Chapter Ten
Lois Lane’s cell phone rang. The caller ID showed the caller was Lucy Lane-Whyte. “Hey, Luce, what’s up?” Lois said.
“Oh, not much. I just wanted to make sure you’re coming to Thanksgiving Dinner this year.”
“I don’t know, Lucy,” Lois replied. “You know I’ve always got so much to do that time of year.” Her sister always asked and she always said no. Why couldn’t Lucy take the hint?
“Oh, come on Lois, you’re the boss. You’ve got good people that can run the place for a few days. Besides, we’ve got new people coming who want to see you.”
Lois, her curiosity piqued asked, “Oh? And who might that be?”
“Lara Kent and her family,” Lucy said softly.
“Lara Kent? And her family!” Lois exclaimed. She was glad she was sitting down—otherwise, she’d surely have fallen.
“Yes, Lois. Lara came for a visit while she was out here on a business trip, so I invited her and her family. Lara just called and said they’d love to come, and she asked if you were going to be here too.”
‘Lara was on a business trip, all right.’ Lois thought knowingly. ‘She must have flown out there as soon as she left me.’
“So, are you going to come? Please?”
Lois sighed, she knew when to give up. “All right, I’ll come. I just hope I don’t live to regret it.”
Lois ended the call and sat back in her chair, pondering what she’d just learned. ‘Lara asked if I was going to Thanksgiving Dinner? I wonder what caused this change in her attitude?’ She tapped her red pencil on her bottom lip and decided that whatever caused Lara to change her feelings, it probably had something to do with Clark. He’d always been so forgiving, extending an olive branch over and over, even sending a message to her that first time she met their daughter. Lois sent an email to her secretary asking her to set up a flight, car, and lodging for her for the Thanksgiving weekend. Her plans now made Lois returned to editing the article in front of her.
**********
Lara was flying home from her visit to Smallville when, as she got closer to Chicago, she saw a bright yellow-red glow. She listened and picked up the fire services heading to a five-alarm fire on the South Side. Lara sped up and arrived at the scene in moments and hovered over the area. There was one warehouse almost fully consumed and others were in great danger. Lara spied the Fire Commander and flew down to land beside him.
“Superwoman! Boy am I glad to see you!”
“What do you need, sir?” Superwoman asked.
“We’re having trouble getting to the back of the building. Can you get some water on that section?” he replied.
“Yes, sir!” Lara took off to a nearby railroad yard where she found an empty coal transport car. She picked it up and flew to Lake Michigan and filled it with water. Lara flew back quickly, found the hottest part of the fire, and slowly poured the water over the area to avoid causing any more damage to the structure. Again and again, Superwoman flew back and forth, pouring water on the fire then returning for more, until at last, the fire was out. Superwoman landed back beside the Fire Commander.
“I think that’s got it, sir. Do you need me for anything else?” Superwoman asked.
Before he could answer a call came in over his earpiece. “Hold on a minute… What? Say that again…? Got it!” He returned his attention to Superwoman. “I’ve got a man missing in there. Could you look for him?”
“Of course!” Superwoman took off hovering over the smoking mess that had once been a warehouse, carefully scanning the area in a grid pattern to make sure she didn’t miss anything. There, under a collapsed portion of the roof, she saw the firefighter trapped under trusses that had once held up the roof. She landed near the man pinned under a huge wooden beam, his legs trapped. Her X-ray vision found a small fracture of his lower left leg, but, thankfully no more serious injuries. She scanned the debris and determined that she could lift the beam off him without causing any more damage.
Lara smiled at the man. “I’m going to move this beam then we can get you out of here, okay?” The firefighter nodded his understanding and prepared himself. Superwoman carefully lifted the beam, making sure that nothing else shifted, and set it out of the way.
She lifted him into her arms, then she slowly took off, flying out of the building then over to a waiting ambulance.
Superwoman handed the firefighter off to the EMT and said, “He’s got a broken left lower leg but I didn’t see any other obvious injuries.”
“Thanks, Superwoman, we’ve got it from here.” They loaded the gurney into the ambulance, closed the doors, and took off speeding towards the hospital.
Commander Johnson walked up to her just as the ambulance drove away. “Thanks, Superwoman.”
“My pleasure, sir,” she replied. “If there’s nothing else?”
“No, I think we can handle it from here,” he replied. “Thanks again!”
“Great, then I’ll be off.” Superwoman rose into the air slowly, then with a whoosh, she disappeared in a streak of blue and black. Lara landed a block away and spun back into her work clothes and headed towards the scene. She pulled out her press pass and a cop waved her through the police line until she came to the command center. Lara walked up to Commander Johnson and went to work.
“Lara Kent, Chicago Tribune. What can you tell me about the fire?”
“Not much yet, I’m afraid. We don’t have an obvious cause, but whatever it was the fire spread very quickly. Superwoman was here and helped put it out or the damage to surrounding structures would have been much worse.”
“I’m sorry I missed her,” Lara said sounding disappointed. “I saw an ambulance leaving a moment ago. Were there injuries to any of your men?”
“Yes, but again, thanks to Superwoman, the injury was relatively minor. She found him under some debris and brought him to the ambulance.”
“Do you know where he was taken? I’d like to interview him if I could.”
“Stroger Hospital is closest, so he’d probably be taken there.”
Lara asked about damage to neighboring structures and when the final report would be ready. “Thanks for your time, Commander Johnson.” She ducked behind a building and, moments later, Superwoman was in the air.
Lara walked into the emergency room and asked at the desk where the firefighter was. They directed her to treatment bay number eight, where a doctor just finished up putting a cast on a man’s leg.
She knocked on the door jamb and introduced herself. “Hi, I’m Lara Kent, Chicago Tribune. Would you be able to talk to me for a few moments?” The doctor finished up with the cast and handed the firefighter a list of instructions. “Make an appointment with your GP in a few days to have that cast looked at,” he said on his way out. Once the doctor left, Lara sat down next to the man in the bed. She saw in one glance that the man was tall, at least six feet two inches, and weighed about 195 well-proportioned pounds. He had dark curly hair, a strong chin, and a very handsome face, the most handsome face she’d ever seen.
“Hi, Miss Kent. Pleased to meet you, I’m Ken McCarthy.” Ken extended his hand to her. As soon as their hands touched, each of them felt a spark, and their eyes locked. Moments later their hands parted, and Lara immediately felt the loss of contact profoundly. Neither of them said a word for several moments, their eyes hooded behind their lashes, their cheeks pink, glancing at each other shyly.
When the silence between them became oppressive, Lara asked, “Ummm, how are you feeling?”
“Good, I’m good, except for this broken leg of course,” Ken chuckled, rapping his knuckles on the cast.
“Of course. What can you tell me of the fire and how you got injured?”
“The fire was a big one. I mean, really big. It was as hot a fire as I’ve ever experienced. Luckily Superwoman showed up and helped us put it out.”
Ken paused, his gaze focused on the middle distance. “Anyway, once the fire was out, we went in to make sure there were no hot spots and to check for anyone who might have been trapped. I thought I saw something so I headed over to it when part of the roof collapsed on me. I was able to protect myself somewhat by ducking under a beam but something hit my leg anyway. When I tried my radio it didn’t work so, I’ll be honest with you, I thought I was in serious trouble. I assume my buddies noticed I was missing and sent Superwoman after me. She was so confident and supportive. She explained what she was going to do then she lifted this pile of debris off me.” Ken laughed softly. “Flying with her was amazing. It’s too bad I was in so much pain that I didn’t get to enjoy it!”
“I’m so glad she was able to rescue you. Look, I don’t want to take up any more of your time. I’m sure you need your rest.” Lara took her business card out of her purse and wrote something on the back. “Here’s my card, my personal number is on the back. Give me a call,” Lara said sincerely, handing the card to Ken.
Ken’s eyes lit up and his smile seemed to light up the room. After a glance at the card, Ken’s eyes met and held hers.
“Ummm, may I call you Lara?” he asked.
“I’d like that. Now you get some rest, okay?” Lara walked out of the treatment room and out of the hospital. She was so ecstatic that more than once she had to make sure her feet touched the ground. In all her travels, all the men she’d met, all over the world, none of them had affected her the way Ken McCarthy had.
Lara spun into her suit in a darkened area of the hospital then she flew to the Tribune to write up the story. She told her readers how the firefighters and Superwoman had worked tirelessly to gain control over the fire and to limit damage to the surrounding structures. Fortunately, there was only one minor injury to a Chicago firefighter. She took her father’s advice and did not include a made-up quote from Superwoman. After she submitted her story, the first under her byline, Lara walked over to the stairway and ran at super speed up to the roof. She spun into the suit and flew to her apartment where she entered through the sliding doors on her balcony. Once out of her Suit, she tossed it into the hamper in her secret closet, then took a five-second shower to remove any telltale signs of her firefighting adventure. She hopped into bed in her blue satin short set with a matching sleeveless top. Lara pulled the covers up to her chest, closed her eyes, and dreamt of a dark-haired, sexy firefighter.
**********
Lara picked up a copy of the Tribune when she arrived at work the next morning. She found her article on the bottom of page four. While she wished her article had made page one, she was not too disappointed. Her first byline in a major paper was very exciting. With the paper under her arm, she rode the elevator to the newsroom floor. When she got to her desk, she put her purse in her bottom left drawer and set to work. Pam Blake poked her head out of her office and called to her.
“Lara, can I see you for a moment, please?”
Lara hurried to the office and closed the door, then sat in the high-back leather chair.
Pam smiled at Lara with pride. “That was a good article on the fire last night,” Pam said. “So how does it feel to see your byline in print?”
“Great! It’s going into my portfolio for sure.”
“Too bad you couldn’t have gotten a quote from Superwoman. It would have really made your copy sing.”
“Yeah, but she was already gone by the time I got there. What did you think of my interview with the injured firefighter?”
“It added a nice human-interest angle. I’m glad he wasn’t injured more seriously.” ‘Me too.’ Lara thought. “Well, you’d better get back to work. You’re only as good as your next story!” Pam said.
“Yes, Ma’am!” Lara had barely seated herself when George walked over.
“Good get, rookie!” George said, smiling proudly. “You sure surprised everyone here.”
“I was in the right place, that’s all, George,” Lara said. “I’m just sorry I missed Superwoman. I wonder if she’s going to be around more?”
“Who knows? But it couldn’t hurt to have her around, that’s for sure.”
**********
Lois Lane awoke to the sound of sirens, first in the distance, then closer, apparently headed towards Metropolis harbor. Lois sat up and grabbed her phone. When the night editor was on the line she barked, “What’s going down, Charlie and who do we have on it?”
“Explosion and fire in the warehouse district,” he replied succinctly. “I’ve got Simpkins on it.”
“Good, good, she’ll do a good job. Anything else?”
“Just that Superman showed up moments after the first alarm went out.”
“Superman? He hasn’t been around much lately. He must have been in the area. Okay, thanks. Keep me posted if anything goes south.”
Lois ended the call and thought for a moment. She hopped out of bed, threw on some clothes, and left her apartment.
When she arrived at the site Lois watched as firefighters and Superman battled the blaze. The explosion had caused numerous injuries and a triage area had been set up at the perimeter. An hour later most of the fire was out and Superman began to ferry the less seriously injured to Metropolis General. On his last trip back, Lois called out to him.
“Superman! Superman!” Lois hollered to catch his attention. “Do you have time for an interview?”
Superman glanced at her and gave her a knowing smile. “When I’m done, Ms. Lane.” Superman picked up the last of the injured and flew off into the sky. Moments later he returned and landed near the command post. After talking to the fire chief on the scene for a few minutes, he walked over slowly, his cape fluttering majestically, to where Lois stood.
Superman nodded. “Hello, Ms. Lane. I’ve already given a statement to your reporter Ms. Simpkins.”
“Thank you, I appreciate your consideration. But… I didn’t want to talk about the fire,” Lois replied.
“Maybe we shouldn’t talk here then,” Superman said. When Lois nodded her assent they walked behind a warehouse and he picked her up and vaulted into the sky.
Lois whispered, her head nestled against his shoulder. “Ummm, I’d forgotten how wonderful flying with you is.” Superman drew her closer and a pleasant rumble emanated from within his chest. All too soon Superman landed, set Lois on her feet, and stepped back a couple of paces. Lois glanced around and saw that they had landed atop the former LexCorp building, the irony not lost on her at all.
“So, what can I do for you, Lois?”
“I got a call from Lucy the other day. She invited me to Thanksgiving Dinner. Now, she does that every year and I turn her down every year. But this time she said that Lara Kent and her family would be attending and that Lara had asked if I’d be there. What changed after her first visit?” Lois said slightly out of breath.
Superman smiled. “I see the famous Lane babble is still alive and well.”
“Yeah, well, some things never change and don’t change the subject! What’s up?”
Superman sighed and relaxed slightly. “Lara was very happy to have met Lucy and to know that she had a family. When Lucy invited us for Thanksgiving Dinner she was over the moon. I felt I should bring some reality back to the situation, so I mentioned that you might be there and I asked her if she could handle it if you were.”
Lois, unsure that she wanted to hear the answer, asked, “And what did she say?”
“She couldn’t give me an answer, not right then. I told her to think about it and let me know her decision. Lara’s a good person, and I hoped that she’d make the right decision, but she had a lot of anger—”
Lois crossed her arms over her chest and exclaimed, “Don’t I know that!”
“I’m sorry. I tried to talk her out of going to see you that day, but she has a lot of her mother in her.” Lois glared at him, her eyes narrowed. “Anyway, she thought about it for a long time. She talked to me and her grandmother and decided that holding on to all that anger was hurting only her. I don’t think she’ll ever call you ‘mom,’ but I do know she wants to get to know you and her new relatives.”
Lois’s eyes grew moist, her lower lip trembled as she fought back tears. Head bowed, her shoulders sagged. “I’m glad. She sounds like a wonderful person, better than me.”
Superman took a step closer. “Please don’t say that. You’re a good person too. You can change and this may be just the opportunity you need.”
Lois replied as a couple of tears escaped running down her cheeks. “Yeah, maybe.” She straightened and wiped her tears away, a tremulous smile on her face. “Thanks for taking the time to talk to me. Considering how rotten I was to you—”
“No, Lois! I understood. You had a lot of pressure on you back then, getting over the Luthor thing, getting your reputation back. If I know anything it’s your reputation is everything to you. It was a perfect storm, and the circumstances were against us. Maybe if the timing had been different…” Superman trailed off.
“Maybe,” Lois replied. “But we’ll never know. All we can do is accept what is and resolve to be better in the future.” She glanced at her watch. “It’s getting late. Could you take me back to my car?”
Superman nodded, picked her up, and vaulted up into the sky. When Lois pointed out her car, a brand-new Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, Superman landed next to it and set her on her feet.
Superman looked at the imposing black SUV and said, “Wow, that’s some car.”
Lois smiled and stepped away from the Man of Steel. “Yeah. It’s not exactly practical but it sure is fun!” She walked around to the driver’s door and paused. “Goodnight. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me. I guess I’ll see you at Lucy’s?”
“Yes, we’ll be there,” Superman said looking hopeful. “If… if you need anything, please let me know. You still have the number, right?”
“Yes, I do. Goodnight again.” Lois opened the driver’s door, climbed in, and with a roar of the powerful engine, drove away.
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Continued in Chapter Eleven
