### Chapter 9: Broken Hopes
**Intergang Headquarters**
In a richly decorated basement, the latest issue of the Daily Planet, featuring a photo of Ultrawoman standing with her arms crossed in a very "Superman" pose, and the article by Lois and Clark, was prominently displayed on a table. A platinum blonde, wearing a very short dress barely covering the top of her thighs, spoke in a girlish voice to Brown and Trellis. Both had their heads bowed.
"But Mrs. Church, it’s incomprehensible. I’m sure Superman was hit; he's probably unable to perform any rescues, and his friends are covering for him with this story..."
"Tsk, tsk, you failed... There's still a superhero in Metropolis preventing me from conducting my business in peace..."—she turned to a man in a suit beside her—"Freddy, can you take care of these two losers? I don’t like being made a fool of..."
"But Mrs. Church..."—Brown's protests were cut short as a man injected a substance into his neck, and the same was done to Trellis.
**348 Hyperion Avenue**
Clark and the two Loises were having dinner in the dining room of their townhouse when the phone rang. Clark got up to answer:
"Hi Mom, hi Dad."
"Clark, we read your article. What’s going on? Nothing serious, right?"—Martha asked.
With all the commotion, he had forgotten to inform his parents.
"Sorry, I didn’t take the time to call. I was hit by red rays, and it transferred my powers to Lois, like last time, so she pulled out the costume you made for her."
Clark tried to hide Lois's duplication from his parents, not wanting to worry them unnecessarily, but his voice wasn’t as steady as he had hoped.
"Everything okay, son?"—his father asked.
"Yes, yes, Dad."
"You’re not trying to pull one over on your parents, are you?"—Martha added.
Clark squirmed uncomfortably and sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"No, it’s just that the rays also duplicated Lois..."
Martha let out a small gasp of surprise before composing herself.
"How is she?"
"Fine, I think. The situation isn’t easy, but I’m sure we’ll get through it."
"Do you want us to come, sweetie?"—Martha asked.
"That’s kind of you, Mom, but you have your own problems. I know it’s harvest time."
"It doesn’t bother us, you know. Our son and daughter are much more important."
"I promise we’ll be okay."
"Alright, but call us. You know we’re always here for you."
"Thanks, Mom."
"Goodnight, Clark."—his father concluded.
"Bye, Dad, Mom."
As he returned to the table, Ultrawoman picked up the police scanner.
"What do you hear?"—Lois asked.
"The police. Two bodies were spotted at the port. I should go see if I can help."
She stood up, spinning into the costume, leaving Clark speechless. She gave him a quick kiss on the lips and took off:
"So that’s what it looks like when I change?"—he asked.
"Yes, it’s pretty cool, isn’t it?"—Lois replied.
"Yeah, I don’t know if that’s the word I would use, but it’s interesting, for sure."
"By the way, I’ve never had the chance to ask you—you’re always gone too quickly..."—she got up from the table and approached him, starting to play with his tie—"Do you completely undress when you change outfits?"—her hands were now around his neck.
Clark blushed slightly and closed the distance between their mouths, kissing her lovingly. Lois pulled back quickly:
"Don’t try to dodge the question... although, judging by your reaction, I have a pretty good idea of the answer... I might need to invest in a camera to film you and watch in slow motion,"—she finished in a sensual voice. This time, Clark turned bright red and gasped... he was both embarrassed and excited. Clearing his throat, he said:
"She mentioned bodies at the port, didn’t she? Don’t you think we should go check it out?"
**Metropolis Port**
At the port, Ultrawoman landed next to the Police Lieutenant who seemed to be in charge of the operation:
"Lieutenant, can I help?"
"We found two floating bodies about an hour ago. Unfortunately, there was nothing we could do; they were dead. My men are trying to retrieve them but are having some trouble. If you could assist them."
Ultrawoman joined the zodiac and went to help the divers.
Lois and Clark arrived as the bodies were being placed on the dock.
They approached the police line, and Lois called out to the officer guarding the perimeter:
"Lois Lane, Daily Planet, and this is my partner Clark Kent."—Clark showed his press card—"We’re with the..."
"Daily Planet, and you want to see my boss,"—the officer finished.
Lois didn’t hide her smile:
"Exactly,"—she began to lift the police tape.
The officer stepped in front of her:
"Who authorized you to enter the perimeter?"
"You just did!"—Lois asserted.
"Absolutely not! So you stay on this side and wait. My boss asked me to maintain a crime scene free of pests, and that includes the press."
"But you don’t have the right to..."
The Lieutenant in charge approached at the commotion and introduced himself:
"Lieutenant Wolf, what’s all this noise?"
"Lois Lane, Daily Planet, and this is Clark Kent, my..."
"Husband, yes, I know... go ahead, what do you want to know?"
"I was going to say partner... but alright, what happened?"
"We recovered, with Ultrawoman’s invaluable help, two bodies. According to our information, they were brothers: Michael and Oliver Brown."
"Michael, as in the escapee from yesterday?"—Clark asked, shocked.
"Affirmative!"
"...And this Oliver, what did he do for a living?"—Lois hesitated to ask, fearing the answer.
"He’s a former Marine who served in Kuwait, no known occupation since."
"What happened to them?"—she continued.
"Execution, a bullet in the back, and their hands were tied behind them."
"Revenge killing?"—Clark asked.
"Probably, but we’ll know more after the autopsy. I have to go now."—and he walked away.
Lois turned to Clark, her eyes moist:
"Clark, that was our only lead..."
"I know, but we’ll find another. Come on, let’s go home."
"No, let’s go to the Planet and write the article."
**In the Jeep**
The drive to the Planet was heavy with silence. Clark was as distraught as Lois and didn’t know how to comfort her. He hadn’t been able to approach Ultrawoman to check on her either. He felt guilty for not being able to ease the burden on his women. The murder of their main suspect had dashed their hopes of returning to normal life.
He needed to inform Ultrawoman of their destination, as returning home alone wouldn’t be easy. He pulled out his cell phone and left a message on her voicemail.
**Daily Planet**
Once at the Planet, they worked mechanically. The goal was to focus on the article and avoid dwelling on their disappointment, but it wasn’t very successful.
