BtVS/VMars: "Not Quite Queen of the Damned" (3/4)
Title: Not Quite Queen of the Damned
Fandoms: Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Veronica Mars
Rating: Mostly worksafe, but possibly borderline
Summary: Faith and Vi hire Keith to investigate Phoenix Land Trust, Cassidy's old company. Is its business being conducted from beyond the grave?
PREVIOUS CHAPTER
MEMORIES
Not Quite Queen of the Damned (3/4)
Okay, this party is pretty lame," Wallace admitted.
Veronica shrugged. A lame party was better than a wild party of the Shelley Pomeroy variety, she supposed, but yeah, it was lame. "Okay," she said, "we can go if you want."
Wallace smiled noncommittally. "We can stay if you want."
"No," said Veronica, getting up. "If you're not having fun--" She turned away, but kept her eyes on Wallace, which meant she bumped right into--
Dick Casablancas.
Knocked over, Veronica fell to the ground. "I think it's definitely time to go," she announced. The last thing she wanted to do was to spend time in the same room as Dick. She'd think "especially after Beaver's death," but the truth was, there was no way to build on the degree to which it had already been the case.
Wallace helped her up, then picked up the stake which had fallen out of her purse when she fell. "The only thing I can think," he said, "is you're about to build a very small fence."
"Ha ha," said Veronica, not laughing. Great, now she'd have to explain the insanity with her father before, when she didn't understand it herself.
"My dad gave it to me," Veronica said, as she and Wallace made their way through the crowd to the door. "Something about protecting myself from vampires."
Thankfully they were right at the door when she said that last part, so the only response she had to deal with was Wallace's. "Vampires?" he asked, surprised, as they walked to the car. "Your dad has a strange sense of humor, you know."
"I know," said Veronica, thoughtfully. "But the thing is: I'm not sure he was kidding."
"You think your dad is really worried about you being attacked by vampires?" Wallace asked skeptically. "Your dad might be a lot of things, but he's usually pretty in touch with reality."
Yeah. If there was anyone who saw life the way it really was, it was Keith Mars, private investigator and former sheriff. "That's what scares me," Veronica admitted.
"And us?" said two hooded men, approaching them, as Veronica's hand automatically went for her taser, brushing against the stake in her purse. "Do we scare you?"
They attacked. Veronica tasered one of them, who went down howling, but the other grabbed Wallace and, his eyes glowing yellow--
Sank his fangs into Wallace's neck.
Veronica had had her world turned upside down many times in her life. Lilly Kane's death. Her father's recall. Her mother leaving. Shelley Pomeroy's party. Learning she might be Jake Kane's daughter.
It just happened again. Her father had been telling the truth. Vampires were real. They had just been attacked by them. One was drinking Wallace's blood.
Knowing she had no time to react this sudden paradigm shift, she dropped the taser and went for the stake. The vampire she had tasered was on the ground, still conscious but also still howling in pain, and she needed to not waste the precious seconds she had bought. Moving as quickly as she could, she spun around Wallace and, with as much force as she could manage, thrust the stake into the vampire's back around where the heart would be.
To her surprise, the stake penetrated much more easily and more deeply than she had expected, and after a moment there was nothing but dust between it and Wallace, who fell to the ground.
He needed immediate medical attention, she knew, but the other vampire was getting up on his feet and coming towards them. Veronica tried to get him with the stake as well, but he just grabbed her wrist in the air and twisted, breaking her arm. His other elbow contacted with her face and then--
Blackness.
. . .
Faith watched as Keith Mars looked down at his daughter in the hospital bed, emotions Faith knew quite well playing across his face.
"We got there just in time," she told him. "The doc said she's in critical condition, but he's hopeful she'll pull through."
The anger on Keith's face just darkened. "And Wallace? Her friend?"
Faith looked at Vi, who was better than her at that sympathy shit. "They said he lost too much blood," Vi answered. "I'm sorry."
"We'll do whatever it takes to stop this," Faith added. "I promise. As soon as we have a lead--"
She was interrupted by the ring of Keith's cell phone. "Hello?" he answered it, then listened for several seconds. "Okay," he said at last. "Meet me at my office in fifteen minutes--no, wait until dawn. Six o'clock." He closed his phone and looked at Faith and Vi. "That was Mac," the told them. "She found something."
. . .
Mac was waiting with her laptop outside Mars Investigations when they arrived. Keith unlocked the door, and then the four of them entered. As soon as she was in Mac made her way to the receptionist's desk and sat up her laptop.
"I was able to hack my way into the company email," she explained as she began calling up windows. "And look at what I found."From: Cassidy Casablancas (ccasablancas@phoenixlandtrust.com
To: Kendall Casablancas (kcasablancas@phoenixlandtrust.com)
CC: Richard Casablancas, Jr. (dick@phoenixlandtrust.com)
Subject: Tomorrow NightKendall--
You know what needs to be done. The Neptune Grand roof, tomorrow night, 10pm. It all begins.
Oh, and bring Dick with you.
--CC
"It's dated yesterday," Mac pointed out.
"I've heard of e-mail addiction, but not being able to kick the habit from the grave is taking it a bit too far," Faith observed. "Least we know where we need to show up."
"I'm coming with you." The look of steely determination Keith wore in his eyes was one Faith recognized just as much as the sorrow and anger she had seen earlier.
She nodded. He had experience fighting vampires, and they might need the help, but mostly she knew there was no way he was taking no for an answer and respected that. "We'll meet back here, nine o'clock."
TBC. . . . here.
Fandoms: Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Veronica Mars
Rating: Mostly worksafe, but possibly borderline
Summary: Faith and Vi hire Keith to investigate Phoenix Land Trust, Cassidy's old company. Is its business being conducted from beyond the grave?
PREVIOUS CHAPTER
MEMORIES
Not Quite Queen of the Damned (3/4)
Okay, this party is pretty lame," Wallace admitted.
Veronica shrugged. A lame party was better than a wild party of the Shelley Pomeroy variety, she supposed, but yeah, it was lame. "Okay," she said, "we can go if you want."
Wallace smiled noncommittally. "We can stay if you want."
"No," said Veronica, getting up. "If you're not having fun--" She turned away, but kept her eyes on Wallace, which meant she bumped right into--
Dick Casablancas.
Knocked over, Veronica fell to the ground. "I think it's definitely time to go," she announced. The last thing she wanted to do was to spend time in the same room as Dick. She'd think "especially after Beaver's death," but the truth was, there was no way to build on the degree to which it had already been the case.
Wallace helped her up, then picked up the stake which had fallen out of her purse when she fell. "The only thing I can think," he said, "is you're about to build a very small fence."
"Ha ha," said Veronica, not laughing. Great, now she'd have to explain the insanity with her father before, when she didn't understand it herself.
"My dad gave it to me," Veronica said, as she and Wallace made their way through the crowd to the door. "Something about protecting myself from vampires."
Thankfully they were right at the door when she said that last part, so the only response she had to deal with was Wallace's. "Vampires?" he asked, surprised, as they walked to the car. "Your dad has a strange sense of humor, you know."
"I know," said Veronica, thoughtfully. "But the thing is: I'm not sure he was kidding."
"You think your dad is really worried about you being attacked by vampires?" Wallace asked skeptically. "Your dad might be a lot of things, but he's usually pretty in touch with reality."
Yeah. If there was anyone who saw life the way it really was, it was Keith Mars, private investigator and former sheriff. "That's what scares me," Veronica admitted.
"And us?" said two hooded men, approaching them, as Veronica's hand automatically went for her taser, brushing against the stake in her purse. "Do we scare you?"
They attacked. Veronica tasered one of them, who went down howling, but the other grabbed Wallace and, his eyes glowing yellow--
Sank his fangs into Wallace's neck.
Veronica had had her world turned upside down many times in her life. Lilly Kane's death. Her father's recall. Her mother leaving. Shelley Pomeroy's party. Learning she might be Jake Kane's daughter.
It just happened again. Her father had been telling the truth. Vampires were real. They had just been attacked by them. One was drinking Wallace's blood.
Knowing she had no time to react this sudden paradigm shift, she dropped the taser and went for the stake. The vampire she had tasered was on the ground, still conscious but also still howling in pain, and she needed to not waste the precious seconds she had bought. Moving as quickly as she could, she spun around Wallace and, with as much force as she could manage, thrust the stake into the vampire's back around where the heart would be.
To her surprise, the stake penetrated much more easily and more deeply than she had expected, and after a moment there was nothing but dust between it and Wallace, who fell to the ground.
He needed immediate medical attention, she knew, but the other vampire was getting up on his feet and coming towards them. Veronica tried to get him with the stake as well, but he just grabbed her wrist in the air and twisted, breaking her arm. His other elbow contacted with her face and then--
Blackness.
. . .
Faith watched as Keith Mars looked down at his daughter in the hospital bed, emotions Faith knew quite well playing across his face.
"We got there just in time," she told him. "The doc said she's in critical condition, but he's hopeful she'll pull through."
The anger on Keith's face just darkened. "And Wallace? Her friend?"
Faith looked at Vi, who was better than her at that sympathy shit. "They said he lost too much blood," Vi answered. "I'm sorry."
"We'll do whatever it takes to stop this," Faith added. "I promise. As soon as we have a lead--"
She was interrupted by the ring of Keith's cell phone. "Hello?" he answered it, then listened for several seconds. "Okay," he said at last. "Meet me at my office in fifteen minutes--no, wait until dawn. Six o'clock." He closed his phone and looked at Faith and Vi. "That was Mac," the told them. "She found something."
. . .
Mac was waiting with her laptop outside Mars Investigations when they arrived. Keith unlocked the door, and then the four of them entered. As soon as she was in Mac made her way to the receptionist's desk and sat up her laptop.
"I was able to hack my way into the company email," she explained as she began calling up windows. "And look at what I found."From: Cassidy Casablancas (ccasablancas@phoenixlandtrust.com
To: Kendall Casablancas (kcasablancas@phoenixlandtrust.com)
CC: Richard Casablancas, Jr. (dick@phoenixlandtrust.com)
Subject: Tomorrow NightKendall--
You know what needs to be done. The Neptune Grand roof, tomorrow night, 10pm. It all begins.
Oh, and bring Dick with you.
--CC
"It's dated yesterday," Mac pointed out.
"I've heard of e-mail addiction, but not being able to kick the habit from the grave is taking it a bit too far," Faith observed. "Least we know where we need to show up."
"I'm coming with you." The look of steely determination Keith wore in his eyes was one Faith recognized just as much as the sorrow and anger she had seen earlier.
She nodded. He had experience fighting vampires, and they might need the help, but mostly she knew there was no way he was taking no for an answer and respected that. "We'll meet back here, nine o'clock."
TBC. . . . here.