenty men. VERONICA: Oh crap. MAN: Dame mi dinero. [Translation: Give me my money] VERONICA: No, no, no, no. You stole the dog. MAN: I no steal, no. I no steal, no, no, no� All the men are denying her charge and talking at once. Backup barks and Veronica reaches into her bag. VERONICA VOICEOVER: And it's time for the international language of... She pulls out and sets off a klaxon. The man cringes back and the talking stops. ANOTHER MAN: �Ay! �Ay, Dios m�o! [Translation: Ow! Oh, my god!] VERONICA: Okay, now who stole the dog. MEN: �Qu�? �Qu� dice? [What? What is she saying?] MAN: El hombre de los perros, el hombre de los perros. [Translation, Dog man. Dog man.] VERONICA: A dog man? Does he drive a white van? Do you know him? MAN'S FRIEND: Si, white van. el hombre de los perros. A veces nos contrata. [Translation: Yes, white van, he hire us sometimes] VERONICA: Do you know his name? �Su nombre? [Translation: His name?] MEN: Nooooo. MAN'S FRIEND: No pero, pero tiene un van as�, con las muchachas bien... [Translation: No but, but he has a van this way, with the chicks well...] He accompanies his words with the international gesture for big tits. The men laugh appreciatively. MEN: �Ja, ja, ja, ja!. VERONICA: Sure. Let's play dirty charades with the gringa. The man who returned the dog mounts a saw horse and starts to buck on it, slapping his rear, again to the amusement of his friends. MAN: �Me entiendes? �T� conoces? [Translation: Do you understand me? Do you know?] VERONICA: Okay, ah, Muchas gracias. [Translation: Thank you very much.] MAN: No est� ilegal. S�lo trabajamos, �s�? [It's not illegal. We just work, don't we?] MEN: Si! [Translation: Yes!] VERONICA VOICEOVER: So there's a dog man who hires these guys to return dogs. He drives a white van, or maybe a white horse, and he likes to spank busty women. Basically, that's any male living in Neptune. Cut to Wallace and Louie approaching a house. He rings the bell. WALLACE: Come on, Louie. All right. All right now, please be hot, grateful, single� A middle-aged woman answers the door. BRIDGET: Oh! WALLACE: Hi. I was wondering if you lost Louie. BRIDGET: Oh, you found him. WALLACE: I sure did. BRIDGET: Thank you so much. The woman is overjoyed. Cut to Neptune High carpark. As Veronica walks along, she passes a white van. She turns to look at it and spots the mudflap which has a nude on it. Louis XIV's "Marc" starts up as her interest in the van mounts. VERONICA: Hello, ladies. Veronica looks at the back window. There is a sticker for "All Country KBXE" which includes a cowboy on a bucking bronco. She peers into it. Cut to Hans getting into the driver's seat. He is startled when he goes to adjust the driving mirror as Veronica is now sitting in the back of the van. HANS: What the� VERONICA: You kill dogs? HANS: What are you doing in my van? VERONICA: I know what you're doing. You're kidnapping 09er dogs, holding them at the pound and then waiting for the offer of a big reward. HANS: You break into my van and you're accusing me of stealing. VERONICA: So I guess when Mandy and I came looking for Chester, you realised you screwed up, dognapped from a poor girl. So you just cut your losses and threw him to the side of the road. HANS: Actually, I rounded up 101 of them. Some crazy lady's makin' a coat. Now get out of my van, you lunatic. VERONICA: How old are you, anyway, Hans? HANS: Eighteen. Why? VERONICA: Community soap. Veronica gets out of the back of the van, straight into Weevil. WEEVIL: Always gettin' out the back of some dude's van, aren't you? VERONICA: You're out. WEEVIL: Yeah. How many get-out-of-jail-free cards do you have up your sleeve, anyway? VERONICA: Pretty sure that was my last, so you might keep your felonies to a bare minimum. WEEVIL: I am what I am, V. Leopard, spots, you know what they say. Weevil walks on past and she twists round to watch him go. Cut to Mars Investigations. Logan walks in. Veronica is at her desk drinking from a small bottle of water. VERONICA: Hi. LOGAN: Hey, I need your help. VERONICA: Would it be weird for me to start my own drinking game? Like I have to do a shot every time someone asks for my help? LOGAN: I need you to track down Trina's leech-of-the-week boyfriend. VERONICA: Why? What'd he do? LOGAN: He beat her up. Veronica looks horrified and puts down the water. LOGAN: I plan on returning the favour. All I know is his first name, Dylan and he's producing this steamer. Logan slaps the script Trina had earlier on the desk. Veronica picks it up and looks at it for a moment. VERONICA: Easy. Cut to Trina, applying makeup to her black eye. There is a knock at the door and Aaron pops his head around. AARON: Hey. Going out? TRINA: Oh, not at the moment but just in case, gotta have the game face on. Camera's prying eyes are never far away. Aaron comes into the room, closer to her. AARON: Hm. Hey, what do you feel like for dinner? I think I'm gonna cook. TRINA: Yeah, I'm not really hungry. AARON: Are you okay? TRINA: Just boyfriend stuff. No big deal. AARON: You know even if it's a small deal, um, you can always talk to me about it. TRINA: Well, I-I sorta got his hopes up about you doing his movie. And now the financing is falling through and he's freaking out. AARON: Trina, you gotta talk to me before you go making promises to anybody. TRINA: Dad! I so don't care about Dylan. This is me thinking about you. This is a career defining moment you're passing up. I mean, hello, Travolta, "Pulp Fiction". AARON: Really. It's that good? TRINA: It's better than that good. AARON: Well, I guess I better hear about it then. Why don't you have your boyfriend come by later. Trina jumps into Aaron's arms and gives him a big hug. TRINA: Oh. Thank you so much, Daddy. AARON: Hm. Trina races off. Aaron looks thoughtful. VERONICA: [Offscreen] Hi, I'm calling from Todd Russell's office� Cut to Logan watching Veronica while she continues an ongoing phone call. VERONICA: �at CAA. He read your script, "Escaping Your Past" and he went nuts over it. Have you sold it yet? Really? Who's producing it? [Logan smiles proudly at her] Is that G-o-r-a-n? Great. I'm sure he'll want to speak with him. Maybe we can get you guys a deal. Okay, we'll be in touch. Thanks. Bye. [Hangs up phone] Dylan Goran. Veronica types into her laptop as Logan comes round to her side of the desk and leans down over her to see. LOGAN: Is there really an agent named Todd Russell at CAA? VERONICA: There could be, maybe. [Logan laughs] Looks like Trina's Romeo has had a little trouble with the ladies. Two women have filed restraining orders against him in the last five years. Logan straightens and pulls his cell out of his pocket. He punches in a number. LOGAN: Dad, hey, I need Trina. It's important. Cut to Aaron, in the Echolls family kitchen. He is balancing his cell between his ear and his shoulder as he prepares red peppers. AARON: Oh, hey son. She's in the shower. Her boyfriend's coming over later to pitch me a part in his movie. Cut back to Logan as he moves around the desk. LOGAN: Aren't you retired? I thought you were reconnecting with your family. Cut to an unimpressed Aaron. AARON: [Coldly] Trina is family, I'm helping her out. It's what dads do. Aaron drops the phone from his shoulder. LOGAN: Oh listen. Trina's boyfriend, he's got- Aaron doesn't here as he cuts Logan off. Cut back to Logan. He hears the dial tone and snaps his phone shut. LOGAN: Dylan's on his way to the house. And Dad's cooking for him. Cut to the Echolls patio. Aaron is cooking on a large, permanent, barbecue. Trina arrives with Dylan, sleaze personified. TRINA: Dad. This is Dylan Goran. Dylan, my father, Aaron Echolls. DYLAN: Mr Echolls. It's a pleasure. I'm so glad you decided to meet. AARON: Please, call me Aaron. Hey, taste this for me, will ya? Aaron holds out a piece of meat on the end of a large knife. Dylan takes it and eats it. DYLAN: Umm, umm. Perfect. AARON: Nya, not quite. So, Dylan. Tell me about this part. DYLAN: You'd be playing a hit man. A junkie hit man. TRINA: It's only two days of work, three tops. You'd be in and out. If you said yes, they'd have a green light. AARON: Hm. A strung-out hit man, huh? DYLAN: With a conscience. He's on the junk because he's tormented. It's the only way he can get out of his head. Escape the pain. AARON: You know, it sounds a lot like my old man. He used to beat me and my mom and then�try to drink the demons away. Aaron cleans the knife and puts it down. DYLAN: Yeah, yeah. It's a lot like that. You could definitely draw from that. Aaron puts his arm around Dylan and walks him up the patio. AARON: Yeah, hell, yeah. He used to beat my mom 'til she passed out. Then she'd cake makeup all over her face, wear dark glasses around the house but, you know, I could always recognise the signs. Then, finally, I got the courage up to try and stop him, [Aaron stops] but, man, I'm just a scrawny little kid, he's built like a wall. Dylan, now facing Aaron, is becoming increasingly less confident and comfortable. AARON: He put a cigarette out on my hand. Said, "Nice try, kid." Hey, you know you can still see the scars. Look. Aaron holds up his hand close to Dylan's face. Dylan doesn't look. DYLAN: Wow�wow. AARON: You see 'em there? Forced to, he looks. DYLAN: Uh, no. I don't. AARON: Come on, it's right there. Right there. With that, and to the strains of Dean Martin's "That's Amore", Aaron grabs Dylan's face and pushes him further up the patio. TRINA: Daddy! AARON: Think you could hit my daughter, huh? TRINA: Daddy, no! AARON: My daughter! Aaron pushes him and Dylan falls flat on his back. SONG: When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie. Dylan scrambles up and Aaron punches him and throws him across the patio. TRINA: Daddy! SONG: That's amore. TRINA: Daddy, stop! Trina tries to grab Aaron's arm but he rips it out of her grasp. He heads for Dylan who gets up and tries to run past. Aaron pushes him into a pillar and punches him again. SONG: When the world seems to shine like you've had too much wine, that's amore. TRINA: Daddy! SONG: Bells'll ring, ting-a-ling-a-ling and you'll sing "Vita bella". Aaron grabs an unlit tiki torch. As Dylan tries to run again, he swings it and slams it into Dylan's legs, bringing him down again. Aaron drops the torch and kicks Dylan hard. TRINA: Daddy, no! Aaron picks up a trash can and throws that down on Dylan. Dylan again tries to scramble away but is caught. Aaron punches him hard enough to send Dylan flying into the table, bringing everything down. SONG: Hearts'll play, tippi-tippi-tay, tippi-tippi-tay like a gay tarantella. When the stars make you drool joost-a like pasta fazool, that's amore. Aaron picks up a wicker chair and throws it at the back of the running Dylan, bring him down near the doors to the house. Aaron approaches him, pulling off his belt and proceeds to beat him with it. TRINA: Daddy, no! SONG: When you dance down the street with a cloud at your feet, you're in love. Logan races through the door from the house, Veronica right behind him. Both are shocked. Aaron, out of breath, looming over Dylan, pauses the beating. AARON: Oh, hey son. How was school? Dylan groans at his feet and turns over to lie on his back. SONG: When you walk in a dream� AARON: Hey, you know what. I considered your offer. I think I'm gonna pass. SONG: �but you know you're not dreaming, signore. AARON: Logan. Will you see this young man to his car, please? LOGAN: I'll be happy to. Trina and Veronica both stand motionless and shocked. Cut to the front of the Echolls house as Dylan drives off. Veronica and Logan walks back towards the house. SONG: 'Scusa me, but you see, back in old Napoli, that's amore. VERONICA: Wow. LOGAN: [Proudly] Father knows best. They walk in silence for a moment then Logan glances at Veronica. LOGAN: Do you think Lilly loved Weevil? VERONICA: I don't know. Um, Lilly never mentioned anything to me about Weevil. I was wondering when you were gonna ask me about that. LOGAN: Yeah, well. I don't know. When he's caught in her bedroom, you know, I guess you gotta think. They have arrived and stopped outside Logan's SUV. They face each other. VERONICA: You're handling it a lot better than I thought you would. LOGAN: I loved Lilly and Lilly loved guys. VERONICA: Logan, you know that she- LOGAN: You know, she used to say that her [clears his throat] her parents worshipped Duncan and tolerated her. And if she couldn't please 'em, she was gonna go out of her way to piss 'em off. Weevil must have been perfect for that. VERONICA: I know Lilly loved you. LOGAN: Well, it's just not like I loved her. It's okay. No, uh, you know, it kinda let's me off the hook, you know, I-I don't know, I don't have to feel guilty anymore. VERONICA: Feel guilty about what? LOGAN: Moving on. They stare at each other for a moment, then Logan reaches out his hand and touches her cheek as he steps forward to kiss her. She is accepting and they kiss passionately. They break, Logan resting his forehead on hers. VERONICA: What are we doing? LOGAN: [Smiling, whispers] No idea. They kiss again and start laughing in the midst of it and break. VERONICA: We need to talk about this. LOGAN: I know. I kn- He laughs again. VERONICA: Maybe we should just keep it to ourselves for a while and see what happens. LOGAN: Meet in mop closets? Pass each other secret notes in the hallway? Something triggers in Veronica's mind. It shows on her face and Logan notices, pulling back a little, but doesn't say anything. When she looks up at him again, he puts his forehead back on hers. LOGAN: Come on, I'll drive you home on the back streets. They smile and Logan opens the door for Veronica. She gets into the car. Logan closes the door and walks around the front of the car to get to the passenger. In the meantime, Veronica has a flashback to herself and Lilly in the back of the car. LILLY: [Laughs gaily] Oh my gosh, look what I found in my cereal box this morning. It's a spy pen. VERONICA: What's a spy pen? Lilly pulls off a part of the pen showing the hidden message compartment. VERONICA: How covert ops of you! LILLY: I'm gonna use it to pass secret messages to all of my lovahs. VERONICA: This is going to be a very busy little pen. Flashback ends and Logan is now in the driver's seat. LOGAN: You okay? Veronica nods at Logan who starts the car. Cut to a library. Mandy is reading a book standing amongst the shelves. Veronica comes up behind her. VERONICA: Hi. MANDY: Hi. VERONICA: I'm going down to the city pound tonight. You wanna come with? MANDY: What? Why? VERONICA: Because I believe that guy Hans and those guys from the pounds are dog-napping pure breed dogs from the 09er zip and holding them there until the owners offer rewards. I plan on proving it. MANDY: Do you think there's a chance Chester might still be there? VERONICA: I wouldn't get my hopes up. Listen, it's stupid and if you don't want any part in it- MANDY: I'm in. Veronica smiles. Cut to Leo, pouring out some coffee at the Sheriff's Department. He looks up and smiles when he sees Veronica. VERONICA: I need to talk to you. LEO: Me. Finally, me. VERONICA: I can't date you anymore. Leo's grin is slow to fade. LEO: Huh. Whoa, okay. VERONICA: Trust me, you don't want to date me. I'm a train wreck. Seriously. The-the first guy I ever loved just dropped off the face of the earth, probably because of something I said, and the last guy I dated turned out to be a drug dealer, and I just made out with my dead best friend's boyfriend, who, incidentally, I hate. So. Train wreck. [Sincerely] But, Leo, you are the sweetest- LEO: Please. Don't tell me how sweet I am. Leo moves over to his desk and Veronica follows. VERONICA: Well, you're also seriously hot so you'll be single for about three and a half seconds. LEO: See. Now that's more helpful. VERONICA: I'm sorry to dump this on you. I just�I genuinely care about you and I wanted to be honest. LEO: So, my response is supposed to be what? Thanks? VERONICA: Probably overshooting a bit, huh? He snorts and nods. VERONICA: You could tell me that you understand. LEO: And that we could still be friends? VERONICA: That'd be cool�'cause I need to follow this confession by asking for a favour. Leo can't believe it and then can't help himself and laughs. Cut to the outside of Balboa Animal Control, the dog pound. Leo bangs on the doors. LEO: Open up, Sheriff's Department. JW unlocks and opens the door. Leo steps in past him, followed by Veronica, Mandy and Wallace. LEO: We need to take a look around. JW: What for, look her dog's not here. LEO: Take us to the back, now. JW: You wanna show me a warrant? LEO: What are you kidding me? This is a public county building, you're a county employee, I'm a county deputy sheriff. Don't make me wake up a judge. JW: Come on. Cut to inside the pound with Wallace leading the group past cages of barking dogs. Wallace spots a room and heads for it. JW: Like you were told, missy, your dog's dead. He's not here. WALLACE: Well, what's in this room here? LEO: What's in that room? WALLACE: It's locked. JW: It's where we keep dogs with serious contagious diseases. You go in there you could infect other- LEO: We'll risk it. JW: Your dog's not in there. Cut to inside the locked room as Mandy enters first and the rest follow. Veronica pulls out the flyers she took for the notice board. VERONICA: Well, lookie here. It's Bucko and Rufus and Shakes and Lola. MANDY: He's not here. Chester's not here. VERONICA: I'm sorry. LEO: You have the right to remain silent. Mandy hurries out of the room as Leo cuffs JW. LEO: Anything you say can and will be used against you- JW: Wait, you cannot prove that I had anything to do with this. LEO: Please. Resist arrest, please. They hear a scream. MANDY: [Offscreen] Look at me. VERONICA: Come on. Veronica and Wallace race out of the room. In the outer room, Hans is on the ground, a taser on his neck. He groans. Mandy is wielding it. Veronica races in and tries to pull Mandy off which she finally succeeds in doing. MANDY: That was my dog, you killed my dog. Do you see what you did? VERONICA: Stop, stop. Hey, hey. MANDY: He was my best friend. VERONICA: Stop, stop. HANS: He's not dead, I swear. Please stop. VERONICA: He's not dead? HANS: We sold him. We sold the dog when we couldn't get a reward. Cut to Leo putting Hans into his car. Mandy and Wallace walk on and Leo approaches the waiting Veronica. VERONICA: Thank you, Leo. LEO: Forget about it. It was fun. VERONICA: Can I ask you kind of a weird question? LEO: Do you ask any other kind of questions? VERONICA: You said Weevil had a pen on him when he was arrested. Are you sure it wasn't a pencil. LEO: It was definitely a pen. Pretty girlie one too. Big, pink, plastic. So much for your bad boy. Cut to the Mars apartment. Keith is in Veronica's bedroom and collects a hair from her brush which he places in a small vial marked VM#2. He carefully adjusts the brush to its original position. Cut to him in the bathroom. He pulls out a hair from his head and places it in a vial marked KM#1 and adds it to the other in some box packaging. He closes the box, which is addressed to the Dna Testing Division of Unified Genetics, 10248 Saro Parkway. The front door opens and Keith quickly places it in his case. He leans against the bathroom door. KEITH: Honey. I know you don't always have a curfew these days but you're starting to make me look bad. VERONICA: So, you knew Weevil stalked Lilly. You questioned him. What convinced you he wasn't the guy? KEITH: We searched him, his home, DNA, all that stuff, nothing came up. He also had an airtight alibi. I'll show you. They move into Keith's room where he gets a large box for the top of his closet. VERONICA: All this time you've had Lilly Kane research in a box marked "Playboys" in the closet? KEITH: Well, I figured it'd be safe there. It's the closed files, it's just the non-essential stuff. VERONICA: You think you're slick, don't you? KEITH: Only 'cause I am. Okay, Weevil was on community service detail. A dozen people saw him from 8am to 2pm. His time card confirms it. He holds up the timecard. VERONICA: And now that we know that Lilly's time of death is well after four? KEITH: The Kanes covered up Lilly's murder. We know that. You think they'd go through all that for someone like Weevil? Cut to Veronica and Mandy walking up a path. Mandy holds back. VERONICA: You've come this far. Mandy walks forward and rings the doorbell of the house to which the path leads. A woman answers. MANDY: Hi, I'm Mandy. I think my friend Veronica talked to you earlier. Chester barks from inside the house and runs out. They reunite. MANDY: Chester! Oh! Oh, hello. Cut to Neptune High. Veronica leans against a wall until she spots Weevil. VERONICA: Weevil, the night you broke into the Kanes, I gave you a pencil. You were found with a pen. There was no ring, was there? You found exactly what you were looking for. He pulls Lilly's spy pen from his shirt pocket. WEEVIL: You mean this? You can have it. VERONICA: Any messages inside when you found it? Messages from you, perhaps. WEEVIL: Now if I told you, it wouldn't really be a secret message pen. Would it? Veronica stares at him, troubled. End.
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