Hey everyone, after a long time of writing this fic, not because it's long or anything, but because I was really really slack, it's finally finished. Feedback would be really appreciated, and I'd like to thank everyone who has given me feedback so far, especially Leese, who always never fails to!! Okay, here is part one, i hope you enjoy!! Keeping the truth Pt. 1 Author: Louise Email: lj_brown2@yahoo.com Disclaimer: I do not own stingers or have anything to do with the show The factory~ "Mackenzie," Mac said into her phone as she picked it up. "Dad, hi… yeah it is a surprise…is everything alright? What's happened? She what? No, I haven't heard anything…she wouldn't know where to find me… yeah, I'll let you know once I've heard from her…do you know why she ran away? How did she find that out? I guess she was bound to, sooner or later…thanks for calling Dad…bye." "Mac, H.Q. just rang to say someone turned up looking for you." "Did they say who?" "No, they just said a young girl." "Right, thanks Ange." Mac picked up her car keys and rushed out of the office. "Where's she going?" Asked Pete as he noticed Mac leaving in a hurry. Angie shrugged, "I don't know, but H.Q. rang to say there was someone looking for her." "An informant?" Angie shook her head, "I don't know. Bloody hell, you have to know everything about what Mac is up to. It's a wonder you haven't given me the third degree about who Mac's seeing." "Mac's seeing someone?" "For once worry about your own life before prying into others!" Headquarters~ Mac walked up to the front counter and gave the constable her name. The constable pointed towards a teenage girl sitting in a plastic chair looking at a magazine. Mac walked over to her. "Hello Lauren." Mac said as she stood in front of the girl. The girl looked up smiling, "Ellen, hi. You don't mind that I'm here do you? It's just that mum and dad have gone away and wanted me to stay with someone they could trust." "I'm here less than five minutes and already you're lying…Dad called, told me you had run away." Lauren shook her head, "haven't you heard? Dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, so he's most likely forgotten the real reason I'm here." "Lauren, stop it," Mac yelled, slightly annoyed. "Sorry, but I must take after my mother with my lying!" Lauren stood, staring deeply into Mac's eyes before picking up her bag. "So, where are you taking me?" "You'll have to come back to my work, so I can make sure you don't go anywhere!" The factory~ Pete watched Mac drive in and noticed there was someone accompanying her. "Any messages," Mac asked as she headed towards her office. "No," replied Pete. "She's a bit young to be in the police force isn't she?" Pete asked referring to Lauren. "Everyone this is my little sister Lauren. Lauren this is Pete, Angie and Oscar." Lauren scoffed, "and you have the gall to call me a liar!" Pete, Angie and Oscar raised their eyebrows in confusion while they watched Lauren go back out to where Mac's car was. "Why don't you tell me why you're really here?" "You should know, I'm sure dad would have told you. Oh, hang on, I mean Grandpa!" She yelled, allowing the others to hear the last part. Mac nodded, "yeah, he did tell me. I take it you're pretty angry with me." "I don't know what I am. First, I find out that I am adopted. Then I discover that the woman who has been posing as my big sister is really my mother, and that the people I always thought of as my parents are my grandparents…but then again, they're not my grandparents are they, because you were also adopted. So forget about me being a liar, because my whole life is a god damn lie!" "Lauren, I know you think it was wrong for me to lie to you like that but I had to. I had no choice!" Lauren rolled her eyes, "no choice? You still could have been honest with me right from the start." "No I couldn't. When the Callum's adopted you, I had to sign an agreement preventing me from telling you the truth about who I really was in relation to you." "How would they have found out if you told me?" "By your reaction." Mac paused as she watched Lauren trying to understand Mac's actions. "How did you find out anyway?" Lauren smiled as she looked back at Mac, "I just got suspicious with certain things that were said and the way mum and dad…uh, the Callum's, reacted to those things." "Like what?" "People saying how similar I looked like you, even after I had found out I was adopted. At one point, I looked at mum…or nan, or, whatever… and she hated whenever someone said that." Mac gave a slight laugh, "I don't know how that would give you any indication that I was your mother!" "It got me started on the right track though…but then I found this in your old room," Lauren pulled out a diary. "Finally I had all my answers in this book. How you were my mother, you and my dad were together through most of high school and how you were still fortunate enough to be a part of my life and watch me grow." Tears stung Mac's eyes as she remembered everything Lauren was relaying back to her and she couldn't help but hug her daughter. Pete watched on as he realised something was definitely going on, and there was no way Lauren was Mac's sister, going by what he had heard from their conversation. It just didn't add up. He never knew Mac had a sister. He knew about Michael, but then again, she didn't tell him until only a couple of years ago. Pete also knew, through Danni, that Mac was adopted, and the fact that Lauren looked so much like Mac seemed even more suspicious, unless they had the same parents. "Yeah right!" Pete scoffed. Angie looked at him strangely, "what was that?" "Ah, nothing…just thinking out loud," he replied, watching as Mac and Lauren made their way back to the main area. "Is everything alright?" He asked Mac referring to her tear stained face. Mac nodded, "everything is just fine!" She disappeared into her office for a few moments but soon reappeared, files in hand. "Josh Warner, CEO of Erskine Lodge at Mt. Buller, has allegedly been embezzling money from the company, according to suspicions raised by the owner of the lodge, David Bruce." Mac stated as she introduced their latest case. "What brought about the suspicions?" Asked Angie. "Mr. Bruce's accountant found the books didn't add up with what was in the company account." "Why is Warner the prime suspect?" "He is the only employee who has access to the safe and every morning banks the money himself. The amount deposited each day is roughly between $500 and $1000 less than what there really should be." Pete looked up confused, "shouldn't that be enough for fraud to go on?" "No, unfortunately Warner hasn't deposited the money into his account. It hasn't been traced. For all we know, he could have either an offshore account or he's hidden the money." Angie looked up smiling, "does this mean we're going to the snow?" "Yes Angie, we're going to the snow," Mac replied matching Angie's smile. "Angie, you've been employed as Warner's new secretary, Cassie Mitchell, Pete and I will be backing up and Oscar, you're on surveillance. Any questions?" They all shook their heads as they went their separate ways to prepare for the case. Pete followed Mac into her office, "I've got one!" "How did I know I wouldn't get away without getting a question from you?" Pete shrugged as he sat down. "What are you going to do about your visitor?" "Ah, she's coming." "She can't!" "Why not?" "Because it is a case…and it would look a little suss if your sister came with us on a job where we are a married couple." Mac looked away from Pete's eyes, "she's covering as our daughter." "Come off it Mac, we don't look old enough to have a…how old is she?" "Fifteen." "A fifteen year old daughter," Pete finished off. Mac scoffed, "it does happen." "It does happen…or it has happened?" Pete asked Mac bravely. Mac looked up at Pete, his eyes full of questions wanting answers. "What makes you think that?" She asked quietly. "I asked the question first." "Don't be so childish." "Just answer the question!" Mac sat down, placing her head in her hands, "You're right, it has happened. Lauren is not my sister, she's my daughter." "You are so hypocritical, you know that?" "What?" "The way you reacted when I told you Danni's baby was mine." Mac shook her head standing and walking over to face Pete. "I had Lauren long before I met you, and I didn't get pregnant by a fellow colleague of ours!" Angie and Oscar looked at one another before looking at Lauren, their eyes questioning Lauren as they easily overhead Mac's conversation with Pete. "Are those two on together?" Lauren asked in order to avoid awkward questions from Oscar and Angie. "No, why?" "It's just that Pete seems to care an awful lot about Ellen, like wanting to know everything, and by what she just said, she seems to be pretty hurt by something Pete did." Angie rolled her eyes, "Pete's always had a problem of wanting to know everything about Mac." "Sounds like he really cares for her…by the way, why does everyone call her Mac?" "It's short for her last name – Mac, Mackenzie." Replied Angie. "Right…" Lauren said as she watched Pete hurry out of Mac's office, slamming the door behind him. Mac's house~ "Do you live with someone?" Lauren asked as she noticed the car already parked in the driveway. "Yeah…do you have a problem with that?" Mac asked concerned. Lauren shook her head in reply, "would he have a problem with me?" "He already knows." Lauren could only recall Mac telling one guy about her. "Is it Pete?" She asked excitedly. "No. Why do you keep asking me questions about Pete?" "Just that you look like the perfect couple and there seems to be chemistry there!" Mac rolled her eyes. "Well we aren't…his name is Craig," she said changing the subject. "What does Craig do?" "He's a lawyer." "Mmm, money," Lauren said with a grin, which Mac took no notice of. "Is that you Ellen?" A deep voice asked as soon as Lauren and Mac entered the house. "Yes," Mac replied, throwing her bag and keys on the sofa before kissing Craig deeply. Craig looked up, "you must be Lauren, pleasure to meet you." "Yeah, hi," she replied faintly. Definitely not as good as Pete, she thought to herself. Mac could sense that Lauren didn't think much of Craig, especially after the questions she had been asking about Pete. "I might just show Lauren her room," Mac said to Craig as he went back to the kitchen. "No worries." Mac closed the bedroom door so she and Lauren could talk quietly. "Okay Lauren, why don't you like Craig?" Lauren laughed nervously, "what makes you think I don't like him?" "The look on your face when you saw him, the way you turned your nose up – that was a dead giveaway and you were hardly polite when you spoke to him." "I barely said two words," Lauren argued back. "Exactly! You could have said more." "I'm a shy person." Mac rolled her eyes, "you've never been shy!" "I am now." "So, I don't pass the standards for step fathering?" Craig asked sarcastically when Mac came back down stairs. "No, it's not that…she's just had a lot to deal with today. I think it's a bit overwhelming for her," Mac covered as Craig gave her a much needed hug. "Have you rung your parents to let them know?" "No, not yet…I have a case to go on tomorrow that will take a few days, so I'll do it after that." "What are you doing with Lauren? I'd look after her, it's just that I'm meeting with a client out of town tomorrow and don't know how long I'll be." Mac shook her head, "she's coming with me…I know I shouldn't be taking her, but I think spending time with her at the moment is really important." "Where are you working?" "You know I can't tell you that," Mac said as she playfully hit Craig on the shoulder. "You know you can trust me," Craig said before kissing Mac on her neck. The factory~ "How long does it take to get to Mt. Buller," Lauren asked Mac as she was gathering all the equipment they would need for the sting. Mac shrugged, "ah, a couple of hours, I think." "Can I call you mum?" Lauren asked suddenly. "Yeah, you have to because you're covering as our daughter…and don't forget to call Pete dad." But Mac didn't realise what Lauren was really asking. "No…I mean, can I call you mum, instead of Ellen? But, if you feel uncomfortable, I won't." Mac smiled, "that's fine. It will take some getting used to, by both of us, but yeah, I'd like that." Erskine Lodge~ Pete grabbed Mac's hand as they approached the reception desk, "booking for Talbot." "Just a moment please," replied the receptionist before looking at the computer screen in front of her. "Ah, yes, here it is…cabin number 2," she read, pointing outside to where the cabins were situated. "Thankyou," said Pete, picking up their bags once again and heading in that direction. Mac and Pete's cabin~ Pete sat himself on the sofa in front of the fireplace, immediately enjoying the comforting warmth it was giving him. "I'm getting a drink, does anyone else want one?" Lauren asked moving towards the kitchen. "I will…is there anything in that mini bar?" "I'll check…mum, do you want a drink?" Mac thought for a moment, "ah, no thanks I'm right." "Go on, it'll warm you up!" "Yeah okay," Mac sighed. Lauren smiled but it wasn't visible to Pete or Mac, "great!" "Here you go," said Lauren as she handed the drinks to Mac and Pete. Mac took a sip, but pulled a funny face after swallowing. "How much bourbon did you put in that?" "The standard amount. I think it's because the coke is only home brand stuff." Pete took a drink from his glass, "whoa, that is potent!" "Mum, is it alright if I go for a wander around?" "Yeah, but don't be too long, okay." "I won't," replied Lauren raising her eyebrows as though she had a hidden agenda. As Lauren got closer to the main building, she looked closely at the cars parked outside, one looking very familiar, but she couldn't place where she had seen it or whose car it was. Maybe one of the workers at the factory, she thought to herself. Office area~ Lauren looked around for Angie but couldn't see her around and presumed Angie had finished for the day. Walking past the office of the CEO, Josh Warner, Lauren thought she could hear a very familiar voice. "How much money do you want me to wire?" "There's about 80k in the safe at the moment, so why not make this our last and take all of it!" Replied the unfamiliar voice, probably Warner's. Lauren grabbed a chair and stood on it to look through the small window above the door. "You'll have to be out of here first thing." "I know. I don't know why you're stressing so much, there's nothing to connect you to this!" "I know, but if I do get found out, I can kiss my career goodbye!" Holy shit, thought Lauren as she watched and heard the conversation taking place, before losing her balance and crashing to the floor. "What the hell was that?"