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Witness - Matchmaker Style
Rated PG-13
* * denotes emphasis
< > denotes thoughts
As always comments are welcome. (ken.janney@kjanney.com)
Previously
Lois gasped, "You told them that Superman was married?"
"Well, not exactly. I told them I couldn't have a girlfriend, which is true. I just didn't explain the why."
Now that they were on the other side of the street when they hailed a cab, they were headed in the right direction.
A short time later they were dropped off and they headed in. When they entered Henderson was still there heading up the investigation. There were several other more junior detectives as well as the forensics team.
Henderson didn't notice them immediately and Lois took Clark over to show him some of the pictures of the Elimont Center. She had taken a picture off the wall for a closer look. By happenstance she had chosen the one with Winninger and ‘Frank Sinatra.' She asked, "Would you believe that this isn't really Frank Sinatra?"
Clark took a close look and used his enhanced vision, "Hmmmm, I can see faint traces of the edges of moulage pieces. Make-up."
"Winninger called this guy, Sebastian Finn, Mr. Make-up. Sure looks real, doesn't he?""
Just then, Henderson spotted them and asked, "Did I mention that you're not to touch anything, Lois?"
Quickly turning around and deftly hiding the picture behind her back as she did, Lois in a very innocent tone said, "Moi?"
One of the other detectives approached Henderson and called him to the door. Once his back was turned, Lois returned the photo to its place on the wall. Once that was done, she and Clark turned to follow Henderson. When they caught up with him, Henderson was speaking with a man who was slight of build, balding with a fringe of graying hair, glasses and wearing a bow tie. Lois immediately recognized him as the murder and shouted out, "That's him!"
Startled by her outburst, Clark asked, "Who? What?"
Not to be deterred, Lois strode to the door and in a very agitated tone said, "This is the killer, Inspector! Don't let him go!"
The balding individual was startled and said, "What?"
Lois reiterated, "The man that killed Winninger!" Her tone became smug as she said, "I saw you! I was in the powder room."
Henderson interrupted Lois's tirade, "Lois, this is Dr. Hubert, Dr. Winninger's associate."
Lois stood her ground, strong in her conviction, "I don't care who he is. I saw him kill Dr. Winninger this morning."
Dr. Hubert replied, "I was in Washington, D. C. this morning."
Henderson asked the obvious question, "Did anybody see you there? Any witnesses?""
It was Dr. Hubert's turn to be smug as he said, "The thirty or forty men and women who attended the National Science Council meeting ... and heard my presentation. Including the Vice President of the United States."
Henderson turned and asked, "I'd call that an alibi, wouldn't you, Lois?"
And now:
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Chapter 05
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
There was a non-descript individual in a darkened room, lit only by the lights surrounding a large make-up mirror. A pair of hands removed a wig which gave the appearance of a balding individual with a fringe of graying hair. After removing the rest of the makeup he started preparing another disguise. Eventually, his hands were applying spirit gum to a false nose. Seconds later the hands picked up a wig of unkempt sandy blond hair. Eventually they picked up a brush and used it to apply a power base and then color.
Once the various steps had been completed the face staring out of the mirror looked nothing like Dr. Hubert.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
That evening, as Lois and Clark, both of them wearing workout gear, were returning to the apartment from a karate class they were discussing the day's events. “You know, you are picking karate up pretty quickly.”
“I think that’s because of how fast my super brain works. I see the moves like in slow motion and that makes it easy to copy. My eidetic memory keeps everything in order.”
Lois was still lamenting over the mistake with Dr. Hubert, "I don’t have an eidetic memory, but I know what I saw in Winninger’s apartment. How could I have made such a mistake? I could swear on a stack of Bibles that it was him that I saw. I mean, it isn't like he's Mr. Common Man or Joe SixPack. He doesn't look like just anybody and It would be impossible to mistake someone else for him."
Clark was trying to mollify her when he said, "So, you made a mistake. It happens."
Lois was adamant, "Look, I didn't make a mistake. He looked just like him." After a second, she said, "I gave Jimmy a call afterward and asked him to track down Dr. Hubert. When I checked back with him he told me that Hubert had disappeared, without a trace. That smells fishy to me."
Knowing that Lois frequently made these leaps of logic that often resulted in solving problems, Clark said, "Okay, let's start back at the beginning. First, motive. Why would someone want to kill Winninger?"
"Winninger said he wanted, no needed, to stop Barbara Trevino from becoming the head of the Rain Forest Consortium. That could be motive."
"Okay, then why did he go into the bathroom to clean up? Most killers would be more worried about getting away."
Lois thought for a second, "Who knows? Maybe he wanted to wash the blood off, or maybe he was just compulsive about germs, like Howard Hughes."
As they casually strolled down the street talking a motorized wheelchair passed them and pulled to a halt a short distance away.
They had reached the steps to the apartment house. Lois stopped Clark and pulled him around to face her. "That was sweet of you this afternoon. I mean, you really thought that clumsy kid was trying to kill me and you saved me from the truck. Thank you. Do you still think that my life could be in danger?"
Clark was thoughtful before he replied, "Now more than ever. From what you just said, what if the killer grabbed Hubert and now knows that you were there and saw him. He won't want to take a chance that you saw something and can identify him."
Out in the street a poorly maintained motorcycle drove past and as it did it emitted quantities of smoke and a couple of loud backfires.
The noise hurt Clark's ears and he turned his head to see what was causing the noise. As he did, he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. The hands of the man in the wheelchair were coming out from under the blanket that covered his lap. Clark caught the glint of metal. He shouted, "Lois, get down," and dove for her. He pushed her down on the steps and then turned to face the gunman just as he started blasting away. He got off a few shots before Clark managed to come up with a means of stopping him. His hands were invisible, they were moving so fast, snagging the slugs out of the air that he wasn't too worried about that being seen. He used his superbreath to make the wheelchair spin. It would simply appear as though the wheelchair had gone out of control and started moving of its own accord. As soon as the wheelchair started to spin, Clark gave his attention to Lois.
He pulled her into his arms and asked, "Lois, are you okay?"
She was shaken up by the rough handling and finally said, "Yeah, what was that all about?"
Clark looked over his shoulder at the still spinning wheelchair, but the former occupant was now missing. He looked up and down the street, but he was nowhere to be seen. "Someone just tried to kill you."
"Oh, come on, Clark. That was a motorcycle backfiring."
He brought his hands up and opened them to display the slugs he had caught.
Lois was shocked, "Oh, my. Someone really did try to kill me. I'm glad my husband was there to protect me. Thank you. Who was it?"
"The guy in the wheelchair."
"But he didn't look anything like Dr. Hubert."
"Come on, let's get off the street and into the apartment. You're too exposed out here."
Once they were in the apartment, Clark said, "Well, it sure looks like they know that you were there and can possibly identify the killer, why else would they now be trying to kill you?"
"But I barely got a glimpse of him and I obviously don't know his real appearance. The man I
thought did it, didn't. I thought it was Dr. Hubert."
"Obviously the killer doesn't know that."
"It sure looks like you saved my life twice today. First from an accident and now from a killer."
After putting away their things and changing into casual clothes they started preparing dinner. Clark was starting to teach Lois how to cook. They had started this while they were in his old apartment and were continuing it here in Lois’s kitchen which was larger than his. He was starting her off with the easy items. Tonight she was preparing a chopped salad while he prepared a main course of lamb chops with button mushrooms and a side dish of sweet corn. He was brazing the chops in a white wine sauce while they talked. Clark appreciated how Lois was dressed. Lois had her hair pulled back in a pony tail and she was wearing one of Clark's shirts which showed off her long lovely legs.
"You know, I bet that in the old days, before we were married, you would have made sure you were with me and you would have saved me the same way, but you would still be hiding your secret. You'd be hovering around in the dark keeping a watch over me." She walked over and put her arms around him and said, "I like it this way much better. You don't have to hide from me or keep watch from the dark." She gave him a wicked little grin as she finished, "Now you can protect me in the comfort of our bed."
"I don't know about this. The guy I saw didn't look like Dr. Hubert at all. I got a good look at him. He wasn't balding and he wasn't wearing glasses. It's pretty obvious that the wheelchair was just a prop because he was able to escape without it. I don't think he had planned to shoot just then. That motorcycle backfiring forced his hand. He figured that the noise it was making would cover his shots. It threw off his timing and caused me to spot his movement."
"I'm just glad you did. If I'd been by myself, I'd probably be pushing up daises about now."
"I just can't understand why there are so many killers out there suddenly. It's like there's a gang involved. You spotted one and now another is trying to kill you."
“But the one I saw looked just like Dr. Hubert. What are the chances of that?"
"I'd say that the chances aren't that good. This guy looked like Joe Sixpack."
Lois finished cutting up the salad and started tossing the lettuce with the other vegetables as they spoke. "How does all of this relate to enhanced sexual potency in the male? That's what Doctor Winninger was talking about and Barbara Trevino. What's the connection?"
"Got me."
"Wait a minute. He looked like a friend of Doctor Winninger, could that be so that he could get close to him? This guy looked like Joe Sixpack in a wheelchair, so that he could get close without raising suspicion."
Clark was finishing up on the dinner and Lois was setting the table. "What do you have on for tonight?"
"After dinner I have to attend a neighborhood watch meeting, but I'm thinking about cancelling. I don't feel comfortable leaving you here alone."
"Look, he's already tried and failed tonight. I'll keep the door locked and only open it for you. I'll be okay."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
After dinner, Clark, dressed in his working clothes headed for the door. "You're going to lock up when I leave, aren't you?"
Lois smiled at his concern and said, "I promise."
As he was unlocking the door he said, "Okay. I'll keep this as short as I can."
As she was closing the door she reassured him, "Really, I'll be fine until you get back."
He stood in the hallway and listened until he heard the final lock click into place and then he strode down the hall and out of the building. In a nearby alley he spun into Superman and took off to fly to the meeting.
While Clark was away, Lois spent some time lazing in bed watching an old ‘B' movie. She had considered catching up on "The Ivory Tower," but since her marriage, her interest in that show had waned. Eventually she dozed off.
She was startled awake by hands on her shoulder. Her eyes snapped open and she started to scream, but the feel of lips placing a gentle kiss on her forehead stopped her. She stretched and reached for her husband who willingly closed the distance and planted a kiss on her waiting lips.
Reaching for the remote control, she turned off the TV. She looked at herself and realized that she wasn't exactly dressed in a way to attract her husband, in fact she was surprised that he wasn't running from the room screaming. She had changed into a pair of loose shorts and one of his old T-shirts before lying down to watch TV. Lois said, "Not very alluring," she asked, "Would you prefer something a little … sexier?"
He gave her a leer and said, "No matter what you wear, you are always sexy to me."
Sitting up, Lois grasped the hem of the shirt and with a swift move pulled it off over her head. She asked, "Is that better?"
Clark closed the distance and started kissing her. He started at her lips and then moved to her jaw, trailing kisses down the side of her neck. She tilted her head to the other side to allow him better access. He was murmuring endearments between kisses. His lips moved across her shoulder and down her chest to her breast. Leaning back she arched her chest up to him and he followed her down.
He continued to pleasure her breasts while she wiggled out of her shorts and panties. Once she was nude she pulled his lips from her breast to her own lips and after a brief kiss she asked, "Don't you think you're over dressed?"
Seconds later he was undressed and lying next to her. With a growl of desire she climbed on top of him and started rubbing her breasts over his chest. She said, "They say that time away from each other increases desire. You've been gone a couple of hours and I'm this horny. Just imagine if you were gone all day." As her breathing became more and more labored and his came quicker she began to pant and gasp his name. Her pace quickened as she felt her back muscles tighten.
She was groaning and her head was shaking from side to side as she gasped, "Close. So close. Just a little more."
Lois's body was almost rigid as she shuddered with the effects and then suddenly she went limp and collapsed onto his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. Her head was on his shoulder and she started kissing his neck where it joined his shoulder.
After a time he rolled them to the side. They lay there arms and legs entwined. Clark pulled the covers up and they fell asleep in each other's arms.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
In the building there was an early riser. This individual had on a news station. The announcement of a high-rise fire in Chicago. Clark slipped out of bed without disturbing Lois and dressed in sweats and sneakers. After leaving a note for Lois, he hastened out of the building, making sure to lock the locks as he exited. He left the building at a jog simply looking like someone going out for an early morning run. He ducked into an alley and seconds later a red and blue streak was on its way to Chicago.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
A short time after Clark left Perry arrived at the Planet. As he stepped out of the elevator onto the newsroom floor, he realized that it was very early and the day staff had yet to arrive so things were relatively quiet. As he was crossing to his office he saw Jimmy headed in his direction. Addressing him he said, "Well, you're in awfully early."
Jimmy smiled and said, "Twenty-four hours, 'round the clock, at your service, chief."
Perry gave him a wry expression and said, "Jimmy?"
"What. Chief?"
"Don't suck up, son. I don't like it." He gave that a second to sink in and then said, "Now, why
are you here?"
Jimmy pulled out Winninger's notebook and said, "Winninger's notebook. It contains some kind of scientific formula. STAR Labs has broken it down, but they don't know yet what its purpose is."
Perry nodded and asked, "Anything else?"
"Yeah, there's a map, which appears to be a large section of the Brazilian rain forest."
Perry voiced his puzzlement, "Well, what in the Sam Hill does some formula have to do with Barbara Trevino?"
"I don't know."
Perry came to a decision, "Okay, well, pass the info on to Lois and tell her that I said to get right on it."
Jimmy took the notebook and said, "Right."
Perry turned and took a step toward his office before he turned and said, "There's nothing wrong with a
little sucking up, son."
It took Jimmy a second for this to register and then he replied, "Right … Chief"
Perry smiled, said, "Better," and turned toward his office.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Lois awoke and found Clark's side of the bed empty. She muttered in an angry tone, "This had better be for a good reason. He promised to try and get back before I woke up in the morning." She pulled on the panties and shorts she had had on the previous night and then grabbed the T-shirt. She pulled that on as she walked into the bathroom to brush her teeth and start getting ready for the day.
She squeezed out some toothpaste on her brush and started brushing her teeth. When she took her brush out of her mouth and attempted to rinse it, she turned on the faucet and nothing came out. She muttered, "Oh, no." She tried the hot side only to have nothing come out there either. She exited the bathroom and headed into the kitchen. When she pushed the lever nothing came out. In frustration she operated the lever a few times. Then she had an idea. She crossed to the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of water. She took off the cap, took a swig, swished her mouth and spit into the sink. Then she rinsed her toothbrush with that water before recapping it and putting it away.
She crossed to her phone and punched in a number. She waited for the phone to be answered. When it was she recognized the voice on the other end, "Hello, Mrs. Tracewski, this is Lois Lane in 105." She listened for a second and then said, "Oh, you know about it already. Any idea when that might be? She listened again. "Oh, that long..."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Clark had just returned from Chicago. He had landed in the alley and changed into his sweats. He had exited and started jogging toward the brownstone when he encountered Mr. Tracewski. Mr. Tracewski was a pleasant looking man of European extraction and he had an accent. He was wearing jeans and a work shirt. He was carrying a piece of pipe and muttering to himself until he spotted Clark. He recognized him as the new tenant in 105 and stopped. When Clark approached he addressed him, "Mr. Kent, welcome to the building. I see you jog early, I'm sorry. The water. It no work." He held up the pipe. It had what looked like a valve in the middle. "I tell them, ‘Hey, go for it,' they don't listen, they buy cheap. And what? Here it is. Costs two times as much more. I on way to get replacement part. It be a while till I fix, okay?"
Clark got the gist of what he was saying and said, "That's okay Mr. Tracewski, I think we can make do until it is fixed. Thanks for letting me know." Clark watched as Mr. Tracewski walked away before he turned to go to the apartment.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Lois had no sooner hung up the phone from Mrs. Tracewski then there was a knock at the door. Lois crossed to it and looked out the peep hole. She thought that she recognized the individual standing there and started opening the locks. She opened the door to the limit of the chain that she had put on and peeked out. Sure enough, it was Mr. Tracewski. She said, "Just a second, Mr. Tracewski." She closed the door and removed the chain. As he entered, she said, "That was fast. I just hung up from your wife." She turned her back to him as they both entered the apartment. She said, "Your wife said it would be a couple of hours,"
Mr. Tracewski was wearing a workman's coverall and carrying a toolbox as he entered the apartment.
Lois was continuing to speak, "Not that I'm complaining as you can see."
Behind her Mr. Tracewski closed the door. The look on his face was one of malevolence as he dropped the tool box. When it fell with a clatter, it attracted Lois's attention. She spun around and seeing the look on Mr. Tracewski's face she started to back away from him. She asked, "Mr. Tracewski, are you all right?"
Mr. Tracewski lunged at Lois and his hands went around her neck.
Finally realizing that she was being attacked, Lois cried out, "No!" and threw up her arms. It looked like she was surrendering, however, she was not. Twisting to the left she brought her right arm down on his arms, brushing them away from her throat. She continued her spin until she was facing him again. When she was he was straightening up and preparing to lunge at her again. Lois unleashed a snap kick which caught him high on the chest knocking him backward. Her target had been his chin and she had missed.
Seeing her attacker start to fall back and unaware that she had missed her target she turned and started for the phone, but he recovered quickly and grabbed her from behind.
Forgetting that she was barefoot, she stamped down on his instep. He had on heavy work boots so she hurt herself more than him and as a result he was able to get a reverse choke hold on her.
Because of the choke hold she was unable to shout any more, however, Clark had heard her already. Just as she went limp, he came in through the door. Taking in the situation, he shouted, "Let her go!"
Mr. Tracewski took a backward step, dragging the limp form of Lois with him.
Using his Superman voice, Clark commanded, "Let my wife go, NOW!"
The voice had the desired effect. Mr. Tracewski pushed Lois's limp form at Clark as he backed away.
Clark's caught Lois and all of his attention was on his wife. As Mr. Tracewski backed away, Clark held her with one arm behind her back and felt for a pulse. Seeing this Mr. Tracewski grabbed his tool box and fled.
Lois wasn't breathing, but Clark could hear and feel her heart beating, faintly. He lowered her to the floor, opened her airway and breathed into her lungs.
When he pulled back, she coughed and started to come around.
"Oh, Clark … Clark …"
"It's all right, you're gonna be okay."
Still gasping for breath, Lois said, "I couldn't breathe. It was ... that nice Mr. Tracewski.
Clark cradled her in his arms as he said, "No, it wasn't, Lois. It must have been someone else. I saw the real Mr. Tracewski out in the street. He was explaining the problem with the water."
Lois said, "He tried to kill me."
Clark started to leave, "I'll find him."
As he started to stand, Lois clung to him with increased fervor, "No! Please … Don't leave me."
He stooped to hold her better and pulled her into a hug, "Okay, I won't. I'm right here," he kissed her forehead.
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