Going back to Metropolous was probably the hardest thing I’d ever done in my life. I couldn’t bring myself to say more then a few words to my mom, and I could barley even look at Lex. I almost wish I’d died when I’d encountered the Kryptonite…then maybe he’d think twice about everything. The first test when I got back felt like my heart was going to be torn out. I tried to hold back, but Lex could tell I was holding back. Still, I didn’t dare go as fast as I could. I didn’t dare let him know that the 200 pound oak desk plus another fifty pounds or so from the bricks in it felt like it was made of Styrofoam. I didn’t dare let him know I could go a great deal faster then the seven miles per hour he’d clocked me at back at the beginning of summer. He knew though, and tried to get me to explain why. I couldn’t.
My birthday, when I turned ten, was a grand event. People from all over came to my birthday party. Important people and every child in metropolis was escorted by their parents. Everyone all dressed up, the boys in suits the girls in dresses. They all played with each other…I wasn’t in the mood to play.
Daddy came to the private party, later that night. I already knew what he’d gotten me. One of the old barn cats had kittens over the summer. I got the fluffy little white one with the big black spot under his chin. He was so tiny and adorable, and I very promptly named him Draco. (Yes, even I, Artemis Lara Kent Luthor Lane, read Harry Potter). He didn’t like Lex very much…scratched his hand pretty badly as I recall. Lex wasn’t comfortable with me having him, but as my feelings toward my step-father very closely resembled hate by now, I didn’t care.
Mommy got me books. Full-length novels, mostly. And a college level introduction to photography textbook. Mommy was always pushing me toward every form of journalism she could. I liked photography, so she knew this was how to catch my interest. Daddy almost said something about it, but stopped.
Lex got me an eye toy game system. Where you actually interact with the television? I loved it. Still hated him…but loved it.
That night, I was listening. I could hear all sorts of things. Voices outside, Lex on the phone in his office…I very nearly started eavesdropping on that. Until I heard a sound in Mommy’s room. It was soft, movement. Footsteps that weren’t hers. A quiet crunching sound, then “Alright. It’s safe.”
I froze, listening more intently, one question circling around and around in my brain.
What the heck was daddy doing in mommy’s bedroom?
