Injustice
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 11: I am the Champion
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Present Day Clark scooped Jon up in his arms and carried him with him down the sidewalk to the red and white awning where his favorite ice cream cart was setup. Jon giggled with excitement when he saw the red lettering and clapped his hands, “I want double chocolate chip, daddy.”
Clark fished out a twenty-dollar bill from his pocket and handed it to Jon to hold. “This one’s on you, bud.”
Jon looked at the crisp green bill and smiled, holding it up as he looked around, smiling at the clerk as he pointed at the picture of the ice cream flavor he wanted. Clark smiled at the clerk, nodding his thanks as he scooped out Jon’s usual double scoop of double chocolate chip ice cream into a white cup with a plastic spoon and handed it to Jon. The clerk handed Jon his change and a sweet squeal tickled Clark’s ears.
“Yum!” Jon reached out to take a heaping spoonful of chocolate ice cream and took a big bite.
“Slow down there, kiddo,” Clark warned, waving a quick good-bye to the clerk as he dropped a few bills into the tip jar and turned to leave. He held Jon close as they crossed the street to where he had parked earlier, checking that they weren’t being followed.
After his trip to France earlier he had checked Jon out of daycare early. There wasn’t much he could do after dropping the information off with Dr. Klein to examine for some sign of who had sent the letter to Claude. Entrusting the police or anyone else wasn’t a chance he could take right now.
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Omer leaned back in his leather chair, spinning it from side to side as he lit his cigar. He winked at the rugged man in front of him, pointing to the newspaper clipping. “I see the stakes have been risen with those reporters.”
“All this attention is bad for business.” The rugged man growled as Omer took a puff from his cigar. “I believe Elias might be willing to negotiate the release of this girl in exchange for business returning as usual.”
“What’s his price?” Omer asked.
________________________________________
Lois rolled over in bed, reaching her hand over and brushing against Clark’s arm. Her eyes flickered open in the dark and she felt a pain pulse behind her eyelids, letting out a groan. Clark reached over, placing a hand on her shoulder, “Hey, you okay?”
“Headache,” she groaned, stealing a glance over where the digital clock blinked the early hour of four a.m. at her.
“Here,” Clark handed her a bottle of Aspirin and a second later had a glass of water for her to take it with.
“Thanks,” she chuckled softly, wincing as she sat up in bed. She took a swish of water and threw her head back to swallow the small caplets.
“How are you feeling?” Clark asked, reaching over to stroke her cheek.
“Like I have the flu,” Lois shot him a half-smile. “I don’t even remember you and Jon coming home last night.”
Clark smiled, “You were pretty out of it. There’s some leftover pizza if you’re hungry.”
Lois shook her head, “I think I’ll pass.” She reached over to the side table and set her glass down, sinking down into the bed again. Clark reached over and wrapped a protective arm around her, taking a deep breath in. Lois turned her head to look at him, “Everything go okay yesterday?”
“Yeah, Jon and I got some ice cream and had pizza.” He pressed his lips against her cheek. “And from what I could tell there weren’t any prying eyes watching either.”
Lois shook her head, “What are we going to do about that?”
“I…might have a lead, but you’re really not going to like how I got it.” Clark whispered in her ear.
“Does it have anything to do with the name Luthor or Church?” Lois joked turning and resting her head against his chest.
“No, not that I know of,” Clark shrugged his shoulder.
Lois looked up at him, noting the mixture of hesitancy and anger in his eyes. “I guess this is the part where I ask what I missed?”
Clark’s fingers ran through her hair and he murmured, “You …weren’t over-reacting in the waiting room. People were acting funny because the tabloids ran with a smear campaign targeting you.”
Lois pursed her lips, narrowing her eyes at him, “And you knew this the whole time we were sitting there?”
“Not the whole time and I didn’t know about the story until I got to the Planet later,” Clark explained. She relaxed slightly but kept a frown on her face as she waited for him to continue, silently prompting him with a hard stare. “So, apparently the smear campaign was being paid for by a mysterious backer that planted fake stories with interviews being provided by different…”
Lois shook her head, “Just spit it out already what’s going on?”
“They’re saying the awards you won were received under …” Clark looked away, not wanting to finish his statement. “Look, it’s really not important. It’s just tabloid trash. Anyway…”
“Clark,” Lois called his name sharply, sitting up and crossing her legs beneath her. “Just tell me. What is going on?”
“It’s not important.” Clark shook his head. “You don’t need to worry about it right now. Just focus on getting better. I’m taking care of it.”
“You’re taking care of it.” Lois crossed her arms over her chest and demanded, “How is that
exactly?”
Clark looked away, not meeting her gaze as he managed to mumble out, “I might have flown over to France and threatened …coaxed some information out of the person that started talking to the paparazzi.”
“France?” Lois’ brow rose a half-inch as she stared him down.
His eyes closed and he hung his head. “Leo Nunk did an interview with Claude Moreau who has basically tried to claim ownership of all the stories you won awards for and… Look, I’m taking care of it.”
“What are they saying?”
“What does it matter? It’s just tabloid trash and just a distraction tactic…” Clark reached out to place a hand on her shoulder. “There isn’t anything anyone can do right now but try and find out who is behind all this.”
“What are they saying?” Lois repeated, practically hissing the words out as she glanced back at him with a scowl.
“Claude’s interview claimed you got exclusive interviews by sleeping around….” Clark scowled as he muttered the words out. “When I confronted him he said he was paid to plant the story and had a letter show up telling him what to say. I’ve got Dr. Klein working on trying to trace it…”
Lois reached up, running her hands across her face as she let out an aggravated growl. “That low-life has a lot of nerve.”
“Lois, this is just another distraction tactic. A way to scare us off from digging into the people behind these kidnappings. It’s no different than the photos that were sent or the visit Perry got from that senator.”
“What senator?” Lois’ brow furrowed.
“We’re looking into it.” Clark said gently, wrapping a protective arm around her. “I know you want to go storming in and demand answers but right now there’s nowhere to storm into. We don’t know who is calling the shots here. As difficult as it is to just sit back and wait I’m afraid that’s what you’re going to have to do.”
“Right, because how do we argue the story that everyone’s probably thinking in the back of their mind every time a woman advances in her career.” Lois grumbled irritably as Clark tightened his arms around her.
“That is not true,” Clark whispered in her ear. “This is why I didn’t want to tell you.”
“Because you knew I’d get mad?” Lois fumed, cracking her knuckles in her hand.
“Because I knew you’d try and second guess everything and take this…lie they’re spewing to heart,” Clark answered, holding her close. “It doesn’t’ matter what they say or what anyone out there believes, Lois. Everyone that knows you knows you’ve earned every accolade that’s been awarded to you. You’re tenacious and incredibly intelligent. Capable of going toe to toe with some of the world’s most renowned scholars and leaders. All this is is just an attempt to try and throw you off your game because they know how determined you are to bring them down.”
Lois tightened her jaw, leaning her head back against Clark’s chest, trying to process everything he’d told her. She leaned her head back to look at him, “You threatened him, huh?”
“Strongly encouraged…and might have made him soil himself.” Clark chuckled, leaning closer to her as she let out a giggle. “He was still in one piece when I left though.”
A smile spread across her face as she gazed into his eyes, reaching up to stroke his cheek. “My hero.”
He leaned in to kiss her, outlining the frame of her face with his palm as he whispered, “I wasn’t going to let him get away with trying to use you to get his five minutes of fame.”
“I love you,” she murmured against his lips. A mixture of uncertainty and self-doubt crowded her mind for a moment, gazing into his eyes as she finally found the nerve to voice the uncertainty in her mind. “You know the things they’re saying…You never even asked.”
“I don’t have to,” Clark pressed his lips to hers. “I know you and that’s all that matters.”
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One Month Later …Dan Scardino bit into his bagel, looking around the crowded train as he gazed across the headline of the Daily Planet. Corruption seemed to follow this city’s government like a bad habit. He let out a heavy sigh, pondering if this was really the best move.
After nearly a month of runaround with the mayor, the feds and even his own department he was pondering if he could ever get justice for Jenna. Then he’d seen it. The articles that continued to cover the front page of the Daily Planet. Kidnappings unsolved and government officials that refused to talk about them. It was the story of Jenna’s murder all over again.
He tightened his jaw, gazing at the headshots of the two reporters’ by-lines by the articles. It was a long shot, trusting a journalist with the fate of this case, but he had run out of options.
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Lois brushed a hand through her hair, readjusting the strap of her purse on her shoulder as she walked purposefully back to the Daily Planet. Clark and Jack were supposed to be running down leads on this missing girl, Ingrid while she continued to work on tracking down the sender of the letter Claude had received. Not an easy task when she had been branded persona non grata.
It had been nearly a month since the story had broke among the tabloids and rather than die down with time it seemed to only grow traction. No matter how many holes Clark and others pointed out to discredit the lies that were being spread it came across as nothing more than a spouse or friend in denial. She wasn’t sure exactly how to stop it as the original story seemed to have been morphed into something unrecognizable. No one appeared to care how outlandish the accusations were, but rather just continued to help spread them through the different outlets. The Daily Planet and even the Metropolis STAR appeared to be some of the few news outlets ignoring the smear campaign. Though she suspected it was more indifference than anything that motivated the STAR. Mentioning the campaign would only draw attention away from their paper.
“Lois?”
Lois looked over her shoulder, letting out a sigh of relief when she saw Alice White approaching her with a large tote bag in hand. “Alice, what are you doing here?”
“I came to surprise Perry with lunch,” Alice tapped the bag in her hand. “It’s been a bit crazy with both of our schedules this week. How are you doing?”
“Who knew they could keep a smear campaign alive so long, right?” Lois tried to joke. Alice cocked an eyebrow at her and she sighed, “I’m fine, really Alice. Just tired of the paparazzi.”
“Have you and Clark gotten anywhere on finding out who’s behind this?” Alice asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“Suspicions but no name to tie to all this.” Lois let out a long breath. “It’s…getting harder to investigate when no one will talk to you.”
Alice nodded, pointing to Perry in the lobby. “That’s my lunch date. I’ll catch up with you later.”
Lois nodded her thanks and waved back at her then reached out to push her way through the entrance to follow. She walked through the rotating door and headed toward the elevator. Just as she reached the end of the lobby she heard a familiar voice call out to her.
“Well, well, well…” A voice called out from Lois’ left and she turned to see none other than Leo Nunk. He was a scrawny man with tight bone features and a slithering walk that made one feel dirty just being in his presence. He was also one of the National Whisper’s top journalists. “What do we have here? I thought only real journalists worked at the Planet.”
Lois held up her briefcase, blocking Nunk’s photographer from getting her picture, “Didn’t you miss your stop? The pet store is two blocks that way…” Lois pointed to the long street a city bus was driving on toward the next stop just outside the Planet.
“Pet store?”
“Well, I just assumed they let you out of your bird cage,” Lois snapped irritably as Nunk held out his tape recorder to catch her remarks.
“A bird cage,” he chuckled. “That’s a good one, Lois. Say, how many senators did you have to take on for that piece on Luthor’s takedown? Eight? Ten?”
Lois bit her lower-lip, fighting the urge to tell him just what she thought of him and instead chose to fight back with her wit, “No, see, unlike some people I actually research my stories before hitting the print button. How many lawsuits have you had this year?”
“Well,…I actually work for my exclusives!” Nunk shot back half-heartedly.
“And still nothing to show for them,” Lois rolled her eyes. “You know, you should get yourself to Harvard. That’s a college in Boston. There’s a map at the Metro Station if you need directions. Then turn yourself over to the Science Lab.”
“Science Lab?” Nunk stared at her with a dubious expression.
“Well, isn’t that where new discoveries go?” Lois held her hands out for emphasis as she shouted. “Ladies and Gentlemen, we have for you the newly discovered one of a kind lowest form of life.” With that she turned on her heel and stepped into the elevator car that had arrived. “This is my stop.” She pointed to the guards approaching them from behind, “And something tells me those boys are looking for you.”
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Clark walked down the long bookshelves filled with files from cases that had gone cold. He glanced at some of the dates on the file boxes, grimacing at some of the dates. He looked over his shoulder to where Jack was standing, “These cases are decades old.”
“Well, Bill Henderson said we only have half an hour down here so let’s see what we can find before the ol’ warden comes back.”
Clark nodded, lowering his glasses to scan the file boxes, searching for files on missing persons or runaways that might fit the time period of the young girl, Ingrid, they were searching for. He had a sinking suspicion that the young girl, Esma’s disappearance was connected to Ingrid’s disappearance. If he could find her maybe she could help lead them to Esma.
Clark pointed to the back shelf at the end of the aisle. “There’s some unnamed files down there.”
Jack followed him to the tall shelf where Clark found file jacket after file jacket crammed into the shelf with dates on them. He pointed to the one that looked least worn and picked it up, flipping through the missing person reports with a grimace.
“What exactly are we looking for? A lot of these are Jane Doe or runaways from halfway houses.” Jack commented, pulling out a stack of reports that seemed to have been organized by the case worker that filed the reports.
“Society’s lost is always the easiest target,” Clark commented, continuing to flip through the file jacket in his hand.
“Hey, this girl looks kinda familiar, right?” Jack asked, holding up a photo of a girl that couldn’t be more than twelve with a pink sweater and headband.
Clark’s jaw squared as he stared at the image, recalling where he had seen the photo. “She is. She was in that photo that was sent to Lois and me.” Clark turned back to the file in front of him, feeling a sinking feeling churn in his stomach as he noted the number of missing girls appeared to grow with time. He glanced at the file jacket in his hand. “These start from three years ago.”
“This one’s from four years ago,” Jack commented, waving the file jacket in his hand.
Clark gritted his teeth, scanning the file jackets on the shelf, trying to find something…anything that could help him find the missing person file he was looking for. “There’s nothing here.”
“Well, maybe it’s somewhere else,” Jack shrugged his shoulders, looking over to the side. “Just keep looking I’ll keep digging.”
Clark nodded, fighting the urge to fly across the room and search for the file. He knew it had to be here. There had to be something here. She couldn’t have just disappeared and no one have noticed. Someone had to have missed her. Someone had to have realized she was missing.
“Hey, Clark!” Jack called out to him. “I think I found it!”
Clark looked over his shoulder to where Jack was standing over a file box and pulled out a photo that looked like an eight-year old version of the girl that he had rescued months ago. Though her face had aged with time those eyes remained the same. The haunted, damaged eyes that cut you to the core.
“That’s her.”
Jack frowned, shaking his head. “Her story’s pretty tragic.” He pointed to the headshot clipped to a red folder with the name Ted Vaughn printed in bold print. “Abused by her grandfather and placed in the foster care where she was abused again and then ran away.” Jack tapped on the single sheet of paper in his hand. “Reported missing by the caseworker assigned to her case.”
Clark frowned, looking over the single page that he was supposed to use to try and track this poor girl down. “This says the case worker reported her missing from the Fifth Street Mission. So, she knew where Ingrid had runaway to…”
“Maybe she was trying to look the other way?” Jack wondered aloud.
“Maybe,” Clark looked back at the file jackets behind them. “We need to make some copies of these too. This many missing persons …” He gestured to the slender files next to the overflowing files on the shelf. “Eight, ten years ago…look at the size of these.” He tapped his hand on a file that was overflowing. “This is just this year and the year isn’t even over.”
“It certainly looks suspicious.” Jack agreed. “Maybe we should check with Omer and see if he has any information on these missing person cases. If he doesn’t know he might at least know someone that could point us in the right direction.”
Clark thought it over for a moment and then nodded his agreement. He didn’t entirely trust Omer but right now he was the only one they had to work with.
________________________________________
Lois stepped into the newsroom, feeling all eyes on her. She let out a heavy sigh, uncertain what to make of the unwelcome stares. She looked herself over self-consciously. “What?”
Jimmy approached, quickly ushering her into the nearest conference room with out a word. He closed the door behind him and then looked back at her with quiet pause, “Lois, have you seen the papers this afternoon?”
“No, I’m going out of my way to avoid them,” Lois replied firmly. “What now? Am I drowning kittens?”
“No, nothing like that,” Jimmy’s tone was solemn. “You might want to go pick up Jon.”
Lois’ face went pale as she looked back at Jimmy. “What’s going on?”
Jimmy pulled out the cover of the Tattletale Weekly which read, ‘Who is Jon’s Real Father?’ Photos of Clark, Claude, and Lex were below the headline. Lois grabbed the paper out of his hand, feeling her blood boil as she read the sub-heading pointing at Lex being Jon’s father with a red arrow and a question mark above it.
“Lois…” Jimmy placed a hand on her shoulder, “It’s absolute garbage. There’s no way that…” He stopped mid-sentence as she squinted her eyes shut, trying to hold back the tears while she sunk down into the chair at the edge of the table.
“I..I need a minute.” Lois let out a shaky breath.
“I can call down to the daycare for you if you want.” Jimmy offered.
“No, pulling him out will only upset him,” Lois responded running a hand across her face. “I…he needs to …This is never going to end, is it?”
“It will,” Jimmy said, kneeling down in front of her. “These vultures will move on eventually.”
“When? When there’s nothing left to attack?” Lois blanched slightly, feeling her stomach churn.
“What’s wrong?” Jimmy asked.
“I think I’m going to be sick,” Lois muttered, reaching for the trash can an arm’s length away.
________________________________________
Two Years Ago…Lois tucked her hair behind her ear, skimming through the headlines of the morning edition. Though she’d been staring at the text for over five minutes she couldn’t necessarily say she’d been reading the text. She had spent the better half of the weekend obsessing over the what-ifs trying not to obsess over something that wasn’t even confirmed yet.
The corner of her desk vibrated, and she looked up, startled from her thoughts as she gazed at an unfamiliar face that was staring back at her. A young woman with shoulder length blonde hair leaned against the tabletop edge of her desk. A quizzical expression covered the woman’s face as she leaned in, “You’re that reporter, aren’t ya?”
Lois blinked, looking around the newsroom in confusion, “I’m afraid you’ll have to be more specific, you’re surrounded by reporters at the moment.”
“The one that wrote all the Superman exclusives,” The woman drew out the ‘s’ on Superman with a sharp bite that was like fingernails screeching across a chalkboard in the most aggravating way. “You’re her, right?”
Lois rolled her eyes, “I guess,” she looked around the newsroom, trying to see if she could catch Jimmy or someone to get some assistance with whoever this was that had just plopped herself down on her desk. “I don’t really cover the Superman stories anymore unless it’s related to an investigation Clark or I are working on.”
“Probably for the best,” the woman shrugged her shoulders. “I mean wouldn’t want to be drawing out the big green eyed monster with tall, dark and obnoxious.”
“Wh…?” Lois started to ask and found herself cut off.
“I mean, you got to admit it’s kinda weird. What with the way you used to chase down red and blue then all of a sudden you show back up with that husband of yours and nary a Superman exclusive in sight?” She flashed a big grin at Lois.
“What are you talking about?” Lois finally choked out, trying to find the right words. “Who are you?”
She extended her hand for Lois to shake, “Name’s Willis. Leslie Willis. New columnist for the Planet. I’m sure you’ve heard of my segment on WGBS –
‘Keepin’ it Real With Willis.’”
“No, I can’t say I’ve heard of it,” Lois gritted her teeth.
“So, seriously just between the two of us you never got exclusive with big blue?” Leslie leaned in closer and Lois blanched smelling the hint of onions on her breath.
Lois shook her head, “It’s not…like that.” Out of the corner of her eye she saw Clark approaching and she craned her neck, trying to motion to him to help her.
“It’s not, huh?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t think we’ve met,” Clark walked up behind her, extending his hand to Leslie. “Clark Kent.”
“Ah, yes, the other half of the Super Boy Scout Club.” Leslie nodded, reaching over to shake Clark’s hand.
“Sorry?” Clark frowned, not following.
“Big, blue, flies around in a cape inflicting his will on the world.” Leslie stood up, straightening her jacket. “See ya around.”
Clark shook his head watching Leslie disappear to her next unsuspecting victim. “She seems….uh, nope can’t think of anything.” He turned to Lois and asked, “Who exactly is that?”
“Apparently, the Planet’s newest columnist.” Lois shook her head, “I swear we’ve been trading columnist like trading cards ever since Cat left.”
An amused expression crossed Clark’s face and he grinned, “Why Lois, do you actually miss Cat Grant?”
“No,” Lois harrumphed, leaning back in her chair with her arms crossed over her chest. “I…just am noticing the low quality of talent among the columnists for hire in Metropolis.”
“Uh-huh,” Clark teased.
Lois shook her head, opting a change of subject was necessary. “What did Roger Templeton want to meet about so early?”
Clark’s smile melted away and he leaned down, taking the seat next to her desk and pulling it closer so he was seated next to her. “You remember how Wayne said he found everything he could that Bureau 39 left behind?”
Lois’ eyes clamped closed and a shallow breath escaped her throat, “Please don’t tell me you mean…?”
“There was a locker located in a secure location under the protection of the FBI.” Clark explained with a heavy sigh. “The space craft, files he had on the landing…”
Lois’ eyes flickered open as she looked back at Clark expectantly, self-consciously placing a hand over her midsection as she asked, “Kryptonite?”
“That’s what Roger suspects,” Clark whispered, glancing over his shoulder cautiously.
“He doesn’t know for sure?” Lois tried to keep her voice from raising above a whisper for fear they’d be overheard. “Wouldn’t they know?”
“I’m just a journalist talking to a source within the FBI, remember?” Clark reached over to cup her cheek. “No one has ever confirmed the existence of Kryptonite in the press. It was just the ramblings of a lunatic and a sociopath as far as the rest of the world knows.”
Lois nodded, holding her breath as she let his words sink in. Despite Clark and Robert’s long history there was no real way to find out if the FBI had Kryptonite in its possession without first confirming its existence. Confirming its existence outside the small circle of trusted individuals that currently shared the knowledge of Clark’s secret identity.
“Any idea who broke in?” Lois finally broke the silence, reaching her hand over to cover his palm with hers.
“Whoever it was appear to know their way around tech,” Clark sighed, shaking his head. “The guards that were on duty were found unconscious from some kind of electrical shock. The locks on the three different layers of security had been jammed and completely wiped out.”
“Well, that narrows it down,” Lois remarked sarcastically.
________________________________________
Scardino swiped at his brow, crouched down in the tall grass blades as he surveyed the property from his vantage point. Countless excursions across the globe and back again had led him here. Schiller’s name and what he would lead him to was the only thing that drove him these days. He’d long since moved past the denial and self-loathing of his grief and was now moving onto the all-consuming hate and anger funneled at the scum of the earth that had ordered the hit on Jenna.
He had teamed up with Agent McCord a few months ago and found himself forced into the center of the investigation that would hopefully bring Jenna justice. They had traced the drugs coming from Qatar to countless locations across the globe. With them came of course other crimes and drugs alike. One by one some of the more notorious crime lords were being taken down. Still, he felt it wasn’t enough.
Schiller was a ghost.
Yet he was still the only name to come up in connection to Jenna’s death.
McCord cleared his throat, pointing to the heavily guarded property below them to where Hamil had setup his estate on the waterfront where black market shipments from the Middle East were suspected to be coming in. “This place has got more guards than Fort Knox.”
“Well, according to Raz that shipment’s due within the hour,” Scardino shrugged, sinking down below the grass blades. “Make yourself comfortable McCord.”
________________________________________
The newsroom felt different when Lois looked across the array of desks as she made her way back to her desk that afternoon. Her hand self-consciously moved to the bandage on her forearm from where the doctor and drawn her blood from earlier. She spotted the brochures and samples the doctor had given her poking out of her bag and quickly tucked them back in.
‘Later,’ she thought quietly as she reached her desk, tucking her purse in the bottom drawer and then turned her attention to the notes she had left earlier. Extracting any information on the break-in at the FBI had been near impossible. The FBI refused to even admit to possessing anything from the elusive Bureau 39 or admit the agency even existed.
“Hey, Lois,” Jimmy walked up to her with a distressed look on his face, quickly taking the seat next to her desk and looking over his shoulder as if he was hiding out from someone.
“Something wrong?” Lois asked, narrowing her gaze at him.
He gestured to the bleach blonde haired Leslie Willis who was propped up on the edge of a seemingly terrified Ralph’s desk. “What is up with that columnist? She is like Captain Opposite. You say the sky is blue, she says it’s gray. You say something is great she says it’s awful…”
“You noticed that too, huh?” Lois asked, shaking her head.
“She seems to be making friends,” Jimmy remarked dryly, standing up from the seat he had claimed.
Lois frowned, shaking her head as Jimmy headed back to his desk. It seemed Leslie Willis had the same effect on the rest of the staff as she had with Lois earlier. Her gaze shifted to the television where coverage of an escaped inmate was being reported on by Stern Media.
“An entire block of inmates was freed of some of the most notorious criminals in Metropolis…”
Footage of Superman with the police in front of the prison displayed on the screen and Lois shook her head. She reached across her desk, noting the grim expressions on everyone’s faces. The phone rang a few times and she finally got an answer. “Hey, Bill, what can you tell me about this prison break….”
________________________________________
Scardino held up the sleeve of his jacket, keeping the fabric against his nose and mouth as he made his way through the smoky hallways of the compound. He looked through the thick ash scented air that filled the hallway. He turned the corner, waving his hand in the air and opened the door.
Inside, McCord was waving his arm to clear the mist from where the fire extinguisher had gone off. They had barely crossed the threshold of Hamil’s front gate when the place had erupted in flames. The fire fighters had already contained the destruction. Now all that remained was to get the information out of Hamil.
McCord, tapped his tongue against the inside of his mouth and made a clucking noise. “You tried to give us the slip, Hamil.”
“I was just light up the fire for you, boys,” Hamil grinned with his sparkling gold tooth reflecting against the dim light above. “It’s not my fault your friends put the bon fire out before we could get this party started.”
“Ah, a party,” McCord looked over at Scardino with a chuckle, “You hear that? He threw us a party, Scardino.”
“How many parties you have out on the port back there?” Scardino asked, pointing outside where the flames on Hamil’s back port were still in flames.
“Fire on the water,” Hamil chuckled.
“Fire on the water, huh? Like what, uh, fireworks, Hamil?” McCord chuckled, glancing over at Scardino.
“Yeah, yeah, fireworks…” Hamil grinned back at him.
“Or maybe something else?” Scardino scowled, pinching the bridge of his nose. He peeked in the corner and pulled out a brick of C-4. “You know what this is?”
“C-4?” Hamil chuckled, “Of course not.”
“Bombing your own place. Tsk, tsk, tsk… That’s pretty desperate,” McCord commented.
“Yeah, what are you trying to hide?” Scardino hissed out, pulling a pistol out and putting it to Hamil’s head.
“You fire that shot this whole place blows up,” Hamil sneered, “You along with it.”
“And I’m willing to bet you don’t want to go up with it,” Scardino cocked the trigger. “So tell me this, why are you bringing shipments in for a drug that has no street value?”
“You’re such a gambler. Why don’t you figure it out for yourself?” Hamil chuckled.
“Seven drug lords have been locked up, Hamil. You wanna be the eighth?” McCord challenged.
“You still have nothing,” Hamil taunted them.
“They brought us to you, didn’t they?” Scardino’s finger angled on the trigger. “You blew up your own port in order to protect Schiller. I want to know why.”
“You won’t be able to stop him,” Hamil sniffed.
“I’ll be the judge of that,” Scardino shot back. “Tick tock tick tock…You have a four year old, right, Hamil?” He waved the pistol in the air. “He know you sell your soul to the devil?”
“Leave my son out of this!” Hamil shouted with a snarl.
“Where do the shipments come in from?” Scardino asked, placing the barrel of the pistol against Hamil’s forehead.
“Lebanon! The containers get picked up in Lebanon and come in with the rest of the shipment in Hamburg.” Hamil shouted as Scardino pulled the pistol back. “You’re insane.”
“That’s what they keep telling me,” Scardino tapped his forehead with a smile.
________________________________________
Lois felt a sick sense of dread wash over her as she scanned the list of names that were on the list in front of her. She stared at the name at the top unable to look away as the memories from the prisoner’s capture lingered in the back of her mind.
Rufus “Bad Brain” Johnson.
He had terrorized the city shortly after Lex Luthor had been sentenced to Arkham. His crime spree had been unique and terrorizing as he had no rhyme or reason behind each attack. His end game was merely drawing out the fear in the innocent Metropolitan citizens. Bad Brain had created his own brand of weapons that put the Metropolis P.D. and the National Guard’s weapons to shame. Many had been killed in the wake of Bad Brain’s crime spree and others severely injured.
Her hand instinctively went to her midsection, recalling the fear she had harbored during the early months of her pregnancy with Jon during his rampage. Two strong arms wrapped around her from behind and she turned her head to where Clark was leaned over her. She offered him a half-smile and he pressed his lips against hers.
“I saw the news.” Lois ran a hand across his face.
Clark nodded, shaking his head, “Two guards are in the hospital from electrocution injuries.”
Lois sighed, running a hand through her dark hair, “Your dad was asking about Jon going with them to mom’s beach house. It might be a good time for him to spend the last week of summer at the beach…and avoid any possible danger from the latest sociopath.”
Clark nodded in agreement, “It might not be a bad idea for you to go with him.”
“I’m not going to just run off in the middle of an investigation.”
“Lois, this guy’s dangerous.”
Lois spun around in her chair, glaring at Clark with a frustrated hiss, “You cannot be seriously trying to sideline me on this. I’ve got just as much skin in the game as you do to make sure Bad Brain is brought in.”
“You’re also more at risk of being put in the hospital if you run across him,” Clark reminded her, placing a hand across her cheek.
“I’m also at risk for getting into a car wreck, falling off a ladder oh and getting hit by a cab.” Lois shot back, waving her hands in the air.
“Lo-is…”
“Don’t,” Lois cut him off, shaking her head. “I am more than capable of handling myself against any of these lunatics and you know it.”
“This isn’t the same as Luthor,” Clark warned in a hushed whisper.
“Isn’t it?” Lois folded her arms across her chest. “I’m not going into hiding again. I won’t do it.”
Clark hung his head, “This is reckless and insanity…”
“Lois, CK?” Jimmy interrupted, holding up the phone from across the newsroom where he was standing at his desk. “Break-in at STAR Labs. Dr. Klein is on line two.”
Lois reached across her desk and answered the phone, holding it out for Clark to overhear easily. “Dr. Klein?”
“Lois, I’m so glad I was able to get through. It’s very urgent that Superman comes by STAR Labs. There’s been a break-in and …”
“Superman?” Clark repeated curiously.
“Something…very important for him to see.” Dr. Klein whispered.
Lois glanced over at Clark, nodding at him as he loosened his tie. “We’ll see if we can get a hold of him for you.”
________________________________________
Patrol cars surrounded the front entrance of STAR Labs as the police questioned the scientists in separate corners of the front of the building. Clark eyed the uneasy gaze from Dr. Bernard Klein as he touched down in the parking lot. He met Dr. Klein’s gaze from across the walkway, nodding in his direction before turning back to Lois, “I’m going to go see what Dr. Klein needed and …see what you can find out from Henderson.” He pointed to the patrol car where Bill Henderson was crouched over helping one of the scientists who was being looked over by one of the EMTs.
“What do you think’s going on?” Lois asked, looking around. “Whatever it is seems to have drawn quite the crowd.”
“I don’t know,” Clark shook his head, gesturing to where Dr. Klein was standing, “but I’m going to find out.” He watched Lois disappear through the crowd to where Henderson was and then met Dr. Klein on the corner of the front entrance to STAR Labs.
“Superman, I’m so glad you were able to make it….” Dr. Klein ushered Clark toward the side entrance of the laboratory, away from the front entrance where the police were still helping assist those injured.
“It seemed urgent on the phone,” Clark said, looking over his shoulder. “What’s going on?”
“It was horrible.” Dr. Klein stammered, his face paled and his eyes widened. He looked toward his feet then back up at Clark, “One minute I’m working in my lab and the next I’m on the floor.” He rubbed his head with a grimace, “Electrical shock.” He pulled out a card from his pocket. “This was left out. I wasn’t sure if you wanted anyone else to know this was his work.”
Clark took the white card with the black etching on it, recognizing the calling card immediately. “Bad Brain.”
Clark pinched the bridge of his nose, recalling the Kryptonite he had entrusted in Dr. Klein’s care while they worked through trying to come up with a way to stop its deadly effects on both himself and potentially Jon. After the fiasco with the Churches he had opted to enlist Dr. Klein’s help.
Dr. Klein glanced toward his feet then back at Clark, “He took all of it, Superman. The vault the Kryptonite was being kept in was the only thing missing. I’m so sorry.”
“Dr. Klein, it’s fine. I’m just glad you’re okay.” Clark felt the anguish inside him pulse through his veins. Bad Brain Johnson had terrorized the city for months until he was finally captured two years prior. It had been the last case he and Lois had worked on together before she’d gone on maternity leave. Bad Brain Johnson had been one of many criminals to try and make their mark on Metropolis after Luthor’s downfall. Like many others to follow he had failed. Now with Bad Brain on the run with Kryptonite in tow it made his already sadistic nature all the more deadly.
Dr. Klein took his silence as his cue to continue, “Hardly anyone knew it was being kept here. The STAR Labs board of directors and myself were the only ones. Not even my assistant knew…” Dr. Klein stopped mid-ramble, “Superman, I’m so sorry…I was so close to perfecting the new suit…”
“Dr. Klein,” Clark interrupted, drawing the scientist out of his tirade. “Look, it’s not going to do anyone any good to rehash something we can’t change. Let’s start with what happened here…” He gestured to the front entrance where the police were still on the scene.
________________________________________
Lois looked over at the blue and white suitcase sitting by the front door, feeling a hard lump in her throat pulse. She frowned, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked over at Clark who wore an equally torn expression. After they had left STAR Labs, Clark had called his parents and asked if they could change their plans by a few days and take Jon out of town earlier. It absolutely petrified her. The idea of that poisonous rock being anywhere near Jon. Let alone in the hands of Bad Brain Johnson. As much as she hated to be away from him, she knew this was a necessary step in order to keep him safe.
“When I mentioned Jon taking a trip with our parents to the beach, I didn’t think it would be today.” Lois shook her head. “He’s going to know something’s wrong.”
“It’s safer for him this way,” Clark reminded her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. “With Bad Brain out there with Kryptonite…”
“I know,” Lois heard her voice crack as she ran a hand through her hair. She let out a heavy sigh.
Squeals of laughter came from the kitchen and Lois turned to the doorway, spying Jonathan carrying Jon over his shoulder as he made a sputtering noise imitating an airplane as he helped Jon fly into the living room.
“Mommy, mommy, I’m an air-o-pwane!” Jon squealed happily, raising his arms up over his head, imitating his grandpa.
Lois allowed a bittersweet smile to cross her face, meeting Jonathan’s gaze briefly before turning back to Jon with her arms wide open, “You are going to have such a good time with your grandparents.” She leaned in to give him a peck on the cheek. “Did you remember your bucket?”
“Right here,” Jonathan held up the red bucket with Jon’s favorite beach toys inside it.
“Check!” Jon squealed happily.
“Hey, bud, you have a good time and we’ll meet you there in a few days.” Clark reached over to cup Jon’s cheek, leaning in to press his lips to Jon’s forehead.
“And be good for your grandparents,” Lois reminded him.
“Uh-huh,” Jon shook his head, leaning in to give Lois a peck on the cheek. “I love you mommy.” Just as quickly as the embrace came it disappeared as Jon ran to the front door, jumping up and down with excitement for his roadtrip with his grandparents.
“Thanks for adjusting your travel plans,” Lois said with a heavy sigh, looking at Jonathan with a worried expression.
“We were planning to take him with us anyway,” Jonathan offered her a half-smile. “It’s just a day early is all.”
“We’ll try to fly out as soon as we get this Bad Brain situation handled,” Clark said softly, trying not to draw Jon’s attention to what they were discussing.
“He’s in good hands,” Jonathan reassured them.
“I know,” Lois flashed him a weak smile, “I’m still gonna miss him.”
Clark tightened his arm around her and Jonathan nodded, “We’ll call you when we get there.”
“Thanks, dad,” Clark leaned closer to her as they watched Jonathan carry Jon out to the car. The sound of Jon’s giggles grew more faint and Clark let out a heavy sigh, turning to her and whispering in her ear, “He’s going to be fine.”
“I know,” Lois sighed, leaning her head against his shoulder as she contemplated the turbulent thoughts roaming in her mind.
In her head she knew Jon was safer this way. He would have a blast with his grandparents and in a few days they’d fly out to meet him and enjoy some much needed time away from the hustle and bustle of the city. She knew all of these things but she also knew it killed her inside having to send Jon away because it wasn’t safe for him to be in his home.
The fact that at such a young age Jon was being ushered out of his home and away from everything he held precious. For the most part, she and Clark had been successful in keeping Jon out of the limelight and ensuring he would not be put on any of their potential enemies radar. They had gone so far as to keep all photos of Jon out of the announcements of his birth and any milestones in his life that were mentioned in the Planet’s Lifestyle promotional pieces on their partnership and growing family. Even with all of the effort they had put into keeping Jon out of harm’s way it still wasn’t enough.
“Let’s just nab this guy so we can get things back to normal.” Lois turned to look at Clark, resting her hand against his chest. “I know you wanted me to go into hiding too, but I can’t. I can’t sit back and do nothing while that sociopath is cooking up some crazy way to come after my family.”
Clark reached out a hand, stroking her cheek as he pulled her to him, “I’m just trying to protect you both the best way I know how. If you won’t go into hiding just try to be careful.” His forehead rested against hers, running his hands through her hair as he whispered, “Lois, I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you or Jon.”
A gentle smile crossed her face as she patted his chest, leaning her head toward him and capturing his lips with hers. An inaudible moan escaped his throat as she smoothed her hands across his shoulders, looping her arms around his neck and they separated. Lois tilted her head back, looking him in the eyes as she whispered, “Clark, I’m not going to go rushing into danger, but neither should you.”
He opened his mouth to argue and she cut him off, “Look, I get it. You have a job to do as Superman, but there is Kryptonite in the hands of Bad Brain. I just pray he doesn’t put two and two together.” She shook her head in dismay, feeling the fear that had been eating at her for the last few hours threaten to bubble to the surface as she spoke. “After all the hard work we put in to hide Kryptonite’s existence it is absolutely mind-boggling that this cretin could destroy everything and …I won’t sit back and do nothing. I might not be invulnerable, but I can stop him from using Kryptonite against you.”
“Bad Brain nearly killed the guards he overpowered at the prison, Lois.” Clark let out a heavy breath and he offered her a half-smile, “I guess you do have a point though.”
“Of course I do,” Lois grinned back at him. “Now, maybe instead of focusing on how to get me to back off of this investigation you just let me help you so we can wrap this case up and focus on more important things.”
“Such as?” Clark asked, looping his arms around her waist.
“Oh, I think we can find something…”
________________________________________
TBC...
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