Hello all. I know, I know... I said Sunday... but Sunday wasn't going to happen... too much going on. So I scrambled to get it posted tonight. Thanks in advance for any fdk, and I promise I will answer it eventually.
Thanks as always to my two special betas, Sue & Lara <hugs>
Hope you all you FoLCs have a lovely weekend! C-ya!
Table of Contents From Part 3:
“Yeah, it wasn’t just any diamond. It was a three-carat D FL-IF Princess cut.”
Clark wrote down the info. “Uh, I have to tell you. I’m not sure what half of that means.”
Henderson chuffed a laugh from the other end of the line. “Me either, Kent. At least, not at first. I was later informed that the ‘D’ refers to the color of the diamond. D is absolutely colorless, which is extremely rare for a diamond that size. FL-IF stands for ‘flawless’ and ‘internally flawless’. So as far as diamonds go, this one is about as perfect as they come. A European museum was in the process of procuring it from a reputed gemologist in Metropolis. He had it in one of the safe-deposit boxes along with some smaller gems. Sorry I can’t give you more right now, Kent, but I’ve gotta go.”
“Thanks, Henderson.” Clark hung up the phone.
What would his clone want with a diamond?
**********
PART FOUR
**********
Lois hung up the phone and looked at herself in the bedroom mirror. Part of her really wanted to cancel her date with Lex tonight. He was supposed to be taking her to some really great Italian restaurant. But her heart just wasn’t in it. Her heart was with Superman, wherever he was.
She wished he would come to her; confide in her about what was going on. She couldn’t imagine what he must be feeling right now. The people he cared about, had fought for on a daily basis, had turned their backs on him. Just like that. Newspaper headlines condemning Superman and news reports calling for him to turn himself in to the police – demanding justice – turned her stomach. Why were people always so willing to believe the worst?
But there wasn’t really anything more she could do tonight. She had just got off the phone with her uncle and left word for Bobby Bigmouth. She was going to have to wait until Bobby decided to contact her. And since she had told Clark *not* to come over tonight to work on the story... that meant unless she wanted to stay home and sulk, that she might as well go out with Lex.
Sure, she could call Clark and tell him that she had changed her mind - that he could come over. But part of her liked the thought of making him stew a little. Let him think about how he was always running off and what it meant to be partners...
And know that she was out on a date with Lex.
She knew Clark didn’t like Lex. He had it in his head that Lex was evil. It upset him that she didn’t believe him, but how could she? He didn’t have any proof. It was all just wild speculations on his part.
In fact, more than once, she had wondered if it could be jealousy. But why? Clark was her best friend. He knew that – didn’t he? And they would still be friends, and partners, even if things got more serious with Lex.
It couldn’t possibly because he thought of her as more than a friend? No. How ridiculous. He had made it clear to her that he wasn’t attracted to her like that. When they’d been sprayed with the pheromone a few months back, he hadn’t reacted to her advances. No – quite the opposite. He had rebuffed them.
In any event, whatever he felt for her, he still didn’t have the right to run out on her whenever he felt like it. Lois frowned. She was tired of men running out on her. She had promised herself a long time ago that she wouldn’t let it happen again, but yet she was allowing Clark to do it to her.
No. No she wasn’t. She had called him on it today. That’s why she had not allowed him to come over tonight, and why she was going on this date with Lex, instead of working with Clark on the story.
Punishment.
With renewed zeal for her evening, she blotted her lips on a napkin and took one last look at herself in the mirror.
She was ready.
**********
Lois stared at Lex, dumbfounded. She wasn’t ready. Not for this. Not yet.
The evening had been one surprise after another. First, Lex’s limousine had taken them to the airport where they had boarded his private jet. Lex had been tight-lipped about where they were going until finally, once they were airborne, he had spilled it to her. The Italian restaurant he was taking her to was actually *in* Italy!
If that hadn’t blown her mind enough – a man who could literally fly her anywhere she wanted to go, at merely her whim – he had gone and proposed to her.
He was still smiling at her, waiting for her response, holding the gargantuan diamond ring out enticingly.
“Lex, I... I don’t know what to say,” she stammered.
“Well, there are only three possible choices. Yes, no, or maybe.”
“It’s not that simple,” she continued doggedly. “What about my life at the Daily Planet? I mean, Clark and Perry and Jimmy – they’re like family...”
“Well, I believe in families, large ones.” He smiled indulgently at her and she smiled nervously in return.
This was all happening too fast. “Lex, these last few weeks with you have been wonderful. But I hardly know you.”
He leaned forward, closing the distance between them. “The only thing you need to know about me is that I love you.”
The only thing? Hardly. She looked away from him, unsure of what to say. What Bobby had told her and the image of the black limo at the robbery earlier that day flashed through her mind.
“What?” Lex asked. “What is it?” He moved over to sit closer to her. “Is there something else? Could it have anything to do with Superman?”
Lois gave him a sheepish look. Yes, it had a lot to do with Superman. On more than one level. She did her best to conceal a blush as she muddled on, “I... uh... it’s... it’s just a lot to take in.”
“But you’ll give it some thought,” he persisted.
“Yes,” she admitted. How could she not? She imagined it would be dominating almost every thought she had, until she could give him an answer or he decided to ask for one. She gave him a flustered smile, completely blown away by the whole situation. Putting everything else aside - here was one of the world’s richest and most eligible bachelors and he was proposing to her! To her - Lois Lane! It was unimaginable! What would Lucy think? What would Cat think?
What would Clark think?
“So, then it’s a maybe?” he pressed.
She laughed to hide the baffling guilt that she was suddenly feeling. “Oh... well... maybe. Yeah, maybe,” she hesitantly agreed and then eyed the magnificent diamond ring that he still held between his fingers. It had to be several carats. It was huge! And one of the most stunning stones she had ever seen. “It is beautiful.”
He shook his head. “Without you, it’s a piece of rock.” He smiled handsomely at her. “On your hand, it’s priceless to me.”
Lois blushed. Wow. What a line. She wondered if he had practiced it beforehand.
Lex’s phone began ringing and he excused himself to answer it, leaving her to her thoughts - although her mind was spinning so much that she hardly knew what to think.
But one thought finally came through clearly again.
What *would* Clark think?
**********
Clark watched dumbfounded as Jimmy and Jack stared at the pink slips of paper they had been handed, informing them that they no longer had jobs.
Perry had announced only a few hours earlier that the paper was in financial trouble. When asked what this could mean, besides a few people’s paychecks not clearing, Perry had admitted that there had been talks about layoffs. But Clark hadn’t thought it would come this soon. And he hadn’t thought in a million years that it would affect Jimmy or Jack.
“They really are pink,” Jimmy noted in amazement.
Jack smacked him lightly and then frowned. “Well, guess it’s back to a life of crime for me.”
At Lois’s frown, Jack continued with a teasing smile, “It’s always good to have something to fall back on.”
Clark gave him a light swat to the chest with the back of his hand and then looked up as another Planet employee walked by, shaking his head at the pink slip he was holding.
“It’s a massacre,” Jack observed quietly.
“It’s all happening so fast!” Lois said unhappily.
“Or maybe not,” Clark interjected. “Lois, you remember what Perry said yesterday about the sponsors. Maybe this has been coming for a while. Management could have been having money problems for a long time – the employees are always the last to know.”
Lois frowned. “Yeah? Well, I could still talk to Perry about it. For Jimmy and Jack.”
Clark nodded. “We both could.”
Jack shook his head and Jimmy chimed in, “No, it’s not his fault. He would have prevented it if he could. Besides, he probably feels bad enough as it is.”
Lois crossed her arms. “We’ve gotta strike back. We need to do some polling. People in printing, maintenance, distribution, administration, news-staffers, even accounting. Only drastic action will convince the board we aren’t fooling around.”
Clark tilted his head to one side in disbelief. “Are you talking about a full scale walkout?”
“If that’s what it takes,” she replied adamantly. “I, for one, refuse to accept these indignities lying down.”
When she turned to walk off, Jimmy and Jack glanced at each other, amused quirks on their faces. Clark joined in with a grin of his own, which quickly vanished as Lois turned back around.
She raised a warning finger and lifted an eyebrow. “Don’t even think about it.”
The boys looked chastised and Clark puffed out a laugh. They needed to take their laughs were they could get them.
**********
Lois glanced over at Clark. Now that the shock of what had happened earlier that morning was wearing off a little, Lois remembered that she had planned on talking to Clark when she had come in this morning. But where should they talk? Should they just go into the conference room and close the door? Should they leave the office? Maybe go for an early lunch?
Part of her was dreading telling him. She wasn’t even sure why she was so intent on sharing this with him. Why was it his business that Luthor had proposed to her?
Because he’s your friend. Your best friend - and your partner.
She sighed. She hated that little voice in her head sometimes. But it was right. He deserved to know, and to hear it from her first, before it could slip out somehow.
Lois got up from her chair and was headed over to Clark’s desk, trying out a hundred different variations in her mind of how to begin and what to say, when Perry walked out of his office.
“Listen up, kids,” Perry’s voice boomed, capturing everyone’s attention. Lois stopped walking and her eye caught Clark’s as they both turned to hear what Perry had to say. “I just got a call from upstairs that we can all expect an announcement, just about... now.”
Almost on cue, the elevator door pinged. Lois turned towards the sound and was astonished to see Lex come walking out – in grand style.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” Lex addressed the newsroom.
“Lex?” Lois said his name in astonishment. He had an entourage of people with him. What was this all about? Hopefully not her.
“For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Lex Luthor,” he introduced himself, all business. Lois felt relief - it didn’t seem like it was about her. “I, no less than you, have been greatly distressed by the sea of troubles that has mired Metropolis’s one great newspaper.”
Clark walked up beside Lois, frowning as he listened.
Lex began pacing as he continued speaking, “I don’t know why your advertisers have abandoned you,” he continued. “Or why circulation is down. I don’t know why your banks have cut off your lines of credit. I don’t know why your cash reserves were depleted by unnecessary expenditures, though I have my suspicions.” He paused and sent a knowing look behind him to a beautiful and exotic woman that was accompanying him. Lois eyed the woman – who was she? Some kind of assistant?
Wait - Lois frowned - he had suspicions? What was that supposed to mean?
“But I do know,” he went on, “that your problems can be solved with strong leadership and fiscal responsibility.” He began walking again, moving down the ramp towards the newsroom floor. “So therefore, I have taken the one step necessary that would guarantee the future of this great newspaper.” He paused for dramatic effect, a contented look on his face. “I bought it.” His face broke into a smile. “I’m the new owner of the Daily Planet.”
Lois’s frown turned into a smile. If anyone had the resources and money to back the Planet, Lex certainly did. She felt a little guilty now for thinking that he could have been involved in... well, whatever was going on with that black limo – she didn’t even know if that limo belonged to him, for crying out loud. And here he was, about to save one of the most important parts of her life.
She had been listening to Clark too much lately.
When Lex’s smiling face caught hers, she grinned widely at him in return.
“Today begins a new era,” he announced. “I promise no interference. Only a few minor modifications and no lay-offs! Why tamper with greatness?”
The newsroom broke out in thunderous applause.
“Happy days are here again. Woo-hoo!” Jimmy said enthusiastically.
“Presses will roll,” Lex said, shaking Perry White’s hand.
“This is a great thing you’ve done,” Perry said appreciatively.
Lois turned to Clark. “This is wonderful!”
“It’s a disaster,” Clark said with a frown before turning to walk back to his desk.
Lois followed him, glaring at his back. “Clark, can’t you give up this idea that Lex Luthor is the root of all evil in Metropolis?”
Clark scowled at her. “Why should I give it up, Lois? It’s true!” He angrily snatched up a pen and began examining the document on his desk.
“No, it’s not true. Give him some credit. Lex just saved our jobs, not to mention...” She broke off, realizing she was entering dangerous territory. She couldn’t just blurt it out like that.
Clark glanced back up at her, an exasperated look on his face. “Not to mention what?”
No. No, no, no. This wasn’t how she had wanted to do it.
Clark was waiting expectantly and she let out a soft sigh. “Not to mention... he... asked me to marry him.” The last couple of words were barely audible.
The shock on Clark’s face made her want to turn away. That hadn’t gone the way she had planned at all and now she had no idea what to say to him. She began to turn around, hoping to seek refuge at her desk.
“So where’s the ring?” he asked suddenly, cutting off her retreat.
She swallowed before turning back to look at him. “I haven’t given him an answer yet.”
That last word – yet – hung in the air between them. Clark would come back to it, but first, he had to know something. “Did you see the ring?”
“What?”
“Did you see the engagement ring?” he repeated intently.
She furrowed her brow at him. “Of course I did, why?” Where was he going with this?
“What did it look like?”
“Why does it matter, Clark?” she asked exasperatedly.
Clark hesitated and she gave him a look that could pierce steel – he knew because it was boring right through him. “I spoke with Henderson,” he explained, “and one of the items, the most expensive item that was stolen, was taken from a safe deposit box. It was a three carat diamond.”
Lois rolled her eyes and puffed out a breath in disbelief. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“Incredible,” Clark replied in disbelief, shaking his head.
“What?” she snapped.
“You!” he retorted, standing up from his chair. “Prize-winning investigative reporter.” The look on her face told him that she still didn’t get it. “How can you be so blind, Lois? I mean, you look right at the guy and still you don’t have a clue who he really is.”
“Look, Clark, I’m not naïve,” she told him, trying to find a way to reason with him. She sat down in the chair next to his desk, hoping not to cause any more of a scene than they already had. When Clark sat down in his own chair, she continued in a low voice, “I know that Lex did not reach his station in life by being a nice guy...”
Clark snorted. “That’s an understatement.”
“Why do you think he’s so bad?” she said, thoroughly annoyed.
“Why do you think he’s so good?” he retorted.
“Well, for one thing, look at all the good he’s done for the city - Luthor hospital, Luthor home for children, Luthor foundation for the arts... not to mention employing hundreds of thousands of people in Metropolis. Oh, and let’s not forget, most recently saving our jobs.” Clark looked like he wanted to protest but she pushed on. “Think about it, Clark. He doesn’t need to *steal* a diamond.”
“No, he doesn’t *need* to,” Clark muttered under his breath.
“Excuse me?”
“Look, Lois, he only does those good things as cover. He...”
“Why?” she interrupted. “If he’s such a rotten human being, why bother?”
“Because that’s what he enjoys most, getting away with it. The same reason why he would steal a diamond even though he has the money and the means to buy it outright.” Why couldn’t she see it? “The man is more than just evil, Lois. He’s a monster.”
Lois shook her head and pushed away from his desk, standing up. “I’m not going to listen to this. Especially not now.”
Clark’s blood ran like ice water through his veins. He was losing the battle. Please, he thought silently, don’t let him lose the war. “Wait... you aren’t actually considering his proposal, are you?”
Lois paused. His voice had a quality of desperation to it... of fear. Good. Let him worry. How dare he insinuate that the man who had proposed to her was a monster! That her engagement ring was nothing more than that man’s attempt to see what evil he could get away with. Because, of course, no one like Lex could fall in love with someone like Lois for any other reason than pure evil. “I don’t know, Clark,” she said flippantly. “I’m thinking about it.” At his hurt expression, she softened a little. “That’s all... I’m just thinking about it.” She walked away without giving him a chance to reply. She needed some space.
She needed some answers.
**********
Clark watched Lois walk towards the conference room where Lex had already begun to set up temporary shop, feeling like he had just been sucker-punched. No! It couldn’t be true. She couldn’t honestly be considering Lex’s proposal, could she?
He had to go after her. It was time to make her understand just who Luthor really was – even if that meant telling her things that Clark Kent couldn’t possibly know. He stood up from his chair to walk over to her desk...
And the sound of a bank alarm began blaring in his ears.
*Another* bank robbery? No, not now!
Clark dithered for a moment, not wanting to leave Lois and almost afraid to show himself in public as Superman, but he couldn’t risk not going. What if the clone showed up? He had to go.
He gave Lois one last fleeting glance as she walked into the conference room – into the lion’s den - and then he took off for the stairwell.
**********
To Be Continued...
