Part 23
There’s Always Something
By Xanabee
*****
Needles… it felt as if a thousand vicious little needles were suddenly, all at the same time, being stuck into her breast. Lois gasped, abruptly standing still, causing Lucy to collide against her back while the two little boys ran past the butler, calling out joyfully for their father and grandfather.
“Sis! What’s the matter?” Lucy dropped the plastic container with the wrapped up pieces of pie on the marble floor of the monumental hall and caught her sister around her middle.
Lois staggered, shaking her head as if she’d just received a blow. Through a red haze she saw the butler’s concerned face as he rushed to her other side to help Lucy hold her up. The needles abruptly moved, now assaulting her left arm. Lois cried out, shaking her arm free from the butler’s solicitous grasp, staggering towards Gareth Keyes who was just stepping into the hall. He was holding Simon in the crook of his left arm while Eric was clinging to his other hand.
Gareth’s welcoming smile vanished and he hastily put Simon down, rushing forward. “Bates! A glass of water for Mrs. Kent, and fast!”
The butler let go of Lois’s arm and hurried away, almost knocking down Simon who promptly began to wail.
“Not now, Simon! Eric, take your brother into the library and tell grandpa that aunt Lois is sick.”
Eric began tugging at his reluctant and now screaming little brother while Lucy and Gareth gently lowered Lois on one of the ornamental chairs near the wide staircase.
But Lois miraculously and instantly felt better as soon as the butler had vanished. She took a deep breath and looked up into two concerned faces. “Phew! For a minute there I thought I was going to faint… I feel better now.”
Lois started to get up but Lucy held her down. “No, don’t get up yet, wait – here comes the butler – thank you, Sir.“
Lucy, unconsciously shielding her sister by standing between Lois and the butler, took the glass of water from Bates and thrust it towards Lois who accepted it with a hand that shook slightly. She took another deep, calming breath and obediently started to sip the water.
A voice called out, “What’s going on here? Gareth, why’s the boy crying like that? Mrs. Kent! My God! What happened?”
Lucy turned around to see Gordon Keyes hastily entering the hallway, while a housekeeper tried to prevent his two grandsons from following. She took one look at the little group near the stairs and determinedly scooped up Simon and grabbed Eric by the hand. “Come on, boys, let’s leave the grownups alone. Come and say hello to the little kittens.”
Lucy stepped aside to tell Gareth and his father what had just happened and the butler bent over Lois to take the empty glass from her suddenly nerveless fingers. The needles were back with a vengeance, assaulting her face, causing Lois to cry out in agony as vicious little green sparks stuck at her eyes. Panicking, Lois jumped up, crying out as the needles shifted downwards, over her face to her breast again.
Alarmed, a frightened Lucy knocked Bates out of the way, grabbing at her sister.
“Take me home, Lucy!” Lois gasped, “Take me home, now!”
Green… green little sparks… needles… hurt… green little sparks…
With a gasp, Lois shot upright in bed, clasping her hands against her rapidly beating heart, looking wildly around her. She sighed raggedly as her brain registered the familiar surroundings and her eyes came to rest on the comforting bulk of her husband, fast asleep beside her. His even breathing had a calming effect and Lois sighed again as she glanced at the alarm clock.
1:30 am!
She’d been asleep and dreaming, reliving her traumatic experiences earlier at Gordon Keyes’s mansion. Only, it wasn’t a dream - it had been real, very real!
Green little sparks… suddenly Lois could clearly remember seeing a little green ornament, pinned to the butler’s tie, flashing before her eyes.
Kryptonite… she was sure of it – it had to be Kryptonite!
Stealthily she crept out of bed, careful not to disturb Clark, and floated towards the door and down the stairs into the kitchen. While busy preparing a cup of hot cocoa, Lois tried reconstructing the happenings of the previous afternoon. She remembered calling out to Lucy to take her home; had vehemently protested when a stricken Gareth had suggested calling an ambulance. He’d insisted taking her home himself and she’d relented.
Lucy had driven the Jeep and by breaking all the speed limits had reached Hyperion Avenue even before Gareth had; fortunately there was no police car pursuing her when she came to a screeching halt and stormed up the stairs leading to the townhouse, yelling for her father.
By the time Lois had arrived the effects of the Kryptonite had vanished; her heartbeat and pulse rate were normal again and her color had returned. She had tried to explain how and what she’d felt and she’d gone willingly with her parents and Clark to her own house next door, leaving Martha and Jonathan to help Lucas Jennings to deal with a distraught Lucy.
Poor Lucy, Lois thought while she poured hot milk on the cocoa powder in her mug; her first day in Metropolis in more than two years and she had to see her pregnant sister collapse before her eyes.
Lucy and Lucas could only stay one extra day – they had to fly back to California on Monday night. Lois had protested; why couldn’t they stay a few extra days? Now, sitting in the dark kitchen, sipping her hot cocoa, Lois was relieved that Lucy and Lucas were leaving so soon.
Perry had kindly let her have the day off so she could have more time with her sister, but right now, Lois didn’t know how in the world she would manage to act normal, as if everything was okay, until she and Clark would see the couple off at the airport for their 6:00 pm flight.
Physically, at least, she did feel okay again. Fortunately, the Kryptonite hadn’t been pointed at her belly so the baby hadn’t been disturbed. She’d been sleeping peacefully when Clark had scanned her, just to make sure.
Lois sighed and put down the now empty mug. So this was what getting exposed to Kryptonite felt like. Although Clark had never talked about feeling needles being stuck into his body, she supposed it felt different because she was, after all, human.
Her heart heavy, Lois forced herself to think clearly. Before she talked to Clark about this, she wanted to be very sure that the theory that was roughly taking shape in her mind was correct. Poor Clark – he would be so devastated when he’d learn that befriending Gareth Keyes had also put the man and his family in grave danger. Would this mean the end of that friendship? What had Martha said? ‘Boys need boys to play with, Lois.’
Lois knew she wouldn’t blame Gareth if he severed all ties with the Kents once he knew the truth – that any association with Lois Lane and Clark Kent meant putting yourself and your loved ones at risk. Gareth had a wife and three young children to think of and protect and by now Lois was convinced that Gareth’s father was harbouring a ruthless killer. She was pretty sure that this new butler had cunningly taken the place of the loyal John Kincaid who, in all probability, had been murdered.
From the day they’d met Clark and Gareth had hit it off famously. Clark had been reluctant to pursue a potential friendship but she, Lois, had encouraged him to when she’d seen how much both men enjoyed each other’s company. She was certain that if Clark lost this friend he would never again let another person into their lives.
And what would that mean for Katharine? Would she have to grow up, a lonely little girl, only surrounded by adults? No little friends to take home to play with or have sleepovers with? Lois moaned softly as hot tears spilled from her eyes. Angrily, she wiped the moisture from her cheeks – she had no time to wallow.
Lois stood up and retrieved her laptop from the living room, together with a bulky file marked ‘M.C.’. She placed the laptop on the breakfast table in the kitchen, booted the PC and opened the file. Soon she was engrossed in reading and processing the information she was looking for. The screen of the computer didn’t provide too much light but Lois decided to work in the dark. She didn’t want to disturb Clark – he needed his sleep. She suspected they both would have many sleepless nights in the days to come.
*****
At the top of the stairs Clark hesitated for a moment; Lois clearly wanted to do whatever she was doing, alone. He’d waited almost an hour before he’d decided to come down and see what was keeping her in the kitchen so long. Should he return to bed and pretend he didn’t know she’d crept downstairs to do – what? He suspected it had something to do with the mysterious needle attacks she’d been talking about. But why keep it from him? No, he didn’t want to put on an act – if something was wrong he wanted to know what that was.
Clark took a deep breath and walked down the stairs. He didn’t want to frighten Lois so he softly called out her name as he neared the kitchen. Lois looked up into Clark’s troubled face as he stood in the doorway, looking at her with anxious eyes. Lois smiled bravely and pointed at the chair beside her.
“Can I put on the light first, honey? It’s a bit dark in here.”
Clark touched the switch near the door and Lois blinked for a moment against the light.
“What? Oh – sure. I didn’t want to wake you up when I came down here so…”
Clark sat down beside her and stared at the computer screen. “What’s this – the Mindy Church file? Honey, can’t this wait? You need your sleep – you had a very tiring day and there’s Lucy, tomorrow - I mean - later today.“
“I know – that’s why I have to do this now – I mean, ‘we’ have to do this now – but first…” Lois took Clark’s face between her hands. She tenderly kissed his lips and looped her arms around his neck. “But first… I want to hold you close and tell you how much I love you…”
Clark sighed and hugged her close. “I love you too, honey, so very, very much…”
Their lips met and for a long moment the only sounds in the kitchen were the humming of the laptop and Lois’s soft moan as she lost herself in Clark’s tender kiss. But when he deepened the kiss and his caresses became more intimate she gently disentangled herself and smiled regretfully up into his questioning eyes.
Lois knew they had to keep their heads clear to be able to deal with whatever lay ahead; peoples lives were at stake and they couldn’t afford to loose more time. They had a killer to catch.
*****
At the same time, in the spacious kitchen of the gracious mansion annex office space where publisher Gordon Keyes lived with a few permanent staff members, Bertram Bates sat at the kitchen table. He’d just prepared a huge omelet with bacon and cheese and taken six slices of rye bread out of the bread bin.
Appreciatively he sniffed the appetizing fragrance of freshly brewed coffee that had also alerted the housekeeper. He’d shooed her away, promising to clean up after he was done, and had then sat down to enjoy his meal. Whenever he was faced with problems and a sleepless night he’d get up and prepare a meal; he found that this ritual helped him to get things into perspective and right now he needed to think – and think hard.
He was not only wide-awake but also furious. Why hadn’t he been told that Lois Lane was pregnant? That blundering idiot Costanza! He should’ve informed the boss lady something as important as this. Bertram was sure this fact had not been published in ‘The Daily Planet’, the newspaper they received and read daily on the island estate. He was sure Madame Lachapelle didn’t know; otherwise she’d have told him.
Killing a woman, even one as beautiful as Lois Lane, was regrettable but not something Bertram would lose any sleep over. But killing children was another matter entirely – and that, to Bertram, included unborn babies. That was something he was not prepared to do. Tomorrow he’d call the boss lady and tell her he’d take care of Clark Kent and Superman as soon as possible; but if she wanted Lois Lane eliminated before she’d given birth, then Alan Cornell would have to do it.
While Bates chewed and swallowed he thought about Cornell. He, Bates, didn’t value human life that much, but when he had to do away with someone, he preferred to do it swiftly - and clean.
Cornell – now, he was something else. Cornell was the kind of man who didn’t hesitate to dump a victim, still alive and kicking, in a Louisiana swamp infested by alligators. Even someone like Beddington, whom they’d known personally. That’s why the boss lady used Cornell to do away with the people who worked for her and didn’t deliver the goods as expected. She’d once told Bates that Cornell would murder his own mother if someone paid him enough.
Bates shuddered. On second thought, he’d better not tell the boss lady he wasn’t prepared to kill Lois Lane – yet. She might get miffed and send Cornell to take care of it – and of him! The best thing to do was to go after Clark Kent and Superman first - and take things slowly. Then, by the time it would be Lane’s turn, she’d have given birth already.
Feeling better now that he’d made a decision, Bates finished his meal and went back to bed.
*****
“Judas Priest, Clark! You’d better have a darn good reason to wake me up at this hour!”
Bleary eyed, Perry White hoisted himself up in bed and peered at the illuminated face of his alarm clock. “Son, do you know what time it is? What? Oh… uhuh… uhuh… okay, just give me ten.”
But before Perry even had time to finish getting dressed a ‘whoosh’ alerted him to the arrival of Superman. Over the phone Clark had told him he’d pick him up – no need to call a cab.
How long was it since he’d flown with Superman? It had been years ago, but Perry still recalled all the details as if it had happened yesterday. He’d forgotten the date but not the facts. A bomb had been placed under his office chair and only after he’d sat down on it had he known that it would explode if he got up again. Superman had taken one look at the timer and seen that there was no time to deactivate the bomb. He’d picked up the chair, with Perry still sitting on it, and had flown out the window. Superman had then chucked Perry out of the chair and thrown it high up in the sky where it had exploded; he’d then whooshed down again to catch Perry before he’d hit the concrete.
“Hope he doesn’t do something like that again,” Perry thought ruefully, recalling how playful and humorous Superman sometimes had been in the early days. These days Superman appeared on the scene whenever he was needed but didn’t linger longer than was necessary to talk to the press or the authorities.
Well, Superman was a married man now and Perry supposed that having a real family to come home to made all the difference; besides, Lois had told him that all those past brushes with death had also made the super hero wary of staying too long among crowds.
“You never know when another nut will be there, pointing some green or red Kryptonite at him, Perry. As long as that stuff’s out there, Superman will have to be very careful.”
And Superman’s mere presence at disaster scenes still generated crowds. Not only in Metropolis, but everywhere in the world where he made an appearance. And right now, Superman was hovering outside Perry’s bedroom window, ready to take him to an urgent meeting with Lois and Clark at this unholy hour. Perry hastily buttoned down his shirt, drew a pullover over his head and went to open the window.
*****
“Are you sure, Lois? Are you absolutely sure?”
“Yes, Perry, I am. Look at this list – we’ve never been able to figure out why Costanza compiled a list of only twenty of the richest people in Metropolis. We’ve considered the ‘I’ll marry another rich man then kill him’ angle and we’ve investigated the people who work for them and they all came out clean. We just never considered that a switch would be made. All these people have a live-in butler on their payroll, Perry. I’m convinced Mindy wanted to choose a household where Clark and I are likely to visit regularly and who better to replace than a butler? I just know that man’s been planted there, Perry, to kill Superman – and Clark and me too.”
“Think about it, Chief,” Clark added grimly, “Mindy Church had three enemies here in Metropolis and Joey Bermuda failed to kill them for her. She must’ve been furious when she read in ‘The Daily Planet’ that her construction fraud was being investigated and exposed by none other than Lane and Kent. And Superman put out that fire at the marina, remember? In time for the police to be able to identify ‘Butch’ Warner – and find out that he was killed before the boat was torched.”
“Yes, she must’ve been hopping mad,” Perry said slowly, “I guess you’re right – I’m not so sure about you two but she’s definitely after Superman. That would account for the Kryptonite in the tie-pin. Darlin’, are you sure you don’t have any side effects from that?”
“No, I’m fine, really. It was just a little piece of Kryptonite. But I’m sure he must have a big chunk stored away, ready to use on Superman. That’s why Clark and I can’t go near the man, Perry - if a small sliver like that can make me feel as if I’m being attacked by killer bees I shudder to think what a big rock will do.”
“You two should definitely stay out of the way. Clark, sit down – you’re making me nervous, walkin’ around like that. Okay, this is what I think we should do…”
*****
Gareth Keyes parked his car on Hyperion Avenue, hopped out and hurried towards his friends’ townhouse. It was almost 5:00 a.m. When he’d picked up the phone about half an hour ago he’d expected to hear Clark tell him that he wouldn’t be able to go running this morning - that Lois was having another mysterious anxiety attack. But it hadn’t been Clark on the phone - it had been Lois’s voice asking him if he’d please come over as soon as possible.
Careful not to disturb his sleeping wife Gareth had crept out of bed and donned his sweat suit and running shoes. Before leaving the bedroom he hadn’t been able to resist walking over to the bassinet at Glenda’s side to take a peek at their baby daughter. Charlotte was sleeping as peacefully as her mother and Gareth had smiled lovingly down at his little miracle baby. When they’d finally brought Charlotte home Glenda had insisted keeping the bassinet in their own bedroom; she wasn’t prepared yet to leave the baby alone in the nursery, even if it was only across the hall.
As he now hurried up the stairs leading to the entrance of the townhouse, Gareth thought about the ordeal he and Glenda had been through and how thankful they’d been when they’d finally been able to take their baby home with them. He hoped that Lois and Clark wouldn’t have to go through that kind of agony. But Lois seemed to be all right again; her voice had been clear and calm when she’d called. Maybe now they would tell him what kind of attack Lois had suffered at his father’s house.
*****
“No, Bill, you can’t wait!” Lois protested, “You’ve got to arrest him now!”
“Lois is right, Bill!” Clark jumped up and started to pace around the kitchen again.
“My father might be in danger!” Gareth stared at Bill Henderson in consternation. “That killer is living in his house, inspector, you’ve got to – “
“Give the man a chance to explain,” Perry said calmly, “Clark, sit down – it’s time for a recap anyway and I’ll do it. Let’s see…” He pointed at Gareth and continued, “Lois went with her sister to your father’s to drop off your boys, right? First thing she sees when the butler opens the door is his tie-pin. Instead of staying calm she gives a rather over the top performance of having some kind of seizure. Not your finest moment, darlin’, but we’ll let it pass this time; you bein’ pregnant and all.“
“I’m sorry – I didn’t think,” Lois said in a small voice. She didn’t like the explanation Perry had come up with earlier but what else could they have told Gareth and Bill?
Lois looked at the men with woeful eyes. “I just panicked when I saw that Kryptonite…”
“ And it says a lot for your credibility that we’re willing to believe you, darlin’. If you say it’s Kryptonite and Clark and Superman take your word for it, we do too. Right, fellers?”
“Right,” Gareth echoed; at first he’d been furious – why hadn’t Lois told him that she had just been putting on an act? She could have told him when he was taking her home.
Oh? She had wanted to talk to Clark first – and to Superman?! Big deal! She’d scared the hell out of him and his father, not to mention her sister and his two little boys. And why had they waited so long to call him, anyway? If Lois was right then his father was harbouring a killer!
Lois, not often used to playing the penitent party, had clung to Clark and hidden her face against his chest, biting her tongue whenever she’d felt the need to protest against Gareth’s reproachful allegations. She knew they couldn’t tell him the truth - but even though she knew where he was coming from, hearing Gareth call her irresponsible and insensitive had still hurt – a lot. Clark had rocked her and held her tightly, whispering remorsefully how very sorry he was.
Gareth had raved and ranted for a while but, having had to deal with a sometimes irrational and highly emotional pregnant wife himself, he’d finally calmed down.
Perry’s presence had greatly helped too and he had been able to persuade Gareth not to storm away to go rescue his father on his own but to wait for Bill Henderson to arrive. When Bill had arrived Gareth had still been tense and upset but had calmed down enough to think and talk rationally again.
The inspector, looking his usual phlegmatic self, was leaning against the counter with his hands in his pockets. Only the excited glint in his eyes betrayed his elation – could this really be the break they’d all been looking and hoping for? Would they finally be able to catch the ‘Black Widow’ before she completely got out of control? Now all he needed was to persuade these four, headstrong people to go about this his way.
After he’d been briefed by Perry White, Bill had taken one look at Lois’s tearstained face and declined calling her the moron he thought she had been by not calling him sooner. He hoped it wasn’t because she had been contemplating to go after Bates herself. If that was the case he suspected it had taken Clark hours to talk some sense into his wife and to persuade her to call in the cavalry instead.
He’d have to talk to Kent about that – on second thought, he’d better not. Lane would always be headstrong and, on occasion, harebrained and reckless; but he admired her courage and had learnt to rely on her unfailing instincts. If Lois Lane declared that the butler’s tie-pin contained Kryptonite then he, Bill Henderson, readily believed her. He nodded curtly when Perry White looked to him for confirmation.
“That’s settled then,” Perry continued, “Lois, you told us what happened at Gordon Keyes’s home; you discussed this with Clark first and then with Superman. Clark called me and Superman picked me up, then left to do… well, whatever he’s doing right now – who knows. Anyway, he promised to stay away from Bates and told us he’d rely on us to take care of the man and the Kryptonite. And that’s what we’re going to do and we need to do it calmly and rationally.”
Perry looked pointedly at Gareth. “And that goes for you too, young man – you especially. Think you can forget for a moment that your father’s involved and act as the professional reporter that you are? Good – now, let’s listen to what Bill has to say and I don’t want any interruptions from the three of you. Time is essential here and we’ve got to come up with a strategy before people see us troopin’ out of here and get suspicious.”
“Too late – it’s already past 6:00 a.m.” Lois said, “But Superman scanned the whole area, Perry, and he said that our house is not being watched from the other houses around here.”
“Still, it’s best not to alert people to this meeting. Bill… you were saying?”
“Thanks, Perry, I’ll try to make it brief. Lois, Clark – you two stay out of the way. Don’t go near Bates. This time, Lois was surrounded by other people and she made such a racket he didn’t get a chance to kidnap her… like he’s probably done with your father’s trusted butler, Gareth.”
Bill picked up his notepad from the counter where he’d laid it and glanced at the notes he’d jotted down earlier.
“Okay – here’s what I think. The Keyes family was targeted because one of Mindy Church’s spies – probably Mike Costanza – informed her that Lane and Kent were friends with the Keyes family. On top of that, Superman has also been spotted over there – he’s been seen flying around with the two little boys at their grandfather’s estate, right?”
“That’s right! And who better to replace than a butler, if you want to get close to such a family! I’m sorry, Keyes – I think you’d better be prepared for the worst. I don’t think we’ll find your father’s butler alive.”
Now it was Perry’s turn to get agitated. He knew Bill would be able to arrest the unsuspecting Bates, but the bogus butler was a henchman and thus expendable. Mindy Church would just lay low for a while and then hatch out another one of her sick schemes. Perry doubted that Lois and Clark would stay lucky and not get hurt. Their luck would surely run out one day and he couldn’t bear to see that happen.
“Bill, we can’t bungle this – we’ve got to catch that man and Mindy Church too. How in the world are you going to do that? That’s not gonna happen if she stays put on that darned island!”
“Well, Perry, these days she’s been spotted frequently in Miami and I’ve found out where she’s staying when she’s in town. She’s got a condo at Miami Beach – used to be her late husband’s. I have a friend – Phil Madden - who works for the Miami Vice Squad; he’s been helping me with this investigation. He told me that they’d already been keeping an eye on her pilot. His name’s Alan Cornell and he’s under suspicion for smuggling drugs into Florida. Phil thinks this Cornell is either doing that for Mrs. Lachapelle or he’s moonlighting. He’s welcome to him - it’s Mindy Church I’m after.”
“Bill, I take it this friend of yours – Phil Madden – can be trusted?”
“I’d stake my reputation and even my job on his integrity, Clark. He was my partner on the streets for more than ten years before he moved to Miami and became a member of the ‘think tank’ at narcotics. He’s saved my life a few times and don’t worry, Phil knows how to conduct an investigation in secret. He’s also found out why Mindy’s been flying in and out of Miami so often these days. Yves Lachapelle’s sons won’t accept that their father died a natural dead. The official explanation is that he drowned during a boating accident – seems that it was none other than Alan Cornell whose motorboat collided with Lachapelle’s small sailing boat. Cornell testified that he hadn’t been able to save the man. But Lachapelle’s sons don’t believe any of this and immediately started a lawsuit against their father’s widow. They hired some big shot lawyers to prove that their father was murdered and the case has been dragging for years. Now it seems that Mindy’s grown tired of the whole thing and is currently getting rid of some of her lawyers and interviewing others to take their place.”
“Okay – so Mindy could be arrested in Miami. On what grounds, Bill? It doesn’t look like the Lachapelle family will be able to pin their father’s murder on her any time soon. And you wouldn’t be able to arrest her in Miami - you’d have to do it here! How in the world will we be able to lure her into Metropolis?” Clark, frustrated, jumped up from his chair and walked over to the counter where Bill Henderson still stood. “Bill, move over – I’m going to make us some breakfast. I have to do something, otherwise I’ll go mad!”
“That’s a great idea, son, I’m beginning to feel quite hungry myself. And some fresh coffee wouldn’t hurt either. Lois?”
“Right, Chief – fresh coffee and tea coming up.” Lois also jumped up and joined Clark at the counter.
Henderson walked over to the table where the other two men were seated and straddled the chair Lois had just vacated.
“Okay – this is what we’ll do. Gareth, you’ll call your father and get him over at your house without making him or the butler suspicious. Tell your father and your wife what’s going on and keep them and your children at your house. Think you can do that? Good. Perry, you go about your business as usual at the Planet. Lois and Clark will stay here as planned - her sister is coming over to have lunch here, right? So that will give me time to arrange the paperwork and go arrest Bates and Costanza simultaneously. We don’t want either one of them to alert Mindy, now do we? Apart from that list of rich people he compiled for Mindy Costanza’s been lying low, so I was planning to get detective Jenny Hudson out of there anyway. I have more important undercover jobs for her to do than playing secretary to Costanza. Last time I talked to her she told me she was bored stiff.”
“Okay, you arrest Costanza and Bates – then what?”
“That’s the tricky part, Lois. We’ll have to come up with a rock solid reason for either one of them to give to Mindy Church. A message that will get her over here a.s.a.p. Maybe telling her that Bates has already managed to kill you and Clark and Superman – all in one big swoop? Don’t you think she’ll want to see that for herself ?”
“Hmm,” Perry looked thoughtful. “A trap, eh? Mindy might just be distrustful enough of her hired hands to want to check things out herself. She could fly in at that small airstrip near the marina and nobody would be the wiser… the marina… the marina! Bill! I bet that pilot of hers flew in that night ‘Butch’ Warner was killed on that boat! Judas Priest, he must’ve done it – and maybe even watched us and Superman clean up the mess afterwards!”
“Bill, think about it - why would she risk coming over herself? She’ll just send her pilot over to check out if Bates has really done the job!” Clark began setting the table, slapping the plates down much harder than was necessary.
“Son, breaking those dishes won’t help none,” Perry tried to calm him down, “Don’t you dare drop those pancakes – I’m not that hungry that I’m prepared to eat them off your floor.”
“Sorry, Chief, it’s just so frustrating! We’re running around in circles here. I wish Superman could go pick her up and fly her over here… but she’s likely to have more kryptonite so that’s not an option.”
“And it wouldn’t hold up in court,” Bill said dryly, “Even Superman isn’t allowed to make a citizen’s arrest in another country, Clark.”
“Vanity,” Lois said suddenly. Excited, she unceremoniously dumped the coffeepot on the table and turned to face the men.
“Vanity? What do you mean?” Perry was already enjoying his pancakes.
“Perry, murderers aren’t only ruthless, most of them are very vain, too! Clark and I have sometimes been captured by criminals who just couldn’t resist telling us, in detail, what they had already done and what they were planning to do to us! Instead of doing the job they loose precious time because they want to flaunt how clever they are in front of their victims. We'll have to come up with something that Mindy Church will not be able to resist - and I think I know what will do the trick!”
*****
(Tbc)
