Hey, I'm doing pretty good keeping up, huh?
OK, so another part for the rotten tomatoes...
++++
Lex stared down at the woman lying on the bed. Her brown eyes were full of pain, the sweat beading on her face. She screamed out as another contraction wracked her body. "You can have something as soon as you're done," he assured her. "Are you certain there will be no affects on the baby?" he asked the doctor standing beside him.
"None. I've run all of the tests myself."
"That's what I pay you for." Lex crossed his arms and watched as the woman struggled in her agony. He was enjoying this- watching her, knowing she was in pain. There was pleasure in knowing another suffered. It made him feel powerful, even more so than usual.
"Why don't you help her?" asked the nurse at the woman's side.
"Help her what? I can't have the damn kid for her," was his sarcastic reply.
Another yell and the mid-wife announced that was enough. Slowly the baby eased into the world. A few wipes, a clean nose and mouth, then a soft cry filled the room. The woman let out a long, deep breath.
"What?" the mother asked. She hadn't known the child's sex; it had been denied her.
"It's... it's..." The older woman looked up at Luthor with wide, horrified eyes.
"What?" he demanded angrily.
"Sir, it's a girl." And she turned around to hold the baby up so he could see for himself.
"That's impossible!" He glared down at the child as if she was an offending object. His eyes shot back to the doctor. "What did you do?"
"Nothing," the man insisted nervously. "The tests revealed a male." The tests *had* revealed a male... along with a female. But Luthor didn't need to know that bit of information.
Just then the woman screamed out in pain again. The mid-wife passed off the baby girl to a nurse and focused her attention back on the laboring mother. "There's another baby!"
"Yes," Lex breathed, an evil smile crossing his face. "Hurry up," he ordered. "Bring my son into this world!" He watched, complete satisfaction in his expression as another baby was born. "There he is," he announced as he saw for himself that this baby was indeed a boy.
"I'll be damned," uttered the doctor as he moved over to examine the other baby. He glanced at Lex out of the corner of his eye to make sure his act had the desired effect. "This is quite a surprise." He hoped his duplicity didn't show.
"You didn't know?" Luthor asked as he moved a bit closer.
"Not a clue," he lied as the examination continued for several minutes before the child was pronounced completely healthy.
"Excellent!" Lex turned to leave, but a soft voice stopped him.
"May I see them?"
Walking back over, Lex glared down at the woman. "You've impressed me today, Lois. And that's not easy to do," he said to her. He looked up at the nurse. "Give her some painkillers." With the briefest of touches, he smoothed her hair back off her head. "When you wake, you can feed my son."
"I'd like to see them now." She grasped his jacket. "Please, Lex."
He stared at her for a moment before he nodded. "Just a second. He needs his rest."
The nurse brought the baby boy over so that Lois could see him. "He's gorgeous," she said.
"Of course. He's my son," Lex boasted, then waved to have the child taken away.
"And the girl?" Another nod and the child was brought over.
"Look at her. She's amazing," Lois crooned.
She missed the expression on Lex's face. "Now, time to rest."
"Thank you," she told him.
"It's the least I could do for the mother of my son," he said and managed a smile. "Now, go to sleep, Lois." And he snapped his fingers so that the waiting nurse would bring the drugs forward to render his wife helpless. It was how he preferred her to be, but with the pregnancy it had been almost impossible. She'd been kept calm, only with just enough juice that wouldn't harm his unborn son. Once she was out, he turned and strode from the room.
"I hear congratulations are in order, sir," Nigel told Lex as he followed him into his office. He'd been waiting just outside the birthing room.
"Yes, Nigel. He's quite the little man." A fair amount of pride oozed from his voice as he lit a cigar. "But we have a problem. The bitch had the audacity to spit out a female brat!"
"Well, that's... most..."
"Unfortunate," Lex finished for him.
"How awful," Nigel added.
"Yes, quite." Lex drew from his stogey before he turned and looked out of the window.
"I would be more than happy to take her," came another voice as he entered the room.
Lex turned back to see the doctor in the doorway.
"The research potential," he put in. "These children are the first of their kind," he pointed out.
"Yes, yes." Luthor sat down and studied his desk for a while before he looked up at the other men in the room. "I think I should keep her for now. She could possibly come in handy later."
The doctor was disappointed, but he knew better than to argue with Lex Luthor. One tended to become unhealthy very quickly if he did.
"Nigel, I will need a competent caregiver."
"By nightfall," he told his employer and disappeared, much the way he usually did when Lex said he needed something.
"Are we online?" Lex asked the doctor.
"Everything is going as planned. The tests have all documented his strength and speed. I've got initial results on his vulnerability as well."
"And have you found anything that can keep him docile?"
"Unfortunately, no. But I'm sure there's something."
"I want it found!" Lex snapped, his face clearly expressing his position.
The doctor had to swallow hard. Luthor expected perfection, as he always did. "It will be done," he assured him finally.
"Good." He turned his chair around so that he could stare out at his city, effectively dismissing the doctor. In a matter of months, he'd not only have Metropolis in the palms of his hands, he'd have the world.
Outside in the corridor, the doctor stopped and leaned against the wall to take a deep breath, his evil grin wider than Luthor's. Few men had ever actually gotten the upper hand on Lex Luthor. He had done it. Not once, but several times. Although there was the risk of Luthor finding out, he was clearly proud of his accomplishment. With any luck, by the time Luthor could sort out this mess, he would be drinking mixed drinks on white sands of some deserted beach half way around the world and Lex Luthor would be a memory.
****
Clark had spent every spare moment over the last two weeks trying to find out what he could about the Delconto Organization. The more he learned, the more confused he became.
Frank Luckaby was the CEO until his death four years earlier. On paper, every aspect of his empire was completely legal. There was not so much as a single report from any agency that believed Frank had been anything other than what he was supposed to be. All research told Clark the man was squeaky clean. When he passed away, his grandson inherited the infamous organization.
Clark learned that Leslie was the grandchild of Frank and Erin Luckaby. He was the son of Alexander Luckaby, the only child of the elder Luckaby. There was tons of information on Leslie since he'd taken power, although very little before that. Born in Australia in 1971, he was secreted away to boarding school at the age of ten. There he was apparently groomed to take his place at the helm of the family empire. He'd been a star athlete in college, graduated with honors, and was a notorious playboy. More recent information mostly consisted of his various business ties and associations. Leslie appeared just as legit as his grandfather had. Where things got interesting was when Clark tried to find information about Leslie's father, Alexander.
Alexander Luckaby was born in 1948 in France, making him only eighteen years old when his own son was born. He'd married just months before Leslie was born in the Bahamas. Ariana Carlin was nearly five years older than Leslie and just as rich and powerful. Apparently Alexander was not very interested in following in his father's footsteps because he moved from the family home in 1975 to their estate in France, where he began setting up an investment company. There was nothing else about Alexander after 1984. He went on a trip with his father to Ecuador and never returned. There was no death certificate or any other information about him after that. It was as if he just disappeared off the face of the earth.
"Weird," Clark said to himself. Maybe it was time to take a trip out to Australia. He could nose around a bit, super style. Of course whatever he saw or heard couldn't be proven very easily, but he'd at least be able to understand what direction he should go in from here.
****
Perry threw the paper across the room, effectively scattering it all over the floor. He actually felt ill.
"Ah, Chief, do you need us to come back?"
He looked up to see Jimmy and Clark standing in the doorway, no doubt taken aback by his outburst. When he tossed the paper, he'd done it vocally. Not usually one to use overtly colorful words, today warranted much more than that. "Just give me a minute," he finally managed as he dropped his head over on his propped up hands. He'd never felt quite as old as he did today.
Jimmy had picked the paper up and closed the door. "This is what she wanted, Perry," he told he older man in a defeated tone.
"How the hell does she know what she wants, Jimmy?" Perry shouted without lifting his head. "She's so doped up she doesn't even know who she is!"
Clark stuffed his hands in his pockets when Jimmy gave him a pained expression. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he was sure he'd find out, eventually. When Jimmy laid the paper on Perry's desk, he couldn't help but notice the picture of Lois Lane, on the front page of the Metropolis Star. Apparently she'd had a baby.
"You know we don't know that for sure," Jimmy said as he sat on the edge of Perry's desk.
"I know that!" the man said as he lifted his eyes, more conviction behind his green orbs than he'd ever had. "I know her," he repeated again as he stood to his feet. "She didn't do this. None of it. And I don't want to ever hear you say different again." He pointed a warning finger at the man.
Jimmy had the grace to look thoroughly chastised. "Sorry, Chief."
"Yeah, well, you know how I feel, boy," he said in a slightly softer tone. Perry rifled through several papers before looking back up at the two men. "I need you two to cover that big shindig Luthor's holding tonight to celebrate the return of the occupants of the Space Station."
"Ah, Perry, maybe we should trust Clark and..." He looked at his editor with a serious expression. "... bring him all the way into the investigation?"
Perry glanced over at Clark. The man had been at the Planet less than two months, but he'd already proven himself to be completely competent and more than trustworthy. And he was the best investigative reporter he'd seen since Lois. They could use his help. "Yeah," he said as he met Jimmy's gaze again. "Maybe it's time."
Jimmy nodded and the editor walked around his desk to lean against the front. "Clark, as you know Lois Lane was a reporter for the Planet up until just over ten months ago. One of the fiercest, driven women I'd ever had the pleasure and privilege to have work for me, this girl was also easily the most frustrating, too. Pigheaded..."
"Stubborn," Jimmy added with a slight smile.
"Single-minded and absolutely brilliant," Perry continued. "There wasn't a story this girl couldn't crack."
"I've read her work," Clark spoke up when there was a lull in Perry's tale.
"Reading it and seeing her actually work are two totally different things," Jimmy said, a look of awe on his face.
"Yeah," Perry agreed as he smiled back at the younger man. "Well, things were on the fast track for Lois. She'd won a Kerth, was a shoe in for another- which she subsequently won, by the way." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Then she starts to lose her drive and waltzed in here one day, handed in her resignation, and walked out. She was married the next week and now..." He lifted the paper on his desk. "She's had a baby."
Clark's eyes shifted to the paper again before focusing on his boss. "And you think things weren't quite right about her marriage and pregnancy?"
"I *know* things weren't right!" Perry bellowed, causing Clark to raise his brows in surprise.
"Perry believes her *husband* did something to her," Jimmy put in, a note of disgust in his tone.
"I'm telling you, Jimmy, she was fried the day she came in here telling me she'd found her life's partner." The man gestured with his fingers, remembering clearly what Lois said to him that day. "You forget I've got a boy that was an addict. I know what it looks like."
"So you two started an investigation to prove things weren't right with Ms. Lane?"
Both of the other men laughed at the name Clark referred to Lois as. "Son," Perry began. "I do love to hear her still referred to by her maiden name." He placed the paper he held back on the desk. "Me and Jimmy and Jack have been working on this relentlessly, but..." He held up his hands in defeat before letting them fall to his sides again. "We can't so much as find a fly in that man's penthouse."
"Penthouse?"
Jimmy looked at Clark like he had two heads. "You don't know who she married?"
"Ah, sorry. I was more interested in her abilities as a reporter."
Perry laughed out loud as he reached forward to clap Clark's shoulder. "Damn, I really like you, boy."
"Told you he was one of kind, Chief."
"So you did." Just then a knock sounded on the door. Perry motioned for the other man to enter. "Clark, you do know Jack?"
"Yes. He's done some research for me a time or two." He smiled at Jack.
"CK's a great guy." Jack plopped down in the chair beside the man he'd just mentioned. "You won't believe what I've found, Chief." He glanced up at Clark, exchanging a look with his boss at the same time.
"He's good, son. We were just letting him in on things. Jimmy thinks he could help us."
"Well, I sure wish someone would," Jack said.
"You found something?" Jimmy urged.
"Lois didn't give birth to just a baby boy. She gave birth to twins- a boy and a girl."
Perry and Jimmy stared down at the boy with stunned expressions. "What?" the editor managed after a moment.
"My source tells me the girl was born first and Luthor was furious. He looked like he was about to unleash hell in the room, then bam!" Jack slapped his hands together. "The boy was born."
"But there's no mention of a girl in the announcement," Jimmy said, still stunned by this revelation.
"Yeah, well, there's a baby girl in that penthouse."
All of the men were quiet for a long moment before Clark spoke. "I hate to interrupt here, but you never mentioned who her husband is."
"Damn. And you call yourself an award winning journalist," came Jack's smart remark.
"You have to overlook Jack," Perry spoke up. "He says exactly what's on his mind." He pushed the other man's chair with his foot.
"I like honest," Clark admitted.
"He's certainly that," Jimmy added. "Lois married Lex Luthor."
"The billionaire savior of the city?" At their 'I can't believe you said that' looks, he had the grace to look ashamed. "Sorry, I was just repeating all those press releases. Personally, I suspect a man in his position didn't get that way by totally legal means."
When Perry looked at Jimmy with a smile, the younger man gave him an 'I told you so' expression.
"Isn't he at least twenty years older than Ms. Lane?" Clark asked another question that was on his mind.
Jack snickered. "At least. I believed Perry on that reason alone. Why would a knock out like Lane marry an old codger like Luthor? I mean, damn!"
Jimmy shuddered along with Jack. "So, you in?" he asked Clark.
"What exactly am I agreeing to?"
"We want the dirt on Luthor. We want to prove he's done something to Lois. And we want to get her away from him." Perry said that as if it should be obvious.
"What about Lois' family?" Clark wanted to know. Surely if there was something amiss with Lois, her family would be first to help them with their campaign.
"Her mother died when she was sixteen. Her sister's a junkie and we think her father's on Luthor's payroll," Jack let him know.
"Dr. Same Lane?" Clark asked in surprise.
"You know him?" Perry wanted to know.
"I know of him. Sam is one of the most respected orthopedic doctors in the country. He's developed a line of prosthetics for athletes that are being heralded as the most advanced of the kind."
Jimmy went around Perry's desk and opened a bottom drawer. He retrieved a file and thrust it toward Clark when he made it back to the front of the desk.
Clark was thumbing through the contents when Perry spoke. "Lane Center for Sports Therapy received a generous influx of funding the day before Lois announced she was leaving the Planet."
"We've been unable to trace the money or contact Sam since," Jimmy finished. "He was at the wedding- there were pictures."
"But I haven't even been able to see him at his practice," Jack told him. "And believe me. I can see things most people can't."
Clark glanced at Jack. Did he have super vision, too?
"He used to be a petty thief," Jimmy explained as he slapped the back of the younger man's head.
"My talents help your butt out, don't they?" Jack and Jimmy exchanged a few friendly punches before Perry cleared his throat.
"Things aren't right and I just want to prove it."
Clark finally lifted his eyes from the file to his boss. "Has anyone tried to acquire some kind of legal papers to get Lois out of there?"
"Perry's tried everything," Jimmy told him. "But being as how he only had a hunch to go on that she was drugged..." The man stopped speaking and shrugged.
"How about seeing Ms. Lane?"
"Ha!" Perry barked. "I've been run out of Lex Towers so many times... I think the only reason he hasn't had me arrested for trespassing is because of the bad press it would cause him. And with all the hype surrounding the Space Station, the last thing he needs is the editor of the largest newspaper in the world making waves for him."
"Why haven't you just done that anyway?" was Clark's next question.
"Well, a man in my position can't make accusations about such a powerful man and expect to keep his job."
"Yeah, I guess that would be committing professional suicide."
"Not to mention the fact that we feel Luthor is the devil," Jack spoke up. "The devil is feared for a reason. People tick him off and they disappear."
Clark didn't doubt that. If the man was evil enough to drug a woman to get her to marry him, he was capable of anything.
"And I can accomplish much more from here," Perry added.
Clark nodded in agreement. He hadn't had the pleasure of meeting Lois Lane, but he felt he knew her a bit through her work. Out of respect for a fellow reporter, he'd help all he could. "I'll help all I can."
"No trails," Perry said with pointed finger. "Strictly hush, hush. When we bring that bastard down, we want it to be a total surprise."
"Got it." Clark rose and motioned toward the door. "I think Jimmy and I have an appointment tonight."
Perry and his newest reporter shared a look that put the older man completely at ease. He'd chosen well. Kent would help them get to the bottom of this situation once and for all.
****
Clark and Jimmy stood near the entrance to the balcony on the south side of the conference room at Eprad. Six of the thirteen occupants of the Space Station Luthor had returned earlier that day. They'd made their public appearance, giving a brief narrative of their time in space. Now everyone was taking advantage of the party Luthor had arranged to celebrate their success. Initial research performed aboard the station offered promising results.
"There he is." Jimmy nudged Clark as Lex Luthor entered the room. "I would love to wipe that arrogant smile off his face."
"Let's do it legally, Jimbo." Clark clapped his shoulder to help calm the younger man. Since he'd been invited into the investigation earlier, he'd given a lot of thought to the man they were dealing with. He'd also combed through a few stories he'd come across in his time at the Planet, and now that he looked deeper, he felt that a mysterious 'Boss' referred to by several petty law breakers could be Luthor.
Clark had to give it to Luthor- if he really was the 'Boss'- what better disguise than to hide in plain sight?
With that thought, he had to roll his eyes. He, of all people, knew how effective such a disguise was.
And none of that was doing him a bit of good right now.
"Should we divide and conquer?" Jimmy asked him after a moment.
"Yeah." He went one way and Jimmy the other. He listened carefully to any conversation that might help them, but most revolved around the space exploration. He was careful to tuck enough information away so they'd have enough for an article for the morning edition.
"Clark?"
He turned and was surprised to see a familiar face from his past. "Lana!"
"It is you," she said with a smile and immediately stepped up to give him a fierce hug. "How are you?"
"I'm great. And you?" He glanced down at her. "You look amazing."
"So do you." She fingered the bow tie of his tux.
She'd always loved him in a tux, he recalled as he smiled at her praise. "It's good to see you."
"And you."
"How's the job?"
"Fantastic. I worked freelance for a couple months before being hired on at the Planet."
"I know. I've read your stuff. As good as I always knew your writing would be."
Again he smiled, and used it as a cover to locate Luthor. He was still chatting with various people in the crowd. "How did things go in China?"
"They went well. We stopped the spread of the bacteria and even isolated the source."
"I knew you could do it." He reached out and squeezed her elbow. As much as he'd missed his friend, he really wanted to be anywhere but here with her now. He needed to be listening in on Luthor's conversations and watching his moves. "And now?" he managed after another quick peek at the elusive billionaire.
"I was asked to join the research team on the space station."
His brows rose in surprise. Only the top scientists and doctors in the world were invited aboard. "Wow! And to think I once dated a famous doctor."
"Hush," she said, blushing from his praise. She noticed his eyes travel around the room for the third time. "Are you working?"
Meeting her gaze, he gave her an apologetic expression. "Sorry. Does it show that badly?"
"It does. You're usually more focused when we talk."
"Let me make it up to you by taking you to dinner tomorrow night."
"Why not join me for dinner at my parents' house instead? Mother and Daddy are both off to who knows where and I'd really like to stay in."
"Name the time."
"Seven." She looked down at her watch. "Speaking of time, I have a debriefing in ten minutes." She leaned forward and placed a kiss on Clark's cheek. "Don't be late."
"I won't. It was good seeing you, Lana." She grinned at him widely before hurrying across the room. He sighed once she was gone, then searched for Luthor again. He'd moved off to one side to speak to a couple of men, so Clark tuned his hearing in so that he could find out what was going on. The noise of the crowd was too loud for him to make out what they were saying, but Luthor looked angry with whatever the taller man had told him. After a brief exchange, they all left through the back door leading toward the parking area.
As discreetly as possible, Clark slipped out so that he could follow. Peering from behind a generator at the side of the building, Clark could see Luthor, the gray gentleman that had been inside, a darker haired man, also from inside, and two other men that had been waiting on them outside. He recognized the other men as Bill Church, Sr., another of Metropolis' wealthy philanthropists, and his son Bill, Jr. He tuned in his hearing to listen.
"Luthor, I don't know what game you're playing, but I don't like it."
"Game? This is no game! I have perfected the research."
"I cannot stake my reputation without proof."
Bill Sr. was the CEO of Cost Mart, a national wholesale chain. He was also on the board of directors of Church Pharmaceutical. Their specialty was the manufacture of many different kinds of medicines. Some of the experiments conducted there had even led to breakthroughs in several fields. Clark had recently learned that a few could make common ailments such as earache and sore throat nonexistent. Of course, that was the legal and moral side of the company. Word on the street was that Church's lab conducted experiments in mind control. Those experiments, along with others he was rumored to have conducted, were not so honorable.
"I have proof. I've had my top scientist working on this for years." He dug through his jacket and pulled out a card. "Come by tomorrow at noon. You can see for yourself."
Bill took the card skeptically. "If what you say is true, then we can start the research. But must I remind you that my lab has done this several times.? Each one has ended the same way."
"Believe me, Church, I'm well aware of those experiments. But your little creatures were created in petri dishes. Mine were conceived, carried like a normal pregnancy, and delivered just like the next crumb catcher. Can you say that?"
"You know we can't, Lex," the older Church said.
"And can you say you've created twins in your *lab*?" Luthor busied himself for a moment lighting a cigar. "Believe me, Bill, these things are incredible. Eat, poop, and God help me, scream just like any other brat."
"Still, they'll have to survive the six month threshold," the younger Church added.
Luthor drew from his cigar, then blew the smoke right in the other men's faces. "I know this will be ongoing for years, but surely an advance won't be too much to ask when you see the results." Luthor slung an arm around Bill, Sr.'s shoulder as he led him toward a waiting car. "If their own mother can't tell, it's fool proof. Besides, this could make us rich beyond our wildest imaginations, even richer than we are now. Add the mind control and you could create the perfect army. The government would pay billions."
Bill stopped at his car and smiled. "Hell, we could create the perfect wives."
"Amen to that," Luthor said with a chuckle. "Now... can I count on you?"
"Yes," he answered as he grasped Luthor's hand in a firm shake. "If they are anything like you say, I'm in."
"Fantastic!" Church and his son, along with one of the other men climbed into the limo and drove away. Luthor watched until the car disappeared, then his smile faded. "Nigel, those *men* you hired to do that job in Suicide Slum were at the Tower earlier. They want more money." Lex drew from his cigar again. "Give it to them."
"Yes sir," the man answered with an evil grin.
They made their way back inside and Clark let go of the breath he'd been holding. He couldn't believe what he'd heard. Luthor had insinuated that a woman had conceived and delivered twins that he'd somehow *created*. What did he mean? Were the babies some kind of experiment? He'd all but said so. What did that mean?
And could the woman be Lois? Were his own children some kind of sick experiment? If so, what kind?
Deciding that he'd 'sit in' on Church's observation the following day before he told Perry or the others, he went back inside to follow Luthor's movements the rest of the night. If this man slipped, Clark was going to be there to witness it.
