Lois dragged herself through the Planet’s lobby to her elevator. It had been four days since her disastrous trip to Kansas, four days since she’d called Perry on her new cell phone from the parking lot of the gas station in Smallville and told him what she’d tried to do and how badly she’d crashed and burned, four days since she’d spoken with Clark for the last time. The cold fist of despair had clamped her heart in its iron grip since the moment she’d walked out of Clark’s office. She feared it would never let go.
And now, on top of that, it was Wednesday morning and she was running late. She’d had trouble waking up, partly because Lucy was busy and out of the apartment most of the time and was no longer underfoot and the uncommon silence bothered her, and partly because she’d stayed up until the wee hours of the morning staring at the end table where the photo of Lois accompanying Clark at the Kerth ceremony had once rested. The picture had been a casualty of her white-hot fury the first night after The Betra—
No. That was wrong. Clark hadn’t betrayed her. She’d betrayed him. And now she was paying the penalty for her stupidity.
She’d pay that penalty for the rest of her life.
The elevator doors opened onto the barely controlled chaos of the newsroom, a place where she’d once reigned as Mad Dog Lane, Queen Of The Newsroom. Now the people there barely tolerated her presence. No one wanted to work with her, but unlike before when they feared her legendary temper, now they shunned her because she’d pushed Clark out of their fellowship. If Cat Grant were still working here, she might have a caustic comment or two about Lois’ intelligence or taste to break up the silent monotony.
It was more probable that Cat would shun Lois just as everyone else was doing.
She walked to her desk and glanced at Clark’s empty workspace and stopped in surprise.
It wasn’t empty. The workstation was powered up and there was a notebook on the desktop. An empty coffee cup sat to the right of the chair – which was pushed back and not under the desk as it had been for the past four months.
So Perry had finally put someone there. She hoped whoever it was would be a productive reporter. Probably a new hotshot who’d set his or her sights on overtaking Lois as the premier headline grabber in town.
She might just let New Person, whoever he or she was, win that contest.
She put her purse in her desk drawer and hung up her windbreaker, then sat down and turned on her computer. It was about halfway through the bootup sequence when Perry leaned out of his office and motioned to her to come see him.
It figures. He saw me come in late and now I’m going to get yelled at. What a wonderful way to start a Wednesday.
*****
Clark lowered his glasses and peeked through Perry’s office wall to watch Lois approach. He’d decided not to rise until Perry called Lois’ attention to him. Both he and Perry thought it would maximize the shock value.
As an added bonus, if she dropped dead of heart failure at seeing him, his problem of which woman to pursue would be solved and he could go back to Smallville with a clear conscience.
He still wasn’t happy to be here. The last time he’d spoken with Lois in this office, her vitriol had scorched both the walls and his ears.
The memory hadn’t faded, but his feelings had changed. The last time, he’d pleaded with her to alter her stance, to listen to him, to try to understand his reasons for not telling her earlier. This time, though, he would not plead. He would not beg her to be reasonable.
This time,
he would lay down the law.
He would not bargain with her. He would not allow her to set any conditions. The last time they’d spoken here in Perry’s office, she’d set all the conditions. True, she’d amended her demands and said “no conditions” in Smallville, but that was then and this was now. Clark would refuse to let her change her mind or her previously stated limits in any way.
She walked to the door – plodded, actually – and opened it. In a listless whisper, she said, “Yes, Perry?”
Perry pointed to the couch. “Got somebody to sit at that desk. Here he is.”
Lois took another step into the office, then turned to face Clark.
She froze in place and seemed to stop breathing. Then her eyes glazed over and she slumped to the floor like a marionette whose strings had been suddenly parted.
Bonus time, he thought.
Almost as an afterthought, he rose from the couch and moved to her side. As impersonally as he could, he lifted her from the floor and all but dropped her on the couch. Perry shouldered him aside and shot him a stern look that had no effect on his heart. Clark retreated to Perry’s desk, out of Lois’ line of sight, then crossed his arms and leaned back against it.
After a moment, she moved her head, grunted thinly, and bunched her eyelids together. Then she blinked and muttered, “Pe – Perry? Wha– I fainted?”
He sighed and gently said, “Yes, but I think you’re okay now.”
Her hands fluttered for a moment. “I thought – I’m getting a little overstressed, I guess. I thought I saw Clark.”
“You did, honey. Clark is right behind me.”
“What? He – what?”
She struggled to sit up and had to let Perry help her. When she tried to stand, he put a hand on her shoulder to restrain her and said, “Not yet. You stay there for a minute and get your bearings back.”
She looked at her boss with wide eyes. “He said – he told me he wasn’t coming back.” Then she focused on Clark. “You knew I’d be shocked to find you here. That wasn’t very nice, just showing up like this without any warning.”
“Probably about as shocking as me walking in my office in Smallville and finding you waiting for me. And I will point out that you didn’t warn me, either.”
“That was different!”
“How was it different?”
“I – it just was!”
Clark let out a frustrated sigh. “Chief, this isn’t going to work. It was a bad idea. I can’t work with Lois Lane. I’ll just have to submit my resignation and take over my travel column and the syndication rights.”
“No!” Lois jumped up and stumbled against her boss, then righted herself and barred Clark’s way to the door. “Please, no! I’m sorry! I’m really sorry! I shouldn’t have said that. Not any of it.”
Clark uncrossed his arms and leaned into her face. “Your saying it isn’t problem, Ms. Lane. It’s that you thought it in the first place.”
“Now hold on, both of you,” Perry said. “Lois, I didn’t tell you Clark was coming back starting today because I wasn’t completely sure he’d actually come in. Clark, I think you can give Lois the benefit of the doubt here. You did startle her pretty badly just by being here.”
Clark moved back a half-step and straightened. “That’s true. But she should be accustomed to receiving shocks from me.”
Lois’ head moved as if she were about to speak, then she didn’t. Her gaze traveled down to the floor between them and she sighed as if she were deflating.
Perry lifted his hand for a moment, then lowered it. “Look, you two need to work this out between you. I’m just gonna step back and be ready to referee in case it gets too physical. Okay?” He suited his actions to his words. “All right. Start working it out.”
No one spoke for a long moment, so Clark asked, “What are your conditions, Lois?”
Her gaze rose slightly. “You mean for you coming back to live and work in Metropolis?”
“Yes.”
She shook her head. “There aren’t any. I don’t have the right to set conditions for you.”
“So it’s okay if we don’t work together?”
Her eyes fixed on his chest and she spoke in a low monotone. “I’m not setting any conditions and I’m not making any demands. I’m just glad you’re back.”
He moved back another half-step. “Okay. Now let me tell you about my conditions.”
She raised her sunken eyes to look into his and nodded.
“I’m not going to tell everyone here that you had nothing to do with my departure. In fact, I don’t plan to talk about that to anyone. It’s no one’s business but mine. Got that?”
She nodded again but didn’t speak.
“I’m also not going to let you take credit for getting me to come back. As far as anyone will know, I left because of something between me and Perry and you had nothing whatsoever to do with it. The reason you didn’t act sad to see me gone was because you were on Perry’s side even though you didn’t know all the facts. But it’s resolved now, and we’ve all signed non-disclosure agreements so we can’t discuss any details of the situation with anyone.”
The side of her mouth twitched as if she might smile, then didn’t. “That’s a bit complex, isn’t it?”
“If you have something better or more believable, let’s hear it.”
She frowned in apparent thought for a moment, then shook her head. “Not at the moment. And we need to maintain whatever cover story we put out at the beginning, so let’s go with your invention.” She shrugged. “Now that I’ve had a chance to think about it a little, your narrative doesn’t sound so implausible.” She looked away and added, “And it will explain why I’m not jumping into your arms to welcome you back.”
He ignored the oblique compliment. “You also need to know that I’m here primarily because Rachel pretty much made me come.”
That got her attention. Her mouth made an “O” and her eyes turned into mouse-sized dinner plates. “She – she
what?”
“You were right about her. She’s in love with me and she wants to marry me, but she doesn’t want to be my second choice. She sent me back to Metropolis and the Daily Planet so I could be sure she was the woman I really wanted.”
Lois finally took a breath. “She – she has a question about
that? How could she doubt the way you feel about her?”
“I don’t want to go into any more detail. Let’s just leave it at that.”
He could tell she didn’t want to leave it, but she closed her mouth and relaxed her eyes. “Okay. Is there a – a time limit on your return?”
“Six months maximum, or until I’m certain. Honestly, if she hadn’t been so adamant about it and sure that I’d come back to her if I really loved her, I wouldn’t be here at all. But she asked very nicely, so here I am.”
She flinched at his last statement. After a moment, he realized why.
He’d done what Rachel had asked, and he’d done it without arguing. Oh, he’d discussed it with her, and he’d questioned her logic, but in the end he’d done it because she had asked him. Rachel hadn’t advised him, admonished him, ordered him, or demanded that he accede to her wishes. She had just asked.
And here he was in front of the woman who, four months ago, had threatened to obliterate his entire life’s structure if he refused her demand that he leave the city.
Never mind Lois’ state of mind. Her feelings weren’t his problem.
He increased his glare at her. “Now, I’m back at work, but I have to go check out of my hotel and check into the Mother Hubbard by the freeway. They have furnished suites for long-term rent and I’ve already made a reservation.”
“Fine with me,” said Perry. “Lois, you got anything to add?”
Her eyes flicked to Perry, then back to Clark. “Just – I’m glad you’re back. I’ll try not to make things more difficult for you.”
She was being nice. Sort of, anyway. He needed to reciprocate. “Thank you. I will do my best not to treat you badly in public.”
Her mouth thinned. “I see. That’s – fair, I suppose, given the way I’ve treated you.”
He nodded, then turned to Perry. “If it’s okay, I’ll get started on getting into my new place.”
Perry nodded and smiled. “You shouldn’t have to fix it up, anyway, not like the last one.”
“I hope not. I’m going to make the rounds and shake some hands in the newsroom before I leave. I should be back right after lunch.”
“Sounds good, son. Make sure you get a room with a balcony.”
Clark grinned at his boss. It was the most obscure and oblique reference to Superman anyone had ever made to him, and he appreciated both the sentiment and the obvious intent behind the remark. “Bye, Chief.” He turned to Lois and nodded to her, then as he passed her on the way to the doorway, he muttered, “Bye, Lois.”
He shut the door behind him and started for Jimmy’s desk. Behind him – as she had to know he would – he heard her mutter, “I’ll help with your exit lines, too, Farm Boy. Overdue library books and Cheese Of the Month Club won’t get it done.”
He almost tripped on a nonexistent seam in the carpet, then steadied himself. At least Lois felt confident enough to snark at him. And alert enough to do it when he shouldn’t have been able to hear her and couldn’t respond.
As he walked toward a suddenly jubilant Jimmy, he realized that he was almost amused by her snark. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to be in the same newsroom with her.
Or maybe, when he thought about it, he’d be irritated at her presumption. Maybe it hadn’t been intended to be a friendly crack. Maybe she’d been trying for sharp and slightly uncomfortable. At the moment, he didn’t know how she’d intended him to take it.
No matter. He’d made the commitment and he’d see it through. The next six months might be survivable after all. As long as Rachel answered the letters he planned to send her on a regular basis, that is.
*****
Denise Howard picked up the mail and began sorting it. All of the legal documents went in a stack for either the judge or the sheriff. She’d sort those out last. Anything personal went to the inbox on her desk for distribution the next time she saw whoever’s mail it was. And everything else from a Smallville zip code went in a stack for the lowest-ranking deputy present to cull through.
There were two legal envelopes for the sheriff and three for the judge. Denise stood and knocked on the sheriff’s office door.
“Yes.”
“It’s Denise. Got a couple of things for you.”
“C’mon in. Ain’t too busy right now.”
Denise entered and handed the mail to Rachel, then sat in the chair to the left of the desk. “One’s from Overland Park over by Kansas City and one’s from Topeka. You want me to wait while you open them?”
Rachel picked up one envelope and seemed to look at it without seeing it. She’d been moody and distant ever since Clark had left three weeks before. It hadn’t affected her work, not yet, but Tommy had asked Denise about it two days before.
It was time to get some answers. “Rachel? How’s your dad?”
Rachel blinked. “Huh?”
“I asked you how your dad was doing. Is he out of physical therapy yet?”
The younger woman perked up a bit. “Not yet. Won’t be much longer, though. And he’s done with havin’ surgeries. He’s still goin’ and gripin’ at his therapists. Course they all think he’s a sweet old man cause he smiles as he gripes and they know he’s kiddin’ anyway. And he kinda sorta flirts with ‘em sometimes, too, and it gives Mom a chance to fuss at him and threaten to make him do the exercises all over again at home. Nancy – she’s his main therapist – always tells Mom to give him an extra stretch for her.”
They shared a laugh. “Have you gotten a letter from Clark yet this week?”
Rachel’s smile thinned. “Oh, yeah, every week, get one on Tuesday and Saturday, just like clockwork. He writes about the newsroom, about his buddy Jimmy, about Lois’ sister Lucy – she’s a certified paralegal in New Troy now, working some long hours and making good money – about Perry White, about the stories he’s working on, and he complains about the long-term rental place he’s in. Says it’s not a bit like his old apartment there. Calls the place the Hanoi Hilton, says he’s got a next-door neighbor who wants to be a professional dancer and the girl keeps him up late practicing her tap routines.”
Denise chuckled. “Sounds like Clark.” She hesitated, then ventured, “I – ah – noticed that you mentioned Lois’ sister but not Lois. Isn’t Clark writing about her?”
Rachel turned her chair away from Denise. “No, not much. He did say she’s trying to stay away from him and being nice to him when they do talk. They ain’t working on no stories together yet, but he said they say ‘Howdy’ at the coffee pot or the vending machines. And Lois bought him a package of Double-Stuff Oreos last week and told him it was his ‘Welcome to Metropolis’ gift.”
Denise nodded. “Sounds like she’s trying to be nice to him.”
“Yeah.”
Denise put her hand on Rachel’s wrist and sighed. “But that’s not what you think, is it?”
Rachel turned to face Denise and put her hands in her lap. “I can’t tell. I dunno if he’s gonna come back or not. I really, really want him to come back.” She closed her eyes and sniffed once. “I want him to come back to me.”
“I’m pretty sure he knows that.”
“He does. He also knows I ain’t puttin’ no pressure on him to come back. I want him to make his peace with Lois and come back to Smallville and marry me.”
Denise’s voice was barely audible. “I know. And I’m sorry you’re hurting so badly.”
Rachel shook her head. “Don’t matter. Life goes on whether I’m happy or miserable.” She picked up the envelope postmarked Topeka and tore it open. “Lemme see – good, that commendation for recovering Bob Clay’s cattle is finally coming. Says the Kansas Attorney General wants me in the capital – ah, two weeks from Monday – to officially receive it from the governor.” She fanned herself with it. “Your sheriff is gonna be famous.”
“And reelected next year.”
Rachel chuckled lightly. “Yeah, maybe. Voters got short memories, though. Likely I’ll hafta do somethin’ else real fancy before then.”
“How about the other one, the one from Overland Park?”
“Let’s find out.” She opened the second envelope and started reading, then leaned back in her chair and laughed aloud. “This is rich. The sheriff in Overland Park has arrested a suspect on a burglary complaint and wants a copy of his police record sent up there – ah, he says he wants it ‘posthaste.’ That means right away, don’t it?”
“Yes. Who’s the suspect?”
Rachel laughed again. “Bobby Clanton.”
Denise spluttered. “Bobby Clanton? Our old friend from the Hole-In-The-Sheetrock Gang? The man who put his face print in our wall?”
“The very one. Do me a favor and pull his jacket and photocopy it right away. I wanna get this in the mail today before the funny wears off.”
*****
Lois lunged into the elevator without looking and dodged the anonymous person inside it to hit the lobby button. She was more than ready to get out of the newsroom this Monday evening. Clark was being a little nice to her, but it was the controlled and impersonal nice you show a person you don’t like and she hated that. She’d rather he snarl at her than be fake-nice.
She looked up at the mirrored wall in the elevator car as the doors closed and saw Clark behind her. He looked as surprised as she felt.
She half-turned and said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t look before I barged in. It wasn’t deliberate.”
He lifted one hand, palm out, in a “peace” gesture. “It’s okay. I never said we couldn’t be in an elevator together.”
She looked at the floor indicator – 4, 3, 2, 2, 2 – what the—?
The car squealed and stopped suddenly. She almost lost her balance and might have fallen had Clark not taken her arm.
His touch still thrilled her.
She took a shuddering breath and said, “I’m – I’m sorry. Thanks for catching me.”
He gently released her and stepped back. “It’s part of what I do.”
Right. Clark Kent clothes, Superman rescue. A little one, anyway. He would’ve done the same thing no matter who might have been in the elevator with him.
She looked at the emergency phone panel and reached for it, then stopped. “Uh – do you know why we’re not moving?”
She looked at him, expecting anger or irritation. Instead he’d lowered his glasses and was apparently checking the machinery. After a few seconds, he replaced his glasses. “I don’t see a mechanical problem. It might be that the computer has a glitch somewhere. At least we’re not in imminent danger of falling.”
“That’s good.” Lois pushed the “open” button, but the inner doors didn’t move. “Should I call in an emergency?”
“I think so. We’re not in danger at the moment, but we’re stuck, and I’m supposed to meet Jimmy for basketball.”
She let one corner of her mouth drift up. “So, no heroic rescue of trapped elevator survivors?”
He didn’t smile, but his voice was soft and even. “I’d rather not. I didn’t set this up, of course, but if Clark Kent is seen being rescued from a stalled elevator by firefighters or elevator repair people, that’s one more layer of insulation between me and – you know.”
She nodded. “Got it. I’ll make the call.”
She opened the panel and pulled out the handset. A phone at the other end of the dedicated line rang, and in a moment the head of building maintenance, Randall Conners, answered. “Building Maintenance, Conners.”
“Mr. Conners, this is Lois Lane in elevator – uh, three. Clark Kent and I are stuck somewhere around floor two. The doors won’t open and none of the control buttons work. We still have internal lights.”
“Huh. I’ll have to check it out. Might just need to reboot the controller. I’ll call the car back as soon as I know something.”
He hung up before Lois could say anything else. She put the phone back on its cradle and said, “I guess we won’t be here long.” She blew out a long breath. “How do you want to pass the time until we get out?”
He didn’t answer, so she looked at him. He seemed to be checking out the inside of the elevator car, so she let him be.
After a few seconds, he turned to her with a deadpan expression and said, “Do you want to play ‘I Spy With My Little Eye’?”
She couldn’t help it. She snort-laughed.
He gave her a small smile in return. Just then the elevator jerked, then lowered several feet. “Are we headed for the first floor?”
He pulled his glasses down and looked at the doors, then nodded. “Looks like it. Rain check on the game?”
She smiled and turned to face the door. “Sure. Next time we’re stuck in an elevator after work on Monday.”
The phone rang and she picked it up. “Yes?”
“This is Connors again. You should be at the first floor now.”
The doors slid open as he spoke the last word. “Thanks. We’re there.”
“Okay. You folks have a better Monday evening than it started out.”
*****
It was Wednesday morning, and Perry watched his two star reporters dance around each other at the coffee cart, each trying to defer to the other and not make any personal contact. It was an incremental improvement in their relationship over the first week when neither of them willingly entered the same room as the other, much less spoke more than three words to each other.
Five weeks later and there wasn’t much progress, but there was some.
Jimmy had stopped snarling at Lois, although he wasn’t joking with her yet. Lois hadn’t yelled at him since Clark’s return, and it didn’t look like she would. Most of the other reporters and staff had stopped avoiding her at all costs, but she still ate lunch alone.
Maybe this next assignment would change that.
He picked up his phone and punched an inside number. “Lois? Bring Clark to my office. I have something for the two of you.”
After a moment, Lois entered and moved to the far end of the couch. Clark stepped in and closed the door without moving away from it.
Was it still too soon?
Didn’t matter. He’d jumped off the diving board and was approaching the water.
“Kent, did you read Lois’ piece on that shyster who was selling babies? We published it while you were in Kansas.”
“I read it.”
“What did you think of it?”
Clark looked at Lois, who returned his expressionless glance. “I thought it was very well done, Chief.”
“Good. Seems the guy’s appeal hearing is tomorrow morning, and I need you two to cover it.”
Clark frowned. “Both of us? Wouldn’t Lois be the logical choice?”
“If it was just the appeal, yes, but I got a tip that three of the mothers and one of the adopting couples want to make victims’ impact statements. I want Lois to handle the straight facts about the hearing and how much weight the judge gives those stories. And I want Clark to profile at least two of those victims. Anonymously if they prefer, but I want to give them the chance to tell their stories in the news. Might stop someone else from becoming a victim in the first place.”
Lois nodded. “I assume you’ll want both article for tomorrow’s evening edition?”
“No, the next day’s morning edition. I don’t think you’ll have the time to make tomorrow night’s noon deadline, although we’ll have a teaser box on the bottom of the front page with the bare facts. You two work together as much as you’re comfortable, okay? Just bring back something that’ll make our readers let their breakfasts get cold.”
She smiled a little. “I’m game. Clark?”
He looked at her for a long moment, then looked at Perry and said, “The hearing reconvenes at ten-thirty tomorrow morning, doesn’t it?”
“I think so, but have Jimmy verify the time. Now you two finish up those assignments I gave you this morning.”
Clark opened the door and stepped back so Lois could exit first. “On it, Chief.”
Perry watched Lois walk out without looking at him and go to her desk. Clark followed and returned to his. He said something to her that made her frown, then she nodded and pulled her chair close to his desk.
He watched for another minute and nodded. They were discussing the assignment. Clark was taking notes and asking questions. Twice, Lois lifted her hand and pointed in his general direction to emphasize something. Both times he nodded and made more notes.
First hurdle. If they got through this story without fighting, they’d be okay. Might never be like it was before. Maybe Lois had hurt him too badly. Maybe Clark was really in love with that girl sheriff in Smallville.
Perry didn’t know. But he did know that having a cooperative and calm Lois Lane and Clark Kent working team in his newsroom was the best thing for the Daily Planet. And the paper was his baby, his property, his to cherish and shepherd through all her trials and tribulations.
Of course, having those two back together as a couple wouldn’t be a bad thing either.
*****
At her desk the day after the appeal hearing, Lois picked up the morning edition and read her story on the sentencing, then read Clark’s sidebar. The husband and wife who’d spoken in court had moved her to tears as they’d described the heartache and pain at the loss of their adopted child. The birth mother had cried with them and promised to let them stay in her son’s life, then she’d described exactly how the defendant had lied to her, promised financial support that never materialized, and cheated her.
Every man and woman in the jury box had responded. The lawyer’s sentence of the maximum possible time of forty-two years was reaffirmed, his estate was attached to repay all parties involved, and as the judge dropped his gavel on his ruling he added that he wished that he had the power to inflict the same level of pain and grief on the defendant that the man had dumped on his victims. Clark had captured all of the emotional agony and put it in print.
Lois didn’t think the slime bucket would survive to be released.
She glanced up as Clark passed by. “Good work on that sidebar. You caught their situations without being maudlin and pitched it just right.”
He stopped at looked at her. “Thanks. Your article is very good, too. You described that guy’s nastiness without making it an editorial. I don’t know that I could’ve done as well.”
She put the paper down. “You would’ve written it differently, that’s all. We’re not like each other.”
He tilted his head at her. “You say that as if it might be a bad thing.”
She grinned. “No, not at all. We each have different gifts. You do the touchy-feely stuff way better than I can.”
“And your stuff hits like a falling building. I don’t do the hard news as well as you do.”
She leaned back. “That’s what makes a good team, each one doing his or her own job. Every player on the Metro Cubs can’t be the starting pitcher. Someone has to catch and others have to play the field.”
He gave her what looked like a mock frown. “Is everything a sports metaphor with you?”
Her smile widened. “I have to communicate with the Neandertal side of humanity, so I have a passing acquaintance with sports.”
Before he could answer, Jimmy walked up and said, “Sorry, don’t mean to interrupt, but there’s a call for Lois on line three. Something about a mob accountant.”
“Thanks, Jim. I need to take this, Clark. I’ll see you later.”
He nodded and walked to the coffee cart.
She picked up the phone and paused before hitting the button for line three. Clark had been nice to her during that assignment, even accommodating at times, and they’d avoided any stupid arguments or disagreements so far. Things were slowly getting better between them, although he had yet to offer to get her coffee in the morning. But that little bit of banter felt – comfortable.
They hadn’t shared a meal yet, either. There was progress – painfully slow, but real.
She hoped it wouldn’t hurt too much if – or when – he went back to Smallville. And back to Rachel Harris.
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