Rules of Love
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 4
***
The next morning, Jimmy logged into his workstation at the Planet ready to run a search on the main systems he’d been monitoring for various stories reporters were working on. Just as the final search began to load, a familiar name appeared on his screen, and he frowned, looking at the name in confusion. He waited for the search to finish then double clicked on the item.
***
Lois and Clark walked with Bobby Bigmouth through the crowded diner he’d agreed to meet them at. “Ramin Tarbush? Yeah, last I heard he was living on the street and getting his meals at the homeless shelter on Union Street.” Bobby said taking a bite of the pastry in his hand.
“His probation officer said he hadn’t shown up in over a week,” Clark commented, looking back at Lois who was eying the less than sanitary table Bobby had chosen to sit down at uncertainly.
“Yeah, word on the street is his old lady kicked him out, and he fell off the wagon about a month ago.” Bobby shrugged, “That’s the way it goes sometimes.”
“Yeah,” Lois nodded, “Any idea what Tarbush would want with Sheldon Bender?”
“From what I gather it was a hired job. Came from way up the underworld food chain if you know what I mean.” Bobby said, taking a loud gulp of his orange juice.
Clark exchanged a look with Lois, “Intergang?” He wondered aloud.
“Nah, something or someone bigger,” Bobby said with a shrug. “Whoever it is is making waves.” Bobby let out an involuntary shudder.
“Who’s bigger than Intergang?” Lois questioned.
The loud simultaneous chirping from their beepers going off caused her to put that question on hold. Clark frowned, looking at his beeper. “Jimmy.”
“Same here,” Lois said, holding up the screen for him to see the same message in digital format.
“I guess we better get going and see what he wants.” Clark reasoned.
“Thanks for the information, Bobby. Enjoy your breakfast.”
“Always a pleasure doing business with you,” Bobby said with a mouthful of food.
***
The office was quiet, and the room was dim. The only light was a small lamp in the corner that needed the bulb changed and flickered. Sheldon Bender tugged on his tie nervously, watching as Lex Luthor paced in front of him. “Are you sure about this Lex? I mean, once you do this there’s no going back and I—”
Lex stopped mid-pace and glared at him, “Are you seriously trying to argue that you’re protecting me, Bender? You’re the last one I’d trust, but it seems fate has left all the cards in your hands—Just be grateful I haven’t ordered Nigel to take care of that situation.”
Bender looked over to the corner of the room where Nigel sat with his arms crossed over his chest and a dark expression crossed his face. “I—Y-yes, Lex.”
“Now, make the call,” Lex ordered, leaning in to glare at him with a piercing stare that he was sure would burn any remnants of a conscience that remained.
***
Lois stared at the sheet of paper in front of her, uncertain how to respond to the information Jimmy had presented her and Clark when they’d arrived at the Planet. The financial holdings for Sheldon Bender showed requests to unfreeze the personal assets of Lex Luthor pending. Another request to unfreeze LexCorp’s assets was listed as ‘under review.’
“I guess now we know why someone wanted to kidnap Bender,” Clark said, breaking the silence. “He had access to the finances of some of the biggest corporations in the world.”
“Yeah, but this request says certificate of death is a fraud.” Lois pointed to the reason listed in the report. “He’s got to know this will get denied. Why would he put his reputation on the line like this?”
“Maybe he thought he’d get lucky?” Jimmy shrugged, uncertain how to respond to her question. “I’m not really sure. As of last night, these cases weren’t active. As of 8:01 this morning petitions were filed and at 8:30 this morning the review board changed the status of this one to
‘in review.’ Which means they’re looking it over.”
Clark sighed, placing a tentative arm around her shoulders, “Maybe we should look into the original assets that were frozen after Luthor’s death and see why someone would go after them.”
“I’ll pull up everything I can find on LexCorp’s assets.” Jimmy nodded, standing up to head back into the bullpen.
“Not just LexCorp’s,” Lois interjected. “Pull up his personal assets along with everything you can find on Dr. Gretchen Kelly, Nigel St. John and his butler— Asabi…”
“You got it.” Jimmy nodded, leaving to deliver on their research request.
“Bobby said it was someone bigger than Intergang calling the shots.” Clark reasoned aloud.
“I guess this is the first shot,” Lois grumbled irritably, heading back into the bullpen.
“I left a message at the shelter,” Clark said, following her back to their desks. “Ramin’s still a no-show, but the direction said he’d call if he comes in.”
“Well, there’s some good news,” Lois said with a half-smile.
“Yeah, we just need to find—” Clark’s face stiffened, and a faraway expression crossed his features.
“What is it?” Lois looked at him in concern.
“There’s a jumper on the Metropolis Bridge.” He whispered, already tugging on his tie.
She sighed, “Be careful.”
He nodded, leaning in to kiss her before he headed toward the stairwell. She watched him leave, trying to squash the inner doubts that were creeping into the forefront of her mind. ‘He’ll be fine. He’s Superman after all.’ She told herself.
She took a seat at her desk and booted her computer up. Jimmy said he’d be gathering what information he could find on Lex’s personal holdings. Maybe she could do some research on her own. There was a lot she and Clark had found out since Lex’s death. Hopefully, she could find a clue of some sort to—
The phone on her desk rang, and she sighed, leaning over to answer it, “Lois Lane,”
“Ms. Lane? I do hope I didn't catch you at a bad time…” She heard Sheldon Bender’s oily voice from the other end of the line.
“Mr. Bender?” She said louder than necessary, motioning to Jimmy to come to her desk and listen with her as she placed the phone on speaker. “There are quite a few people looking for you.”
Jimmy hovered on the side of her desk, listening with her as Perry approached mouthing to her,
‘Sheldon Bender?’ “Yes, I’m aware there have been rumors of my kidnapping,” Bender spoke evenly. “I can assure you it’s all just a misunderstanding. An old prank from some of my old fraternity brothers that were in town.”
“I see,” Lois said, giving a ‘yeah right’ expression to Perry. “Well, we’re just glad you’re safe and sound.”
“Yes, so it would seem.” Bender’s voice dripped of ambivalence. “Which leads me to why I’m calling, Ms. Lane.”
“Oh?” Lois feigned surprise. “You didn’t call just to let us know you were okay?”
“No, no, Ms. Lane, I think you and I both know the only reason I’d be calling you is to negotiate terms for a client,” Bender replied smoothly.
“Yes, how is Mr. Thorp?” Lois shot back smugly.
“Still serving time.” Bender’s tone was bitter, and he cleared his throat. “I have information for you on something you’ll find fascinating I’m sure.”
“I don’t know. I’m not sure your idea of fascinating will meet my standards, Mr. Bender.” Lois looked back at Perry and Jimmy who were listening in with her. “But I’ll bite. What have you got?”
“My client wishes to share information with you on the woman that stole Lex Luthor’s body,” Bender said coolly.
Lois’ eyes widened, and she did her best to remain calm. “Oh?”
“I’d like to arrange a meeting for you at my office….in say half an hour?” Bender proposed.
Lois looked back at Perry who was shaking his head, ‘no’ to her. She waved him off, “Yes, I’ll be there.”
“I’m sure you remember where my office is, right?” Bender asked before hanging up the phone.
Lois sighed, hanging up the phone. “Great,”
“Lois, what in tarnation do you think you’re doing?” Perry barked at her gruffly as she stood up gathering her things.
“I’m going to find out what’s really going to meet Sheldon Bender and find out what his connection is to Gretchen Kelly,” Lois said matter-of-factly as she walked toward the elevator with Jimmy and Perry on her heels.
“Lois, now slow down here. Let’s talk about this.” Perry reasoned, “You and I both know Bender’s a weasel…” He looked around the newsroom. “Where’s Clark?”
“He had to run and meet a source.” Lois lied quickly before adding, “Which is what I’m about to do right now. I appreciate your concern, but I’ll be fine.”
“Just the same, Jimmy go with her,” Perry ordered.
“Perry!” Lois looked back at him with an irritated expression as she watched Jimmy race to his desk to grab his camera. She sighed, realizing there was no talking either of them out of it. “Fine. But you better not slow me down.”
“Be
careful.” Perry hollered after them.
***
Gretchen Kelly stood on the Metropolis Bridge with a red wig and colored contact lenses to disguise her appearance. A few feet away beneath where she stood Nigel was perched beneath the bridge with the Kryptonite sealed tightly in a small lead-lined box, ready to test it on Superman when he arrived.
She smiled to herself when she heard the sound of Superman’s arrival from up above. ‘Showtime.’ she thought to herself as she took a step toward the edge of the bridge, bracing herself for the jump.
***
The brass sign hung, creaking in the wind as Lois and Jimmy climbed the steps. The gold letters reflected brightly from the sun, reading,
‘Law Offices of Sheldon Bender.’ Lois frowned at the door handle that looked to be scratched. The rest of Sheldon Bender’s office exterior seemed to be in pristine condition.
“Everything okay?” Jimmy asked from behind her.
“Fine.” Lois lied, forcing the bile in her throat down. She wasn’t sure, but she had a feeling it wasn’t a client that had arranged this meeting. What if it was Gretchen Kelly? What would she do if she came face to face with her? There were several questions that had been plaguing her since Lex’s body had been stolen from the morgue. More questions arose after Dr. Kelly tried to kidnap Wandamae. What was her connection to Nigel?
“Lois?” Jimmy called her name again, and she took a deep breath.
“You’ve got your camera ready?” Lois asked, looking over her shoulder, turning the handle to the door.
“Yeah,” Jimmy patted the camera hanging from its strap around his neck.
“Let’s go.” Lois turned the handle and pushed the door opened. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw the empty waiting room. ‘See? You’re just making yourself crazy. Everything’s fine.’
“Doesn’t look like anyone’s here,” Jimmy said, looking around the room. “Come on, Lois, this place is giving me the creeps. Let’s get out of here.”
Lois frowned, looking around the room. Jimmy was right. It was creepy, but it was also an ample opportunity to find out what Sheldon Bender knew. She squared her shoulders and headed to the door at the end of the hallway that was slightly ajar. The name Sheldon Bender was etched into a gold plating on the door. “I’m not leaving here till I get some answers.” She said, looking back at him. “You can leave if you want…”
Jimmy followed her down the hall, “This is not a good idea, Lois. This guy’s a lawyer.”
“A crooked one with connections to Intergang and other criminals. Don’t you want to know why he lured us down here?” Lois asked, opening the door to Bender’s office.
“Not really,” Jimmy muttered, flipping through the files on Bender’s desk as she turned to look through his planner. There was a red circle around today’s date with the words ‘test’ written in all caps. “Hey, Lois?”
She turned to Jimmy who was holding up a passport and New Troy driver’s license with a very familiar face on it. “What in the world?” Lois gasped, grabbing the passport to get a better look. There in front of her was the face of Lex Luthor —albeit a very bald and disheveled looking one.
“I see you’ve made yourself at home, Ms. Lane,” a voice from behind her spoke.
She turned to see Sheldon Bender standing in the doorway, “Bender,” She waved the passport in his face. “What kind of scheme are you trying to play here? Stealing your dead clients’ identities?”
“Still sticking your nose in where it doesn’t belong, eh, Ms. Lane?” Bender chided, pulling a gun out and aiming it at them. “How about we have that chat with my client now?”
She and Jimmy held their hands up, following Bender’s directions to go back into the waiting area where two very large thugs stood on one end of the room, and a familiar looking man in a wheelchair sat across from them. It was the man from last night. “Ms. Lane, so good of you to join us.”
Jimmy took a step closer to her as she eyed the office door that was a few feet away from them. She peered at the man, feeling the same uneasiness she’d felt when she’d encountered him last night outside City Hall. She felt a chill go down her spine. “Who are you?” she asked.
The man motioned to Bender to step aside. Lois noticed the fear in Bender’s eyes as he moved away from the man. Could this be the person Bobby had warned them about? She glanced back at Jimmy who stood nearby, placing a protective hand on her shoulder. She smiled at the kind gesture, knowing he was probably as nervous as she was.
“What’s he doing here?” the man asked, turning his head toward Jimmy.
“A miscalculation on my part,” Bender said, eyeing Jimmy with mild irritation.
“It’s no matter.” the man said, waving him off.
It had taken her hours to calm down after her encounter with him last night. The reminder of her almost-wedding to Lex was like an anvil, weighing on her mind and heart all day. Clark like always knew what to do to make her feel better. In the end, they both felt closer to one another —Clark. How far away was the Metropolis Bridge from here? Could he hear her if she screamed?
“Do you know the story of the Phoenix?” the man asked, removing his hat and setting his hat down on the wheelchair. It seemed he had no trouble standing on his own. The disability he’d feigned had been for show.
“Of course.” Lois found her voice. “The sacred bird that was reborn, rising from its own ashes.” She gasped noticing he was now tugging at his neck as if to remove more of his disguise.
The man’s jaw jutted out firmly as he tugged at the prosthetic skin from the bottom half of his face. “When I was a little boy my mother told me that story.”
“Lois…” Jimmy whispered in her ear, but she couldn’t respond. All she could do was stare in horror as she came face to face with the man that had caused her and Clark so much pain. The man that had taken so much from her—nearly killed Clark.
“I always liked the part where he came back from the dead,” Lex said, his voice just as smooth as it had always been. “It's good to see you again, Lois.” He smiled at her.
She stared at him in shock, unable to fathom what her mind was screaming at her was impossible. “Lex?” She barely spoke his name unable to say more.
He smiled, stepping toward her, “ Did you think I wouldn't come back for you?”
Memory after memory came back to her as she tried to process what was happening. “Just stay back,” Jimmy whispered to her.
“Lois, I've lost everything. My fortune, my reputation...everything but my feeling for you. We must take the miracle of my resurrection as a sign that even death can't keep us apart.” Lex said, reaching his arm out toward her.
Jimmy grabbed it, “Don’t even think about it.”
“How... how did this... ?” Lois stammered, looking up and down, trying to fathom what was happening. Lex was alive. He was alive and standing in front of her.
“Never question a miracle. We're together again, and that's all that matters.” Lex stated with a warm smile. She could feel her skin crawl, and her nerves go on edge. How was this possible?
She didn’t know what made her do it. Maybe it was all the emotions that had been stirred up over her investigation into Nigel and Gretchen Kelly. Maybe it was the reminder of how close she’d come to losing the one person that meant everything to her. Or it could have been the fact that he’d single-handedly destroyed her life and nearly killed Clark. Either way, it didn’t matter. What did matter was how good it felt when her hand came in contact to deliver the hard blow across his face.
***
Just as Clark flew over the bridge, the redhead standing on the ledge lept into the air. He quickly flew down, scooping her into his arms and carrying her to safety on the bridge where paramedics and officers were standing by. “It’s okay, miss, I’ve got you.”
She didn’t respond.
He looked at her with concern as they landed in the middle of the bridge. He watched in concern as paramedics began looking her over. He walked with one of the officers he recognized away from the small crowd that had begun to gather. “Thanks, Superman, no clue what happened. One minute she’s fine and about to come off the ledge and the next she jumps.”
“Did she seem upset?” Clark asked, frowning as he watched the woman from a distance. Something didn’t feel right.
“No, like I said she was about to climb down — or that’s what she was making us believe.” the officer said with a grunt.
Clark felt a familiar pain wash over his body and shook his head, trying to find the source of it.
‘Trap.’ He thought to himself, cradling his head in his hands.
“Superman? You okay?” the officer asked in concern.
Just as quickly as the pain came, it left. He looked up and nodded, “Sorry. You were saying?” He glanced over to where the woman had been a moment before and frowned when he saw two paramedics cradling their heads and no sign of the woman.
***
Lois stared back at Lex seething in anger. He tapped the cheek she’d just struck and commented mildly, “I guess I deserved that.”
“You rotten, despicable, disgusting sociopathic killer…” She fumed angrily as Jimmy pushed her back.
“I see Superman wasted no time in turning you against me.” He replied coolly.
“Don’t you dare try to turn this around on him. You have no right after what you did!” Lois shouted venomously.
“Oh, don’t I?” He took a step toward her and Jimmy stretched his arm out to protect her from whatever Lex might try to do.
“You stay away from her,” Jimmy said, trying to muster a confidence in his voice that would be equal to Lex’s menacing gaze.
“Still the errand boy, eh, Mr. Olsen?” Lex looked to Bender, “Get him out of here.”
Lois’ eyes widened when she saw the two thugs stand up as Bender motioned to Jimmy, “No!”
Bender nodded to the two men, and Lois pulled Jimmy back to allow room for her to deliver a hard kick to the first thug’s abdomen as he advanced toward them. He fell down fast, and Lois took advantage of his distraction to make a run for it. She heard a fumble from behind her. Lex raged, “After them!”
“Run!” she heard Jimmy yell from behind her as she flung the door open and raced the few blocks to where she’d parked.
“Help! Superman!” She yelled between panting breaths, as she reached the other side of the street. One block then two...Why did she park so far away? She didn’t dare look behind her.
She felt a cold burst of air against her cheek, and two arms grab her from behind. She gasped in surprise, turning to see Clark’s look of concern. She looked to the side and saw Clark had grabbed Jimmy as well. “Just hold on.” He said coming in to land next to her Jeep.
She let out a deep breath, holding in tears as her feet hit the ground. She didn’t dare look up at Clark for fear she’d give his identity away to Jimmy. “Lois?” She did her best to stifle a sob to no avail, and he turned to Jimmy, “Jimmy, why don’t you see if you can call…”
Clark. She could tell from the tone of his voice he was going to try and switch identities. It would have been fine any other time, but right now Superman needed to find Lex. He needed to… “Wait!” She croaked out.
“Lois?” Clark looked at her in concern.
Jimmy was still panting heavily but managed to squeak out, “Luthor...He-he’s alive.”
Clark looked at Jimmy in disbelief then back at Lois. She nodded tearfully, “It’s true.”
“Bender.” Jimmy panted, pointing back to where they’d been running from. “Two big guys. I...I broke his nose.”
Lois and Clark exchanged a look as Jimmy straightened up, catching his breath. “Where was this?” Clark asked.
“Sheldon Bender’s office. Lex was there with Bender and his thugs.” Lois explained.
“Stay here,” Clark ordered, disappearing into a blur of red and blue.
Jimmy looked back at her in amusement. “You’re going to make me go back there aren’t you?”
Lois shrugged, “Well, it’s safe now.”
***
Every turn seemed to be bringing them further and further into the Metropolis sewer system. A fact Sheldon Bender was painfully aware of as the stench from the sewers burned his eyes, causing them to water. He stole a glance behind him at Lex who was fiddling with the mobile phone in his hand.
“Still nothing!” Lex fumed, as Bender heard the scurrying sound of rodents around them.
He was quiet, and Bender let out a sigh. Ever since they’d escaped out the back door of his office, Lex had been dialing a number on his phone relentlessly. When the person on the other end didn’t answer, he slammed it down and grumbled under his breath about incompetent people. He knew he was in trouble. It was only a matter of time before Lex decided to get rid of him. He had to make his move if he was going to survive this.
He heard a grunt from behind him before he was shoved against the cold metal ladder leading above ground. “Get moving,” Lex ordered, pointing above them to the manhole cover that had three holes in it, letting in just a smidgen of sunlight for him to see with.
“Yes, Lex,” Bender replied coolly, grabbing hold of the metal ladder and beginning to climb.
***
Mayson Drake walked into her office, deep in thought as she read over her notes on the latest case. Another sighting of Nigel St. John had been reported along with Lex Luthor’s doctor, Gretchen Kelly. This time it was in the middle of the day.
She reached her desk and frowned when she saw an unmarked package sitting on the chair. She wasn't expecting any deliveries. She set her file down and poked her head outside her office, “Doris?”
The blonde haired secretary looked up from her keyboard, “Yes, Ms. Drake?”
“There’s a package on my desk,” Mayson stated, frowning at her in disapproval.
“Yes, a gentleman came by earlier with it. He said he was an old friend of yours…” Doris said with a wide grin. “Quite a cutie too.”
“Did you get a name?” Mayson asked, looking at Doris impatiently.
“Yes, he said it was a gift from a ‘Mr. Snell.’” Doris said with a grin. She held up a note on a familiar looking stationary. She’d seen the stationary countless times in her investigations into Intergang. It was the calling card left on the victims.
“Call the police,” Mayson ordered.
“But don’t you want to read the note?” Doris asked.
“No!” Mayson barked, “Call the police now!”
***
Clark stood inside Sheldon Bender’s law office, staring at the two burly men that looked to be unconscious. There was no way Jimmy alone had done that to them. One of the men had a bloody nose but the other was bruised and bloodied all over, and both looked to have injuries to the back of the head. After a quick scan with his x-ray vision, he found no internal bleeding. ‘Well, they’ve got that going for them.’ he thought to himself. From the disarray of papers and knocked over file cabinets, it was apparent that some kind of struggle had occurred here.
<<“Luthor...He-he’s alive.”>> No three words struck so much fear into him as those that Jimmy had spoken earlier. He had scanned the entire building and found no sign of Sheldon Bender or the supposed resurrected Lex Luthor. Still, he believed Lois and Jimmy. If Luthor was alive he knew it was only a matter of time before he tried to get his empire back…
‘Lois.’ Fear filled his mind with all the worst case scenarios of what would happen if Luthor tried to come after Lois again.
“Looks like they left quite a mess.” a familiar voice said from the doorway.
He looked up and saw Bill Henderson with Lois and Jimmy right behind him. He shot an annoyed expression to her but knew he couldn’t even pretend to be mad at her for not listening to him. She had called the police.
“What have we got here, Superman?” Henderson asked, surveying the scene with a tight jaw before looking to him for guidance.
“I found Ms. Lane and Mr. Olsen a few blocks from here.” Clark took a deep breath, uncertain how to even begin to explain the story he’d been told. “They said they were running from these guys.” He gestured to the unconscious men, “and apparently a resurrected Lex Luthor.” His face tensed, preparing himself for the look of disbelief he was sure to come.
Henderson let out a long sigh, “So I’ve been told.” He glanced back at Lois and Jimmy. “Almost didn’t believe them until I was showed the brand new passport for a Mr. Levi Lockhart.” He held up the passport for Clark to inspect. “Looks like he’s trying to make a run for it.”
“I’ve searched the building. They’re not here.” Clark frowned, staring at the image of Lex Luthor staring back at him from the passport in his hand.
“I’ll call this in.” Henderson said, pulling out his phone and stepping outside.
Lois walked up to him, running her hands up and down her arms, “Where do you think they disappeared to?”
“Wherever it is let’s hope they stay gone.” Jimmy interjected, looking back at Clark with anger. “That guy was unbelievable! After everything he did and he’s acting like nothing’s changed…”
“I know.” Lois said uneasily, pacing around the room.
“Like nothing’s changed?” Clark asked uncertain that he wanted the answer.
Lois looked down, unwilling to divulge the information. Whatever it was he could tell it had shaken her. “Jimmy, we should head back to the Planet.” He saw her wipe her hand across her cheek. He wasn’t certain but the wavering of her vocal cords told him she was trying to hide the fact that she’d been crying from him.
“Lois?” He called out, “Are you okay?”
“Fine.” She said curtly, turning on her heel. “I just need to get going.” She motioned for Jimmy to follow. “Come on, Jimmy, Perry’s probably worried sick and I’m sure Clark’s looking for us too.” Her voice rose an octave on his name and Clark nodded, watching them leave with a sigh.
The sound of the ambulance outside could be heard and he sighed. It looked like it would be a little longer before he had any real answers from Lois. Right now, Superman needed to finish giving his statement to Henderson.
***
Lex slammed the phone closed, hearing the voicemail message from Nigel once more. Gone. His last message from Gretchen had been confirming the authenticity of the Kryptonite and the go ahead with the plan to escape separately. Unfortunately, he’d be traveling much lighter than he’d originally intended. Sheldon Bender had been picked up on his way to make the withdrawal from his account.
Now all he had to his name was what he’d been able to pull out this morning. It seemed he was now without the Kryptonite. He’d placed his trust in the wrong person once more. Now it was time to reclaim what belonged to him. His revenge on Nigel would have to wait.
Survival was what mattered now.
***
TBC...
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