I have gotten quite a bit done this week - WOOHOO! I may actually finish the 'monster' by the end of the month as originally planned! The sequel is this year's Nano project so that would be good
. However, I have enough buffer to post through Nov. on the current schedule so... [Remember... I warned you it was a *saga*!]
Thanks as always to the most wonderful betas
.
Last time:
Clark
"The press release from the State Department says the two of them had only been in country for a few days and that they can prove that. It also says that she's in her late first trimester. How on earth can he claim that this is his child?"
"None of that matters under Latislani law."
"Wow." Meredith shook her head. "That doesn't make any sense at all."
Liz nodded. "It doesn't, but we also don't know who these two people are so we can't find out anything else. Are these two people who were already engaged? Who had been dating for a long time or is there something else going on that would make Navance a little more annoyed than he usually is."
"Liz Wheel, thanks for your help and we'll be back with you as this story continues to unfold. In other news..."
I tuned out whatever it was they moved on to. So they still didn't know who we were. That was good. The American response was pretty much the same as mine and Lois'.
He was crazy.
And that was scary.
*~*26*~*
~~~~~
Lois
~~~~~
After four days of doing next to nothing in Germany, we were finally on a flight out. We were being taken to London's Heathrow Airport, I thought. I still hadn't had a chance to talk to Daddy and Clark hadn't talked to his parents either. At least I didn't think he had.
Clark sat next to me as we flew. He was still uncomfortable. He had been uncomfortable on the way to Germany, too, but I had been a bit preoccupied then. I still was.
We finally landed and this time we weren't rushed into a dark sedan.
We walked into a lounge in the terminal and my breath caught in my throat. "Daddy," I whispered as I ran towards him, flinging my arms around his neck and crying into his shoulder.
"Little Girl." He sounded choked up and I thought he was crying, too, as he held me tightly.
I didn't know how long we stood there, but it seemed like forever.
And I finally felt safe.
Daddy wouldn't let anything happen to me.
Finally, I relaxed my hold on him and he let me go.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
I nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay."
"I'm so glad."
I couldn't tell him how we ended up in Latislan. That I'd followed his girlfriend. That there were guns on the plane.
Guns.
Could that have been why he fixated on me?
To try to keep attention away from what Clark and I could have seen there?
I'd have to mention that to someone.
Jill had come with us and handed Clark a phone. I heard him talk to his parents for a minute, but then we were told it was time to go already and he had to cut his conversation short.
We were loaded into a long golf cart and whisked across the tarmac until we reached a waiting 747. Jill joined me, Daddy, and Clark as we walked up the outside stairs to the jet way and boarded the plane.
I breathed a small sigh of relief as we were led up the stairs by a stewardess. Well, Jill stayed on the main level, but the three of us went up. Daddy said she'd come join us if there was enough room, but for now she had a seat down there.
The leg room was nice. The flight to Paris had made me appreciate First Class even more. I glanced over at Clark. His eyes were a bit wide. Maybe he'd feel more comfortable here.
I settled into the fairly large chair next to Daddy. Clark sat facing us and before long we were in the air.
Daddy held my hand for quite a while.
"We're going to need to get an annulment as soon as we get home," I told him. "Can you help us find a lawyer to do that?"
He paused slightly. "Of course, Princess." He looked over at Clark. "I haven't said thank you to you yet, Clark. Thank you for helping her and keeping her safe."
"No problem, Sam." He smiled at Daddy. "I wouldn't let anything happen to her if I could prevent it."
"How's Lana taking all of this?" There was a glint of something in his eye but I wasn't quite sure what it was.
Clark sighed. "I haven't talked to her since right after we got to Latislan. I told her we were stuck in another country unexpectedly but I didn't tell her where. I doubt she's connected the news stories to us."
He turned back to me. "How're you feeling?"
"Not too bad, today, thankfully."
"How're you doing?" he asked quietly and there was no doubt about what he was talking about.
"Caught off-guard," I said honestly.
"Have you decided what you're going to do yet?" He didn't look at me as he posed the question.
"What do you think I should do?" I had pretty much made up my mind already, but I wanted to know what he thought.
"I think it's up to you, Sweetheart. And Clark, of course, but I'll support you whatever you decide."
"I want to keep the baby," I told him, though I couldn't tell him yet that what Clark wanted didn't matter. "After what happened with mom... With my half-brother..."
"Yeah," he said.
"I think I'd like to talk to them."
He nodded. "I think I would, too."
"Can we contact them when we get home?"
"Yeah, I'll get in touch with them here pretty soon."
The stewardess came around and asked what we wanted to drink and before long, I dozed off.
~~~~~
Clark
~~~~~
Lois fell asleep holding her dad's hand.
I glanced around the First Class upper deck cabin and was again impressed. Having money was nice.
And I had leg room.
It was a little easier flying in a metal tube up here.
Sam and I chatted easily about the recent moves by the Monarchs and the upcoming football playoffs, but he finally caught me off-guard.
"Clark..." He paused. "What are your intentions with Lois?"
I shrugged. "We're planning on getting an annulment once we get home. We only got married to keep Navance from claiming the baby."
"Are you planning on being a father?"
I opened my mouth to tell him 'no, why would I?' when I remembered that no one but Jack and Daniel knew that I wasn't the father of Lois' child. We'd agreed over the last couple of days that, for now, at least, we should probably let that assumption live on. We hadn't talked about what we were going to tell our parents or when.
When I didn't answer, he continued. "I know you've got a girlfriend, or had one or whatever, but you're having a baby with Lois. How does Lana feel about that?"
I paused again. "I haven't talked to her about any of this," I said honestly.
He looked over at his sleeping daughter. "She's been through so much," he said quietly. "First, losing her mom and sister. Then, we almost lost everything when my former business partner took advantage of my depression. We found out about her half-brother that she never got to know. She worked so hard to get through school and get great grades and get a scholarship so that she wouldn't have to use my money to get through school. I can afford it, no problem, but she wanted to do it on her own. She asked me to help her get onto the academic floor in Lane Hall and she never said why she didn't move home when the paperwork got screwed up. And now... planning on being a single mom..."
He stared at their still joined hands. "I managed to get you two an apartment on campus. Your scholarships will cover it; that’s not a problem. But that's when I thought you were staying married to the mother of your child. I know you and Lois are friends – good friends – and there's a lot worse things when it comes to the foundation of a marriage. I'd appreciate it if you would at least consider staying married to her and trying to make a go of it for her sake and the sake of your child."
I wasn't sure what to say. No one knew the true nature of what was going on except me and Lois.
"Will you please just think about it?" he asked.
Finally, I nodded. I'd think about it, but not for long and the outcome of that thinking was a foregone conclusion.
Jill chose that moment to join us in the empty seat that made up the quartet. "Clark, your parents wanted to join us in London for this part of the trip, but with your dad's back, they decided it wasn't a good idea."
I nodded again. "Yeah. His back couldn't handle this." I looked around. "Not even up here. Especially not with the quick turn around."
Lois woke up as our meal was brought around.
We all chatted quietly about miscellaneous topics until we started our descent into Metropolis International Airport. Once there, I was going to have to find a way to pull Lois aside and convince her that we needed to tell at least our parents the truth.
No sooner had we walked in, than Jill got a phone call before pulling Lois and I aside.
"We have a problem," she said, without further preamble. "I got a call that it was coming earlier, but that one confirmed it."
Sam watched from the other side of the room, but didn't try to insert himself into the conversation.
"What's that?" Lois said wearily.
"Navance."
"What's he doing?" I asked.
"He's changed the law," Jill told us grimly.
"What?!" we exclaimed in unison.
She nodded. "The law said that he can claim a child but it also said that the husband is the father regardless of who the biological father is."
"Right," I said. "That's why we got married. So why does it matter if he changed it? That was the law when we got married, so changing it shouldn't change anything for us."
"And here that's right. But in Latislan things are different. He changed the law and it applies to you guys, too."
"What did he change it to?" Lois asked, fear in her voice. "He can claim a baby even if the mother is married?"
She shook her head. "No. The way the law reads now, the husband is only the biological father regardless of any other challenges if the marriage lasts at least five years after the child is born."
Lois' jaw dropped.
"What?" I whispered.
"Daniel thinks that's because when you left the country the baby was legally Clark's and Navance couldn't just make a law that said any baby he says is his is legally his regardless of anything else. Daniel also said that you two were planning on getting an annulment once you got back here. If you do, your child can be claimed by Navance again. The U. S. wouldn't send either of you back there, Lois, but he could make your life a living nightmare if he tries to take the baby from you. And Navance probably suspects you're planning something like that. Five years is long enough that you won't want to stay married just to keep away from him but not so long that his motives are completely transparent."
I shoved my hands in my pockets, my head spinning.
"The other new part of the law is that if the marriage is solely for the purpose of keeping him away from his child, then the husband's claim of paternity is invalid. And he really only needs circumstantial proof that it's only for that purpose to invalidate that claim – at least in Latislani courts. He also reminded us that he has a nephew who is attending Met U this year and that his nephew will be keeping an eye on you two and he'll have others keeping an eye on you, as well."
Lois wiped at the tears flowing down her face as I spoke again. "Why? Why is he doing this to us? We all know there's no way this is his baby."
Jill shrugged. "I have no idea."
"The guns," Lois whispered.
"What?"
"I forgot about it with everything but it hit me earlier and I wasn’t sure who to tell and it's probably too late now but... When we were on the plane that took us to Latislan, there were crates and crates of guns. I wondered if he didn't latch onto me and my baby as a way to distract someone from what was on the plane."
Jill nodded. "I have no idea, but I'll make sure that information gets to the appropriate authorities." She sighed. "Regardless, he's going to make your lives miserable if you don't convince him that you're committed to your marriage and it lasts until the baby is five."
"This is ridiculous," I said. "How can he do this? Why would it matter what a dictator from somewhere halfway around the world says?"
"Under U. S. law, it doesn't. But the bigger concern is safety for all of you, as well as your private lives. International relations play a role as well, but that's not my area of expertise. Once you two get an annulment, he can claim the baby is legitimately his because he claimed the child while you were under that jurisdiction and the marriage didn't last long enough for Clark to remain the legal father under Latislani law. He can try to take the baby by force if he wants to and if he gets him out of the country, you'll never see him again."
The tears continued to flow down Lois' cheeks and I could feel myself deflating as I realized what was happening.
Lois and I were going to have to stay married to protect her and the baby.
~~~~~
Lois
~~~~~
He was going to come back and get us.
Clark wouldn't stay married to me for five and a half years. There was no way. He was going to marry Cruella long before then.
Jill paused in her destruction of my life. "I'll let you two talk about it. You don't have to decide right now or whatever, but we just wanted you to know before you contact the lawyer about the annulment." She opened her mouth to say something else, before she thought better of it and turned and walked away.
"I won't hold you to it," I told him before he could say anything. "Daddy'll get security or whatever to protect me and the baby." Or I thought he would. Who knew what the girlfriend was capable of convincing him to do or not do, especially if she was connected to Navance. "I'll tell him to call the lawyer." I turned to walk away, but he stopped me with a hand on my arm.
"Wait."
"Let's not drag this on any longer than we have to."
"I can't let him get to you. I'm not leaving."
He didn't sound very convincing. I didn't believe for a minute he'd want to stay married to me and how else would he keep the insane dictator from getting got me?
"No, it's okay. We'll figure it out. You don't have to worry about it. I'll tell Daddy the truth about the baby and he wouldn't think of trying to pressure you into staying married to me."
He put his hands on my shoulders and turned me to face him. "Lois, I'm not going to let him get you." He took a deep breath and tried to sound convincing. "And that means that we stay married and do our best to make it look good until he moves on to something else and the law gets changed or some other guy he's ticked off takes a shot at him and gets lucky or whatever."
"I can't ask you to do that, Clark. I won't. I won't ask Joe to be a parent to a baby that's not his even without a lunatic involved. Why would I ask you to do this?"
"You're not asking me. I'm volunteering."
There was something more he wasn't telling me. I wasn't sure what it was, so I finally asked him. "What aren't you telling me?"
"What do you mean?" That didn't sound convincing either.
"You're hiding something from me and I want to know what it is." I crossed my arms in front of me and stared at him.
He sighed. "You didn't see Navance when he was at his worst. I can't give him any reason to be able to get at either one of you."
"We're not your responsibility," I informed him. "I can take care of myself and if it gets to the point where I can't, Daddy'll help. And what are you talking about – his worst?"
He chose to ignore the question. "You are my responsibility," he said quietly. "I promised to protect you for better or worse. I know we didn't really think that it was going to last, but I did promise that before God in a chapel in front of a chaplain."
"You didn't answer my question, but you didn't mean it. I didn’t mean it and I won't hold you to it."
"I won't sign the papers. Whatever it is we have to do to get an annulment, I won't do it."
"This isn't even your baby," I reminded him. "Why would you even think about doing this?"
He paused. "My parents didn't have to take me in, but they did. They protected me and I can't let another baby go unprotected when there's something I can do to help. And I won't agree to an annulment."
I hated that I was still bawling.
I sighed.
"I'll get an annulment anyway. There has to be a way."
"Please, Lois. Don't put yourself in danger. Don't put your *baby* in danger when there's a way to protect both of you."
I didn't want to admit it but Navance scared me. And apparently, I hadn't seen him at his worst.
"Are you sure, Clark? You won't see Lana in a couple days and suddenly decide that you want out? If you want out, get out now." There was no way that he'd be willing to do that.
"I won't change my mind."
"You won't see Lana and decide you want to leave?"
"I won't leave," he said. "I promise."
I took a deep breath. I hated what I was about to say. "Okay, then. I won't ask you not to see her, but I do ask that you be discrete." I hurried on. "If you're sure, then thank you."
"I'm sure."
"Can we please agree to keep all of this to ourselves then?" I asked, more tears leaving my eyes. "Can you let her believe that I'm actually having your baby? Can you not tell your parents? We can't let anyone know the truth." I knew how close he was to his folks.
He hesitated. "Okay. You're right. The best way to keep this all quiet and away from Navance is if no one else knows. Not your dad. Not Joe. Not my folks. Not Lana."
I nodded. "Okay, then."
"We'll stay married. We'll convince him that it's real and I won't let him near either one of you." He sounded like he was trying to convince himself as much as me.
I swiped at my face again. "Well, let's go then."
He nodded and after a brief second, grabbed my hand and we headed back towards Daddy.
*****
TBC
