Scene 6: Interrogating Logan

[obligatoryass]

Previously...

Logan's on his way to his class - film studies, which he signed up for kind of as a joke, but has actually been kinda cool - when he sees the guy in the suit staring at him.

It's creepy.

Logan shrugs it off, moves back toward class, but when he looks back, the guy is walking toward him. Walking fast, too. Logan stops, slouches down, and walks toward the suit.

"Yeah?"

Comments

[paladinsuitsyou]

Booth watches him for a long moment, then realizes he's not getting anymore information with this angle. So he moves on.

"But you always thought she faked her death, right? I mean, it took you awhile to believe she was really dead? Why's that?"

[obligatoryass]

Logan looks down. "She left this lighter - her father had it, in Korea. She carried it with her all the time - except not that day. At first, I thought it was like, a message to me, saying she was somewhere else, safe."

He's quiet again, still looking down.

"I - I don't think that anymore."

Even it she did leave it as a message, it's one that doesn't much matter anymore. She tried too hard to leave him behind, and he can't find himself caring much. For a long time, he'd hated that the lighter had been in the house the night the PCHers burned it down, but now, it just doesn't seem as important.

[paladinsuitsyou]

"What convinced you otherwise?" Booth asks. He knows some of the details of the search for Lynn, and he knows this part too - Keith Mars was very helpful about his daughter's investigation into Lynn's "death," - but he wants to hear what Logan says about it.

[obligatoryass]

"We - Veronica Mars and I - I hired her to help me find her, find out if she was alive, right, and - yeah. She found some kids who filmed the bridge that day, making some stupid movie about - God, I don't even know. But they caught her falling -"

He breaks off, not even sure how he feels about that anymore. It's all just such a fucking mess.

"They've probably still got it, if you want it. Veronica told 'em not to sell it, and she was kind of scary when she wanted to be. Especially to a bunch of freshmen."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"I'll need their names," Booth says, sensing the kid's discomfort and moving past it.

Logan's not as awful as he'd expected, given what the tabloids said - the bum fights, burning the community pool and...well, the general rich, young asshole reputation.

Not that he's more than a useless guy without direction, but he's clearly in some pain over his mother's death and disappearance, and since he's not a suspect, yet, Booth can respect that.

"And Mr. Echolls, I appreciate your time, but until we wrap this up, don't leave town, OK?"

[obligatoryass]

Logan surrenders the names, then makes a face. "I've heard that before," he says. "I've got no plans to disappear, OK?"

"Just...find who killed my mom, OK?"

She wasn't much of a mother, but she was the only one he had, and life wasn't any better when she was gone. Wasn't a lot worse, but it certainly didn't make it any better.

[paladinsuitsyou]

Something in the way he says it kind of breaks Booth's heart. It's so forlorn, so lost, as if Logan's still just a 5-year-old who misses his mother. (This is probably closer to the mark than Booth realizes.)

"I'll do what I can," Booth says, standing. As he turns, he pauses for a moment, not sure this is the right thing to do, then claps the kid's shoulder. "Hang in there, Logan."

[obligatoryass]

Logan looks up at the suit, startled. "Uh, yeah, thanks," he says, stumbling over his words a bit. "I'll do what I can."

[paladinsuitsyou]

"All right. I'll see you around."

Booth exits the cafeteria, putting his sunglasses on to protect himself from the bright Southern California sunlight.

Time to go poke around in the dead woman's life some more. And see if he can get his hands on that video.