I know it's been a while since I posted another part, but RL has gotten ahold of me and I haven't written quite as much of the end as I would like to have written by this point. Hopefully I can get some serious writing done this weekend. Anyway, here it is...
TOC * * * * *
**~Part 4~**
Jimmy walked over to Clark’s desk with a file in his hands.
“Hey CK, I’ve got that research you wanted on those murders.”
“Great, Jimmy, what’d you find out?”
“Well, the Potters were both experts in the field of cryogenics, top of their field. They were self employed; they’d work for a company under a limited contract, doing whatever research or project that the company needed and then move on to another company. They’ve worked at some pretty prestigious places, including Lex Corp.”
“Lex Corp?” Lois interrupted, overhearing the conversation.
“Yeah. They worked for Lex about six years ago, but they only worked there for a few weeks before they rescinded on the contract. When the media asked them about it they cited ‘a conflict of ethics’ as their reason for quitting. Apparently it was a big scandal and the media tried to dig up dirt on Lex Corp, but nobody could find anything.”
“Ironic, isn’t it? I vaguely remember that. I hadn’t been working here long and Perry had me covering sports, so I wasn’t involved with any of the investigation.”
Clark looked back at Jimmy. “Anything else?”
“Yeah,” Jimmy continued. “They were last employed by Gendell Technologies, and the contract still had about six months left on it when they were killed.”
“Hmm.” Clark thought through the new information for a moment. “What about Marshall Holm?”
Jimmy flipped a page in the file. “Marshall Holm was a neurobiologist, and get this: he also worked for Gendell Technologies, but he was a salary employee, not a contracted employee.”
Clark was intrigued. “Do you know what kind of projects they were working on, or if they knew each other?”
“Not yet, but I’m still digging.”
“Thanks, Jimmy.” Clark said as Jimmy headed back to his computer.
“You think Gendell Technologies may be involved somehow?” Lois asked her husband.
“I don’t know, but I’m not sure I want you interviewing Mr. Gendell. If you get to close—“
“I’ll be fine.” Lois insisted. “Besides, you can hang around and keep an eye on me if it would make you feel better.”
“What would make me feel better is if the murderer is caught before you get within a mile of anyone linked to Gendell Technologies.”
Lois’ phone rang before she could assure him, once again, that she would be fine.
“Lois Lane,” she answered.
“Ms. Lane? Eric Denzler here.”
“Mr. Denzler! So nice to hear from you.” Lois covered the mouthpiece and whispered to Clark. “It’s Gendell’s lawyer.”
“Ms. Lane, I have instructions for the conditions of the interview. You will come alone. You will bring no cameras or recording devises. You will be outside of the Daily Planet in two minutes. Any attempt—”
Lois wasn’t sure she’d heard him right. “Two minutes?”
“Yes Ms. Lane. I’m outside the Daily Planet now. Any attempt to violate any of the conditions I have set forth will result in the cancellation of the interview. Do you understand these conditions, Ms. Lane?”
“Yes.”
“And do you agree to all of them?”
“Yes.”
“Good. There is a black stretch limousine waiting for you outside. You have one and a half minutes left, or the interview will be terminated.”
“I’ll be right down.” Lois hung up the phone without waiting for Denzler’s goodbye and grabbed her coat while she ran toward the elevator.
“Lois, you’re going now? Where are you going? What happened to me tagging along?” Clark was startled, scared, and worried at Lois’ sudden departure from the news room. “Lois?”
Lois stopped at the elevator doors and pushed the button impatiently. “He said the interview is canceled unless I come alone. I’m sorry, Clark, but I’ve got to go. There’s a limo picking me up outside in one minute.”
“I’ll be nearby.”
“Clark, I’ll be fine.”
“I’ll keep my distance; I just want to keep an eye on the situation, okay?”
“Fine, but stay up here until we leave the front of the building, okay? I don’t want Denzler or Gendell to suspect that you’re around.” The elevator doors slid open at last. “Gotta go. Wish me luck.” She kissed him quickly on the lips and rushed into the elevator.
* * * * *
Lois walked out the revolving doors of the Daily Planet lobby and noticed a long black limo about half a block up the street. She walked over to the limousine, and seeing that the driver didn’t move to open the door for her, she boldly opened the rear door and stepped inside. The cabin was empty. Lois began to wonder if she was in the right place, until the tinted glass between her and the driver lowered and the driver turned to look at her.
“Good afternoon, Ms. Lane. We’ll be arriving at our destination in approximately two minutes.”
Lois nodded and the partition rose again. Lois recognized the voice of the driver as the same person who identified himself as Eric Denzler over the phone. Wouldn’t Mr. Denzler be able to hire a driver? Lois pushed the thought out of her head as the engine started and the limo rolled forward slowly.
The limo never went faster than 10 miles an hour as it rounded the nearest corner into an alley behind the Daily Planet. Denzler shut off the engine, stepped out of the limo and opened the back door, indicating that Lois should step outside.
Lois tentatively removed herself from the limo and Denzler shut the door behind her. He had a scanning device in his hand.
“Please stand with your feet shoulder width apart and hold your arms away from your sides.”
Lois complied and Denzler used the devise to scan her body. As he did so Lois’ curiosity got the better of her. “Are we meeting Mr. Gendell somewhere? Or are we holding the interview here in the alley?”
Denzler seemed satisfied with the results of the scan. “We won’t be meeting with Mr. Gendell today Ms. Lane.”
“What?! Then why am I here? You said on the phone that Mr. Gendell had agreed to this interview.”
“Your interview this afternoon is with me. Mr. Gendell agreed to my interviewing you. If you do well in this interview, I will consider granting you an interview with Mr. Gendell sometime in the near future.”
Lois said nothing, knowing that there was nothing she could say to argue with him.
Denzler opened the rear door to the limo again. “You may step back into the limousine now.”
Lois sighed and stepped back into the limo. Denzler followed her into the back and sat opposite her, rather than situating himself in the driver’s seat.
With no notes whatsoever, Denzler began his interrogation. “Please answer yes or no to the following questions. Are you now or have you ever been employed by the United States federal government, or by any state or local government?”
“No.”
“Are you now or have you ever been employed by the government of any foreign nation?”
“No.”
“Are you now or have you ever been employed by Gendell Technologies or any of its subsidiaries?”
“No.”
“Are you now or have you ever been aquatinted with anyone who is now or has ever been employed by Gendell Technologies or any of its subsidiaries?”
“Yes.”
“Please state the names of the acquaintances and how long you have known them.”
“Earl and Juliana Gregg, one day. Eric Denzler, ten minutes.”
“Cute. Have you ever been arrested for any crime, be it felony or misdemeanor?”
“No.”
“Have you been vaccinated for the following diseases: Polio?”
“Yes.”
“Hepatitis A?”
“Yes.”
“Hepatitis B?”
“Yes.”
“Hepatitis C?”
“Yes.”
“Smallpox?”
“Yes.”
“Measles?”
“Yes.”
“Mumps?”
“Yes.”
“MMR?”
“Yes.”
“Tetanus?”
“Yes.”
“Is anyone in your life familiar with the use of plastics, AK-47s. Strick-9, or similar explosives, weapons or poisons?”
“Only my mother.”
Denzler cleared his throat and gave her a look of warning before continuing his interrogation. “Do you swear to keep every detail of your meeting with Mr. Gendell a secret from anyone you know, have known, or may know in the future, except those details which Mr. Gendell and I approve for printing?
Lois hesitated. She didn’t like having to swear to keep anything from Clark, but if she didn’t, Denzler may not grant her the interview. “Y—“ She opened her mouth to start, but she knew she shouldn’t lie. Oh, what the heck? There wouldn’t be much that wouldn’t be printed and Gendell and Denzler would never know if she told Clark anything. “Yes,” she finally answered.
Denzler frowned. “Ms. Lane, it is imperative that the details of your meeting with Mr. Gendell be kept in absolute confidence. If you cannot agree to this provision, I will not grant you the interview.”
“Yes, Mr. Denzler,” Lois answered with more resolve. “I understand completely. I will take the information to my grave.”
“Good. I will confer with Mr. Gendell and then call you with the final answer, and the details of the interview if you are granted the privilege.”
Denzler exited the limo and held the door open for Lois to do the same. She stepped out into the alley and Denzler closed the door behind her and then, without so much as a word, he got back into the driver’s seat and left Lois alone beside the dumpster behind the Daily Planet.
* * * * *
“Well, that was unnervingly personal.” Lois shed her jacket and hung it on the back of her desk chair.
“That bad, huh?” Clark asked.
Lois sighed. “I think it went okay, but you wouldn’t believe some of the questions he asked me! Everything from ‘have you worked for a foreign government?’ to ‘have you had your measles shot?’ It was a little disturbing.”
“Well, here’s some good news that oughta cheer you up. While you were gone Jimmy found out that Marshall Holm worked with Malachi and Allyson Potter on something called Project Regenerate. It dealt with the effects of freezing on the brain, but that’s about all the information he could get on the project. Apparently Gendell Technologies is being very tight lipped about their findings.”
“So they did know each other?”
“Yep. It looks like they worked pretty closely together.”
“So somebody else they’ve been working with doesn’t trust them to keep their mouths shut about the project.”
“That’s my guess.”
“Well, I say we head down to Gendell Technologies and have a look around.”
“You read my mind.”
* * * * *
tbc...
