PREVIOUSLY...
She was so lost in thought that she didn’t hear the ding of the elevator so the sight of the dirty man standing next to her desk caused her to jump. She opened her mouth to ask what he wanted when her eyes finally alighted on his face.
“Clark?” she asked.
“I found out something, Lois,” he said. “We need to talk. Conference room?”
Lois nodded, not adding that she’d found something, too - something very, very interesting.* * * * * * * * *
AND NOW...
Clark chucked when he heard Lois sit down on the far side of the conference room table. He couldn’t exactly say he blamed her. He’d grown accustomed to the smell of his clothes during the course of the day, but this was her first... and hopefully last... exposure.
He heard Shadow whine softly and instantly knew what he wanted. Bending down, he snapped the halter off the dog and grinned when he heard Shadow take off towards Lois.
“You need a bath,” Lois immediately informed Shadow. “Probably from spending too much time with this bum.”
“You’ll regret saying that when you find out what I learned. Or... what I think I learned,” he clarified.
“So... fill me in already.”
Clark proceeded to fill her in on the information he’d obtained at the soup kitchen before adding, “So then I asked what these doctors looked like and... Lois, it sounds to me from the description as if Dr. Leit and Munch were the doctors.”
“But Munch isn’t a doctor.”
“No. But that doesn’t mean the guys might have just thought both were doctors. Or...”
“...or Munch was pretending to be a doctor,” Lois added. “And his name is close to lunch and has something to do with eating. And I agree that the eye exams do sound suspicious. But do you have any proof?”
Clark shook his head. “But I was thinking that if I could get pictures of both Leit and Munch, maybe show them to Marcus. He could confirm if it was them.”
“You’d be giving away the fact that you’re not really one of them.”
Clark let out a breath. “I know. But I think Marcus would talk to me.”
Lois nodded slowly. “I found something today, too. Something that sort of connects with your discovery - loosely. Seems Dr. Faraday was one of Snell’s clients.”
Clark’s eyebrows rose. “You got his client list?”
“Some of it, anyway. And guess what Snell was doing for Faraday?” Lois paused dramatically. “He was applying for a patent.”
“On the device that was used to put knowledge into your mind?”
“I suspect so. I’m planning to sneak back into the facility where the file is being stored tonight to get it. There might be something in there that will help me figure out how to get rid of the information he put in my mind with his device.”
“Or access it.” Clark paused as a new thought occurred to him. “But, Lois... Are you sure you should be sneaking into some Intergang place at night alone?”
“Absolutely not,” Lois responded, causing Clark’s eyebrows to jump. “Which is why I’m planning to take you with me... Besides, I need your special abilities to get over the high fence.”
“Uhh...” Clark said with a grin, suddenly understanding why Lois had been so quick to agree with him that she shouldn’t go alone. She needed a boost over the fence. He should have known. He pushed the thought aside to address another issue. “Lois, I’ve got a question about your Faraday leaks.”
“What?”
“Have you ever had anything other than science leaks?”
“No. Why?”
“Nothing. I guess that was a crazy idea.”
“What?”
“Just... what Baker said when we bumped into him at CostMart. I just wondered if it could have been a Faraday leak. But if all of the leaks are scientific, I guess that doesn’t work.”
“Unless the device can be used to implant different types of information and maybe science was just the type of information I was given.” She paused momentarily. When she continued, her voice was much more animated. “What if that’s what this is all about? What if all of this... Baker’s disappearance... the missing men... everything is connected to the Faraday device? Think about it, Clark. If you could control the information in a person’s mind, you could control the person.”
“But how would that be possible? After all, the device was used on you and it’s not as if it replaced the knowledge you already have - it just added to it.”
“Except that I can’t access it.”
“Yeah.” For a moment both were silent as they thought about that.
“Oh, wait, wait, wait,” Lois said. “What if... what if the device could be reversed?”
“You mean to take the information out of your mind?”
“No. To make the information a person already knows inaccessible and instead have the knowledge put in your brain by the device the only knowledge you could access.”
“Then you really could control a person - change their entire personality or their beliefs. And the knowledge they have acquired during their entire life - which might be able to keep them from believing the new information - wouldn’t be accessible to them.”
“Exactly.”
“And the Machiavelli leak... What better way to make a person distrust authority, make them more likely to act against it, then to fill his mind with writings like those of Machiavelli!” Clark said.
“Right!”
“Okay, but does any of this get us any closer to finding Baker?”
“What connects these things? Well, assuming there is a connection,” Lois muttered before falling silent and he could tell she was thinking.
He loved the way her mind worked. No one he’d ever met had her ability to sort through the pieces of a case to see the whole picture. Minimal information and wild speculation that more often than not turned out to be right. Even now she was undoubtedly rolling the information they’d obtained around in her mind in a haphazard fashion until it formed a pattern - a mosaic of sorts. Filling in whatever blanks existed to give her a fascinating picture of the whole. It suddenly occurred to him that he should be thinking about the case, but before he could move his mind in that direction, Lois spoke again.
“Intergang,” she said.
“What?”
“The lawyer Faraday was using to apply for a patent on his device was an Intergang lawyer and...”
“...we saw... so to speak... Baker running out of CostMart...”
“...which I’m still certain is an Intergang cover. And, yes, Bill Church was one of the names on Snell’s client list.”
“So what are we saying here? That Faraday was working for Intergang?”
“I don’t think so. In the brief moment before Faraday used the device on me, he apologized. Not typical Intergang behavior,” Lois said. “Besides, if he was working for Intergang, why were Leit and Munch trying to steal his device? Why kill him? Wouldn’t it be risky to make such a move against Intergang? Surely there would have been reprisals. But what if Faraday went to Snell without knowing he was an Intergang lawyer. He simply wanted to apply for a patent...”
“When he explains what the device does to Snell,” Clark continued, “Snell realizes the potential for the device and goes to his bosses. So you think that Munch and Leit were working for Intergang?”
“That’s exactly what I think.”
“It would certainly explain why Faraday attempted to hide the device in your apartment - to keep Intergang from getting their hands on it when he realized what they wanted to use it for.”
“So then, Leit and Munch blind Superman and steal Faraday’s device. They then need to test it - but to do that, they need guinea pigs, so to speak...”
“So they set up a free clinic in Cardboard City to make sure they have healthy test subjects - and then they abduct the most promising candidates.”
“Exactly!” Lois exclaimed.
“Okay, well, that’s a great theory, but right now that’s all it is.”
“That’s why we need confirmation. We need to be sure that Leit and Munch really were the doctors at the free clinic. Because whatever else we know about them, I think it’s a safe bet to say that they weren’t operating a free clinic because of some altruistic impulse.”
“So we talk to Marcus.”
“We talk to Marcus.”
“But first... I want to take a trip to the locker rooms and get cleaned up. Marcus is going to know something fishy’s going on the second I show him pictures of Leit and Munch. I think he’s more likely to be up front with me if I’m up front with him.”
“If you think I’m going to object to you having a shower before climbing into my jeep... ain’t gonna happen,” Lois said, a grin in her voice. “You can even give Shadow a bath while you’re at it.”
* * * * * * * * *
Lois’ two guys looked and smelled much better when they finally climbed into her jeep some time later. Shadow immediately scampered into the back to get a better view out the window, looking none the worse for his night on the streets. Clark looked better, too, his hair still slightly damp, dressed in a brown suit with one of his trademark wild ties. He was still sporting facial hair, however, since his shaving kit was at home. Still, she had to admit that a few days worth of stubble gave him a dangerously sexy quality. She chuckled.
“What?” Clark asked. “My tie not match?”
“Your ties never match,” Lois responded before reaching over to straighten his tie for him. “But you look fine.”
“Then what was the chuckle for?”
“I was just thinking you look dangerously sexy with a few days worth of stubble.”
“Dangerously sexy, hey?” He sounded pleased with that thought. “Maybe I can work that to my advantage later.”
Lois started up the engine. “I’m sure you’ll try, anyway,” she responded playfully as she backed out of her parking space.
“Well, I’m in need of a comfortable bed with a good woman to keep me warm after sleeping out on the dark, cold streets of Metropolis.”
“Yeah, all four or five hours of it. Oh, you poor baby.”
“Not even that long,” Clark said before filling Lois in on how he’d met Marcus.
* * * * * * * * *
Clark’s navigational bracelet was very useful in helping Lois and Clark find their way back to Clark’s cardboard box. He’d entered the location of the box into the bracelet the previous night for just this purpose - although he thought he’d be finding his way back as a homeless person.
“Nice,” Lois said, squatting down to take a look inside. “Did you decorate yourself?”
“I’ll have you know that it was the best cardboard box I could find at Valuefood,” Clark said, trying to sound indignant.
Before Lois could respond, a new voice entered the conversation.
“I know that dog.”
Lois stood up so quickly she knocked the box over.
“Hi, Marcus,” Clark said, obviously having recognized the man’s voice.
Spinning around, she saw a wiry old man standing nearby, more white hair on his face than graced the top of his head. His left hand was missing - which was something she really hadn’t expected. He was wearing a thread-bare military type coat which appeared to have most of the stuffing missing and she could see a ratty orange t-shirt poking out underneath. The stump of an unlit cigarette was hanging out one side of his mouth. So this was Marcus. Well, that might be a problem, because he did not look happy. Maybe Clark revealing his cover had been a mistake.
“Not so sure I know the man though,” Marcus said suspiciously.
“I’m still Clark.”
Marcus’ eyes narrowed.
“Clark Kent,” Clark continued. “I’m a reporter for the Daily Planet. And this is my partner, Lois Lane.”
“I don’t want to end up in no story,” Marcus said. “You lie about being blind, too?”
Clark shook his head. “I lost my sight a couple months ago.”
“Hmph!” Marcus turned around and began walking away.
“Marcus, please. Just... hear me out, okay?”
Marcus spun back around, more nimble than Lois would have expected.
“I don’t take kindly to being lied to.”
“Just give me a chance to explain?” Clark asked.
“So what’s stopping you?” Marcus asked, even as he walked over to another box... or actually, his spot looked to be more of a campsite. There was an almost homey, permanent quality to his place.
Lois took Clark’s hand and walked them closer.
“Now this is what a cardboard house should look like!” Lois exclaimed. At first, she couldn’t believe she’d said that out loud and was worried that she’d offended Marcus - until an unexpected grin quirked at one corner of his mouth.
“Yeah,” Marcus said. “His place does look kinda pathetic, doesn’t it.”
Clark had looked horrified at her words, but the amusement in Marcus’ voice now had him looking shocked.
“Should’ve known just from that that he didn’t belong around here,” Marcus continued. His eyes seemed to take in Lois, finally coming to rest on her and Clark’s joined hands.
“So this is your woman, huh? Thought you said she was your partner.”
“She’s both,” Clark responded, his grip tightened momentarily on Lois’ hand.
Lois felt a flash of anger. She was no one’s ‘woman.’ She and Clark were equal partners. And if this old man thought... Her voice trailed off when she noticed the amused look on Marcus’ face, almost as if he’d read her mind during her silent diatribe.
“She’s a lot of woman, son. You sure you can handle her?”
“She handles me,” Clark responded.
Marcus laughed. “Now... that I believe.”
Lois felt slightly mollified - especially since it seemed that the exchange had broken the ice with Marcus.
“I still don’t like being lied to,” Marcus suddenly said, as if he, too, realized that the ice had been broken and wasn’t particularly happy about it.
“I know. And I’m sorry, but I didn’t see any other way.”
“So you planning to write a story about life down here?” Marcus asked suspiciously. “‘Cause the guys won’t be too happy with me for introducing you if they end up in the papers.”
“I understand. And don’t worry... I’m not doing a story about you... or about the guys. Lois and I are just trying to find the guys who went missing.”
“Why? Can’t imagine you’re readers care much about a bunch of homeless guys going missing. Probably see it as less bums to worry about.”
“Our boss cares,” Lois said.
“He does?” Marcus asked, sounding skeptical. “Why?”
Lois glanced over at Clark, deciding to let him be the one to tell the story. Clark took a deep breath and began the tale. It wasn’t until he mentioned Perry and Steve being together in Vietnam that Marcus seemed to become truly engaged in the story. Lois glanced again at Marcus’ coat and then at his missing hand. Was he, too, one of the victims of that war?
“So why’d ya lie to me?” Marcus asked when Clark had finished his story. “Why pretend you were one of us instead of just askin’ what you wanna know?”
“We tried,” Clark said. “We visited every soup kitchen and shelter in the area and no one would talk to us.”
“Because...” Lois began, almost giggling when she felt Clark’s hand tighten on hers. “...we’re strangers. No one would trust us.” He’d obviously thought she was going to say ‘because we don’t stink.’
Marcus didn’t seem to notice the silent exchange. Instead he was nodding thoughtfully. “So why tell me now?”
“Because Clark didn’t want to keep lying to you,” Lois said. “He thought you might trust him enough to give us your help even if you knew who he was.”
Marcus was silent as he studied the two of them.
“Will you help us?” Clark finally asked.
“What’d ya wanna know?”
Lois and Clark immediately relaxed. The gamble had worked.
“We’re following up on the free clinic,” Clark said.
“Eric’s theory?” Marcus asked incredulously. “Eric’s crazy. He thinks the government is gonna infect people with VD just to see what happens.”
“Just because he’s crazy doesn’t mean he might not be right,” Lois responded. “Besides, he’s not too far off on the government conducting experiments on people without their knowledge.”
“Infectin’ people with VD?”
“Well,” Lois continued. “Maybe not infecting them. But from the nineteen thirties to the seventies, the government did a study of the effects of syphilis on black males - even though it meant intentionally keeping them in the dark so that they wouldn’t be treated with penicillin after it was discovered to be effective against syphilis in the nineteen fifties.”
“Really?” Marcus asked.
Lois nodded.
“Maybe I should listen to Eric more often. So you think he’s right about the free clinic?”
“It’s just a theory we’re following up on at the moment,” Clark said. “But...” He reached into his pocket and withdrew the pictures of Leit and Munch. “...can you tell us if these were the doctors?”
Clark held out the pictures to Marcus who immediately took them. It occurred to Lois that Marcus might not have even seen the doctors and wondered what they would do then. But that thought proved unnecessary when...
“Yeah, that’s them. You figured that out from what the guys said at lunch?”
Clark nodded. “I had a hunch. We had a run in with these two recently and it just seemed to... fit.”
“Huh. So what happens now?”
“I’ve got an idea about that,” Lois said. She turned to Clark. “I say we fumble around at Speedy Ambulance - see if we can find out more about the ambulance that took Baker.”
“You think Speedy Ambulance lied to us about not making any pickups?”
“Not necessarily, but... the ambulance I saw definitely said ‘Speedy Ambulance’ on the side. And the license was registered to Speedy Ambulance. Wouldn’t it be easier just to rent an ambulance... maybe even long term than it would be to build your own ambulance and steal a license plate?”
“And if someone made arrangements to hire an ambulance out for the whole day... maybe even longer...”
“...then Speedy Ambulance might not even know about a pick up.”
“...but they would know who they rented the ambulance out to.”
“So our next stop needs to be...”
“...Speedy Ambulance.”
Lois looked over at Marcus who was grinning at them as they finished up their conversation.
“Didn’t understand a word of that,” Marcus said. “But, damn, it was entertainin’ to watch.”
* * * * * * * * *
They were getting pretty good at the routine, Clark thought as he and Lois climbed back in the jeep after their trip to Speedy Ambulance. Once again, Clark had managed to use his blindness to distract the man behind the counter long enough for Lois to get a look at the records.
“So what did you find?” he asked as Lois started the jeep.
“We were right. About six weeks ago, Speedy Ambulance rented out one of their ambulances, long term, to... Wait for it... CostMart Inc.”
Clark’s eyebrows rose. “That would be shortly before the men started disappearing.”
“Exactly. Maybe they thought they might need an ambulance for transportation or the like. It sure kept us from interfering when we saw them pick up Baker.”
“True.”
“So I figure we need to make a trip to CostMart,” Lois said as they pulled back onto the road.
“Which one? A lot of CostMarts have gone up in the past few months.”
“The one we saw Baker running out of, of course,” Lois said. “Besides, it’s the first one they built, and I figure it’s more likely that Intergang would be using that one for... whatever.”
“Assuming Intergang and CostMart are actually connected.”
“Well, yeah, assuming that.”
“Are you sure this is a good idea?”
“Do you have a better one?”
“I’m just wondering if we have enough to go to Henderson. If we have enough for a search warrant, then maybe that’s the way to go. After all, it’s not like Superman can just look through the walls and see what’s going on inside.”
Lois thought about that for a minute. He was probably also concerned about them walking into a dangerous situation without Superman around to save the day. And... well, he may have a point there. He couldn’t just disappear any more as Clark only to reappear as Superman. And she knew without a doubt that he would give away his secret in a second if it was the only way to protect her.
Still...
“I don’t think that we have quite enough just yet. Let’s see what we can learn at CostMart before going to talk to Bill. After all, how much trouble can we get into just by looking around?”
Clark smiled. “Have you ever met my partner? She can get in trouble walking across an open field on a sunny day.”
Lois rolled her eyes, but did not respond. After all, he might... but only might... have a bit of a point.
* * * * * * * * *
“Oh, you are not going to believe this,” Lois said as she drove around CostMart to the loading docks.
“What?” Clark asked.
“Guess what’s parked out back.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Nope,” she said, pulling to a stop across from the ambulance sitting next to the large doors. “Even has the same license number of the ambulance that picked up Baker.”
“Why have they left it out where anyone can see it?”
“Maybe they didn’t expect anyone to be looking for it here - or that anyone would understand the significance of its being here.”
She turned off the jeep and put her hand on the door handle when Clark’s arm came over to stop her from disembarking.
“Please tell me you have a plan,” Clark asked.
“Of course I have a plan,” she responded indignantly.
“And that would be?”
“To look around,” she said, before opening the door and climbing out of the jeep. “Coming?”
When Clark hesitated, Lois sat back down on the seat. “What’s going on, Clark?” she asked, realizing for the first time that he had serious concerns about what they were doing - more so than he normally had about her more adventurous schemes.
“Lois, have you thought about the fact that if we’re right and Leit and Munch are involved in this then they know that Superman’s blind?” he finally said.
Suddenly, she understood why he’d been so reluctant about coming here - the possibility that Leit and Munch, upon seeing her blind partner, would make the connection to Superman. And then... where would Clark Kent’s secret be? Mayson finding out would seem like the good old days.
She slowly closed the jeep door. “You’re right,” she said. “I think we have enough to talk to Henderson.” She was about to start the engine when she stopped again. “But before we go... any chance you can listen in on what might be going on in there?”
Clark concentrated for a moment before shaking his head. “Maybe I could after hours. But right now, there’s just too much activity in the store for me to make much out.”
* * * * * * * * *
The pleasantries had been conducted. The prerequisite welcome homes and questions about Clark’s eyes had been completed. And the introduction of Shadow had taken place. Only then had Lois and Clark filled Inspector Bill Henderson in on what they wanted.
Henderson simply sat in silence when they finished, giving neither Lois nor Clark any idea what he was thinking.
Unable to stand the silence for a moment more, Lois spoke again.
“What else do you need? We saw... Or well I saw... Clark heard a man who was reported missing being detained against his will outside CostMart. We’ve since learned that the woman who was detaining him, and claiming to be a doctor with the Metropolis Psychiatric Hospital, doesn’t work there. In fact, we couldn’t find a doctor in Metropolis with her name at all.”
“And the ambulance he was taken away in is currently sitting outside the loading dock at CostMart,” Clark added.
“And you’re sure it’s the same ambulance?” Henderson asked.
“Absolutely,” Lois said immediately. “It has the same license number.”
“Why do I have a feeling there’s more to this than you’re telling me?” Henderson asked.
“We have theories,” Clark said. “But what we can say for certain is what we’re telling you.”
Henderson’s chair squeaked slightly as he leaned back in it. “How about you share your theories with me, too?”
Lois looked over at Clark. He said nothing and she realized that he was leaving the decision of what to tell Henderson up to her. “Fine,” Lois finally said before filling him in on the rest of their speculations.
Henderson was nodding slowly as they finished, obviously intrigued by the Intergang angle.
“What if we’re right?” Lois said. “You can use our missing guy to get a search warrant for CostMart. If there’s nothing there that connects CostMart to Intergang, you haven’t done anything that will make you look foolish. But once you’re in there looking for a missing person... As I understand the law anything you see in plain sight when you happen to be in there could be used in your Intergang investigation. This could be a lot bigger than just a missing person’s case.”
“Assuming your theory about Bill Church being the head of Intergang is right,” Henderson said.
He tapped his fingers together. “I have one more question.”
“What’s that?”
“Normally you... Or well at least Lois wouldn’t come to me until she’d obviously broken into CostMart. Why bring this to me now.”
“Maybe I’m turning over a new leaf,” Lois said.
Bill snorted. “Yeah, right.” He paused. “Okay, let’s pitch this to the D.A.’s office - see if we have enough for a warrant on your missing person,” he said, picking up the phone.
After he placed his call, Lois spoke again. “Oh, by the way, I have something I need to tell you.”
“What’s that?” Henderson asked. “And am I going to need my handcuffs?”
“Ha, ha,” Lois responded, ignoring the fact that Clark had actually laughed. “I took the crime scene tape off the door of my apartment,” she confessed.
* * * * * * * * *
Bill was still jokingly debating whether to get out his handcuffs and Clark was still trying to figure out whether to be annoyed that Lois hadn’t told him about the tape when the liaison from the D.A.’s office arrived.
Why Lois had never considered the possibility that it could be Mayson Drake, she wasn’t sure. Mayson, too, stiffened when she realized who was in Henderson’s office. As Bill explained what evidence they had for a search warrant, Mayson’s eyes continued flicking back and forth between Lois and Clark.
“First you thought Bill Church was the head of Intergang,” Mayson finally said in disdain. “Now that you can’t find evidence of that, you’re accusing him of what? Abducting some vagrant?”
“Actually,” Clark responded, much more calmly that Lois was inclined to do at the moment, “we don’t know who is behind the abduction. We just followed the evidence. After Steven Baker was reported missing, Lois and I saw him - so to speak - trying to escape from CostMart, wearing nothing more than a hospital gown - which indicates that he was likely being held somewhere nearby.
“We also know that he was grabbed by a man and a woman,” Clark continued. “The woman claimed to be a doctor, but there is no doctor by the name she gave us practicing in New Troy. Yet we know she gave Baker some sort of injection - probably a sedative of some sort. And he was taken away in an ambulance which is now parked by the loading docks at CostMart - having been rented by CostMart Inc. six weeks ago. We have no evidence that links Bill Church to any of this. We just want Inspector Henderson to get a warrant to check out CostMart for our missing man - who, as it happens, saved the life of Perry White a number of years ago.”
Lois bit her tongue to keep from responding. Mayson had never bought her theory about Bill Church being the head of Intergang, so trying to argue that she was wrong when they still had no proof was counterproductive in this situation. Besides, Clark had summed up their case fairly effectively - as well as slapping Mayson’s hand pretty firmly for dismissing Steven Baker as nothing more than a vagrant.
Mayson took her eyes off him and looked back at Bill. “You have the information for the warrant all ready for me, I suppose.”
Bill passed a pile of papers across to her and she began looking through them.
A knock on the door interrupted them. “Inspector,” a young officer said sticking his head in the door, “the Chief wants to see to you.”
Henderson rose to his feet. “What’s this about, Stan?”
“Apparently, some men burst into City Hall and took a bunch of hostages, including the Mayor and the Mayor’s ten year old daughter who was there for the bring your child to work day - along with a number of other employees and their children.”
He had the attention of everyone in the room now.
Bill pulled his suit jacket off the back of his chair. “Have they said what they want?” he asked.
“Superman,” Stan responded. “If he doesn’t show up in an hour, they’re going to start killing hostages, one every half hour, until he arrives.”
“What?” Henderson demanded incredulously. “What are they trying to do? Superman is gone. No one knows where.” With that he quickly followed Stan out of the office, leaving Lois, Clark and Mayson staring after him in shocked disbelief.
“Get hold of Maggie Sawyer,” Bill told Stan as he rushed across the adjoining room. “Tell her to get the SWAT team down to City Hall ASAP - faster, if possible. Set up a perimeter and make sure that no one goes into the building. And empty the building of anyone not involved in the hostage situation. Tell her to have a report ready for me when I get there. I’ll be following her down there as soon as I talk to the Chief.”
Of those left behind, Clark was the first to move, closing the door before turning to face the two women.
“I have to go,” he said softly.
“What?” Mayson gasped. “We have a deal. Let the police handle it. Besides, what are you going to do? You can’t help anyone anymore. You’re blind.”
“I have to go,” Clark repeated, ignoring the offensiveness of Mayson’s comments.
“If you do,” Mayson said, “then our deal is off! I will make sure everyone knows that Clark Kent is Superman.” There was no mistaking from her tone that she meant every word.
“Lois?” Clark asked.
Lois suddenly realized Clark wasn’t addressing Mayson at all. He was looking for Lois’ permission - her blessing to do what he had to do, regardless of what Mayson may do as a result. Lois felt tears come to her eyes. She felt fear - fear that the bad guys wouldn’t be summoning him if they didn’t have some way to destroy him, fear of what their life would be like once Mayson told the world about the man behind the hero. He knew all that, she realized. And he needed her to say the one word that would let him do what his very nature required of him.
“Go,” she said softly.
“I’m not kidding,” Mayson responded. “You do this and your life is over.”
“Go,” Lois repeated more firmly now. “The suits are in an unopened box in the back of your closet.”
Clark gave one firm nod and then whispered something to Ata. “Can you help me to the window, Lois?” Clark asked.
Lois took his arm and led him to the window in Bill’s office. After she opened it, he turned to her, taking her face between his hands and kissing her soundly, before leaping out the window and disappearing straight up into the sky, leaving her weak-kneed staring after him.
“How could you do that?” Mayson demanded. “How could you tell him to go?”
Lois spun towards Mayson.
“Because, Mayson,” Lois said angrily, “it’s what he needed me to do! Clark told me you once said that Superman didn’t have guts. That he lacked courage. But in that, you never understood him at all, did you? Clark knows that his life is over if he does this - either because the bad guys wouldn’t have insisted he come if they intended to let him walk away alive or because you intend to tell his secret to the world.
“But he still has to go,” Lois continued. “Because maybe he can help. Because people’s lives depend on him. And because Clark Kent could never sit back and do nothing in a situation like this. It would destroy him if he did. And, unlike you, I love him enough to let him be who he is.” She grabbed her coat. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m heading down to City Hall on the off chance that I can be of some help to Clark.”
Lois grabbed Shadow’s halter and stormed from the room, leaving Mayson gaping after her.
* * * * * * * * *
TO BE CONTINUED...
ML
