Sorry this is so late in coming. I was wisked off for the weekend by my husband for a long awaited getaway. I definitely had other things on my mind!
Okay, so I'm one behind here. Hopefully no one will send out the ax men on this one.
Enjoy!
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The following day Clark landed on the roof of Lex Towers just before noon. He searched for and quickly disabled the lone camera trained on the roof door. He found a secluded spot behind two large air conditioning units and watched with super eyes as Bill Church, Sr. arrived a few minutes later. He tracked Church's movements through the building and up to Luthor's office. They exchanged greetings before a woman entered the room pushing a portable baby crib, much like the ones at the hospital. Inside were two sleeping infants.
"Remarkable," said Bill Church Sr. as he looked into the crib at the babies.
"Quite," agreed Luthor. "I had hoped to show you the remarkable advancements in mind control with the mother, but... she was under the weather."
"I think this is enough proof."
Luthor gestured to Nigel and the woman left pushing the babies. "Does that mean you want a piece of the pie?" Luthor asked when they were alone.
"Twenty percent now, twenty in six months and the rest at the five year mark."
"Five years?" Luthor yelled.
Bill took a step back at the man's outburst. "Lex, you know we need that long to ensure the viability of the tissue. These things die faster than they're created."
Lex strode across the room, clearly angry at the offer put before him.
"And what are you up to anyway?"
"Excuse me?" he wanted to know when he faced Bill again.
"You've introduced that thing as your son."
"Well, I can't very well advertise his creation, now can I?"
"I guess not." Bill turned and started toward the door. "Final offer. Take it or leave it."
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't you the one that asked for a buy in?"
"But you're the one that needs to insure your little venture remains secret until you're ready to announce your success to the world."
Luthor's brows rose at the other man's audacity.
Bill smiled and waved his hand at Luthor. "Looks like we're going to be quite rich."
"Looks that way, Bill." Luthor said through clenched teeth as he watched the door close behind him. "I can't wait until that imbecile gets that smirk wiped from his face."
"Should I deliver a message?" Nigel asked, his hands clasped behind his back. He was completely relaxed and it showed.
"Not yet. Unfortunately Bill's right. I can't have him divulging my secrets." Lex stepped behind his desk and started searching through a pile of papers.
"When is the meeting with the lawyers in Sydney?"
"Not until the bastard is a year old." Lex dropped to his chair, a heavy sigh escaping as he did. "This should have been easy, Nigel. Marry, have a son, inherit an empire."
"Isn't that what you've done?"
"Not until the transfer is complete," he reminded him.
"And I'm sure you didn't count on every mole in the ground scurrying to the pile for their share of the pie either."
"Yes, well, the funny thing about rodents is that they are easily exterminated."
"Yes, they certainly are."
Luthor laughed softly as he pulled a cigar from the box on his desk.
Clark let his vision sweep from Lex' office further up. Inside a room on the top floor, a woman sat cradling one of the babies who had been returned to her. Though she reminded him nothing of the pictures he'd seen, there was no doubt the woman was Lois Lane. The babies were her twins. She continued to rock and hum softly to the child she held. His heart broke for her. She looked so lost, so defeated. Yet, there was something about the way she cared for the baby in her arms.
"What did he do to you?" he whispered as he continued to watch another second. He finally decided it was time to let the others know what he'd heard.
A final glance and he was gone.
****
Perry just stared at a spot across the room and Jimmy paced back and forth behind the chairs as they took in the things Clark had just told them. Jack was off doing whatever it was Jack did to produce results. Most of the time they didn't ask, and he didn't say.
"That's a sick bastard," Jimmy said again for the third time.
"What empire is the man inheriting?" Perry wanted to know. "Lex Luthor has already inherited his empire. He was the only son of Lionel Luthor. He took control of all of his father's assets when Lionel was murdered ten years ago. It was worth billions and he's increased his wealth ten fold since then. He's not having money problems either. We've checked all of that. No corporate take-overs eminent."
"And what's all that six month, five year crap? Viability of the tissue?" Jimmy was stumped. What was Luthor doing? More precisely, what had he done?
"Church. It has something to do with Church..." Perry was more or less talking to himself as he searched through the files he had on his desk. When Clark had gotten back to the Planet earlier, he was working on the investigation.
"What does Church's lab do?"
"On the top floor, they head some of the most advanced medical research of our time. In the basement, anything that isn't legal or ethical," Jimmy informed him. "You name it, he's probably done it."
"We should start there. He mentioned his lab had already created whatever it is Lex thinks he's created."
"That's all well and good, CK, but the things done in that part of the lab aren't exactly advertised." Jimmy sank to the chair next to Clark.
"Start with funding," Perry spoke up. "Look into who funds Church's lab or his enterprises. From there, look into the funding of Lex Labs."
Clark picked up on Perry's line of thought. "How about the physicians on the board?"
"The ones at Lex Labs should be easy enough to identify," the editor said. "Jimmy, go back over that list of contributions Luthor's made in the last ten years. See if there are any connections between him and Church."
"On it, Chief."
"Good. Now, that piece you two turned in from last night was great stuff. And unfortunately, I need you both to get me some printable copy for tomorrow."
"We understand," Clark said as he stood to follow Jimmy out. This investigation was important to Perry, but they couldn't work on it all the time. They had other work that needed to be done as well.
****
Clark watched as Lana laid her head back and laughed. He'd joined her for dinner and was glad he had. She'd cooked, something she didn't often do but when she did, it was remarkable. Her mother was a famous chef, even had a cooking show on television. Marge Lang was in Los Angeles at the moment to film a special for upcoming episodes of her program. She'd also taught her daughter how to cook. It was one of the many things he missed about Lana.
When she'd calmed, she looked at Clark, her expression growing in intensity. "Have you... been dating?"
"Not since moving to the city." He leaned up and set his coffee cup on the table. They'd settled in the den on the sofa so they'd be more comfortable. "I was involved for a brief time with a woman in Brazil."
"Why brief?"
"It was never serious. A couple of friends having a good time together."
"Like us?" she wanted to know as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Yeah," he agreed as he lifted his hand to tuck the hair on the opposite side of her head. "Like us." His voice was soft, his eyes boring into hers. When she leaned forward, he met her half way. Their kiss was immediately passionate and out of control.
When they spoke again, it was lying on Lana's bed in her room. Both were sweating and panting from their exertion. There had been a brief pause in their explorations for Clark to zip out for protection before they'd given in to their most primal needs.
"Why is it always like this with us?" Lana asked him.
"I have no idea," Clark said with a chuckle. He rolled over and kissed her shoulder before pulling her closer. "We have ten condoms left." He waggled his brows at her.
"You're insatiable." She rolled over and kissed him firmly. "Were we destined from the beginning to never be anything more than lovers?"
"I like to think of it as friends with benefits." He nuzzled her neck, causing her to giggle. He loved to hear her giggle.
"You're impossible." She dropped her head back to give him better access.
"How about we do the next one on the ceiling?" he asked as he floated them from the bed.
"You know I don't like to fly," she protested.
"But there's so many ways than actually leaving the ground," he whispered huskily as he nuzzled her neck. They dropped back onto the bed as Lana's soft laughter filled the air and they surrendered themselves once again to their desires.
****
Clark closed the door of his apartment before seven the next morning. He'd said good-bye to Lana in the cab outside Eprad. She was leaving in a week to spend the next two years of her life in space. There were tests and training she'd have to go through first though. He'd miss her, but knew there was no future with Lana.
She'd known about his super side since they were kids and had always kept his confidence. She was his biggest supporter when he confessed that he needed to use his abilities to help others. Until they'd made their decision to part before she left for China they'd always talked on the phone, even when they were split up. But when they'd decided it was finally the end, they'd also decided not to stay in contact. Maybe a Christmas card or birthday note, like any other friends would do.
He didn't regret last night though. It seemed they'd always had sort of an understanding about their physical relationship. They'd shared themselves the first time on prom night and though they'd never had an extremely active sex life, they had, on occasion, been unable to control themselves. Clark had never seen himself as a man who'd engage in such a relationship, though it was impossible for him to deny that he might never have the kind of life he craved. He was just too different from other men and he'd be hard pressed to find a woman to share a life with him. Lana was one in a million. She would have stayed with him, if either of them had been willing to give up their hopes and dreams for the other. Fortunately, they both loved and respected the other enough not to ask for that choice.
Clark also knew now that what he felt for Lana had never been more than deep friendship. She was beautiful and intelligent and he was incredibly attracted to her. Yet, he'd never really felt that extra... something he should have felt when he looked at her. His heart didn't skip a beat when he thought about her. And he had never been able to picture them later in life, with kids, growing older together. When they'd talked right before she left for China, she'd admitted the same things to him. She loved him, respected him, cherished him as a friend, and wasn't the least bit ashamed to sleep with him. He just wasn't her soul mate.
Did anyone have a soul mate? His mother swore that he'd know when he met his. She'd said he'd fall in love at first sight. Life might work against him- she might even deny it- but he'd know her. Whether or not fate brought them together was another story.
Flipping through his mail, Clark couldn't help but smile. He loved his mother beyond words. She was an incredible person. Although he wasn't sure he believed her. She was a softy and a romantic at heart.
****
Before the small team could make it very far in their research into Luthor and his affairs, things seemed to go crazy. One catastrophe after another beckoned the Man of Steel and with each rescue came an equally explosive story for the Planet. They stole time away from their real jobs and lives when they could to investigate Luthor, but time was at a premium. When they finally managed to catch their breath, it had been six and half months since the birth of Lois' twins.
"This list is so long I might never get finished," Jack said as he chose another name and entered it into the search engine on his computer.
"Lex Labs received the second allotment Church mentioned," Clark said as he continued to read over the papers he held. "I just don't understand why he needs it though. I can't find a single subsidiary of Lex Enterprises that isn't operating in the green."
"Look in places you wouldn't expect. Try his personal accounts," Jimmy told him.
"Those have more money than his business accounts." Clark leaned back and sighed heavily. Over the last few weeks this investigation had become an obsession for him as well as Perry. Since he'd seen Lois that day as she rocked her baby, something inside him yearned to help her. He hadn't needed super eyes to know all was not well with that woman.
"I don't think it's a matter of needing the money," Jimmy said. "You mentioned they said something about a buy in and insurance. I believe Church found out what Luthor's done, whatever that is, and wanted a piece of the pie. Luthor gave it to him to keep his mouth shut."
"No doubt," Clark replied as he looked again at the disbursement of money into Luthor's accounts. He'd really hid it well. A casual observer wouldn't have been able to spot it.
"Hey, I think I've finally found a crumb trail," Jack announced. "A biologist left Star Labs three years ago to work at Lex Labs."
"That happens all the time," Jimmy said, dismissing the information.
"Yeah, but does the physician pick up an entirely new field of study? And continue the research of a known quack?"
"What?" Jimmy wanted to know.
"Says here he picked up Dr. Carl Mambo's research in 1995, but abandoned it again in 1996 for more human experiments."
"Carl Mambo? Isn't he the doctor that did research on cloning?" Clark asked.
"Yep. He's successfully cloned frogs, chimps, and livestock. However, he is currently a resident of the Gutheridge Center for the Mentally Insane." Jimmy whirled his finger in a circle beside his head. "A real nut job."
"Didn't Lois interview him once?" Jack asked.
"Oh, yeah. He was ticked with her article." The man laughed as he remembered that piece. "So who decided that kind of insane research should be continued?"
"Dr. Paul Lang."
"What?" Clark stood and strode over to look at the screen over Jack's shoulder.
"Lang. Says he was a professor at MU, worked for the Mayo Clinic on genetics projects, and most recently he's been playing around with fertility studies."
Clark straightened and stared down at the computer. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Paul Lang was Lana's father. At one time he'd felt sure the man was going to be his father-in-law. How did he not know the man worked for Lex Labs? Sure, he'd known he was doing infertility research at one time, but he had no idea the man was even the least bit interested in cloning.
Jack noticed Clark's loss of concentration. "CK, is everything okay?"
"Paul is my ex-girlfriend's father."
"Really? Did you know he was into any of this?"
"No idea. Let me look at that." Clark scrolled through the information for a moment before he walked back over and sat down again. Paul Lang had worked for Star Labs when he and Lana were together, but according to the computer, he'd also been working with Mambo before the man was declared insane.
"Fertility, cloning... You guys don't think Luthor's scientists have figured out how to clone humans, do you?"
"That's ridiculous, Jack," Jimmy said as he chuckled aloud.
"Think about it. Clark said Luthor referred to the babies as creatures. Church wants to document the viability of the tissue. Of course, it's highly likely that Luthor's trying to pass his twins off as clones. It wouldn't be the first time a wacko double crossed other wackos." He looked at the two men for a second. "Didn't he say that they could create the perfect army?"
All three men stared at one another for several long minutes, laughed nervously, then suddenly they all sat up and began tapping furiously on their computers.
"How the hell do we prove something like that?" Jimmy wanted to know.
"Damn good question, Jimbo," Clark remarked as he scanned a web page he'd called up. This thing got crazier by the second.
