Injustice
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 9: You're Gonna Hear Me Roar
____________________________________________
Three Years Ago…Lois cradled the phone between her neck and shoulder, listening to her mother gush her thanks for letting her watch Jon for the night. She let out a heavy sigh as she replied, “Well, I’m sure Jon will have fun. Thanks, mom, I have a few leads I’m trying to run down and really appreciate the help.”
“Well, of course, what are grandparents for?” She heard her mother’s tone change to baby gibberish and fought back the laughter.
“Well, I’m going to let you go. Thanks again,” Lois said before her mother could argue and then pulled the keys out of her purse to unlock the first set of doors leading into the townhome. Something felt eerily different about the small space between the outdoor entryway. She craned her neck to fumble for the light switch, flicking it on.
Nothing.
She let out a long breath, shaking her head and then turning her attention back to the front door she was trying to unlock. The wood panel flooring she stood on creaked beneath the weight of her body, and she jumped, startled by the sound. She turned around, checking once more to ensure she was indeed alone.
This time she wasn’t alone, though.
She felt her heart lurch in her chest when she saw Clark standing in the doorway behind her. The strain from the day weighed heavily on him as he met her gaze just long enough to turn away.
“Are you okay?”
Her voice cracked under the enormous pressure she felt, staring into his dark chocolate brown eyes and wondering what to say or ask after his disappearance this morning.
Clark shook his head, burying his hands in his pockets, “I honestly have no idea…” He looked around the foyer, frowning before asking, “Where’s Jon?”
“Staying the night with his Grammy,” Lois sighed, taking a step toward him. “I figured the two of them could catch up while I worked on trying to figure out what happened this morning…”
His eyes clouded as he cast them downward, unable to stay eye-level with her. He reached his hand up to rake his fingers through his dark locks, turning away from her as he allowed an admission to escape his lips, “Somehow I ended up in Smallville, and I can’t remember how I got there. The last thing I remember is getting on the elevator this morning.”
“Wayne mentioned you were at the farmhouse earlier,” Lois folded her arms across her chest, trying to feign patience she didn’t feel at the moment. “He also said you were nursing a Kryptonite injury?”
Clark nodded, gesturing to his right shoulder, “He shot me with Kryptonite…seemed to jog me out of whatever had made me think flying around Smallville was a good idea.”
“I’m sorry, he did what?” Lois gasped, trying to process what he had just told her.
“It’s fine,” he waved his hand through the air as he paced in front of her. “Well, there is the whole part about Wayne digging up every piece of green kryptonite he could find in Schuster’s field and burying it under his barn…”
“What?!” Lois let out a sharp growl as she lowered herself on the floor, leaning her head back against the wood panel against the wall behind her. “I’m gonna need you to repeat that.”
Clark stopped mid-pace in front of her. His jaw tightened as he reached up to tap his hand against the side of it and let out a long breath, “After Luthor’s trial, apparently he and my dad sat down and mapped out where the Kryptonite could have been according to where the ship landed. He dug it all up and stashed it with the remains of the Kryptonite that had been left at his place from Bureau 39.”
“So, he knows?” Lois ventured, putting the pieces together.
“Yeah,” Clark nodded. “He put the pieces together after the incident with Trask…”
Lois buried her face in her hands, “Great. That’s just…great.” She shook her head, “And so I guess I should thank him for shooting you with …Kryptonite? No, I’m still not okay with that. He shot you.” She slammed her fist on the floor beneath her. “How long were you stuck in Smallville? Why were you in Smallville of all places? Your parents don’t even live there anymore…”
“I honestly have no idea. I was there for a few hours,” Clark admitted, glancing downward. “It was cloudy out, so it took a little longer to build up the speed I needed to get back without being seen.”
“You have been gone all day,” Lois whispered harshly, burying her head in her hands. “Do you have any idea how worried I was? Could you seriously not pick up the phone and call me?”
Clark sighed, hanging his head, “I’ve been trying to track down what happened. I’m sorry. You’re right. I should have called.” He lowered himself down on the floor next to her. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I just…have no idea what I’m dealing with here.”
Her tone softened when he took a seat next to her, “We’re dealing with.” She corrected him, reaching her hand over to squeeze his kneecap through the dark slacks he was wearing.
He let out a labored breath, “I went to see Pete and had him run some tests to see if he could find anything.”
“You didn’t want to have Dr. Klein check you out?” Lois asked, surprised.
“Nebraska was closer, and I was still nursing an injury from Kryptonite poisoning,” Clark answered. “Anyway, he wasn’t able to find anything.”
“I had Jimmy pull the security tape from the lobby to see if there was anything on there. I haven’t watched it yet.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Bill Church Jr. decided threatening Perry was a good thing to add to the list of things to do today.”
Clark nodded, seemingly distracted until he finally asked, “Lois, what happened this morning?”
Lois glanced to where Clark was seated and let out a shallow breath. “You really don’t remember?”
“I remember Perry telling us about the lawsuit and then leaving to go meet with the Planet’s legal team and then everything after that is blank.” Clark shook his head in frustration.
Lois reached her hand over to take his hand in hers, “There were gunmen in the lobby. You disappeared down the corridor to change then arrived to stop them as Superman. Then all of a sudden, it was like you were just a different person. Perry was arguing with you to stop them, and it was like you just didn’t care…”
Clark bit his lower lip, shaking his head, “He must hate me.”
“No, he was just worried about you.” Lois gave his hand a squeeze. “We all were.”
The anguish that covered his face tugged at her heartstrings as she pondered how to pull him out of the turmoil filled fog he appeared to be trapped in and force him to focus on the here and now. His fingers threaded through hers, tightening into a fist as he held her hand in his, rubbing his thumb against the diamond that shimmered beneath the lights from up above.
“I guess the important thing is that whatever happened seemed to have been temporary.”
“We can only hope,” Clark let out a heavy sigh, withdrawing from her touch.
“Clark,” Lois reached her hand out to touch him, and he held his hand up.
“I have no idea what happened, Lois. No memory. What if it happens again?”
“What if it doesn’t?” Lois argued, trying to draw him out of the mental prison he was insistent on locking himself in for his actions, which she was sure were brought on by the unwelcome guests that took over the Daily Planet. “Look, I have the tape. Let’s just go through it and see what we can find out.”
His anguished expression tore at her, leaving her feeling helpless as she sought to find an answer somehow within the abyss of self-doubt Clark had buried himself in. Finally, his resolve seemed to crack as he took her hand in his and allowed her to pull him into her arms. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt the familiar warmth of his body against hers and felt the intoxicating assault on her senses as he rested his head against hers.
________________________________________
Clark lowered his glasses, leaning on the edge of the couch, holding up the remote to playback the surveillance tape in slow motion. The masked men moved inside the lobby and waved their guns in the hostages’ faces as they seemed to be ordered to the wall. A few frames later, the elevator doors opened, revealing himself, Lois and Perry.
He scanned the entire frame, looking for anything out of place as he watched the scene unfold. The three of them were ordered to the wall, and a moment later, Perry was seen arguing with the gunmen. Clark disappeared out of the frame and reappeared as Superman.
“About there is when you started acting different,” Lois reached over to pause the footage. She got up from her seat on the couch, standing in front of the television, trying to find something in the footage to explain the change in behavior.
Clark nodded, setting his glasses down on the table as he examined the frame for anything out of place. He craned his neck, frowning as he got to the middle of the screen where the gunmen were surrounding the desk in the middle of the lobby.
“Do you see anything?” Lois inquired, looking back at him with a hopeful expression.
“Maybe,” Clark took the remote and backed the footage up a few frames and then paused it. “The guy on the left. It looks like he’s got something in the corner there.” He stood up, crossing the distance between himself and the screen, so he was an arm’s length away from the screen. He tapped on the screen and pointed at the blurry looking box sitting on the back counter of the desk.
“That’s the cash box, isn’t it?” Lois asked, kneeling forward to get a closer look.
“No, look…” Clark clicked the remote to play the footage, and for a brief moment, they saw the box open and then get moved off-screen. He rewound it again and paused it just as the box was opening. “That’s not cash.”
“Is that…?” Lois frowned, shaking her head.
“Kryptonite?” His nose scrunched up as he reached a hand up to comb through his hair with his fingertips. “But what I can’t figure out is why the usual side effects weren’t there. No pain. No nausea…”
“Well, whatever it is seemed to have changed your entire behavior,” Lois frowned, shaking her head.
“Well, if it is Kryptonite, then we at least have some explanation,” Clark let out a heavy sigh. “Even if it isn’t an explanation I like.”
“I wonder if Jimmy’s gotten anywhere on running those license plates.” She glanced toward the clock. “It’s too late to call…”
Clark reached over, wrapping an arm across her shoulders, “Probably a good idea to follow up in the morning.” He pointed to the time, “I doubt Jimmy’s up this late.”
She gave him a half-smile, “Yeah, I suppose. I guess we should put some hours in on finding a way to tie undeniable proof that the Churches are running Intergang, so we don’t get sued.”
“Superman could always testify,” Clark offered with a shrug. “I know it’s not the most ideal solution, but Church did admit to running Intergang to Superman.”
“I’d prefer to keep that as an Ace we can pull out at the last minute if needed,” Lois sighed and placed a hand across his chest as she rested her head against his shoulder, letting out a heavy sigh.
The faint hint of lavender from her shampoo and the light fragrance of her perfume teased his nostrils as he held her in his arms, savoring the rare quiet moment of just the two of them. Jon had spent a few nights with both his parents and Lois’ mother off and on – usually when they were covered up in an investigation. But that usually meant the two of them were pulling long hours in order to continue with the normal duties that came with their jobs when working on an investigation. Stakeouts, late night meetings with sources, and research that sometimes lasted into the late hours were just a few of the things they had learned to juggle over the last year.
The last year had brought its own challenges as they had learned to navigate their first year as newlyweds and parenthood. There were no assassins lurking in the shadows or criminal masterminds hunting them down, but the multitude of changes that had taken place over their relationship had their own challenges. It seemed life still wasn’t done throwing him curveballs. Just when he thought he had found the right balance between his duo-professional life and his role as father and husband, he found himself at the mercy of the many changes thrown his way.
“It’s getting late,” Clark whispered against her, the silky strands of her hair.
She lifted her head up from his chest, gazing into his eyes as she reached up to stroke his cheek, “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I am now,” he insisted, leaning over to cup her cheek. Her face broke into a grin as he drew her closer, capturing her lips with his.
“You know, it isn’t that late…” she murmured, running her palm up and down his chest as she looped her other arm around his neck.
Catching onto where she was going with her train of thought, he let out a low moan, scooping her into his arms, preparing to carry her upstairs, intent on forgetting the events that had transpired today. His hands wandered up and down her back, hooking her legs around his waist as he cradled her in his arms. He turned the corner, opting to take his time, savoring each caress as her hands roamed through his hair, savoring each open-mouthed kiss as he carried her toward the staircase.
The phone from the kitchen rang, and she groaned. “Let the machine get it…”
His hands wandered up the smoothness of her back, lifting the soft cotton to her blouse as the phone continued to blare in the background, demanding attention. She let out a soft giggle as his breath tickled her ear.
The final ring to the machine echoed in the background, and he sighed in relief when he heard the machine click on, playing the pre-recorded message. “Hi, you’ve reached Lois Lane and Clark Kent. We can’t get to the phone right now but if you leave a message at the beep, and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.”
Her ankles crossed against his backside as he sunk down at the base of the stairs, forgetting his earlier thoughts of carrying them upstairs. A low moan escaped the back of his throat as her body pressed against hers, allowing himself to be pulled into her warm embrace.
“Hey, Lois, CK, I know it’s late…” Jimmy’s voice echoed in the background.
“Not tonight, Jimmy…” Lois called out in-between open-mouthed kisses as she nibbled on his earlobe, running her hands up and down the back of his head.
“We got a hit on that license plate the Chief wanted me to run. You know the one from those robbers this morning?” Jimmy continued with the message, and Clark let out a groan.
“He can’t have gotten a response from the DMV already,” Lois murmured breathlessly as his hands moved up her sides, helping to tug the cotton blouse out of her dress slacks as her body moved with intoxicatingly precision against him.
“A Newtrich Engineering came back, and we got a partial image from the driver on the street cam. Seems to match a Gene Newtrich. I’m sending it over to you. We can go over everything in the morning.”
Clark let out a groan, lifting his head up from his current position as he murmured, “Newtrich Engineering? Didn’t they co-sponsor the CostMart Charity Ball?”
“And the founder, Gene Newtrich was a big donor to all the same politicians Bill Church was backing,” Lois flashed him a weak smile. “We could just follow-up in the morning.” Her index finger tip-toed against the top button of his dress shirt.
“Or we could just chase the lead down now and spend the rest of the night uninterrupted by Jimmy’s calls,” Clark let out a long breath, knowing full well now that the information was out there Lois wouldn’t be able to think about anything else.
“Hmm, see this is what makes us such a great team,” Lois purred, leaning in for one last kiss. “I’ll grab the camera. You get the tape recorder.”
________________________________________
Perry held his breath, flattening himself against the hallway as he waited for Bill Church Jr. to make his next move. He had followed him through most of the afternoon from a banquet at the country club to the local strip joint across from Bibbo’s. Now here they were at the old Metro Club with nothing but clad women and obnoxious music as Billy worked the room, passing money from one powerful hand to another.
He grimaced when he spotted the Police Chief rubbing elbows with Billy just before being granted a trip behind the red curtains with a woman young enough to be his grand-daughter clad in a white bikini. A man in a dark suit and carrying a metal box with him approached and led Church to the corner of the room, and Perry followed. He waited the acceptable time frame and craned his neck to spy if the duo were within his sight. He found the duo had disappeared behind another red curtain, but this one seemed different. He noticed the space between the curtain and wall appeared to be nearly non-existent. Curious, he pulled it back and found two doors. One led to an elevator with a keycard scanner that appeared to open it. The other was to a stairwell.
Perry smiled to himself, reaching over to pull the handle to the door and heard a click release when he turned the knob. He noticed the keypad on the wall inside the staircase that read ‘Unarmed’ and smiled to himself. Someone had forgotten to set the alarm.
________________________________________
Lois fiddled with the lock leading into the office of Gene Newtrich at the small engineering firm located in the heart of downtown Metropolis. She looked over her shoulder, ensuring that Clark was right behind her. “Looks like the coast is clear.”
“So, any idea what exactly we’re looking for?” Clark asked, scanning the office as he lowered his glasses and looked around the office, taking a super peak behind the locked cabinets.
“I’m not sure,” Lois said with a heavy sigh. There were plenty of blueprints spread out on one of the desks, along with disarrayed files scattered all around the office. She wasn’t entirely sure of where to begin looking. “Anything showing up with your scan?”
“That desk is painted in lead-lined paint,” Clark pointed to the desk in the corner.
Lois followed him to the desk and glanced over it, noting the file on top. “What’s he doing with a file on Bureau 39?”
Clark picked up one of the rolls of blueprints and tapped it, “I don’t know, but did you know CostMart has an entire underground bunker?” He unfolded the plans, pointing the plan out he had apparently picked up on the scan.
“That’s a whole lot of storage,” Lois commented, “Something tells me they’re not storing printer cartridges down there.”
“So, apparently, Church knows Newtrich well enough to trust him with building secret lairs in the CostMart stores,” Clark summarized, skimming through the blueprints, “But where does Bureau 39 fit in?”
“And how does it connect to Intergang?” Lois scrunched up her nose as she flipped through the file in her hand. “All that’s here are Trask’s ramblings about a Superman invasion.”
“Don’t remind me,” Clark rolled his eyes, shaking his head. He lowered his glasses, staring at the ground with intense concentration.
Lois looked at him, perplexed by the sudden shift, “What is it?”
“Just step back,” Clark instructed, motioning for her to take a few steps back. Effortlessly, he reached down to pull the desk toward him, pulling it away from the wall and revealing a digital panel on the wall.
“What in the world?” Lois wondered aloud. Clark focused on the area on the wall just above the panel, and it began to smoke just as the wall next to it slid open. Lois smiled, leaning up to give the collar to his shirt a flirtatious tug, “You’re pretty handy to have around.”
“After you,” Clark gestured to the dark entryway before them.
________________________________________
Perry looked around the dimly lit room the staircase led him to. Inside it were digital monitors with faces of some of the most notorious criminals plastered on the wall. He moved to the main monitor, noting the cryptic symbol that read ‘Intergang’ just below it. A rush of adrenaline ran through him as he fished out a small USB drive from his pocket and plugged it in.
A prompt on the desktop asked for a password.
He frowned, looking around the room in search of what the password could be, and then his gaze shifted to the photo Bill Church kept of Billy’s late mother.
‘Bingo,’ he thought to himself and typed her name in.
‘Password Accepted’ the computer prompt greeted him, and he quickly navigated through the directory searching for as much hard-hitting information he could that would tie Bill Church to the deadly organization once and for all.
He opened file after file, taking a photo of the screen with the pocket camera he had brought along with him. The photo quality might not be the best, but it would help serve as a backup if he needed it later. Then he found it. The motherload of information he had been searching for. A directory of all informants and paid off officials as well as lieutenants and officers for Intergang. He looked over his shoulder for the umpteenth time taking photo after photo of the file as it saved to the USB. He let out a heavy sigh, feeling his hand tremble as he reached down to pull the USB from the computer and make his escape.
He reached inside his pocket, pulling out his phone to message Alice. He frowned when he noticed the low bars on his phone. He’d have to message Alice later.
A sound came from the stairwell, and he quickly ducked behind the nearest cabinet, hiding his presence from the intruders. The voice was unmistakable as he entered the room. Bill Church Jr. stepped into the room, turning to his guest, “Once this deal with the Planet has been put to bed, we’ll see what we can do about mass producing that gold mine you’ve discovered, Gene. Rendering Superman apathetic with just a quick exposure is sure to rake in the millions for Intergang.”
“Of course, Mr. Church…” the other man agreed.
Perry looked down at his handheld recorder, smiling when he noticed the red blinking light, indicating it was recording. Alice always was prompt about changing out the batteries.
________________________________________
The dark corridor led them out into an underground bunker. Clark looked around the hallway, noting the cemented walls were reminiscent of the underground shelters around Metropolis. He turned to Lois, “Which way now?”
“You’re the one with the super senses,” Lois gestured to his glasses. “You tell me.”
Clark scanned the underground bunker they were in and shook his head, “I’m guessing they’re not keeping extra paper down here.”
Lois gestured to the familiar emblem on the wall and the high-tech security, “No, but I think it’s safe to say we’ve found Intergang’s headquarters.” She pointed to the photo of a younger Bill Church Sr. and much younger Martin Snell shaking hands in front of an older CostMart store with an inscription of ‘Intergang Sector 1 – 1973.’
“Lois, someone’s coming,” Clark whispered, pulling her back behind a large cemented column.
She craned her neck to look and gasped when she saw who it was, “Perry?”
“Lois?” Perry’s eyes widened as he approached them, ushering them back. “You need to get out of here now. Run!”
Before they could begin their retreat, Clark turned and found himself facing the barrel of a very large pistol with Bill Church Jr. holding it uncomfortably close to Lois. Another man came from behind and grabbed Perry, holding his own pistol on him.
“Well, well, what do we have here?” Church crooned, bringing the barrel of his pistol closer to Lois and then pulling it back, taunting them as he called out, “Now, Perry really I thought you were better than this? Stalking?”
“It’s called being a reporter,” Perry shot back, unfazed by the weapon being held on him.
“Look around you, Perry,” Church gestured to the enormous space around them. “Does this look like a criminal organization? We’re just like any other business. We’ve found a market, and we’ve made it work.”
“By exploiting people’s weaknesses for your gain,” Clark remarked bitterly. “Not the most legal business model.”
“Well, the offer is only open to one of you,” Church turned his attention to Perry, “I’m a sentimental man. You and dad go back a long time, and well, we all know I can’t very well let you leave here with that USB drive.” He flashed him a sinister smile. “Join the Intergang family, and you and Alice will be taker care of for life.” He gestured to Lois and Clark, “Now, of course, you two will have to die. I can’t have Intergang’s headquarters being plastered on the cover of every media outlet.” He stopped in front of Perry, holding the pistol on Lois as he asked, “So, what do you say, Perry? Are you ready to join the Intergang family?”
“Perry, don’t,” Lois called out to him. “He’s a snake, and you know it. The minute he gets his hands on it, he’ll come after you and Alice.”
Perry was quiet for a long moment before finally breaking the silence, “All I have to do for all this is, what? Give up my pride, my integrity? Throw away the public trust I’ve earned through thirty-five years of hard work?
‘Back off’ on my responsibility to give the American people the truth?”
Bill Church, Jr. nodded, “Basically.”
“Yeah, well, I won’t do it.” Perry snapped back, glaring at Bill Church Jr.
Lois gestured to the elevator a few feet away, “Clark, do you think you can get us over there to take cover?”
“Not without blowing my cover to Church,” Clark whispered back.
Church stared at Perry for a long moment, wearing a slightly amused smile as he finally spoke up. “You know, I talked to your mom today.”
“My mom?” Perry echoed, slightly confused.
“What’s he up to?” Lois wondered aloud.
“I don’t know, but whatever Perry’s got on him has got to be big,” Clark gestured to the man standing behind Perry. “There are two more guns on him around the corner.”
“Love the rest home. Very tasteful. She’s in great shape for a woman her age. She cheats at bridge, but she’s in great shape. She sends her love.” Church smiled broadly, keeping the pistol trained on Lois as he spoke, and Clark edged his way in front of her, trying to ensure she was out of the line of fire. Church waved the pistol in Clark’s direction, “Nice try, Mr. Kent, but Ms. Lane’s time is up…” His gaze grew dark, “No one is walking out of here alive.”
“My mother would twist your head off if she knew what you’d done,” Perry growled back at Church.
Bill Church Jr. nodded, “No doubt,” He laughed to himself. “Oh, and I’ve been meaning to drop by and see Alice’s new office. She’s in television now, right?” Perry just stared blankly back at Church. “Don’t you think she deserves a new car? After a few years, things start to go wrong… like brakes.”
Perry’s face turned red as he glared back at Church, hearing the underlying threat. “Now, Billy, you and me…. We go way back. Listen to what you’re saying, son…” His tone turned hysterical as he lunged toward Church, “This is Alice you’re talking about! This is Alice!”
“Run!” Lois tugged on his arm, pulling him with her toward the elevator doors, he aimed a beam of heat vision at the elevator panel, forcing the doors open.
“Run, Lois! Get out of here!” Perry hollered after them.
Clark glanced over his shoulder and spotted Perry heading toward them at full-speed. He slowed down, realizing the elevator car was missing. A gunshot fired, and he stopped in front of the elevator shaft, staring at the lonely cable. Perry came to a stop next to him, and he turned to see Church and Newtrich, making their way toward them with their weapons drawn.
“I guess this is the end of the road, boys, and girls.” Church chuckled.
Newtrich patted a metal box in his hands and added, “And with this baby, Superman won’t be here to help you.”
“What are you talking about?” Lois fumed, feigning ignorance.
Clark grimaced as the box opened, and he found himself face to face with the glowing red stone. Church chuckled as he pointed it out, “Red Kryptonite. My boys guarantee it’s genuine. Only difference is instead of killing Superman, it makes him apathetic. He just doesn’t care.”
The pistol moved toward Lois, and Clark felt the strong impulse to just fly away. He didn’t want to be here. He didn’t want to worry about Church or having to capture him and deal with the lawlessness of Intergang. He just wanted to go home.
The shot fired, and before he could think about it, he grabbed Perry and Lois and took them into the elevator shaft with him, stopping at the last second, floating just above the elevator car that was several feet down.
“Superman?” Perry called out to him.
________________________________________
Lois stole a glance to where Clark was standing about a foot away from her, trying to assess options for how to get both herself and Clark away from Church but to also finagle Perry from the goon that had his gun trained on Perry away from him. A scowl crossed her face as she stared at the goon’s face, recognizing him from the partial image Jimmy had sent over. Gene Newtrich.
“All I have to do for all this is, what? Give up my pride, my integrity? Throw away the public trust I’ve earned through thirty-five years of hard work?
‘Back off’ on my responsibility to give the American people the truth?” Perry asked, slow to answer Church’s ultimatum.
“Basically.” Church shrugged with an egotistical grin that made her sick to her stomach.
“Yeah, well, I won’t do it.” Perry snapped. Lois felt an immense sense of pride rush through her as she watched Perry stand up to Church.
Lois craned her neck, looking across from where they were standing, wondering how hard it would be to sprint to where the elevators were. She whispered to him, just barely audible, hoping not to draw attention to herself. “Clark, do you think you can get us over there to take cover?”
“Not without blowing my cover to Church,” Clark whispered back.
“You know, I talked to your mom today.” Church’s words caught her attention as he continued to sway the pistol in his grip.
“My mom?” Perry’s face scrunched up in confusion.
“What’s he up to?” Lois barely got the question out in an audible tone as she shifted her gaze to where Clark was, wondering if he’d heard her.
“I don’t know, but whatever Perry’s got on him has got to be big,” Clark raised his eyebrows, gesturing to where Newtrich was standing behind Perry. “There are two more guns on him around the corner.”
“Love the rest home. Very tasteful. She’s in great shape for a woman her age. She cheats at bridge, but she’s in great shape. She sends her love.” Church smiled broadly, waving the pistol around as he kept it rained on her. She noticed Clark kept moving closer in an attempt to get between her and the pistol in Church’s hands. Church seemed to have figured him out and finally stopped, pointing the pistol at Clark, “Nice try, Mr. Kent, but Ms. Lane’s time is up…” His eyes darkened as a sinister expression washed over him, “No one is walking out of here alive.”
“My mother would twist your head off if she knew what you’d done,” Perry growled out, drawing Church’s attention back to him.
Church. nodded, “No doubt,” He let out a laugh, more to himself than anyone. “Oh, and I’ve been meaning to drop by and see Alice’s new office. She’s in television now, right?” Perry just stared blankly back at Church as he continued. “Don’t you think she deserves a new car? After a few years, things start to go wrong… like brakes.”
Lois gasped out in surprise when she saw fury flood across Perry’s face before he stepped forward, placing a hand on Church’s shoulder. “Now, Billy, you and me…. We go way back. Listen to what you’re saying, son…” His tone turned hysterical as he lunged toward Church, “This is Alice you’re talking about! This is Alice!”
“Run!” Lois reached over to grab Clark’s arm, pulling him with her as she lunged toward the elevator doors. She knew he couldn’t do anything super right now. But if they could get to the elevator car, then Clark could get the cover he needed to change and stop Church and Newtrich.
“Run, Lois! Get out of here!” Perry hollered after them.
Lois glanced over her shoulder, relieved to see Perry rushing toward them at full-speed. She let out a shriek when she heard a gunshot sound and then stopped when she reached the open elevator shaft. There was no elevator car. What were they supposed to do now?
She craned her neck, stealing a glance toward the approaching assailants wondering what to do now. Clark could stop them, but then he’d be putting their entire family at risk. They still didn’t know how connected Intergang was in the criminal world. Risking their family wasn’t a bet she was willing to make, and she suspected that was the only reason he hadn’t whisked them out of there already.
“I guess this is the end of the road, boys, and girls.” Church chuckled.
Newtrich patted a metal box in his hands and added, “And with this baby, Superman won’t be here to help you.”
“What are you talking about?” Lois fumed, feigning ignorance as she eyed the box.
‘Kryptonite.’ She realized as he lifted the box lid open and revealed the glowing red stone.
“Red Kryptonite. My boys guarantee it’s genuine. Only difference is instead of killing Superman, it makes him apathetic. He just doesn’t care.” Church chuckled as he moved the pistol toward her.
The shot fired, and she closed her eyes, certain Clark knew what he was doing. She felt a strong force press against her, helping plummet her down the elevator shaft. Her eyes fluttered open, and she stared into her husband’s eyes, feeling a rush of adrenaline course through her as he cradled her in his arms.
She opened her mouth to speak but found herself unable to vocalize the thousands of thoughts racing through her mind. They were safe. She knew that much. Clark had stopped them from plummeting down below to where the elevator car was. Judging from the lack of anything she felt below her, she could assess they were floating above the car.
Perry’s voice intruded her thoughts, “Superman?”
Lois immediately went into protective mode, racking her brain for a way to explain this away. Try as she might, she couldn’t think of an excuse that would explain how Clark – not Superman – was floating a few inches from the elevator car below them. There was no other explanation to give him.
All that was left was the truth.
“Perry, I can explain…” Lois began quickly, watching as Clark spun into his Superman suit after setting them down on their feet.
Perry held up a hand, “Lois, I know.” He raised an eyebrow at her. “I didn’t become editor of a great metropolitan newspaper because I can yodel.”
Clark looked at him with a surprised expression, “You know?”
“Since the beginning,” Perry nodded, running a hand through his thinning hair. He looked around. “We can do this later.” He pointed to the still open elevator doors above them.
“Right,” Clark quickly went to action, and they heard a scuffle above them as Lois turned her attention to Perry.
“You’ve known since the beginning?” Lois finally asked.
A moment later, Clark was standing in front of them in his Superman suit with a proud smile across his face. He quickly gathered them up and flew them out of the elevator shaft. Lois had to choke back laughter when she saw Clark had hogtied the assailants and laid the weapons in the middle of the floor.
“They won't be threatening anyone else anytime soon.”
Lois smiled, letting out a chuckle, she turned back to Perry, “So, Perry, you think this is enough to take care of the lawsuit?”
“No, but this is,” Perry patted his pocket and pulled out a camera and USB.
________________________________________
Perry White poured the fine red wine into the crystal wine glass and handed it to his wife, Alice. He let out a heavy sigh of relief, sinking back in his chair as he reached over to hand Alice the salad bowl. “I, uh, can’t tell you how good it feels to sit down and have a quiet dinner at home with you, honey.”
Alice flashed him a quick smile as she served herself the salad and pushed the casserole dish toward him, “I still can’t believe Billy went so far as to try and throw you down an elevator shaft.” She shook her head in disbelief. “Is there anyone in this town that isn’t secretly running a criminal organization?”
“I’m beginning to wonder…” Perry let out a chuckle, shaking his head as he recalled the fiasco with a pained expression.
“I was able to hold off Russel from running anything tonight,” Alice said, scooping the chicken casserole on her plate.
Perry reached his hand over to cover her hand with his. “Do I want to know what that cost?”
Alice shrugged her shoulders, “I’m going to have to scrounge my way through some fluff pieces at some point.”
Perry let out a chuckle, “Well, print and televised news have one thing in common. There’s always the fluff pieces to dish out.” He let out a long breath and ran a hand across his brow, pondering his internal musings as he tried to put into words the heavy emotions that had been weighing on him for the past few days. “Lois and Clark have been trying to drill into my head for months to look harder at Billy and …” Perry felt the hard lump in his throat as the moment he’d been slapped with the reality that Bill Church Jr. was running Intergang. He leaned over to take a sip from his wine glass and found his voice again, “I didn’t listen. I’ve seen this story unfold countless times before, and still, I didn’t listen.”
“You’ve known Billy his entire life.” Alice soothed softly. “How were you supposed to know he was Intergang? Now, of course, there were the rumblings with Bill and CostMart but nothing about Billy until after he admitted it to you.” Alice let out a sigh, running her hand across Perry’s cheek. “You helped break this story and expose him for the police.”
Perry nodded, recalling how close he came to meeting his maker at the hands of the young man he’d seen grow up from birth to corporate takeover and eventual arrest. The close call hadn’t been his first, and given his tendency to attract threats from what the Planet had dubbed “super-villains,” he knew it wouldn’t be the last. Superman coming to the rescue just before Church got a chance to carry out his murderous intentions had been his hail Mary. Of course, he could never tell Alice how Superman had come to his rescue. No, that would have to remain a mystery to everyone but Lois and Clark.
“I’m beginning to think your investigation pieces may not be as life-threatening as the Planet printing the tear-down pieces Lois and Clark keep digging up,” Perry commented with a shake of his head.
“Well, I like to think Jimmy’s come a long way too,” Alice noted, pulling out a copy of the Planet’s evening edition. “Co-writing the piece on your takedown of the Churches with him was very sweet. I’m sure he appreciated the chance you gave him.”
“I figured I owed him,” Perry shrugged, shaking his head. “I couldn’t let him write up any of what he helped dig up on Luthor or Nigel.”
“I still can’t believe you gave that to Ralph of all people.”
“He had me pulling all-nighters cleaning up his copy, but he can dig up dirt anywhere.”
Alice nodded and reached her hand over to take his, “For the record, I’m glad you’re still around to edit Ralph’s copy. Even if it does mean all-nighters.”
“Me too, Alice,” Perry gave her a weak smile. “This one hit a little too close, you know?”
Alice tightened her grip on his hand and quietly stared back at him. He met her gaze and let out a shaky breath, feeling the emotion from the last few days overtake him as a few stray tears trickled down his cheeks. “It’s okay,” Alice reached over to wipe the tears away, leaning in to kiss him.
________________________________________
“Where’s Mommy?” Lois teased, hiding her face behind her hands. “There she is!” Jon giggled happily, propping his head up as she leaned in to kiss him. “You are such a sweetie.” She touched his cheek with her thumb, looking at him as he held his teddy bear snugly against him, looking over at her with a mesmerized expression. He tossed it in the air, and giggled then sat up, reaching for the table to help him stand up.
“Look at you!” she grinned at him as he wobbled, trying to find his bearings. “You’re getting to be a big boy.” She smiled at him as he reached for his blue blanket that was folded neatly on the table. It was amazing to watch how quickly Jon learned new things each day. She was sure he would master walking on his own any day now.
“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?”
“Good.” She said softly. “After the fiasco with Perry yesterday, I figured we could take a day and appreciate the small stuff.” She grinned back at Jon, “Like someone’s little laugh and cute little button nose…”
“You sure you’re okay?” He murmured in her ear.
“I don’t know,” she leaned her back against him as he tightened his arms around her. “I mean, it makes sense. Right, Perry had never pushed for more than a flimsy excuse when you’d disappear on a rescue. It certainly explains a lot but still…I don’t know. I guess it scares me a little. More people knowing. I know he’d never dream of doing anything to hurt you or Jon, but that’s one more person that could be at risk…”
“Perry’s made of tougher stuff than we both probably realize,” Clark whispered in her ear, tightening his arms around her. “He was asking about you…wanted to know if he had done something. You should call him..”
“I will. I’m just…processing.” Lois said with a heavy sigh. “Yesterday was just a lot to process. I kept convincing myself I was fine and then….” She motioned to Jon’s smiling face as he tried to roll to his side and look at her. “I couldn’t. Like I know, the teachers there are wonderful, and I trust them, but …” She could feel the tears glisten in her eyes.
“It’s okay to not be okay, honey,” Clark pressed his lips against her forehead. “I might have told Perry something similar about needing to take the afternoon off.”
“What’s happening to us?” She let out a deep sigh, “I used to be able to just brush off a brink with death like nobody’s business and just keep working through it.” She pointed to Jon, “Now, I find myself stuck in this never-ending cycle of ‘what-if’ and can’t seem to shake it off. Another side effect of parenthood, I suppose.”
“And having something more than your next deadline to look forward to.”
“And having a lethal meteorite erect its presence and land in Intergang’s hands…I thought we got rid of it all after Lex was sent to Arkham. I thought…” She turned to look at him, “What in the world is red kryptonite?”
“I…have no idea, but we’ll find it and lock it away just like how Wayne locked away the rest of it.” Clark let out a heavy breath. “I can only guess that’s what caused my apathetic behavior yesterday but can’t be sure.”
“Yeah, well, let’s not test that theory,” Lois said, craning her neck back to brush her lips against his. “As far as I’m concerned, that stuff needs to stay buried far away from both you and Jon.”
Clark reached over to brush his thumb against her jaw, cupping her cheek with his hand. “What would I do without you?”
She smiled, resting her head against his shoulder, savoring the calm of just being in her husband’s arms. Her gaze shifted to where Jon was stretching his chubby little arms over his head before letting out a long yawn. He rolled himself from side to side.
“He’s quite the ham, isn’t he?” Clark chuckled, pointing over at Jon.
“Tell me about it,” Lois said with a long sigh. “Just like his daddy.”
“Are you calling me a ham, Ms. Lane?” Clark pretended to be insulted as he chuckled against her.
“If it looks like a duck…” Lois shrugged her shoulders, giggling when he leaned in to kiss her cheek. She grew quiet, glancing over her shoulder at Clark, “Am I losing my edge?”
“No,” Clark reassured her, nuzzling her ear as he held her close. “You’re just as tenacious as you’ve always been. I think you just have different priorities now.”
Lois snickered, “Like wanting to lay on the living room floor and do baby talk rather than deal with the Planet’s legal team?” She let out a deep breath, turning to look at Clark, “By the way, Agent McCord needs us to give a statement on everything that happened with Valhalla for his case.”
Clark groaned against her ear, “I thought we were done with Agent McCord.”
“Jimmy mentioned he’d been temporarily stationed in Metropolis by the DEA to watch over Hobb’s Bay’s illegal shipments.”
“Great,” Clark rolled his eyes. “I’m sure that won’t cause any issues.”
“Uh-huh,” Lois laughed, noting the look of displeasure on her husband’s face. “Well, hopefully, he won’t be camping out at the Planet now.”
“One can only hope. “Clark nuzzled her ear as he held her close, “Agent McCord is a pompous jerk that needs to have a long overdue surgery to remove that stick that got shoved up his …”
Jon squealed out in laughter, and Lois chuckled, “I know! Daddy almost said a very bad word in front of the b-a-b-y.”
“Daddy was not.” Clark shook his head in denial. “And he’s not a b-a-b-y anymore. He’s one now.”
“Uh-huh, well, he’ll always be my baby. Won’t you, sweetheart?” Jon grinned sleepily back at her, resting his head against the carpet as he sleepily fisted the blanket next to him. Lois giggled, turning in Clark’s arms to face him. “Well, does this afternoon off include Superman rescues or just chasing down leads?”
“Changing the subject,” Clark noted, leaning in to kiss her.
“You didn’t answer,” she replied, fingering the bridge of his nose with her index finger.
“If the police can handle it, then I’ll let them handle it,” he whispered, leaning over to nibble on the sensitive skin of her throat, running his upper lip against the curve leading to her shoulder. “An afternoon away from everything is ever so appealing.” His hands moved up and down her ribcage as he whispered in her ear, “And maybe later we can take Jon over to the zoo?”
“That’s a lot of walking,” She whispered, moving her hands to cover his as they glided 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.”
“Well, a nice afternoon nap can get him ready for a trip to the zoo.” He teased nuzzling her ear as she let out a soft giggle. “Or maybe a picnic in the park.”
“Hmm, a picnic does sound nice” 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. She smiled, glancing over at Jon, who had sleepily drifted off into dreamland. “We need to put him in his bed.”
“Don’t move.” He whispered, running his hand down her cheek as he got up and carried Jon to his crib in the next room. 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 settled his weight against her as he ran 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…”
TBC...
Comments Go Here
