Clark waited until he was certain Lois was in bed and asleep before he stepped onto the balcony to check on the strange rock he had gotten from Wayne in Smallville. He took a lungful of the crisp night air and stared at the bright full moon. He took another deep breath, suddenly wanting to fly out over Metropolis in this gorgeous weather… But he had some business to take care of first. He had to get rid of that fearful rock, one way or another.
Clark’s sense of calm evaporated as soon as he noticed that the storage door was left open. Clark knew he had shut it and locked it when he had placed the rock in there earlier that day.
On closer inspection, he could see that the lock had been busted open. He quickly scanned the small shed. Everything was there except the case with the green rock.
Clark scanned for fingerprints, but found none. Who could know he had brought that here? And why would they want it?
He was fairly certain it had something to do with the Boss, that maybe he was spying on him? Which would mean that Lois was probably also being watched…
Clark scanned the apartment, and sure enough, located and took down six bugs. He easily crushed them with his hands. He had no idea how long they had been there, but he suspected that they had been planted recently, perhaps even while they had been at the ball. Clark knew he couldn’t be absolutely certain, but LexCorp personnel were the only other people besides Perry privy to their whereabouts this evening. Clark suspected that the Boss would be the only one to have reason to spy on him, which left him with the conclusion that Luthor had to be at least connected to the Boss.
He thought of telling Lois what he had found, but it would be difficult to explain how he had found the bugs in the first place. He also didn’t want her worried that they were still being watched. Clark felt confident that now that he knew what to look for, he could be sure that no one spied on them again – especially Lex Luthor. Boss or not, Clark didn’t like the idea of that man anywhere near Lois.
*~*~*~*
All the next day Lois avoided Clark, caught between worlds, so to speak. She had loved dancing with him, able to forget, however briefly, his lies from the other night and instead remembering how good it could feel in his arms. Though she was now intrigued with the possibility of dinner with Lex Luthor. If Lex was the Boss as Clark suggested, she was certain she’d find out in short order. The thought terrified her, yet at the same time she wanted to confront this, confront her past so she could try to move on.
She spent a few hours at the Planet, carefully avoiding talking about anything other than work with Clark. She wanted to believe that he wasn’t with another woman, but if that were true, it only elicited other questions. Where had he been and why couldn’t he tell her? The crux of it was, she couldn’t trust him anymore, not until he told her the truth.
So she decided she would work on her own to find out who the Boss was. Even if it put her in greater danger. She had to know one way or another. Besides, in the back of her mind, she thought that if worse came to worse and Luthor *was* the Boss, then perhaps the blur would save her if she needed it.
A runner came by her makeshift desk, which was almost adjacent to Clark’s, and left her a note: “I’ve made reservations tonight at Le Fleur de Lys. Hope your husband won’t mind if I steal you away for dinner. Yours, Lex.”
Clark was suddenly over her shoulder and she folded the note quickly. “And are you going?” he asked, slightly belligerent.
She shrugged defensively. “I—yes, I’m going. Why not? If he is who you think he is, well, I should know pretty quickly, I suspect.”
“But Lois, why would you put yourself in danger like that?”
“Clark, I’ll meet him there… we’ll be in public. It’s not like he can try anything.”
Clark crossed his arms, clearly upset.
“Lois, you are unbelievable! I can’t believe you would go to dinner with him – especially after accusing me—“ He shook his head.
She looked up at him defiantly. “Then tell me the truth about the other night, Clark.”
Clark stared at her, his mouth slightly agape, obviously unable to answer her.
“Exactly. You can’t tell me,” she said, standing up and preparing to leave.
“Lois—“ he pleaded.
She eyed him caustically, her arms crossed. “Well? Out with it, Clark! Where were you the other night?”
When he didn’t answer, she growled out a curse and grabbed her bag.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“To get ready to go to dinner with Lex Luthor. Maybe *he’ll* tell me the truth!” she cried, stomping off towards the elevator.
*~*~*~*
Dinner with Lex Luthor was a very elegant affair. The French restaurant he had selected was the best in Metropolis. Lois had had only her dress from the ball to wear, so she had returned it that afternoon and exchanged it for a new dress, trying not to feel too guilty about it. She had bought a modest black satin dress, in a Japanese style that came up to her neck, yet left her shoulders and arms bare.
She hadn’t talked to Clark for the rest of the day, entirely frustrated by his stubbornness about lying the other night. She felt hurt by him and suddenly very alone. She had bared her soul to him and yet he couldn’t trust her with whatever secret he was hiding? Lois was at least hopeful that it couldn’t be worse than her own secret. But his reluctance to just admit the truth had sent her running away from him, and off to dinner with a potentially dangerous man.
Lois had looked over her notes on LexCorp’s holdings before dinner, trying to create a list of questions that the billionaire might actually answer. She certainly knew he wouldn’t come out and actually admit if he was the Boss or if he knew she was Lois Lane-- So, that left her with using her charm and trying to coax more clues out of him so she could find out the truth about Lex Luthor, one way or another.
Lois checked her make-up in the restaurant’s powder room, suddenly uncertain of her plan. She had a small knot in her stomach that wouldn’t go away. Even though she knew she was skillful at interviews, she was terrified she’d say something or do something to give her own secrets away. And there was always the possibility that if Luthor *was* the Boss, he already knew exactly who she was.
She looked at the gilt mirror and plush chairs surrounding her, comforted by the distance such a luxurious setting afforded her. Based on her first encounter with Mr. Luthor, she knew he at least had enough class to treat her like a lady in such a place – no matter what either of them had done.
Lois took a deep breath and headed to the table where Lex Luthor awaited her, preparing how she would get the billionaire to open up – and hoping she wasn’t going to open a can of worms in the process.
“So, Mr. Luthor, would you like to tell me about how you started LexCorp?” Lois asked with an easy smile as she sat down, not giving him the chance to ask the first question.
“Let’s at least order drinks first,” he said calmly, nodding to the nearby waiter.
“Of course,” she agreed pleasantly. He looked at her expectantly to make a suggestion, but she shook her head, “You pick. I’m – hopeless at picking wine.”
Lex ordered and Lois tried her question again.
“You are persistent, Mrs. Kent,” he said warmly, eying her over the wine glass as he sniffed the vintage red the waiter had brought.
“Well, it’s the only way I know how to be a reporter,” she said honestly.
He nodded and then answered her, “I was a man of humble beginnings, Mrs. Kent. I worked hard and made a few – choice investments. Suddenly I had business opportunities open up for me.”
“Like what?” she asked.
He smiled, slightly patronizing as he answered, “Well, you know, Mrs. Kent. I have no secrets from the people of Metropolis! I have holdings in telecommunications, hotels, energy plants… all to help the good people of this city.”
On and on he went, question after
question, all through dinner, never letting Lois get any deeper than the things she already knew about him. Lex was an excellent conversationalist, and could divert a topic better than anyone she had met. He appeared affable and pleasant, modest when she mentioned his accomplishments, but easily led her on a different path if she tried prodding into how he had made his billions.
“A man must have some secrets,” he said halfway through the main course when she pushed the issue.
Lois was tempted to roll her eyes. She was sick of men with secrets!
Lois finished her meal and then moved on to try to get more information about his bid for the space station. “What exactly do you hope to accomplish with Space Station Luthor?”
“Well, I hope the Space Program accepts my proposal. LexCorp wants to lead the people of this nation into the future! In fact, I should hear any moment confirmation that Space Station Luthor will be the next great step for EPRAD.”
“And what if you don’t get the bid?” Lois asked, watching his eyes darken a bit in determination not to let that happen.
“I always get what I want, Mrs. Kent,” he said in a low, decisive voice.
Lois could see a man like him would be extremely dangerous if he were the Boss. At best, he was a very ambitious man who had fought for success in life. At worst – well, she didn’t want to think of what he might be capable of doing.
She tried to laugh off the intensity of his comment, “Well, maybe we are alike after all! Because I always want chocolate and I always get it,” she said charmingly, eying the dessert tray at the next table.
Lex gestured for a waiter and Lois selected a delectable chocolate mousse.
Over dessert, Lois realized she still had too little information to write any kind of decent exposé on him. What’s worse, she wasn’t any closer to determining if he was the Boss or not. On the surface, he still appeared to be a charming philanthropist.
But instinctively, she knew there had to be more to him.
*~*~*~*
Clark had stayed away for as long as he could. If Lois wanted to go to dinner with Lex, then he wasn’t going to stop her. But that didn’t mean he was going to stop investigating the Boss-- or stop keeping an eye on Lois.
Clark parked himself in a café across the street from Le Fleur de Lys with a stack of Lois’ notes on Lex Luthor and the Boss. He and Lois had been making promises all week to compare notes, but they had never gotten around to it. And once Lois had decided she was mad at him – well, it had just made it impossible.
Clark had suspected Lex Luthor of less than savory dealings for close to a year. He had never personally met the man until the other night, but often times when Clark did a story about a corrupt agent or businessman, the line – however sketchy-- could be drawn back to LexCorp. Plus, no one knew how Lex had become a billionaire and everyone knew he was a self-made man. On the surface, that wasn’t a bad thing, but Luthor’s unwillingness to share how he became so successful seemed to raise a lot of questions in Clark’s mind.
Clark super sped read Lois’ articles that she had marked as possibly having ties to the Boss. Apparently, she had made similar conjectures, as her longest list of businesses with corruption problems could also be traced back to LexCorp.
He then started skimming her handwritten notes, which were written almost in a language of their own. She had notes from being in the Congo about some of the men she was asked to follow. He saw a small note that said “pet project/space?” which he thought could easily refer to Space Station Luthor, but most of the notes were just names of people and places.
He found one page though, that seemed to have nothing to do with LexCorp. It was a list of seven names. Each one spelled out carefully, with a few notes about place of birth. Six of the names had tiny dashes with crimes listed.
Two were drug lords.
One was a pimp.
Three were mobsters – one had been wanted in five different countries.
But the last name was circled: Edwin Morriston.
She then had written out more detail about this man, a biography of sorts.
Edwin Morriston: Born in Papua New Guinea
Drug user—got caught up in Congo drug war in the eighties.
Tried to go back to school.
Had a son (!!), Jacob
Here, the paper was spotted a bit, as if it might have been wet by tears. Then Clark read:
What did I do???
What can I do????
That last helpless line, underscored three times, made Clark’s heart clench. All at once, he realized what this list probably was – a list of seven men she had killed in the Congo. She had gone back and carefully researched as much as she could about what they had done – and in turn learned about the lives she had destroyed.
He couldn’t imagine the situation Lois had been in while in the Congo, and he hated what she had done. He didn’t want to judge her and he knew there was goodness in her. She had strength and she had courage, even if those qualities had been abused into fear during those two years. He knew she carried guilt, and he also saw the resolve in her to make things better – if she couldn’t set what she had done right, she could at least make things better in the future.
He wanted to help her do just that. He knew what it was like to want to change the past and yet being powerless to do so. Over and over again, he had wished he had been able to save his parents. If only he had been faster…
And he imagined Lois went through the same thought cycle.
If only I had been smarter, stronger…
But Clark also believed in forgiveness. Every day he had to forgive himself for a past he could not change, a difficult lesson he had been forced to learn. He knew more than anyone that you only have the power to change the future. And he was determined to help Lois do just that -- rebuild her inner strength, and from here forward, try to make the world a better place.
*~*~*~*
At last, Lex and Lois left the restaurant. Clark had hoped that Lois would take a cab home and avoid being at the Lex’s mercy, whom Clark was now certain was the Boss.
But Clark was dismayed to see Lois being led to Lex’s limo. He used his telescopic vision to see if she looked distressed, but she seemed all right… Maybe Lex *would* just drive her home? Clark hoped so.
He decided to follow them anyway. He had dressed in black for the occasion, in case he had to dart around, in super speed. Clark paid for his coffee, gathered his and Lois’ notes, and headed out the door.
*~*~*~*
Before they had left the restaurant, Lex received a call that Lois wished she had been privy to hearing. As they made their way to his limo, he seemed agitated as a result of that call, though he wouldn’t explain why. She suggested she could take her own cab home, feeling nervous about his sudden change of attitude, but he had turned to her with a charming smile and said that it was no problem to take her home.
Throughout all of dinner, he thankfully hadn’t asked a single question about her professional or personal life. On the ride back in Lex’s limo though, Lois suddenly began to feel closed in and worried. Lex still seemed irritated about his phone call, but he sat close by her, as if to protect her – or to trap her. He began asking questions that seemed to hit a little too close to home.
“So tell me, Mrs. Kent, how long have you worked at the Daily Planet?” he asked casually, draping his arm around her shoulder. She noticed his cufflinks under her nose, which she hadn’t paid any attention to under the lights of the restaurant. They were a strange green, and almost glowed as if from their own source. <<Must be some rare gem that only billionaires could afford,>> she mused.
“I – started about a week ago. But I – am a freelancer,” she said, wishing her voice hadn’t quavered.
“Oh? Who else do you write for?” he asked with interest.
“Well, I – am new to Metropolis and haven’t had anything published yet. Though some stories are in the works…” Her heart started hammering nervously. No matter who he was, it would be dangerous for anyone to know Lois Lane was alive and well.
He smiled politely at her, but it waned as he continued to stare. He turned to look out the window, and then glanced back at her. His expression was bland, though his voice soft as he spoke, “You know, you are a beautiful woman,” he began. “I didn’t realize how beautiful till I met you in person. You’re smart, funny – and have many talents,“ he said, leaning into her slightly.
“Thank you, I guess,” she said, unnerved by his closeness. <<’Till I met you in person?’>> she echoed silently, suddenly panicked. She pushed away from him, “You know, Mr. Luthor, I *am* married.”
He held his hands up in mock surrender. “I meant no offense. I was merely – thinking.”
“About what?” she asked warily.
“Oh, well, I thought you could help me,” he said, easing back in his seat a bit. He rolled down the window halfway and lit up a cigar.
Lois noticed through the open window that they were heading way downtown, that they had passed Clinton Street at least five blocks ago. “Where are we going?” she demanded, beginning to worry. What had she been thinking letting him drive her back to Clark’s apartment! She should have gotten a cab no matter what Lex offered! She should have called Clark!
“Well, I thought you could get some information for me. And help your career as well. You see, I’d like you to sneak aboard the Prometheus. They are set to launch tonight. It would be brilliant for your career, and well, it might give me the leg up into – helping the Space Program.”
“Is that why you asked me to dinner?” she asked warily and with some surprise, wondering if there wasn’t a deeper plan afoot.
“Well not entirely, my dear. You are pleasant company,” he said smoothly.
“This sort of thing takes planning and well, I just am not going to leave – my husband to go on a spaceship!”
“But, Mrs. Kent, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity! I have the resources to get you on that ship unnoticed. Imagine the exclusive you would get. I’m simply trying to help your career.”
“Look, there was a time in my life when I would have been delighted to be impulsive and do something like you are suggesting. But – I can’t just *leave*!”
Lex puffed on his cigar, seemingly blasé about the whole matter. “Mrs. Kent, you want to be a world class reporter, you need to learn to take risks.”
“I’ve taken enough risks in my life,” she murmured, wondering if the risk she took going to dinner with Luthor would be one of the worst ones she’d taken. “Look, I don’t want to go, okay? Please, just take me home!”
Lex reached over to the window that separated them from the driver. Lois relaxed a little, hopeful that maybe he had had a change of heart, that he was telling his driver to turn around. But suddenly he turned to her with a handkerchief, reaching to cover her face with it, his strange green cufflinks twinkling in the dim light of the limo.
“I’m afraid I can’t do that – *Miss Lois Lane*!” he said triumphantly.
Lois gasped, struggling to breathe through the chloroform coated handkerchief– But it became clear, what she had known all along but didn’t want to admit --willing to go along with the nice dinner and the normalcy of being a reporter again -- Lex Luthor was the Boss!
Then she began to drift asleep…
Her last thoughts were of wishing for Clark…
… if only she had called for Clark to save her…
*~*~*~*
Clark knew something was wrong when Lex’s limo drove past Clinton Street. Luthor wasn’t taking her home.
Clark flew past the car to meet them at the next stoplight. He scanned the limo to see Lois lying unconscious on the back seat of the limo! Had she been drugged or poisoned?
The tinted windows provided him some cover, and he simply followed behind the car, so he would be less visible. When the car stopped at the light, he reached to pull the locked door open, but was struck with sudden weakness. He didn’t understand why until he scanned the car again –that’s when he saw the strange green glowing rocks that Luthor was wearing.
So Lex *had* stolen the rock! And he now had Lois, and Clark was powerless to do anything to stop him!
*~*~*~*
Lois Lane was beautiful.
Lex hadn’t realized how beautiful she was when his men had found her and recruited her two years ago. He had only received reports on her progress, that she was a good if reluctant shooter. And he had on occasion seen pictures of her, but none of them did her justice. The woman lying helplessly in his limo was a fireball, and he now had her at his mercy.
He had thought of giving her a choice.
During her interview that he had danced around, he had toyed with just telling her that he knew exactly who she was – just to see the fear in her eyes at the realization of her situation. But he knew he couldn’t trap her in such a setting. He was never one to make a scene, and surely, Lois dashing out of the restaurant would cause a stir.
But he had thought of offering her the chance of working for him here in Metropolis and possibly becoming his mistress.
She’d fight it, he was certain. Having tasted her old life again, he was certain she’d be reluctant to go back to hunting down his enemies. She would get messy to deal with and the inevitable would have to come to pass – he’d have to kill her eventually.
Then that phone call had come in, the one that told him that he wouldn’t get the bid for the new Space Station and everything – had simply coalesced.
He could see that in one moment, with one move, the Space Program would see him as their savior for helping to rebuild after this tragic accident, and Miss Lane could finally be dealt with by simply sending her on a little trip.
He looked down at her helpless, beautiful sleeping form… he regretted for a moment not trying harder to seduce her…
They arrived at EPRAD a mere 5 minutes before the launch.
It certainly paid to be a billionaire – money could always buy you access. His hired man met them at the foot of the launch pad and took Miss Lane. She would be a problem for him no longer.
As his limo pulled away, Lex opened a box at his feet to inspect another part of his plan, though he wasn’t sure how he would use it just yet. It was a box he had obtained from Mr. Kent’s apartment. It contained an interesting rock that his men had found on a raid of Mr. Kent’s apartment during the ball. Interesting things had been happening there—including how his thug had been caught by the police. The fool had rambled on about how some sort of ghost had captured him. That’s when Lex had installed the surveillance equipment—to learn more about what might really be going on in Kent’s apartment. Then his man had spotted Kent put that odd box in his outside storage unit. Lex just had to know what he was hiding, and so with a little extra effort, had it stolen. The stone had so intrigued and inspired him that he had had some cufflinks immediately made from it for his date tonight.
His jeweler had never seen such a rock. It must be very rare indeed, and therefore very valuable, which made Lex satisfied to have it in his possession and curious as to why Kent had kept it hidden in his unit storage shed.
But no matter. He would find all the answers he needed.
Lex figured Kent would be his next problem to deal with.
