Cheat, by Marcella Polman. (R)

[thady.livejournal.com]

Fandom: DUE SOUTH
Pairing: Vecchio/Fraser; Kowalski/Fraser; Vecchio/Stella
Author on LJ: marcellapolman
Author Website: none, as far as I know.

Why this must be read:

I haven't seen anything by marcellapolman recced here before, and I'm glad I'm able to do so. This story introduced me to her as an author and made me seek out all of her other stories.

Vecchio returns from Vegas, and not all is well. This is an very interesting take on Vecchio's relationship with Stella. A bit disturbing and a bit dark, but still very believable and in character. I love his voice here.

1. Time to get my life back

“Ray!”

He’s obviously very pleased to see me. It seems to have slipped his mind completely that he’s a cop.

I would have been glad to see him too, if the current situation wasn’t so dangerous, if the idea of seeing him again hadn’t got me sick every single time out of the zillion I thought about it in the past eighteen months, and if he hadn’t brought company. Blond haired, blue-eyed company. Possessive, envious looking company. Company that I do not like and that doesn’t like me right back. With a vengeance.

I don’t have the time to think about it any further. It’s not supposed to bother me. I am Armando Languistini from the Iguana family, South West branch, and I came here to meet Holloway Muldoon to arrange for some lucrative business.

It was a very carefully arranged meet. It took me eighteen months and a change of identity to plan it. Not that I didn’t welcome the gig. Losing myself seemed the thing I needed most, eighteen months ago. Not being there to pick up Fraser when he came back from his vacation up North—completely ceasing to be Ray Vecchio—seemed my ticket out of trouble. I grabbed it with both hands and fled.

Cheat