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TP&S II - The Return of a Superman -
by Tank


CHAPTER TWELVE

Nigel St. John let himself into the penthouse. He was there to converse with Arianna. It was at her request, but he'd needed to see the woman anyway. He needed to make some assessments concerning her. She'd become nearly insufferable in recent days, asserting her independence as if her wishes actually mattered. He wasn't stupid; he knew that Arianna Carlin was intelligent and had never allowed something as inconvenient as ethics get in the way of what she wanted. That was why he'd chosen her in the first place. Still, she seemed to be forgetting why she was there, and who had brought her to the party.

He sat in one of the sturdy leather chairs which graced the front of the massive wooden desk. While waiting for her to show up, Nigel let his mind review the situation. Henderson's supposed revelation that Detective Lane and that reporter, Kent, were engaged had forced him to reexamine some of his short-term plans. He'd decided not to eliminate Kent as Arianna had wanted. At least not yet. The reporter's death at this time would most likely adversely affect Lane's ability to function as his person inside the police department.

Of course, just because Henderson had mentioned it, didn't mean that Nigel automatically believed it. In fact, anything his former associate said was immediately suspect. He hadn't been able to see any advantage Henderson could gain by such a declaration, so he felt he should err on the side of caution for now. He would take a greater interest in Lane and her off-duty activities just to be sure. He didn't feel that Kent really posed too great a threat at the present, so he felt he could afford to play it as if what Henderson had said was true. He could always modify the situation if the need arose.

So far, Lane had 'played by the rules'. She was the lead investigator in the warehouse murders, yet there had been no new information released since the discovery of the bodies two days ago. She was doing as he'd asked; stalling the investigation until all the leads became too cold to point to anything useful. And now, according to Henderson, and Nigel's own surveillance information, the woman was getting ready to take a trip to Kent's hometown to meet his parent's. So far, everything seemed to be as it should be. Still, he hadn't gotten where he was by being careless... which brought back to mind the situation with Ms. Carlin-Luthor.

As if reading his mind, the private elevator doors slid open and the object of his most recent thoughts strode forth.

"Ah, Nigel, I see you are here already. Please, make yourself at home." The tone of her voice wasn't exactly what one would normally associate with a friendly greeting. "I'm sorry that I wasn't here to greet you properly. My doctor's appointment ran a little longer than I thought."

Nigel inclined his head in acknowledgement of her arrival. "That would be the required yearly physical that the board requires of its members?"

She nodded absently as she made her way to the elegant chair that rested behind the large desk. "Yeah, I just got a notice the other day. Being new, I guess they decided that I should get it taken care of sooner rather than later." She frowned. "Funny, I'd never heard of a such a policy."

Nigel's shoulders briefly flexed in what passed as a shrug. "I believe Mr. Luthor instituted it about two years ago. I'm not sure, but I think he felt that knowing any possible medical weaknesses in his board members could give him an advantage over them if he should ever need it. He always did believe that knowledge was power."

Arianna shook her head. "That sounds like Lex." She folded her hands in front of her and looked Nigel in the eye. "Now, tell me, why is Kent still alive?"

Nigel glanced at the morning paper sitting on an end table over near the main elevator. "I assume you read the article that Kent wrote the other day based on your interview?"

"I did."

He shrugged. "Seems to me that it read pretty much how I would think you'd hoped it would. Didn't sound particularly threatening or suspicious to me."

Arianna shook her head. "I know, but I just had the feeling he was trying to get me to implicate myself in Lex's downfall. He kept asking me questions about how I felt about Lex, and if I knew you."

Nigel shrugged again. "It's his job to ask those questions. And it's not as if I was particularly anonymous while working for Luthor. He could have just been... fishing?"

She chewed on her lower lip. "I'm sure that's part of it, but I still think he suspects me, he just can't prove it yet. I think it would be best if he were to disappear."

He stared at her for several moments. He got a momentary feeling of satisfaction when he saw her begin to squirm just a bit under his gaze. "I'm afraid I'll have to disagree - at least for now. Kent's death would prove to be more of a complication at present than I need. He'll be watched, and if it looks like he could pose a real threat to either of us, he'll be dealt with at that time."

She frowned. "I don't understand. Why the delay? What's so important about Kent?"

"Oh, it isn't Kent himself but the company he keeps that I have to concern myself with," he said. "I'm in the middle of some delicate negotiations with Detective Lane, and I don't want to have to deal with any unwanted... distractions... where she's concerned."

"So, she's with Kent now." Arianna's tone was contemptuous. "Didn't take her long to get over Lex and hook up with another pretty boy."

Nigel's brow rose at the venom in her voice. "Quite."

"Okay, I guess I can see your point. So Kent gets a temporary reprieve. But I want him watched closely. If he makes any moves that could be construed as a potential threat to me, I want him removed... permanently."

"Of course."

Nigel rose and made his way deliberately toward the private exit. He stopped just before he reached it and turned to face Arianna. "Oh, by the way, did I ever mention that I like the new look you've adopted?"

"No, I don't think you did?" A small smile snuck onto her face.

Nigel nodded once. "Good." He turned away and pressed the call button, knowing that the woman was staring daggers into his back.

Once Nigel was out of the LexCorp Tower he strode quickly to his waiting sedan. Sliding into the front seat, he took a moment to pull a cell phone from his pocket. With a practiced surety he punched in a set of numbers. He only had to wait a moment for the other end to answer.

"I've just left her office," he began. "I'll be able to pick up the samples on my way back." Nigel listened for a few seconds. "No, I didn't tell her about our other guest. I felt it was information that should be on a need to know basis and, frankly, she doesn't need to know."

He snapped shut the lid on the small phone and slipped it back into his pocket. He turned the key and the engine in the large dark sedan roared to life. In another moment he was easing his way out into traffic.

********************

Professor Emil Hamilton was confused, and more than a little bit scared. He didn't know what to make of the last few days. He certainly didn't know why he was locked in this spartan dorm room. Nothing was making any sense.

Like everyone else, he'd been thrilled and relieved when he'd heard that Superman was back. He, like so many others, had feared that the hero had met his demise due to some foul play. Not many people out there knew about kryptonite and its effects on the Man of Steel, but there were enough. When he'd found out that there was a special press conference being held to welcome back the super hero, he'd made sure he was there.

Ever since Superman had given over the care and custody of the spaceship that had been his conveyance to earth, Hamilton had taken the responsibility very seriously. He knew that just the size of the ship would've been conclusive evidence that Superman had been on our planet since he was a baby. That meant that the baby hero had been raised under some sort of foster care. Hamilton had never asked, since he felt it wasn't any of his business, nor did he want to know. Anyone close to Superman, like a set of foster parents, would be targets of the unsavory if their identities were ever known.

Emil had mourned as had the rest of the world when the Caped Wonder had disappeared, and his heart went out to any who might have been close to the man. Still, he hadn't stopped his research, nor his study of the Kryptonian vessel. It was just too interesting, even exciting, to have such a totally alien artifact to examine.

So, when he found out that Superman was back he was even more elated than he normally would have been. His continued studies had led him to an important discovery. A discovery he couldn't wait to tell Superman about.

He'd long ago theorized that pieces of kryptonite were merely specific pieces of the home planet Krypton that had been altered due to the chain-reaction atomic explosion that had erupted from the core of that world. The pieces found on earth must have been sucked along in the drive wake of the tiny spaceship and arrived on earth along with the baby.

He had no way of knowing how many pieces of the deadly rock had come to earth with the child, because differences in mass would've allowed for atmospheric winds and currents to have altered their trajectories and spread out their impact area far beyond the landing site of the tiny rocket. Though Hamilton was confident most would have landed within a few hundred miles of the craft's impact, there was no way to be sure.

Having had access to a few small pieces of kryptonite, Hamilton had studied the deadly crystals along with the tiny space craft. It had been a long arduous task, but he'd finally been able, through comparative analysis of the altered planetary rock and the normal refined Krytonian metal, to make an amazing break-through.

Using his data on the chemical and atomic components of the Kryptonian artifacts, along with his knowledge that lead was able to block the deadly radiation given off by the kryptonite, coupled with Superman's apparent ability to utilize solar energy, he had stumbled across something wonderful. He thought he'd found a way to immunize Superman from the deadly effects of kryptonite.

Of course, once he'd heard that the Man of Steel was back he couldn't wait to tell him his good news. It had been a very disconcerting meeting, up on that stage, after the press conference. Superman acted as if he didn't even know Hamilton. Chalking it up to whatever illness the hero had recently gone through, Emil had barely been able to contain his enthusiasm as he began to explain his discovery.

That was when things had gotten really strange. Superman had smirked at the Professor and had told him to 'hold that thought'. He then grabbed the smaller man and had whisked him away. The next thing Hamilton knew he was being escorted, blindfolded, through some corridors and then deposited into this room. That had been some days ago. How many he wasn't even sure. At least two, if not three or four.

He'd had no contact with anyone except for a large fellow who irregularly brought in simple meals. Trying to find out anything from the big man had proved futile. If the brute wasn't mute, then he was doing an excellent impersonation.

Hamilton allowed himself to collapse onto the small single bed. Why had Superman brought him here? Was this where the hero actually lived? If so, why the isolation? Why the locked door? The Professor was terribly confused. What was going on?

********************

Lois left the salon and headed back to the station house. She had managed to fit in a hair appointment during her lunch hour. It not only made her feel better to get her hair trimmed back to a proper length, but it also looked good for 'appearances'. Nigel would surely know that she and Clark had made arrangements to leave for Smallville tomorrow morning. What would be more natural than the nervous fiancee trying to make sure she looked her best for her meeting with her future in-laws?

They had purchased their tickets through a very public travel agency. They'd made themselves quite obvious when they had visited the place. She was sure St. John would have no trouble accessing the agency's records to confirm their flight plans. They had also booked a rental car from the Wichita airport.

Clark had filled in his parents to the extent that they would be able to cover for he and Lois should anyone call while they were supposed to be out there. He hadn't given them any details beyond the fact that he and Lois were working on an investigation that required they appear to be elsewhere.

Lois didn't fight the grin the found its way onto her face when she remembered watching Clark trying to explain that he and Lois were pretending to be engaged. She could only imagine what his mother must have thought. She admitted that she was looking forward to actually meeting his folks sometime, but now they had other matters to deal with.

Upon reaching her desk, she quickly checked her phone messages. There was a message from one of her snitches. She reached for the phone, then glanced around, and replaced the phone onto its cradle. She rose and headed for the restroom.

She let herself into one of the stalls and locked the door behind her. Keeping her eye on the floor to watch for anyone coming in, she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket. She wasn't sure if her desk phone here at work was bugged, but she wouldn't put it past St. John. Actually, it only made sense to keep track of what she was doing while working since she was supposed to be St. John's 'man' inside.

She thumbed the familiar number and waited for someone to pick up on the other end. It took four rings.

"Hello."

"This is Lane. You have something for me?"

"If you have something for me?" The voice was suddenly coy.

"Don't play games with me," she said, with a bit of bite in her voice. "You know you'll get paid... if the information is worth it."

"Okay, I was just kidding, you know." He seemed to wait for a comment but she didn't say anything. Finally. "Well, I'm not sure if this is anything you might be looking for but the word on the streets is Johnny Taylor and some of his top lieutenants are missing. No one has seen them in days."

"Thanks, it might be helpful. You can expect your usual payment in the usual manner."

Lois thumbed off her phone and put it back into her pocket.

It was some interesting information. Johnny Taylor was an old school gangster who controlled a lot of the action over in the West River area of Metropolis. He was a small time hood with some big ideas. He ran his operation out of the notorious Metro Club. But if he was missing, that might mean that she had a possible clue as to who might have met such a grisly end over at that warehouse. She'd have to look into that - discreetly - before she left.

Normally she'd just call up the M.E. and give him her suspicions as to who the victims might have been. That would give him a starting point. He could obtain dental records, and other medical records which might give him the clues he'd need to make the positive identification. But she knew she couldn't follow normal procedure on this one. There was too much of a risk that St. John would hear about her inquiries, and since this case was supposed to come up with only dead ends, she couldn't let it be known that she knew who the victims had been. She'd have to find another way.

She fretted about it for a time, then remembered an incident a few months back with the new assistant coroner. He was a cute, young guy who hadn't heard the 'stories' about Mad Dog Lane and her 'hands off' policy when it came to co-workers.

Everyone around the precinct knew she had dated Lex Luthor, and was later seeing Clark Kent. But when it came to the men at the station house, she was all business. Her problems with Claude when she was just a rookie, and her later unsuccessful attempts with Bill, had shown her that you just couldn't be romantically involved with someone you worked with. It would inevitably fail.

Still, there had been a few others in the past who had taken a run at the beautiful brunette sergeant, but she quickly rebuffed their advances. Soon, the word had got around, and she gained a 'reputation' for being cold and aloof. She didn't mind. It suited her just fine. But apparently this new guy never 'got the memo' about Detective Lane, and so he'd laid some of his best lines on her.

At first she'd just politely brushed him off. But he'd been persistent. After the third time in as many days she finally had to let him have it. She informed him that she was in a committed relationship, which was an exaggeration. She and Clark had been just starting to see each other socially. Then she went on to chastise him for 'not doing his homework'. She pointed out that if he'd still been interested after her first refusal he should have checked with the other guys at the station about her. He would then have found out what he needed to know and would have left her alone.

Needless to say the poor schlub had burned crimson and was very apologetic. He tended to stay away from her ever since that time. Perhaps Lois could exploit that 'fear' the lad seemed to have of her for her advantage in this case. She was sure, if she was nice about it, that he could do some of that checking for her, off the record, as it were. If he balked, well then, she could always resort to her tried and true methods. Intimidation.

Nodding to herself, Lois rose from her desk and headed for the basement. It was time to reintroduce herself to that particular young man.

******************

It wasn't late, but Clark had been home for a couple of hours when he heard a knock on his front door. The only article he'd been working on for the paper had been wrapped up early so, after discussing some necessary arrangements with Perry, Clark had gone home early. He had some packing to do and he wanted to make sure he called his mother tonight to make sure they knew the make believe schedules he and Lois had worked out.

He opened to door to find a smiling Lois, complete with a packed bag standing on his front step. With a grin, he stepped aside and allowed her to enter.

"Lois," he said. "To what do I owe the pleasure? Our plane doesn't leave until tomorrow morning."

She set her small suitcase down by the front door, and moved toward the sunken living area. "Well, we are supposed to be engaged. And we are supposed to be flying out to see your parents tomorrow to tell them. I just thought, for the benefit of those who are keeping tabs on us, it would only seem natural that we'd be spending this night together before we leave."

"Sounds perfectly logical to me." Clark couldn't keep a grin off his face, which only got bigger when she grinned back at him.

Clark led Lois into the living room and they both sat down on the couch. Clark had been watching the news and so that is what was on the tube. He glanced at Lois. She seemed just a bit nervous.

"So, do you have any videos we could watch?" she asked. "I'm not really in the mood for any more depressing news right now."

Clark shrugged. "I don't have much of a personal collection. You already know what I have. If I'd known you were coming I'd have rented a couple."

"That's okay," she said as she picked the remote off the coffee table. "Maybe there's an old movie on somewhere." She began to run through the channels.

Clark leaned back against the cushions. It was nice having Lois there. But then he always enjoyed her company. "So, I talked to Perry before I left today. He's going to have a car ready for us at the airport. He's renting it under Alice's name so it's less likely that Nigel will become aware of it."

Lois nodded while she continued to click through the channel options. "That's good. Though I don't think that Nigel will be expecting us to ditch our flight, it doesn't hurt to be sure." A small frown tugged at the corners of her mouth as she continued to speed through the choices on Clark's cable service. "Hey, here's one." She finally stopped her search.

Clark raised his brow. "Old Yeller?"

She turned and gave him a mock look of hurt. "I loved that movie as a kid."

Clark held his hands out in a gesture of self-defense. "Hey, I'm not criticizing here. I liked it as a kid too. But are you going to be able to watch it without crying at the end?"

Lois rolled her eyes. "What kind of question is that? Of course, I'm going to cry at the end." She snuggled a little closer to him. "But I have my big strong fiancee to hold me while I do."

Clark could only grin at her flirtatious behavior. He knew she was feeling a bit awkward about the situation, but didn't want him to think she was nervous, or... scared.

He wondered how she was taking all this 'engaged' stuff. He knew that Bill had 'planted' the idea with St. John so Lois would have a reason to stay closer to him than one would normally think of a couple just dating. Personally he couldn't help but enjoy the perks of the ruse. They'd been more demonstrative in public to help support the idea, and he had to admit that holding and kissing Lois was never a hardship for him. He just hoped that she wasn't uncomfortable having to do such things for the sake of their cover story. As the movie began to play Clark decided to help make her more comfortable.

"Would you like something to drink?" He asked.

"Sure," she replied. "What do you have?"

"Cream soda?"

"That's sounds great." She leaned back and turned to watch him over the back of the couch as he rose to go into the kitchen. "But do you know what would be even better with that?" She smiled at his look of expectation. "Some popcorn?"

"O - kay, I think I can manage that." He opened a cupboard and pulled down a jar. "I assume you want butter on your corn."

She nodded quickly. "Oh yeah. Lots of butter."

Clark chuckled to himself as he turned back to his task. While going through the motions of popping the popcorn he let his mind review their plan. They had reservations for a flight out of Metropolis Airport to Wichita for 9:20 tomorrow morning. They assumed they would be followed to the airport and be watched as they boarded the plane. Lois was sure that she'd be able to spot their 'tail' during the process.

Figuring that once they were safely on the plane their shadow would leave, they would wait until the last minute, then find an excuse to slip off the plane to pick up the car that Perry was to have ready for them. Then it was just a matter of driving out to Boynton to do a little investigating.

Like any plan there were a dozen little things that could go wrong, but both were fairly confident that it would work. Simple plans always seemed to work best.

With the popped corn in a large bowl and two can's of cream soda in his other hand, Clark moved back to the couch and settled in next to Lois. She thanked him, then dived into the popcorn with enthusiasm.

*****************

The evening had progressed pleasantly. They'd made few comments during the movie, instead, just enjoyed the tactile presence of each other. True to her word, Lois did tear up at the tragic climax to the story, but was also able to smile when all the little puppies were shown bounding around the old cabin at the end. And, true to his word, Clark held her close during that time. For some reason she just seemed to fit so well against his body.

Trying unsuccessfully to stifle a yawn, Lois glanced up at him with a shy smile. It was time to discuss their sleeping arrangements. "This is a pretty comfortable couch," she said as she patted the large overstuffed cushions. "I shouldn't have any trouble sleeping here tonight."

Clark frowned down at her. "Lois, you're my guest. You take the bed... I'll take the couch."

Lois shook her head vehemently. She knew she was going to come up against this. Clark was such a boy scout. "No, that wouldn't make sense. It *is* a comfortable old sofa, but it's not nearly long enough for you to be able to sleep well on it." She made a show of running her eyes up and down his body. "I think you'd agree that you are a tad bit taller, and larger than I am..."

"Lo-is."

She placed her hand on his arm. "I wouldn't think of pushing you out of your bed."

Suddenly she saw a tiny gleam in his eye. "Wellll - it is a large bed. There'd be plenty of room."

Lois had to bite down on her lip. She'd been afraid that he was going to suggest that. She wasn't ready for that... with him, yet. Though she had to admit that she was pleased that he would suggest it. It made her feel... wanted. Still, it wouldn't be a good idea.

"Look, Lois," he began. "If you're worried that I'd take advantage of the situation. I want you to know that you can trust..."

She placed a finger against his lip. "Shhhh, I trust you. I'd trust you with my life. It's just that - this isn't the right time. I love you, Clark. And it's quite likely that I'm in the process of falling in love with you. But I can't trust my own emotions right now." She bit on her bottom lip. "Do you know how hard it is to stay focused and not let myself get caught up in all our engaged couple play-acting? But I can't let myself go. There's just too much stuff going on, tearing me in every direction. Until we can get Bill away from St. John, and get me out from under his thumb, I can't afford to get distracted." She saw the look of disappointment on his face. She gave him a smile. "No matter how pleasant that distraction may be." She leaned back against the opposite arm of the couch. "Clark, once we've rescued Bill, and have exposed Nigel, and his fake Superman for the crooks that they are we'll have all the time in the world to explore our relationship and see where it takes us. But I can't deal with it right now." She allowed her eyes to plead her case. "Can you understand that?"

Clark reached out and placed his palm against her cheek. "Of course I understand." He rose from the couch. "I'll get you some blankets and a pillow."

"Thanks."

She watched as he walked into the bedroom, seeing the broad expanse of his back stretch the fabric of his t-shirt to its limits. A sigh escaped from her lips. It really was a nice back.