Tyranny of the Urgent: Chapter Sixteen: Older Than the Origins
Chapter Sixteen:
Older Than the Origin
“You are no longer writing about the use of mythic archetype in Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.”
“All right,” someone, probably Dick, praised. Mrs. Murphy ignored the comment with aplomb that years of teaching had taught her.
“You are all instead entering our Mayor Woody Goodman’s county-wide essay contest on the subject of freedom.”
Nearly every eye turned to the back of the class where Logan was lounging. Veronica tried to resist the urge to turn, but couldn’t manage it. At least he was looking at her too.
“The winner gets a week’s internship as Woody’s apprentice, which means an opportunity to learn about civic affairs, a plum entry on your college applications, and - this might interest you, Dick - a chance to stand beside Woody Goodman on TV and push the plunger for the demolition of old Sharks Stadium.”
“Nuke the stadium? Now I totally wish I could write good.” The bell rang and everyone filed out of the classroom. Logan ran to catch up with Veronica.
“Hey.”
“Hi,” she said non-committedly.
“So, I saw you at the trial.”
“I always like to watch Cliff perform. He totally trounced the PCHers, huh?”
“Might have had something to do with the key witness withdrawing his testimony.”
“Funny how that happened.” The corners of Veronica’s mouth turned up a little. She knew he was trying to apologize to her.
“I can’t believe you got his wife to admit she was at home with him at the time of the murder.”
“Women are indispensable, Logan.”
“Well, thank you. It never would have happened without your PI habit. Don’t ever kick it.”
“I’m sure you’ll need it again.” She said it without malice and they walked comfortably down the hall together. Their last conversation about Kendall wasn’t forgotten, but it wasn’t hanging in the air between them anymore.
“So, you should be able to write quite an essay on freedom. How does it feel to have your case overturned?”
“Well, freedom feels liberating.”
“I’ve see you’ve got your title.”
“Hey, Veronica!” They turned to see Wallace catching up with them.
“I’ll leave so he doesn’t catch you associating with the riff raff,” Logan quipped. Veronica rolled her eyes and turned to Wallace.
“What you got?”
“The pamphlet? From the Hearst packet that we both got. In the envelope that we both got that you didn’t open.” Veronica pulled some of her hair over her mouth.
“Oh, that.”
“You know the average SAT score for a Hearst freshman? 1280.”
“And you got an 1140, so you’re doomed, and we can kiss this ‘Get to Know Hearst’ weekend goodbye.”
“Not so fast. Now, if you average in my points, assists, and free-throw percentage, it all balances out. Now that coach says it’s down to me and one other guy for that scholarship, so we are going. Come on. You’ll like it. It’s a good school.”
“And if it were in, say, Maine, I’d be excited. But it’s in Neptune, so I’m not excited. I’ll go, but just to skip school, which excites me.”
***
“Can I just ask one question?”
“Well, she said her name was Daphne.”
“No, no, no. How did you call me?”
“Acrobatically.” Cliff massaged his sore wrists. “I might have pulled a hamstring.”
“Okay, then. Next question.”
“Last night was the convention of the South Coast OB-GYN Society, the most-sued medical specialty,” Cliff explained. “So I make it a point to swing by every year and spread my card around.”
“And you met a hell of a lady doc?” Keith inquired with a grin.
“Hell of a lady, yes. Doctor? We met at the bar. I was extremely charming, and an hour later, I’m invited up to her room. Champagne is ordered. One thing leads to another…”
“Why don’t you think she was an OB-GYN?”
“Well, one, she appeared to know less about medicine than I do. And, two, she seems to have stolen my briefcase.”
“Anything important in it?”
“Important yesterday. Not important today. Still…”
***
Logan found himself wishing he were missing school today as well as the Hearst wannabes. Dick came up and punched him good naturedly.
“Dude, so we hanging this weekend?”
“Well, I was supposed to hang with Duncan, in which wild cavorting was to happen. I’m sure you would have been invited, but now he’s got some college thing.”
“Well, you and me then, bro.”
“What happened to Madison?”
“Bailed.” Dick shrugged. “According to her friend, she met someone more mature.”
“Where, at Lego Land?”
Dick scoffed.
“Whatever, man. Maturity’s like one of the two most over-rated things on the planet.”
“The other being?”
“Chicks.”
“Oh, so this worked out great for you.”
“Dude, why do you think I’m in such a good mood?” Logan laughed but he wasn’t so sure Dick was as carefree as he was making himself out to be. “Screw it. This weekend, you and me, partying like Ozzie.”
Logan slapped Dick’s hand in agreement and they continued down the hall to their next class.
***
Veronica headed down the hall toward Wallace. She wasn’t seeing the difference between high school and college so far. Dean wandered over and joined them. Veronica liked their tour guide, but he was a bit clueless.
“Hey, my pro-fros. Fun party, huh?”
“Not bad. I actually talked to a cute girl about Kierkegaard. Made me wish I knew something about Kierkegaard.” Wallace rubbed his hands together.
“Yeah. Isn’t that cool? I mean, in high school, you know, parties are just guys getting drunk and scamming on chicks. But here, you have intellectual conversations.” Veronica didn’t bother to not roll her eyes. “Like I saw you talking to that guy,” Dean addressed her. “What’d you talk about?”
“Jane Austen. But he dissed Pride and Prejudice, so I had to throw a beer on him.” Wallace tried to hide his grin. “I’m kind of colleged out.”
“See ya tomorrow then, guys.” Dean waved goodbye and Wallace and Veronica made their way to the exit.
Wallace bumped into someone and started to apologize.
“Duncan?”
“Hey, guys.” Duncan looked surprised to see them.
“You’re thinking about coming here?” Veronica asked in shock. “Doesn’t Celeste have her heart set on Oxford Law?”
“Hmmm, I think they like high GPAers there.”
“And the family dynasty falls,” she answered dramatically. Duncan smiled faintly.
“Where were you for the tour earlier?” Wallace asked.
“I had a court thing.”
“Don’t wanna let you out of there, do they?” he observed.
“Guess not. I was just gonna stay home and help Meg after, but she reminded me that we weren’t married and I had a life.”
“Not feeling bitter are we?” Veronica wanted to make sure. Anything wrong in her friend’s lives, she would help fix.
“No, life’s just tough right now.”
“Gotcha. Well, we’re off now. My taser finger is feeling twitchy and innocents might get hurt along with the pigs.”
Duncan chuckled.
“I’ll see you guys on the tour then.”
“Oh.” Veronica turned. “Watch out for Troy. He’s back.”
***
Cliff and Keith walked into Keith’s office at Mars Investigations and switched on the TV. They tried to find Cliff’s mystery woman. Cliff smiled at all the obvious Veronica changes in the office. Just her way of letting everyone know that she was officially detecting there.
“So what was in the briefcase that anyone might want to swipe?”
“Just case files. A drunken assault, a lewd conduct, a fraud, a divorce. Other than the files, it’s an address book, receipts, some keys, I believe a copy of Elle magazine, but I forget why. Oh, and the murder case files.”
“Logan Echolls? Which ones?”
“Everything. What wasn’t in the briefcase is in their storage locker, which…is one of the keys. But that case was dismissed, so it’s…”
“Probably nothing, but we should figure it out anyway. So, you want to file an official report.”
“Of what? Even I know that would be dangerous to my worthless lawyer certification.”
“True. But we should find this woman. Anything involving that case or the Echolls’ in general doesn’t happen for coincidence.”
“It’s Melrose Place in full Technicolor.”
“Who’s that in the elevator?” Keith pointed.
***
Dick wandered into his living room. He imagined the one less person quota he’d just fulfilled at Logan’s would be negated by Kendall’s presence shortly. He probably had the house to himself. It wasn’t exactly helpful in getting him to forget the Madison thing. Not that it truly mattered. She was just a way for him to get laid, but he had stuck with her longer than anyone ever before.
He settled on the couch to watch mindless television when he spotted Mac and Cassidy out by the pool. He grinned. Well, now his day was more interesting. They generally avoided the house because of him. Not today.
“Hey, Beav!” he called. Cassidy groaned inwardly upon hearing his brother’s voice.
“Yeah, Dick?”
“You two doing okay out here? I don’t need to chaperone, right?”
“Well, I guess that’s all you’re good for since you were dumped,” Cassidy observed quietly. Dick’s face immediately tightened.
“Let’s go,” Mac said from behind him. She did not want a repeat of the carnival. She took Cassidy’s hand and they went out to the car leaving Dick behind them.
“Almost makes me feel sorry for him,” Cassidy said.
“Dick? There’d be a first. Dick’s the original ‘don’t be sorry for him dude.’ ”
“He’s also my brother.”
***
Keith and Veronica washed the dishes together, fulfilling a daily ritual that both enjoyed and neither needed to voice their elation about.
Veronica filled her dad in on the events of the last few days and he told her about Cliff and the possible implications of Logan’s missing case files.
“What do you know about plastic explosives?” Veronica put away the last glass.
“Well, that’s what I like: a good segue.”
“I mean, where you get them. What they’re used for.”
“Well, if you’re licensed, legitimate uses include, uh, construction, mining, demolition.”
“Demolition?”
“Something on your mind, honey?”
“Report to be filed later,” she said. “Gotta get to school.” She kissed his cheek and ran out the door.
At lunch she sat down at her favorite table. Wallace joined her with Jane a few minutes later.
“Dear Mister Fennel, it is with great pleasure…”
“You got the scholarship?” Veronica gave him a high five and then Jane for good measure.
“Hearst College, baby, here I come. I am so over this place already.”
“Right there with ya. Oops, I see someone I gotta see. Congrats, college man!” Veronica grabbed her bag and ran over to where Weevil was sitting by himself. He looked odd without several thugs around him at all times.
“Hey there, normal boy.”
“How’s it hanging, V?”
She pondered it for a moment.
“Better if you do me a favor?”
“How did I know that was coming?”
“You’ve worked construction before?”
“Once.”
“Come with me to the Shark stadium?”
“What for?”
“I just want to ask some questions and I want someone who knows what everything means.”
Weevil gave her a disbelieving look.
“What? I’m writing an article.”
“Your life is one big article then.” Weevil threw away the rest of his lunch and followed her into the school.
They met after school and drove to the site. Veronica found a foreman to ask her questions to. She’d been wondering ever since she heard about the essay contest about the explosives and the possible connection to Woody.
“So, the contest winner gets to push that thing, you know, that thing like Bugs Bunny always pushes, and the stadium explodes?” Weevil smiled at her dumb blonde act.
“A plunger, right, but if we did our work right, the stadium implodes.”
“Cool. Using dynamite?”
“Some, but C4 mostly.”
“What’s C-4?” He showed her a box full.
“Not much to look at, actually, but it does the job.”
And it’s the exact same stuff I saw in the airplane hangar.
“It all looks legit, V.”
Veronica put away her pad and paper.
“Very legit. But it just means Woody had complete access to explosives.”
“We already knew that. Your dad cleared him.”
“I know. I just don’t feel right about it. I want to keep my eye on anyone who had the ability.”
Older Than the Origin
“You are no longer writing about the use of mythic archetype in Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.”
“All right,” someone, probably Dick, praised. Mrs. Murphy ignored the comment with aplomb that years of teaching had taught her.
“You are all instead entering our Mayor Woody Goodman’s county-wide essay contest on the subject of freedom.”
Nearly every eye turned to the back of the class where Logan was lounging. Veronica tried to resist the urge to turn, but couldn’t manage it. At least he was looking at her too.
“The winner gets a week’s internship as Woody’s apprentice, which means an opportunity to learn about civic affairs, a plum entry on your college applications, and - this might interest you, Dick - a chance to stand beside Woody Goodman on TV and push the plunger for the demolition of old Sharks Stadium.”
“Nuke the stadium? Now I totally wish I could write good.” The bell rang and everyone filed out of the classroom. Logan ran to catch up with Veronica.
“Hey.”
“Hi,” she said non-committedly.
“So, I saw you at the trial.”
“I always like to watch Cliff perform. He totally trounced the PCHers, huh?”
“Might have had something to do with the key witness withdrawing his testimony.”
“Funny how that happened.” The corners of Veronica’s mouth turned up a little. She knew he was trying to apologize to her.
“I can’t believe you got his wife to admit she was at home with him at the time of the murder.”
“Women are indispensable, Logan.”
“Well, thank you. It never would have happened without your PI habit. Don’t ever kick it.”
“I’m sure you’ll need it again.” She said it without malice and they walked comfortably down the hall together. Their last conversation about Kendall wasn’t forgotten, but it wasn’t hanging in the air between them anymore.
“So, you should be able to write quite an essay on freedom. How does it feel to have your case overturned?”
“Well, freedom feels liberating.”
“I’ve see you’ve got your title.”
“Hey, Veronica!” They turned to see Wallace catching up with them.
“I’ll leave so he doesn’t catch you associating with the riff raff,” Logan quipped. Veronica rolled her eyes and turned to Wallace.
“What you got?”
“The pamphlet? From the Hearst packet that we both got. In the envelope that we both got that you didn’t open.” Veronica pulled some of her hair over her mouth.
“Oh, that.”
“You know the average SAT score for a Hearst freshman? 1280.”
“And you got an 1140, so you’re doomed, and we can kiss this ‘Get to Know Hearst’ weekend goodbye.”
“Not so fast. Now, if you average in my points, assists, and free-throw percentage, it all balances out. Now that coach says it’s down to me and one other guy for that scholarship, so we are going. Come on. You’ll like it. It’s a good school.”
“And if it were in, say, Maine, I’d be excited. But it’s in Neptune, so I’m not excited. I’ll go, but just to skip school, which excites me.”
***
“Can I just ask one question?”
“Well, she said her name was Daphne.”
“No, no, no. How did you call me?”
“Acrobatically.” Cliff massaged his sore wrists. “I might have pulled a hamstring.”
“Okay, then. Next question.”
“Last night was the convention of the South Coast OB-GYN Society, the most-sued medical specialty,” Cliff explained. “So I make it a point to swing by every year and spread my card around.”
“And you met a hell of a lady doc?” Keith inquired with a grin.
“Hell of a lady, yes. Doctor? We met at the bar. I was extremely charming, and an hour later, I’m invited up to her room. Champagne is ordered. One thing leads to another…”
“Why don’t you think she was an OB-GYN?”
“Well, one, she appeared to know less about medicine than I do. And, two, she seems to have stolen my briefcase.”
“Anything important in it?”
“Important yesterday. Not important today. Still…”
***
Logan found himself wishing he were missing school today as well as the Hearst wannabes. Dick came up and punched him good naturedly.
“Dude, so we hanging this weekend?”
“Well, I was supposed to hang with Duncan, in which wild cavorting was to happen. I’m sure you would have been invited, but now he’s got some college thing.”
“Well, you and me then, bro.”
“What happened to Madison?”
“Bailed.” Dick shrugged. “According to her friend, she met someone more mature.”
“Where, at Lego Land?”
Dick scoffed.
“Whatever, man. Maturity’s like one of the two most over-rated things on the planet.”
“The other being?”
“Chicks.”
“Oh, so this worked out great for you.”
“Dude, why do you think I’m in such a good mood?” Logan laughed but he wasn’t so sure Dick was as carefree as he was making himself out to be. “Screw it. This weekend, you and me, partying like Ozzie.”
Logan slapped Dick’s hand in agreement and they continued down the hall to their next class.
***
Veronica headed down the hall toward Wallace. She wasn’t seeing the difference between high school and college so far. Dean wandered over and joined them. Veronica liked their tour guide, but he was a bit clueless.
“Hey, my pro-fros. Fun party, huh?”
“Not bad. I actually talked to a cute girl about Kierkegaard. Made me wish I knew something about Kierkegaard.” Wallace rubbed his hands together.
“Yeah. Isn’t that cool? I mean, in high school, you know, parties are just guys getting drunk and scamming on chicks. But here, you have intellectual conversations.” Veronica didn’t bother to not roll her eyes. “Like I saw you talking to that guy,” Dean addressed her. “What’d you talk about?”
“Jane Austen. But he dissed Pride and Prejudice, so I had to throw a beer on him.” Wallace tried to hide his grin. “I’m kind of colleged out.”
“See ya tomorrow then, guys.” Dean waved goodbye and Wallace and Veronica made their way to the exit.
Wallace bumped into someone and started to apologize.
“Duncan?”
“Hey, guys.” Duncan looked surprised to see them.
“You’re thinking about coming here?” Veronica asked in shock. “Doesn’t Celeste have her heart set on Oxford Law?”
“Hmmm, I think they like high GPAers there.”
“And the family dynasty falls,” she answered dramatically. Duncan smiled faintly.
“Where were you for the tour earlier?” Wallace asked.
“I had a court thing.”
“Don’t wanna let you out of there, do they?” he observed.
“Guess not. I was just gonna stay home and help Meg after, but she reminded me that we weren’t married and I had a life.”
“Not feeling bitter are we?” Veronica wanted to make sure. Anything wrong in her friend’s lives, she would help fix.
“No, life’s just tough right now.”
“Gotcha. Well, we’re off now. My taser finger is feeling twitchy and innocents might get hurt along with the pigs.”
Duncan chuckled.
“I’ll see you guys on the tour then.”
“Oh.” Veronica turned. “Watch out for Troy. He’s back.”
***
Cliff and Keith walked into Keith’s office at Mars Investigations and switched on the TV. They tried to find Cliff’s mystery woman. Cliff smiled at all the obvious Veronica changes in the office. Just her way of letting everyone know that she was officially detecting there.
“So what was in the briefcase that anyone might want to swipe?”
“Just case files. A drunken assault, a lewd conduct, a fraud, a divorce. Other than the files, it’s an address book, receipts, some keys, I believe a copy of Elle magazine, but I forget why. Oh, and the murder case files.”
“Logan Echolls? Which ones?”
“Everything. What wasn’t in the briefcase is in their storage locker, which…is one of the keys. But that case was dismissed, so it’s…”
“Probably nothing, but we should figure it out anyway. So, you want to file an official report.”
“Of what? Even I know that would be dangerous to my worthless lawyer certification.”
“True. But we should find this woman. Anything involving that case or the Echolls’ in general doesn’t happen for coincidence.”
“It’s Melrose Place in full Technicolor.”
“Who’s that in the elevator?” Keith pointed.
***
Dick wandered into his living room. He imagined the one less person quota he’d just fulfilled at Logan’s would be negated by Kendall’s presence shortly. He probably had the house to himself. It wasn’t exactly helpful in getting him to forget the Madison thing. Not that it truly mattered. She was just a way for him to get laid, but he had stuck with her longer than anyone ever before.
He settled on the couch to watch mindless television when he spotted Mac and Cassidy out by the pool. He grinned. Well, now his day was more interesting. They generally avoided the house because of him. Not today.
“Hey, Beav!” he called. Cassidy groaned inwardly upon hearing his brother’s voice.
“Yeah, Dick?”
“You two doing okay out here? I don’t need to chaperone, right?”
“Well, I guess that’s all you’re good for since you were dumped,” Cassidy observed quietly. Dick’s face immediately tightened.
“Let’s go,” Mac said from behind him. She did not want a repeat of the carnival. She took Cassidy’s hand and they went out to the car leaving Dick behind them.
“Almost makes me feel sorry for him,” Cassidy said.
“Dick? There’d be a first. Dick’s the original ‘don’t be sorry for him dude.’ ”
“He’s also my brother.”
***
Keith and Veronica washed the dishes together, fulfilling a daily ritual that both enjoyed and neither needed to voice their elation about.
Veronica filled her dad in on the events of the last few days and he told her about Cliff and the possible implications of Logan’s missing case files.
“What do you know about plastic explosives?” Veronica put away the last glass.
“Well, that’s what I like: a good segue.”
“I mean, where you get them. What they’re used for.”
“Well, if you’re licensed, legitimate uses include, uh, construction, mining, demolition.”
“Demolition?”
“Something on your mind, honey?”
“Report to be filed later,” she said. “Gotta get to school.” She kissed his cheek and ran out the door.
At lunch she sat down at her favorite table. Wallace joined her with Jane a few minutes later.
“Dear Mister Fennel, it is with great pleasure…”
“You got the scholarship?” Veronica gave him a high five and then Jane for good measure.
“Hearst College, baby, here I come. I am so over this place already.”
“Right there with ya. Oops, I see someone I gotta see. Congrats, college man!” Veronica grabbed her bag and ran over to where Weevil was sitting by himself. He looked odd without several thugs around him at all times.
“Hey there, normal boy.”
“How’s it hanging, V?”
She pondered it for a moment.
“Better if you do me a favor?”
“How did I know that was coming?”
“You’ve worked construction before?”
“Once.”
“Come with me to the Shark stadium?”
“What for?”
“I just want to ask some questions and I want someone who knows what everything means.”
Weevil gave her a disbelieving look.
“What? I’m writing an article.”
“Your life is one big article then.” Weevil threw away the rest of his lunch and followed her into the school.
They met after school and drove to the site. Veronica found a foreman to ask her questions to. She’d been wondering ever since she heard about the essay contest about the explosives and the possible connection to Woody.
“So, the contest winner gets to push that thing, you know, that thing like Bugs Bunny always pushes, and the stadium explodes?” Weevil smiled at her dumb blonde act.
“A plunger, right, but if we did our work right, the stadium implodes.”
“Cool. Using dynamite?”
“Some, but C4 mostly.”
“What’s C-4?” He showed her a box full.
“Not much to look at, actually, but it does the job.”
And it’s the exact same stuff I saw in the airplane hangar.
“It all looks legit, V.”
Veronica put away her pad and paper.
“Very legit. But it just means Woody had complete access to explosives.”
“We already knew that. Your dad cleared him.”
“I know. I just don’t feel right about it. I want to keep my eye on anyone who had the ability.”