My Own Worst Enemy
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 5
Present Day…***
Rollie Vale smiled as he opened the chest cavity for Johnny Corbin to see a purple and grey glow coming from inside him. “You’re going to have to go slow, John,” Vale warned. “You were unconscious for six months.”
“Superman,” Corbin growled angrily.
“John, what did I just say?” Vale tried to steer Corbin’s focus back to the present and away from his rival. “We still don’t know if the testing Dr. Lane did on you is accurate. I wouldn’t recommend going against Superman again until we’ve had time to—”
“Dr. Lane?” Corbin crinkled his nose. “Yes, Dr. Lane…” he seemed to recall something as he began taking practice swings in the air each one growing stronger and stronger. “You go slow, doc. I’m gonna get me some answers.”
“Answers?” Vale called after him, reaching for a remote on the table that had been programmed to control Corbin. “What kind of answers?”
“I got a score to settle…” His voice grew weary as Vale pressed a button on the remote.
“Not yet you don’t, Corbin. We’ve got more testing to do.” Vale smiled to himself. “After the last time, we took some precautions to make sure you were more controlled.”
“I…I…I…” John stammered as his body slowed down, keeping him in a statuesque pose as he glared back at Vale.
“You won’t be running off this time. The organization has big plans for you.”
***
He listened in as he heard the familiar footsteps and heartbeat from the other side of the door. Images continued to plague his mind as he wrestled with the chains. They’d be back in there soon.
Another needle.
Another dose of that poisonous liquid.
He shuddered at the memory, staring at his arm, seeing the bruising that had been left from the previous punctures. He had to get out of there. He had to escape.
***
Seven Months Ago…“Just under the wire,” Lois commented taking a seat at her desk and booting up her computer.
“Well, we did have some super help with that,” Clark commented, whispering in her ear before leaning in to give her a peck on the cheek.
“You’re late.” Cat teased, walking up to Lois’ desk. Lois exchanged a look with Clark, smiling as she recalled the reason for their tardiness. “Traffic problems again?” Cat gave a teasing grin. “You two should really find a different route.”
Lois didn’t say anything, watching as her husband’s neck began to change to a dark shade of red as he tried to change the subject. “So, Cat, I heard you finally got a verdict on the Mandelin case.”
“Yeah, a lot of good it did me.” Cat snorted, rolling her eyes. “All those weeks sitting around listening to testimony after testimony on this hired gun and then I find out the case is going to get tossed because someone lost the evidence.”
“Lost it?” Lois echoed, looking at her in surprise. “Didn’t they find the guy standing over his victim’s body with the murder weapon?”
“Yes, but apparently the forensic evidence was destroyed,” Cat growled angrily. “The defense attorney filed a motion last minute to have the evidence reexamined, and when the prosecution couldn’t produce it, the judge threw the book at him. He’s trying to toss the entire case out.”
“How is that even possible?” Clark asked dumbfounded.
“Beats me.” Cat shook her head, “But I plan to find out.”
“CK, call on line two!” Jimmy called from his cubicle.
Clark nodded, heading to his desk to take the call. The news coverage on the Mandelin case caught her eye.
“This shocking case that has continued to grip this city on Maxwell Mandelin. The hired hitman that was rumored to have been employed by everyone from the Metros to Lex Luthor and responsible for hundreds of deaths in the past four years has been released pending the DA’s ability to provide any solid evidence linking him to his crimes. The District Attorney’s office and Metropolis P.D. are under investigation for their part in this. The mayor is calling for an increase in patrols around Metropolis.”
A protective hand moved to her abdomen as the image of Maxwell Mandelin’s mugshot flashed on the screen. Memories from her undercover assignment at the Metro Club came to her mind. Mandelin was one of Johnny Taylor’s top lieutenants. There was always something so creepy about the man. She and Cat had been one of the first journalists to break the story when he’d finally been caught three months before Clark’s return.
“They’ll get him,” Clark reassured, placing a supportive hand on her shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze.
“How?” she whispered, looking back at him. “You heard them. The case is as good as dismissed.”
***
“This shocking case that has continued to grip this city on Maxwell Mandelin. The hired hitman that was rumored to have been employed by everyone from the Metros to Lex Luthor and responsible for hundreds of deaths in the past four years has been released pending the DA’s ability to provide any solid evidence linking him to his crimes. The District Attorney’s office and Metropolis P.D. are under investigation for—”
The image disappeared into darkness as Bill Church turned around in his chair to face his lead counsel, Martin Snell with a smile. “Excellent work on the Mandelin case, Martin,” Bill Church congratulated as he took a long puff from his cigar. “Paying off the Metropolis P.D. to destroy their evidence will help us move onto phase two.”
“Well, it’s certainly cheaper than owning the judges.” Martin Snell laughed, handing him the file in his hand.
“How are we with the Superman problem?” Church asked, looking over the numbers Snell had given him.
“No sign of him, but that doesn’t mean he won’t show.” Snell began cautiously, “He wasn’t too keen on our threat against Lois Lane.”
“He doesn’t have a choice,” Church remarked with a smug grin. “How is the buyout of Southside coming along?”
“There’s a lot of resistance to this one block.” Snell pointed on the map to a small red square. “Everyone around the area is ready to sell but this one.” He tapped the square again, “I don’t know. It’s like they’re not afraid or something.”
“Well, let’s give them something to be afraid of,” Church said. “It’s time to test out Superman.”
***
“Where exactly did you meet this guy?” Clark asked, looking around the parking garage suspiciously.
“He’s one of Perry’s contacts at the Police Commissioner’s office,” Lois said, tugging the hem of her coat as she looked around.
Clark looked at his watch, “Are you sure we’re in the right place? Maybe he didn’t get your message.”
“He got it.” Lois retorted.
“Maybe he ignored it?” Clark suggested, glancing at his watch. “It’s been almost an hour.”
“He’ll be here,” Lois reassured him.
Clark glanced at his watch, still not convinced.
“I may be late, but I always show up.” A voice behind them said. Clark turned to see a man in a trench coat, mid-thirties with balding hair and sunglasses on. “You must be Kent.” He said, nodding in Clark’s direction.
“Thanks for coming,” Lois said.
“You said you wanted to know what was going on in the Lower East Side.” The man said, looking around the parking garage uncertainly.
“What can you tell me?” Lois asked.
“You'd better be sure you want to know. Once you cross into this, there's no going back.” The man warned.
Clark looked to Lois who nodded, and he responded firmly, “We’re sure.”
“Right now, it's all focused on the Southside. Precincts having their funding cut. Men transferred. Equipment sabotaged. Cops paid to look the other way.”
“Why?” Lois asked, not following where this was going.
“Think about it. What happens when a good neighborhood goes bad?” her source said.
“People want to move,” Clark said, following.
“Prices go down. Whole blocks go on the market for pennies on the dollar.” Lois reasoned.
“Very good.” He nodded.
“What can you tell us?” Lois asked, realizing this was bigger than she or Clark realized.
“I want to help, bad cops make a bad city, but my neck's a little too far out as it is.” He explained.
“You've got to give us something,” Lois said. “People are in danger.”
He tossed her a flash drive and nodded, “See if that leads you anywhere. Don't call me again.”
***
Lucy Lane went into the system checking case after case. All of the cases she had requests for had witness statements about an organization.
She opened up the Metropolis P.D. database and typed ‘the organization’ into the search queue. Thousands of cases came back. Kidnapping. Gun smuggling. Terrorism. Murder.
“The organization has no name. It has no face, but it’s everywhere.”
“The organization threatened to kill my daughter if I didn’t change my testimony.”
“The organization kidnapped my family and made me create a pipe bomb.”Lucy frowned, seeing the first few cases and witness statements on this mysterious organization. The newscaster on the television caught her attention. She looked over and saw the tall brunette addressing the camera in front of City Hall.
“This shocking case that has continued to grip this city on Maxwell Mandelin. The hired hitman that was rumored to have been employed by everyone from the Metros to Lex Luthor and responsible for hundreds of deaths in the past four years has been released pending the DA’s ability to provide any solid evidence linking him to his crimes. The District Attorney’s office and Metropolis P.D. are under investigation for—”
‘Maxwell Mandelin.’Lucy looked at the list of names for the cases that Warren wanted her to get signed off on. Sure enough, Maxwell Mandelin’s case was one of the top five on the list. She opened the forensic log used to catalog the status of evidence collected at the crime scenes and typed in ‘Mandelin’ in the queue.
Hundreds of results came up, and she went in to check the status of each sample.
Analysis Complete. Date of Expiration April 2020She smiled to herself. The sample was still in the system somewhere. Which meant the person that told the judge it was destroyed had to be in collusion with whoever was making Jack Warren destroy the evidence in these fifteen cases.
Right now she didn’t know who to trust. Her boss was obviously involved in the corruption. She couldn’t trust him. She didn’t know who in the department could be involved. There was one person she knew wouldn’t be involved. She needed to talk to him. More importantly, she needed to let the people know what was going on.
Lucy tapped her hand on the stack of folders in front of her. She knew what she needed to do.
***
“Dr. Klein said there was no sign of the radio isotope from the blood sample he tested yesterday,” Clark said, taking a seat next to Lois.
“Well, there’s some good news.” Lois shrugged, “I haven’t been able to find much of a connection with this Martin Snell. Five years ago he was staff council for Bill Church—”
“The Cost Mart guy?” Clark asked.
Lois nodded, “Worked in corporate acquisitions. Responsible for buying up overseas companies.”
“Hmm,” Clark tapped his thumb on his chin.
“What?” she asked.
“Remember what your dad said about the organization buying up companies all over the world and running their criminal elements through them?”
“Yeah?” Lois began uncertainly.
“What if Snell is how they did it?” Clark shrugged, “He did say he represented the organization.”
“It is a bit of a stretch, but it wouldn’t surprise me.” Lois looked at her screen, “Looking at some of these acquisitions—If we compare them with all the major acts of terrorism—”
“They line up, don’t they?” Clark asked.
“To a ‘T.'” Lois pointed at the two windows she had open of a list of places Snell had been involved in the corporate takeovers and the list of companies that had been connected to terrorism over the past five years. “Pretty scary, huh?” He nodded, leaning in to kiss her on the cheek.
“What about that flash drive? Were you able to find anything on it?” He asked.
Lois sighed, pulling up the files she’d saved to her desktop. “He wasn’t kidding when he said it was big. If these reports are true, then half the major cities in the world have been infiltrated by this organization.”
“What’s that?” Clark asked, pointing to a folder titled ‘Intergang’ on her directory.
“Intergang?” Lois shrugged, clicking on the folder. Article after article came up from all around the world on the mysterious organization connected with crime after crime around the world.
“European Press. Hong Kong Times. Australian Press.” Clark read off. “These guys really do get around, don’t they?”
“Mass criminal organization that knows no bounds continues to grip fear into cities around the world. Intergang is the most deadly and ruthless organization Australia has come across and—” Lois read the article aloud.
“Intergang?” Clark shook his head, “There it is again.”
“Look what happened to the reporter.” Lois pointed out. “Fatal car accident.”
He took a deep breath and leaned against her. “We’ll stop them.”
“Clark if half the stuff in here is true…” she placed a hand on her abdomen and sighed in relief when she felt his hand already there. “Maybe if I just stay out of the newsroom, they won’t be able to find me and you can –”
“You’re not the only one they threatened.” Clark reminded her. “He said if Superman showed up in –” Something seemed to click in Lois’ mind at his statement. He recognized that ‘I’ve got a plan’ look on her face. “What?”
“He said Superman couldn’t stop them.” Lois said with a grin, “You and I both know that’s just a suit.” She whispered. “What if it wasn’t Superman helping?”
“You get that look in your eyes, and it really makes me nervous.” He said with a sigh.
“What?” she shrugged. “It could work…until we can track where those smart bullets are coming from, Superman could go undercover.”
“Undercover?” he gave her a skeptical look.
***
A match.
Lucy smiled to herself as she held up the samples from the John Doe. She had a match and a possible lead for the detective on the case. She looked at the case file and smiled when she saw the familiar name listed as the lead contact for the case.
Bill Henderson.“Lane!”
She jumped, hearing Jack Warren’s voice from behind her. “Here we go.” She muttered under her breath.
“You want to tell me why none of these reports aren’t signed off on?” he asked, waving the stack of folders in his hand before slamming them down on her desk.
“I was going to, but then I thought I should give you some time to think over whether you really want to do this.” She said not looking up as she typed in her final notes on her findings.
“You wanna run that by me again?” he scoffed.
“Well, it’s against the law to destroy evidence in an active investigation.” She began pulling out the cases she’d memorized as pending from the stack. “I cannot in good conscience put criminals back on the street because the department doesn’t have room to store the evidence.”
“It wasn’t a request.” He said between gritted teeth.
“You really want to do this?’ she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.
“Just do as you're told, and there won’t be any issues.” He said, sliding the stack of folders to her.
***
“Clark?” Lois called as she entered the apartment that was littered with boxes everywhere. He’d gotten called away on a rescue a few hours ago. After filing what they had on their investigation into the police corruption with Perry she’d headed home, hoping to find Clark there. It seemed he’d been busy.
“Hey, honey,”
She looked toward the backdoor that led to the balcony and saw him in a pair of jeans and green button-down shirt closing the doors behind him.
“More boxes?” she asked, looking around the crowded apartment. “Clark, it’s hard enough to move around here as it is.”
“I know, but I thought it would do us some good to go through some of the baby stuff and figure out what we’re going to use for this little one and what we need to buy.” He said, looking around sheepishly. “I guess it is kinda crowded in here.”
“Babies do require a lot of stuff.” She reminded him with a smile, making her way toward him.
“Which is why we should seriously start talking about looking for a new place.” He said, pulling her to him. “Something that isn’t my place or your place, but our place.” He whispered, nuzzling her ear.
“
Our place does have a nice ring to it.” She reasoned aloud.
“We’ve only got another month left on the lease here anyway.” He pointed out, pulling out a real estate brochure. “We need to make a decision.”
She smirked at him when she saw the red, blue and green flags from where he’d marked pages in the brochure. “I see you’ve been busy.”
“Uh-huh,” he grinned at her pulling out a white clothing box from the table, “And I even had an idea about that whole undercover idea of yours.”
“So my idea wasn’t as ridiculous as you thought, huh?” she teased.
“I still think we need to be careful, but no definitely not ridiculous.” He said, holding up the police uniform he’d picked up. “This is about as close to genuine as I could find but it’ll get the job done.”
She grinned at the uniform, “Sticking with the whole Law and Order theme I see?” She ran a hand over his chest admiring how the navy blue uniform looked up against him. She could definitely have fun with this undercover business.
“I figured it’d at least help remind people that police are there to help them.” Clark moved to cup her cheek.
She leaned in to kiss him only to stop a few millimeters away from his lips when the insistent tapping on their front door broke the moment. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” Lois muttered to herself. Clark turned to put the uniform back in the box while she made her way through the maze of boxes.
“I’m coming I’m coming.” She called hearing the knocking growing more and more insistent.
“Lucy?” she opened the door and found her sister on the other side, carrying a large stack of files in her arms.
“Can I come in?” Lucy asked, looking over her shoulder.
“Sure, just have a seat if you can find one,” Lois said wryly, motioning to the boxes Clark had piled near the couch.
“Spring cleaning a bit early aren’t ya?” Lucy teased. “Hi Clark,” she smiled toward Clark who was giving a good performance of struggling to move the five boxes blocking the couch to the other side of the room.
He set the boxes down and smiled at her, “Hi Luce,” He motioned to the now cleared off couch, “Have a seat.”
“Thanks,” Lucy took a seat and set the large stack of folders on her lap.
“What’s up?” Lois asked, taking a seat next to her, noticing the distracted look on her sister’s face.
Lucy grinned when she zeroed in on Lois’ midsection. “Aww, you’re getting the baby bump.” She placed a hand over the small bump and smiled. “Hello, in there little one…”
“You are being ridiculous.” Lois retorted, pushing her away from her stomach.
“Hey, the kid’s gotta recognize Aunt Lucy’s voice somehow.” She shrugged with a grin.
“Don’t take it personally, Luce, she won’t let me do it either.” Clark retorted, giving Lois an amused expression as she took a seat on the other side of the couch.
“She was like that last time too,” Lucy said, shaking her head. “She’ll loosen up in a few weeks.”
“I’m right here.” Lois gave her sister a nudge with her elbow. “And as much as I would love to get into a deep conversation about both of your needs to talk to my stomach that is ballooning into the size of a house every second we sit here mind you—”
Lucy rolled her eyes and snorted, “Yeah and I’m the Queen of England.”
“Don’t get her started,” Clark muttered shaking his head.
“Right here.” Lois held up her hand, and he chuckled. She turned back to Lucy, “Somehow I don’t think you came all this way to argue about the size of this.” She patted her growing abdomen. “What’s up?”
Lucy leaned forward, taking a deep breath. “If I have information on something that’s newsworthy…something that needs to be public knowledge…could you print it without using my name?”
Lois exchanged a look with Clark then turned back to Lucy, “Of course.”
Lucy handed her the stack of folders in her hands. “I was asked to get these signed off on by the detectives on these cases. Almost every one of them are currently pending cases.”
Lois’ brow furrowed when she read the names on a few of these cases. “More corruption.”
“More?” Lucy asked, confused.
“We’ve been looking into the slow down at the Metropolis P.D. in response to calls for help in the Lower East Side,” Clark explained.
“You think it’s connected?” Lucy asked.
“More than likely,” Lois said, looking through the files. “Can we keep these or do you need copies?”
“Those are yours to keep. Copies of the originals.” Lucy said shakily.
“What are you going to do?” Lois asked.
“I think there’s at least one officer on the force I can trust to do the right thing. I’m going to see if he can help.” Lucy said.
“Luce, this case with Mandelin—” Lois began to ask.
Lucy shook her head, pulling out a file from the stack. “It hasn’t been destroyed, but they’re trying to cover their bases.”
“Any idea who they is?” Clark asked.
“I wish I knew.” Lucy sighed.
Lois reached over to squeeze her sister’s hand. “We’ll figure this all out. You’ll see.”
“I hope so.” Lucy leaned her head on her shoulder. “I just don’t understand any of this.” She looked toward Clark who had a faraway look on his face.
“I, uh—” he looked to Lois, and she sighed.
“You know what I would kill for right now? Some of those thai beef rolls with the red sauce…” Lois said, trying to think of a believable excuse for him to leave. Who said pregnancy cravings didn’t have a good use?
“Right!” Clark grinned, leaning in to kiss her as she stood up and grabbed the box he’d put his undercover uniform in. “I’ll go pick some up while I take this back to storage. Luce? You wanna stay for dinner?”
“Sure,” Lucy grinned happily. “I’ll keep this one company while you get food.”
“Right,” he nodded, trying not to be too obvious as he made a dash for the front door. A few seconds later they heard a sonic boom outside.
Lucy gave her an amused look, “Still on that Asian kick I see.”
“What can I say?” Lois shrugged, “The baby loves it.” Her phone began to ring, and she looked at it with a frown.
“What is it?” Lucy asked.
“It’s Uncle Mike.” She said, answering the phone, “Hello?”
***
The street lamps that were normally lit were off when Clark arrived outside of Mike’s restaurant. It had been hard to make out, but his muffled cry for help had been unmistakable. “Get out of here you, punks!”
Mike Lane stood in the middle of his store with a broom surrounded by kids that couldn’t be older than sixteen or seventeen. Unfortunately, they were all armed with baseball bats, knives, and chains.
“We just wanna talk,” one of the gang members taunted, knocking the phone out of his hand and crushing it with his foot.
Another thug swung toward Mike with a knife in his hand coming inches away from his face when Clark fully dressed in the police uniform intervened, grabbing the thug’s hand back.
“You have the right to remain silent.” He said, ducking as the thugs began to try and turn on him.
One of the thugs began swinging the chains toward him, and Clark ducked again, “Anything you say can and will be used against you.”
As Clark ducked and the thug swinging the chains hit one of the thugs that was holding a baseball bat. The thug with the baseball bat struck the guy with the chains in the ribs causing his to groan in pain.
“…in a court of law.” Clark saw the baseball bat coming toward him and ducked, reaching for the bat in mid-air, jerking it and the thug that still held it toward him. With a healthy use of super strength, he jerked the bat toward the awaiting tin trash cans in the corner.
“You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.” Clark said, advancing toward the thug that had tried to assault Mike with the knife earlier.
The thug screamed and went into a karate stance running toward Clark. He smirked to himself, holding his hand out and allowing the thug to run into his palm. The thug fell to the ground, and Clark looked down at the now unconscious thugs, “Do you understand these rights as I have explained them to you?”
A low moan escaped from the thug he’d just dropped, and Mike chuckled, placing a hand on Clark’s shoulder, “Officer, I think that’s a ‘yes.'”
Clark smiled, readjusting his police cap to assure himself his face was covered, “I better call for a, uh…”
“Backup?” Mike guessed.
“Right.” Clark nodded, disappearing as he heard sirens approaching.
***
Present Day…“Hey, hey, hey, little guy,” Clark soothed, holding Jon against his chest as he rocked him back and forth. “You need to let your mom sleep.” He looked back at the sleeping figure of his wife still fast asleep. Jon let out a half-hearted whimper, and Clark smiled at him, “You hungry, buddy?”
Jon seemed to understand what he was saying, reaching out to grab his glasses as he closed the bedroom door behind him. He carried him downstairs and pulled out a packet of frozen breast milk from the fridge and pouring it into the bottle and tightening the lid. He warmed the milk with his heat vision before offering it to his son.
They’d gone back and forth on the issues that came with feeding Jon. Lois had tried to keep nursing him but found herself unable to keep Jon full while nursing. At least with pumping, he was able to help with feedings and allow her a chance to rest when she could.
He bounced Jon in his arms as he walked toward the rocking chair by the window. He loved moments like this where he could just enjoy the peace that came with holding his son in his arms. It’d been almost a year since his return from the dead. A year since Nightfall and the nightmare with Trask had finally ended. A year since he was finally reunited with the woman he loved.
He smiled to himself, recalling every tear he’d kissed away that morning when he and Lois had made love for the first time since his return. So much heartache plagued both of them during that time, but out of all of it, something perfect was created. Their son.
***
Lex took a long puff from his cigar. Everything was going according to plan. Soon his Annihilator satellite would be in commission and installed on the platform as he had originally planned with Space Station Luthor. His plans to turn the intergalactic laboratory into a weapon of mass destruction were destroyed by the council’s good will and Superman.
He had spent months planning his takeover of the Space Station only for his plans to be thwarted. It had taken him almost three years to track down the plans, and now that he had them he wasn’t going to let the opportunity pass him again.
***
He listened in as he heard the familiar footsteps and heartbeat from the other side of the door. Church. That’s what the other man called him. Images continued to plague his mind as he wrestled with the chains. They’d be back in there soon.
Another needle.
Another dose of that poisonous liquid.
He shuddered at the memory as the voices from down the hall reached his impossible hearing.
“Mr. Vale, I’m growing more and more impatient with District 26’s progress.” District 26. That’s what they called this hell hole. He grimaced, tightening his grasp on the chains. He had to escape. He had to. It had been four months of experimentation and poisonous needles. After spending so long in a fog, he was finally starting to remember.
Images of a brunette and flying haunted his dreams.
He didn’t belong here.
“You said this drug would make my father go crazy. It’s been three months, and all he’s doing is forgetting things. How do you expect me to have him committed and take over Intergang with results like this?”He jerked on the chain and smiled to himself when he felt the metal begin to giveaway. The flash of light filled the room, and three men in white overcoats holding a large metal box opened the door.
“No!!!”
***
“Hey Jimmy,” Clark said tapping the young researcher on the shoulder. “I need you to do some research for me.”
“Get in line.” Jimmy gave him a wry expression, pointing to the stack of pending stories he was working on.
“This is really important, Jimmy,” Clark said, trying to hold in his annoyance with the cold shoulder Jimmy was treating him with. Ever since their falling out a few months ago, it had been like pulling teeth working with him.
“Everything’s an emergency.” Jimmy shot back, handing him a research request form. “Fill it out like everyone else. I’ll get it to you when I get it to you.”
Clark gave the young man an annoyed look and shook his head, “Fine.”
He took the paper from him and filled it out then handed it to Jimmy before moving back to his desk. While he needed Jimmy’s help to get the research he needed it didn’t appear that help was going to be coming anytime soon.
He walked to Lois’ desk and sifted through her Rolodex until he found the card he was looking for. One of Lois’ sources from the Police Commissioner’s office was pretty well connected in Washington. Hopefully, he could shed some light on what was going on with the attacks on Metropolis.
Right before his and Lois’ Kerth nomination they had cracked open the police corruption story and connected it to Intergang. They still weren’t sure who was behind Intergang but now that they had a name for the organization that had been pulling the strings they were finally getting somewhere in bringing it down.
***
“Where’s Mommy?” Lois teased, hiding her face behind her hands. “There she is!” Jon gurgled with a soft laugh, and she leaned in to kiss him. “You are such a sweetie.” She touched his cheek with her thumb, looking at him as he tried to prop his head up, wiggling on his arms as he tested the waters with holding himself up.
“Look at you!” she grinned at him as he wobbled his head down to the floor once more. “Getting to be a big boy.” She smiled at him as he reached for his blue blanket. It was bittersweet to watch Jon grow and learn new things every day. The more he learned and developed the more she missed Jamie.
“I’ve never seen anything more perfect in all my life.”
She looked up in surprise and saw Clark kneeling behind her. “Hi, when did you get home?”
“A little while ago.” He shrugged, lying down on the floor with her, wrapping an arm around her. “How are you doing?”
“This is our last day of being home together before I start half days back in the office.” She said sadly. “Trying to make the most of it.”
“He’ll be right downstairs in the same building as us.” He murmured in her ear.
“I know,” she leaned her back against him as he tightened his arms around her. “I’m just going to miss this.” She motioned to Jon’s smiling face as he tried to roll to his side and look at her.
“He’s quite the ham, isn’t he?” Clark chuckled.
“Tell me about it,” Lois said with a long sigh.
Clark nuzzled her ear as he held her close, “I’ve missed having you there at the office with me. It’ll be nice to have you both nearby.” He nibbled on her throat, running his upper lip against the curve leading to her shoulder. “Even if it is only part-time.”
“I know. I’ve missed being at the Planet too.” She whispered, moving her hands to cover his as they moved up and down her ribcage. She traced the outline of his wedding band, smiling to herself when she noticed Jon’s sleepy face. “I think someone’s getting sleepy.”
“What impeccable timing that I just happened to come home right at naptime.” He teased nuzzling her ear as she let out a soft giggle.
“That is incredibly good timing. I’d almost think you planned it that way.” She leaned her head back against him, concentrating on the feeling of his palms as they moved up and down her sides, moving her knit top further and further up as he did so.
“Have I told you how much I love you?” he whispered in her ear, tugging on her earlobe with his lips as he continued moving his hands up the front of her top.
“Not since this morning.” She breathed heavily, feeling a pleasurable jolt run down her spine when he pulled her to him. “Oh, Clark,” She sighed happily against him when he began teasing the sensitive flesh of her throat.
“I am hopelessly in love with you, Lois Lane Kent.” He murmured, against her neck.
“We need to put him in his bed.” She whispered, finding it harder and harder to concentrate on anything but the heat that ran through her body as Clark continued his teasing.
“Don’t move.” He whispered, running his hand down her cheek as he got up and carried Jon to his playpen. Before she could finish rolling onto her back he was behind her, whispering in her ear, “I told you not to move.”
She let out a low moan as he rolled her on her back and moved between her legs, running his lips up and down her neck and moved her arms up over her head, intertwining his fingers with hers. “Oh, God, please, please don’t let him wake up…”
***
Seven Months Ago…
CORRUPTION IN CITY HALL
By Lois Lane and Clark Kent
MANDELIN GETS LIFE
By Cat Grant***
“I want the entire floor swept,” Mayson ordered as she walked through the Criminal Science division of the Metropolis P.D. “Check everyone’s hard drives. I want to know who was responsible for the false information that nearly got the Mandelin case thrown out.”
“Ms. Drake, is this really necessary?” Jack Warren asked, looking around the lab stations that were currently being torn apart by the ADA’s Strike Force.
“I’ve got a warrant that says it is.” She said smugly, handing it to him. “Any other questions?”
“No, Ms. Drake.” Warren seethed.
***
Lois opened the double doors of the cafe, scanning the crowd until she found the familiar face of her father in the corner. He saw her and stood up, waving her over. She pushed her way through the crowded tables and chairs until she’d finally was able to take a seat at the table with her father.
He smiled at her, noting the bump that had begun to make its presence known. “You look good. Motherhood suits you.”
“Thanks,” she gave him an uneasy half-smile.
“How’s Clark?” Sam asked, making conversation.
“He’s good.” She replied warmly. “Staying busy.”
“I know. I saw those articles you two wrote.” Sam said grimly, shaking his head. “You’ve got to be more careful. You could push the wrong button and—”
“You said you had some news?” Lois interrupted, not wanting to get into another argument about how dangerous her father thought her job was. It seemed ironic when he was literally still working for the enemy. A choice she had not supported, but he seemed adamant in continuing his work so as not to arise any suspicion within the organization.
“I’ve been doing some digging where I can—trying not to arise too much suspicion, and I found some information that might help with your investigation.” He said, sliding a flash drive across the table to her.
“What is this?” Lois asked as she examined the flash drive in her hand.
“Everything I have access to within the organization.” Her father explained, taking a sip from his coffee. “Projects the organization is currently working on and their network around the world.”
Lois tightened her hand over the flash drive, drumming her thumb over the plastic cap. “You shouldn’t have done this. What if you’d been caught?”
“We agreed that me continuing to work there would keep them from getting suspicious.” He reminded her. “I never said I wouldn’t do anything to help bring them down.”
“This is dangerous.” She reminded him. “You said yourself they had that Darryl character killed. What if they try and do the same thing to you?”
“I have a plan.” He reassured her, pulling out a 4x6 photo from his pocket and sliding it to her.
“What is this?” she asked, looking at the photo. It was a small silver, gray and blue ship of some sort.
“My latest assignment.” He breathed heavily.
***
“Are you out of your mind?!” Jimmy hissed angrily.
“A little louder I don’t think they heard you in Hong Kong.” Lucy spat back irritably, taking a bite of her salad.
“You turned over classified information, Luce. What if they catch you?” Jimmy asked angrily.
“They won’t.” Lucy retorted taking a deep breath. “No one knows it was me and it’s going to stay that way.”
“You don’t think anyone’s going to connect the dots that Lois Lane, star reporter for the Planet got a scoop on corruption at the Metropolis P.D. at the same time her little sister started working there?”
“What they were doing was wrong,” Lucy said irritably. “What is the big deal? You work for the Planet!! I thought you’d be happy about this.”
“Well, it’s hard to get excited about something that could put your life and career in jeopardy.” Jimmy snapped angrily.
“She and Clark were very careful,” Lucy responded calmly.
“You shouldn’t have done something like this without talking to me first,” Jimmy said, shaking his head.
“I wasn’t going to become an accessory to a crime, and I wasn’t going to get fired for doing the right thing. This was the only way I could think of to stop it.” Lucy explained, trying to portray a calm she didn’t feel at the moment.
“And now you’ve put a target on your back, and your sister’s,” Jimmy said, narrowing his eyes at her. “You really think it’s all going to just go away because someone printed a few articles?”
***
“You ready?” Lois asked, walking up the steps to the courthouse with Clark.
“As I’ll ever be.” He nodded, taking her hand in his. “You okay?” he asked, nudging her chin to look at him.
“Just a little tired.” She gave him a weak smile. He nodded and placed a supportive hand on her back. She took a deep breath, concentrating on the feeling of being near him.
She was still reeling from the information she’d found out from her father. Clarks’ ship. The organization had his ship. What if they were right? What if they could use it to hurt him? A protective hand moved instinctually over her growing abdomen as another thought occurred to her. What if they found a way to harm their child?
“Hey, reporter man! Got a match?”
Lois and Clark looked over to see Baby Rage being led into the courthouse in chains with a greasy looking lawyer. Her eyes narrowed as she recalled the photos she’d seen of Martin Snell. She’d done her research on him after Superman’s run-in with him.
“Just ignore him,” Clark said, tightening his grip on Lois as Baby Rage walked by with Martin Snell in tow.
“Tick Tock. Tick Tock.” Baby Rage called laughing to himself as he was escorted through another entrance of the courthouse.
“Snell is Baby Rage’s attorney too?” Lois echoed in disbelief.
“Come on,” Clark said, holding her close as they walked through the courthouse doors. Sections had been closed off by security to check each person for any weapons. After making their way through security, they found the waiting area outside courtroom 2B.
Lois looked around, noting the absence of Mayson Drake. “She’s late.” Lois glanced at her watch. “It’s eight-thirty-five.”
“You
really don’t like her, do you?” Clark commented with an amused expression, taking a seat next to her in the waiting area.
“Let’s just say she hasn’t given me any reason to,” Lois said as if that explained everything.
“She is helping put your uncle’s arsonist away.” Clark reminded her.
“That is her job.” Lois sniffed, not willing to give Mayson any points for something that was required of her.
“There’s your Uncle Mike.” Clark pointed across the aisle where Mike was making his way through the security checkpoint.
“And
Mayson,” Lois said unenthusiastically.
“Lois, you’re getting that tone in your voice.” He warned.
“What tone?” she asked innocently.
“That any second claws are gonna pop out of your paws.” He grinned at her, leaning in to whisper. “I’m gonna have to get you a saucer of milk.”
“Meow.” She teased, offering him a playful grin.
***
Outside the courthouse, a tall, slender man in an officer’s uniform adjusted his uniform as he stepped out of the limo. He carried a black briefcase with him as he walked toward the courthouse steps, timing each step with precision.
“Officer, this way,” one of the guards motioned for him to enter through a different entrance that didn’t require a security check.
“Thank you,” he said in a Hindi accent as he made his way toward courtroom 2B.
Through the transmitting device, he had in his ear the voice of Lex Luthor could be heard, “Are you with me Asabi? On my orders, leave the briefcase outside the main waiting area.”
“Yes, Mr. Luthor.” He spoke with a grin as he watched the waiting area was emptied of witnesses as they entered their prospective courtrooms.
TBC…
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