A few hours later, Lois was sitting at her desk, desperately trying to stifle a yawn. The night had been awfully short and she had not been sleeping well. Nightmares had plagued her - of Clark leaving her or turning her down after she had uttered a particularly sappy declaration of love. She still blushed at the memory of it, though it had just been a dream. Worse even, Lois still felt the pain of being rejected as if it had actually happened.
Her morning coffee had tasted stale and her appetite had been noticeably absent. Try as she might to blame the uneasiness in the pit of her stomach on some bad take-out, there was no denying that Clark was more to her than just a partner she could tolerate. Lois had told Lucy that she considered him a friend. But if she was completely honest to herself, Lois was beginning to wonder if Clark, however inadvertently, had swept her off her feet. Just when had that happened?
With that worrisome thought in mind, it had taken all her will power to prepare herself for work. In the end, Lois had given herself a mental pep-talk, trying to convince her aching heart that she could not possibly be so far gone as to depend on Clark for her well-being.
That point had finally managed to let her spring into action. Afraid to lose her edge, Lois had raced towards the Daily Planet. As soon as she had arrived at her desk, Lois had checked her voice mail, hoping to hear from either Paul or Bobby Bigmouth. While the former remained silent and did not answer his phone, Bobby Bigmouth had called to tell Lois that Sidney Burke had been seen in a club in Riverside. He would call her again if he knew where she might be able to run into him. Satisfied with the results so far, Lois had gone to pour herself another cup of coffee. She was just taking a sip as Clark stepped out of an elevator.
He, too, looked a bit ruffled. It wouldn’t surprise her, if he had slept just as badly as she had. His head hung between his shoulders as he trotted down the ramp into the bull-pen. With a slight nod, he greeted her and made his way to join her at the coffee machine.
“Good morning, handsome,” Cat purred as he passed her desk.
“Morning, Cat,” Clark replied shortly, obviously not willing to take the bait. He quickened his pace, leaving Cat behind. One notch less in her garter belt, Lois thought with a sense of satisfaction and could not keep from grinning triumphantly in Cat’s direction.
“Good morning, Clark,” Lois greeted and took a cup from the shelf, pouring some coffee for Clark as well. “I’m sorry, I don’t know how you take your coffee,” she said apologetically, cringing at her own ignorance. Maybe it was for the better that she did not have a chance with Clark. She would be a lost cause trying to woe him.
“That’s all right,” Clark replied, revealing at least a small smile. It sent Lois’ heart racing. What on earth was wrong with her? She had never before reacted to him quite so strongly. She had to admit that an attraction towards him had been there in some hidden corner of her mind, stored away behind a heavy door. But last night’s dreams had obviously broken the seal and now those suppressed feelings were bubbling to the surface. Quietly, Clark added an incredible amount of creamer and sugar to his coffee. Just watching him made her skirt feel tighter.
“Luthor did not start his little project, yet,” he informed her. “I did a long patrol this morning, everything is quiet so far.”
“I know,” Lois said, dragging her eyes off him with some effort. She nodded towards her desk. “I’ve been listening to the police band on my radio.” Clark raised an eyebrow. “Don’t look at me like that, I don’t have your hearing abilities,” she defended herself.
“Hey, I’m just surprised,” Clark said.
“That’s because you’re still Mr. Green-jeans, Kent,” Lois replied teasingly, as they went towards her desk. “Oh, Bobby called this morning. He might be able to let us know where to meet Sidney Burke.”
“Really? That sounds like good news,” Clark let out a sigh. “Finally.”
Before he was able to say anything else, the radio on Lois’ desk crackled.
<Attention all units. Code four. Possible jumper, Lexor Hotel. Crowd control and negotiation teams to the Emergency response requested.> the police dispatcher announced.
Lois and Clark looked at each other. “This is it,” Lois said excitedly and stopped herself just in time before she would something stupid like hugging him. Instead, she drowned her half-dead plant with the rest of her coffee. Then she grabbed her coat and her hand-bag, before she rushed towards the elevators.
“I’ll see you there,” Clark agreed, sounding just a tad nervous as he rushed towards the stairs.
Lois smiled to herself, as she hurried down towards the street to take a cab to the Lexor Hotel. Nothing was better than a story to keep her mind off dangerous territory. She was not even annoyed that Clark had not offered to take her with him. Some distance between them was just what she needed to get back on the right path. She and Clark were working partners, a great team. With his help she would forever get the inside scoop, always be there first. That was so much better than a broken heart, which any attempt at a relationship would certainly result in.
A sonic boom announced his departure and shook Lois from her musings. Before she could even consider getting the scoop, she needed to hail a cab. The rush hour had not yet abated and not a single yellow car seemed to be in sight. Impatiently tapping her foot, Lois held her arm half raised. Seconds stretched to ages until Lois finally spotted a cab turning into the street. She waved her arm and placing two of her fingers to her lips she produced a piercing whistle, sending a quick prayer to heaven that the car was not already occupied.
However, she was lucky as the driver stopped in front of her. She opened the back door and got in.
"Lexor Hotel," she ordered as she fastened her seat belt.
The driver silently complied and pulled into the traffic. Lois let out a breath, she did not realize she had been holding and closed her eyes for a brief moment. This was it - the first tentative steps to a big story, her Pulitzer possibly. A rush of excitement ran down her spine and settled deep inside her stomach. She touched her bag to reassure herself that the tape was actually inside. They would go to talk to Henderson after this first test, as soon as they knew without a shadow of a doubt that Luthor was serious. Once they had Henderson's help, Lois and Clark could start building their trap.
Going through the speech Lois had prepared for Henderson, Lois felt that she had done everything in her power to make this work. She would get the scoop and Clark would be free.The tingle in her belly intensified, but Lois quickly brushed the feeling aside for later evaluation. She needed to focus on the here and now.
As she opened her eyes, Lois wondered for a moment where she was. The street around her did look vaguely familiar, but the cabby was either taking an extensive detour, or...
"Are you sure we're heading to the Lexor Hotel?" she asked, a tad of annoyance in her voice. "Because it doesn't look like it." Lois cursed herself for not paying attention. After all, she knew that cabbies could never be trusted. If she had wanted she could have published a book on all the weird incidents she had experienced inside and out of Metropolis' cabs. Now she was going to miss the action. One more reason she could not afford to waste another thought on her traitorous feelings.
"Okay, take the next turn," she said without even trying to hide her anger.
The cabby appeared completely unfazed. "No can do, Miss," he replied, his eyes meeting hers only through a brief look into the rear view mirror. He pressed a button and the back doors locked.
"Hey!" Lois yelled in protest, pounding against the screen that separated the driver from the back section. "Stop this car and let me get out, now!"
"Soon," the driver promised, once more glancing at her through the mirror before he turned his attention back on the street.
"Where are we going?" Lois asked, but the cabby ignored her.
"Hey!" Again, she pounded against the screen, furiously. The cabby did not even flinch. Realizing that she was not going to get an answer, Lois muttered a curse and focused her attention on the door, trying to open it, but to no avail.
Giving up for the moment, Lois studied her surroundings to find out for herself. They were quickly approaching the darker parts of the city, Riverside and Suicide Slum. The cabby finally pulled to a halt in front of a shabby building that in happier times had probably been part of a factory. A tall, burly guy with a mask stepped out, waiting until the cabby had unlocked the door before he manhandled Lois out of the car. As hard as Lois tried to fight back, all her attempts to strike out fell short. Seemingly out of nowhere he produced a rag and covered her mouth and nose before she even managed to think about yelling for help. The sweet odor of chloroform clouded her senses until everything went dark around Lois.
to be continued
Last edited by bakasi; 06/14/16 01:29 PM.
